ABSORPTION. 309 



it; and it acquires the property of coagulating spontaneously. The 

 higher in the thoracic duct the chyle advances, the greater is the num- 

 ber of chyle-corpuscles, and the larger and firmer is the clot which forms 

 in it when withdrawn and left at rest. Such a clot is like one of blood 

 without the red corpuscles, having the chyle-corpuscles entangled in it, 

 and the fatty matter forming a white creamy film on the surface of the 

 serum. But the clot of chyle is softer and moister than that of blood. 

 Like blood, also, the chyle often remains for a long time in its vessels 

 without coagulating, but coagulates rapidly on being removed from them. 

 The existence of the materials which, by their union form fibrin, is there- 

 fore, certain; and their increase appears to be commensurate with that of 

 the corpuscles. 



The structure of the chyle-corpuscles was described when speaking of 

 the white corpuscles of the blood, with which they are identical. The 

 lymph, in chemical composition, resembles diluted plasma, and from 

 what has been said, it will appear that perfect chyle and lymph are, in 

 essential characters, nearly similar, and scarcely differ, except in the 

 preponderance of fatty and proteid matter in the chyle. 



Chemical Composition of Lymph and Chyle (Owen Kees). 



I. II. III. 



Lymph Chyle Mixed Lymph & 



(Donkey.) (Donkey). Chyle (Human). 



Water, 9fi.536 690.23? 90.48 



Solids, 3.454 9.763 9.52 



Solids 



Proteids, including Serum- Al bu- ) 1 32Q 3>8g6 7>og 



mm, Fibrmogen, and Globulin. [ 

 Extractives, including in (i and n) [ -, ^Q -, KO.K in 



TT T- O /-N1 1 ' T J-.OOy J-.OOt) .J.VO 



Sugar, Urea, Leucm & Cholesterm, j 



Fatty matter, .... atrace 3.601 .92 



Salts, 58'5 .711 .44 



Quantity. The quantity which would pass into a cat's blood in 

 twenty-four hours has been estimated to be equal to about one-sixth of 

 the weight of the whole body. And, since the estimated weight of the 

 blood in cats is to the weight of their bodies as 1 to 7, the quantity of 

 lymph daily traversing the thoracic duct would appear to be about equal 

 to the quantity of blood at any time contained in the animals. By 

 another series of experiments, the quantity of lymph traversing the tho- 

 racic duct of a dog in twenty-four hours was found to be about equal to 

 two-thirds of the blood in the body. 



THE PROCESS OF ABSOEPTIOK. 



(a.) By the Lacteals. During the passage of the chyme along the 

 intestinal canal, its completely digested parts are absorbed by the blood- 



