Page:The fairy tales of science.djvu/281

Rh goblet, is another member of the class wonderful; so is the caricature-plant, whose spotted leaves bear such a striking resemblance to human faces. The orchids, whose flowers mimic the forms of various insects; and the cacti, whose quaint shapes render them so remarkable, ought to be included in our review of wonderful plants; but this list must necessarily be imperfect, as the wonders of the vegetable world are innumerable. We have merely selected a few striking forms of vegetable life, to show the reader that botany, as well as the other sciences, has its marvels.

But are not all plants wonderful? If we examine minutely the structure of the humblest moss, we may discover wonders which fill the mind with admiration and astonishment. We may fitly conclude this rambling chapter with an anecdote related by one of the earliest African explorers, who found consolation, when in the depth of misery, in the contemplation of one of the wonderful plants with which the Creator has been pleased to deck this beautiful earth.

"In this forlorn and almost helpless condition," writes Mungo Park, "when the robbers had left me, I sat for some time looking around me with amazement and terror; whatever way I turned, nothing appeared but danger and difficulty. I found myself in the midst of a vast wilderness, in the depth of the rainy season, naked and alone, surrounded by savage animals, and by men still more