242 LUTHER BURBANK 



low order of derelopment, abowing reUtivclv 

 little diversity of form and ttnall capacit 

 adaptation. 



The most conspicuoui of them with which the 

 ordinary observer is familiar, namely, tltc fems 

 bear a striking resemblance in contour to plants 

 of the remote Carboniferous Era, traces of which 

 have been preserved in the coal beds. And there 

 can be no doubt that this persistence of the 

 primitive form has been largely due to the special 

 method of fertilization whidb the fems have 

 retained. 



If it be permitted to carry personification one 

 stage farther, we might say that the ancestors 

 of the fems belonged to a conservative family, 

 jealous of its independence, and unwilling to 

 enter into outside alliances. 



And the penalty- of conservatism here, as so 

 often in the range of human experience, has been 

 racial stasis. 



I'uLNTs That Havl i i i i xui: Lmun 



It would appear, however, that there are 

 certain races of plants that were once members 

 of the plant-insect alliance but which are now no 

 longer in the union. 



These apostates mclude two quite different 

 tribes of plants. 



