14 ACTION OF ALCOHOL ON CONNECTIVE TISSUE. 



strong cord or rope, some woven into firm bands, some 

 left in loose masses, and some made up into fine net- 

 work. Connective tissue consists of threads, called 

 fibres, which are much tougher and finer than any strand 

 of silk. In some parts of the body these threads are 

 united to form cords named ligaments, which bind bones 

 together. Elsewhere the fibres are woven into bands or 

 membranes which surround and support various parts. 

 Lying in the crevices between different organs, forming 

 a soft packing for them, we find loose fluffy bundles of 

 connective tissue. Finally, very fine networks of this 

 tissue run all through most of the organs, like the veins 

 or ribs through the leaf of a plant, and support and 

 unite their parts. If you watch the cook cut up a piece 

 of suet, you will see the stringy connective tissue which 

 penetrates it in all directions, and which must be re- 

 moved from the fat because it will not melt in cook- 

 ing. 



5. Action of Alcohol upon Connective Tissue. All intoxi- 

 cating liquors, such as wine, brandy, whiskey, beer, etc., 

 contain alcohol and are known as alcoholic drinks. One 

 very serious change in the body frequently produced by 

 drinking such, is an excessive growth of the connective- 

 tissue networks, especially in the liver and the kidneys. 

 The tissue becoming too abundant crushes and slowly 

 destroys the chief liver and kidney substance which it 

 was meant to protect and support. The results are in- 

 curable diseases. (See pp. 132, 189.) 



6. The Bony Skeleton (Fig. 3), like the body itself, may 

 be described as consisting of head, neck, trunk, and 



5. What are alcoholic drinks ? How do they affect connective tissue? 



6. Of what parts does the bony skeleton consist ? 



