Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1855-01-24


He commenced by saying that all the mr..
gans OF the flower AND fruit are in some v,v
subeervient to the productioGEor the protact;o On
oil the seed. The relations between the bIos-
som and vegetation was first con sidered A.
branches are evolved from buds, so ara blos.
SONS and leaf buds, and flower buds are often
much alike In their earlier stages. Som ,tines
hoWer-buds are turned into leaf. buds The
petas, 90, are Familiarity called the leaves
oI the blossom, thus recognizing An analogy
between them and the ordinary leaves and
therefore between the whole flower and the
branch
In consequence of this, II was next noticed
that flowers accord with bran ches in their DC
sltlon flower buds always arising from the
ssme points that leaf. buds do, viz from the
exils of the leaves, or the SUBMITS of the stem
or branches, giving origin to two modes of
arrangement of flowers in clusters, a simple
law, answering to that which fixes the position
OF the leave. and branches in vegetation, also
nxes the position of every blossom, assigns to
each cluster its shape and character, and in
dictates the precise order in which the bios.
SONS are to expand.
The structure of these organs was explained.
the petals, stamens, and pistils shown to be
notifications of leaves, the whole flower there.
fore sort of branch with q very short axis
Inc gradual and complete transition of leaves
OF the calyx into petals, and of petals into
stamens, was shown in the blossom of the
water lily.
In illustration of the doctrine that all parts
OF the mower answer to leaves on the branch,
the various forms of the leaf were passed in
review, showing that when any special Office
Is 10 be fulfilled in the plant, nature does not
create new organ, but adopts the common
organ, the leaf, and sdapts it to the office it is
to hll Thus they are seen in the seed leaves,
In the tendrils Of the pea and gourd and in
ne oud scales, which, in most trees aud
shrubs, closely enwrap and protect the tender
tips OF the shoots in tho winter, So, in the
blossom, they are leave adapted to still other
conditions which comp, the envelopes of the
flower or appear as 6 '1ens. which contain
the yellow fertilising sder called pollen;
while other leaves, folded inwsrdly, and their
edges united, form pistils; the united margins
Of Of, the transformed leaf bearing ovules, which
after fertilization by the pollen applied to the
stigma, have an embryo formed within, and
thus become seeds
Ihe change takes place at q ve:y early De-
Rod, when all the parts Of the forming bud
are nearly similar; but what answers to, ard
might have been developed as an actual leaf,
takes different mode of development, and
becomes a stamen or pistil. A parallel
case was mentioned In zoology. The compar-
ative anatomist recognises the arm of man in
the fore arm of the monkey, the fore leg of the
cat, dog, OK, DO, modified in the details to
suit the peculiar conditions of each particular
animal; and recognises it no less in tho fore
limb OF the bat, where it serves the purpose of
q wing; in the two wings Of birds in tho I'm
like arm of whales and dOlphins, and in the
pectoral fin Of the fish These are all homol-
ogous parts; 80 are all the organs Of the
hover; and, havicg no one general name to
embrace them all, the leaf, being the earliest
and the most universal form, is naturally
saKen as the type, and all the others regarded
as notifications
The lecturer then considered the symmetry
Of the flower, and the prevalence of the num-
oers and 5-sither the one or the other of
these numbers usually running through the
whole blossom-and stated th at the found alton
for this was to be found in the arrangement of
the leaves on the stem, which was fixed in
each species by precise mathematical law.
He then touched upon the disguisal OF this
symmetry In many blossoms by the union of
various contiguous parts, and upon deyiations
from symmetry through the abortion or sup
preston OF certain parts his was illus
trated by referring to cases where parts wbich
exist In the flower are suppressed in the fruit,
as In the fruit Of the beech and the acorn,
where only one seed Is found at maturity,
tnough there are always six rudimentary seeds
10 each Jistil. Only one Of them grows and
ripsns; the other five are abortive or sup
pressed with perfect regularity. Several
grades Of simplifed forms Of the flower were
then exhibited, closing with the blossoms of
tue pine and spruce, as the most simple Of
tree flowers; one kind of these flowers oon-
slstlng OF single stamen alone the other,
Of pistil alone; and this pistil being q fiat
scale or open reduced leaf, bearing a pair of
oVules or seeds on its inner face, directly ex-
posed TO the air, and to the pollen from the
'tsmens, which acts upon it directly.
The action Of the pollen and the formation
OF the embryo was then briefly adverted to
AZ the embryo Is formed, the ovule becomes
seed and the pistil, with whatever may be
connected with it, becomes the fruit The
principal notifications of the fruit were then
illustrated, beginning with the simple pod,
nut, or berry, or stone fruit such as the cher
~ and peach, and passing to the moro COM
pick fruits, such as raspberriss, strawberries
tracing their analogies with the fruits of the
rose, ounce, apple, &C., and closing with H.
lustrstions of fruits which result from the
union OF great many flowers in one mas
such as those Of the mulberry, pine apple,
brea d-fruit, the fg and many others.
WERNER's SUPPER.-Mos, of the readers of
the Star remember the case of Charles Wer-
H0Ai 1890 1uuOI tuo SsIpOrdtiOu law, known
as 1.-The liquor law" upon which an appeal
was taken to the Circuit Court. Upon the de
cision Of the Court, Mr.. Werner made a bet
with several friends, and losing the bet, he
gained the suit Last night, he invited his
friends to supper at his house. He had pre-.
pared everything in excellent style. with pien.
ty OF it. section Of the National Bras. Band
was there, under the lead of Chas Bergman,
and OF course there was good music A lively
company, good jokes, all helping to pass The
evening merrily. We heard one of our old
citizens express the wish that Charley would
always DO as successful when he had bets on
the issue.
HE SECOND GRAD BALL.-We learn that
the proprietor of the National Hotel intends,
on the evening Of next Thursday week, to give
his second grand ball and supper Extensive
arrangements are being made to make this
ole OF the finest affairs of the kind that ever
Come Oh In the Metropolitan oity.
HE WooDHULL AND SELDBH CAsE-Judp
ment has not been rendered in this case, and
let the jus ice decide as he will, it Ia conf
IDENTIFY expected that an appeal will be taken
from his decision, and the case carried before
the Circuit Court Consequently some month";
will elapse before the case is settled. Ii is 4