1810.] 
of the squallus maximus; these, when 
dead, contain a solid jelly, but in the joint between every two vertebrae; 
living state it is found fluid. 
The structure of the intervertebral 
joint, which appears‘to be common to 
fish in general, 1s evidently contrived for 
producing the quick vibratory lateral. 
motion, which is peculiar to the back- 
bones of fish while swimming, and ena- 
bles them to continue that.motion fora 
great length of time, with a smali degree 
of muscular action. This joint is not 
met with in any of the whale tribe, whose 
motion through the water is principally 
effected by means of their horizontal 
tail: in them the substance employed to 
unite the vertebra, is the same as in 
quadrupeds in general. The external 
portion is firm and compact; ranged in 
concentric circles, with transverse fibres 
uniting the layers together, it becomes 
softer towards the middle, and in the 
centre there is a soft pliant substance 
\without elasticity, but admitting of ex- 
tension more like jelly than an organized 
ody, corresponding in its use to the 
incompressible fluid of fish. In the iiog 
and rabbit, in the central part, thereis'a 
cavity with a smooth internal surface of 
_ the extent of half the diameter of the 
vertebra, im which is contained a thick 
gelatinous fluid; so that in some quadrnu- 
‘peds there is an approach towards the 
intervertebral joint of the fish: but in the 
bullock, sheep, deer, monkey, and man, 
the structure corresponds with that of 
the whale. In some animals, as the al- 
ligator, the vertebra through the whole 
jength of the spine have regular joints 
between them, the surfaces are covered 
with articulating cartilages, and there is 
aynovia anda capsular ligament. In the 
VARIETIES, Literary anp Piocopare tie 
Literary and Philosophical Intelligence. 
fications of gelatine and 
473 
snake there is a regular ball and socket« 
SO. 
that the means employed for the motion 
of the back-bone in different animals, 
comprehends almost every species of 
joint with which we are acquainted. It 
appears then, that the intervertebral 
substance of the human spine does not 
consist entirely of elastic ligament, dense 
in its texture at the circumference, and 
becoming gradually softer towards the 
centre; but the middle portion 1s com- 
posed of materials which render it very 
pliant, though not at all elastic, fitting it 
to keep the vertebra at the proper dis- 
tance from each other, so as to admit of 
the action of the lateral elastic ligaments, 
“When this knowledge,” says Mr, 
‘Home, “is applied to the treatment of 
curvatures of the spine, a complaint so 
commonly met with in young women, 
whose strength does not bear the neces- 
sary proportion to the growth of the 
“body, it will shew the great impropriety 
of overstretching the intervertebral li- 
gaments, since in that state the central 
Substance no longer sépports the ver- 
tebrez, and the joints must -lose their 
proper firmness, which will be attended 
with many disadvantages.’ 
Mr. Branpr hasanalysed thesubstance 
described, and he finds it to approach 
bearer to mucus,-or mucilage, than to 
any other animal fluid. By mucus, he 
means a glary fluid, which does not mix 
readily with water, which is neither co- 
peuleced by heat or .acids, and which 
‘does not form a precipitate with solutions 
containing tannin, Though it resembles 
mucus, It 1s, undercertain circumstances, 
capable of being converted into modi- 
albumen, 
Including Notices of Works in Hand, Domestic and Foreign. 
*,* Authentic Communications for this Article will always be thankfully be acided: 
a - 
HE Rev. Mr. Hayter, chaplain in 
ordinary to the Prince of Wales, 
who has been superintendant for his 
Royal Highness of the Herculaneum 
MSS. since the year 1802, has just 
arrived in London from Palermo. We 
regret to have it confirmed that the 
whole museum at Portici, including 
1500 of those MSS which had not been 
unfolded, and 230 originals which had 
been unfolded, partially, or wholly, by 
Mr, Hayter, were suffered to fall into 
the hands of the French, notwithstanding 
the repeated remonstrances of this gens 
tleman to the Neapolitan court to have 
them removed, or sent to England. 
We learn however that Mr. Havter had 
previously copied and corrected NINETY- 
rour of those which he had unfolded, 
‘and that these copies, which are fac-si- 
miles, were transmitted by him to the 
‘Prince of Wales, and have since by his 
Royal Highness, through Lord Gren- 
ville, been presented to the unive rsity of 
Oxford. Among these was a Latin poem, 
which Mr. Hayter conjectures to have 
been 
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