204 



REYNOLD A. SPAETH 



or Ringer's solution.'' The effects of other neutral salts of the 

 alkalies were also studied in considerable detail but, since, so 

 far as I am aware, no parallel experiments have been performed 

 upon smooth muscle, a discussion of these results would be irrel- 

 evant. It is, however, of interest that both cations and anions 

 of the neutral salts show the same order of physiological effect, 

 the so-called 'lyotropic order,' as in experiments upon striated 

 muscle (Overton '04 and Scwartz '07) and certain colloids (Hof- 

 meister '91, PauH '99, Hober '14, Chapter 7). 



Fig. 1 'i'lic slow ronl raci ioii nf a inclaiitiplidr-c in distillt'd watiT. TIh- upiuT 

 line represciils tl:c niovcnicuts dI I lie Icniiiiial pifiinciit jiraimles in one procesH 

 of the coll. Tlic lower line indicates time in minutes. At D. W. fhociellwas 

 immersed in distiilecl w.-itef droniO.! X NaC'l). The mehinophore \va> I'ompletely 

 contracted in t went >• minutes, in (his case tlie niijiraf ion of I he ])igm(!nt granules 

 was followed liy means of an ocular micrometer carrying a moveable .scale. An 

 empirically selected line of the micrometer scale was kept t.angent to the termi- 

 nal iiigment granules hy tui'uing (he adjusting screw of the ocular. The motion 

 of the screw \\;is (ransmided to a set of |)ulleys and a heart lever and the curve 

 was recorded on a kymograph in the usual way. The actual path of tiie ))igment 

 nngratioM was 0.104 nun. w Inch m.ikes the magnification of the repi-oduce(| figure 

 ai)proxiiiiat('l\- X ")'>4. A detailed description of this apparatus will appear 

 sh<u-(l\' in the .\meric,an Journal ol' l'h\'siologv. 



