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Show 414 UTRICULARIA NEGLECTA. CHAP. XVII. change perceptible in the quadrifids or bifids after 2~. hrs. Four bladders were then treated in the_ same manner With a solution of one part of nitrate of ammonia to 437 of w_ater, and re-examined after 21 hrs. In two of these the quadr1~ds now appeared full of very fin~ly gr~nular matt~r, and their protoplasmic lining or primordial utricle was_ a. httle s?:unk. In the third bladder, the quadrifids includ_ed distinctly VISible granules, d the primordial utricle was a httle shrunk after only 8 hrs. i: the fourth bladder the primordial ut~icle i~ mo~t of the ·ocesses was here and there thickened Into httle, uregular, ~~llowish specks; and from the gradations which co?-ld ~e traced in this and other cases, these specks appear to give nse to the larger free granules contained within some _of the pro· cesses. Other bladders, which, as far as could be ~udged, had ever caught any prey, were punctured and left In the same ~olution for 17 hrs.; and their quadrifids now contained very fine granular matter. . . . . A bladder was bisected, examined, and ungated with a solution of one part of carbonate of _ammonia to 437 of water. After 8 hrs. 30m. the quadrifids contained a good many granules, and the primordial utricle was somewhat shrunk; after 23 h_rs. the quadrifids and bifids contained many spheres of hyalme matter, and in one arm twenty-four such sphere~ of moderate size were counted. Two bisected bladders, which had been previously left for 21 hrs. ~n the solution of ?u~ (one ~art to 218 of water) without being affected, were ungat~d with_ the solution of carbonate of ammonia; and both had then quadnfids modified in nearly the same manner as just described,-one after only 9 hrs., and the other after 24 hrs. Two bladders which appeared never to have caught any prey were punct~red and placed in the solution; the quadrifids of one wer~ exammed after 17 hrs. and found slightly opaque; the quadnfids of the other exami~ed after 45 brs., had their primordial utricles more or le~s shrunk with thickened yellowish specks; l!ke those due to the action of nitrate of ammonia. Several uninJured bladd~rs were left in the same solution, as well as in a weaker solutiOn of one part to 1750 of water, or 1 gr. to 4 oz.; ~nd aft~r two days the quadrifids were more or less 0paq~10, with thm~ contents finely granular; but whether the solutiO?- bad entered by the orifice, or had been absorbed from the o~ts1de, I k~ow not. Two bisected bladders were irrigated with a solutiOn of one part of urea to 218 of water; but when this solutio~ was employed, I forgot that it had been kept for some day~ In a warm room, and had therefore probably generated ammonia; anyhow CHAP. XVII. ABSORPTION BY THE QUADRIFIDS. 415 the quadrifids we~e affected after 21 hrs. as if a solution of carbonate_ of am~onia had been· used; for the primordial utricle was thickened In sp~cks, which seemed to graduate into separate granules. _Three bisected bladders were also irrigated with a fresh solutiOn of urea of the same strength; their quadrifids after 21 hrs. were much less affected than in the former case . nev~rtheless, the prim?rdial utricle in some of the arms wa~ a little ~hrunk, and In others was divided into two almost symrnetncal sacks. _Three bise_cted bladders, after being examined, were irrigated With a putrid and very offensive infusion of raw meat. After 2~ hrs. t~e quadrifi~s and bifids in all three specimens abounded WI:h m~nute, hyahne, spherical masses; and some of their pnmordml utricles were a little shrunk. Three bisected bladders were also irrigated with a fresh infusion of raw meat· and to my surprise the quadrifids in one of them appeared 'after 23 hrs., finely granular, with their primordial utricles sordewhat shrunk and marked with thickened yellowish specks· so that ~hey ~ad been acted on in the same manner as by the putrid InfusiOn or by the salts of ammonia. In the second bladder some o~ the quadrifids were similarly acted on, though to a very slight degree; whilst the third bladder was not at all affected. . From th~se experiments it is clear that the quadrrfid and b1fid processes have the power of absorbing carbonate and nitrate of ammonia, and matter of some kind from a putrid infusion of meat. Salts of ammonia were selected for trial, as they are known to be rapidly generated by the decay of animal matter in the presence of air and water, and would therefore be generated within the bladders containing captured prey. The effect produced on the processes by these salts and by a putrid infusion of raw meat differs from that produced by the decay of the naturally captured animals only in the aggregated masses of protoplasm being in the latter case of larger size ; but it is probable that the fine granules and small hyaline spheres produced by the solutions would coalesce into larger masses, with time enough allowed. |