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CHAPTEE I. 

 KANUNCUL1CE.E. 



1 Exhibit on thy dress whene'er they bloom 

 The Buttercup and Daisy. They -will be 

 The types of heaven, and holier than the plumes 

 A hero wears, and they will preach to thee 

 Of how the sun and showers drop favours ceaselessly. 



" Away ! The counterfeit shake off from thee ; 

 And Nature's gold and silver gather up, 

 Such as keeps innocent the child and bee, 

 And which from heaven the angels have let drop 

 The Daisy, and her sister flower the Buttercup." 



E. H. BURKINGTON. 



I SUPPOSE we are all bearing in mind, began the Lady 

 President, that the distinctive feature of the first or Recep- 

 tacle subclass, or that of the Thalamiflorals, is that the various 

 parts of the flower calyx, corolla, and stamens, are fastened 

 on the receptacle beneath the germen. The first order in this 

 subclass is that of the EANTJNCULACEJE, of which the Buttercup 

 is the most universally-known representative. The general 

 characteristics of this numerous order are from three to six 

 petals and sepals, numerous stamens, and several distinct car- 

 pels. They are generally herbs with divided leaves, the foot- 

 stalk of which spreads out so as to form a sheath, which clasps 

 the stem. Most of them are in a great degree poisonous if 

 taken internally, and painful if applied to the skin. Their 

 numerous stamens and cupped corolla give them a close re- 

 semblance to the wholesome Eose order ; but the poisonous 

 Eanunculaceae may at once be distinguished by the early falling 

 of their calyx-leaves, while those of the Eosacese continue to 

 adorn the ripening fruit. 



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