FLOWERS ON THE TREE TOPS. 219 



residence in the primeval forests of Brazil makes him 

 quite an authority in these matters, has given a some- 

 what detailed description of the habits of these singular 

 plants, * and the extraordinary way in which these 

 parasites spread themselves, " like a fluid, " over trees 

 and other objects, every now and again sending down 

 " air roots, " and thus gaining fresh streng ch to prolong 

 their already enormous growths; which like the inter- 

 lacing cordage of a line-of-battle ship of the olden 

 day bind the trunks of adjacent trees so securely 

 together that the most violent storms are unable to 

 tear them asunder. "Large flowers of remarkably 

 brilliant colours are also, as we have said, character- 

 istic of the lianas or climbing plants," but as these 

 are generally " spread over the very tops of the highest 

 trees, very often a fallen flower, or a peculiar odour, 

 is all that betrays the presence of these rare beauties, 

 to which the botanist often looks up in vain. " f Bril- 

 liantly coloured flowers, as a rule, we may here 

 remark, almost invariably seek the brightest sunshine. 

 Hence it comes that we often hear of superficial ob- 

 servers jumping to the conclusion, either that there 

 are no flowers at all in these forests, or complaining 

 that the floral treasures are seldom to be seen. Occa- 

 sionally, however, when circumstances admit of a good 

 bird's-eye view being obtained over the summits of 

 the tree-tops, the observer becomes suddenly convinced 

 of his error. The author, for instance, can never 

 forget the extraordinai y magnificence of the floral 



* See, Reise nach Brasilien, by Von Martius, Vol. iii, p. 32, etc. 



f Outlines of the Geography of Plants, by F. J. F. Meyen, M.D., 

 Professor of Botany at the University of Berlin, p. 164. (Translated 

 from the German for the Ray Society of London, by Marg. Johnston, 

 1846). 



