The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1880-05-27
OF A SEED.

Have you ever considered how won
derful a thing the seed of a plant is? 1t
is the miracle of Miracles. God said /:
Let there be plants yielding seed,'"
and it is further added, each one latter
his kind"
The great naturalist, Cuvier, thought
that the germs of all past, present, and
future generations of seeds were con.
tanned one within the other, as if packed
in a succession of boxes. Other learned
men have explained this mystery in a
different way. But what signify all their
explanations Let them explain it as
they will, the wonder remains the same,
and we must still look upon the repro.
duction of the seed ss a continual mira
Gle.
Is there upon earth a machine, is there
a palace, is there even a city, which con.
tains 80 much that is wonderful as is in.
closed in a single seed-one grain of
corn, one little brown apple seed, n
small seed of a tree-picked up, perhaps,
by a bird for her little ones-the small
est seed of a poppy or a bluebell, or even
one of the seeds that float about in the
air invisible to our eyes! There is a
world of marvels and brilliant beauties
hidden in each Of these tiny seeds. Con-
sidering their immense number, the per-
feet separation of the different kinds,
their power of life and resurrection and
their wonderful f~ruitfulness.
Consider, first, their number. About
a hundred and fifty years ago, the cele.
brated Linz aus, the father of Botany"
reckoned about 5000 different kinds of
plants and he then thought that the
whole number existing could not much
exceed 10 1000. But, a hundred years af-
ter him, M. de Candida, of Geneva, de-.
acribed 40 900 kinds of plants and at a
later period he counted 10000, then so,
900, and he supposed it possible that the
number might even amount to 100000
Well, let us ask, have these 100000
kinds of plants ever failed to bear the
right seed2 Have they ever deceived
us2 Has the seed Of whea, eYelyielded
barley, or the seed of a poppy grown up
into sunhower? Has a sycamore tree
ever sprung from an acorn, or a beech
tree from a chestnut? A little bird may
carry away the small seed OF a sycamore
in it's beak to feed its nestlings, and, on
the way, may drop it to the ground. The
tiny seed may spring up and grow where
it fell unnotiCed, snd in fifty years it
may become a magnificent tree, under
the shade Of which the hocks of the val.
leys and their shepherds may rest.
Consider next the wonderful power of
life and resurrection bestowed on the
seeds of plants, so that they may be
preserved from year to year, and even
from century to century,
Let a child put q few feeds in a drawer,
and shut them up, and sixty years after
wares, when his hair is white and his
step tottering, let him take one of these
seeds and SOW it in the ground, and soon
after he will sec it spring up into new
life, and become a young, fresh and
beautiful plant.
M. Jouannet relates hat in the year
1885 several old Celtic tombs we're dis
covered near Bergoric. Under the head
of each of the dead bodies there was
found a small square stone Of brick, with
a hole in it, containing a few seeds,
which had been planted there beside
the dead by the heather friends who
had buried them, perhaps 1900 or 100
years before. These seeds were careful.
ly sowed by those who found them-and
what, think you, was seen to spring up
from the dust Of the dead ?-beautiful
~sunflowers, blue cornfowers, and clover,
bearing blossoms as bright and sweet al
those woven into wreaths by merry