LIFE HISTORIES OF FAMILIAR PLANTS 



necessarity means a successful plant, one that has 

 held its own in the struggle for existence. Its 

 success, however, is the just reward of its origin- 

 ality, for Nature is always willing to help an 

 organism that strikes out a successful line of de- 

 velopment. And even if the arum's success means 

 the occasional death of a small animal, it does not 

 matter in the least, for a successful plant is more 

 to Nature than a foolish animal that cannot 

 distinguish between proper and improper food 

 material, for that animal can be of no service to its 

 race, so Nature helps the race by briefly termin- 

 ating the career of this faulty individual. Thus 

 Nature's apparent cruelty is really both wise and 

 kind, for the race of animals benefits as well as 

 the arum plant. 



46 



