THE EVOLUTION OF THE FLOWERS 73 



regiments behind at each station, as it were, and 

 these represent the stages of advance. A micro- 

 scopist will show you in a drop of pond-water the tiny 

 one-celled algcB which remain at the lowest level of 

 plant-life ; and he may then show you chains or clusters 

 of alg(E, representing the next great step, the forma- 

 tion of a many-celled body. The botanist would then 

 show you how, in the course of time, some of the cells 

 "specialize." Some make the stem, some the leaves, 

 some the roots, some the spores or seed. 



But I have not space here to consider the very rich 

 evolution of the plant world. If I gave only a general 

 outline of it, the result would be a bewildering variety 

 of technical names. Some teachers think it real in- 

 struction to insist on a certain number of technical 

 names. It is not, unless a pupil is definitely learning 

 a particular branch of science. These names cause 

 brain-fog, unless they are thoroughly learned and 

 analysed. That is good in its place, but this is not 

 the place for it. We will rather make a general 

 survey of the evolution of flowers. 



The various parts of a flower are leaves which have 

 been modified for their particular purposes in the 

 course of evolution. In a growing flower or a very 

 primitive flowering plant a botanist can clearly 

 demonstrate this. Here we will take it for granted. 

 The lower types of plants have spores, not seed, and 

 no flowers ; but it was found some years ago, on ex- 

 amining certain ferns which were beautifully pre- 



