NOTES ON STRUCTURE, ETC., OF ELEPHANT’S PLACENTA. 3 
Owen describes the general features of the zonary nature 
of the placenta, and alludes to the presence of two other 
villous patches covering the ends of the oblong sac or chorion, 
which he regarded as being also areas of attachment to the 
uterus. ‘The chief points of attachment of the chorion to 
the uterus are, at the equator, by the annular placenta, and 
at each pole of the elongated sac by the subcircular villous 
patches.” Owen seems to have made no examination into 
the more minute anatomy of these patches of attachment. 
Twenty years later, however, Sir William Turner received 
from Professor Flower “a slice of the zone for microscopical 
examination” of this same specimen, which had been pre- 
served in the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. 
Turner described the result of his examination in his “ Lec- 
tures on the Comparative Anatomy of the Placenta” on pages 
101-102. He describes how he “ succeeded in passing some 
injection into the vessels of the chorion and the large trunks 
in the stem of the villi,” and concluded that “‘ there could be 
no doubt, however, that in this separated placenta of the 
elephant a large amount of uterine mucosa was inextricably 
locked in between the foetal villi.” 
A few years later Dr. H. C. Chapman (8) described the 
birth of an elephant and the nature of the placenta at full 
term, remarking that the chief points of difference between 
his description and that of Owen are to be regarded as due to 
the fact that his specimen was one at full term and Owen’s 
was one of about half the period of gestation. Chapman 
made some observations on the more minute structures of the 
placenta, and states that “the examination of the injected 
blood-vessels in my specimen leaves little doubt that at least 
one fourth of the girdle-like placenta of the elephant consists 
of hypertrophical mucous membrane of the uterus.’ 
Our specimen would appear to agree with that of ean 
with regard to the absence of any allantoic cavity. 
Owen found in his specimen (about half time) a distinct 
allantoic cavity or series of cavities, the allantois being “ 
interposed between the chorion and the amnios as to prevent 
