THE INJURY CURRENT OF NERVE 
301 
but after death accumulate locally in the lymph of the part in which they are formed. 
The outer solution of the nerve is therefore being gradually altered after the death 
of the animal by the concentration in it of electrolytes derived in the first place from 
the surrounding muscles.* Such a concentration of the outer solution leads to a 
diminution in the injury current, and nerves removed from the body even five 
minutes after death exhibit a diminution in the demonstrable injury current, and 
from this cause. 
When the nerves are immersed for a short time in a solution which successfully 
replaces the ' external solution ' originally present, they are then in a more standard 
condition for comparison than when the variable ' external solution ' remains. A 
comparison under such circumstances gives more reliable information as to the con- 
dition of the other factors necessary to the manifestation of the injury current, e.g., 
the tubular membrane and the enclosed 'internal solution.' 
Data from Experiments VII and VIII 
Experiment VII. '025 per cent. NaOH 
Experiment VIII. 
■02 per cent. HC1 
First nerve removed at once 
Second nerve removed 
in 1 hour 
First nerve removed 
at once 
Secoml nerve removed 
in 1 hour 
After successive immersions r? 
m their respective cr. 
solutions. — 
ifference 23*0 
(1) 23-9 
(2) 267 
(3) 22M 
(4) 21-2 
(5) >7-o 
(6) 9-2 
144 
239 
24-6 
22-1 
2 I "2 
1 6- 1 
9"9 
177 
25 9 
2 I - I 
197 
17-2 
»+*5 
6-9 
124 
259 
22-4. 
19-8 
.87 
'3'2 
5\3 
In each of these experiments it is obvious that whereas a great difference exists 
between the nerve removed at once and that removed an hour later, when first 
examined : yet the first immersion has in either case placed the two nerves upon an 
absolute equality, which is maintained throughout their subsequent history. 
It is worthy of note that the first beneficent effect of immersion is produced 
alike by dilute solutions of acid or of alkali, the following experiment will shew, too, 
that there is no particular virtue in the fact that these solutions are dilute. 
M 
See Waller, Animal Electricity, p. 56 
