——— ae 
PLANT INTELLIGENCE 
ee 
tinually has to meet new and trying conditions, 
and while its reactions, just like those of man, 
are frequently in the terms of racial and in- 
dividual experience, it is constantly called upon 
to make new and novel decisions. 
Consider the intelligence of a wild Service 
Tree described by Carpenter. As a seed, it 
sprouted in the crotch of an Oak, and at once 
sent a lusty root down toward the earth. As it 
descended the Oak trunk and neared the 
ground, its further progress was barred by a 
large stone slab. It is authentically recorded, 
that, when still one and one-half feet away, the 
tip of the root, by direct perception or occult 
means, discovered the presence of the obstruc- 
tion, and, at once splitting into two equal bran- 
ches, passed on either side of the stone. 
A more remarkable case is that of a tropical 
Monstera, which, coming into life on top of a 
greenhouse, sent canny and vigorous roots di- 
rectly down to certain water tanks on the 
ground. ; 
Isolated instances of plant intelligence might 
be mere coincidences if it were not for the fact 
that they multiply greatly the further one in- 
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