Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1911-04-13

and beautiful, are shaped like tbs
head of lance or pike-referring no
doubt to the weapon that pierced the
sides Of the Savior-while they are
marked beneath with round spots,
signifying the 80 pieces Of silver for
which Judas sold him"
Today this wonderful blossom IL
comparatively familiar and is known
as the passion flower. Botanists call
it Passiflora incarmata While its
peculiarities of structure are undeni-
ably interesting, there is nothing
about it that to the sane eye suggests
the miraculous.
Holy Ghost Orchid.
The same observation does not ap-
ply, however to another plant, far
more remarkable, which Is even at
the present day so great rarity that
probably there are not dozen speci-
mems OF it in all the United States
Two Of these are in the presidents
greenhouse at Washington. It will
not survive unless kept in IN ex-
tremely hot atmosphere laden With
moisture-a fact from which It may
be correctly inferred that this inter
esting vegetable species is q native
of the torrid zone. Indeed, It grows
nowhere except close to the equator,
II wet and marshy places not far;
from sea level, where the humid air
Expresses the traveller like 20 much
almost unbreathable steam.
Such is the natural habitat Of the
Holy Ghost orchid, a the plant Is
called. It is true orchid, and, like
many others Of its botanical kind,
grows in earth. It's flowers are de-
veloped In little groups Of two or
three on vigorous green stem, and
in each Of them, when 1t is fully open,
appears, sitting within the calyx of
the snowy blossom, little dove with
half-spread wings. So perfectly Is 1t
formed that even the heshy excres-
cence at the top Of the beak, charac.
teristic of pigeons, is represented. It
is, in fact, the most curious and won
0erful OF natures limitations.
"Lllies Of the Field"
It Is wholly uncertain what flower
Jesus had in mind when he spoke OF
the lilies Of the field" which
though they teilsd not, neither did
they spin-wers adorned more beau
tifully than Solomon In all his glory.
Certainly he was not speaking Of any
blossoms Of the tyDe now represented
by what il called the Easter lily, be-
cause no such lilies were known in
the Palestine Of his day, all Of them
being Of exclusively eastern Asiatic
origin. OF these lilies there are many
varieties, AZ everybody knows, the
finest Of them al, and the one gener-
ally grown at the present tine in the
greenhouses q this country, being 4
native Of Japan-the Hlium Harrisii.
A similar lily, though Of different
variety, IL the Lilium candidum, or
Madonna lily, which IL 20 called be-
cause 1t IL the flower that IL supposed
to have been presented to the virgin
by the angel Of the annunciation.
One finds it thus depicted in one OF
the most famous paintings Of Murillo.
But, as above suggested, this lovely
type Of blessom was not known in
Palestine 1900 years AGA fact, how.
ever, which does by NO means pre-.
clude the possibility that an angel
might have obtained bunch.
Resurrection Plant.
One OF the most interesting Of the
vegetable species associated with Eas.
teris the se-called resurrection plant,
which is kind Of ''tumble-weed," ma
tive to the region Of the Dead sea.
Some of its relatives, botanically
speaking, are found In our own coun.
try and have similar habits. This
tumble-weed during part of the year
dries up and, detaching itself from
the ground, assumes the form Of
ball, seemingly dead-in which shape
it rolls before the wind, scattering its
seeds as it goes, to take root and
grow into more tumb1s-weeds.
OF all the many ingenious methods
adopted By nature to accomplish the
distribution Of plants mono IL more
odd than this. But when the tumble
weed, apparently dsfunct, IL put iA.e
water. 10! it begins to sprsut, and
presently h q much alive q ever.
whence the popular name beeeoWed
upsa It.