i88i. 



35 



Trans. N. V. Ac. Set. 





Figure 4. — Thyroid Cartilage of Adult. Horizontal Section x 1200. 

 C. Cartilage corpuscle. B. Hyaline basis-substance. G. Granules of living matter. 



1857 Leydig had declared the " cell " to consist only of a soft substance 

 enclosing a nucleus. Certainly, twenty years ago it was proved beyond 

 dispute by Max Schultze, Beale, Hfeckel, and others, that what was 

 called a "cell" was not a vesicle, but essentially a jelly-like lump of 

 living matter characterized by the presence of a nucleus ; soon after, 

 Robin, Briicke, Ktihne, Strieker, and others, conclusively showed that 

 not even a nucleus is an essential constituent of an elementary organ- 

 ism ; and biologists were compelled to transfer the power of manifest- 

 ing vital properties to "living matter," instead of restricting this power 

 to any definite form-element. As long ago as in 1861, Briicke proposed 

 to discontinue the use of the word "cell " as being a misnomer and 

 misleading, and offered as a substitute the expression " elementary 

 organism." Beale proposed, instead, the term "bioplast" to designate 

 any definite mass of hving matter, and Haeckel the term "plastid." 

 From the latter I devised the word "plastidule," as synonymous with 

 ultimate molecule of the substance of living matter. Elementary living 

 matter is called with Dujardin " sarcode," or with Von Mohl " proto- 

 plasm," or with Beale "bioplasm," or, still better (because it is a 

 designation etymologically more nearly meaning living, forming matter). 



