56 PHYSIOLOGY FOR BEGINNERS CHAP. 



Hyaline cartilage. 



1 i ) Forming a thin layer at the ends of the bones where 



they meet at all movable joints. 



(2) The costal cartilages connecting the ribs to the 



sternum. 



(3) Parts of the larynx. 



(4) In the trachea. 

 Fibro-cartilage. 



(1) The inter-vertebral discs. 



(2) The inter-articular cartilages, such as the semilunar 



cartilages in the knee joint and those which form a 

 ring round the edge of the cup, in the hip, shoulder, 

 and other joints, and so deepen the socket. 

 Elastic cartilage. 



(1) In the ear. 



(2) Parts of the larynx. 



In the young child there is much more cartilage than in the 

 adult, for all the bones in the body, except some of those of 

 the cranium, are formed of cartilage first, which is gradually 

 changed to bone. 



Purposes fulfilled by Cartilage. The formation in 

 early life, of what will become the bones of the body, is a 

 most important purpose fulfilled by cartilage. It supplies 

 throughout life the smooth caps to the ends of bones within 

 joints. It furnishes also firm but elastic connections between 

 bones, as between the ribs and the sternum, and between the 

 vertebra?. It is of service also in forming firm but slightly 

 yielding walls for such an organ as the larynx, and for keeping 

 open the trachea, or for giving firmness and yet elasticity to 

 projecting structures, such as the epiglottis and the ears. It 

 is also of use in deepening the sockets of joints. 



Connective Tissue 



Connective tissue is the tissue, varying in the closeness of 

 its texture, which is found throughout the body, lying between 

 and connecting different organs or different parts of an organ 

 with one another ; hence its name. 



Connective tissue, such as that just under the skin, consists 

 of a close meshwork formed of bundles of fibres, white in 

 colour, running in various directions. The bundles consist of 



