STOMACH OF THE WHALE. 349 



The number of cavities constituting the stomach are not Stomachs of the 

 the same in all animals of the whale tribe. In the com- whaletube * 

 mon porpoise, grampus, and piked whale, the number is 

 the same as in the bottle-nose porpoise ; but in the bottle- 

 nose whale of Dale there are two more cavities. This va- 

 riation is however by no means material, since the general 

 structure of the stomach is the same. 



In all of the whale tribe there is one cavity lined with a First cavity, 

 cuticle, as in the bullock and camel. 



In all of them there is a second cavity made up of a very Second cavity, 

 glandular structure. In the porpoise, grampus, and large 

 bottle-nose whale this structure resembles that which is 

 above described. In the piked whale the rugs are longi- 

 tudinal and deep, but in some places united by cross bands; 

 and as the piked whale has whalebone teeth, the great 

 whalebone whale will probably, from the analogy of its 

 teeth, resemble it in the structure of its stomach. 



The third cavity in all of them is very small, and bears Third cavity. 

 a strong resemblance to the third cavity in the camel's 

 stomach ; its use, therefore, is probably the same. 



The fourth stomach in all of them has a smooth internal Fourth cavity, 

 surface, with the orifices of glands opening into its cavity. 

 In the bottle-nose whale of Dale the two additional cavities 

 have the same internal structure, and therefore must have 

 the same general use, with a greater extension of surface, 

 and the subdivisions will make the food pass more slowly 

 into the intestine. 



The first stomach of the whale is not only a reservoir, .Office of the 

 but the food undergoes a considerable change in it."" ^fee first stonjac h- 

 flesh is entirely separated from the bones in this cafity, 

 which proves that the secretion from the glandular paffchas 

 a solvent power. This was found to be the case in the 

 bottle-nose porpoise and large bottle-nose whale. In hoth 

 of them several handfuls of bones were found in the n*fst 

 stomach, without the smallest remains of the fish, to which 

 they belonged. The soft parts only can be conveyed frrto 

 the second and third stomachs, the orifices being too small 

 to admit the bones to pass. 



The bones must therefore be reduced to a jelly in the 

 £ rst stomachj and although tke process^ by which this is 



effected, 



