248 DROSERA RUTUNDIFOLIA. Cuar. X 
divides into two. By looking to either side of the 
leaf, it will be seen that a branch from the great 
central bifurcation inosculates with a branch from the 
lateral bundle, and that there is a smaller inoscu- 
lation between the two chief branches of the lateral 
bundle. The course of the vessels is very complex 
at the larger inosculation; and here vessels, retain- 
ing the same diameter, are often formed by the 
union of the bluntly pointed ends of two vessels, 
but whether these points open into each other by 
thoir attached surfaces, I do not know. By means 
of the two inosculations all the vessels on the 
same side of the leaf are brought into some sort of 
connection. Near the circumference of the larger 
leaves the bifurcating branches also come into close 
union, and then separate again, forming a continuous 
zigzag line of vessels round the whole circumference. 
But the union of the vessels in this zigzag line seems 
to be much less intimate than at the main inoscula- 
tion. It should be added that the course of the 
vessels differs somewhat. in different leaves, and even 
on opposite sides of the same leaf, but the main 
inosculation is always present. 
Now in my first experiments with bits of meat 
placed on one side of the disc, it so happened that not 
a single tentacle was inflected on the opposite side ; 
and when I saw that the vessels on the same side were 
all connected together by the two inosculations, whilst 
not a vessel passed over to the opposite side, it seemed 
probable that the motor impulse was conducted ex- 
clusively along them. 
In order to test this view, I divided transversely 
with the point of a lancet the central trunks of four 
leaves, just beneath the main bifurcation; and two 
days afterwards placed rather large bits of raw meat 
