38 PAPILIONACEOUS FLOWERS. [part i. 



are attached, each pea being furnished with a 

 little separate stalk, called a funicle. A cook 

 would be surprised, even in these enlightened 

 times, to be told to take a legume of Pisum 

 sativum^ and after separating the two valves at 

 the dorsal suture, to detach tlie funicles of the 

 seeds from the placenta ; yet these scientific 

 terms would merely describe the operation of 

 shelling the peas. It will be seen by this de- 

 scription that the pod of the pea differs very 

 materially from the seed-vessels of all the other 

 plants I have had 'occasion to describe; and 

 that it thus forms a very distinctive character 

 for the order. The other parts vary in the 

 different genera : the calyx is sometimes tubular, 

 and sometimes inflated ; sometimes it has only 

 four notches, or teeth as they are called, instead 

 of five, and sometimes it has five distinct sepals 

 divided to the base. The parts of the corolla 

 vary also in proportion to each other, the keel 

 in some of the Australian plants is as long as 

 the standard ; as, for example, in Kennedia 

 MaryattcB ; and in others the wings arc so small 

 as to be scarcely visible. The stamens of many 

 of the species are also free, that is, divided to 

 the base ; while in others they resemble those 

 of the sweet-pea, in having nine joined together 

 and one free ; and in others the wliole are 

 joined together at the base. The pods also 



