198 Comet II. 1862. 



the spike, as the long and flexible proboscis was thrust^ into the 

 scarcely opened flower, it could not fail to touch the sensitive 

 rostellum, and bear away the disk and its pollinia. 



The experiment is easily tried, and you will find that once 

 fertilized the stigma becomes dry, and will receive no more 

 pollen. There is no waste in any of the works of God. 



For more minute details of rostellum and disk, we must 

 refer to Darwin's work, as the length of this paper is limited ; 

 but I wish to observe that a section of the ovary is well worth 

 looking at, also the seeds, like pretty netted purses, which con- 

 tain the germ of the future plant, fig. 8. A portion of the 

 cuticle also, from any part of the stem or flower, will show 

 jointed and glandular hairs, giving a crystallized appearance to 

 the surface of these parts. 



Fig, 7 is a mature ovary, with the withered sepals on its 

 apex and the bract at its base. 





COMET II. 1862. 



BY THE EEV. T. W. WEBB, F.R.A.S. 



After the magnificent plume of the " Donati," and the bril- 

 liant nucleus and wonderfully extended train of our visitant of 

 last year, " Comet II. 1862" has possessed comparatively little 

 claim to general attention; and even in the telescope several 

 of the more interesting features of these most unintelligible 

 bodies have been absent : but in such as have developed 

 themselves, there has been much of an instructive character. 

 There has been no well-marked separation of envelopes in 

 the head, no dark channel like a shadow in the tail ; but the 

 emission of luminous matter towards the sun, and the librating 

 or swinging motion discovered by Bessel in Halley's comet in 

 1835 have been so unequivocal as to be eminently worthy of 

 study. My attention was early directed to these points, and 

 in the following pages will be found such observations as our 

 vapour-loaded skies have permitted, and the capacity of a 5^- 

 inch object-glass has put within my reach. They may probably 

 not be found in entire agreement with those made by other 

 hands, and under other circumstances ; and the student must 

 be prepared for greater uncertainty in these matters than might 

 have been anticipated. It is well known to all who have com- 

 pared the records of cometary phenomena how variously their 

 appearance is given by different instruments and observers ; and 



