The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1892-07-20

1t In the form of tube, which gently
enters the stigma and passes downward
into the upper part Of the pistil, called
the STYLE" making its way through
the latter until it reaches the ''ovarium'
at the bottom of the style. This ovari-
unn is a Sort of seed case formed of sew
eral chambers formed like the IF So of
an orange, in each of which is an
"ovule" or seed In fact, an orange is
actually such an ovarium, and the pips
or seeds are the ovules Each ovule
has small hole in it. as you may dis
cover by soaking an orange seed in
water, and then squeezing out the fluid
absorbed, which will be seen to issue
from the little orifice 1t will be per-
ceived presently how essential this orr
fee is to the purpose of nature.
Ordinarily, from each pollen grain
several of these little tubes proceed.
Some of the grains, like those of the
nasturtium, are triangular, and one
tube comes out OF each corner, while
other kinds of grain emit quite num-
Der of tubes. The tubes passing down
through the pistil to the ovarium direct
themselves into the different chambers
and enter the several ovules or seeds
Very often the seed is not in such a DO
sition that the tube can find it's way to
the orifice it seeks, but, just as it is de-
scending, the seed always turns itself
SO as to receive the tube through its
opening. The granules which the pol
len grain originally contained make
1 hzir. he f,,1
some of them are conveyed into each
seed While these granules are yet
within the tubes they are seen to de-
velop into new cells, which form the
rudiments of future plants.
Thus the germs are conveyed into re-
ceptacles where nourishment has been
stored away for their use by the parent
plant The pulpy matter contained in
the seed consists of starch and sugar,
and these nutritious substances are fed
upon by the growing embryo, just as
the chick develops in the shell from the
germ to the downy bird by absorbing
the yolk and white of the egg. What
food the embryo plant absorbs from
the contents OF the seed, however, does
not for the most part contribute to
form those portions which are after
ward to be developed into stem, root
and leaves The bulk of it goes to pro-
duce the temporary seed leaves"
which representations one and
sometimes two-when the growing
germ, fattened upon the sugar and
starch of the seed, bursts the envelope
of the latter and Sprouts"
A part of the starch originally stored
away in the seed is intended to nourish
the young plant while the latter is be-
ginning to grow and unable to feed it,
self. This portion of food is sometimes,
as in the pea or bean, absorbed into
the tissue of the seed leaves, which sub
sequently yield it up to the plant, as an
infant is fed from the bottle, until the
true leaves and root are sufficiently de-
veloped for its support. In other cases
the reserve supply of nutriment occu-
pies separate receptacle, closely re-
sembling the yelk bag of an egg. This
latter arrangement is made for plants
that bear one seed leaf, as we'll as for
some that bear two, like the ash and
horse chestnut. 1t will be observed that
the vegetable, just as the animal, parent
provides for its offspring until it is able
to procure nourishment for itself
Only recently has the idea found &C
ceptance that plants possess intelli-
gence. The natural philosopher, being
unable to account otherwise for many
wonderful phenomena in the vegeta BILE
world, has yielded to the conviction
that trees, shrubs and even grasses have
brains or something to correspond to
them. Their brains are in their roots,
which seek for water with such uner- |
ring instinct and do many other things |
equally Indicative of what may be fairly |
termed thought. If SO much be granted |
is not the operation of intelligence
equally evident in the elaborate func- |
tions performed by the little germ cell |
whose story has been told? How won
derful it is to consider that perhaps |
even SO minute and insignificant a |
thing as a grain of pollen possesses
Star.