380 ANIMAL PARASITES. 



When fresh, according to the statements of all authors, the 

 worm has a red colour, which, I believe, only differs a little from 

 that of very fresh, un watered Ascarides, by its deeper red tint ; 

 in spirit this colour bleaches, and the worm becomes of a leaden 

 greyish-blue. Four longitudinal stripes may be counted upon it. 



The total length of the female, in the uninjured spirit prepa- 

 ration at my disposal, was 19 Saxon inches ; the vaginal orifice 

 was fully 2 inches from the thinner extremity, which I have 

 taken for the mouth. Dujardin sftys that the vagina opens about 

 1 2 inches from the caudal extremity, according to the size of 

 the individual. To me the vaginal opening appeared to lie per- 

 haps 2 inches from the mouth, at least to judge from the dissected 

 specimen. In the dissected specimen the empty uterus measured 

 5| inches in length, and was " broad ; but the vagina was 1 inch 

 in length. The ovaries disentangled as much as possible, and 

 measured by the inch rule, with an approximative calculation of 

 their terminal convolutions, gave a length of 83 inches. These 

 ovigenous organs ran backward to the thicker end (anus) to within 

 2i inches from this. The oesophagus was rather thin, muscular, 

 widening posteriorly in a clavate form, and almost 1| inches in 

 length. Diesing ascribes a distinct nervous system to this worm, 

 saying, " in hac saltern specie sy sterna gangliorum manifestissinum ; 

 and Blanchard also, as well as Von Siebold and Otto, speak of such 

 a system. Blanchard, namely, has indicated two chords running 

 down along the animal, and cerebral ganglion-like swellings in 

 their course, as nervous branches, whilst the other two last-named 

 authors only regard as a nervous end that visible longitudinal 

 line which is to be seen along the middle of the ventral surface, 

 which commences with a swelling in the head, and also terminates 

 in the head, and during its progress gives off filaments right and 

 left without exhibiting ganglionic dilatations, and the finer struc- 

 ture of which differs essentially from that of the transverse mus- 

 cular fasciculi. The ganglionic enlargements of Blanchard are 

 nothing but puckerings in the course of these chords, which cer- 

 tainly occur usually in spirit specimens, but are only found in 

 fresh and living Strongyli, where the worms are met with in a 

 contracted state. Only when we shall know something certain 

 with regard to the analogous longitudinal chords occurring 

 in Ascaris lumbricoides, will the explanation of these be possible. 



Symptoms, diagnosis, progress, prognosis, and therapeutics. 

 Without prejudice to any author, we may assert that we know 



