250 



SAGACITY AND MORALITY OF PLANTS. 



Fig. 87. — Broom-rape {Orobanche rap7wi). The 



scales on the stem are useless and aborted leaves, jyj g j^l t) e f S 



impoverished Clover 

 roots to support them 

 gratuitously. Thus 

 they flourish in the 

 midst of plenty, with- 

 out putting forth any 

 effort of their own 

 whatever, either in 

 the way of assimilat- 

 ing mineral salts from 

 the soil, or of ab- 

 stracting carbon from 

 the atmosphere ; 

 whilst their general 

 bitterness and astrin- 

 gency protects them 

 from the grazing 

 animals attracted by 

 the Clover and other 

 edible plants : and so 

 we see them distri- 

 buted all over our 

 fields, erect and trium- 

 phant, the very per- 

 sonification of suc- 

 cessful knavery ! 

 All 



our British 

 of the 

 natural order OrobanchacecB are criminals in this 



