[49]

[Letter not transcribed]

[49v]

(67

Ch XI.

(When If the bending point place of the tentacle receives an impulse from its own gland, the movement is always towards the exact centre of the leaf; & so it is with all the tentacles, when simultaneously excited by immersion in a proper fluid, with the exception of the short ones in the middle part of the disc, for these do not bend in any direction when thus excited. On the other hand when the motor impulse comes from other & distant glands, all the tentacles within its reach, including the short ones in the just alluded to in the middle of the disc, all bend with much precision towards the point of excitement, wherever it may be this seated. This is in every way a remarkable fact; for the leaf falsely appears as if endowed with the senses of an animal. It is all the more remarkable as when the motor impulse strikes the bases of a tentacle obliquely with respect to its much flattened surface, the contraction of the cells must be confined to one or two, or to a very few at one end; & the cells which contact must be widely different in the widely different sides of the surrounding tentacles must be acted on, in order

[Insectivorous plants, p. 276: "If the bending place of a tentacle receives an impulse from its own gland, the movement is always towards the centre of the leaf; and so it is with all the tentacles, when their glands are excited by immersion in a proper fluid. The short ones in the middle part of the disc must be excepted, as these do not bend at all when thus excited. On the other hand, when the motor impulse comes from one side of the disc, the surrounding tentacles, including the short ones in the middle of the disc, all bend with precision towards the point of excitement, wherever this may be seated. This is in every way a remarkable phenomenon; for the leaf falsely appears as if endowed with the senses of an animal. It is all the more remarkable, as when the motor impulse strikes the base of a tentacle obliquely with respect to its flattened surface, the contraction of the cells must be confined to one, two, or a very few rows at one end. And different sides of the surrounding tentacles must be acted on, in order that all should bend with precision to the point of excitement.
The motor impulse, as it spreads from one or more glands across the disc, enters the bases of the surrounding tentacles, and immediately acts on the bending place."]