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34 8. .
FRANK LESLIE’S NEW YORK’ JOURNAL, 0.00 220-0000 ee oe ne
Familiar Conversations on Interesting Subjects.
Mars. Witson was sitting in her room sewing, one
day in the early part of March, when her little daugh-
ter came running in, in great glee. In her hand she
held a bunch of beautiful flowers.
«Look, mother,” she cricd, ‘ what a lovely bo-
quet Mrs. Haybrook has sent me from town.”
«¢ Rather out of the common order of things, isn’t
it, Clara, to send flowers from the town to the coun-
try: but I suppose they are hot-house plants?” '~
«Oh yes! mother, they must be; but are they
not beautiful!” wos *
«« Beautiful indeed, Clara; and how sweetly they
smell too: why, the room is filled with their per-
fume already.”
«« Mother, can you tell me what it is that causes
the odor or perfume of flowers ?”” t
«Botanists account for it in some measure; but
it is generally considered to be beyond human ob-
servation.” i :
«¢ What do they say about it?”
«« They gay it arises from the volatile oils, formed
by the corolla.” — :
«Volatile: oils, formed by the corolla! I don’t
know what that means, mother !’’ .
s¢ Volatile means passing off by evaporation—the
corolla is the blossom part of the flower; if the heat
is very great, the oils evaporate faster than they are
formed; if it is too feeble, they scarcely evaporate
at all, Under both these circumstances, flowers
seem to have very little smell.”
«Then I suppose, mother, that is the reason why
flowers generally seem more fragrant in the morn-
ing and evening than they do in the middle of the
‘Yes; for then: the heat being neither too great
nor too little, these oils evaporate just fast enough
to form a perfumed atmosphere around the flow-
ers.”
“But, mother, this seems: very plain, I think;
what did you mean when you said a little while
ago, it was beyond our observation ?” te
“JT alluded to the particular way in which these
oils were formed by the corolla: that, as well as
the secretion of nectary, appear to be hidden myste-
ries of the Great Author of Nature, which our limit-
- ed faculties are not permitted to comprehend.”
«Nectary is a sweet juice, something like honey
which is found in many flowers, isn’t it, mother ?"’
* Yes; and if it answers no other purpose, we
know it affords food for bees and other insects.”
‘Was the science of botany known to the an-
cients, mother?” ,
It was, to a certain extent; but, like other
branches of natural science, it had much to contend
with. It is said of Solomon, you know, that ‘he
spake of trees; from the cedar-tree that is in Leba-
the wall; and people from all countries came to
hear his wisdom.’ Pythagoras, Aristotle, Theo-
phrastus, and other philosophers wrote on this sub-
ject; but, as the descriptions which they gave of
plants were without any system, their works were
of little use. Dioscorides gave the names and pro-
perties of six hundred plants, but having no idea
of species or genera, it amounted to little or noth-
ing.” -
“«I don’t understand what you mean by ‘ species
or genera,’ mother?” .
«Naturalists have reduced all known vegetable
productions on the surface of the globe into classes,
orders, genera, and species. The classes are com-
posed of orders, the orders of genera, and the gene-
~ ra of species.” on . =
«¢ Who made this division, mother ?’”
«Charles Von Linnzus, a native of Sweden, who
has justly been styled by scientific men, the ¢ prince
of naturalists.’ I will endeavor to procure you the
history of his life, which you can read at your lei-
sure, and which I am sure you will be pleased
with.” :
+¢ Has it been long since his time, mother ?”.
«* He was born in 1707, and died in 1778.”
« But what particular advantages are to be deriv-
ed from having plants divided in this manner, mo-
er?” -
‘It enables a person acquainted with botany, to
determine, at a glance almost, the particular class
’ and family to which any plant may belong. To the
- traveller, more particularly, its advantages are felt ;
» for oftentimes they come across plauts unknown to
‘them before, which a knowledge of this science
enables them at once to refer to their proper sta-
tion.” — . 7
«* But how are these different classes, etc., known
- from each other, mother? there must be some dis-
, tinguishing mark.” Q .
non, even unto the hyssop, that springeth out of
Yes, there is; but, in order to understand this
distinction perfectly, it is mecessary to have some
acquaintance with the different parts of a flower.
Give me a lily from your boquet, and I will tell
you the names of these different parts,’’
Clara did so.
“Now,” continued Mrs. Wilson, taking the lily
in her hand, «this part which you call the blossom,
is, as I have already told you, the corolla; tell me
of how many parts it is composed.”
«* Six,”’ answered Clara.
« Six, yes; well each of these six parts is called
apetal. Now, what do you observe within the co-
rolla ?”? .
“Six little threads like, with asort of knob at
the end, and —~”
‘‘ Not too fast! these little things like threads are
termed stamens; the long slender part is called the
filament, and the little knob the anther. Now,
what else is there?”’
«« A stem, I suppose I might call it, which rises
in the centre, above the stamens.’”’
«This stem, as you call it, is the pistil: it con-
sists of three parts: this top part is termed the
stigma; the long slender part the style; and this
bottom part the germ.”’
‘The germ contains the seeds, doesn’t it, mo-
ther??? ~
«Yes; and when ripe it is termed the pericarp;
the seeds are termed ovules. The anther, I should
have told you, contains the pollen or dust, which
serves to give life to the young seed.”
«« How does the pollen reach the germ, mother ?””
s* When tbe flower is ripe, the anthers burst, and
the pollen is scattered: insects too, in search of ho-
ney, disturb the dust of the stamens,”’
«+ Are these all the parts of the flower, mother?”
«No; the end of the flower-stem where these pe-
tals are inserted, is termed the receptacle. These
are all the parts of the lily, but there is another part,
which, although found in most flowers, is wanting
here.”
«You mean that little green thing like a cup,
don’t you, mother, at the bottom of the corolla!
Here is one in this pink.” _:
ed D
«Yes, that is what I allude to; this little green
cup is called the calyx. Now let me hear if you
can explain the differ ‘nt parts of a flower ?”.
«First, then, I suppose it is the ealyx which sur- S
rounds the corolla ——’
«The different parts of the calyx, I should have
told you, are called sepals.”
««Next the corolla, or blossom part of the flower ;
the parts of which are called the petals; within the
corolla are the stamens; the parts are the anther,
which contains the pollen, and the filament, whic!
supports the anther; then, in the centre of the sta-
mens, is the pistil, composed of the germ, the style,
and the stigma; and the last is the receptacle, which
supports the other parts of the flower. That is all, x
isn’t it, mother?” ,
‘In the mature plant, there are two other parts.”
«Oh! yes; the pericarp and the seed.”
*¢ You have done very well, Clara: that, I think,
is as much es your,mind ought to be burthened
with at one time; so we will leave the subject for
the present.” .
ee
Conversation II, .
«Can you tell me anything more about flowers
this morning, mother?” asked Clara, a fews days
after the last conversation on flowers between her
and her mother took place. - .
“Yes, my dear,” replied Mrs, Wilson. “I was
just thinking about sending for you for that pur-
pose. I suppose you have not forgotten what I told
you about the different parts of the flower?”
“No mother; I was going over them to myself
a little while ago, and I could distinguish them all
quite perfectly.” -
‘I told you the other day that plants were divided
into classes, orders, &c. Classes ar2 the largest
‘| division. According to the system which is now
most commonly adopted, ,there are twenty-one
classes.” os toe
« How are these distinguished from each other,
mother 1” .
« By the number of stamens they contain; that
is, the first ten are distinguished in that way; the
remaining eleven, upon distinctions observed in the
stamens.” “Le
. Then I suppose, mother, a plant with one sta-
men belongs to the first class; one with two to the
second, andsoon!” » J.) a ae,
“Yes.” a :
«Then the lily, having six stamens, is of the sixth
class; and the pink, having ten, is of the tenth
class.” 4 ‘ a st -
“Just so. This division of plants in clssses, to »
orders, etc., may be compared to the gencral divi-
sions of the inhabitants of the earth; thus classes
are like the different nations of men; orders, to the
ifferent divisions of nations ; genera, the different
families which compose these several divisions ; and *
species, the different individuals which compose a
family.”
“Then, I suppose, the name of the genera is like ©
to the surname of a person, and the name of the |
species to the individual or Christian name?”
“Yes; but when you speak of a single family of ‘
plants, you should say genus, not genera; genera
is the plural of genus. But the specific name of
the flower, instead of preceding the family name as
it does among the families of men, follows after.”
“What! just as if you were to call me Wilson
Clara, instead of Clara Wilson ?” ra
“Yes; there are many different kinds or species
of roses, you know ; in botany they are termed rosa
canina, or dog-rose, rosa damascena, or damask
rose, rosa alba, or white rose, etc.” ~
“ Why how foolish this seems, mother?”
“Tt is owing to these names being of Latin ori-
j
gin; and in that language the adjective generally
follows the noun.” .
“Are the names of the classes and orders of Latin
origin too, mother?”
“No; the first twelve classes are named by pre- -
fixing Greek numerals to the word Andria, which
signities stamen.
Here is a list of Latinand Greek °
numerals which I have written for you, which you |
had better commit to memory, as it will enable you |
to understand better the names of the classes and /
orders.” * te - . i
GREEK.
« Monos,
ODUWAOM eg tom
o
&
BES
Zoek
ae
3
&
Maltus..
“Then, mother, I suppose,” said Clara, after
looking over the list for a few minutes, “ the first
4 class is called Monos-andria, the second, Dis-andria,
t
“No; only a portion of the numeral is prefixed,
jus :—
th
Mon-andria..,..., 1 stamen | Hex-andria.....,
-andria 2 “ Hept-andria.....
‘ri-andri 3 *. | Oct-andria.
Tetr-andri: 4 Enne-andri: .
ent-andria.......5 ‘> | Deceandria......
‘«That is only ten classes, mother; I thought you
said twelve were named in this way ?” .
“These classes, you know, depend upon the num-
ber of stamens they contain; the other two have a
different distinction” ..- * -
‘What is that distinction, mother?”. ‘--
«The eleventh class, Icos-andria, from Dikosi, 20,
has more than ten stamens, which are inserted on
the calyx. The twelfth class, Poly-andria, from
Polus, many, has also ‘more than ten, but they are
inserted on the receptacle.” ‘ :
&
“Then, mother, I should say the poppy belonged |
to ihe twelfth class?” y
“Yes; and can you not think pf some belonging
to the eleventh? look into your boquet, I think
you will find one there.” . vl: -
“The rose, doesn't it mother ?” - >
> 66 Yes.” 7s i=
““« Now, how are the other classes known?”
“ The thirteenth has four stamens ; two of which :
are longer than the other two.’ The fourteenth has
six: four of which are longer than the others.” |’
“ How are these named; mother?” : °
“By prefixing Greek. numerals ‘to: Dynamia,
which signifies power or length: thus, Di-dynamia
13, Tetra-dynamia, 14.” © staat
“* What flowers belong to these classes?”
“Of the former, we might name the wall-flower,
and the fox-glove ; of the latter, cabbage, mustard,
3
radish, and other important table vegetables. ‘The ~
next two classes are named by prefixing Greek nu-
merals to adelphia, which’ signifies: brotherhood :
thus, Mon-adelphia, 15; Dia-delphia, 16.2" +
.: To be continued. ao