14 



THE CELL 



sequence of a certain resemblance to slimy substances, was 

 called by Schleiden the slime of the cell. Its refractive power is 

 greater than that of water, so that the most delicate threads of 

 protoplasm, although colourless, may be distinguished in this 

 medium. Minute granules, the microsomes, which look only like 



dots, are always 



C B 



h ' 



present in greater 

 or less numbers 

 in all protoplasm, 

 and may be seen 

 with a low power 

 of the microscope 

 to be embedded 

 in a homogeneous 

 ground sub- 

 stance. Accord- 

 ing to whether 

 there are few or 

 many of these 

 microsomes in 

 the protoplasm, it 

 is more trans- 

 parent (hyaline) 

 or darker and 

 more granular in 

 appearance. 



The distribu- 

 tion of these 



Fig. 1. Parenchyma cells, from the cortical layer of the 

 root of Fritillaria imperial's ; longitudinal sections (x 550); 

 after Sachs (EI. 33), Fig. 75 : A very young cells, as yet without 

 cell-sap, from close to the apex of the root ; B cells of the same 

 description, about 2mm above the apex of the root the cell- 

 sap (s) forms in the protoplasm (p) separate drops, between 

 which are the partition walls of the protoplasm ; C cells of the 

 same description, about 7-8 mm. above the apex; the two lower 

 cells on the right-hand side are seen in a front view, the larj.'e 

 cell on the left side is seen in optical section, the upper right- 

 hand cell is opened by the section ; the nucleus (xy) has a 

 peculiar appearance, being distended with water which it has 

 absorbed ; fc nucleus ; kk nucleolus ; h membrane. 



granules in the 

 body of the cell 

 is rarely regular. 

 Generally a more 

 or less thin outer 

 zone remains free 

 from granules. 

 Now as this layer 

 appears to be 

 somewhat firmer 

 in consistence 

 than the more 

 watery granula 



