1862.] 79 



apparently penetrating nerve-fibres merely pass between these mus- 

 cular fibres. 



Fig. 5 * 



On tracing the peculiar and seemingly simple muscular fibres 

 towards the ends of the muscle, I found that they there evidently 

 consist of several smaller but still transversely striated fibres, and 

 this brought to my mind the bundles of fine muscular fibres described 

 by "Weismannf, and known to me also from actual inspection, which 

 induced that observer to infer the occurrence of longitudinal divisions 

 of the striated fibres. This led me to study these bundles singly by 

 treating the cutaneous muscle with strong solution of potash, and 

 then I found that it is precisely these particular bundles which 

 (appearing as single fibres) exhibit the peculiar swellings with the 

 coiled nerve. In the situation of the swelling the finer component 

 fibres of the bundle cling fast together, even after the operation of 

 the alkali, and a certain amount of striated granular uniting matter 

 is found between them, which may be partly the remains of fine 

 nerve-fibres and capillaries, and some accompanying connective tissue. 

 Now, if it be admitted that the finer muscular fibres composing the 

 bundle are generated by the division of thicker muscular fibres, as 

 Weismann justly concludes, the explanation of the nerve-tufts 

 becomes easy ; inasmuch as they may be conceived to arise from a 

 simultaneous growth and division of the nerve-fibre belonging to the 

 parent muscular fibre, in order that each of the young muscular 

 fibres may obtain its branch of nerve. The process by which this is 

 effected cannot be satisfactorily studied in consequence of the close 

 cohesion of the fine muscular fibres at the spot, but most probably 

 the original pale terminal fibres of the parent nerve undergo further 

 development by growth and by multiplication of the nuclei, so as 

 finally to supply all the new muscular fibres ; and I think it not 



* Fig. 5. A small bundle of fine muscular fibres into which an apparently 

 simple (but really longitudinally dividing) fibre has been resolved by means of 

 potash, a, Nodule or swelling which contained a nerve-tuft. 



t Zeitschr. fur rationelle Medicin, 1860, Band x. 



