,38 LECTURE V. 



staff-shaped nuclei, and between them is seen a delicate 

 division of the substance into separate cells, the contents 

 of which have a slightly granular appearance. These 

 are the wrinklers of the scrotum (corrugatores scroll). 

 Besides, we also find in the extremely soft membrane a 

 certain number of fine elastic elements, and in greater 

 quantity the ordinary, soft, wavy connective tissue, with 

 a great number of relatively voluminous, spindle-shaped 

 and reticulated, granular, nucleated, cells. 



These persistent cells of connective tissue had pre- 

 viously been totally overlooked, its fibrils having been 

 regarded as its real elements. If, namely, the individual 

 constituents of connective tissue be separated from one 

 another, little bundles are obtained of a wavy form and 

 streaky, fibrillar appearance. According to Reichert, 

 indeed, this appearance is merely due to the formation 

 of folds, an idea which ought not perhaps to be admitted 

 to the extent in which it was advanced, but which has 

 not been altogether refuted, inasmuch as a complete iso- 

 lation of the fibrils can never be effected excepting by 

 artificial means. At all events a homogeneous basis- 

 substance, which holds the fasciculi together, must be 

 assumed to exist in addition to the fibrils. This, how- 

 ever, is a question of subordinate importance. On the 

 other hand, it is extremely important to know, that 

 wherever this lax tissue is met with, whether beneath 

 the cutis, in the interspaces of muscle, or in serous mem- 

 branes, it is pervaded by cells which for the most part 

 anastomose (so as in longitudinal sections to form paral- 

 lel rows, in transverse ones networks), and separate the 

 bundles of connective tissue from one another, in much 

 the same way that the corpuscles of bone separate its 

 different lamellae. In addition, the most manifold vascular 

 connections are everywhere met with ; indeed, the ves- 

 sels are so numerous, that a special nutrient canalicular 



