Chap. II. THEIR INTELLIGENCE. 67 



The considerable proportion, viz., 17 per 

 cent., drawn in more or less transversely 

 depends no doubt on the flexibility of these 

 half-decayed leaves. The fact of so many 

 having been drawn in by the middle, and of 

 some few having been drawn in by the base, 

 renders it improbable that the worms first 

 tried to draw in most of the leaves by one or 

 both of these methods, and that they after- 

 wards drew in 79 per cent, by their tips ; 

 for it is clear that they would not have failed 

 in drawing them in by the base or middle. 



The leaves of a foreign plant were next 

 searched for, the blades of which were not 

 more pointed towards the apex than towards 

 the base. This proved to be the case with 

 those of a laburnum (a hybrid between 

 Cytisus alpinus and laburnum) for on doubling 

 the terminal over the basal half, they gene- 

 rally fitted exactly ; and when there was 

 any difference, the basal half was a little the 

 narrower. It might, therefore, have been 

 expected that an almost equal number of 

 these leaves would have been drawn in by the 

 tip and base, or a slight excess in favour of 

 the latter. But of 73 leaves (not included in 



