294 GENERATIVE SYSTEM. 



Faschial Covering. — The penis, inferiorly, receives a covering 

 from the J'aschia supej-Jicialis abdominis, lateral portions of which 

 descend from the flanks, and unite along its middle : as we 

 approach its root the faschia grows stronger, and exhibits a 

 fibrous texture. The organ derives considerable support from 

 this covering. 



THE PENIS is constituted of five distinct parts, which 

 appear to view without the aid of any dissection or disarrange- 

 ment of the organ : viz. the two corpora cavernosa, which form 

 the middle and sides, the largest proportion of the body ; the 

 glans penis or head, forming the anterior protuberance ; the co?'- 

 pus rnusculosum urethra:,, making up the inferior portion ; and 

 the plexus venosus, surmounting the corpora cavernosa. 



The muscles belonging to the organ having been described 

 (at page 128), we proceed to the CORPORA CAVERNOSA 

 PENIS, the principal parts in respect to bulk in the constitution 

 of the organ ; parts whose erectile capacity fits it as the instru- 

 ment of copulation, extending from the ischial arch to the glans 

 penis, and insinuating their extremities for some little way under 

 the flattened portion of the latter. They are attached by means 

 of two branches, the crura penis, to the posterior ends of the tube- 

 rosities of the ischia, and to the sides of the ischial arch, where 

 they are clothed by the erectores penis ; from which attach- 

 ments they converge along the branches of the ischium, and 

 under the summit of the ischial arch form a union. The attach- 

 ment of the penis to the pelvis is considerably strengthened, just 

 below this union of the crura, by two suspensory/ ligaments, which 

 fasten the sides of the cavernous bodies to the pubes. These 

 cylindrical bodies, joined together in one common tunic, continue 

 their passage forward to the glans penis, within the substance of 

 which they terminate by two rounded protuberances. 



Structure. — The corpora cavernosa are composed of a liga- 

 mentous case, of unusual thickness and toughness, common to 

 them both, whose fibres, running in every direction, are so inter- 

 laced and matted together, that it not only defies our industry to 

 unravel it, but is even impenetrable ; unless when sharp instru- 

 ments, and they with no ordinary force, are made use of. It is 

 not every where uniform in thickness, however : it is compara- 

 tively thin over the crura and where it is opposed to the urethra, 

 those parts being sufficiently supported and protected by their 

 muscular coverings. The internal structure of these bodies, 

 spongy, reticular, or honeycomb-like in its arrangement, is found 

 to involve three difl^erent textures. First, numberless little ten- 

 dinous chords, which arc processes detached from the ligamentous 

 case, unetiuul in size, run irregularly from one side to the other : 



