III. THE LEAF. 63 



and some like winding currents, and many like 

 arrows, and many like hearts, and otherwise varied 

 and variable, as leaves ought to be, — that rise out of 

 the waters, and float amidst the pausing of their foam. 



25. Brantwood, Easter Day, 1875. — I don't like to 

 spoil my pretty sentence, above ; but on reading it 

 over, I suspect I wrote it confusing the water-lily leaf, 

 and other floating ones of the same kind, with the 

 Arethusan forms. But the water-lily and water- 

 ranunculus leaves, and such others, are to the orders 

 of earth-loving leaves what ducks and swans are to 

 birds ; (the swan is the water-lily of birds ;) they are 

 swimming leaves; not properly watery-creatures, or 

 able to live under water like fish, (unless when dor- 

 mant), but just like birds that pass their lives on the 

 surface of the waves — though they must breathe in 

 the air. 



And these natant leaves, as they lie on the water 

 surface, do not want strong ribs to carry them,* but 

 have very delicate ones beautifully branching into the 

 orbed space, to keep the tissue nice and flat; while, 

 on the other hand, leaves that really have to grow 

 under water, sacrifice their tissue, and keep only their 

 ribs, like coral animals ; (' Ranunculus heterophyllus,' 

 'other-leaved Frog-flower,' and its like,) just as, if 



" You should see the girders on under-side of the Victoria Water- 

 lily, the most wonderful bit of engineering, of the kind, I know of."— 

 ('Botanical friend.') 



