112 GEORGE JOHN ROMANES ispi 



the fish, or near it, a small medusa or other animal 

 which he cleverly knew was sensitive to electricity, 

 and when the eel struggled violently, the little animals 

 in contact showed by their movements that they felt 

 a slight shock. Ever afterwards men said that the 

 two fools were not such big fools as they seemed 



' Stultus. 



From G. J. 'Romanes to G. Darwin. 



18 Cornwall Terrace, Eegent's Park, N.W. : Sunday, March 1881. 



I have got a lot of cats waiting for me at different 

 houses round Wimbledon Common, and some day 

 next week shall surprise our coachman by making a 

 round of calls upon the cats, drive them several miles 

 into the country, and then let them out of their re- 

 spective bags. If any return, I shall try them again 

 in other directions before finally trying the rotation 

 experiment. 



I am also getting the experiment on flashing light 

 agoing. The first apparatus did not answer, so now 

 I have invested in a large eight-day clock, the pen- 

 dulum of which I intend to make do the flashing. 



18 Cornwall Terrace, Eegent's Park, N.W. : March 24, 1881. 



I write to ask you what you think of the following 

 idea as to a possible method of attacking Pangenesis. 

 Why not, I mean, inarch, at an early period of their 

 growth, the seed-vessels or ovaries of plants belong- 

 ing to different varieties ? If adhesion takes place, 

 the ovary might then be severed from its parent 

 plant, and left to develop upon the foreign one. 



