PHYSIOLOGY. 



647 



advanced yonrs the innermost, layer is most de- 

 velopi-d : '>. The artery \vulls in the hollow of 

 the hand, the finder tins, and the sole arc, other 

 things being equal, thicker than those in the 

 back of the hand, the forehead, the arm, etc. 

 Tli is greater thickness is due to a greater devel- 

 opment of the middle layer in all ages of life. 

 The arteries in the hollow of the hand in the 

 c.M<e of occupations involving hard manual labor 

 show 11 greater increase of thickness than in the 

 case of those with little or no such work. Tn 

 the-.' cases all three layers of the artery are 

 thickened, but the middle layer most; 4. In 

 women all the chief arteries of the hollow of the 

 hand and of the back of the hand are somewhat 

 les< thic-k than those of men. 



The method of fractional heat coagulation has 

 been employed by Prof. Halliburton in the ex- 

 amination of many animal fluids, especially of 

 serum, which he believes in some of the higher 

 vertebrates contains a mixture of 8 albumens. 

 Corin end Berard, using this method, came to a 

 some what similar conclusion respecting the white 

 of eg-;. In 1890 Messrs. Haycraft and Duggan 

 published a criticism on this method, in which 

 they asserted that the coagulation point of a 

 proteid is considerably raised by diluting its so- 

 lution, and a very dilute solution may not coag- 

 ulate, even on boiling. Without doubting the 

 possibility of fractionating some proteids this 

 fa'-tur in determining the temperature of coagu- 

 lation has been neglected by Corin and Berard, 

 and by Halliburton, and therefore, the critics 

 say, a doubt is cast upon the results they have 

 obtained by fractional heat coagulation. In or- 

 der that the proteids separated may be consid- 

 ered distinct from one another, it is necessary 

 that other differences besides that of mere heat 

 coagulation should be demonstrated to exist. It 

 is possible that serum albumen and egg albumen 

 may be single proteids, and the fact that various 

 precipitates at different temperatures are obtain- 

 able, can be explained in one of two ways : either 

 that the heat, when applied for a long time, alters 

 the character of the proteid in solution so that 

 its temperature of coagulation is heightened, or 

 that the result is simply a dilution. Even if it 

 be admitted that serum albumen is a single sub- 

 stance, the question arises. What explanation can 

 be given of the fact that various precipitates are 

 obtainable at different temperatures I Haycraft 

 has suggested three possible explanations, viz., 

 that the"coagulation point rises in virtue of the 

 solution becoming continually more dilute ; its 

 becoming less acid which may be disregarded, 

 because the acidity can be kept constant; and 

 changes which are being produced in the proteid 

 itself, by the action of the high temperature to 

 which it is subjected. The most stress is laid on 

 the first explanation. The experiments of R. T. 

 Hewlett with the white of egg give no support 

 to the views of these critics, but emphasize the 

 point that it is not necessary to make a distinc- 

 tion between the temperature of opaloscence and 

 the temperature of coagulation (formation of 

 flocculi). Both take place at the same tempera- 

 ture, if the rafc of heating be sufficiently slow ; 

 that the differences observed in coagulation tem- 

 peratures with slow and rapid heating are only 

 apparent : that a slow rate of heating is essential 

 for obtaining correct coagulation temperatures. 



especially when a solution is dilute; that pro- 

 longed heating probably does not alter the coag- 

 ulation temperature of a proteid; that very di- 

 lute solutions of a proteid may be prevented 

 from coagulating by a comparatively small excess 

 of either acid or alkali ; that the phenomena of 

 fractional heat coagulation are not due to the 

 effects of dilution, for (a) dilution, if the rate of 

 heating be sufficiently slow, does not raise the 

 coagulation temperature ; (b) in fractionation the 

 rise in the coagulation temperature is out of all 



Sroportion to the dilution ; there can be little 

 oubt that white of egg is a mixture of at least 

 three proteids ; and it would be advisable to de- 

 cide upon some standard conditions under which 

 to determine coagulation temperatures. 



A report has been made by Dr. Carl Sadler of 

 observations on the conditions of the blood in 

 a wide range of diseases. In acute diseases the 

 author finds a constant but mostly not very 

 marked decrease of red corpuscles. In chronic 

 diseases the diminution is greater, especially in 

 such as exhibit cachexia. and there is a propor- 

 tionate diminution in the amount of haemoglo- 

 bin. An exception to this is met with in tu- 

 berculosis so long as nutrition is fairly well 

 preserved. The number of corpuscles is also not 

 affected in valvular disease of the heart. In 

 chlorosis the corpuscles may long remain at 

 the normal standard, while the haemoglobin 

 falls. In other cases of anaemia, in the essen- 

 tial form and in forms due to losses of blood, 

 atrophy of stomach, and other causes, the de- 

 cline in corpuscular richness takes place at an 

 even pace with that c-f haemoglobin. Acute and 

 profuse diarrhoea produces a- notable increase in 

 the proportion of corpuscles and haemoglobin, 

 attributable to inspissation of the blood, and this 

 may account for the maintenance of a fairly nor- 

 mal standard in some cases of typhoid fever. 

 The author found a diminution in the number 

 of white blood-corpusctes in malaria, apart from 

 the administration of quinine. Leucocytosis is 

 proved to occur during digestion, and also dur- 

 ing the puerperal period and the first days of 

 lactation. Pathological leucocytosis is found in 

 all diseases accompanied by exudation, but not iu- 

 variablv. Leucocytosis does not occur in uncom- 

 plicated typhoid fever, or in tuberculosis (except 

 during the reaction produced by injections of 

 tuberculin). It was present in only one half the 

 cases of carcinoma examined, and had relation 

 rather to the supervention of ulceration than to 

 infection of lymphatic glands. Singularly, in 

 contrast with carcinoma, leucocytosis is invaria- 

 bly present in cases of sarcoma. 



"It has been shown by Surgeon-Major Laurie, 

 of India, that the fall of blood pressure in ani- 

 mals made insensible by chloroform is due to the 

 action of the anaesthetic on the brain, and not on 

 the heart. When blood containing chloroform 

 is allowed to reach the brain only, all the ordi- 

 nary phenomena of anaesthesia are observed ; but 

 when such blood is conveyed to every other part 

 of the body except the brain, while that is sup- 

 plied with pure blood, the anaesthetic effects of 

 chloroform and its depressing effects on the cir- 

 culation are not observed. 



Digestion. In the case of a patient in whom 

 an operation gave an opportunity to study the 

 process of digestion in the stomach ar.d small 



