Further Observations on the Biology of Eoridula L. 61 
those of the stalks and the tissue of the leaf, but in older glands the head 
is dark red. 
Both kinds, the young and yellowish as well as the old and red glands, 
are coated with a thin layer of extremely viscid fluid, spreading evenly 
over the gland and often over the stalk as well like a transparent varnish. 
This fluid differs from the viscid slime of Drosera in the following 
respects : — 
1. It is not miscible with water. 
2. It shows no acid reaction, neither when tested direct nor when bits 
of albumen of egg or meat-fibres are placed on the glands. 
3. It readily absorbs iodine from a solution of iodine and iodide of 
potassium, becoming deep yellow or even brown. 
4. It is stained red by alkannin. 
These reactions indicate that the fluid is a kind of balsam, and not a 
slime like that of Drosera. 
The glands differ from those of Drosera as follows : — 
1. The membranes of the secreting cells are stained red by alkannin, 
probably because they are permeated by the viscid fluid. The cell-walls 
of the glands of Drosera are not stained by this reagent. 
2. The contact with the white of an egg or fibres of meat does not 
produce any visible increase of secretion. 
3. Neither albumen of egg nor meat-fibres nor diluted juice of meat 
produce agglomeration of the contents of the cells of the secreting 
mantle. 
4. Weak solutions of ammonium carbonate (1 in 200) do not produce 
agglomeration nor any other change, except a clearing of the tissue, 
similar, however, only to that produced by weak glycerin. 
These results are, I think, sufficiently conclusive. I may add that I 
made my first microscopic observations on twigs of the plant brought from 
the mountains near Tulbagh, the nearest locality known. This means that 
the twigs were about ten hours old when examined. As this circumstance 
might have affected the results, I procured some young plants taken out 
with the soil in which they were growing. The results agreed with my 
first observations, but in order to be absolutely certain I deferred their 
publication until I should have had an opportunity of repeating them on 
plants growing at their natural habitat. This I have been able to do 
recently, and as the results are the same as those obtained at first in my 
laboratory, I submit them now to this Society. 
I may further mention that plants of Drosera ramentacea and Drosera 
trinervia, which were growing in close proximity to the shrublets of 
Boridula dentata on the Tulbagh mountains, showed a very striking 
appearance when compared with Boridula. While the former carried a 
large drop of fluid at every gland, the glands of Boridula showed merely 
