THE STAMENS. 



27 



pendent gem ; and in one large class of plants the calyx and corolla 

 adhere so closely to the exterior of the ovary, that they are lifted, in 

 effect, on to its summit, as very prettily exemplified in the fuchsia. 

 The ovary is usually divided into compartments, called " cells," and 

 is spoken of as one-celled, two-celled, three-celled, &c., according to 

 their number. Occasionally there is but one cell, as in the primrose. 

 The rudimentary seeds lie within the cells, few or many in each, 

 according to the fecundity of the plant. 



Fig. 55. 

 Stamen. 



Fig. 56. 

 Pistil. 



Fig. 57. 

 Opened corolla, ^^S- 58. 



shewing Stamens and 



sessile stamens. sessile pistil. 

 Fig. 54. Stamen. Pistil. 



Stamens and pistil. 



Standing round the pistil are " stamens," (Figs. 54, 58.) slender little 

 bodies, usually consisting of a thin stalk, and upon its summit a kind of 

 bead, round, oblong, or kidney-shaped. The stalk is called the "filament,'' 

 and the bead-like head the "anther." (Fig. 55.) The latter alone is indis- 

 pensable, so that we need not be surprised at often finding it sessile and 

 concealed in the cavity of the corolla. This occurs in the mezereon, 

 ■where the eight little sedentary anthers are easily discoverable. (Fig. 57.) 

 In lily-form flowers, such as the daffodil, the stamens are exceedingly 

 ■well-shewn, being large and tall. They are conspicuous, too, in the 

 fuchsia, the gentianella, and the cactus, where they resemble a tassel 

 of white silk. In the mullein, the Lancashire-asphodel, and the 

 spider-wort, the filaments are ornamented with coloured hairs, and a 

 similar decoration is occasionally found upon the anther. The latter 

 organ is a box, usually of two compartments, and containing a light 

 powder called "pollen." Most flowers have yellow pollen, but it 

 varies to scarlet, blue, white, as in the convolvulus, and even black, 

 as in the tulip. Every one who has watched bees at work, will 

 remember how they creep out of the honied caverns of the flowers, 

 all powdered and bespangled with golden dust. Examined with the 

 microscope, there are few things in nature of more rare and astonish- 

 ing beauty than the anthers and pollen. 



