BIHANG TILL K. SV. VET.-AKAD. HANDL. BAND 27. AFD. lY. N:0 6. 13 



are marks of a somewhat younger generation of such tubes, 

 and lastly, that the small, of ten bifurcated or, rather, bran- 

 ched proeesses, sitnated in front of the former and behind tke 

 large genital tubes, represent a still younger set of such 

 tubes in a state of obliteration. 



In some instances I counted more than three generations 

 of genital tubes which had already disappeared and, as far 

 as I have been able to prove, these must have alternated 

 with regard to their sexual contents. 



Among those genital tubes which are in a state of pro- 

 gressive development, the posterior ones are the largest and 

 oldest, their sexual contents liaving reached a higher degree 

 of maturity. They decrease anteriorly and pass över imper- 

 ceptibly into the minute, club-shaped bodies in the front end 

 of the genital basis. Thus, the development of the tubes 

 goes on from before backwards. With regard to the succes- 

 sion in which the different generations of tubes appear, 1 

 have not been able to determine whether the first visible 

 generation consists of male tubes or of female. 



Without entering into a more detailed analysis of the 

 different tissues which build up the genital basis, I may be 

 allowed to confiue myself to the following remarks. 



The organ in question is invested by the coelomic mem- 

 brane made up of rather high cells with an oval nucleus. 

 Scattered among these cells, and between the narrower bases 

 of these, may to be detected other larger, rounded and finel}' 

 granulated corpuscles. Inside this epithelium, a thin layer of 

 longitudinal and transverse muscular fibres envelopes the 

 remainmg main portion of the genital basis, which is formed 

 essentially of connective tissue constituting a more or less 

 spongy stroma of irregular bundles of fibres crossing in all 

 directions. It contains an infinite number of blood-corpuscles 

 or wander cells, proving that the nutritive fluid pervades the 

 tissues in powerful currents, in order to nourish the whole 

 reproductive organ. In addition, the stroma is strengthened 

 here and there by rather coarse threads of a muscular na- 

 ture. The stroma encloses and bounds a rather wide cavity, 

 having a longitudinal and vertical extention, and clothed with 

 a columnar ciliated epithelium with oval nuclei. The height 

 of the epithelial lining seems to vary in different places, and 

 to reach its maximum on the roof of the cavity. 



