BEES AND FLOWERS. 235 
not carry the pollen-dust, and so would not keep up 
the healthy strong flowers which make her daily food. 
But this, as you see, is not the rule. On the con- 
trary, the flower feeds the bee, and the bee quite 
unconsciously helps the flower to make its healthy 
seed. Nay more ; when you are able to read all that 
has been written on this subject, you will find that 
we have good reason to think that the flowerless 
plants of the Coal Period have gradually put on the 
beautiful colours, sweet scent, and graceful shapes of 
our present flowers, in consequence of the necessity of 
attracting insects, and thus we owe our lovely flowers 
to the mutual kindliness of plants and insects. 
And is there nothing beyond this ? Surely there 
is. Flowers and insects, as we have seen, act without 
thought or knowledge of what they are doing ; but 
the law of mutual help which guides them is the same 
which bids you and me be kind and good to all those 
around us, if we would lead useful and happy lives. 
And when we see that the Great Power which rules 
over our universe makes each work for the good of all, 
even in such humble things as bees and flowers ; and 
that beauty and loveliness come out of the struggle 
and striving of all living things ; then, if our own life 
be sometimes difficult, and the struggle hard to bear, 
we learn from the flowers that the best way to meet 
our troubles is to lay up our little drop of honey 
for others, sure that when they come to sip it they 
will, even if unconsciously, give us new vigour and 
courage in return. 
And now we have arrived at the end of those sub- 
