THE FEEN PARADISE. 



inches. From the under side of the root-stock 

 grow the thin, matted, fibrous roots, which pene- 

 trate deeply into the soil, and eagerly drink in 

 the abundant moisture which is essential to its 

 existence. From the crown of the root-stock 

 start, in thick tufts, a mass of delightful, green, 

 brittle, and herbaceous fronds, supported each on 

 its stem one-third, and sometimes one-fourth, of 

 its entire length ; sometimes bright green in colour, 

 at other times purple. The form of the frond is 

 lance- shaped, widening from its base to its centre, 

 and tapering thence to its apex. Along its central 

 rib, or rachis, are arranged opposite in pairs or 

 in alternation a line of pinned or leaflets tapered 

 outwards in the same way that the frond is tapered 

 upwards. On each side of the midrib of each leaf- 

 let is a row of lobes, beautifully serrated, or saw- 

 edged, and bluntish towards their points. In the 

 larger leaflets the lobes are distinct and separate 

 one from the other. In the smaller ones the 

 division between the lobes is less marked ; and this 

 is the case in every plant with the lobes which lie 

 near the points of the leaflets. 



The delightful, but most delicate, fronds of the 



244 



