130 
as carnivorous. Charles Darwin refers to the plant as “one of 
the most wonderful in the world,” and devotes an entire chapter 
of his Insectivorous Plants to describing his investigation of its 
structure and physiology. In his letter of acknowledgment to Ellis 
(written in Latin from Upsala, Sweden, October 16, 1768), Lin- 
naeus says: ““ I yesterday received your welcome letter, accompany- 
ing the description, character, and figure of that most rare and 
singular plant the Dionaca, than which, certainly, nothing more 
interesting was ever seen. I laid this communication before our 
Royal Academy of Sciences, today, nor was it received without 
high admiration and astonishment. I am charged by that learned 
body to transmit to you its best thanks, for one of the most valu- 
able communications it ever received, and which is ordered to be 
the first article in the ensuing volume of our Transactions. 
“ For my own part, though I have doubtless seen and examined 
no small number of plants, I must confess I never met with so 
wonderful a phenomenon.” 
Ellis suspected the plant was carnivorous, for in a letter of 
October 11, 1768, to Mary, Duchess of Norfolk, he says: “I must 
further desire your Grace’s acceptance of a print of one of the 
rarest productions of the vegetable kingdom. ’Tis a new Sensitive 
Plant, and formed in such an extraordinary manner as if the 
Great Author of Nature intended it to receive some nourishment 
from the animals it seizes.” In this same letter Ellis expressed 
the erroneous opinion that the glands “seem to be the irritable 
a 
Omang Ce 
TENTH ANNUAL SPRING INSPECTION 
The Tenth Annual Spring Inspection of the Botanic Garden by 
trustees, Woman’s Auxiliary, members, and invited guests was 
held on Tuesday afternoon, May 13, 1924, from 3:30 until 6:00 
p.m. About 650 guests were present, and the weather was all that 
could be desired. 
The tour of inspection started from the Laboratory Building 
promptly at half past three, the guests proceeding in groups of 
