102 



THE NATURE BOOK 



passing from flower to flower and collecting 

 the honey situated deep down at the 

 base. Watch a plant, if you have the 

 time, and look for a humble bee alighting 

 on the bell. You will see that the shape 

 of the flower agrees exactly with that of 

 the bee's body. And this is, in fact, the 

 only insect that fertilises the plant. The 

 stamens ripen before the pistil, two at a 

 time, and at first the anthers, where the 

 pollen is stored, are in a horizontal 

 position ; when ripe, these become ver- 

 tical. The pendulous habit of the 

 blossoms protect the various organs from 

 the rain. 



As to the name Foxglove, no one seems 

 to have been able to give a satisfactory 



derivation of it, and the meaning will 

 probably remain in obscurity. 



WOOD SAXICLE 



Another plant which is frequently met 

 with is the Wood Sanicle {Sanicitla 

 curopcea) with prett}', divided, very glossy 

 foliage, and small, round heads of white 

 flowers, arranged in an umbel. The small, 

 outer flowers bear stamens only ; the f^^on-tj^u-c^ 

 is flattened and oval in shape, and is pro- 

 vided with numerous hooked prickles, 

 which catch hold of anything that touch 

 them, so that they have the chance of 

 being widely disseminated. The flowers 

 will be found during June and July. 



H. PuREFOY Fitzgerald. 



MOST of us, I imagine, derived our 

 first conception of a Dormouse 

 from the immortal tea-party : 



" ' Treacle,' said the Dormouse, ' with- 

 out considering at all this time.' " 



^^'hereby hangs an amazing tale. Messrs. 

 Xewstead and Walker, while moth-collect- 

 ing at Colwyn Bay, captured a Dormouse 

 at sugar.* This Dormouse, I think, 

 must have been like his captors — an 

 entomologist. A Hedgehog has a low 

 taste for rum, but a Dormouse ? Yet there 

 is a record of one nibbling honeysuckle 

 for the nectar, and it must be confessed 

 that a Dormouse is b)' no means par- 

 ticular in his diet. 



The following are some of the eatables 

 which have been described as welcome to 

 him by various authors : hazel-nuts of 

 course, acorns, grubs, birds' eggs, apj)les, 

 grapes, raisins, bacon fat, cherries, any 

 kind of corn, porridge, bread and milk, 

 and sponge cake. 



* Proc. Chester Soc. Nat. Science, 1893, p. 248. 



In spite of the historic complaint of 

 the little girl that her Dormouse " had 

 no habits," he is, and will always be, a 

 favourite pet for the nursery. " It has no 

 smell, either good or bad," writes Buff on 

 gravely. But, apart from this excellent 

 quality, a vicious Dormouse is exceptional. 

 " ' I wish you would not squeeze so,' said 

 the Dormouse . . . and he got up very 

 sulkily and crossed over to the other 

 side of the court." 



That is the Dormouse all over. He 

 resents over-attention. He will move 

 (sulkily, if you will) as far from you as 

 possible, but he will never bite. 



Well — hardly ever. 



One sits beside me as I write, and him 

 I con only describe as a savage little 

 beast. He has often tasted my blood, 

 but I cherish some affection for him. The , 

 world has used him hardly. He was 

 caught in March, 1907, full grown and, 

 for the time of year, robust. One ear 

 had gone, and three parts of his tail. 



