THE ^FEMALE GENITAL TRACT. 



835 



ner, but without a clearly marked caliber. In other parts, a central light 

 space could be discerned, evidently the first trace of the future lumen. This 

 opening must have been produced by the vacuolation of the most inner 

 medullary bodies. Some cord-like formations which, if viewed transversely, 

 still appeared solid, when seen in longitudinal section, showed a narrow, 

 central caliber, lined by delicate spindle-shaped bodies in lengthwise arrange- 

 ment, corresponding to the endothelial coat of arteries. (See Fig. 377.) 



In a more advanced stage of development, the artery had the appearance 

 of a tube with a clearly marked caliber ; but in the opening there could be 

 seen clusters of granules or nuclei, evidently the remnants of former vacu- 

 oled medullary corpuscles. 



In addition to these, other bodies were noticed within the caliber, discoid 

 in shape, homogeneous and somewhat plicated, probably newly foraged red 



FIG. 377. NEW FORMATION OF AN ARTERY IN DECIDUA 

 CATAMENIALIS. 



D, decidua elements, at their periphery transformed to basis-substance, the nucleus un- 

 changed; S, spindle-shaped corpuscles, indicating the formation of an adventitial coat; A, 

 shining, homogeneous elements in longitudinal section, the forming smooth muscles ; the 

 <-udothelia visible in the depth. Magnified 1000 diameters. 



blood-corpuscles. In this stage of development, both the endothelial and 

 muscular coat could be discerned in longitudinal and transverse sections of 

 the vessels. 



Of the existence of newly formed veins there could be no doubt, and some 

 of them were filled with blood. These vessels were composed of an inner 

 endothelial and an outer fibrous coat, the latter made up of fine fusiform 

 bodies in longitudinal arrangement. Whether these formations could prop- 

 erly be considered smooth muscle-fibers, I am unable to decide. 



