174 
The American Naturalist. [Mai 
of a slowing of the rhythm, and a depression of both the contrac- 
tion force and the conduction power of the muscle; but the funct- 
ional relation of the vagus to the ventricle is not nearly so close 
and intimate as to the auricle. The condition and working of 
the auricular muscle are much more readily and more pro- 
foundly altered than are those of the ventricular muscle. Aug- 
mentation, following the depression, as has been pointed out 
for the cold-blooded animals, is slight and inconstant, which 
would seem to be in opposition to Gaskell's idea of the vagus 
being an anabolic nerve. Section of the vagus causes in addi- 
tion to the acknowledged acceleration of beat a marked aug 
mentation in the contraction force of both auricles and ventri- 
cles. As has been pointed out in cold-blooded animals, the 
author finds a local inhibitory area to exist in the mammalian 
heart, /. e., a limited area, stimulation of which affects the ven- 
tricle in exactly the same way as stimulation of the vagus 
does. In the cat and dog this region overlies the auricular 
septum on the dorsal aspect of the auricles. The vagus fibres 
pass through or near it, but it evidently contains structures 
differing from the vagus in regard to excitability, relations to 
curari and certain other influences. While normally stimula- 
tion of the venous terminations or of the auricles causes an 
acceleration of beat, under certain abnormal conditions, e. g., 
in a dying heart, such stimulation results in inhibition, thus 
indicating under such conditions a reversion to a physiological 
type normally obtaining in hearts of certain lower vertebrates. 
Meeting of American Physiological Society. — The 
American Physiological Society held its annual meeting in 
Philadelphia, December 29 and 31, 1888. The laboratories of 
the Jefferson Medical College and the University of Pennsyl- 
vania were inspected, and laboratory methods were informally 
discussed. The following papers were presented : 
1. E. T. Reichert. — "The Excitability of the Different Col- 
umns of the Spinal Cord." 
2. E. T. Reichert. — "The Rate of Transmission of Nerve 
3. E. T. Reichert.— "A New Calorimeter." 
4. J. W. Warren.— "On Sensory Reinforcements of the 
Knee-jerk." 
5. H. H. Donaldson.—" On the Changes in Ganglion Cells 
Due to Stimulation." 
6. H. N. Martin.— "The Lethal Temperatures of the Cat's 
