work begins with a comparison of development in plants and 

 animals. Wolff first noticed that the different parts from 

 which the plant organisms are composed are extremely similar 

 to each other, and therefore the ways of their development 

 are easily established. Truly, as Wolff said, great depth 

 of thought is not required to notice, especially in some 

 plants, that in many composites in which the leaves gradually 

 become smaller and more incomplete and adjoin nearer to each 

 other the higher they are situated on the stem, at the end the 

 last leaves, which are present directly under the flowers, 

 turn out to be extremely small and are firmly adjacent to 

 each other. They form the leaves of the calyx, and together 

 constitute the calyx itself. Concerning the petals of the 

 flower, Wolff did not doubt that they are also modified true 

 leaves. He made the same conclusion for other parts, which 

 in some flowers are transformed into petals, and vice versa. 

 As a result of these observations Wolff concluded the following: 

 if all parts of the plant, except the stem, are similar in 

 their morphology to the leaves and are nothing other than 

 modification of the latter, then it is not so difficult to 

 formulate the theory of development in plants. 



CFootnote No . 1 , contd) 



NOVI COMMENT. ACAD. SCIENT. IMP. PETROPOLITANAE , 

 v. XII (pro Anno 1766 - 1767), 1768, pp. 403 - 507, v. XIII 

 (pro Anno 1768), 1769, pp. 478 - 530. 



This title is situated in the first part of work, 

 without an independent subtitle? second and third parts 

 are called accordingly "Second part, Cardiac fossa; 

 commissure of false amnion, lower fossa; beginning, increase 

 and disappearance of these formations" and "Third part. In- 

 ternal phenomena and false amnion, which at the same time 

 stated the formation of mesentery, thorax, abdomen, 

 wings and legs" . Meckel in his translation gave the work 

 a briefer general title ON THE FORMATION OF THE 

 INTESTINAL CANAL IN THE DEVELOPING CHICKEN (KASPAR 

 FRIEDRICH WOLFF UBER DIE BILDUNG DES DARMKANALS IM 

 BEBRUTETEN HUHNCHEN . Ubersetzt und mit einer einleitenden 

 Abhandlung und Ammerkungen versehen von Johann Friederich 

 Meckel, Halle, 1812) . 



68 



