Mr. H. J. Carter on Microscopic Filaridae. 37 



flexible cell, within which is the spermatozoon and a small frag- 

 ment of granular matter, which, like that observed in the parent 

 cell, appears to be the unemployed portion of the contents of 

 the spermatophorous cell, which has not entered into the forma- 

 tion of the spermatozoon. The latter may now be seen to be 

 writhing and twisting about in all directions, and giving a num- 

 ber of shapes to its cell as it forces it out in one direction and 

 another (22), until it finally escapes, when it is observed to be 

 linear, about 1 -400th of an inch in length, consisting of a 

 thick cephalic portion which is linear-fusiform and amounts to 

 about two-thirds of the whole, and a thin, flexible, undulating 

 portion which forms the other third, and is the tail (24). In 

 this state it frequently appears among the contents of the testi- 

 cular sacs, and always among those spermatophorous cells of the 

 fallopian tube which are close to its junction with the ovisac. 



According to this description of the development of the sper- 

 matozoa, it might be inferred that every spermatic or parent 

 cell attains the same size, produces the same number of sperma- 

 tophorous or daughter cells, and therefore each should contain 

 a large number of spermatozoa ; but such is not the case ; for 

 not only at an early period (that is, in the granular stage) are 

 spermatic cells of different sizes to be seen, some of which are 

 apparently filled with spermatophorous points (daughter cells in 

 embryo), and others only containing two and three or upwards, 

 indicating that the former will produce more than the latter 

 (17), but at the end, when the whole of the endoplastic contents 

 of the parent cell have become absorbed, with the exception of a 

 fragment or two here and there, and the spermatozoa have nearly 

 attained their full development, this is further confirmed by the 

 presence of parent cells of different sizes containing from one to 

 twenty spermatophorous cells (19). I therefore see no way of 

 accounting for this variety in the size of the parent cell and in the 

 contained number of spermatozoa, than by assuming that all the 

 spermatic or parent cells do not develope the same number of 

 spermatozoa, either from part of the granules or daughter cells 

 becoming blighted, or from only a certain number being pro- 

 duced in the first instance. To endeavour to accoimt for it by 

 assuming that the daughter cells may develope one or more sper- 

 matozoa, and therefore that these may be the cells containing 

 the few spermatozoa, would not be borne out by the contents of 

 the few-bearing parent cells, which all present spermatophorous 

 cells around their spermatozoa, while, if they had been daughter 

 cells, the spermatozoa would have been all together, that is, not 

 separated by a further cellular enclosure — an instance of which 

 has never come under my observation. 



The appearances presented by the contents in situ of the tes- 



