MEANING OF GENUS 137 



the continuation of the connective. There are in 

 each of these species also, many carpels which, at 

 first separate, become fused in fruit so as to form 

 one fleshy mass with several black seeds. If one of 

 these be cut open, the endosperm will be seen to 

 be marked by irregular lines running in from the 

 seed coat (technically known as being ruminate). 



These three species are thus very much alike in 

 all the important respects of (i) the arrangement of 

 the leaves, (ii) the arrangement of the flowers, (iii) the 

 nature of the flowers themselves even to the minute 

 detail of the stamens, (iv) the fruit, and (v) the seed. 

 Only in the shape of the leaves, and in the ap- 

 pearance and taste of the fruit do they really differ. 



In the same way we find in the cooler parts of 

 India (and on the hills of South India and Ceylon) 

 several kinds of ground Orchid which differ in the size 

 of the stem, leaves and flower, in the length of the spur, 

 in the erect or spreading position of the sepals, in 

 their white or purple colour, and in the shape of the lip, 

 but all are very much alike in the arrangement of 

 the flowers on the stem (a spike), in the inferior, 

 twisted ovary, in the large front petal (lip), in the 

 presence of five other smaller petals or sepals, and in 

 the other parts of the flower. All the common Strobi- 

 lanths of our hills, again have opposite leaves, swol- 

 len nodes, and flowers of the same pattern, but differ 

 in habit and in the shape and size of the leaves. 

 The two common garden Cosmeas, COSMOS, the yellow 

 C. KLONDYKE and the pink or white (or purple) 

 C. BIPINNATA, which differ in the much more divided 

 leaves, are in their flowers exactly alike (except in 



