VAEIOttS MAREIAGE CUSTOMS. 105 



forgive one or two occasionally), is one of the 

 largest in the world, and includes a vast number 

 of the most useful and also of the most orna- 

 mental species. Tho structure of the flower, 

 which is very similar in them all, can be easily 

 studied in the broom or the sweet-pea, plants 

 procurable by everybody. There are still five 

 petals, though two of theni are united to form 

 a lower portion of the flower, known as the 

 keel; then two others at the side are called 

 the wings ; while a broad and often handsomely 

 coloured advertisement-petal at the top of all is 

 called the standard. The sepals are often com- 

 bined into a single calyx-piece, though as a rule 

 the calyx still retains five lobes or teeth, a 

 reminiscence of the time when it consisted of 

 five distinct and separate sepals. The stamens 

 are welded together into a sort of long tube ; and 

 the pistil is reduced to a single carpel or pod, 

 containing a few big seeds, very familiar to most 

 of us in the case of the pea, the bean, and the 

 scarlet-runner. This shape of flower has proved 

 so successful in the struggle for life that papi- 

 lionaceous plants are now common everywhere, 

 while hundreds of different kinds are known in 

 various countries. 



Yet closely as the peaflowers resemble one 

 another in general aspect, they have still among 

 themselves a curious variety of marriage customs. 

 I will mention two only. In gorse, a flower 

 which everybody can easily examine, the wings 

 have two little knobs at the sides for the bee to 

 alight upon. As he does so, the corolla springs 

 open elastically, and dusts him all over with tho 



