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I have fometimes thought, that if it was poffible to take out the 

 young plant from any feed, and unite it to another feed, in that 

 place where the young plant was formed in that feed, a tree or fruit 

 would from thence be produced of a fpecies unknown before : as, 

 for example, if we could take out the young plant from the Walnut, 

 and unite it to the fubllance of a Chefnut, a tree would be pro- 

 dirced not like either of the trees from whence thofe fruits were 

 refpeetively produced, and confequently a tree of a new fpecies. 

 And a certain eminent gentleman hearing me mention this, urged 

 me rtrongly to make the experiment, faying, that though of thofe 

 two feeds only one could vegetate, yet we might expedl that fome 

 tliird plant of a new fpecies would be the refult. For my part, I 

 confidered the thing as impoflible to be performed, and fo I found 

 it upon further invelligation of the fubjeifl ; but as there are not 

 many men well informed in the iirft formation or growth of trees 

 and plants, I will here defcribe the nature of the firll formation of 

 the young plant, both in a Chefnut and a Walnut. 



Fig. 20 is a Chefnut, broken in half; A is the rudiment or firfl 

 "beginning of the plant, and though the Chefnut is a verv large 

 feed, yet the original or lirll formed leaves can very rarely be dif- 

 covered in it ; and indeed I mull confefs, that among many Chef- 

 nuts I found but one in which I could difcover the two leaves of the 

 young plant ; the upper part of the young plant was fomewhat of 

 a round form, and furnished with a fort of cavity. This beginning 

 of the plant, marked at A, is not only firmly imited to the fub- 

 fiance of the nut, but there is one remarkable particular in it, 

 different from other plants, that it has not only two ftrings or 

 ligaments to convey nouriihment from the Chefnut to the young 

 plant, until it is of fize and ftrength to draw nourifhment from the 

 earth, but thefe ligaments are provided with a great number of 

 veflels, having their rife in the Chefnut, to convey the nutritious 

 jaices ; and thefe veflels produce others in the root and Hem. Thefe 



