124 THE HELMINTHE3. *§. 116. 



§ 116. 



In the Acanthocephali, the genital organs occupy a large portion of the 

 cavity of the body. They arise in the posterior portion, and are supported 

 by a lAgamentum suspetisorhun, which extends from this last to the base 

 of the proboscideal sheath. 



In the females, there are neither proper ovaries, nor an uterus ; but in 

 their place there are numerous oval, or round, flattened bodies of consider- 

 able size, which float freely in the liquid of the cavity of the body ; they 

 have nicely-defined borders, and are composed of a vesicular, granular 

 substance, and, as eggs are formed within them, they may be regarded as 

 so many loose ovaries.*" 



When the eggs have reached a certain size, they fall from the ovaries 

 into the cavity of the body. At this time they are ovo-elongate, have 

 only a single envelope, and contain both a vesicular and a finely-granular 

 substance, but no trace of a germinative vesicle. They continue to in- 

 crease in size, and two new envelopes are formed about them.^-* The 

 umscular canal which passes ofi" from the simple vulva which is situated at 

 the posterior part of the body, may be regarded as a uterus. 



At the point where it is attached to the Ligamentum Suspensorium, it 

 becomes a campanulate or infundibuliform organ, whose borders float freely 

 in the cavity of the body, and thus the whole is comparable to a Tuba Fal- 

 lopii. The bottom of this bell-shaped organ comnmnicates with the 

 superior extremity of the uterus by a narrow, valvular opening, which 

 presents a lateral, semilunar fissure. 



This whole organ is endowed with very active peristaltic motions, by 

 which the loose contents of the cavity of the body are absorbed ; and while 

 the larger ovaries are thrown out, the little immature eggs are returned into 

 the cavity of the body by the lateral fissure, — the more mature ones only, 

 reaching the uterus.'''^ This uterus, which is of variable length, opens 

 outwardly through a very short and narrow vagina. 



The males of Echinorhynchus have usually two oval or elongated testi- 

 cles, one before the otlier, and attached to the Ligamentum Suspensorium. 



of Taenia cncumerina (Crep/tn, Observ. de 2 The long eggs of many Erhinorhynchi are 



EiiUizuis flg. 12, lo) and cra^erZ/or'/Ti/s, have the formed by the same process. Tliey are all colorless, 



remarkable arrangement of being gr.juped in tens and may be distinguished by the peculiar aspect 



to twenties, and each group is surrounded by a of their middle envelope which at both extremities 



gelatinous envelope.* is constricted like a neck. But those of Echino- 



1 The ovaries of Echinorynchus were formerly rhynchun giitas form an excei>tion ; for they are 



taken both for mature eggs, and for cotyledons; shorter and oval, their middle en velnpu is yellowish, 



and to this is due the very inaccurate figures of and, like the two others, has externally numberless 



llv:xn hy IVestru7nb a.n<i Cloquet (loc. cit.). Du- small obtuse spines. With Eclihior/i/jnchus stru- 



Jardin, however (Hist. d. Helm. PI. VII. fig. D. 7Wos«s, hystrix, angustatas, and proteus, the 



<6), perceived their true nature. external envelope of the eggs presents the peculiar 



A state of development which I have observed phenomenon tliat when ))ressed between two plates 

 with many females of Echhiurhynrhiis gibl/o.ius, ' of glass, it sfjjaratts into very fine fibrillae. 



w.iuld appear to throw smiic liu'lit njion the <iues- 3 The nature of this rampanulate Tuba Fallopii 



tion as to the part of the Ijddy where the ovaries has been whnlly mistaki'n by ISnjanus, IVestrumb 



are first formed, lltite the Ligfimcntum su.yicii- and Cloquet. Burow (Kehinorhynchi strumosi 



sorium had, over most of its extent, large granu- Anat. p. 22, fig. 1. g, üg. 6) was the first to 



ilar globules, while the cavity of the body contained describe it, without however conveying the correct 



neither ovaries nor eggs. I think, therefore, that idea. See my description (HurdaeWs Physiol, 



ithis ligament is the elementary material from which loc. cit. p. 197), which has been confirmed since 



ithe ovaries are develo))ed un<ler the form of glob- by Dujardin (Hist. d. Helm. p. 495, PI. Vll. fig. 



»lies, which, being subsequently detached, continue D. 6). 

 their development in the li(iuid of the cavity of the 

 ijody. 



*(§ 115. note 27.] See Fan Bewerfen (loc. cit. composed like those other animals, — withagermin- 

 l>. 67;, who has observed the eggs of the Ceatodes ative vesicle, &c. — Kd. 



