IN FLOWERING PLANTS. 143 
prismatique à 5 angles, est eppuyé par tout le pourtour de 
sa base sur le bord interne et supérieur du tube formé par 
les étamines réunies. Il n'y a pas, il est vrai, continuité de 
tissu entre ces parties, mais application et adherence assez 
forte, de maniére à ne laisser ancune communication entre 
les anthéres et la base du stigmate qui correspond à cette 
cavité formée par les filets des étamines soudés en tube et par 
le tube de la corolle et qui occupe les ovaires et les styles." 
p. 20. 
So that this author would appear to have overlooked the 
fissures that exist between each anther, and which commu- 
nicate directly with the stigma. 
On the actual nature of the functions performed by the 
granules, Mr. Brown abstains from making conjectures. 
This observation led him, however, to conclude that they are 
agents of nutrition to the tube, rather than of absolute im- 
pregnation and supply, “the really active particles in this 
function being probably much more minute." x, p 
M. Brongniart supposes throughout that these granules 
are the organs of fecundation, as might be supposed from 
his calling them spermatic granules, and believes them to be 
the essential organs of fecundation, thus asking whether the 
central cell he states to be visible in some nascent embryo, 
be not the spermatic granules ? 
Subsequently he looks upon the embryo as formed by one 
or more spermatic, and by several ovulary granules., 
'The granules he considers as in most instances, of one 
form in each species; and in addition he says, that the 
exceptions may arise from the mixture of other larger gra- 
nules of irregular form, and which he is disposed to regard 
as concrete drops of resin or of oil. Moreover he considers 
it probable that these extraneous bodies perform the same 
duties as does the mucus in the semen of animals. p. 5. 
