The Daisy's Pedigree. 33 



ing to many of our modern botanists, cowslips and 

 primroses are only slightly divergent varieties of a 

 single species ; and in any case they are very closely 

 related to one another. But in the primrose the 

 separate blossoms spring each on a long stalk of its 

 own from near the root ; while in the cowslip, the 

 common stem from which they all spring is raised 

 high above the ground, and the minor flower-stalks 

 are much shortened. Thus, instead of a bunch of 

 distinct flowers, you get a loose head of crowded 

 flowers. Increase their number, shorten their stalks 

 a little more, and pack them closely side by side, and 

 you would have a compound or composite flower like 

 the daisy. In fact, we often find in nature almost 

 every intermediate stage : for instance, among the 

 pea tribe we bave all but solitary flowers in the peas 

 and beans, long clusters in the laburnum and wistaria, 

 and compact heads in the clovers. The daisies and 

 other composites, it is true, carry this crowding of 

 flowers somewhat further than almost any other 

 plants ; but still even here you can trace a gradual 

 progress, some approach to their habit being made by 

 allied families elsewhere ; while some composites, on 

 the other hand, have stopped short of the pitch of 

 development attained by most of their race. Thus, 

 certain campanulas have their flowers packed tightly 



