POND LIFE 





 CHAPTER I 



MICROSCOPIC WONDERS 



THE world as we know it without inquiring below the surface 

 is certainly wonderful, but with the application of scientific 

 knowledge, aided by microscope and hand lens, the whole as- 

 pect of " the world " alters ; it becomes even vaster. 



The owner of a low-power hand lens finds himself in a fresh 

 world. The small wild flowers of our hedge-rows reveal little- 

 known beauty, and turn into blooms that would eclipse many 

 of our most prized varieties. But the use of a microscope has 

 even a greater effect, and the mycologist enters into a kingdom 

 never even dreamt of by the non-initiated. The low-power 

 lens reveals countless numbers of most beautifully formed 

 animals and plants, very different to those we are accustomed 

 to see. When first using a microscope the thinking man ex- 

 periences a sensation as if he were committing a sacrilege, for 

 he feels that he is prying into things never meant for human 

 eyes to behold. 



One is liable to think that plants are green structures which 

 have nothing else to do than to be eaten by lower animals, or 

 plucked and put into a vase by the higher. Some more en- 

 lightened realise that plants are one enormous branch of life, 

 and that those we see every day, and are most familiar with, 

 represent but a very few of the different kinds. 



On one occasion, after a lecture on Plant Life, I was asked 

 by a young member of my audience whether plants had 

 brains, and if not how was it that they could do such wonder- 

 ful things that seemingly require thought. 



I mention this incident because it shows that the vegetable 

 kingdom contains large numbers of interesting species, some 

 of which behave in a highly intelligent manner. 



9 



