546 DBS. GEOE&E AND FEAITCES E. HOGGAN ON 



On some Cutaneous Nerve-terminations in Mammals. By Dr. 

 G-EORGE HoGGAN, and Dr. Feances Elizabeth Hoggan. 

 (Communicated by Dr. James Mtjeie, F.L.S.) 



[Eead June 1, 1882.] 



(Plates XIII.-XVI.) 



Con tbn ts : — Introductory remarks on the " organ of Eimer " in the Mole. 

 Habits shown by a Mole in confinement. Nerve-distribution upon 

 hairs. Medullated nerves passing to hairs. Nerves terminating in 

 branched cells on hairs. Forked nerve-terminations on hairs. Deve- 

 lopment of nerve-terminations on hairs. Jobert's coil of nerve-fibrils 

 surrounding follicle. Intraepithelial nerve-fibrils of outer root-sheath. 

 Structureof organ of Eimer in the Mole : — Inner circle of nerve-fibrils; 

 the ganglion- cells ; outer circle of nerve-fibres. The organ of Eimer 

 a retrograded hair-follicle. Effect of habit in causing evolution of 

 the organ of Eimer. The tail of the Mole as a special tactile organ. 

 Ranvier's hypothesis of direction of growth in nerves. Merkel's hypo- 

 thesis of different functions of cutaneous nerves. Ranvier's objection 

 to Merkel's views. Our proofs that nerve-cells and intraepidermic 

 nei'ves are continuous. Origin of the cells of Langerhans. Have the 

 intraepidermic nerves any function ? Professor Ranviei*'s hypothesis 

 negatived. Subepidermic plexus of nerve-cells and fibres. Conclu- 

 ding remarks on the organ of Eimer. 



Introductory MemarJcs on the Organ of Eimer in the Mole. 



A considerable portion of tbe present paper was prepared for this 

 Society at the beginning of the present year (1882) under the head- 

 ing " The JSTerve-terminations in the Insectivora as modified by their 

 habits;" but a short time afterwards we found that part of what 

 we had supposed to be discoveries of our own had already been 

 published by others, and notably by Arnstein* and Bonnet f. 

 It became necessary therefore to recast the whole ; and if we 

 could not present much that was original in discovery, we could 

 at least, under the present title, give many deductions and amend- 

 ments connected with facts discovered that are new in themselves, 

 and opposed to many hypotheses held at the present day. 



Taking as our text that beautiful and unique arrangement of 

 nerve-terminations in the snout of the Mole, which has been 

 called, after its discoverer, the organ of Eimer (figs. 1 & 2, Plate 

 XIII.), we shall endeavour to analyze its component elements, 

 and, in giving the history or description of each, to warrant our 

 assumption of the title prefixed to this article. We shall also 



* Sitzungsberichte der k.-k. Akad. Wien, 1878, Abth. 3. 

 t Morphologisohes Jahrbuch, 1878, vol. iv. p. 329. A full list of the litera- 

 ture consulted will be found at the end of this paper, page 592. 



