The Structure of Colored Blood- Corpuscles. 267 



same is at times also true of the smooth surface), begins to 

 be made irregular at one or more points. This occurs in either 

 of two ways, viz. : by indentation and by protrusion : some- 

 times the one, sometimes the other, first takes place ; fre- 

 quently both appear in different corpuscles, at about the same 

 time ; occasionally both are met with in the same corpuscles ; 

 in different preparations either the one or the other predom- 

 inates. 



Firstly : — In from fifteen minutes to an hour, a very slight 

 indentation may appear, and gradually deepen, so that the 

 corpuscle be nearly cleaved through ; then the clefts may grad- 

 ually become shallower, so that again a mere indentation is 

 seen ; finally, even this may disappear, and the corpuscle be 

 rounded again (see fig. 1, a.). Division into two separating 

 halves, I have never observed under these circumstances, al- 

 though I have often watched for it. The furrow of every 

 corpuscle that I have caught nearly cleaved through, either 

 remained stationary, or usually, retrogressed to a greater or 

 less extent. The retrogression may stop at any point, and the 

 furrowing again increase; and this going and coming of a 

 cleft, though taking place slowly, may continue for some time, 

 and then stop at any stage of indentation. Sometimes inden- 

 tations appear at two or more points of the same corpuscle, 

 and in their progress give rise to a great variety of angular, 

 regular and irregular " rosette," " scolloped," " crenated," 

 " thornapple," and " stellate" forms (see fig. 1, b, c, d.). The 

 sharp pointed ends seen in the last figure of d are the 

 extremes met with and exceptional ; usually the ends are 

 plump and rounded). These forms, as well as those of single 

 cleft, after changing backward and forward, either persist or 

 become finally rounded off to a greater or less degree ; in some 

 cases constriction of portions more or less minute occurs, with 

 separation following constriction (see fig. 1, e). Sometimes 

 constricted portions remain attached for a long time by a more 

 or less long and slender pedicle. Transition ally or perman- 

 ently, in any of the cases mentioned, the most curious and 



