The flower is white and of the rosaceous type; and at particular periods it bears both fruit and flowers. The fruit is considered fine, though, of course, not so large as that grown by man. The nettle is a very common forest-flower. "What! the nettle a flower," some one exclaims; "that nasty, ugly, poisonous thing; it surely cannot be a flower." We are not, however, speaking of the poisonous rascal, though he, too, was made for a purpose, and serves a certain end in creation, but we speak of the dead nettles,-nettles that do bear flowers, some white and some pink, and that do not sting. Though outwardly looking like their vicious neighbour, yet their leaves will be found to have quite a different feel, and the flowers are a most interesting study. Each resembles the mouth of an animal gaping, and somewhat reminds one of the awful mouth of a shark. Inside the flower there are four stamens; but instead of being, as usual, of equal length, the two at the outside are long, and the inner two are short. The showy orchis is not likely to miss the traveller's eye. It is a curious flower, growing to a considerable height, with a long spike-shaped head of very curious flowers. In "the language of flowers," an unspoken tongue with which some young ladies amuse themselves, the orchis represents a belle," a title to which its showiness perhaps gives it some claim. The wild, or brier rose, is a universal favourite, be it white or red, despite its prickles and its fragile flowers. It is generally found in woods, hedge-rows, shady lanes, &c. Very different from the wild rose is the foxglove, with its curious-shaped pendent red flowers, its great heavy leaves, and its repulsive smell. Poisonous though it is, medicine derives great benefit from its use. There is a white variety as well as a red, though the red is the more common. We remember, when enjoying a boyish holiday, clambering up the steep side of a crag in the heart of a wood, to pluck two fine specimens of this plant, red and one white, at the imminent risk of falling into a brawling, rocky stream below. But we plucked them, and upon due measurement the red one was pronounced six feet long, and the white about two-thirds that length. The only other forest-flower (though there are still many others) which our space permits us to mention, is the geranium, of which the varieties are exceedingly numerous, and which are found in all localities in the forest. one ON THE VARIOUS PARTS OF THE FLOWER. (Compiled.) LINNEUS distinguishes four principal parts of the flower, some of which are essential to its very nature, others not so indispensably necessary, and therefore not universal. These four parts are 1st. The Calyx, empalement, or flower-cup; 2d. The Corolla, often called in popular language, although improperly, the blossom; 3d. The Stamen, or stamens, formerly denominated the chives; and 4th. The Pistil, or pistils, which are situated in the centre of the flower. Some flowers possess all these parts, others are deficient in some of them; but the stamens and pistils are both essential, and to be found in all, either in flowers on the same plant, or in different individual flowers of the same species on separate plants. CALYX.-The calyx is that outer part of the flower, formed of two, at least, but usually more leaves, called sepals, generally of a green or yellowish-green colour, as in the Pink, Rose, Wall-flower &c.; sometimes, however, of a finer texture, and more highly coloured, as in the Fuchsia and Ranunculus. When the sepals are distinct or separate from each other, the calyx is termed polysepalous. The outer green covering of the bud of the Flax or Rose, is the calyx, consisting of five different pieces, connected by their base with the peduncle or stalk; and on this account it is termed polysepalous, or manyleaved. In the Pink, Pea, Convolvulus, &c., the sepals are joined together, more or less, by their edges, so as to form one piece in appearance; in this case the calyx is said to be monosepalous, or one-leaved. A difficulty may be felt to decide whether a floral envelope be a calyx or a corolla, especially if it be coloured, as in the common Globe-flower, and Marshmarigold; but this need not be, as, invariably when there is only one verticil or whorl of leaves, it is to be considered the calyx. A calyx, therefore, may exist without a corolla, but not a corolla without a calyx. The feathery crown of the Thistle and Dandelion is analogous to the calyx, and is called Pappus. This most curious and beautiful modification of this organ is evidently designed by the Great Creator to transport seeds to a distance from their native spot, by consigning them to the wind, or by attaching them to the shaggy coats of animals. COROLLA. The next whorl of leaves within the calyx is called the corolla, that part of the flower which is so attractive from its fragrance and beauty, being found of every shade and variety of colour, except black. The leaves of the corolla are called petals, and these, like the sepals of the calyx, are either distinct or separate, when it is called polypetalous, as in the Ranunculus and Pink; or are united by their edges, in a greater or less degree, in which case, the corolla is termed monopetalous, as in Honey-suckle, Mullein, Bugloss, and the little flowers or florets which form the heads of composite flowers. The corolla characteristic of the Leguminous family of plants, of which the Sweet-pea, Broom, Bean, Lupin, Vetch, and Clover, are examples, is called papilionaceous, or butter-fly like, from its striking resemblance to a butterfly-papilio being the Latin word for a butterfly. It consists of five petals, the first broad and upright, called the vexillum or standard; on each side two narrower ones, called alae or wings, and two under ones united and so shaped as to form a figure, in appearance like the keel of a boat, and hence called the carina or keel. Another very large order of plants is termed cruciferae, cross-bearing, from the four petals that compose the corolla being so arranged as to look like a cross. The Radish, Charlock, Mustard and Cabbage, are cruciferous plants. STAMENS. The stamens, formerly called the chives, vary in number in different flowers, from one to some hundreds. There are three in the Crocus, five in Honey-suckle and Primrose, ten in the Pink, twenty in the Strawberry, and a great number in the Buttercup. Their situation is internal with respect to the calyx and corolla, external to the pistils, at least in simple flowers. These organs are essential, there being no plant hitherto discovered, after the most careful research, that is destitute of them, either in the same flower with the pistils, or a separate one of the same species. A stamen commonly consists of two parts, the filament and anther, the former being exactly what supports the latter, and is often absent or abortive, in which case the anther is said to be sessile or seated. The filaments in the Tulip are six in number, thick and short; in the Pink they are ten in number, much more slender; and in the Anemone they are numerous. The anther is the only essential part of the stamen. It is generally of a membraneous texture, consisting of two cells, bursting longitudinally, as in the Tulip. The pollen or fertilizing dust, is contained in the anther, from which it is thrown out chiefly in warm dry weather, when the coat of the latter contracts and bursts. The stamens and pistils constitute the reproductive organs of plants, and, generally, they both exist in the same flower, which is thus said to be hermaphrodite or perfect. Sometimes, however, a flower has only stamens, when it is called male or sterile; or it has only pistils, when it is termed female or fertile. It was on the number, situation, and the proportionate length of the stamens, that Linnæus founded the classes of his sexual or artificial system of arrangement of plants. The most important particular to be remarked in the stamens of any plant is the point of the flower or receptacle from which they grow, since this is found to be usually the same in all plants which are similar in their structure and properties. When they arise from beneath the seed-vessel, or are not attached to the calyx, they are said to be hypogynous, that is under the pistil, gyne being the Greek word for a female or pistil,—as in Ranunculus, Poppy, Grasses, and Cruciferous plants. When they are not in any way joined to the seed-vessel, but appear to grow out of the calyx, corolla, or perianth, they are perigynous, as in Roses, Saxifrage, Holly, and Umbelliferous plants. It is commonly found, though by no means always, that plants witn hypogynous stamens are injurious, while those with perigynous stems are innocent, if not wholesome. The classes and subclasses of the natural system of Jussieu, are subdivided according to the existence of these distinctions in plants. PISTILS.-The pistils, no less essential than the stamens, constitute the fourth and innermost whorl, and occupy accordingly the centre of the flower. The pistil is formed by one or more modified leaves called carpels, which exhibit a more marked resemblance in colour and structure to the ordinary leaves than the stamens and petals do. Each pistil consists of three parts, viz.-ovary or germen, containing the rudiments of the young fruit and seed, which is essential,-the style varies in length and thickness, sometimes altogether wanting, and when present, serving merely to elevate the third part, the stigma, a peculiar termination of the style, which is usually moist, with a a viscid fluid, for the purpose of receiving and retaining the pollen. When the style is wanting, the stigma is said to be sessile, or seated on the germen, as in the Poppy and Tulip. The fluid contained in the pollen when the anther bursts penetrates the stigma, and is conveyed to the seeds, which are by this means rendered fertile. The position of the pistil with respect to the calyx, is, like the insertions of the stamens, an important circumstance to be attended to. When the ovarium adheres to the calyx, the former is said to be inferior, as in the Currant, Gooseberry, Bell-flower: when it is separated from the calyx, it is said to be superior, and the calyx inferior, as in the Labiate and Leguminous families of plants, in Convolvolus, Heath, Lily, Tulip. The pistils are generally fewer in number than the stamens. The orders of the Linnæan System are, in the first thirteen classes, founded on the number of the styles, or on that of the stigmas when the styles are wanting. SECTION V. ASTRONOMY AND PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. GENERAL VIEW OF THE HEAVENS. (From "Dick's Christian Philosopher.") As-tron'o-my, n. (Gr. astēr, nomos), | Disk, n. (Gr. diskos), the face of the science that teaches the motions of the earth, the sun, the moon, planets, comets, and stars, and explains the phenomena occasioned by these motions. Phe-nom'e-non, n. (see p. 45). Ap-parent, adj. (L.ad, pareo), as it appears to the the eye; seeming. Hem'i-sphere, n. (Gr. hemi, sphaira) half of a globe or sphere. The equator divides the globe into two equal parts, called the northern and the southern hemispheres. Di-ur'nal, adj. (L. dies), daily continuing twenty-four hours. Crescent, adj. (L. cresco), increasing;-n. a curving figure, like the moon, before she is full. ; the sun, moon, or any planet, as it appears to us on the earth. E-clipse', n. (Gr. ek, leipo), the darkening of one heavenly body, by the interposition of another between it and the sun. Plan'et, n. (Gr. planao), a celestial body revolving about the sun or Con'cave, adj. (L. con, cavus), Astronomy teaches us the magnitudes and distances of the heavenly bodies, their arrangements, their various motions and phenomena, and the laws by which their movements are regulated. It presents to our view, objects the most wonderful |