THE SWEET CHESTNUT 47 



the season when the pollen is ripe the flowers pro- 

 duce a very powerful and somewhat hircine odour. 



The " cupule," formed from the four bracteoles 

 of the two lateral florets, corresponds to the cup of 

 the acorn, the leafy husk of the Hazel-nut, or the 

 hook-covered casino- of the Beech-mast. Until the 

 fruit is ripe it is entirely invested by this husk, 

 which is thickly beset with prickles, each of them 

 said to represent an abortive branch. This balk 

 like chevaux-de-frise of protection ultimately splits 

 into its four constituent bracteoles, disclosing the 

 glossy brown fruits within. The ovary contains 

 from five to eight chambers, and there are an 

 equal number of stigmas, which are easily recog- 

 nised, as the} 7 " spread outwards in a radiating 

 manner above the calyx which, even in the fruit 

 stage, surmounts the ovary. There are generally 

 two ovules in each chamber of the ovary, out of 

 all of which one only, or three at the most, is 

 matured into a seed. 



The well-known fruit, so often confused by the 

 botanical tyro with the seed of the Horse-chestnut, 

 a tree with no real relationship to our present sub- 

 ject, does not often in this country reach eatable 

 proportions, though the gales of every autumn blow 

 down the bright green fuzz-balls of spines, bursting 

 them open and liberating the three brown fruits, 

 more or less shrivelled, within. Upwards of 50,000 

 bushels of chestnuts are annually imported into 

 England; and they still form a staple article of 

 food in the central plains of France and the 

 valleys of the Alps, fur they contain so large a 



