l82 NERVE COMPONENTS OF BONY FISHES. 



mandibulae to the skin, where it supplies the loth lateral 

 line organ, a naked papilla, of the infra-orbital line. 

 Several smaller branches of fine fibres go off at nearly the 

 same point and supply the skin adjacent, and particularly 

 that about the lower border of the eye (fifth infra-orbital 

 branch). 



The ventral division now comes to lie at the dorso- 

 lateral edge of the m. adductor mandibulse close under 

 the skin and the coarse and fine fibres, which hitherto 

 have been mingled, become segregated, the coarse ones 

 all lying in the lateral half of the nerve. This tendency 

 of lateralis fibres to draw away from the other components 

 is very characteristic, and is exhibited in nearly all nerves 

 where they are associated with other fibres. 



At 395 another coarse-fibred twig is given off for the 

 9th (naked) organ of the infra-orbital line (6th infra- 

 orbital branch). At 385 the 7th ramulus goes ventrad to 

 supply the thickened epidermis lying between the oper- 

 cular canal and the eye. The 8th ramulus supplies the 

 8th (naked) organ of the infra-orbital line and also the 

 similar organ (7th) next cephalad. Then follow the 9th 

 ramulus directed ventrad, and the loth dorsad, both for 

 the skin. The latter crosses external to, but apparently 

 does not anastomose with, the twig from the dorsal 

 division for the 6th infra-orbital organ (the i8th infra- 

 orbital branch). The remaining fibres of this ventral 

 division (nth infra-orbital branch) are all coarse. They 

 enter the ventral part of the m. adductor mandibulae and 

 apparently participate in its innervation. 



^. — T]ie Middle Division — R. Mandibularis V. 



The middle division is the r. mandibularis V. After 

 its separation from the ventral division this nerve runs 

 parallel to and almost in contact with the dorsal division 



