Woodside. 47 



functions of the plant, the fertilization of the ovules and the 

 final production of seed, may take place. It is well known that 

 very few flowers, even if they are capable of so doing, fertilize 

 their ovules with their own pollen, and generally the arrange- 

 ment of the parts of the flower is such that self-fertilization 

 is impossible. An intermediary is necessary to carry the 

 pollen from one flower to another, and such Nature provides 

 in the numerous army of flower-loving, flower-haunting in- 

 sects. The general colour of the flower first attracts the in- 

 sect whose sense of sight is keen enough to enable it to distin- 

 guish a mass of colour ; the insect once attracted, the contents 

 of the nectaries of the flower are sufficient to keep the visitor, 

 and as the latter rifles the flower of its honey, it carries the 

 pollen from one flower to another, and fertilisation is effected. 

 But in plants with inconspicuous flowers the attractiveness of 

 the corolla is at its minimum, and does not count, and then 

 Nature finds other methods of attracting visitors to do the 

 necessary work. In the light of our present knowledge we 

 believe that the sense of smell is highly developed in insects, 

 and we find that Nature takes advantage of this, and pro- 

 duces odours in flowers which direct the insects to the 

 treasures hidden within the flower. 



The leaves of plants also all have their own inherent 

 scents, and differences, inappreciable to our coarser senses, 

 appear to appeal distinctly to various forms of insect life. 

 By this means we believe that the butterfly discriminates 

 and selects the plant on which she lays her eggs, and in the 

 same way we suppose that other insects are attracted to the 

 honey stored in the nectaries of flowers, the getting at 

 which ensures the fertilization of the ovules, and finally the 

 propagation of the plant. That the perfume of a plant, be it 



