24 THE ROLL OF THE SEASONS 



giving them painful and even disabling sores, though 

 the simple precaution of oiling the hands before work 

 is said to break down the flowers' defence. No plant 

 is better armed in this respect than the wild arum, 

 whose inviting leaves we find unrolling in every 

 corner that the " lords and ladies " love ; and no 

 plant can display foliage so intact from the bite of 

 a slug. Yet it was shown by Stahl that snails would 

 greedily devour leaves that had been treated with 

 acetic acid, and the raphides thus dissolved. Our 

 tender lilies, then, must be set down as plants that 

 protect themselves from destruction by means of 

 prickles. 



Tender as the young nettles are, there is none but 

 man to hinder them as they spring up among the 

 hard, dry stems of last year. They are at liberty 

 to choose their own time and place, and they elect to 

 begin the year early. These spring things refuse to 

 take the risks that the soft summer blossoms cheer- 

 fully face. The game of producing millions that a 

 hundred may survive is all very well for June, but 

 it will not do for March. Even the modest violet, 

 that delights us with its scent, most probably uses 

 the distinction as a means of keeping away some- 

 thing hungry. The primrose, on the other hand, is 

 good eating, as may be seen by adventurous roots 

 nibbled short off. But, numerous as primroses have 

 already become, their numbers are as zero by com- 

 parison with what they will be a month hence. It 

 is only the erratic primrose that blossoms before 

 Lady Day, while better protected flowers put out 

 their whole bloom in this blusterous month of March. 



It is plain that the blackthorn buds are coveted. 



