156 MAYNIE R. CURTIS. 



much thinner than fresh egg albumen. The enclosing egg was 

 only slightly larger than the egg it enclosed and it seemed 

 probable that a second egg membrane had been received directly 

 around the first on its passage back up the duct. A third of the 

 double eggs had two closely applied egg membranes as in the 

 preceding case but the enclosed egg was itself a double egg. The 

 inner egg in this series was a small "witch" or "cock" egg con- 

 taining a little yolk not enclosed in yolk membrane and a small 

 amount of normal fresh albumen. The outer egg contained only 

 normal fresh albumen. The other double egg was even more 

 remarkable in character as it consisted of a concentric series of 

 four enclosed eggs. The inner one, like the inner egg just 

 described, contained a little free yolk enclosed in normal albumen. 

 Each of the successive enclosing eggs contained only normal 

 albumen. This whole egg was not larger than a normal hen's 



egg- 



These peculiar double formations indicate that an egg did 

 not always pass up the duct in time to get out of the way of a 

 succeeding egg. In case an egg met another yolk it might 

 become enclosed in a double egg or it might change the direction 

 of the incoming yolk If the yolk was ruptured and a part 

 remained in the duct it might furnish the nucleus for a "cock" 

 egg which might then become enclosed in a succeeding egg. 

 Apparently the direction of peristaltic movements became at 

 times much disturbed, as the last double egg described must have 

 passed up and down the duct several times before it was finally 

 extruded into the body cavity. 



The visceral organs of the bird were in normal condition. 

 There was a little slightly oily yellowish serous fluid bathing the 

 viscera. The peritoneum was very slightly thickened but other- 

 wise normal. The ovary was normal with a normal series of 

 enlarging yolks and resorbing follicles. It was apparent that the 

 bird was in the midst of a normal reproductive period and was 

 backing membrane shelled eggs into the body cavity and re- 

 sorbing them with great rapidity. 



The oviduct (Fig. 3) was perfectly normal from the funnel 

 mouth to the posterior end of the isthmus. Here the tube 

 abruptly ended blindly at D. There was no shell gland or vagina. 



