1887.] MR. F. E. BEDDARD ON MYRMECOBIUS. 5'29 



of the excretory duct, which is so generally met with in sweat-glands. 

 The lumen of the duct is extremely fine. 



In many cases the duct, formed hy the coalescence of the ductules 

 of the several tubules, instead of passing directly on to the exterior 

 of the body, was seen to open at the base of a sudoriparous follicle ; 

 in this case the duct appeared to maintain its independence, and to 

 pass through the follicle on to the exterior, not to become continuous 

 with one or more of the glandules in the follicles. 



(2) Sebaceous glands. In the description of the naked-eye charac- 

 ters of the glandular patch, it has heen stated that it is bare without 

 any hairs ; a microscopical study shows, however, that there are a few 

 hairs situated chiefly at the periphery ; these are generally furnished 

 with a pair of sebaceous glands presenting the ordinary characters. 



(3) Sudoriparous follicles. The glandular follicles opening on to 

 the exterior by the conspicuous orifices with which the patch is 

 covered a]ipear to be of tlie nature of sweat-glands ; these follicles are 

 filled with a mass of tuhules which pass straight from their point of 

 attachment to the external aperture of the follicle; these tubules are 

 club-shaped, the lower extremity heing somewhat swollen. This 

 part of the gland is composed of cells which agree exactly in their 

 characters with the cells of sebaceous glands, and, like them, are 

 hardly affected by borax carmine ; very frequently the lower extre- 

 mity of the gland appeared to be bifid. The individual glands are 

 separated from each other by cells which stain deeply with borax 

 carmine, and are in every way similar to the cells of the epidermis ; 

 there is a complete layer of these cells lining the follicle, and the 

 extremities of the glands have the appearance of being imbedded in 

 them. The proximal part of each gland consists of a long straight 

 tube surrounded by layers of unstriped muscular fibres and lined 

 with epithehum. 



Although in many particulars these glands resemble sebaceous 

 glands, the presence of muscular fibres is, in the present state of our 

 knowledge, decisive in favour of referring them to the sudoriparous 

 series. It is clear, however, from the abo\e description and figures 

 that these glands differ in many points from the typical sweat-glands. 



So far the glandular structures are confined to the integument ; 

 beneath the layer of loose connective tissue which underlies the 

 dermis is 



(4) A large compound tubular gland, quite half an inch in 

 diameter ; this gland recalls in its general aspect the arm-gland of 

 Hapalenmr ; its structure is like that of the sweat-glands, and it is 

 divided into unequally- sized lobules by partitions of connective tissue. 

 I have been quite unable, however, up to the present to detect the 

 external orifice or orifices of this gland. 



Tlie above-mentioned structures form altogether a complicated 

 glandular mass which is unparallelled among mammals. Special tegu- 

 meutary glands produced by a local hypertrophy of sebaceous or 

 sweat-glands are extremely widely spread among the Mammalia ; but 

 1 am not acquainted with any integuniental glandular structure which 

 has so complex a character as the sternal gland of Myrmecoblus. What 



