could generally be detected. On the other hand, in bladders containing
either one large or several small decayed animals, the processes
presented a widely different appearance. Six such bladders were
carefully examined; one contained an elongated, coiled-up larva;
another a single large entomostracan crustacean, and the others from
two to five smaller ones, all [page 412] in a decayed state. In these
six bladders, a large number of the quadrifid processes contained
transparent, often yellowish, more or less confluent, spherical or
irregularly shaped, masses of matter. Some of the processes, however,
contained only fine granular matter, the particles of which were so
small that they could not be defined clearly with No. 8 of Hartnack.
The delicate layer of protoplasm lining their walls was in some cases a
little shrunk. On three occasions the above small masses of matter were
observed and sketched at short intervals of time; and they certainly
changed their positions relatively to each other and to the walls of
the arms. Separate masses sometimes became confluent, and then again
divided. A single little mass would send out a projection, which after
a time separated itself. Hence there could be no doubt that these
masses consisted of protoplasm. Bearing in mind that many clean
bladders were examined with equal care, and that these presented no
such appearance, we may confidently believe that the protoplasm in the
above cases had been generated by the absorption of nitrogenous matter
from the decaying animals. In two or three other bladders, which at
first appeared quite clean, on careful search a few processes were
found, with their outsides clogged with a little brown matter, showing
that some minute animal had been captured and had decayed, and the arms
here included a very few more or less spherical and aggregated masses;
the processes in other parts of the bladders being empty and
transparent. On the other hand, it must be stated that in three
bladders containing dead crustaceans, the processes were likewise
empty. This fact may be accounted for by the animals not having been
sufficiently decayed, or by time enough not having been allowed for the
generation of proto- [page 413] plasm, or by its subsequent absorption
and transference to other parts of the plant. It will hereafter be seen
that in three or four other species of Utricularia the quadrifid
processes in contact with decaying animals likewise contained
aggregated masses of protoplasm.
On the Absorption of certain Fluids by the Quadrifid and Bifid
processes. These experiments were tried to ascertain whether certain
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