The Arizona sentinel., 1889-06-29
CONCERNING SEEDS.
Some of the Peculiar Ways in Which They
 Are Distributed.


 Master George was lolling in the hammock; not that he was lazy or had nothing to do, but because the day was so warm and the shade so inviting. He was dreamily watching the play of light among the leaves overhead, and the shifting banks of clouds, feecy and crimson-tinged, way off against the horizon. The leaves rustled softly; the birds sang sweetly in the bushes; butterfly went by on gaudy wings; bee followed with it's thighs yellow with pollen; a sheep was bleating in the pastures.
 Suddenly he sat bolt upright. his lan- guor gone in flash, which was the re- suit of very simple incident. A dan delion seed fOated across the hammock and then descended like miniature balloon on the tip of his nose.
 He picked off the seed and carefully examined it. He had blown dandelion seeds many time from their feathery ball, but had never examined their structure. He ncticed that the seed had little stem, upon the end of which stood out a number of small fibers, which caught the wind and enabled it to go great distance. From thinking of the dandelion seed he began to think about other seeds, his curiosity very much awakened.
 Hello, George" some one said. "You seem in deep study"
 
 He looked up and saw his uncle.
 ''Yes, and about very little thing" ne replied. "An impudent dandelion seed came squarely down on my nose. How cunningly it is fashionedr'
 And how wisely" added his uncle, -as he seated himself on a. r',et;---l-~sif. "A number of plants have winged seeds, and but for the wings they would fall straight to the ground. The seed of the maple tree, while not down, has quite prominent membranous wing, and when it falls it goes whirling through the air. Others have tiny par achutes with which they sail away"
 ''The Bib'e speaks of our having faith as large as grain of mustard seed, " suggested George.
 ''Is that the smallest seed uncle?'
 ''It is very small seed, but not the smallest" rejoined his uncle. ''The seed of the fungi can only be seen with the aid of a microscope.
 ''Is the cocoanut a seed?" asked George.
 "Yes," replied his uncle.
 ct is the largest seed, suppose?"
 No, my boy. Linneus tells us that the seed of the Cocos, found in the Nal dive Islands, reaches the size of mans body"
 Seeds preserve their vitality for a long time, do they not, uncle?' George asked.
 "As a general thing" replied his uncle. ''Some preserve their germi- hating power for but few hours. Notwithstanding the thick covering to the coffee seed, planters often lose their crops by deferring sowing for a few days. Other seeds preserve their vital ity for thousands of years. Seeds found in mummies and cities destroyed by lava have been known to germinate as soon as planted. Sometimes seeds remain torpid in the ground, only ! springing up under more than Ordi- nary circumstances. They have come to life in burned forests and dried-up marshes, presenting plants never known to have existed there. After the great fire of London the hedge mustard grew thickly amid the ruins, and OccasiOned much comment"
 The subject was so interesting to George that it found him an attentive listener. Much that his unc,e said sur prised him, but he knew that the state ments were correct
 ''The number of seeds which some plants produce is absolutely astound- ing," resumed his uncle. Ray count i ed 32,000 seeds on one poppy stalk; Linnaus says that single stem of to- bacco often yields 40,000 seeds, while Dodard affirms that an elm tree pro- duces 529, ,OO0 seeds annually!'
 "Why, uncler' exclaimed George. ''They would cover the globe with veg etationr"
 There are many causes to prevent | such an invasion," said his uncle, with | 8 smile. ''Men. animals, the rigor of | the climate, etc., are the barriers. One invader crowds out the other; the prai- rie gives way to the thicket, and the thicket to the forest. Can you name some of the means by which seeds are transported?"
 Yes, uncle. By ships, caravans animals and birds.
 Birds distribute many seeds and many varieties. There are not less than 261 species of plants growing in the Coliseum of Rome, which, accord ing to Sebastiani an Italian author, were transported thither by birds. It is stated that, the Dutch having de- stroyed the nutmeg trees in several of the Indian islands in order to confine the cultivation of these trees to Ceylon, the putmeg-easlpg pigeons, which are |