422 GENERATION. 



form coils or convolutions in their interior. 1 These are un- 

 doubtedly organs of depuration for the embryon, and take 

 on the function to be subsequently assumed by the kidneys ; 

 but, in the female, they are temporary structures, disappearing 

 as development advances, and having nothing to do with the 

 development of the true urinary organs. 



The testicles or ovaries are developed at the internal and 

 anterior surface of the "Wolffian bodies, first appearing in 

 the form of small, ovoid masses. Beginning just above and 

 passing along the external borders of the Wolffian bodies, 

 are the tubes called the ducts of Miiller. These at first open 

 into the intestine, near the point of entrance of the Wolffian 

 ducts. In the female, their upper extremities remain free, 

 except the single fimbria which is connected with the ovary. 

 Their inferior extremities unite with each other, and, at 

 their point of union, form the uterus. When this union is 

 incomplete, we have the malformation known as double 

 uterus, which may be associated with a double vagina. We 

 have referred to a case of this kind in a previous chapter. 3 

 The Wolffian bodies and their ducts disappear, in the female, 

 according to Longet, at about the fiftieth day. A portion of 

 their structure, however, persists, in the form of a collection 

 of closed tubes, constituting the parovarium, or organ of Ro- 

 senmiiller. 3 



In the female, the ovaries pass down no farther than the 

 pelvic cavity ; but the testicles, which are at first in the ab- 

 domen of the male, finally descend into the scrotum. As 

 the testicles descend, they carry with them the Wolffian duct, 

 that portion of the Wolffian body which is permanent con- 

 stituting the head of the epididymis. At the same time, a 

 cord appears, attached to the lower extremity of the testicle 

 and extending to the symphysis pubis. This is called the 

 gubernaculum testis. It is at first muscular, but the muscu- 

 lar fibres disappear during the later periods of utero-gesta- 



1 D ALTON, Human Physiology, Philadelphia, 1871, p. 676. 

 3 See page 347, note. 8 See page 278. 



