ADDISON, ON liLOOD-CORPUSCLES. 85 



exhaustive one^ and the corpuscles are ultimately destroyed by 

 it, does not vary the argument that the projection of the 

 tails is an exhibition of a species of reaction on the part of 

 the corpuscles, produced by the vinous fluid when mingled 

 with the liquor sanguinis. 



Now, on repeating our experiments, we have found that 

 quinine, morphia, and strychnine do not vary the pheno- 

 mena. They do not prevent corpuscles which have sponta- 

 neously changed their form, nor those which have been 

 altered by a saline or alkaline liquid, from resuming their 

 normal form under the influence of an acid. Nor do these 

 vegetable alkaloids interfere with the action of sherry wine, 

 even when they are in the proportion of a grain to a fluid 

 drachm of the wine. Whereas, if only the one eighth of a 

 grain of the bichloride of mercury be added to a fluid drachm 

 of the wine, not only is the projection of tails from the 

 corpuscles prevented, but also those corpuscles which have 

 changed their outline are rendered incapable of restoration 

 to their normal form. 



Experiment . — Nine grains of refined sugar were dissolved in 

 half a fluid ounce of water, and an experiment was made in the 

 manner described in our former paper (page 20, ante). The 

 corpuscles which floated out into the fluid had a smooth 

 outline. A mixture was now made of four parts sugar solu- 

 . tion and one part laudanum. Upon using this mixture there 

 were numerous corpuscles with a rough or prickly outline, 

 mingled with smooth ones. But liquor potassse rendered the 

 corpuscles Avith smooth outlines prickly; and diluted hydro- 

 chloric acid restored the prickly forms to their normal shape, 

 just the same as if no laudanum were present. 



It would appear, then, that substances which are poisonous 

 to the brain and nervous matter have no particular eff'ect, 

 no marked action, upon the corpuscles of the blood. 



A parenchymatous organ (the brain, liver, salivary glands, 

 and kidney) is composed of cellular particles to Avhich the 

 5/jeci«/ function and susceptibilities of the organ are attributed. 

 And in medical practice it is well known, that one organ 

 may be influenced by a medicine or remedy taken by the 

 stomach, to the exclusion of other organs. 



The corpuscles of blood are cellular particles of an ana- 

 logous kind ; and that they should possess analogous pro- 

 perties — a measure of indiff'erence or even of resistance against 

 some substances in the liquor sanguinis, and a special sus- 

 ceptibility to other substances — is no more than might have 

 been expected if they be bodies with the properties of cells. 

 In every department of nature, cellular bodies, whether 



