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mentioned, was endorsed by many French authors, with my obser- 
vations concerning the fascia transversalis, which yielded data quite 
in keeping with OMBREDANNE’s conception, we conceive the following 
image of the entire complex of fasciae in these regions and its 
relation to the large vessels: 
From their subperitoneal course along the floor of the pelvis, up 
to the leg the vessels run through one continuous tubular sheath, 
formed by a series of interconnected fascia-formations, in which, 
however, as OMBREDANNE rightly points out, the vessels are not free 
but are enclosed by, embedded in, massive connective tissue. 
It seems, therefore, admissible to assume that these fasciae are, 
indeed, nothing but compressions, (due to some mechanic cause), 
of the vascular connective tissue, where its surface was exposed to 
friction and pressure from environing elements. ') 
Still there is one more item I should like to discuss in this con- 
nection. The importance which OMBREDANNE ascribes to the vessels 
in his treatise, and which reveals itself also in his terminology 
(lames vasculaires) has caused him to be accused of one-sidedness. 
That OMBREDANNW's conception requires, indeed, to be worked out 
a little more, cannot be demonstrated better than in the very region 
of Scarpa’s triangle. For, if we once more consider the boundary 
of the ‘‘fascial tube’, the frontwall will be seen to be formed by 
the superficial layer, the back-wall by the deep layer of the fascia 
lata, both of which are continued in the fascia pelvis with the 
co-operation of the fascia transversalis. It is clear, therefore, that 
what is known in topographical anatomy as “Fossa Searpae’’ is 
nothing else but a considerable distension of the ‘lame vasculaire”; 
which distension may be explained by the presence of the large 
number of lymphatic glands in situ, which will apparently occur 
also in that “lame”. For the very reason that the lymphatic vessels 
require so much space the ‘fascial tube’ cannot enfold the vessels 
closely, on its passage under THomson’s ligament; this is why this 
ligament of THomson, instead of uniting medially to the vessels 
with the deep layer of the fascia lata, attaches itself only much 
farther medially to the f. pectinea; and finally this is why we 
observe on the medial side of the vessels a mass of connective tissue, 
furrowed with lymphatic vessels, bridged over at the front by 
THomson’s ligament, at the place where (in my judgment wrongly) 
') The term „fascial tube” should not bring before our minds individual, inde- 
pendent formations. | could not find a better expression. From what has been 
said and will still be said, it will be clear to the reader, I hope, that it is just 
the passive capacity of assimilation of the connective tissue that I wished to accentuate. 
