Dandelions 39 
the strictest economy of material with the utmost 
strength. This contrivance enables the stem to 
uphold the proportionately large and heavy flower, 
in spite of all the onslaughts of March winds. 
“‘ Flower,’’ we have said, but the dandelion is 
really a community of blossoms. It belongs to the 
order of Composite, a large and mixed family, 
which numbers among its members such flower 
plebeians as the burdock, groundsel, and ragweed, 
and on the other hand includes that flower-aristo- 
crat, the dishevelled and expensive chrysanthemum. 
For all these flowers have this peculiarity—that 
what looks like one blossom proves on examina- 
tion to be a whole floral mass-meeting. 
They furnish an object-lesson on the evils of 
‘‘individualism,’’ and on the advantages to be 
gained by codperation. The single flowers of the 
dandelion are not larger around than small pins. 
If each were anti-social, and grew upon an inde- 
pendent stalk, in lonely dignity, they would attract 
no attention from the passing insect. But the 
yellow florets do not mean to be neglected, so 
they crowd compactly together, and by joining 
decorative forces they make quite a brave show 
in the (as yet) colorless world. There are from 
one to two hundred tiny blossoms in a single 
