80 Mr John Sadler. By C. Stuart, M.D. 



from its commencement.* His loss to this club, of wMcli he 

 ■was "the heart and soul," can never be properly estimated. 

 One of the best practical botanists in Scotland, he well knew the 

 habitats of all the rare plants, both in the Highlands and Low- 

 lands. He was an original genius, with a keen apprehension 

 of every subject he inquired into ; and no one brought in con- 

 tact with him could ever forget the penetrating glance of his 

 bright black eye. His varied knowledge charmed every one, 

 so delightfully was it flavoured with the sly " Scots wut " which 

 formed part of the man. A most delightful companion on the 

 mountain-side, his inimitable manner of relating, in language 

 bubbling over with humour, the extraordinary adventures he 

 had met with in his plant hunting expeditions helped to while 

 away the time on many a steep ascent, and can never be forgot- 

 ten. In illustration of his graphic power in description I here 

 append a specimen of his address at the opening of The New 

 Institute, Berwick, on 30th May, 1882. 



"THE GEBMINATION OF THE SEED. 



If we took a seed we would find that it was a little mansion house, 

 beautifully built up with the finest bricks, all fitting together in the most 

 perfect manner. Then you would find an inhabitant, a little baby plant. 

 This lay in a cradle which was beautifully prepared, sometimes in the 

 garret, sometimes in the drawing room, sometimes in the parlour, and 

 sometimes in the kitchen. But it was always in one place, in each par- 

 ticular species. For instance if you examined the seed of the pea and 

 bean, either in Great Britain, or Australia, or America, you would find 

 the embryo in the same position in each specimen. It was wrapped up 

 in the finest muslin, in the form of starchy matter which was provided 

 for its food. You put the seed into the soil, where it was provided with 

 a certain amount of moisture, heat and air. It might be necessary also 

 to keep it partly in the dark. Through the walls of the dwelling house, 

 a certain amount of moisture penetrated, and the starch by the action of 

 heat in a beautiful chemical process, was converted into sugar, or the 

 finest kind of wine, so that a plant was not a teetotaller in its infancy ! 

 The little baby then began to grow and push its foot out of the door of its 

 mansion house. Afterwards it went down into the soil in the form of a 

 root, which was just like a sponge. It then cautiously sent up its little 

 stem, then the branches, leaves and flowers. The last had certain organs 

 which produced fruit, and in these was found the seed in which you get, 

 the little baby plant again, so that the whole vegetable life went round 

 and round. It occurred just the same in the most minute plant, as in 



* Professors Balfour and Dickson, Mr W. B. Boyd, Capt. Norman, E.N., 

 Drs. Craig, Aitken, and Charles Stuart, members of the Berwickshire 

 Naturalists' Club, are also members of the Scottish Alpine Botanical Club. 



