The Portland daily press., 1894-11-17
DARWIN's EARTHWORMs.
Interesting Experiment by the Great
Naturalist.

Astonishing Statistics as to the Population
of the Earth Beneath Our Feet-Piano
Entertainments for Crawling Things
In one of his last essays Richard, jeff
ries referred with great enthusiasm to
Mr. Darwin's book on earthworms. speak
ing OF it as especially valuable to the
practical farmer, as we'll as interesting
to the unscientific lover of country life
and field learning, writes Louis Lyndon
In Chicago Inter-Ocean.
The book has, moreover, a larger than
common measure of the peculiar charm
that characterizes all Mr.. Darwin's liter
arr work. the charm of homely industry
and fascinating research delightfully."- re-
corded. b
The Introduction speaks of the thin
layer of mold on the earth's surface,
the dirt" commonly supposed TO be
much deeper than it is, as being con-
stantly altered and added to by the
action of earthworms. Astonishing
statistics are given concerning the num-
Der of them to the square foot in COM
mon soil, and the amount of earth
thrown to the surface in a year by "cast-
ings." One is already interested and then
ready to offer respect to the worm when
it is further shown shat earthworms
possess important "mental qualities"
A diagram showing the structure of
the worm is given, bat the book deals
rather with the psychology than with
the anatomy of earthworms. The series
of experiments recorded demonstrating
that earthworms have power of atten-
ton, discrimination, and social instincts
is delightful, for not ssonly does one see
Darwin at home with the flower pot.
containing the worms, at his elbow for
daily consideration, month after month,
but one becomes personally interested
in the earthworms as a colony. 1t is
possible, to feel sorry when one of them
dies.
Fat, squirming earthworms brought to
the surface by a chance spadeful of soil
in the garden, seem; to be there by
chance, mere in-earth jewellers. But
Darwin began his work amongst them by
regarding each as an individual of we'll
developed intelligence, and inhabiting
carefully made house of his own; an
individual with whims and fancies even.
The experiments which were to test
TIE earthworm's mental capacities were
for the most part very simple and
homely. all the household taking part.
It is amusing to follow Mr.. Darwin up
and down the garden walks with his
lantern. perhaps crawling cautiously on
bis hands and knees, surprising the
earth worm at his nightly toil-the
searcher assisted not infrequently by
smy sons" And tbs entertaining to pic
ture him with covered lantern per-
sonating the moon shedding dim light
over the flow erpot where the worm colony
were kept to test their sensibility to
light.
e To see if they objected to change of
temperature, he drew near tenderly with
the heated poker; only one of the worms
dashed into it's burrow" which settled
the point of the degree of development of
their temper ature sense.
They were taken to the parlor TO listen
to the piano and bassoon, fed with famil-
lar and unfamiliar kinds Of food, and
treated in all ways with the greatest
care and consideration. 10 demonstrate
the existence of sense of touch was less
important: everyone knows how ill at
ease the earthworm is out of it's natural
contact with common soil. But OAR
wins object was to find out what a
practically deaf, blind and dumb indi-
viduaI, such as the earthworm is, would
do under unusual conditions to make
itself comfortable. That worms rarely
do have a choice in the matter of food
and even architecture is no longer abb
surd. in the light of Mr.. Darwin's years
of long researches. But with all these
facts accepted, we are still unpr epared to
hear that an earthworm is sometimes ill.
II is true that with his one species of
parasite he is very low IN the scale COM
pared with man exalted by his several
dozen species. But it is fact that this
one parasite causes the earth worm SO
much discomfort that he crawls away
from his cherished home to die by the
wayside in great despair. There is OAR
wins hearty assurance to comfort us
that the worm really suffers less, how
avar- than his actinpe xx,o,,JJ ;r,,,Iv