AUTHOR'S PREFACE. rx 



up their knowledge by reading the current medical literature, will 

 find but little that is new in these lectures. The rest will not, by 

 reading them, be spared the trouble of being obliged to study the 

 subjects, which are here only briefly touched upon, more closely in 

 the histological, physiological and pathological works. But they 

 will at least be in possession of a summary of the discoveries which 

 are the most important as far as the cellular theory is concerned, and 

 they will easily be able to add their more accurate study of the in 

 dividual subjects to the connected exposition which I here give them 

 of the whole. Nay, this very exposition may perhaps afford a direct 

 stimulus for such more accurate study ; and if it do but this, it will 

 have done enough. 



The time at my disposal was not sufficient to enable me to write 

 out and revise a work like this. I was therefore constrained to have 

 the lectures taken down in short-hand, just as they were delivered, 

 and to publish them with but slight alterations. Herr Langenhaun 

 has executed his stenographical task with great care. As far as the 

 shortness of the time permitted, and wherever the text would other- 

 wise have been difficult of apprehension to the inexperienced, I have 

 had woodcuts made from the drawings on the board, and more par- 

 ticularly from the microscopical preparations which were sent round. 

 Completeness in this respect could not be attained, seeing that, even 

 as it is, the publication of the work has been delayed some months 

 in consequence of the preparation of the woodcuts. 



RUD. VIRCHOW. 



MISDROY, August 2(M, 1858. 



