EFFORT AND ACCOMPLISHMENT 191 



defences, yet, when standing in shal- 

 low water, out of reach, will develop 

 smooth stems. 



The teasel thrusts its stem through 

 the united bases of its leaves, as I 

 sometimes jab my pencil through a 

 sheet of paper. The leaves thus form 

 a cistern to catch and hold the rain- 

 drops in a pool around the stem so 

 that no creature can climb upward 

 and devour the flower. 



Though the ant is often a ruinous 

 visitor, he is not always to be dreaded. 

 In fact, since he is notoriously car- 

 nivorous, he actually serves the plants 

 many times by destroying battalions 

 of their worst enemies. It has been 

 estimated that the dwellers in a single TEASEL 



ant-hill devour 100,000 plant-pests in a single day. 

 The Chinese know the value of these little allies 

 and, in the Province of Canton, the orange-growers 

 place ant-nests in the orange-trees, with bamboo 

 poles from tree to tree for the ants to use as bridges. 



The plants are as wise, for certain thistles exude 

 a sugary liquid outside their buds to attract ants, 

 and these defend the citadel from beetles. An 

 Acacia of one variety bears hollow thorns for little 



