SCIENCE IN THE PLANT WORLD 
quick, spring-like motion and presently straight- 
ens up again. ‘The evident intent is to shower 
some pollen on the little intruder with the hope 
that he may carry its vital principle to some 
neighbour of the same species. 
In the Parnassia Palustris, fortunate observ- 
ers have sometimes seen the five stamens bend 
forward and beat on the head of the pistil in 
rotation as if on an anvil. Perhaps outside 
pollen-carrying agencies have passed this par- 
ticular flower by and, in desperation, it is re- 
sorting to self-fertilization. 
The Junger Mania, a plant allied to the 
Mosses, shows knowledge of the laws of me- 
chanics when it uses a natural spring coiled 
in a small tube to project its seeds out into the 
world. Seeds of fresh-water Algae swim about 
for a few hours after leaving their mother-plant, 
vibrating their cilia with great rapidity. It 
is the ability of certain one-celled plants to 
move about freely which causes considerable 
discussion as to whether they are really not 
animals. The Diatoms are examples. ‘They 
propel themselves through the water by oscil- 
lating their whole bodies from side to side. To 
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