gi B Dr. Pearson on expectorated Matter. 
consistence of thick cream, or of thin toasted cheese ; so tough 
as to hang in the form of a rope, four or five inches in length, 
on pouring it from one vessel into another. Its aggregation is 
such that it is readily detached in large masses from the vitreous 
surface of vessels. It is not unusual for small black, or reddish 
spots, and streaks, to appear on the surface of this sort of expec- 
torated substance. A pretty large bulk of it is seldom through- 
out uniform ; but it is frothy, and exhibits opaque masses of 
various hues with transparent matter interposed. The colour is 
yellowish, straw-coloured, and white, or gray : it also, though 
seldom, is greenish and bluish. The taste asserted by patients, 
is, in their own terms, various, namely , saltish, nasty, faintish, 
sweetish, luscious, or like that of a sweet oyster, — a sharp 
or sour taste is the most rare. The only smell which I have 
perceived is that of flesh, but very frequently there is none. 
When any offensive or pungent smell was perceived, imme- 
diately after expectoration, I have always found that it was 
owing either to the foulness of the vessel in which it was re- 
ceived ; or it was from extraneous matters in the mouth, and 
from decayed teeth. 
This opaque viscid substance, being duly diluted with dis- 
tilled water was examined with microscopes of common, as 
well as of very great powers : by means of any of them 
crowds of spherical particles were seen passing to and fro, in 
currents, not unlike those of the blood ; except that they were 
larger. These globules I could not destroy, nor alter in form, 
by trituration ; nor by long boiling in water ; nor by exsicca- 
tion, and again dissolving in water ; nor even by coagulation 
with mineral and vegetable acids, with alcohol, with sulphuric 
ether, or with tannin, and alum ; nor by mixture with caustic 
