Action of Nervous Currents in Skin Wounds 35 



we now effect artificially the obstruction of some of 

 these branches the entire volume of water must flow 

 through the others which remain open and their volume 

 of water will consequently be increased in proportion. 



In the same way let us suppose that through the 

 intercellular bridges of the epidermis for example, there 

 go similar nervous currents, in which when once the 

 organism has attained its adult age dynamic equilibrium 

 is established. And let us remove a little disc of skin 

 as Siegfried Garten did, then the nervous flux which 

 heretofore had taken its way through the filaments and 

 protoplasmic bridges of the cells situated in the little disc 

 removed will now find these ways closed. Consequently 

 the entire flux must take a roundabout way through the 

 neighboring parts surrounding the little disc. 



The augmentation of the nervous current in these 

 ways will have as its result an augmentation of the trophic 

 stimulus which it exercises; so that the cells situated 

 along these ways will grow and proliferate more rapidly, 

 thus producing a zone of reproduction characterized by 

 numerous mitoses. The augmentation of the vital 

 processes of these cells will in consequence of increased 

 osmotic attraction, attract a greater quantity of nutritive 

 fluid, exactly as the wick of a lamp which is stimulated 

 by a current of air draws up by capillarity a larger 

 quantity of combustible fluid. And this greater quantity 

 of nutritive fluid pressing in between one cell and another, 

 will distend the intercellular spaces so that in this zone 

 they undergo an enlargement. The further the new 

 formation of the skin proceeds, the shorter will be the 

 way through which the abnormally increased nervous 

 flux tends to pass, that is to say that the zone of the 



