112 DROSERA ROTUNDIFOLIA. Cuap. VL 
prove that gelatine is far from acting energetically 
on Drosera. 
In thé last chapter it was shown that a solution of 
isinglass of commerce, as thick as milk or cream, 
induces strong inflection. I therefore wished to com- 
pare its action with that of pure gelatine. Solutions 
of one part of both substances to 218 of water were 
made; and half-minim drops (‘0296 ml.) were placed 
on the discs of eight leaves, so that each received 
zt, of a grain, or ‘135 mg. The four with the isin- 
glass were much more strongly inflected than the 
other four. I conclude therefore that isinglass con- 
tains some, though perhaps very little, soluble albu- 
minous matter. As soon as these eight leaves re- 
expanded, they were given bits of roast meat, and in 
some hours all became greatly inflected; again show- 
ing how much more meat excites Drosera than does 
gelatine or isinglass. This is an interesting fact, as 
it is well known that gelatine by itself has little 
power of nourishing animals.* 
Chondrin.—This was sent me by Dr. Moore in a 
gelatinous state. Some was slowly dried, and a small 
chip was placed on a leaf, and a much larger chip on 
a second leaf. The first was liquefied in a day; the 
larger piece was much swollen and softened, but was 
not completely liquefied until the third day. The 
undried jelly was next tried, and as a control experi- 
ment small cubes were left in water for four days 
and retained their angles. Cubes of the same size 
were placed on two leaves, and larger cubes on two 
other leaves. The tentacles and lamine of the latter 
were closely inflected after 22 hrs., but those of the 
* Dr. Lauder Brunton gives view of the indirect part which 
in the ‘Medical Record, Janary’ gelatine plays in nutrition. 
1873, p. 36, an account of Voit’s 
