Caar. II, INFLECTION INDIRECTLY CAUSED. 21. 
placed on leaves, and these objects were well embraced 
in various periods from 1 hr. to as long as 24 hrs., and 
set free again, with the leaf fully re-expanded, in from 
one or two, to seven or even ten days, according to 
the nature of the object. On a leaf which had 
naturally caught two flies, and therefore had already 
closed and reopened either once or more probably 
twice, I put a fresh fly: in 7 hrs. it was moderately, 
and in 21 hrs. thoroughly well, clasped, with the 
edges of the leaf inflected. In two days and a 
half the leaf had nearly re-expanded ; as the exciting 
object was an insect, this unusually short period of in- 
flection was, no doubt, due to the leaf having recently 
been in action. Allowing this same leaf to rest for 
only a single day, I put on another fly, and it again 
closed, but now very slowly; nevertheless, in less than 
two days it succeeded in thoroughly clasping the fly. 
When a small object is placed on the glands of the 
disc, on one side of a leaf, as near as possible to 
its circumference, the tentacles on this side are first 
affected, those on the opposite side much later, or, as 
often occurred, not at all. This was repeatedly proved 
by trials with bits of meat; but I will here give only 
the case of a minute fly, naturally caught and still 
alive, which I found adhering by its delicate feet to 
the glands on the extreme left side of the central disc. 
The marginal tentacles on this side closed inwards 
and killed the fly, and after a time the edge of the 
leaf on this side also became inflected, and thus 
remained for several days, whilst neither the tentacles 
nor the edge on the opposite side were in the least 
affected. 
If young and active leaves are selected, inorganic 
particles not larger than the head of a small pin, 
placed on the central glands, sometimes cause the 
