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After Leclerc's discovery a great many students studied the influence of ether 

 on the movements of the plants. Ch. Blondeau subscribed to Leclerc's opinion 

 with regard to the existence of a nervous sj'stem of the plants at the same time 

 demonstrating that Mimosa is made inexcitable to external influences if exposed 

 to ether [Blondeau 1867, p. 304 — 306]. The same phenomenon was ascertained by 

 Arloing [Arloing 1879, p. 442 — 444]. Also Paul Bert observed this phenomenon; 

 with regard to the sleep-movements he did not consider them influenced by the 

 etherization i. e. the paratonic but not the autonomic movements are aff'ected by 

 anaesthetics [P. Bert 1867, p. 177 — 179]. Contrary to this theory Pfefîer was of 

 opinion that also the sleep-movements are eliminated in an atmosphere of ether ^; 

 yet he considered it possible that the doses necessary for this purpose might act 

 injuriously on the plant. [Pfeffer 1873, p. 309, and 1906, III, p. 144]. 



Already some years before Kabsch had proved that ether and chloroform 

 eliminate the periodic spontaneous movements of the lateral leaflets of Hedysarum 

 gyrans [Kabsch 1861, p. 356], and later Siragusa demonstrated that the spontaneous 

 periodic movements characteristic of the capitula of several Compositae do not 

 take place in an atmosphere of ether [Siragusa 1879]. Heckel noted that the 

 stamens of Mahonia which manifest no spontaneous movements are quite inexci- 

 table to external stimuli when the plant is exposed to an atmosphere of chloro- 

 form. The spontaneous movements of the stamens of Ruta graveolens which are 

 inexcitable to external stimuli remain intact in an atmosphere of chloroform^. 

 Through this he thought to have proved more decisively than Paul Bert a difference 

 concerning "les mouvements spontanés" and "les mouvements provoqués", Paul 

 Bert only experimenting with Mimosa which possesses both sorts of movements 

 [Heckel 1873, p. 948-950]. He also noted that ether and chloroform eliminate the 

 irritability of the stamens of several Compositae and of Berberis, and also that the 

 irritable stigmas of several Bignoniaceae, Scrophulariaceae and Sesameae lose 

 their irritability when influenced by ether [Heckel 1874, p. 922— 925; 1874, p. 985— 

 988; 1874, p. 703]. Similar to the movements of Ruta the spontaneous movements 

 of the stamens of Saxifraga sarmentosa, Geum and Parnassia are not aff'ected by 

 anaesthetics [Heckel 1876, p. 348]. In a later treatise he announced that Drosera 

 when narcotized acts as if the leaves were stimulated, the tentacles curving towards 

 to the centre of the leaf and secretion taking place. Not until the plant has been 

 exposed for some time to its usual conditions does it regain its normal position. 

 During the narcosis the plant loses its irritability to external stimuli but regains 

 it later under normal conditions, which was already noted by Darwin, who also 

 pointed out that the leaves mutually and the tentacles individually do not react in 

 the same manner when narcotized [Heckel 1876, p. 525], Darwin is of opinion 

 that this partly depends upon the difference of age of the leaves respectively of 



' Later Elfving noted this phenomenon in Acacia lophanta [Elfving 1886]. 



* Already shortly before Garlet had demonstrated this phenomenon; yet in his experiment he 

 had used ether [Garlet 1873 p. 538-541]. 



