VOL. XLI.J PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. 4Q5 



great pains in her back, and having other symptoms antecedent to delivery, 

 there came away at short intervals, a very large number of hydatids, of all 

 the intermediate sizes, from a nutmeg to a pin's head, some filled with clear, 

 others with bloody lymph ; all of them propagated in the manner of a cluster 

 of grapes from a spongeous substance, answering the purposes of a placenta. 

 After the discharge of these, in a few days she recovered her accustomed 

 health. 



On boiling some of these hydatids, they appeared like the ovary of a boiled 

 hen, with this difference ; in the hen, the contents of the ova concrete ; in this 

 case, not ; but the transparency was changed to the colour of bile diluted 

 with water. 



Tzvo Medico- Chirurgical Observations. By M. Le Cat. N° 46o, p. 712. 



1 . An Observation on Hydatids, ivith Conjectures on their Formation. 



Sept. 21, 1739, a woman died in our Hotel-Dieu, who had an abscess in 

 the right hypochondrium, through which she discharged hydatids ; with a 

 considerable tumour at the left hypochondrium. 



Her body was opened. The abscess of the right hypochondrium was be- 

 tween the proper and common membrane of the liver. The tumour on the 

 left side was almost as thick as one's head, and twice as long. It was between 

 the common and proper membrane of the spleen. It ran between the floating 

 parts of the abdomen ; had displaced them ; and went so far as to push against 

 the integuments of the belly, in its passage adhering to the stomach. 



M. Le C. laid this tumoiy> open, and found it filled with hydatids of all 

 sizes, with clear water, and mucilaginous membranes, which were the remains 

 of large hydatids, that were burst by the motions of the patient. He examined 

 with care both the hydatids, and their bag. The hydatids were composed of 

 1 mucilaginous, transparent, and yet very elastic membranes. The inner mem- 

 brane had on its concave surface a sort of villosity wrinkled and mamillated, 

 that pretty much resembled the surface of a rough skin, or what is called a 

 goose's skin. The softest and most gelatinous of these membranes, were very 

 like the vitreous humour of the eye. The water contained in all these hyda. • 

 tids, was entirely like the aqueous humour of the eyes. 



There were clusters of these hydatids quite resembling the ovary of a hen, 

 or a bunch of grapes, which were made up of globules of all sizes. The bag 

 that contained them was pretty smooth on the side opposite to the spleen ; that 

 is, that part of the bag formed by the common membrane of the spleen, or by 

 the peritonaeum, was pretty smooth ; but on the side next the spleen, the 



