On the Action of the Blood. 



117 



globules and albumen of the serum, we can by no means regard 

 the question as decided. They therefore conceive that all the pro- 

 cesses pointed out in the memoirs of Berzelius, Brande, and Vau- 

 quelin, for insulating the colouring matter, are more or less il- 

 lusory. 



By reflecting on the properties of the several animal matters, 

 which the blood contains, their estimation is much easier than had 

 been heretofore supposed. In fact, the blood, after issuing from 

 its vessels, separates into two portions, the clot, and the serum. 

 The first is composed of the totality of the particles, (corpuscles,) 

 and a quantity of serum more or less considerable, according to 

 the space of time during which it has been left in repose ; but in 

 no case does it contain any other substance, unless it be in certaiu 

 morbid affections, which they do not at present examine. As it is 

 very easy to subject the serum to an exact analysis, it is no less so 

 to correct the error which its mixture introduces into the results of 

 the analysis of the clot. They have thus made several analyses, 

 for the details of which we must refer to their memoir. We have 

 assembled the results in the following table. 



We have only to glance our eyes over these results to be satis- 



