1887.] A Protandric Hermaphrodite. 25 
come oblong. I have not been able to elucidate what the function 
of the folicular epithelium is, but I am of the opinion that this 
epithelium produces a secretion which (wholely or partially) forms 
the fluid of the sperma; possibly this secretion may, to some extent, 
be formed at the expense of the epithelial cells, and the folicular 
epithelium is thus, to a certain extent, directly converted into a 
secretion. The flattening of the epithelium in the mature capsules 
must, probably, be ascribed to the rapid growth of the connective- 
tissue walls of the capsules ; if the epithelium does not grow at the 
same time, it is evident that its cells must either be quite separated 
from each other, and perhaps partially loosened from the walls, or 
they must be flattened to cover the walls of the large mature 
capsules. 
It seems as if the situation of the cells of the follicular epithe- 
lium is not limited to the walls of the capsules only; quite similar 
cells are often found amongst the spermatocytes, from which they 
distinctly dirTer in shape and appearance, and they seem, really, to 
be follicular cells which have emigrated from the epithelium to- 
wards the interior of the capsules. In most cases, a direct proto- 
plasmic connection between these cells and the follicular epithelium 
can even be observed (vide fig. 13, eq — ec 6 ); it has the appear- 
ance of having trailed a string of protoplasm after it, when emi- 
grating. 
Cells in a similar situation do not, generally, occur in 
young testicular capsules, but seem to first appear during the growth 
of the capsules, They are not common as long as the sexual cells 
(spermatogons and spermatocytes) form a quite compact mass, but 
seem to occur especially in that period of the development of the 
capsules (cf. infra) when the spermatocytes cease to form a com- 
pact mass, and begin to be loosened from each other and from the 
walls of the capsules; the appearance is, as if the walls with the 
follicular epithelium withdraw from the conglommerate of sperma- 
tocytes situated in the interior of the capsules, whilst, however, some 
epithelial cells have more affinity to the spermatocytes than to the 
walls of the capsules, and are thus separated from the latter but with 
a bridge of protoplasm connecting them; sometimes, however, this 
bridge is also broken, the cells are isolated, and are then, perhaps, 
after some time destroyed. Howsoever this may be, I have not 
observed anything which speaks in favour of the possibility that 
these cells are converted into spermatozoa, I think, on the con- 
trary, that the testicular capsules of Myxine are most favourable 
