326 ON ABSORPTION FROM 



cavities has been studied by Starling and Tubby* among 

 others. They introduced a colored substance indigo-carmine 

 or methylene-blue in solution into the cavities, and observed 

 the reappearance of the pigment in the urine after ligation of 

 the thoracic ducts, or after introducing cannulas and col- 

 lecting the lymph before its entrance into the blood stream. 

 In their experiments the urine was collected through a cannula 

 tied into the ureter, " or in most cases into the bladder, either 

 through an opening into the abdominal wall, or through an 

 opening hi the urethra, which was exposed by splitting the 

 symphysis pubis." They observed in this way that " 6-20 

 minutes after the injection of the coloured fluid into the serous 

 cavities the urine became tinged with blue when indigo-carmine 

 was used, or green when methylene blue was the substance 

 employed. The urine, on shaking with air, rapidly deepened 

 in tint, until the colour was as intense as that of the fluid 

 injected. After a further lapse of time, varying from ten 

 minutes to four hours, the lymph flowing from the thoracic 

 duct also became slightly tinged, but the colour never deep- 

 ened, on shaking with air, beyond a very light blue or green. 

 The flow of lymph was not increased " (p. 143). The investi- 

 gators add : " It might be argued from these experiments that 

 the absorption of the colouring matter from the pleura! or 

 peritoneal cavity took place by means of the blood-vessels and 

 by means of the lymphatics, the former process however being 

 the quicker of the two. It is very doubtful, however, whether 

 the slight colouration of the lymph which was observed in 

 these experiments is occasioned at all by lymphatic absorption. 

 If methylene blue or indigo-carmine be injected into the blood 

 stream, the lymph flowing from the thoracic duct within half 

 a minute becomes coloured. Now in these cases the colouring 

 matter must have been present in the blood in order to have 

 been excreted by the kidneys, and the colour of the lymph 

 may be caused by a passage of coloured lymph from the blood 

 vessels, not by any direct absorption of the blue from the 

 serous cavities " (p. 144). The data presented thus indicate 



Starling and Tubby, Journal of Physiology, 1894, xri, p. 140. 



