CELLULAR OR FIBROUS TISSUE. 327 



ART. XVII. CELLULAR OR FIBROUS TISSUE. 



THE truth of the scientific dictum that every living thing 

 proceeds from a germ or ovum is now generally admitted, 

 and so also it may be said that each portion of the fabric of 

 such living entity takes its origin in a cell, the early and 

 embryonic condition of every organ and structure being 

 reducible to that of a cell. 



It was not, however, this consideration that induced the 

 older anatomists to apply the term cellular to the tissue about 

 to be described, they having but little knowledge of the 

 structure of the elementary cell, or of its universal presence. 



They were led to denominate the tissue, into the descrip- 

 tion of which we are about to enter, cellular, in consequence 

 of observing the areolae or spaces left between the fibres of 

 which it is composed, and which they erroneously considered 

 to be cells. The cellular tissue, then, though like all other 

 tissues, taking its origin in cells, inasmuch as in its fully 

 developed state it consists of fibres, would be more accu- 

 rately denominated the fibrous tissue, as indeed by many 

 modern anatomists it really is : the term cellular tissue is, 

 however, one of so ancient a date, and one, moreover, in such 

 general use, and so well understood, that it seems to be 

 scarcely advisable to abandon the use of it altogether. 



The cellular or fibrous tissue, however, as ordinarily en- 

 countered, is constituted not of a single description of fibre, 

 but consists of two kinds intermingled in different propor- 

 tions, and each of which is possessed of distinct characters 

 and properties. 



The most remarkable difference between the two de- 

 scriptions of fibrous tissue is, that the one is white and 

 inelastic, and the other yellow and elastic : each of these will 

 be described under different heads, and the former before 

 the latter. 



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