xxv LETTERS TO MARCO 167 



to this, having grown accustomed to it by 

 habit. 



The only other thing I had noted down 

 to write to you about, was as to the variety 

 of ways the climbing plants have of attaching 

 and supporting their growth. The tendrils 

 of the pea family with their curiously hooked 

 ends, the grappling hooks and the sucker- 

 like attachments of the ampelopsis, the 

 clinging tendrils of the ivy, and the twisting 

 grip of the bindweeds are all well known. 

 The clematis, tomato, and some others form 

 kinks in their leaf -stems, which secure 

 the plants very effectively. Thorns are the 

 great supporters to the rose family. A wild 

 rose or a bramble is very securely moored 

 in a hedge by means of its hooked thorns ; 

 and as no plants like less to be blown about, 

 this close mooring is very important to them. 

 I spoke in my last of the hooks at the back 

 of the teasel leaves, which steady the young 

 growth most effectually. I believe a great 

 amount of support is afforded to slender 



