34 



inside the Mkissnër corpuscles. For among the cells filling up the 

 core of" the MEissNER-corpuscles we find many of the same vacuolar 

 non-medullated nerve-sections, which we have described, with the 

 fibrils, scattered over the spongy protoplasm. 



Now it was but another step to establish in well-chosen objects 

 that those vacuolar axis-cylinders maintain their course in the cells 

 of the core- itself. In tangential sections we were in a position to 

 observe with absolute certainty that from the axis-cylinder the 

 fibrils pass into the protoplasm of those cells, where they may aid 

 in making up a regular network of the fine fibrils, and where, as 

 a continuation of the vacuolar structure of the axis-cylinder in trans- 

 verse section, a reticular protoplasm serves as a substratum to the 

 neurofibrils. Just as 1 observed previously in the corpuscles of 

 Grandry, 1 saw also here a similar diffuse expansion of the net- 

 work over the cell-protoplasm, as well as the mechanical traction 

 phenomena between protoplasm and fibril-system, so th^t my inter- 

 pretation leaves hardly any room for doubt. It is beyond all 

 question that the core cells are indeed parts of the nerve-course 

 itself; consequently it fits in with my view ^) to term them lemmo- 

 blasts together loith tlie other elements, building up the course of 

 the nerve. The fibrillar networks described, are by no means terminal. 

 As a rule the fibrils are seen to unite again and pursue their way 

 as a new axis-cylinder. This is an additional argument for classing 

 those cells among the structural elements of the nerve-course itself. 

 In this way I came to the conclusion that the entire Meissnkr cor- 

 jniscle is built up of compact lemmohhist cords in structure completely 

 similar to the free nerve-endings. Now this appears to me to be an 

 important conclusion, the more so when correlated with the above 

 data regarding the connection between the tactile corpuscles and 

 the free endings, as discussed in the literature. 



In conclusion I will, impart that in the Meissner corpuscles I 

 found hardly anything that reminded me of a capsule, certainly not 

 a fine fibrillary texture proper, still less a lamellar system. The 

 enveloping connective tissue is rather of a loose spongy structure. 

 I found in it vacuolar nerve-sections as well as "free" fibrils in- 

 vested in the plasmoderms. I often descried that the contours of 

 MEissNER-corpuscles are very indistinct. Especially in the tactile balls 

 of the cat's paw I rarely found typical Meissner corpuscles; often, 

 howevei', in the papillary connective tissue I found detached groups 



1) Cf. G. G. Heringa. Le développement des corpuscules de Grandry et de 

 Herbst (Arch, néerl. des Sc. Exactes et nat. Serie III B. tome lil 1917). 



