REPORT ON THE MARSUPIALIA. 159 



of Man. The curvatures, however, are more pronounced, and the transition from the 



wide cardiac portion to the narrow pyloric part more sudden. The fundus rises high 



above the cardiac opening. The following are the measurements of the stomach of the 



small female specimen : - 



Inches, 

 Length of the lesser curvature (measured from the opening of the 1 . 



oesophagus to the pylorus), . . , , . ) 



Length of the greater curvature (measured from the cardiac orifice over ) ■. „ 



the high fundus to the pylorus), . , . . J 



Girth of the organ at the cardiac orifice, . . . , 12i 



On turning the stomach outside in, the lining mucous membrane is observed to be 

 highly rugose — the rugse, however, almost entirely disappearing on distension. The 

 mucous membrane does not present the same appearance throughout. At the fundus it 

 is thin and smooth ; towards the pylorus it becomes thicker, more pulpy, and marked by 

 numerous irregular depressions which doubtless correspond with the alveoli of the human 

 stomach. When distended to its utmost extent the mucous membrane still shows these 

 alveolar depressions. A marked pyloric constriction separates the stomach from the 

 small intestine. 



Intestinal canal. — The intestinal canal proceeds backwards as a uniform tube, and at 

 the pelvis becomes continuous with the rectum. There are no indications by which it 

 can be divided into a small and large intestine. It is remarkably short, and diminishes 

 slightly in calibre as it is traced towards the pelvis The rectal portion, however, 

 expands so as to assume a diameter equal to, or even greater than that of the upper 

 or duodenal part. The following is the length of the canal in the two specimens : — 



Feet. Inches. 

 Length of the intestinal canal (Male), , . , , 6 5 



do. do. (Female), . . . . 4 8 



Girth when fully distended with spirit (Male) — 



(a) Duodenal end, ..... 5 



(h) Immediately above the rectum, . . . 4^ 



Owen x gives the length of the intestinal canal in a Thylacine which measured 

 3 feet 4 inches from snout to vent as 9 feet 8 inches. This is relatively very much 

 longer than in either of the Challenger specimens. 



The intestinal villi are remarkable for their great length (PL X. figs. 1, 2, '6, 

 and 4). In the anterior part of the tube they are fully half an inch long, and are 

 arranged sparsely over the mucous surface, so that the interior of the gut has a rough 

 shaggy appearance. In the anterior portion of the intestine they are filamentous aud 



1 Article " Marsupialia " Cyclopiedia of Anat. and Phys., p. 304. 



