12 THE SECRETIONS: 



from the administration of mercury, turbid ; it deposited flocculi 

 of coagulated albumen. It was not precipitable by tannic 

 acid, had a specific gravity of 1003-8, and contained, coagulated 

 albumen, 2'57 ; mucus, 3'67 ; chloride of sodium, -9 ; water, 

 992'8. Bostock analysed the saliva of a man who was secreting 

 about two quarts daily in consequence of mercurial salivation. 

 It was of a clear brown colour, neutral, viscid, but not stringy, 

 and barely transparent. It became clear, however, after the 

 deposition of the minute flocculi suspended in it; the appli- 

 cation of heat, and also the addition of corrosive sublimate, 

 gave indications of the presence of albumen. It yielded 2 of 

 dried residue. After the discontinuance of the mercury, the 

 saliva was found to be less transparent; it reddened litmus 

 paper, contained more albumen, and more solid constituents 

 generally. Vogel 1 analysed the saliva of a man with sponta- 

 neous salivation; it contained 991 '2 parts of water; 4'4 of 

 ptyalin, osmazome, fat, and albumen ; and 4'4 of salts of soda, 

 potash, and lime; hence, in respect to the amount of solid 

 constituents and ptyalin, this saliva did not differ very much 

 from the normal standard. Mitscherlich also found that, 

 in the salivary flow excited by nervous irritation, the amount 

 of the solid constituents was not increased, that the ptyalin and 

 sulphocyanogen were even below the normal standard, while, 

 on the other hand, the extractive matters were somewhat in- 

 creased. A similar observation has been made by Guibourt. 



I examined the saliva of a patient suffering from an inflam- 

 matory affection of the pancreas. It was discharged from the 

 mouth in large quantity ; it was a clear, viscid fluid, mixed 

 with mucus, alkaline in its reaction, and exhibiting, under the 

 microscope, mucus-corpuscles, numerous oil- vesicles, epithelium- 

 cells, and membranous shreds : its specific gravity was 1005 ; 

 and 1000 parts yielded only ten of solid residue, which, in addi- 

 tion to mucus, and a very small quantity of albumen, consisted 

 principally of an extractive matter which developed an aromatic 

 odour on the application of heat, of fat, certain salts, and a 

 little ptyalin. 



1 Lehrbuch der Physiologic, von R. Wagner, p. 212. 



