738 BOTANY. 
leaf and cover its upper side, have been shown by previous observ- 
ers not to be hairs in the true sense of the term, i.e., mere cellu- 
lar expansions of the epidermis, but to be integral parts of the 
leaf, with a fibro-vascular bundle containing spiral threads (in 
other words a vein or nerve of the leaf) running through them, and 
even to be furnished with stomata. The glands excrete at all 
times when in a healthy condition a white viscous gluten which 
quickly entraps any small insect that settles upon the leaf, grad- 
ually holding it down more and more as it struggles, till escape is 
hopeless. The glands soon begin to move towards the imprisoned 
insect; but this movement is not very conspicuous at first, and is 
very much more decided after the insect has almost completely 
ceased its struggles ; thus appearing not to be due to the existence 
of a “contractile tissue” in the leaf, which is irritated by the 
movements cf the insect. After the lapse of some time the 
whole of the glands of the leaf, even those which were at a con- 
siderable distance from the insect, are found to be bending over 
towards it and to be almost in contact with it. After a time the 
insect is to all appearance digested, actually supplying the tissue 
of the leaf with nourishment. Very nearly the same effect was 
produced by substituting for the fly a piece of raw meat, the move- 
ment of the glands being somewhat slower, but ultimately almost 
as complete; the meat being apparently digested in the same 
manner. On other leaves were placed a minute piece of wood 
and a small piece of worsted; and in neither of these cases was 
the least change perceptible after a considerable time in the posi- 
tion of the glands or of tlie object itself.—A. W. B. 
In this brief abstract Mr. Bennett does not mention that these 
movements are pretty well known of late years, since Mr. Darwin 
called attention to the subject. Indeed they are in this country 
recorded in elementary books and demonstrated to classes. 
ably he is not aware that they were discovered, fully described, 
and their significance indicated, by Roth, a little less than 4 
century ago. Even the folding over of the leaf, so as to enwrap 
the insect, to which Mrs. Treat of New Jersey called attention & 
year or two ago, was observed by Roth. It may now be stat 
that the remark, in “How Plants Behave,” “if a particle of raw 
meat be substituted for the living fly, the bristles will close upon 
it in the same manner, but to a particle of chaik or wood they 
