In the third stage, if the disease is to terminate favorably, the cough becomes loose, the animal improves, the appetite returns, and the symptoms above detailed rapidly subside; if, on the other hand, resolution is not progressing, the lung substance degenerates, becomes clogged up, and ceases to function.
"Special Report on Diseases of Cattle"
U.S. Department of Agriculture J.R. Mohler
You may argue that this is not typical; say that I fell into the clutches of some particular group of degenerates.
"The Book of Life: Vol. I Mind and Body; Vol. II Love and Society"
Upton Sinclair
Forced labour quickly degenerates into slavery, and men who find the story of their misery hard to credit should consider the state of France before the Revolution, and of the Russian serfs before their emancipation.
"The Expositor's Bible: The Book of Exodus"
G. A. Chadwick