168 Mr. Home’s Experiments on Fluids , &c. 
In tying the right lymphatic trunk, a lymphatic vessel, 
from the thorax going to join it, was wounded, from which 
chyle flowed out in considerable quantity during the whole 
time of the experiment ; a short time before the dog was 
killed some of it was collected, but on testing it with potash no 
rhubarb was detected in it. 
The urine was found impregnated with rhubarb, as was also 
the bile from the gall bladder ; but both in a less degree than 
in the last experiment. The lacteal vessels and mesenteric 
glands were much distended with chyle ; and on cutting into 
the glands chyle flowed out in considerable quantity. Some of 
this was collected and tested with potash, but shewed no evi- 
dence of rhubarb being contained in it. The thoracic duct 
was much distended ; it was traced to the ligature, and was 
found to be completely secured. 
Lymphatic vessels from the right side of the posterior 
mediastinum, were seen extending towards the ligature that 
had been tied on that side ; they were nearly empty ; and the 
trunk formed by the junction of these with the lymphatic 
vessels from the right axilla, and from the right side of the 
neck, was seen distinctly included in the ligature. 
While Mr. Brodie was tracing the thoracic duct, Mr. Wil- 
liam Brande was making an infusion of the spleen, and 
shewed me a section of it, in which the cells were larger, and 
more distinct, than I had ever seen them in a dog. There 
was a slight tinge of rhubarb in the infusion from the spleen. 
A similar infusion was made of the liver ; but the quantity of 
blood contained in it being much greater than in the spleen, 
the appearance w r as not sufficiently distinct to decide whether 
it contained rhubarb or not. These experiments appear com- 
