272 Condition of Blood after Death from Snake-bite. 
ponding in all particulars to a macula. This particle passed 
regularly round the nucleus at a uniform rate, revolving both 
in the direction of and against the current of the fluid in 
which the cell was floating, reminding one of the movements 
seen in Valesneria, &c. ‘Twenty-four hours after the bite, 
the cells attain their greatest size, and, supposing the animal 
then dead, have probably ceased multiplying, and are simply 
living, or perhaps growing, the nucleus being usually single, 
the macula extremely distinct, and the cell very large. It is 
not uncommon at this time and later to see a cup-shaped 
hiatus in the cell-wall from which the macula has escaped. 
The cells may be seen in the blood for many days, their 
presence seeming to be a preservative against putrefaction. 
Where they have most room, as in the vene cavee, cranial 
sinuses, and cavities of the heart, they attain the greatest 
size and most circular form. In every instance the cell- 
wall is very elastic, and accommodates itself to surround- 
ing pressure. To ascertain how soon after inoculation 
these cells appear is a matter of some difficulty. It is not 
necessary to suppose that at first they are very numerous, 
and in order to detect them so early it might require fifty or 
a hundred microscopes and observers at work at the same 
instant ; still, from their having been seen two hours after 
the bite, and from all we know of the rapidity with which 
new formations occcur, both in health and disease, it is 
doubtless extremely soon. Of one thing we are sure—viz., 
that the nebulous germinal matter from which they spring is 
within a few minutes diffused all over the body ; for, sup- 
posing an animal to die in five minutes, and hence all cir- 
culation stopped, the cells are as readily seen in its blood a 
few hours after death as if it had lived as many hours as we 
say minutes. The macula is, doubtless, a particle of germinal 
matter, but whether it is to be regarded as that from which 
the whole cell has sprung, or whether it has been detached 
from the nucleus, and is destined for independent existence, 
itis hard to say. The fact that it is almost invariably large 
when the cell is small, and small when the cell is large, 
favours the first view. Perhaps the most important point 
must be left still undecided. Has the blood built up these 
celis directly or indirectly from the germinal matter of the 
serpent? The answer to this question I will endeavour to 
give at a future meeting. Ihave many observations on this 
subject, but they are not yet completed. In either case 
the result is the same—Storing up of force wm the new 
