REMARKS ON THE STRUCTURE OF FIBRE. 259 



and we shall confine ourselves at present to the consideration of the sup- 

 posed formation of the filament within the blood-discs, and to some few 

 observations on the elementary structure of muscular fibre, two of the 

 most important points, perhaps, to which Dr. Barry's hypothesis refers; 

 and it may be reasonably inferred, that, if it can be shown that the ap- 

 pearances he has remarked, as leading to the conclusions he has drawn, 

 may be otherwise and more satisfactorily explained, in these two in- 

 stances, less reliance can be placed in the truth of his views, applied to 

 many other of the objects enumerated in his list. With regard, however, 

 to one item contained in it, and that the last, we cannot, before proceed- 

 ing further, refrain from adverting to the most extraordinary supposi- 

 tion as to the mode of formation of the spider's web. Is it possible that 

 Dr. B. can be understood to say, that the spider's web is wound up 

 within its body like a ball of twine, and unwound as occasion may re- 

 quire ? 



The first section of Dr. Barry's paper refers to " the formation of a 

 flat filament within the blood corpuscle ;" and as his theory of the for- 

 mation of almost all animal tissues, and especially of muscular fibre, 

 depends upon this, it would appear to demand our chief attention. 



In the wood-cut here adjoined, are figures of 

 blood- corpuscles in various stages of alteration. " x^x ^ 2 

 The three uppermost figures to the right hand, ^ 



and lettered c, c, c, are copied from Dr. Barry's ($)<*> 

 figures in the Philosophical Transactions, and @ . (g) ^\ 

 are given by him as instances of the formation of 



a filament, " frequently annular, and sometimes having the ring divided 

 at a certain part," which filament is stated " to be composed of the discs 

 contained within the blood- corpuscle." Now, that the margin of a 

 blood-disc, when shrunk by exosmosis, or altered in form by the gran- 

 nulation of its contained fluid, will assume a crenate appearance in 

 whole or in part, is well known ; and it is equally well known, that un- 

 der certain circumstances, the discs become contracted into the form of 

 a cup.* The other figures are intended to show the appearances pre- 

 sented by the majority of the blood-discs contained in fluid ejected by a 

 man from the stomach ; and the alteration of form presented by these 

 blood-discs, would seem to throw great light upon the apparently annular 

 formation given in Dr. Barry's figures. Fig. e is that of an unaltered 



* This appearance is described by M. Gulliver, Append, to Gerber's Anatomy : 

 " They are often swollen at the edges, which in consequence project towards the 



s 2 



