VOL. XI.] PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. 205 



shining flesh ; whereas the mackerel-pickle, mentioned in N° 13, which was 

 boiled with a mixture of sweet herbs, by a little stirring became so luminous, 

 that a drop of it in the palms of children's hands, appeared as broad as a shilling, 

 or broader. 



It is to be noted, that the jnackerel-pickle was thick and not transparent, till 

 it was stirred and flaming ; the pork-pickle was clear or transparent, yet shined 

 not in any part. 



A Discourse concerning the Spiral, instead of the supposed Annular, Structure of 

 the Fibres of the Intestines. By Dr. Wm. Cole. N° 12,5, p. 603. 



The mechanical reason of the peristaltic motion of the intestines, is by some 

 anatomists deduced principally from annular fibres, constituting according to the 

 received doctrine, one of their coats ; others are of opinion, that they might 

 be rather numerous, though small, sphincter-muscles, than single fibres, to 

 which that motion is to be attributed ; muscles being in most, if not all other 

 instances, acknowledged to be the adequate instruments of motions analogous to 

 this ; and fibres, though absolutely necessary, yet being no otherwise so than as 

 a number of them being collected and fitly disposed, they constitute a muscle. 



This conjecture seemed to me more probable, than the vulgarly received 

 opinion : but yet several difficulties occurred to me, which ever of the two sup- 

 positions were adopted. — For, first, I conceived it might be doubted, how the 

 actuating matter or impression should be transmitted from one fibre or muscle 

 to another, along the whole tract of the intestines; since nature's usual way for 

 the propagation of animal motion, is by a continuation of vessels, or at least 

 fibres, whether they be concave or not, from the part where it begins to that 

 to which it is imparted, either for the conveyance of some actuating substance, 

 or the communicating an impression. But there being in the annular supposi- 

 tion no such continuation of vessels or fibres, a lateral contiguity being all that 

 can be pretended, it might perhaps be urged, that the influent and moving 

 matter might be transmitted by mutual inosculations between the contiguous 

 fibres along their sides ; which, if there be no communication by vessels, was 

 the only way I could solve the doubt ; for the notion of an impression would 

 hardly serve, since it seemed not evident, that there could be in that supposition 

 of a continuity of fibres, tensity enough in the intestines to carry on such a 

 motion. But to this I considered — Secondly, That such a supposition seemed 

 not very agreeable to nature's methods, which ordinarily makes use of vessels, 

 for the transmission of the fluid substances in the bodies of animals, not lateral 

 emissaries ; except where some great inconvenience is designed to be prevented 

 by the help of such conveyances ; as, for instance, by the anastomoses, dis- 



