Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1898-03-31
NEW-CENTURY CLUB

DR.. S. G. Schmuoger Of the West
Chester Normal School leGtured beiure
the club Monday afternoon on -
Lowly Teacher" j. o. the common
dapdelion, lie said: "We have an
idea TINT the world was createn for orr
particular benefit. and regard all tho ,
rest of creation only in it's relations to
us; we foel TINT the sun. moon and /
stars wers made TO give light 10 man
and when we meet with any creature
whose benefit to us is not very ap- |
parent, the mosquito, for instance, we
question earnestly why it was crsRted,
and many good pious people try hard
| to believe that evory thing is useful to
us, if only we could find out how. l do
not believe they were created to minis
ter to man, but that creation was on u
wider, deeper plan, and that there are
| other beings worth the Creators care,
although we value them only as they
can he Of benefit to ua. An illustration
| ia in what we call y weed 1t WAS
| originally good old word ami meant
only covering or clothing for the
ground But we havo given il a
different meaning when il comes AZ an
unhiddon guest where We want some
thing elGs TO grow. The dictionary
calls it a plant out OF place, which
ia a cool asaumntion, whom we remem-
ber that we have cut down trees and
grubhed Up what grew on tho ground,
to pant something else there, and
when the original plant comes back
and claims what belonged TO it We call it
wend ard grub it up again.
weeds are the most successful plants
from botanist's standpoint for they
1 DO nj aif INN
and work. out their own mission in the
plant world. When | consider them
feel like paraphrasing Abraham Lin
cpluis terse phrase: How God must
love cummon people for He made 30
many of tnemu Henry Ward Beecher
said of the old acquaintance intro
duce to you this afternoon, i cannot
forget il would those golden kiFses all
over the meadow that We call dande-
lions. What senseless name it seems
: until We know that it is a corruption
: OF the French dent de lion, lions
, tooth, from tine supposed resemblance
Of the leaves to lions jaw. When
tho NurmnnH conquered England a
Q strange mudds of languages ensued.
, The matter of fact Saxons cared fol-
. the things that could be eaten so the
flowers that bear fruit are called by
their old Saxon namo of blUsma, oil
o blossoms, while the flowers priced only
Q for their beauty bear Norman names NJ
u the dandelion and cinque- foil or feuille
n In its provident habits the dandHlior
i is an example to man; it's great strong
l.. feshy root is its bank in which Il
70 stores away for winter uae all the sur
n plus starch it acquires in the summer
W and hayors it with sufficient bite
70 juice to keep. any animals from covet
N ing it. When ii comes up in the spring
ie while the grass ia short it keeps it
il stem under ground and its rosette o
leaves and buds close to the earth wher'
t. it is safe from browsing animals, bu
j. as the grass grows higher its sten
a lepgthens, 30 that no matter how tai
ig it's surroundings it is always Just
10 little taller, 80 1t can spread its leave
in the sun and be seen by the insecta
ID Il puts forth just the amount Of euerg
I'd necessary to attain it's end which ia
h. attract the bees and other insects
~ come and gather honey and carry il
a pollen to other dandelions. At night
or ON cloudy days it shuts itself up j
r. it's green inroluta; IL is not going
be- waste any energy when there are n
Nv insects abroad, but Just cover itself u
CO and keep warm. Each dandelion hea
is made up of 200 or more tiny Hover
which are fertilzed in turn and cloI
themselves up in their green uoverl'
IN ngan until the geeds are ripened, an
when there comes warm, bright da.
N. Just right for planting dandelions, II
III involuta opens, the wind lifts off
r. seed. and watts it away, the hea,
IN seed drags it down, the little houl
no catch it to the earth and dandelic
bv lie planted. They alight aud grow fro
NJ the Torrid Zone to the Arctic. Lieu
nd Penry found one growing on the Sit
"a of glacier in Northern Greenland.
had alighted on little strip of ferti
ror soil and in the quick warmth of Il
la. short Northern summer had bloom
Dir into golden radiance. :" A. s.