CHAP, vi.] OF LIVING LIQUIDS. 55 



tical for two moments of duration. But we can say quite as much 

 of the blood, of the lymph, of the histological elements them- 

 selves, forasmuch as the movement of continuous renovation is 

 the primordial condition of life. 



On the whole, between the anatomical elements, the blastemas, 

 and the plasmas, there is from the chemical point of view, merely 

 the difference in the proportion and the nature of constituent 

 immediate principles, but a difference graduated from each to 

 jeach. They are three forms of living matter, analogous to each 

 other and engendering each other. 



3. Of tJie Plasmas. 



In the plant, the imperfect division of physiological labour, and 

 the confusion of functions, are so great that we find it difficult to 

 classify the organic liquids. We have signalised the liquids 

 evidently blastematic of the vegetal embryon, of the buds, the 

 liquid semi-blastematic and semi-plasmatic which is called sap. 

 Further on we shall say some words in reference to the secretion 

 of the vegetal glands and of their secreted products ; and thus 

 we shall have passed in review all the vegetal organic liquids. 

 The thing is less simple in animals, or at least in the superior 

 animals. The division of labour is more advanced in the tissues 

 and the liquids, and we must carefully classify both of them. 



In the superior animal the organic liquids can first of all be 

 divided into two great groups corresponding to the two great divi- 

 sions of the solid elements ; they are the group of the constituent 

 humours, and that of the produced humours. 



The chemical composition of each group, and even of the 

 humours of each group, is very various ; but in a general manner 

 we can say, that they all contain immediate principles of the 

 three orders : * 



1 . Principles of mineral origin (water and dissolved salts) ; 



2. Principles of organic origin, some crystallisable, others 

 coagulable (urea, creatine, lactates, choleates, and so on) j 



1 Ch. Robin, DCS humeurs, p. 20, 21, 8vo. 



