Wild Flowers of Georgetown. 345 



so thoroughly adapted to a floating life that many of 

 them do not produce roots at all, but depend for nourish- 

 ment on what they find in the water. It is probable, 

 however, that they are to a great extent carnivorous 

 in their habits, like the sun-dews, Venus's fly-trap, and 

 many other kinds of plants. The little bladders are so 

 fitted with valves and bristles that each one acts as a 

 trap or crab-pot for catching the minute water-fleas and 

 other animalcula with which the water abounds, and the 

 bodies of these victims appear to be assimilated by 

 some process of vegetable digestion that is not yet 

 thoroughly explained Besides the larger kind, with its 

 finely-divided leaves spreading out under water — a grace- 

 ful plant for the aquarium, — a very small-flowered kind 

 (Utricularia obtusa) will be seen in patches here and 

 there, with floating rafts of matted leaves and steins like 

 bundles of green horse-hair. Two or three other kinds 

 common up the Lamaha, one a pretty blue and yellow 

 water snap-dragon, do not seem to have reached town. 

 These plants may be particularly commended to micros- 

 copists, as more definite information about their car- 

 nivorous habits can only be obtained by them. 



We must now hasten to bring our wanderings among 

 the wild flowers to an end, but there are still many com- 

 mon plants unmentioned which must be included to 

 make our survev fairly complete. Perhaps our best way 

 will be to take a final stroll through the Gardens, and 

 then to visit the Kitty corner, where several character- 

 istic sea-shore plants have established themselves on che 

 sands that were open sea a few years ago. 



In the open parts of the Gardens where the grass has 

 not been too recently cut we shall everywhere find Derne- 



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