PARSLEYS Eve 
himself with a hasty decision that the thing is some 
kind of parsley, but what kind no sensible human being 
would waste his time in trying to discover. Now this 
is natural, but unwise, for half the pleasure of plant- 
hunting comes in at the end, when one wrestles with the 
botany books in order to identify one’s captures. In two 
points we can generally find some clue to our search. 
Always notice carefully the arrangement of the bracts 
around the umbels (or clusters of flowers), and, if 
possible, examine the seed, for its formation and shape 
is often a great help. The seeds, also, have another 
interest, for many of them are traversed on the surface 
by small canals, which are full of oil, sometimes un- 
pleasant, but more often aromatic. A good example is 
to be found in the caraway, growing wild in some parts 
of England, which one meets a good deal more frequently 
in seed-cakes. 
It will not be possible here, however, to deal in detail 
with the many slight variations of the common type, 
so I propose to describe briefly some of the eccentric 
members, which one might not perhaps recognise for 
Umbelliferze at the first glance. First comes a plant 
with a cheerful name, the “ White-rot,” which grows in 
marshy places, and is often accused by farmers of giving 
diseases to sheep, though as a matter of fact the guilty 
party is an unpleasant animal parasite called the “ fluke,” 
which the sheep picks up when grazing in marshy places, 
only to find that it takes up permanent residence as an 
unwelcome guest in its liver. Our present retiring friend 
creeps about low down in the herbage, and is most easily 
recognised by the round leaves, which are supported by 
a stalk in the centre, like the leaves of the garden 
Nasturtium. The reddish-white flowers are in very 
