308 THE BLOOD. [CHAP, xxvil. 



well as for all the secretions. Thus, in addition to the water which 

 forms four-fifths of it, and without which no transfer of materials 

 could take place from it to other parts, it contains albumen for 

 the albuminous tissues ; fibrine for the fibrinous ; salts, which are 

 found in the various secretions; colouring matter, which, more 

 or less modified, is found in the nervous matter, the skin, the eye, 

 the bile, the urine, the cerumen ; and fatty matters identical with 

 those which are found in fat. 



The researches of the last few years, in which Lecaim, Andral 

 and Gavarret, Rees, Becquerel and Eodier, Christison, Miller, 

 and others have taken a conspicuous part, have determined, with 

 a very near agreement, the relative proportions in which the 

 various staminal principles exist in healthy blood. 



The following method may be adopted for this kind of quan- 

 titative analysis.* Let the blood flow at four different periods 

 and in equal quantities into two vessels, the first and third into the 

 first vessel ; the second and fourth into the second ; the weight of 

 each should be taken. 



From one portion the fibrine may be separated by whipping, 

 or by shaking up the blood in a bottle containing small pieces 

 of lead, the residue will consist of the serum and red particles. 

 The weight of this, deducted from that of the whole portion of 

 blood, will give the weight of the fibrine. 



The second portion may be set aside to coagulate spontaneously ; 

 when this process is completed, the crassamentum must be taken 

 out, and after the serum has completely drained away from it, it 

 should be weighed. The weight of the fibrine, as obtained by the 

 first experiment, being deducted from that of the entire clot, 

 will give that of the coloured corpuscles. The amount of albumen 

 may be obtained by precipitating it from the serum, and weighing 

 it after filtration. 



The general results of this method of analysis may be thus 

 stated roughly. In one hundred parts of blood, about seventy- 

 eight parts are fluid, and twenty-two parts solid material, and of 

 the last, the albumen constitutes rather less than seven parts, ' / 

 fibrine one-fourth of a part, and the red particles rather more than 

 fourteen parts. 



The following table gives a summary of the analysis of the 

 blood of healthy individuals of both sexes by Becquerel and Rodier, 

 who are among the most recent analysts. 



* For a a more elaborate and exact method of analysis see Mr. J. E. Bow- 

 man's " Hand-Book of Medical Chemistry," p. 133. 



