Inqidrii into the Nature and Properties of the Blood. 4-2:3 



per end, they spread in all directions, and descended close to 

 the sides of the tube ; when near the bottom they re-ascended, 

 but more rapidly than the first time ; and when held longer in 

 the warm hand, the rapidity of the motion was much increased. 

 In two days more I found on examination the number of 

 globules much greater; and on the 25th of September the 

 numbf^r of o-lobules was such as to form a sediment at the bot- 

 tom of the tube of half an inch in thickness, besides a strong 

 coat on the inside of the tube." 



A similar experiment was made on human blood by Mr. 

 Faraday, at the Royal Institution, with similar results. Dr. 

 Bostock informs us that the buffy coat of inflamed blood con- 

 sists almost entirely of these lymph-globules as they are called; 

 and this agrees with the discovery of Dr. Dowler, that the 

 buffy coat contains a very large proportion of serum. Dr. B. 

 remarks further, that after much discussion respecting the 

 structure of the red particles. Dr. Young appears to have at 

 length decided this point, by showing that the colour of the 

 blood is produced by a vesicle which sun'ounds a colourless 

 globule ; while the still later observ^itions of Mr. Bauer, to 

 which may be added those of MM. Prevost and Dumas, ren- 

 der it probable that these central colourless globules compose 

 the fibrin. 



Prevost and Dumas regard the blood as essentially com- 

 posed of serum, holding in suspension a cjuantity of red par- 

 ticles, which consist of central colourless globules inclosed in 

 a coloured vesicle or coat. When the fluid is drawn from the 

 vessels, the central globules, in consequence, as it may be in- 

 ferred, of the loss of their envelope, are attracted together, 

 and disposed to arrange themselves in lines or fibres, thus 

 forming the basis of the clot or crassamentum. These fibres 

 mechanically entangle in the net-work which they form, a 

 quantity of the serum and of the colouring matter, which, by 

 simple draining, or by sufficient ablution in water, may be re- 

 moved from them. What we then procure is pure fibrin; 

 this substance they therefore identify with the central globule, 

 and the clot generally with the entire particle. They consi- 

 der the colouring matter as a compound of a peculiar animal 

 substance and the peroxide of iron. Water possesses the pro- 

 perty of breaking down these vesicles and detaching them irom 

 their nuclei, but does not dissolve them. They state that 

 the various re-agents act upon the albumen in the same man- 

 ner as u})on fibrin. According to their observations the quan- 

 tity of red globules in the entire mass of the blood bears an 

 exact ratio witii the temperature of the animal ; and arte- 

 rial 



