66 Journal of Comparative Neurology and Psychology. 



pendent development of muscle with fibrils, striation and sarcolemma 

 after excision of the spinal cord and ganglia in larvae of 2.9 and 3.7 

 mm. NussBAUM, too, admits an independent development of embry- 

 onic muscles up to a certain degree — all agree with Goldstein's result 

 that Neumann's first claim is incorrect. His second claim, made in 

 order to explain the persistence of muscles in the amyelic monsters, 

 would not be conclusive on his own assumptions. The muscles need 

 not have degenerated within the short time between the lesion (3d or 

 4th month) and birth (usually in the 6th or 7th month). In Weber- 

 Alessandrini monsters the lesion must have occurred at 2-3 months 

 and the animal reached full term ; the muscles were, therefore, degen- 

 erated and mere fat layers and tendons. Leonowa also found the mus- 

 cles of her case of amyelia extraordinarily fatty. (It seems, more- 

 over, that the condition of the motor nerves in these monsters is not 

 satisfactorially ascertained, but should be of great importance in view 

 of Bethe's claims). Herbst's attempt to attribute a trophic control 

 over muscles to the spinal ganglia is refuted. Taking all the facts to- 

 gether, Goldstein comes to the conclusion that the central nervous 

 system during a certain early period of development has no demon- 

 strable morphogenetic influence on the developing organism. 



The second part of Goldstein's article furnishes evidence show- 

 ing that this same rule holds for regeneration. Regeneration need 

 not follow the rules of development. It also depends largely on the 

 age of the animal or embryo. The results in invertebrates are con- 

 tradictory ; those on vertebrates (Barfurth), probably favorable to 

 the theory of independence from the central nervous system. In 

 adult Tritons Wolff thought he had jiroved the necessity of a nervous 

 influence. He obtained regeneration of a leg after removal of the 

 cord, but with intactness of the ganglia ; when the operation was done 

 while regeneration had begun it was arrested in all but six cases. In 

 an experiment of Schaper on a Triton larva of 30 mm., an ex- 

 tremity was regenerated after destruction of the cord, and although 

 there was complete absence of sensibility and motility. What nerves 

 there were, came "largely" from the spinal ganglia ; the muscles were 

 normal ; even a piece of i mm. of spinal cord had reformed at the 

 posterior end of the cut of the cord. 



The conclusion is : In the stage of organ formation (Rorx) the 

 normal development and regeneration take place quite independent of 

 the nervous central system. In the stage of functional development 

 there is, however, a decided influence from the central organ. 



a. m. 



