ANTS. 67 
present in view, speak of plants in this connection as if 
they were endowed with volition, for the result attained 
in course of long ages may be regarded in much the same 
light as if that result had been brought about by the 
plant’s constant care for its own welfare. 
To secure the end desired, the plant has had to offer 
some strong inducements to various winged insects—bees 
chiefly—in ‘order to attract them to come and visit its 
flowers after these insects have been making a round of 
visits to other flowers of the same kind. In order to 
attract the bees, the flowers take on showy colours which 
can be seen as distinct from the rest of the plant at some 
distance away; and when the bee sights the flower and 
reaches it, it finds, in many cases, a special arrangement 
for it to alight upon, and very often it may find also that 
the plant has put up direction-marks pointing out to the 
bee which way the plant wishes the bee to go. The 
whole arrangement reminds one of what is done with a 
well-managed bazaar. There are the flags up to attract 
attention, great facilities for getting in, directions showing 
the visitor which way to go, and innumerable little devices 
to lead him to leave behind him the one thing needful, 
for which, as we know, he usually gets some article of 
small value in return. 
So the bee, after visiting many flowers, all of the same 
species (which appears to be their habit), on the same day, 
comes to the flower whose history we are supposed to be 
considering, settles upon it, pushes its way into the flower 
in search of the tiny drop of nectar which the flower, at 
some expense to itself, has stored up for the purpose; and, 
while rummaging after that, the bee leaves behind some 
of the pollen which its hairy body had rubbed off the 
flower previously visited, and the needful act is completed. 
As just now remarked, the formation of the nectar which 
is held out as an inducement to the bees to visit the flowers, 
makes a somewhat heavy demand upon the vitality of the 
plant, and it cannot afford to give it away without some 
adequate return. To secure the desired end, it is essential 
that the visitor should enter the flower in one particular 
way, and also that the insect should be of such a size, or 
