The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-03-10
ONLY EARTHWORMs
YET THEY HAVE CUT QUITE a re-
URE IN THE WORLDS HISTORY.


saqussy Preserved by faurtfrwoyr,a-
The common earthwofm. despaeed Inv
aBsfn n0d hoediessly srodden undxYfoT.
fnAfl2s q psxt In netuFe that would Seem
Incredible bat for the facts revealed t,v
the patient aud long continued rspassrs,ss
of Darwin. "WNms," says Durw9n.
s'have played q more Important psxt IN
the history of ths world than most usv-
cons would at first suppose" Let nm
follow Darwin and SEQ how this apprr-
emily insignificant creature has changed
the face Of nature. We will first consider
the habits and mode of life Of Tho earth
worm. AS every ono knows, the worms
live in burrows in the superficial liver
Of the ground. They can live anywhere
in layer Of earth, provided 1t retains
moisture, dry Dir being fatal to them.
They can, ON the other hand, exist sub
merged in water for several months.
They live chiefly in the superficial mold
less than foot below the surface, but
in long continued dry weather and in
very cold seasons they may burrow to a
depth Of eight feet. The burrows are
lined by thin layer of earth, voided
by tho worms, and end in small cham
bers in which they can turn round.
The burrows are formed partly by
pushing away the earth, but chiefly by
the earth being swallowed. Large guam
ties Of earth are swallowed BY the
worms for the sake Of the decomposing
vegetable matter contained in it, on
which they feed. The earth thus swal-
lowed is voided in spiral heaps, forming
the worm castings. In this case the
worm obtains food and at the same
time excavates it's burrows.
In addition to the food thus obtained
half decayed leaves are dragged into tho
burrows. mainly for food, but also to
plug the mouths of tho burrows for tho
sake Of protection. Worms are also fond
Of meat. especially fat. They will also
eat the dead bodies of their relatives.
They are nocturnal in habit, remaining,
as rule, i'll the burrows during the day
and coming out to feed at night
The earthworm has no eyes, but is
affected by strong light if exposed to il
for some time. 1t has no sense OF hoar-
ing, but is sensitive TO the vibrations oi
sound. The whole body is sensitive to
touch. There appears to be some sense
of smell, but this is limited to certain
articles Of food which are discovered
by tho worm when buried in earth, III
preference to other bodies not relished.
The worm appears to have some degree
Of intelligence from the way in which
it draws the leaves into its burrows, al
ways judging which is the best end to
draw them in by. This is remarkable in
SO lowly organized an animal being n
degree of intelligence not possessed by
many animals Of more complex organi-
zation. For instance, tho ant can often
be seen dragging objects along traversely
instead of taking them the easiest way.
AS we have seen, vast quantities of
earth are continually being passed
through the bodies of worms and voided
on the surface as castings. When it is
stated that the number of worms In M
acre of ordinary land suitable for them
to live in is $4,000, we can imagine the
great effect which they must have on
the soil.
They are, in fact. continually plow- :
ing the land. At one part Of the ali-
mentary canal Of the worm is gizzard,
or hard muscular organ, capable of !
grinding food into fine particles. 1t Is
this gizzard which is the main factor in |
triturating the soil, and it is aided by
small stones swallowed with the earth,
which act as millstones.
In consequence of the immense
amount of earth continually being
brought to the surface by worms it is
not difficult to understand how objects,
such as stones, rocks, etc., lying on the
surface will in course of time become
gradually buried in tho ground. Owing
to the burial Of stones and other objects
by the action Of worms, ancient monu-
ments, portions of Roman villas and
other objects Of antiquity have been pre-
served. These have been gradually
buried by the worms and SO preserved
from the destructive effect Of rain and
wind. Many Roman remains were stud
led by Darwin, and traces Of the 90
ton Of worms found, to which action
their preservation was mainly due. The
sinking of the foundations Of old build
ings is due to the action Of worms, and
no building is safe from this unless the
foundations are laid lower than the
level at which the worms can work
namely, about eight feet below the sur
face.
Another useful effect produced by
worms is the preparation Of the soil for
the growth of seedlings. By their agency
the soil is periodically sifted and expos
ed to the mir, and i'll this way is able to
retain moisture and absorb solublo sub
stances of use for the nutrition of plants.
knowledge.
Natures Error.