160 FORCE-EVOLVING SUBSTANCE, A SECRETION? * r 



glued to its extremity, is with equal velocity conveyed into the 

 mouth " ("The General Structure of the Animal Kingdom," 

 Rhymer Jones, p. 687)- 



Thus we have in the anatomy of Dr. Beale a suf- 

 ficiency of source of power, or nerve-force, for muscular 

 work in these intra-muscular masses of protoplasm, so 

 profusely distributed in connection with the equally 

 abundant supply of nerve fibres, at least as far as can 

 be judged by inspection alone. And, as yet, no means 

 are known of testing such a question by actual experi- 

 ment. At first sight, as the bulk of the muscle con- 

 sists of the contractile fibre, one would think it unlikely 

 that the source of the power should be elsewhere, but 

 when we reflect that the flesh prisms which form the 

 lulk of the fibre cannot be the source of the power by 

 which they are moved, we have only to look to the 

 single-refracting matter, and even if the consumption 

 of that were a possible source of regular movements, 

 its quantity must be smaller than that of the nerve 

 protoplasm. 



Whether the evolution of force takes place by direct 

 metabolic or vital changes in the living matter itself or 

 in a chemical substance of high potential energy produced 

 l)y it and decomposed as required, presses itself on our 

 attention here. In commenting on Hermann's chemical 

 theory in my former work, in 1871, 1 suggested that this 

 might be the case, and I perceive since then that Dr. 

 Beale has expressed the same idea, for he says, at p. 205 

 of " Bioplasm," that the nerve current originates in the 

 bioplasm, or in the "soft formed material on its surface" 

 And again, " by chemical changes in ike matter formed 

 by the bioplasts electrical currents may be produced 



