190 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF 



supporting parts. The male flowers are five to eight in each involucral cup. 

 — in the female they are single ; but in place of flowers the female has five to 

 eight horns on the perigynium. The want of correspondence in number in 

 parts which were uo doubt embryologically the same, together with a corres- 

 pondence in the number of the horns on the perigynium, would naturally sug- 

 gest to one acquainted with the absorbing or coherent power of the female influ- 

 ence that the primordial bud had absorbed the rest, of which all that remained 

 were these horns. This I subsequently proved to be more likely by the dis- 

 covery of i'»ro/o?-?«s o/^^er^'j/y/jia. Occasionally three female flowers appear in 

 one involucral cup. In such cases the two lateral ones have, mostly, no 

 horns, or rarely one or two ; while the central one has but from four to 'six — 

 evidently a less number than others which have no side flowers with them. 

 In the male flower we find two forms ; the perfect ones with five broad an- 

 thers, abundantly polleniferous, without horns, and without any attempt at 

 producing a style. The other class has anthers which seem never to produce 

 perfect ])olleu, but are projected into a " setiform inflexed appendage" or 

 horn, and have a single sterile style which is capped by a numerously rayed 

 stellate apex. Torrey & Gray {Flora N. M. Page 290) notice this form of 

 flower, but err in evidently believing it universal; while other authors seem 

 to refer to the former, ignoring or ignorant of the existence of the latter. 



The absence of a style in connection with perfect anthers, and the attempted 

 production combined with the dificiency of pollen in the neutral ones, show 

 an evident progress towards a female stage ; and also it is clear that with this 

 progression is a tendency to cornution in the parts absorbed. I pointed out to some 

 of our botanical friends in the Academy some weeks ago, that from these cir- 

 cumstances the horus on the perigynium could scarcely be anything else but 

 the ren*ains of absorbed floicer buds, 



I have now found a specimen Avhich affords the practical demonstration of 

 these truths — a female plant not a foot high, with enough of the cohesive 

 power to give it an entire female character, but not to the same extent that 

 more vigorous forms possess. The horns are in every state of gradation from their 

 usual condition on the perfect perygnia to petaloid scales, down to perfect flowers 

 with the regular twin styles; though adherent by their bases to the central or 

 main flower. Only for this early cohesion with, and thus a reception of the 

 female influence, the lower ones would undoubtedly have been male flowers. 

 I present this specimen, together with a suite of the others referred to, for 

 the Society's herbarium. 



I may be again permitted to repeat what I have frequently said already in 

 papers before this and kindred associations, that there are probably in plants 

 two distinct principles going along together — the one hereditary — a conserva- 

 tive, coherent, female force, which, as the very existence of all things de- 

 pends on it, nature throws in and around it her strongest vital powers ; — and 

 variation a progressive, radical principle, the only object of which is to pre- 

 vent stagnation, — to seggregate and disperse rather than unite and preserve, — 

 and by giving varied form to matter, is the source of the endless changes which 

 give beauty and interest to the other; — less vital, less essential, less cared 

 for by nature because she reproduces herself by buds, tubers, suckers, roots, 

 and many other ways tvheii she does not care for variety, without it, but not less 

 essential to our pleasures and intellectual progress, and indeed the eternal 

 progress of all things. 



I submit this paper as another contribution to a theory which may not yet 

 appear to others so clearly a law, as it continues by almost daily observations 

 to grow on myself. 



iVoy. 2nd, 1869. 

 Mr. Isaac Lea in the Chair. 

 Twenty-nine members present. 

 The death of Dr. T. H. Turner, U.S.A., was announced. 



[Nov. 



