82 The Romance of Wild Flowers 
across, it will be found to be divided into a large 
number of compartments by the outgrowth of plate- 
like placentze from the walls of the capsule, and each 
of these compartments opens by a little window under 
the eaves of the stigmatic roof. They are closed until 
the seeds are ripe, then the little valve shrinks away 
from the stigma, and as the wind sways the long 
slender stalk the numerous and minute round seeds 
are shaken out. There is another species with capsule 
of similar shape, the Long Smooth-headed Poppy 
(P. dubiwm), but in this the filaments of the stamens 
are thin and thread-like throughout their length, the 
petals are broad, and the capsule is not bristly ; more- 
over, there are from six to twelve stigmatic rays on 
the roof. Then we have the Round Rough-headed 
Poppy (P. hybridum), with small flowers, but larger 
than the Prickly Long-head, though its stamen 
filaments are similar, and the capsule bristly ; but the 
capsule is globular in form, and the rays range from 
four to eight. The Common Poppy of our cornfields 
(P. rheeas) differs from all the others in the size of its 
petals, the two outer ones being so large that until 
the flower is fully expanded they enclose the smaller 
pair. The short, round capsule is quite smooth, and 
is further distinguished from the Rough Round-head 
by its eight to twelve rays, and by being slightly 
elevated above the receptacle by a little foot-stalk. 
Now, all these Poppies, yellow and red, have so 
many features in common, that no botanist would 
hesitate to say they are all descended from a common 
ancestor, and that ancestor belonging to the yellow- 
blooded race. The differences in the form of the 
capsule between G. luteum and P. rheas is very 
