852 ROYAL COLLEGE OP VETERINARY’ SURGEONS. 
tremities after section of their respective nerves. He there¬ 
fore attributes the atrophic degeneration to the section of the 
motor nerves, which he regards as the trophic nerves of the 
muscles. He denies that mere functional inactivity is able 
to account for these changes, inasmuch as the nutrition and 
irritability of muscles may remain intact in numerous cases of 
hemiplegia and paraplegia, where functional activity is com¬ 
plete. He likewise excludes the supposition that the de¬ 
generation of the muscle is the consequence of a propaga¬ 
tion of the irritation caused by section of the nerve to the 
muscle, because the rapidity and intensity of the degeneration 
of the muscle stand in no corresponding relation to the 
changes which take place in the nerve. He also endeavours 
to show that the degeneration is not due to any changes in 
the vessels. On this point, however, he merely shows that 
the walls of the vessels remain unaltered. He concludes, 
from his observations, that the trophic centre of the muscles 
is in the central nervous system. In support of this he 
adduces the muscular atrophy w 7 hich results from degenera¬ 
tion of the anterior horns of the spinal cord. He looks on 
the gray matter of the cord, and the medulla oblongata and 
its corresponding parts in the pons, as the true trophic centres, 
which exert their influence on the muscles directly through 
the motor nerves themselves; and in this way he explains 
the degenerations which result when the motor nerves are 
cut by the cessation of the influence of the trophic centres.— 
The British Medical Journal. 
ROYAL COLLEGE OF VETERINARY SURGEONS. 
QUARTERLY MEETING OE THE COUNCIL, held October 2nd. 
M. J. Harpley, Esq. (President), in the chair. 
Present:—Professors Simonds, Brown, Pritchard, and 
Williams ; Messrs. Balls, Broad, J. C. Broad, Burrell, Cart- 
ledge, Cartwright, Cox, Dray, Colonel Fitzwygram, Field, 
Fleming, Gowing, Greaves, Hunt, Lowe, Mayer, Moon, 
Naylor, Owles, Pritchard, Silvester, Wilkinson, and the 
Secretary. 
The minutes of the previous meeting having been read, 
Mr. Wilkinson inquired if Professor Williams intended his 
motion, of which he had given notice, to apply to any other 
College besides Edinburgh. 
