THE FLOWER. 33 



Buttercup stamens and the petals and sepals of the 

 Water-lily ; for, in both these cases, there are so many of 

 these organs that there is no obvious advantage in 

 altering their insertion. (7) Displacement is generally 

 best explained by suppression or addition. (8) The 

 change of petals or other flower parts into honey 

 glands is very common, and metamorphosis for this 

 object may be seen in the following examples. 



(i) The stem part, or "receptacle" of the flower, 

 secretes honey in the Mignonette, (2) Sepals secrete 

 honey in the Pelargonium, (3) Petals in Butter- 

 cups, (4) Stamens in the Violet, (5) Cai'pels in 

 Crassula, and (6) base of Styles in Umbelliferae. A 

 great many honey glands are probably due to parts 

 of the flower which have become rudimentary, as 

 in Cruciferae. 



Much of the beauty of flowers depends on their 

 engineering mechanism and the perfect balance of the 

 parts. This was realised by the Egyptians in their 

 attempts to copy the lotus bud in their architecture ; 

 but the colour has always been an attraction to 

 civilised man, and even to such people as the South 

 Sea Islanders. 



The pleasure which mankind takes in perfumes 

 originally intended for the insect world, is best realised 

 from the proportions of the flower industry. In the 

 South of France there are 1 800 acres under flowers, 

 and 4,400,000 lbs. of Roses and 5,500,000 lbs. of 

 Orange blossom are used annually. 



Anyone who has seen the manufactories of perfume 

 on the Riviera, or realised the enormous- capital which 

 is sunk in this industry, or in that of attar-of-roses, 

 must have wondered at the curious similarity in taste 

 between mankind and the insect world. 



(B7) C 



