36 THE HEDGE-BANK. 



off. When they are gone, long narrow pods grow 

 up in their place, not unlike the seed-pods of the 

 wall-flower, or garden stock. Each of them is 

 composed of three pieces, namely, an expanded 

 membrane, passing through the centre, and tw r o 

 elastic valves, one on each side of the central par- 

 tition. When the seeds are ripe, which takes 

 place before very many plants are in flower, the 

 lower part of each valve becomes detached from 

 the stem, curls itself up with astonishing rapidity, 

 and flies off, carrying the seeds with it to a dis- 

 tance of two or three yards, or scattering them in 

 its way. This is one, among very many examples, 

 of skilful contrivance for the dispersion of seeds, 

 of which, as there are some that will probably fall 

 in your way, I shall say a few words. No one 

 who has walked through a wood or shady lane in 

 April can have failed to notice a small, white, bell- 

 shaped flower, beautifully veined with lilac, lurk- 

 ing among delicately green clover-like leaves. It 

 is called " Wood-Sorrel,"* but, perhaps, you may 

 know it by the name of " Rabbits'-meat." The 

 whole plant possesses a grateful acid flavour, and 

 is, it is said, a fair substitute for gooseberries 

 when made into a tart. Some antiquaries main- 

 tain that it was this plant from which St. Patrick 

 plucked a leaf when he wished to explain to his 

 disciples the doctrine of the Trinity. The sham- 

 rock, now worn by the Irish on St. Patrick's day, 

 is a kind of trefoil, which grows in meadows ; but 

 when St. Patrick preached Christianity in Ireland 

 the greater part of the country was covered with 

 woods ; it is very likely, therefore, that he might 

 at the time have been walking through a wood- 



* Oxalis Acetosella. 



