6 INTRODUCTION 
guileless folk had tastes and passions deserving the closest 
study. They actually seem, now that I understand them bet- 
ter, more like human beings than forms of vegetation, and if 
we believe the marvellous tales of the wise men as to the de- 
pendence of Orchids upon insects; that each part of a flower 
has its share in the mutual labor; that the spots and fringes, 
silken curtains and waving banners, strong, or subtile odors, 
are not mere adornments, but necessary to the fertility of the 
plant and the perpetuation of its race; that there are changes 
in color and structure, plots and devices to gain their ends, we 
must confess, I think, that although the Orchids do not spin, 
they toil with a wisdom and foresight that Solomon might 
have envied. 
It is well to enumerate at this point the leading characteris- 
tics of Orchids; that is, of the Orchis family, and I find that 
many are puzzled by the interchange of words. Our Orchis 
spectabilis is a species of the genus “ Orchis,” but the Orchis 
family has many other genera, and while it is proper to call an 
Arethusa or a Lady’s-Slipper an Orchid, it is not proper to call 
either an Orchis, that final consonant being of decided impor- 
tance in the botanist’s view. 
Quoting from both Gray and Darwin, let me explain that 
the flower of an Orchid has “3 inner divisions (petals) and 
3 outer divisions (sepals) mostly of the same texture and petal- 
like appearance. One of the inner set differs more or less 
from the rest .... and is called the /ade//um or lip,” and this is 
often beautifully or grotesquely shaped, and whether furnished 
with a spur-like appendage or destitute of one, it is almost 
always a conspicuous feature. “It is by far the most impor- 
tant of the external envelopes of the flower. It not only 
secretes nectar, but is often modelled into variously shaped re- 
ceptacles for holding this fluid, or is itself rendered attractive 
so as to be gnawed by insects. Unless the flowers were by some 
means rendered attractive, most of the species would be cursed 
