OF THE NAILS. 



155 



wall of the nail and underlies its ' root, the anterior and 

 reddish-coloured division underlying its body. The ridges and 

 larainaj of the bed of the nail, the number of which varies 

 between 50 and 90, are, at their edges, beset with a series of short 

 papilla? of 0-008— 0-016'". In addition, I can confirm Henle's 

 statement that the bottom of the fold of the nail exhibits a 

 few transverse ridges with larger papillae directed forwards; 

 further forwards, where the lamina cease, there are also long 

 isolated papillae. On the nail of the little toe, the papillae 

 are frequently not seated upon ridges, but are more dispersed. 

 The wall of the nail has no ridges upon its lower surface, and 

 rarely a papilla here and there. These commence again upon 

 its margin, where they are of some length, and are continued 

 thence upon its upper surface, which is in no respect distin- 

 guishable from the cutis of the back of the fingers and toes. 



Fig. 59. 



The corium of the wall and of the bed 

 of the nail is dense, and for a considerable 

 distance contains but little fat ; in the 

 ridges and laminae with their papillae, it 

 is abundantly provided with fine elastic 

 fibres. The vessels are particularly nume- 

 rous in the anterior segment of the bed of 

 the nail ; behind, where the root of the 

 nail lies, and in the wall they are more 

 scanty ; their capillaries, 0-005 — 0008"', 

 form very distinct simple loops in the 

 papillae, and single trunks often pass, even into many papillae. 

 The nerves have the same relations below as in the skin, but 

 I have hitherto been unable to detect either terminal loops 

 or divisions in them. 



In the nail itself we may distinguish, the root, the body, 

 and the free edge (fig. 60). The soft root (fig. 60 /) corres- 

 ponds in its extent to the posterior ridged segment of the 

 bed of the nail, and is either wholly hidden in the fold, 

 or exposes a small semi-lunar surface, the lunula. The pos- 

 terior edge is attenuated, slightly bent upwards, and is the 

 thinnest and most flexible part of the nail. The hard body, 

 which increases in thickness and breadth from behind for- 

 wards (k), lies for the most part with its upper surface im- 

 Fig. 59. Capillaries of the bed of the nail, after Berres. 



