CASSANDRA 



beneath ; upper leaves gradually smaller j the uppermost reduced 

 to mere bracts. Petioles short. 



Flowers. April. Perfect, solitary, white or tinged with rose 

 purple, urn-shaped, borne on short pedicels in the axils of the 

 small upper leaves, forming terminal one-sided, leafy racemes. 



Calyx. Sepals five, persistent, bracted at base. 



Corolla. White, oblong-cylindric, narrowed at the throat, 

 five-toothed, one-fourth of an inch long ; teeth recurved. 



Stamens. Ten, included ; filaments flat, smooth ; anther-cells 

 tapering upward into tubular beaks, awnless ; cells opening by 

 terminal pores. 



Pistil. Ovary superior, five-celled, five-grooved; style slen- 

 der ; ovules many. 



Fruit. Capsule, depressed-globose, opening by five valves, 

 two-coated ; outer coat splitting into five parts, inner into ten \ 

 persistent throughout the winter, many seeded. Seeds flattened, 

 wingless. 



The Cassandra often blooms before the snow is 

 gone, but this is not difficult, because the flower buds 

 were formed the summer before, and sometimes in late 

 autumn they show the white tips of the corolla extend- 

 ing beyond the stiff sepals. So well prepared are they 

 that a few days of sunshine develop the flowers. As 

 the little bells become perfect in form and texture they 

 droop upon their delicate slender stems and make a 

 most charming wand-like spray. 



The common name Leather- leaf is appropriate 

 though not pretty ; Cassandra, the name of the daugh- 

 ter of Priam and Hecuba, is pretty but means nothing. 

 The foliage effect of the plant is good, and this with 

 its early flowers makes it worthy of cultivation. 



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