1876.] 
New Phase of Plant-Life, 
5 
by two leaves.” A kindred species, Drosera filiformis , very 
abundant in New Jersey, catches an extraordinary number 
of small and large insedts — even great flies of the genus 
Asilus , moths, and butterflies. 
The question now arises whether insedts alight on the 
leaves by mere chance, as a casual resting-place, or whether 
there is some objedt of special attradtion which serves as a 
bait for the trap. On this point Mr. Darwin suspends 
judgment. “ I suspedt,” says he, “ from the number of 
insedts caught by the English species of Drosera , and from 
what I have observed with some exotic species kept in my 
greenhouse, that the odour is attradtive.” We should 
think that insedts may be tempted to settle on the plant by 
the dew-like appearance of the secretion on the glands. 
Flies especially are well known to be “ thirsty souls,” and 
rarely lose an opportunity of drinking. Butterflies are also 
very fond of sipping moisture, as from the edges of shallow 
forest-pools. 
But we must now enquire what becomes of the insedts 
thus caught and killed ? There are two possibilities : their 
bodies may pass into putrefadtion, the plant being nourished 
by the liquid and gaseous produdts, or they may undergo a 
veritable process of digestion, as if they had been introduced 
into the stomach of an animal. Mr. Darwin has clearly 
shown that the secretions of the Drosera adt on albumenoid 
compounds exadtly as does the gastric juice of the Mam- 
malia, the digested matter being afterwards absorbed. 
“ This fadt,” he very justly remarks, “is a wonderful one in 
the physiology of plants. It is well known that the di- 
gestive process in animals requires the presence of an acid 
in company with the pepsin secreted by the stomach. If 
this acid is neutralised by an alkali, digestion is arrested, 
and goes on again if the alkali is again saturated by a 
suitable proportion of an acid. The very same results were 
obtained with the Drosera . Small cubes of albumen were 
given to the plant, and began to be dissolved in the ordinary 
manner. Small quantities of alkaline solutions were then 
added, so as to neutralise the acidity of the juices secreted 
by the plant. Immediately the adtion was brought to a 
stand-still, and the albumen was no longer attacked. If, 
now, traces of weak hydrochloric acid were added, so as to 
restore the secretion to its normal condition, the process of 
digestion was at once resumed. Within forty-eight hours 
from the time the acid was given the four cubes were not 
only completely dissolved, but much of the liquefied albumen 
was absorbed.” Small portions of the ferment— removed 
