THE LARYNX. 



607 



parts as well as by 

 them. Their struc- 

 ture is adapted to 

 enable them to vi- 

 brate like tense mem- 

 branes, for they are 

 essentially composed 

 of elastic tissue ; and 

 they are so attached 

 to the cartilaginous 

 parts of the larynx 

 that their position 

 and tension can be 

 variously altered by 

 the contraction of the 

 muscles which act on 

 these parts. 



The Larynx. 

 The larynx, or or- 

 gan of voice, consists 

 essentially of two 

 elastic lips called the 

 vocal cords, which 

 are so attached to 

 certain cartilages, 

 and so under the 

 control of certain 

 muscles, that they 



Fig. 162. 



* Fig. 162. Outline showing the general form of the larynx, trachea, 

 and bronchi as seen from behind. \, h, great cornu of the hyoid bone ; 

 t, superior, and t', the inferior cornu of the thyroid cartilage : e, the 

 epiglottis ; a, points to the back of both the arytenoid cartilages, which 

 are surmounted by the cornicula ; c, the middle ridge on the back of the 

 cricoid cartilage ; t r, the posterior membranous part of the trachea ; b, b', 

 right and left bronchi. 



