DR. MARTIN BARRY ON THE CORPUSCLES OF THE BLOOD. 227 



hours ; and two days had elapsed after the foetal calf had been taken from the body 

 of its mother, before I made the observation now recorded. 



125. The corpuscles in question had thrown off their membrane (if they ever had 

 one, — for they seemed altered young corpuscles, or mere discs). It was therefore the 

 nucleus of the corpuscle, which had become endowed with cilia ; but this nucleus 

 was quite red. The cilia presented the appearance of acuminated processes from the 

 discs composing the corpuscles. It seemed to be by means of these, that the cor- 

 puscles in some instances slowly revolved, and in others changed their place. One 

 of the corpuscles (^. fig. 104.) appeared to shoot forth a process, the cilium, which 

 then as quickly disappeared, as if drawn in. Cilia could not be discerned on the 

 corpuscle /3, fig. 105. Yet one of its discs seemed to be in (incipient?) motion. We 

 have elsewhere seen, however, that discs exhibit motion independently of cilia (par. 

 123.). 



126. Besides the above, I have observed young blood-corpuscles (fig. 106.) perform- 

 ing constant and considerable locomotion ; which, in some instances, was by no means 

 slow. The motion of some resembled that known under the name of molecular, 

 and others of these moving blood-corpuscles were so minute as to be comparable to 

 molecules enlarged (pars. 198, 199.). 



127. In a former communication-f- 1 described some most curious motions, or 

 rather changes in form, observed under particular circumstances in corpuscles of the 

 blood, and, in a note, added to that communication, stated that I had been induced 

 to believe that those changes in form were referable to contiguous cilia. I ought 

 now to state that subsequent observation enables me to say that these changes in form 

 arise from some inherent power, distinct from the motions occasioned by cilia. 



Molecular Motions discernible within Corpuscles of the Blood. 



128. Minute red points around the nucleus within the blood-corpuscle, have been 

 already mentioned, as observed in the Tadpole (fig. 75. «)• Such points or globules 

 exhibited molecular motions. The discs, formed apparently out of such objects, as 

 in the corpuscle /3 of the same figure, did not exhibit motions, but were pressed 

 together into polyhedral forms. In fig. 124. a, and fig. 123, globules such as those 

 just mentioned appeared to be undergoing division. They at least presented the ap- 

 pearance of a rose, the same as that so often seen elsewhere. Molecular motions 

 were exhibited by the globules contained within the cell fig. 102. I refer to the ex- 

 planation of the Plates for an account of the circumstances under which these mo- 

 tions were observed ; and have only to add, that the colour of the entire cell was pre- 

 cisely the same as that of the blood- corpuscles along with which it was observed. 



129. It is known, through the researches of Henle, that the rete Malpighii con- 

 sists of round cells furnished with a nucleus ; which cells this observer, and subse- 



t On the Corpuscles of the Blood, Pliil. Trans., 1840, Part II. pars. 12—18. 

 MDCCCXLI. 2 H 



