THE STEUCTUEE OF THE FLOWER 9 



THE CLASSIFICATION OF PLANTS 



Plants arrange themselves naturally into groups or 

 lannJies, all the members included in any one family 

 bearing a close resemblance to one another. Tlius a 

 very superficial examination will show that the Broom 

 IS similar to the Laburnum in so far as the flowers are 

 concerned. If these flowers be examined minutely they 

 will be found to shoAv many points of resemblance, and 

 the same is true of the flowers of all the plants that have 

 been included in the same family as the Broom and the 

 Laburnum. In the same way the different families may 

 be segregated into groups of families, each group being 

 composed of families that resemble one another more 

 closely than they do other families not included in the 

 same group. To illustrate the above points we may 

 sgain mention the Broom family, which is known as 

 LEGUMiNOSiE. The various members — Gorse, Clover, 

 Lupin, Pea, Bean, &c.— possess flowers so obviously alike 

 m structure that their close relationship is obvious after 

 ^ very superficial examination. In the same manner the 

 Hemlock, Caraway, Fools' Parsley, Hogweed, 8zc. show 

 equally great resemblances ainonoj themselves, and are 



nicluded in the family Umbellifer^. A third example 

 ^^y be taken from the Daisy family, namely the Com- 

 posite, which includes the Dandelion, Coltsfoot, Ground- 

 sg], Hawkweed, and a host of other flowers, all of which 

 oear the same familj^ stamp. When we now compare the 

 Legumin08.e, UMBELLlFERiE, CoMPOSiTvE and the other 

 families among themselves, we find for example that the 

 Buttercup family (Kaxunculace.e) is more or less closely 

 connected with the Poppy family (Pap averages), but is 

 tar removed from the CoMPOSiTiE. The latter, on the 

 <^ther hand, is closely connected with the Teazel family 

 (Dipsace.e). Inasmuch, therefore, as plants do not form 



