Connective Substances. By T. E. Satierthwaite. 197 
Teasing of the tissue will often show isolated bands of more or less 
fibrillated tissue, and having no central body that can be seen even 
with the use of strong staining solutions ; these evidences therefore 
seem to show pretty conclusively that such bands are not the 
bodies of the cell, as often stated, but rather portions of the inter- 
cellular substance in which fibrillation is commencing. About the 
flattened body will also be seen the remains of the envelope, either 
as a delicate film about it or in the form of irregular processes, 
projecting in various directions. AccordiDg to this view of the 
case therefore the original flattened body or " nucleus " is at first 
surrounded by a delicate envelope, " the body of the cell ; " the 
former undergoes comparatively little change, while the latter may 
almost entirely disappear. The fibrillation, however, appears first 
in the intercellular substance, the flattened corpuscle apparently 
never taking any part in it. As the tissue becomes more fibril- 
lated and consequently firmer, the little plates diminish in size and 
are farther apart. 
2. Fibrous Tissue (Fig. 4). — This substance, which is also 
known as fibrillated connective tissue, occurs either in parallel 
bundles or in networks. The latter variety may be shown exceed- 
ingly well in the umbilical cord of an infant at birth. If the same 
method is pursued as in the former case, excepting that a cut be 
made through the spongy portion of the cord, the following 
appearances will be noticed. 
It will be seen that the tissue is composed of bright, shining, 
branching bundles {d), superimposed upon which are a number of 
oval flattened plates (a) at intervals • about them is a delicate 
envelope (6), which appears to be highly elastic, so that it will 
stretch or relax according as the networks are compressed or 
dilated. By teasing with needles, or immersion for a few days in a 
10 per cent, watery solution of common salt, these corpuscles can 
often be separated from the bundles, and then they will be seen to 
form a connected system. When entirely isolated from one 
another, they often appear spindle-shaped. That this is not their 
character may be shown by passing a current of fluid through the 
specimen, which is done by the simple method of irrigation ; that 
is, having afiixed small strips of filter paper to the edges of the 
cover, and moistened one side with fluid, the excess will be ab- 
sorbed by the other slip, causing a current by which the corpuscles 
may be made to roll over. We then learn that they are disks of 
an irregularly flattened form, having longer or shorter processes 
(c c) — variations in form which seem to depend in a great measure 
upon the tension to which they are exposed, and the position they 
occupy in the tissue. This explanation will serve to show why 
all measurements of such corpuscles are merely approximative, 
and have but little value. The nucleus may be regarded as an 
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