202 The Microscope. 



stroyed. The cell was no longer a unit of organization , it was- 

 merely a limited mass of protoplasm, in which, beyond the 

 presence of a nucleus, there was no visible distinction of parts."' 

 To maintain bis position, this author selects the Amcuba, as an 

 example, in order to show that cells are not structured; and 

 whether ^his arguments are conclusive we leave the reader to 

 judge from his own words. " In its simplest form a living beings 

 as illustrated by some of the forms often spoken of as Amoebae^ 

 consists of a mass of substance in which there is no obvious dis- 

 tinction of parts. In the body of such a creature even the high- 

 est available powers of the microscope reveal nothing more than 

 a fairly uniform network of material . . . the intervals of the 

 meshwork being filled, now with a fluid, now with a more solid 

 substance or with a finer and more delicate network, and minute 

 particles or granules of variable size . . . Analysis with various 

 staining and other reagents leads to the conclusion that the sub- 

 stance of the network is of a different character from the sub- 

 stance filling up the meshes. Similar analysis shows that at 

 times the bars or films of the network are not homogeneous, but 

 composed of different kinds of stuffs . . ." From this the reader 

 sees that the author contradicts himself. If there is no visible 

 distinction of parts as he at firsts declares, why does he then 

 call attention to the differences in composition and even to the 

 different parts composing the cell of the Amwba f Precisely be- 

 cause he cannot get over the idea that the cell is made of difi'er- 

 ent stuffs as he calls it, and that there are parts in it which not 

 only differ in composition but in appearance ; in a word, the cell 

 is nqt a homogenous substance but is composed of parts, in 

 other words, it possesses structure. But in bringing together 

 what is known of the cell it is not my purpose to enter into con- 

 troversy ; I therefore leave the reader free to hold his own. 

 opinions. 



I will state the thesis of Carnoy in his own words, and follow 

 him as closely as possible in its exposition and demonstration. 

 Prof Carnoy maintains that, " Cells are elementary organisms or 

 individualities of organized beings," and that the cell is " a 

 structured and living mass of protoplasm surrounded by a mem- 

 brane and containing a nucleus." 



THE CELL IS AN INDIVIDUALITY. 



By this is meant that every cell is autonomous, that is, it con- 



