92 THE CELL DOCTRINE. 



while the nuclei will be rendered distinct, and clearly 

 visible. In j'oung tendon (frontispiece, Fig. 11), the 

 masses of germinal matter will be found very abun- 

 dant, and the intercellular fibrous substance in smaller 

 quantity than in old tendon where the masses of ger- 

 minal matter occur only at long intervals. These 

 masses of germinal matter, or connective tissue cor- 

 puscles, it will be recollected, are considered by Vir- 

 chow as perfect cells, presenting cell-wall, cell con- 

 tents, and nucleus, and the fibrous intercellular sub- 

 stance as a subsequent modification of a homogene- 

 ous matrix, deposited between the cells by the blood- 

 vessels. These connective tissue corpuscles are re- 

 garded by Beale as simple masses of germinal matter, 

 the conversion of which into formed material pro- 

 duces the fibrous intercellular substance, as seen in 

 Fig. 11, frontispiece, and between which and the 

 intercellular substance immediately adjoining, there 

 is no line of separation, constituting a cell-wall. 



As the tendon grows older, the masses of germinal 

 matter become less abundant, because a larger num- 

 ber have been totally converted into formed material ; 

 and the bands of indestructible material which some- 

 times join them, and which are considered by Virchow 

 as a part of his canalicular system, are, according to 

 Beale, nothing but im'perfedly converted formed material, 

 or rather germinal matter, which has not been con- 

 verted. While the twisted and curling cord-like 

 fibres of the so-called yellow elastic tissue, also con- 

 sidered by Virchow as a part of his canalicular sys- 

 tem, are thought by Beale to be composed in part of 

 true yellow elastic tissue, such as is found in the 



