We may likewife examine, whether Plants which naturally grow in dry Places, and lie expofed to the open Sun, do not yield the brighter Colours, or those of the lighter fort. And whether, on the contrary, fuch as inhabit the moft fhady Places, are not commonly much deeper in the Green of their Leaves, and endued with more Acid Qualities.

Before I conclude, I cannot help obferving to you, that many Colours are prepared by Corrofion of Minerals, as Lead made into White, call'd Serus; Iron into Yellow, call'd Crocus Martis, Quickfilver into Red, call'd Vermilion; Brafs into Green, call'd Verdigreafe; Chalk into Blue, call'd Smalt, &c. Now, whether these Mineral Bodies, fo modell'd, may not be brought to Ufe in helping fuch Vegetables as moft nearly relate to their several Qualities or Colours, is not altogether unworthy our Enquiry.

I am, Sir,

Yours, &c.

R. Bradley.

From fuch Enquiries as thefe I have been led to most of the Experiments I have made concerning the Improvement of Vegetables. I must own indeed, fome have mifcarried; but to fail fometimes ought not to discourage us in the Search of Knowledge; for though we mifs of the defired Succefs, when we make an Experiment, we always discover something

even in the Mifcarriage, which improves our Knowledge, and gives us Thoughts which we could never have found without it; juft like Converfation, which tho' it may not happen fometimes to be directly anfwering our Purpose, yet may drop us fome Hints, which perhaps in greater Things may ftand as Chiefs in our Argument. I was therefore the more encourag'd to give the foregoing Specimen of a Table of Colours; becaufe, was it to be improv'd, or fomething like it divided gradually, and mark'd out to fhew the feveral Proportions and Distinctions of Colour in its Progrefs from the most intelligible White to the darkeft Black, one might from fuch a Scale describe more exactly the Colours of Plants, Animals, or other Bodies fubject to Natural Hiftory, than has been done hitherto.

I fhould in the next Place introduce an Account how the Generation of Plants is perform'd in a particular Manner; but as that is already done in my New Improvements of Planting and Gardening, I refer my Reader to that Account, and fhall only give him, En paffant, two or three New Obfervations upon that Head in the following Letters.

Remarks

Remarks concerning the Generation of Plants, with fome Conjectures relating to the affifting of Vegetation by Honey.

SIR,

A

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To Mr. BRADLEY.

Octob. 6. 1721.

S it was your New Improvements of Gardening gave me the firft Hint of the "Generation of Plants, I fhall take this Opportunity of acquainting you with the Expe"riment I have made on that Subject.

"It is now about two Years fince I fav'd "a large Piece of Spinage for Seed; and, "according to the old Way of Gardening, as "foon as the Male Plants began to fhew them"felves, caus'd them to be pluck'd up, in "order to give Way to the She-Spinage, as "the Gardeners call it, that the Seed might ripen better; not confidering that Nature "had ordain'd the one to affift the other. "Some of my Friends that faw the Spinage growing, defir'd me to let them have some, "and I promis'd I would, and as soon as Í

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thought the Seed to be ripe, caus'd it to "be pluck'd up dry; and as it was a pulling "up, I found there had been fome Male

Plants left, which might be fufficient to "impregnate fome of the Female Plants, but

" not

"not all: But I never confider'd of this till "fome Time after that I fent fome Seed to

my Friends, who fow'd it all, except one "Gentleman, who kept fome by him, and "fow'd the reft. In a little Time after I

heard a great Complaint, that my Spinage"Seed did not grow. Some thought that I "had impofed old Seed on them, but I af"fured them I had not: But my Friend who "kept fome Seed by him, when he found that "half his Seed did not grow, told me it had "been eat by Mice, but I affur'd him it had "not; and coming home I fearch'd that Seed "I had left by me, and found that half of it "had not got the Punctum Vite, which put " me on Confideration how it fhould come to pafs. But Reading your Syftem on the Ge"neration of Plants, gave me a clear infight "how it happen'd, it being for want of Male "Plants enough to impregnate and give Life "to the Seed; and fince I have always a Regard to leave enough of the Male Plants, "and have had good Succefs.

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"This put me on trying Experiments, in "pulling out the Apices in Flowers before "they had caft their Duft; and likewise I told "fome of my Friends of this System, who "would not believe me, but faid they would

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try as well as I; but to my great Astonish"ment we had fome Seed ripen'd very well, having all the good Properties that it should "have, which we fow'd, and it grew very well. Hereupon my Friends condemn'd me, and "faid I had afferted a mere Fiction; but I "defir'd them to wait till I had try'd again. "And accordingly I planted a Dozen of Tulips

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"by

"by themselves, and as foon as they open'd, "took out the Apices with a fine Pair of Nip-. રે pers, left I fhould fhake fome of the Duft "off; and by my Microfcrope I could not "difcern any Duft that had been left behind.› "About two Days after, as I was fitting in "my Garden, I perceiv'd, in a Bed of Tulips"near me, fome Bees very bufy in the Mid"dle of the Flowers; and viewing them, I "faw them come out with their Legs and

Belly loaded with Duft, and one of them. "flew into a Tulip that I had caftrated: Up"on which I took my Microfcope, and examining the Tulip he flew into, found he " had left Duft enough to impregnate the Tulip; which when I told my Friends, they "concluded that theirs might be ferv'd fo, "and by this Means reconcil'd them again. "But it being probable that fome People a"broad may fall into the fame Mistake, and "fo condemn this Syftem, I defire you will

publish this; for unless there be Provifion "made to keep out Infects, Plants may be im"pregnated by Infects much smaller than Bees:

For as the Creator of all Things, in his in

finite Wisdom, appointed this Way of Gene"ration to Vegetables, which are incapable of "Motion to each other, it may be fuppofed, "that he had fo ordain'd it, that a small Part "of the Male Duft fhould be fufficient to per"form that Office; which is all at prefent, " from

Yours, &c.

Philip Miller.

Con