Nature up to Nature's God." Indigence and daily labour is no bar to a knowledge of Botany; some of the best Linnæan botanists of the present day are to be found among the operatives of Manchester. Among the various branches of natural history none possesses more advantages than that of Botany: it contributes, by offering an inducement to air and exercise, health of body and cheerfulness of disposition; the artisan, after his day's toil was completed, would find his health improved by the search for objects necessary to prosecute his plans. To quote again the above authoress The search repays by health improved, Of pure variety, Awak'ning hopes of brighter joy, Of praise to Deity." This study, too, might become an excellent substitute for some of those trifling, not to mention those injurious and pernicious, objects which too often occupy the leisure hours of the working man. In order to facilitate the discovery of the names of plants various systems have, from time to time, been devised, and various organs of the plants have been fixed on for the purpose of classification: amongst all these the system of Linnæus is justly considered pre-eminent; this system is founded on the organs of re-production, and, as a dictionary, it is at present invaluable. Sir J. E. Smith observes that the applicacation of the Linnæan system in practice is, above all other systems, easy and intelligible. Even in pursuing the study of the natural affinities of plants, this botanist affirms "that it would be as idle to lay aside the continual use of the Linnæan system, as it would be for the philologists and logicians to slight the convenience, and indeed necessity, of the alphabet, and to substitute the Chinese characters in its stead." "If we examine," says Decandolle," the artificial systems which have been hitherto devised, we shall find the most celebrated of them, that which was proposed by Linnæus, to possess a decided superiority over all others, not only because it is consistently derived from one simple principle, but also because the author of it, by means of a new nomenclature, has given his terms the greatest distinctness of meaning." This celebrated naturalist was the son of an obscure clergyman in Sweden, whose tastes led him to cultivate and adorn his residence with the choicest productions of floriculture. Young Linnæus soon caught the enthusiasm of his father, but owing to some disobedience of his parents' will, they placed him as an apprentice to a shoemaker: fortunately a physician, perceiving him to be a lad of genius, took him into his own house, where some of the works of the celebrated Tournefort were placed in his hands, which at once decided his course; he soon attracted the attention of the most learned naturalists of Europe, who patronised and encouraged him to prosecute that interesting pursuit, which has immortalized his name. To understand the Linnæan system, it is necessary that the beginner shall make himself acquainted with the names of the various portions of a flower, as given them by botanists. These parts are, first, the CORLYX, which is that outer green covering which usually surrounds the bud, and which, when the flower is expanded, appears beneath it secondly, the COROLLA, which is the coloured part of the flower, and which generally attracts the most attention: thirdly, the STAMENS, which are the main organs; they are those thread-like processes situated immediately within the corolla ; they consist of two parts, the filaments or threads, and the anther, which is situated on the top of them; these (the anthers) contain the pollen or dust, which fructifies the embryo seeds, and is very readily perceived when the anther is arrived at maturitywithout this, no seeds would ever vegetate or grow. Fourthly, in the centre of the flower, will be found the PISTIL, or female organ, this is divided into three parts, the germ, which contains the rudiments of the seeds, the style, and the stigma which surmounts the style; this last receives the fructifying powder of the male organ, which is conveyed by the style to the germ, where the seeds are impregnated. Sometimes we find that the filaments are wanting, as in the poppy (PAPAVER,) but this is not essential; the style, also, may be wanting, and yet the flower will be termed perfect, as the absence of these is no impediment to re-production. Greenwich. A WINTER SONG. Crackle and blaze, There's snow on the housetops-there's ice on the ways, The stronger's the reason Why ceiling should flicker and glow in thy blaze; And as curtains we draw and around the hearth close, While roaring the chorus goes round in thy praise. So fire, piled fire, The lustier shout, The louder the winds shriek And roar by without, And as red through the curtains go out with thy light So crackle and blaze, Crackle and blaze, While roaring the chorus goes round in thy praise. W. C. BENNETT. BOTANY. CHAPTER I. "O Botary! the ardent glow Since childhood's playful day, SARAH HOARE. THE design of these chapters is to awaken, if possible, a taste in the members of our Institution for the study of nature, and by this means to impress on their minds ideas of the power and wisdom of the Supreme Being, to teach them to "look from Nature up to Nature's God." Indigence and daily labour is no bar to a knowledge of Botany; some of the best Linnæan botanists of the present day are to be found among the operatives of Manchester. Among the various branches of natural history none possesses more advantages than that of Botany: it contributes, by offering an inducement to air and exercise, health of body and cheerfulness of disposition; the artisan, after his day's toil was completed, would find his health improved by the search for objects necessary to prosecute his plans. To quote again the above authoress This study, too, might become an excellent substitute for some of those trifling, not to mention those injurious and pernicious, objects which too often occupy the leisure hours of the working man. In order to facilitate the discovery of the names of plants various systems have, from time to time, been devised, and various organs of the plants have been fixed on for the purpose of classification: amongst all these the system of Linnæus is justly considered pre-eminent; this system is founded on the organs of re-production, and, as a dictionary, it is at present invaluable. Sir J. E. Smith observes that the applicacation of the Linnæan system in practice is, above all other systems, easy and intelligible. Even in pursuing the study of the natural affinities of plants, this botanist affirms "that it would be as idle to lay aside the continual use of the Linnæan system, as it would be for the philologists and logicians to slight the convenience, and indeed necessity, of the alphabet, and to substitute the Chinese characters in its stead." "If we examine," says Decandolle, "the artificial systems which have been hitherto devised, we shall find the most celebrated of them, that which was proposed by Linnæus, to possess a decided superiority over all others, not only because it is consistently derived from one simple principle, but also because the author of it, by means of a new nomenclature, has given his terms the greatest distinctness of meaning." This celebrated naturalist was the son of an obscure clergyman in Sweden, whose tastes led him to cultivate and adorn his residence with the choicest productions of floriculture. Young Linnæus soon caught the enthusiasm of his father, but owing to some disobedience of his parents' will, they placed him as an apprentice to a shoemaker: fortunately a physician, perceiving him to be a lad of genius, took him into his own house, where some of the works of the celebrated Tournefort were placed in his hands, which at once decided his course; he soon attracted the attention of the most learned naturalists of Europe, who patronised and encouraged him to prosecute that interesting pursuit, which has immortalized his name. To understand the Linnæan system, it is necessary that the beginner shall make himself acquainted with the names of the various portions of a flower, as given them by botanists. These parts are, first, the CORLYX, which is that outer green covering which usually surrounds the bud, and which, when the flower is expanded, appears beneath it secondly, the COROLLA, which is the coloured part of the flower, and which generally attracts the most attention: thirdly, the STAMENS, which are the main organs; they are those thread-like processes situated immediately within the corolla ; they consist of two parts, the filaments or threads, and the anther, which is situated on the top of them; these (the anthers) contain the pollen or dust, which fructifies the embryo seeds, and is very readily perceived when the anther is arrived at maturitywithout this, no seeds would ever vegetate or grow. Fourthly, in the centre of the flower, will be found the PISTIL, or female organ, this is divided into three parts, the germ, which contains the rudiments of the seeds, the style, and the stigma which surmounts the style; this last receives the fructifying powder of the male organ, which is conveyed by the style to the germ, where the seeds are impregnated. Sometimes we find that the filaments are wanting, as in the poppy (PAPAVER,) but this is not essential; the style, also, may be wanting, and yet the flower will be termed perfect, as the absence of these is no impediment to re-production. If the learner will be at the trouble to commit the above to memory, together with the following table, he will be at no loss to ascertain to what class any plant may belong when he has proceeded thus far he may commence to learn the orders or subdivisions of the classes, which will be given hereafter : 11 Dodecandria..Twelve Stamens, or more, under twenty 12 Tcosandria... Twenty Stamens, fixed on the Calyx. 18 Polyandria.... Many Stamens 14 Didynamia... Four Stamens, two long and two short.. 15 Tetr dynamia Six Stamens, four long and two short.. 16 Monadelphia. Filaments united at bottom.... 17 Diadelphia... Filaments in two sets.................. 18 Polyadelphia Filaments in three or more sets .... Examples. Glasswort, Marestail. Heath, Fuchsia, Willow-herb. 21 Monœcia Stamens and Pistils in separate flowers on same plant Alder, Birch, Cucumber. ... Ferns, Mosses, Funguses. The Flowering-rush is the only plant, indigenous to Britain, belonging to this Class. In selecting the above EXAMPLES I have confined myself to plants of British growth, except where I considered that such plants were not generally known: I have then chosen such exotics as I believe few people are unacquainted with. Good Samaritan Lodge, West Derby District. [TO BE CONTINUED.] W. H. THE OLD GENTLEMAN. MOST of my readers, especially those who dwell in country towns or villages, will at once understand the title I have given to this article, when I bring to their recollec tion scenes that have gone on in their presence, or within the scope of their experience. Every country town and every country village has its old gentleman. He is not a man who possesses an immense amount of money, nor one who may be noted in the public affairs of the town, but he is mostly a gentleman who has retired from a profession or business; sometimes a half-pay captain, sometimes a retired tradesman, possessed of just sufficient to live decently and respectably. The old gentleman of any country place may soon be noticed, for his morning's stroll is either to the bridge at its entrance, up and down the principal street, in the village church-yard, or school, chatting with a labourer over his garden gate; in fact doing everything it is customary for those to do, who bear the name of "people-with-nothing-to-do." Should the town possess a reading-room, there is to be seen the old gentleman some part of the day, either reading or dozing over a newspaper; and it is an amusing sight to see the old gentleman enter one of these rooms; all seem to pay the utmost deference to him, and he acts as if he expected they should do so; no doubt his having been accustomed to it for a great length of time, makes him look for deferential attention from all with whom he may associate. No sooner has he arrived at the door of the reading-room than he pulls off his hat, quietly takes out his pocket-handkerchief, wipes his face and forehead, and then leisurely walks to his accustomed seat, which is some retired corner of a retired window; the hat is then placed on the table before him, his stick at the back of his chair, after which he composes himself to the reading the state of the stocks, in which his money may be placed. Then satisfied with having dozed over his regular time, the old gentleman enters into conversation with some of his fellow-idlers, or if there be no one else, with the person who may have charge of the room. 66 But it is not merely the old gentleman's mornings that I wish to notice. The question is, "How are his evenings spent ?" and it is to the answer to the above question that I wish to draw the attention of my readers most particularly. In every place in this wide world there is want and misery; sharp piercing want may soon be found, and when it is found, misery is generally its companion. But as there are different species of animals, and different people and minds, so there are different degrees or species of want; the wretched, dirty, and loathsome views of want of large and populous towns, form one species, the want of the country forms another. I do not intend to deny that you may find want and cleanliness in towns, far from it; but the wretchedness of town want, is nothing compared with that of the country, even with cleanliness accompanying it. Town and country want are as distinct as two things can possibly be. Those who dwell in large towns have the means of relief nearer at hand, and more bountifully held forth than the poor of the country; nay the poor of large towns expect to be fed with food regularly provided especially for their use and of the very best kind, which expectation far be it from me to attempt to destroy; but in the country, the poor have to be satisfied with that species of relief known as 66 odds and ends," or in plainer style, as scraps," and soup is made from boiling the beef bones once or twice a-week; and if it were not for the old gentlemen of our country places, miserable indeed would be the condition of some of our peasantry. But, thank God! there are such men in existence, who, possessing sufficient for themselves, lay by some of that sufficiency regularly for the use of the poor. And it is astonishing how the old gentleman finds out the objects of his charity, he performs his acts of benevolence so secretly. Being personally acquainted with one of these old gentlemen, I think I found out his method of discovering deserving want. I noticed that of an afternoon, when he took his stroll, after pretending to take a walk he has suddenly diverged from the path to some retired spot where, perchance, stood one or two of the poorest cottages; he would here give the relief he intended, and whilst seated in the cottage, he would enter into conversation with the good woman of the house, in the first place about her own family and affairs, then about those of her neighbours; now, as I know the poor of a country place know all about each others' matters, I presumed that the old gentleman used this method to acquire his information. I may be wrong, but I never could see any other way in which he got to know so many poor people. And thus it is in most country places, for they have generally each an old gentleman; and when we see one of this kind of men strolling in a village, country town, or open fields, and notice the many curtsies that are made by the women, and the caps doffed by the men of the poorest order, we shall not be far wrong when we apply to him the words of the poet Goldsmith : "His house was known to all the vagrant train, Whose beard descending swept his aged breast; The ruin'd spendthrift now no longer proud, Claimed kindred there, and had his claims allow'd; The broken soldier, kindly bid to stay, Sat by his fire, and talk'd the night away; Wept o'er his wounds, or, tales of sorrow done, Shoulder'd his crutch and shew'd how fields were won. Pleased with his guests, the good man learn'd to głow VOL. 10-No. 1-I. C. |