t 



- _ * 



t 



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H. Goadhy on the Pt^esei'vaiiqn of Animal Substances. 379 



Will hence be seen that the aUiminous fluid is not of universal 

 application. 



Corrosive sublimate is also astringent, and the coagulator of al- 

 bumen; the intention of its application is not for" the sake of 

 either of these properties, but simply to prevent vegetation ^roT^;- 

 ing in the Jl aids respectively. But inasmuch as albumen takes 

 from corrosive sublimate a portion of its chlorine, and thus con- 

 certs it into calomel, and as all animal tissues are more or less albu- 

 minous, the propriety of using it at all, may well be questioned. In 

 places where the sporules of fungi abound, as in the store-rooms 

 of large museums, not even the presence of corrosive subHniate 

 can prevent them from ^rowiJig upon the surface oi either of my 

 preserving fluids, if they contain animal matter of any kind and 

 are in open vessels, i. e,, not hermetically sealed; but, in a long 

 experience of this fact, I am bound to say that, although I have 

 had open jars, dishes, and other vessels containing dissections of 

 animals waiting their turn to be mounted permanently as prepa- 

 rations, in which the surface of the fluid has been covered during 

 the summer months with vegetation of considerable substance, 

 and which has continued to increase, and flourish magnificently 

 for weeks, yet, I have never known it to descend into the fluid, 

 or aflJect the dissections (provided they were well covered with 

 fluid) in any way. Indeed, either of these fluids will preserve 

 plants, as easily, and certainly, as they preserve animals; and 

 were the fungus to grow into the fluid, it would die, and be pre- 

 served. Neither have I at any time, during fourteen years ex- 

 perience of preparations made by the use of my fluids, and con- 

 tained, and sealed down, in the several forms of vessels and 

 ^ells, also of my invention, ever found a particle of vegetation 

 in a single preparation ; and during the last six years I have 

 been using the fluids, both for permanent preparations, and stores, 

 'Without the addition of corrosive sublimate, and always with 

 satisfactory results. 1 believe, therefore, that the corrosive sub- 

 limate may be safely left out, although I shall include it in the 

 recipes of the fluids. 



As arsenic acts upon glass and glass vessels, by combining 

 ■vvith the lead, and for other reasons, it cannot be employed for 

 preparations that are desired to be permanent. I have made a 

 fe^^ such attempts, but they have all ended in failure. Arsenic 

 possesses the power of softening animal tissues to a most remark- 

 ^We extent, and this property has no limit, 



A few years ago I was desired by the examiners in Anatomy, 

 of the University of London, to preserve a body during the sum- 

 mer season for their examinations in the autumn. Desiring to 

 retain the tissues severally in as natural a state as possible, I 

 added arsenic to the B fluid. For some months, nothing could 

 e^^cecd the success of this experiment, and if I had changed the 



