THE LUMBAR ENLARGEMENT OF THE SPINAL CORD. : 341 
posterior roots, and with various bundles of fibres traversing the posterior cornu in all 
directions. In transverse sections made from the lumbar region, one or more large 
cells are usually met with just at the junction between cerviz and caput, on the 
inner margin of the cornu, these cells being connected with the posterior roots 
in a manner entirely at variance with all our present ideas of nervous conduction. 
One such cell is drawn (Fig. 7, B), and it will be noticed that, instead of being 
connected with a single bundle, it is connected by its processes with no less than 
four distinct bundles belonging to the posterior roots.* It is, moreover, highly prob- 
able that these four bundles proceed from different, if not distinct, parts of the body, 
so that possibly we have here sensations from four more or less distinct parts of the 
body, centralized in one nerve-cell; how they are separately conveyed to the senso- 
rium as distinct sensations I have been able to form no idea, but the fact is extremely 
interesting. I have been able to satisfy myself from the examination of many speci- 
mens that this is by no means an exceptional case, and I think hardly any preparation 
will be found, at least from the lumbar enlargement, which will not show one or more 
such cells in this part of the cornu. I have since noticed that Clarke has figured 
one such cell, occurring in the same part of the cornu, in the cervical enlargement. t 
In the anterior cornu the same thing is sometimes met with; I have several times 
seen cells connected with two or more fibres going to different bundles of anterior 
roots, as has already been figured by Clarkej and Schroder van der Kolk.§ It is not 
easy to observe this in the cords of the larger animals, since the cells from which the 
anterior roots arise are mostly situated at some distance from the entrance of the 
roots; but in the smaller animals, as the cat and rabbit, and in the human cord, such 
cells may often be found ; on the contrary, posterior cells of this kind are most easily 
seen in large cords. The only class of cells belonging to the posterior cornu between 
which and the posterior roots I have failed to trace any connection, are most of the 
very small cells met with in every part of the cornu, the nature of which, as stated 
above, I consider very doubtful. Many of the cells situated in the set of fibres sur- 
rounding the posterior cornu may be seen sending out their processes into the pos- 
terior roots; this is especially apparent in longitudinal sections, where they are 
situated one above another at pretty regular intervals, obviously connected with the 
posterior roots. 
* 'The cells drawn in Fig. 7 are the posterior cells of the posterior vesicular column. 
+ Philos. Trans. 1859, Pl. XIX. Fig. 1. 
ł Philos. Trans. 1859, Fig. 12. 
$ Op. cit., Fig. 6. 
VOL. VIII. 44 
