Soe eS 
ALIMENTARY CANAL, ETC., OF AMIURUS CATUS. 397 
directed over the cardia and cecum. The opening of the glands on 
the surface of the membrane can scarcely be detected with the naked 
eye. 
The inner longitudinal layer of muscle fibres of the cesophagus 
vanishes, its place being taken by the more abundant submucosa. 
The outer cesophageal layer of circular fibres becomes the inner circu- 
lar layer of the stomach, in the anterior portion of which is still 
found a certain amount of striated fibres. At the same point an 
outer longitudinal layer of smooth muscle takes its origin. 
Oblique muscular layers are almost totally absent, such as are pre- 
sent being modifications of the two other layers. 
The muscularis mucose acquires quite a thickness. In it smooth 
fibres alone are present, and a more abundant mucous tissue separ- 
ates it from the epithelium. 
Two portions may be distinguished in the stomach, the pepsin- 
secreting region (including the cardia and coecum) and the pylorus. 
The two portions can be observed as distinct by the naked eye, the 
former being always more or less flushed while the latter is uniformly 
pale or discolored. 
The superficial epithelium of the anterior section does not differ 
from that of the posterior or pylorus. In both it consists of delicate 
cylinders, not quite as long on the average as those of the esophagus, 
difficult to isolate to their fullest extent, as their basal processes run 
into and are interwoven with the fibrous tissue of the mucosa. In the 
first state their contents are similar throughout and finely granuled. 
The nucleus is large, oval and situated near the inner third of the cell. 
The contents of each cell project beyond the general surface with a 
faintly arched refracting border, which, at first view, may be taken 
for a membrane for that portion of the cell ; it is destroyed by the 
action of water after some minutes or by the immediate action of 
Miiller’s fluid. 
F. E. Schulze’ who first described fully and carefully the superficial 
epithelium of the stomach, denied the presence of a peripheral wall 
for these cells, and stated their function to be that of secreting mucous 
to cover the surface, which should thus be protected from injury by 
the digesting fluid. Haidenhain’ describes these cells as perfectly 
closed on their peripheral border, and states that the apparent opening 
1 Archiv fiir Mikr. Anat., Bd. III. 
2 Archiv fiir Mikr. Anat. Bd. VI., page 372. 
