2O2 Fruits and Seeds. 



this is so that I have been anxious to direct atten- 

 tion to the subject. Still, I believe the general 

 explanations which have been given by botanists 

 will stand any test. 



3. Let us take, for instance, seeds formed on 

 the same type as that of the Ash heavy fruits, 

 with a long wing. Now, such a fruit would be 

 of little use to low herbs. If, however, the wing 

 was accidental if it were not developed to serve 

 as a means of dispersion it would be as likely 

 to occur on low plants and shrubs as on trees. 

 Let us, then, consider on what kind of plants these 

 fruits are found. They occur on the Ash, Maple, 

 Sycamore, Hornbeam, Pine, Fir, and Elm ; while 

 the Lime, as we have seen, has also a leaf attached 

 to the fruits which answers the same purposes. 

 Seeds of this character therefore occur on a large 

 proportion of our forest trees, and on them alone. 

 But more than this : I have taken one or two 

 of the most accessible works in which seeds are 

 figured. I find 30 genera, belonging to 21 dif- 

 ferent natural orders, figured as having seeds or 

 fruits of this form. They are all trees or climbing 

 shrubs, not one being a low herb. 



4. Let us take another case, that of the plants in 

 which the dispersion of the seeds is effected by 

 means of hooks. Now, if the presence of these 

 hooks were, so to say, accidental and the dispersion 

 merely a result, we should naturally expect to find 

 some species with hooks in all classes of plants. 



