LYMPH. 299 



decide with certainty whether the heematin that was found, did 

 not belong to the red corpuscles of the chyle. At all events, I 

 have been unable to detect any dissolved hsematin in the chyle- 

 serum from the thoracic duct in horses, which is most commonly 

 of a red or cinnamon colour, and holds in suspension true hsematin- 

 containing blood-corpuscles ; if, however, decomposition has 

 commenced in the chyle, hsematin will then be found in the 

 plasma in consequence of the disintegration of the blood-cor- 

 puscles. 



LYMPH. 



The lymph forms a colourless or yellowish fluid, which is only 

 red if blood-corpuscles happen to be mixed with it ; it is some- 

 times transparent, sometimes slightly turbid or opalescent, of a 

 faintly saline taste and mawkish animal odour; its reaction is 

 usually alkaline ; it coagulates in from four to twenty minutes after 

 its discharge from the lymphatics ; it then forms a gelatinous, 

 trembling, colourless coagulum, which gradually contracts more 

 firmly, and encloses a large number of the so-called lymph-cor- 

 puscles ; in relation to the serum this coagulum usually occupies 

 only a very small space. 



Besides fat-globules and nucleus-like formations, we especially 

 notice amongst the morphological elements the true lymph-cor- 

 puscles which, however, do not essentially differ from mucus- and 

 pus-corpuscles. In lymph that has been carefully collected, we 

 only find blood-corpuscles when the fluid has been obtained from 

 the lymphatics of the spleen or from animals that have been 

 starved to death. (H. Nasse.)* 



There are many difficulties in the way of our obtaining pure 

 lymph ; it is sufficient to mention that, except in the very largest 

 animals, it is often extremely difficult to find and dissect the 

 lymphatics, and that even in the most favourable cases we cannot 

 avoid an admixture of blood and fat, on cutting into the 

 vessel and allowing its contents to discharge themselves. Hence 

 recourse has generally been had to accidental cases, and lymph 

 has been analysed which escaped spontaneously in consequence of 

 a wound or from a true lymphatic tumour. By the method 



* Handworterb. der Physiol. Bd. 2, S. 3G3 410. 



