

THE LIVING STRUCTURES 143 



the contemporary creatures and was easily king of the 

 period and monarch of its race." 



Now if it is true that the cell is a builder of all living 

 things, both plants and animals, we should be able to 

 find the same intelligent scheme for self-protection and 

 self-perpetuation also in plants, or what we might call 

 their stationary habitations or structures ; and such is the 

 case, for the schemes and tricks employed by plants to 

 serve their purpose show intelligence of a high order. It 

 is impossible in this short chapter to go into the details 

 and describe the innumerable methods used by plants to 

 fight drought, animals, frost, heat, etc., but the following 

 article from the Literary Digest is a very good general 

 description of some of the methods. The article intends 

 to describe some of the unnecessary cruelties practised 

 by some plants on animals and insects in order to further 

 their own selfish purpose. It says : "Take the case of the 

 fruit of the Martynia, a South American plant, which is 

 armed with terrific hooks, sometimes as much as five or 

 six inches long, so curved that they seize hold of passing 

 animals and plunge deeply into the flesh. It is said that 

 the Bullocks are often thus driven half frantic and suffer, 

 dreadful wounds. Of course the final result is that the 

 seeds receive a very wide distribution, but a large amount 



of needless suffering seems to be involved 



Even more astonishing is the case of the Grapple Fruit 

 of South Africa (Harpagophytun). This species is of a 

 low growing habit and bears fruits which are freely 

 adorned with most formidable barbed appendages. The 

 fruit secures its dispersion in the following manner : in its 

 position out of the ground it is liable to be trodden on by 

 sheep, deer, etc. ; at once, of course the hooks catch hold 

 and these penetrate into the tender places of the foot 

 between the horny portions. The unhappy animals limp 



