22 IAMILIAR WILD FLOWERS. 



several upright steins, varying in height from a few inches 

 to two or even three feet. These stalks are round in cross 

 section, swollen at the joints whence the leaves spring, and 

 readily breaking across at those points, hairy, and, towards 

 their extremities, forking. Where the plant has grown 

 amidst surrounding herbage the stems are green and appear 

 to be succulent, but in more exposed situations they are more 

 slender, and often deep dull crimson in colour. The leaves 

 are thrown off in pairs, and are generally as hairy as the 

 stems. The calyx, too, shares in this general hairy character, 

 has five acute teeth, and is strongly ribbed. It varies some- 

 what in form, according as to whether the flower it encloses 

 is stamen-bearing or pistilliferous in the latter case being 

 more globular than in the other. The corolla is composed 

 of five heart-shaped petals, the colour in some plants being 

 much deeper than in others. The styles are five in number, 

 white, long, and thread-like ; they may be very clearly 

 seen in the centre of the flower in our illustration. The 

 stamens are ten in number, five being longer than the 

 other five. Instead of finding both organs in the same 

 plant, as is so generally the case, all the flowers on one 

 plant will be found to have styles alone, and all those on 

 another to be furnished with stamens exclusively. Our 

 illustration presents us with the former of these; it was 

 unnecessary to figure both, as the general appearance of the 

 plants remains so nearly the same. The pink campion is 

 abundantly met with everywhere in moist shady places 

 and on hedge-banks, and flowers throughout the summer, 

 commencing as early as May. 



On taking down " Dodonams," we find that " the seed 

 and floures, with the whole herbe of the wild cam- 

 pion, are very good against the stinging of scorpions. 



