120 THROUGH THE FIELDS WITH LINNAEUS 



It was a new doctrine in his day, and brilliant 

 in its brand-new gloss, although derived from a hint 

 as old as Aristotle, who gives this glimmering ' If 

 the dust of the branch of a male palm be shaken over 

 the female tree, the fruit of the latter will ripen quickly.' 

 Le Vaillant was not the first to read Aristotle, but he 

 was the first to apply the idea to flower-structure, to 

 the pistils and stamens of plants. One can go further 

 with other people's ideas than with one's own, is a saying 

 true all the world over : it was left to this young Swede 

 to take the leap from Le Vaillant's standpoint and bring 

 the long-desired system out of the obscurity beyond. 

 ' Till now Linnaeus had considered plants by their bloom, 

 hitherto the stamina and pistilla had been considered in- 

 significant.' A mere finish to the beauty of the flower, 

 a fringe and tassels. ' The idea of a better system than 

 that which Vaillant had hinted now guided his botanical 

 observations.' As in human nature families are named 

 from their marriages, so with plants he would make 

 this the basis of nomenclature. The further he brought 

 his theory forward the more consistency did he discover 

 in his own knowledge, the more powerful were the 

 attractions of the plan. Oh, the fear lest someone 

 might forestall him ! And this alarm was not un- 

 founded ; for though a truth may have lain dormant 

 for thousands of years, yet the moment the earth is 

 ready for its appearing it will spring up, and someone 

 will, and must, be the first to light upon it. 'The 

 sexes of plants now occupied his thoughts night and 



