1883.] 



MICROSCOPICAL JOURNAL. 



75 



cilia are but prolongations of the in- 

 tracellular or intranuclear network. 

 In vertebrates, ciliary motion is en- 

 tirely independent of the nervous 

 system or of the general condition of 

 the body, since no indications of 

 change in the movement has followed 

 either section or irritation of the 

 nerve trunks approaching the respec- 

 tive parts. Ciliary activity is found to 

 continue long after nervous and mus- 

 cular sensibility have disappeared : in 

 some cases, even after the liquifaction 

 of the mucous membrane through 

 putrefaction. In the turtle and other 

 reptiles, it has been seen to continue 

 three weeks after decapitation. In 

 mammals and man, however, it sel- 

 dom lasts for more than two days 

 after death. Spermatozoids have been 

 found living and active in the uterus, 

 eight days after coitus. Thus, all 

 that is apparantly necessary to the 

 indefinite prolongation of life in ciliate 

 cells, is the maintenance of the fluid 

 by which they are bathed, in a proper 

 osmotic and nutritive condition, and 

 within such limits of temperature, as 

 we shall find hold good for all free 

 protoplasmic bodies. 



While it is the rule that vibratile 

 cilia are independent of the nervous 

 system, the will, and the circulation 

 of the animal to which they belong, 

 there are some exceptions. In the 

 ciliated, swimming organs of the cte- 

 nophora for instance, the movement 

 seems to be voluntary, due to a 

 reflectively engendered irritation, con- 

 ducted from the sense organs. In 

 other invertebrates also, when ciliary 

 motion serves for voluntary locomo- 

 tion, we must consider it due to an 

 innervation of the cilia without neces- 

 sarily thinking of nerve trunks or 

 fibres in a morphological sense. 

 {To be Continued]. 



EDITORIAL. 



At a meeting of the Rochester 

 Academy of Sciences held March 

 1 2th, a resolution was passed inviting 

 the American Society of Microscopists 

 to hold its annual meeting, next Au- 

 gust, in Rochester. 



All communications relative to business matters, 

 should be addressed to the publishers, S. E. Cassino 

 & Co., 41 Arch Street, Boston, Mass. 



Contributions, exchanges, and letters pertaining 

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 the Editor, 53 Maiden Lane, New York,N.V. 



Subscription-price, jti.oo per year, in advance. 

 Sub.scriptions begin with the January number, unless 

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 Boston. 



" Science." — The new weekly peri- 

 odical Science, has been regularly issued 

 since its commencement in February, 

 and it bids fair to become an invalu- 

 able publication for all who desire to 

 keep themselves informed of the pro- 

 gress of scientific investigation in this 

 country and elsewhere. We are pleased 

 to state that a number of copies have 

 been furnished us, which we are at 

 liberty to distribute among our sub- 

 scribers. To any subscribers who will 

 enclose a two-cent stamp for postage 

 we will send a copy of Science, in the 

 hope that they may find the paper 

 worthy of their support. 



The Postal Microscopical Club. 

 — The first box we have received this 

 season is the box of circuit " H," 

 which reaches us with only three slides 

 in it, the rest having yet to be contri- 

 buted by the other persons in the 

 circuit. The first slide is a prepara- 

 tion of a larva found on the leaves of 

 a squash-vine, the name of which is 

 unknown to the contributor. It is 

 certainly a very curious animal, but 

 as we look at it we wonder how long 

 it Avill be that we must see distorted 

 and flattened balsam-mounted prepar- 

 tions of this kind, when it is so simple 

 and easy to mount them without pres- 

 sure. It is true that in this particular 

 instance it might be objected that the 

 larva was rather large — it would re- 

 quire a very deep cell. Nevertheless, 

 this larva in its living condition under 

 a iow-power, would surely be far more 

 instructive than in its present form. 



