154 CLASS DIADELPHIA. 



this family of plants, form no absolutely distinct class 

 of organs, their function, on the contrary, is divided, or 

 distributed among various other organs ; sometimes 

 they are elongated stipules, processes which appertain 

 to the system of the leaves, such are the tendrils of 

 the Smilax, or Green Briar. In the Gloriosa svperba, 

 the points of the leaves themselves are lengthened out 

 into tendrils. In the Cucumber, and Pumpkin, on a 

 careful comparison, it will be seen that the tendrils 

 correspond in divisions with the number of the princi- 

 pal vessels in the opposite perfect leaf, and, that they 

 are only imperfect leaves, and merely lack the con- 

 necting cellular tissue. So in many aquatic plants, 

 the submersed leaves often present numerous capil- 

 lary divisions, while the emerging leaves are entire, or 

 merely notched, serrated, or lobed. In the Grape 

 Vine (Vitis) the abortive peduncle forms the tendril, 

 and may not unfrequently be found bearing a small 

 portion of fruit. In the Calytrix of New Holland, the 

 petals themselves terminate in long hairs or filaments, 

 not very dissimilar to tendrils. In Clematis virgin- 

 iana, one of our commonest climbers, the petiole, pro- 

 ducing perfect leaves, entwines itself like an ordinary 

 tendril. In the volubulous plants, such as many spe- 

 cies of Convolvulus, &,c. the stem itself partakes of 

 the clasping character of the tendril. This means of 

 attachment, puts on the nature of the root, in some 

 measure, in the Cissus hederacea or 5-leaved Ivy, as 

 its extremities, like the radicant fibres of the Ivy, ob- 

 tain a firm attachment to the trunks of trees and the 

 sides of walls ; and, like roots, these radicant tendrils 

 avoid the light, and seek opaque and cool bodies. We 

 see in all this secondary contrivance of nature, in the 

 character of the tendril, as in many other subjects of 

 the vegetable kingdom, an admirable, yet variable ap- 

 plication, according to circumstances, of economy to 



