/ Instances of Mojistrotis Productions. 409 



lungs, and the latter no stomach, but a very small liver, and 

 a few turns of the small intestines. I am sorry I cannot give 

 you a more niinute description of this little monster, for I have 

 mislaid the notes relating to it, and cannot now find them. 

 I recollect that the aorta and venae cavag were in their usual 

 situation ; that where the latter terminated the former origin- 

 ated ; and that no vestige of a heart was to be found. Should 

 the general reader wonder how an animal of this class can 

 live without a heart, let him observe they can only live in utero. 

 There are instances of this deficiency already on record ; the 

 above example also may be added in confirmation of an 

 observation of Mr. Lawrence, in his paper before referred to ; 

 '' I know of no instance of want of the heart without consider- 

 able deviations from the ordinary structure in other parts of 

 the body." 



My second instance of malformation in the human species 

 was a case of preternatural origin of the great vessels of the 

 heart, producing the disease called morbus caeruleus (blue dis- 

 ease). The subject was a boy, very jolly at birth, but he never 

 became of a healthy colour : he sucked heartily, but wasted 

 daily, and died in aljout eleven weeks. As usual in these cases, 

 the child was purple-coloured, cold, and its lips and nails 

 particularly livid, from so small a portion of its blood passing 

 through the lungs, and receiving due oxygenation. On dis- 

 section, I found the heart large, and the right auricle and 

 ventricle very much distended with blood : these cavities were 

 unnaturally large, and the right ventricle thicker in its mus- 

 cular walls than the left, the reverse of which obtains in the 

 ordinary construction; the left auricle and ventricle were much 

 smaller than usual, particularly the auricle ; the walls of the 

 left ventricle were as thin as the right is usually found to be. 

 The foramen ovale (an opening between the two auricles, 

 which should close immediately after birth) was quite open. 

 The aorta commenced from the right ventricle instead of the 

 left, and took its natural course : the pulmonary artery com- 

 menced from the left ventricle instead of the right ; was smaller 

 than usual; it branched off to ramify through the lungs, which 

 were found remarkably collapsed. The ductus arteriosus, 

 that becomes impervious shortly after birth, was small but 

 pervious. Mr. Abernethy notices a similar origin of the aorta, 

 in his lecture on the anatomy of the heart. My communi- 

 cation has extended to such a length, that I shall add no 

 remarks to the brief statement of this case; indeed, those 

 persons who are conversant with the foetal circulation will 

 readily see the consequences necessarily resulting from such 



