82 PROTOPLASM. 



take place in the central part of the spherical particles of 

 germinal matter only. Discussions as to the nature of the 

 vital forces must, I think, therefore be confined to the con- 

 sideration of the changes which take place in those minute 

 living spherules of which there is reason to believe we can 

 only see some which are comparatively of large size, and 

 probably many series removed from their ultimate spherical 

 components. 



Centrifugal Movement of Living Particles. 



Movement takes place in the most minute living particles 

 in a direction from centre to circumference, while the inani- 

 mate matter which is about to become living passes in the 

 opposite direction ; or, in other words, the inanimate matter 

 passes into the centre of a particle which already lives, 

 becomes living, and then moves outwards. The flow of the 

 inanimate matter is centripetal, and the movement of the 

 living matter is centrifugal. But both sets of movements 

 are to be accounted for by the centrifugal tendency of the 

 living matter ; for it is obvious that as it thus tends to move 

 from a centre, a flow in the opposite direction must be 

 induced. Such tendency to move from a centre, it would 

 seem, must be due to a force very different from that which 

 controls the movements of inanimate matter. Moreover, 

 while cosmical force influences masses of the largest magni- 

 tude and of infinite minuteness, through varying distance, the 

 vital forces can only exert their sway when the distance is 

 infinitely slight ; and it would seem that this influence can 

 only affect matter which is brought into the very centre of 

 the living particle. 



