48 B. GEASSI AND A. SANDIAS. 



thinner from this point until they are no longer distinguish- 

 able, and the contents of the enlarged portion do not remain 

 liquid or semi-liquid, but change abruptly to a very dense pro- 

 toplasm, full of fine uniform granules. 



This enlargement gives rise to a structure which may be 

 compared with a bottle, of which the cylindrical tube forms the 

 neck. The bottom of this bottle corresponds posteriorly with 

 the limit between the striated and unstriated zones, and is 

 hollowed out, exactly as in a wine-bottle, to receive the nucleus. 



Continuing the comparison, it will be seen from this de- 

 scription that the neck of the bottle is filled with a liquid or 

 semi-fluid substance, whilst the body contains a granular pro- 

 toplasm ; but it fails in the fact that the bottle is devoid of 

 walls at the part corresponding to the bottom, or rather that 

 its walls become so attenuated towards the foot as to be in- 

 distinguishable. It will also be seen that this bottle-shaped 

 structure is surrounded with the liquid or semi-fluid proto- 

 plasm of the lacunae except at its base. 



The concave base protects the nucleus by reception of its 

 anterior half. The posterior half lies in a sort of cage of 

 curved rodlets, somewhat remote from each other and connected 

 by granular protoplasm. I am not certain as to their exact 

 arrangement, but they terminate almost in connection with the 

 periphery of the foot of the bottle, and most, if not all, are 

 curved in apposition with the posterior half of the nucleus. 

 I cannot give fuller details, but I may add that I believe them 

 to be somewhat asymmetrical, and not alike in all individuals. 

 They appear to consist of very dense protoplasm, and resist the 

 action of acetic acid for some time. 



The nucleus is very large, and oval or rounded. It may 

 measure as much as 14 or 16 n in diameter ; when oval its 

 major axis may measure from 16 to 18 fx, its minor axis 14 n. 

 It has a well-marked limiting membrane, and usually contains 

 numerous small deeply-staining bodies, resembling large, thick, 

 and more or less curved bacteria. 



I have mentioned that nutrition and elimination of faecal 

 matter most probably take place at the posterior extremity, 



