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Small pieces swell up quickly in the softening solution and the muscular and 
mucous coats are then recognised even with the naked eye, though under the influence 
of absolute alcohol all differentiation disappears. Microscopical preparations are easily 
obtained, and the various layers entering into the formation of the intestinal walls are 
distinctly seen. Fig. 1, Plate XI is an exact representation under a low power of an 
almost complete oblique section through the walls and part of the lumen of the 
intestine. At «a» the annular muscular coat is depicted. The longitudinal coat of 
muscular fibres is well preserved also, but is not included in the picture so as to keep 
the latter within reasonable limits. The sub-mucous tissue between «a» and the muscu- 
laris mucosae « b » is fairly well preserved, but in other sections it is altogether absent. 
The muscularis mucosae « b » is always present and the glandular layer when examined 
under a low power looks like an open mesh-work. The lumen of the intestine is 
shown bounded by a thin dark line, Avhich doubtless repi-esents the layer of columnar 
epithelium. 
The lumen of the intestine is always empty in microscopical sections, but on 
macerating small pieces of intestine in dilute caustic potash and centrifugalising, one 
finds in the centrifugalised residue, débris of partially digested muscular fibres and 
vegetable cells. In one case I saw granules which gave all the histological reactions 
of starch. 
Examination under a high power is instructive also. Plate XI, Fig. 3 shows part 
of a section passing through the annular fibres. The longitudinal striation is present ; 
but in the process of drying, the fibres shrank greatly and most of them did not 
expand again to their natural size in the softening solution. The result is that a kind 
of reticulum has been formed, and owing to the deficient longitudinal expansion, the 
fibres have remained somewhat angular. 
Plate XI, Fig. 2 represents sections of part of the glandular layer of the intestines. 
Generally the structure is typical, but here again, owing to deficient expansion, the 
glands are peculiarly angular. I thought at first that the darkly staining strands round 
the lumina of the tubes were composed of connective tissue only, but further examination 
showed that they really consisted of dried epithelium cells, which had not expanded 
again. They resemble somewhat the insufficiently swollen epithelium cells of some 
mummified livers and kidneys. 
Pre-dijnastic I only obtained a very small piece, about an inch, of the colon of a body of the 
intestines. Hearst collection, in which I saw the transverse and longitudinal muscular fibres. The 
muscularis mucosae had apparently completely disappeared. 
Romcm child. On opening the body, the intestines were all found lying in the abdominal cavity, 
and looked exactly like brown tissue paper. They were removed bodily and when placed 
in the formol and carbonate of soda solution they became again beautifully soft. After a 
time, although slightly yellowish in colour, they looked almost normal. They were found 
to be empty from end to end. Microscopically the peritoneal and muscular coats were 
