ejected in all countries.


In the pots in which worms were kept, leaves were pinned down to
the soil, and at night the manner in which they were seized could
be observed. The worms always endeavoured to drag the leaves
towards their burrows; and they tore or sucked off small fragments,
whenever the leaves were sufficiently tender. They generally
seized the thin edge of a leaf with their mouths, between the
projecting upper and lower lip; the thick and strong pharynx being
at the same time, as Perrier remarks, pushed forward within their
bodies, so as to afford a point of resistance for the upper lip.
In the case of broad flat objects they acted in a wholly different
manner. The pointed anterior extremity of the body, after being
brought into contact with an object of this kind, was drawn within
the adjoining rings, so that it appeared truncated and became as
thick as the rest of the body. This part could then be seen to
swell a little; and this, I believe, is due to the pharynx being
pushed a little forwards. Then by a slight withdrawal of the
pharynx or by its expansion, a vacuum was produced beneath the
truncated slimy end of the body whilst in contact with the object;
and by this means the two adhered firmly together. {28} That under
these circumstances a vacuum was produced was plainly seen on one
occasion, when a large worm lying beneath a flaccid cabbage leaf
tried to drag it away; for the surface of the leaf directly over
the end of the worm's body became deeply pitted. On another
occasion a worm suddenly lost its hold on a flat leaf; and the
anterior end of the body was momentarily seen to be cup-formed.
Worms can attach themselves to an object beneath water in the same
manner; and I saw one thus dragging away a submerged slice of an