JOUBNALi 



OF THE 



ROYAL MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY. 



JUNE, 1908. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SOCIETY. 



XI. — The President's Address : On Seeds, with Special Reference 



to British Plants. 



By The Right Hon. Lokd Avebury, P.C., D.C.L., F.R.S. 



(Bead March 18, 1908.) 



Plate IV. 



When the Council did me the honour of inviting me to accept 

 their nomination for the Presidency, I placed before them two reasons 

 which, while fully appreciating the honour, made me feel very 

 doubtful whether I ought to consent. In the first place, I am not 

 now so much in London as formerly, and, secondly, my eyes no 

 longer permit, or are fit for, much microscopic work. The Council, 

 however, pressed me to accept, and, perhaps too readily, I allowed 

 myself to be over-persuaded. This came home to me still more 



EXPLANATION OF PLATE IV. 



Fig. 1. — Delphinium peregrinum. x 12. Longitudinal section of seed. L, some 



of the uppermost tunics or laminse ; LS,LS, longitudinal sections 



of laminse ; r, embryo. 

 „ 2. — Pinguecula vulgaris Linn, x 16. F, funiculus. 

 „ 3. — Veronica hedercefolia Linn, x 8. Ventral face of seed, showing the 



funiculus or seed-stalk F in the centre of a nearly circular and deep 



cavity. 

 ,, 4. — Melampyrum pratense. 

 „ 5a. — Galeopsis versicolor Curt, x 16. Dorsal aspect of nutlet. B, bald, 



or uniformly pale brown patch ; B S, B S, black spots on a blackish 



brown surface, speckled with grey. 

 „ 5b. — Ditto. Ventral aspect of nutlet. S, scar of attachment to receptacle 



and to one another ; I A, inner angle ; B. bald patch ; C T, convex 



top. 



June 17th, 1908 u 



