A FEW WORDS MORE ON THE POLLEN. 27 



This golden dust, contained by every flower in the few 

 or many stamens which are the caskets of its wealth, is the 

 fructifying principle which causes the seed to become 

 fruitful, and without which no reproduction of a plant 

 could continue, as it does, from age to age. 



The purpose of this book being chiefly to explain the 

 objects before us, I will not say more of the pollen-grain 

 than that it must be examined both as a transparent 

 object, with a drop of water or oil of lemon, and dry, as 

 an opaque. Particularly observe the blue pollen of Epilo- 

 bium; the red pollen of Yerbascum; the black pollen of 

 the Tulip ; tlie varied forms in the following flowers : 



Cucumber 



Crocus 



Cactus 



Cruciferse (order) 



Collomia 



Campanula 



Coba3a Scandens 



Composite (order) 



Geranium 



Heath 



Daisy (one of the Com- 



positae) 

 London Pride 

 Saxifrage 

 Violet 

 (Enothera 

 Passion flower 

 Lupin 

 Acacia 



A FEW WORDS MORE ON THE POLLEN. 



As I lay aside these slides, and desire you to seek for 

 varieties of pollen in the fresh sweet flowers around, the 

 thought arises that some who read thus far may wish to 

 know a little more of the structure of the flower they 

 gather, and the pollen they examine; else the microscope 

 lesson loses half its vahie, and the student more than half 

 his pleasure. If it is possible, read some better book 

 Lind ley's works, or Balfour's { Botany/ where all is told, 

 and illustrated by plates ; but if you cannot do this, then 

 gather a flower and examine it thus : a Chickweed will be 

 easily obtained, and is the best for a microscope lesson. 



The organs of generation 'in flowers are the stamens and 

 the pistil : the stamens varying in number from two to 

 upwards of twenty; and the pistil, which occupies the 



