114 THE HUMAN SIDE OF PLANTS 



wings, soon fall to the ground, where they unfor- 

 tunately are too crowded to grow, and die from 

 lack of sunshine ; others steer their airships out over 

 the big ocean where they swim for a while and finally 

 sink in the water and are eaten T)y fish ; those who 

 have grown too attractive from undue care are soon 

 eaten by birds, who are extremely fond of seed- 

 babies ; while many others of these youthful adven- 

 turers, who manage to light in apparently suitable 

 places, are eaten by insects; and so only a few are 

 fortunate enough, notwithstanding all the care the 

 parent plants bestowed upon them, to get such a 

 start in life as to become successful and reach their 

 highest point of development. 



Those few who are lucky in finding comfortable 

 homes in the autumn, secure from birds and insects, 

 soon fall into a long slumber, while the leaves blow 

 over them, and the snow buries them under, af- 

 fording a warm, snug bed where they sleep all 

 winter. When the hot sunshine melts the snow in 

 the spring, the tiny seeds burst their brown coats or 

 shawls, in which their fond mothers wrapped them 

 before they ventured out into the world, and each 

 sends down a delicate rootlet to drink in moisture. 

 It also sends up leaves to drink of the glorious 

 air and sunshine. Soon it grows so strong and 

 happy that more leaves are sent up, and finally 



