CHAPTER XII 

 THE BLOOD 



THE products of digestion are received and carried 

 to the tissues by the blood, a red salty liquid which 

 constitutes about eight per cent of the total weight of 

 the body. Upon exposure to the air, the blood quickly 



-Red corpuscle much enlarged 



section of red corpuscle 



leau of red corpuscles 



&e 



iJVS ^ite corpuscle 



Fibrin 



FIG. 76. Coagulated blood (highly magnified). 



becomes sticky and jelly-like through the formation of 

 clots. When examined under the low power of a micro- 

 scope, blood is seen to consist of a clear colorless liquid, 

 the plasma, which is thickly packed with small rounded 

 particles, the corpuscles, the majority of which are a 

 pale yellowish-red. When examined under a higher 

 power, the corpuscles are seen to have several different 

 forms. Those which are yellowish-red appear as flat- 



126 



