226 Progress of Rational Pathology. 



as people imagine, and that we are not always to assume 

 absolute overfilling of the brain with blood, when after sud- 

 den death in cerebral cases, the veins of the pia-mater are found 

 distended with blood, for this is also the case after bleeding 

 to death. He considers, therefore, that the actual injury to 

 the brain in irregularity of its circulation, is not caused by 

 compression from absolute excess of blood or of serum, but 

 by the proportionate excess of the one over the other, and 

 hence it follows, that for the integrity of the brain a cer- 

 tain quantity of blood is necessary. Durand-Fardel de- 

 scribes a peculiar kind of inflammation of the brian, which 

 comes on with the symptoms of apoplexy : the patholo- 

 gical characters are : extensive redness and swelling of the 

 convolutions, superficial softening of the grey substance, 

 and adherence of the duramater. He explains the want of 

 inflammatory symptoms by the compression to which 

 the brain is subjected by the swelling of its convolutions. 

 Gluge considers inflammatory congestion of the cerebral 

 membranes to be proved, only when fibrine has been effused, 

 which then appears in the form of whitish spots or false 

 membranes : suppuration is a rare result of meningitis. Ac- 

 cording to Engel, however, the exsudation of the arachnoid 

 is sometimes fibrinous, sometimes serous, purulent, and even 

 bloody. The flakes in serous exsudations consist of pus glo- 

 bules. According to Gluge, the existence of numerous blood 

 points in the white substance indicates that there has been 

 congestion. Engel and Henle think that a uniform redness 

 of the cerebral substance indicates it. Toughness of the cere- 

 bral substance, particularly the white part, has been observed 

 by Nasse and Albers after congestion of the brain in typhus : 

 the white substance was firm, shining on its cut surface, 

 and poor in blood. Disputes continue regarding the inflam- 

 matory character of hydrocephalus acutus, and the har- 

 dening and softening of the brain : several of the later writers 

 will not admit that hydrocephalus A. is inflammatory. Cohen 



