140 



HUTCHINSON'S POPULAR BOTANY 



same time a fact to be specially remarked the sky was overcast with a- 

 thunder-cloud. 



Seven years later (August 4th, 1842) the phenomenon was observed by 

 a Mr. Dowden and three others, at nearly the same time of the day and 

 under similar climatic conditions. In other words, the flashes were seen at 

 about eight o'clock in the evening, after a week of dry weather. " By 

 shading off the declining daylight, a gold-coloured lambent light appeared 

 to play from petal to petal of the flowers, so as to make a more or less 

 interrupted corona round the disc." The flowers examined were a double 

 variety of the Common Marigold. 



In quite recent years more than one naturalist has recorded his personal 

 observations of the phenomenon. Thus Canon Russell, writing to Science 

 Gossip in September, 1891, says : " On the evening of June 16th, 1889 r 



I happened to be taking a 

 stroll round the rectory 

 garden, and passing by a 

 fine plant of the Common 

 Double Marigold, of a deep 

 orange colour, I was struck 

 by a peculiar brightness in 

 the appearance of the 

 flowers. After watching for 

 a few seconds, I observed, 

 to my great surprise, that 

 coruscations of light, like 

 mimic lightning, were play- 

 ing over the petals. Think- 

 ing that I might be only the 

 victim of an ocular illusion, 

 I brought out other mem- 

 bers of the household, and 

 asked them to report exactly 



\ ^1 what they saw. Some per- 



ceived the flashes readily 

 enough, but others only 

 slowly and after patient 

 observation, all eyes not 

 being equally sensitive to 

 such rapid vibrations of 

 light. These performances 

 commenced about 8.30 p.m., 

 and continued for perhaps 

 an hour. I afterwards ascer- 

 tained that much later on, 



IE. step, 



Fio. 176.-DBAGON (Arum dracunculus). 



This South European species differs from the Cuckoo-pint in producing 



a stem above ground, which is spotted with purple. The leaves, too, 



are broken up into large lobes in a pedate manner. The spathe and 



spadix are purple, and give out a fetid odour. 



