Teachers and singers are aware that wrong methods of tone-production result in nodes on the vocal cords. The node, therefore, is one of the most familiar forms of vocal catastrophe. In its simplest form the node is a superficial swelling on the edge of a vocal cord, sometimes appearing on one and then on the other and ofttimes on both, dependent entirely upon causation. For instance, the cause might be simply a severe spell of coughing, and this, of course, might befall a person who was not a singer at all. It has been known to occur to animals. The node is, in fact, an oedema or dropsy, a swelling from effusion of watery fluid in the cellular tissue beneath the skin or mucous membrane. This oedema appears on the edge of the vocal cord, as a slight tumor or swelling filled with water. If aggravated by continued use of the voice, it may develop and become exceedingly dangerous, by extending inward to the real tissue of the cord itself. The membrane is thickened by the watery secretion, and much the same thing happens as in the case of a pinching bruise or a blistering burn. Nature's cure for this state of things is by absorption of the fluid contents and a consequent diminution in the size of the node until finally a normal condition of the cord is restored and the voice returns in all its fullness. In the formation of the node it is worth remarking that the coughing node may appear at any point on the cords. It shows first at one point and then at another. The node caused by vocal weakness or abuse of the natural powers, however, displays an exasperating, and sometimes puzzling, affinity for particular portions of the vocal cords. It is generally found protruding from the anterior and middle third on one or the other side of the glottic opening, or on both, in chronic cases. The other nodes may be found at any place on the cord. In fact, it frequently happens that the coughing node, and what for convenience may be styled the "vocal node," are simultaneously present, each to be distinguished by its well-defined location, although produced by totally different causes.