186 HOME STUDIES IN NATURE. 



tie forced its way out between the crossed filaments. 

 I then helped the beetle on to plant ~Ho. 5, and forced 

 it into a trap ; it hugged close to the bottom, and was 

 soon made a secure prisoner." 



In this way I managed to get nine of these beetles 

 entrapped, but only one leaf was strong enough to di- 

 gest its victim, the other eight leaves died in the at- 

 tempt. 



The plants I experimented with I did not allow to 

 flower, as this would diminish their vigor. From May 

 to October the strongest plant caught forty insects and 

 digested most of them. But no one set of leaves has 

 caught all of these flies ; at one time there were thir- 

 teen good leaves on this plant, and as they died other 

 fresh ones made their appearance. At the time of 

 writing, October 22d, there are seven leaves on the 

 plant, three of them closed over flies. 



If I forced open a leaf in two or three days after an 

 insect was caught, I found it enveloped in a copious 

 slimy secretion ; but when the leaf was ready to open 

 of itself, had digested its victim, all this secretion had 

 disappeared — no doubt gone through the circulation to 

 the bulbous-lite root, to help nourish and enable it to 

 throw up other leaf -traps. 



That I might the more fully test the strength and 

 power of die plant, I one day placed the tip of my lit- 

 tle finger in a trap, resolving to become a self-made 

 prisoner for five hours at least. I took an easy-chair, 

 and let my arm rest upon the table and my hand upon 



