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Anatomica (Paris 1651). He tells us that whilst studying at Montpellier 

 as a pupil of Vesling in 1648, he left that "mute and frigid science" 

 anatomy, and betook himself to the study of true science, organs in 

 action. Whilst experimenting on a dog, he removed the heart, when 

 he saw, amidst the blood in the pericardium, a white fluid, which at first 

 he mistook for pus. He soon saw that it was chyle, that it came from 

 a tube or canal which ended at the subclavian vein, that the duct — 

 thoracic duct— began in a kind of reservoir or pouch, receptaculum 

 chilli — that all the lacteals pass to it, and not to the liver. Chyle 

 therefore does not go to the liver. He describes accurately the 

 " lacteal veins " of Aselli, shows that they end in the receptaculum 

 chilli, and that the thoracic duct pours its contents into the venous 

 system at the junction of the jugular and sub-clavian veins. 

 J. VAN HORNE, a year later, made the same discovery quite 

 independently and published it in his Norms Ductus chylifeni* 

 (Lugd. Bat. 1652). Pecquet died at Paris in 1657, from an over-dose 

 of brandy, a medicine which he regarded as a panacea for all ills. 



IN 1650, OLAUS RUDBECK (1630-1702), Professor of Anatomy 

 and Botany in Upsala, published his Nova Exercitatio Anatomica 

 exliibens ductus hepaticos aquosos et vasa ylandularum serosa. 

 He describes the course of the lacteals towards a common trunk, 

 unaware of the discovery of Pecquet. He demonstrated his results 

 to Queen Christina in 1652. Whilst searching for this vessel 

 he saw, on the liver, vessels provided with valves, containing a 

 clear watery fluid. He took them for vessels quite distinct from the 

 lacteals (1650-51), and called them rasa serosa, and traced them to 

 the receptaculum chyli. He founded the first Botanical Museum, 

 and the genus "Rudbeckia" is named after him. According to 

 Glisson, an Englishman Jolive gave an account of these vessels 

 about this time. 



THOMAS BARTHOLINUS. 



1616-1680. 



IN Copenhagen, about the same time, T. BARTHOLINUS, 

 Professor of Anatomy, son of Caspar B., was working at 

 the same subject, and he, in 1651-52, discovered that tarn 

 serosa were to be found in all parts of the body, and that they 

 passed to the receptaculum chyli. He called them "lymphatics." 

 Thus lacteals and lymphatics had a common final goal, and lymph 

 and chyle finally reach the heart rid the thoracic duct. We need not 



