ULTIMATE DISTRIBUTION. 249 



dered fibres are doubtless sympathetic fibres, for it 

 has been shown that there are fine fibres springing 

 from ganglion- cells which detain the same character 

 from their origin to their distribution, 234. Not 

 only has the nerve nature of the fine fibres above 

 described been proved by tracing them from their 

 connexion with ganglion- cells, but a dark-bordered 

 fibre has often been observed to be drawn out so as 

 to form a line as fine as these fine fibres. Indeed the 

 observer often fails to trace an individual dark-bor- 

 dered fibre for any great distance in consequence of 

 its becoming exceedingly fine at the point where it 

 crosses, or is crossed by other dark-bordered fibres. 

 Not only so, but where a bundle of comparatively 

 wide dark- bordered fibres passes through a small aper- 

 ture, as for example in a bone, the fibres appear, as it 

 were, drawn out to exceedingly thin threads. 



2*76. Of the distribution of the ultimate pale " nu- 

 cleated" nerve-fibres to the elementary muscular 

 fibres. Few anatomical questions have received of 

 late years a larger share of attention than the ulti- 

 mate arrangement of nerve-fibres in voluntary muscle. 

 It is a matter of regret to me that although I have 

 studied the question in many ways during the last 

 five years, my conclusions do not accord with those 

 of any other observer. And I must admit that al- 

 though the German writers differ from one another 

 on very important points, they, nevertheless, agree in 

 this, that the nerves form ends, pass into end-organs, 

 or exhibit terminal extremities of some kind ; while, 

 on the other hand, my observations have led me to 

 conclude, not only that nerves never terminate in ends 

 in voluntary muscle, but that there are no terminal ex- 

 tremities or ends in any nerve organ whatever. 



There is this further broad difference between 

 foreign observers and myself, that while they con- 

 sider that each elementary muscular fibre is very 

 sparingly supplied with nerves a very long fibre 



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