THE BODY TEMPLE 53 



organs to act upon it with ease. Some animals, which 

 are not supplied with teeth in their mouths, have ex- 

 cellent teeth in their stomachs, by which the food is 

 masticated in a most thorough manner. Wlien dis- 

 posed to eat too fast, we should remember that our 

 stomachs have no teeth ; and, hence, if the food is ever 

 chewed, it must be done before it is swallowed. 



The tongue aids in the grinding process, by keep- 

 ing the food between the teeth, and moving it from one 

 side to the other. 



Three pairs of glands, arranged on either side of 

 the mouth, pour into it a clear liquid, the saliva, which 

 is mixed with the food to soften and otherwise change 

 it. A narrow tube leads from the back of the mouth 

 to the stomach proper, situated just below the lower 

 end of the breastbone. 



The stomach is simply a dilated portion of the di- 

 gestive tube, or as it is sometimes called, the alimentary 

 canal. It holds about three pints. In its walls are 

 curious little pockets, in which is formed the gastric 

 juice. The lower end of the stomach joins the small 

 intestines, which are folded up in the abdominal cavity, 

 and measure about twenty-five feet. 



A few inches below the stomach, a small opening is 

 found in the small intestines, through which enter two 

 very important liquids, the pancreatic juice and the 

 bile. The first is formed by the pancreas, a hammer- 

 shaped gland which lies just back of the stomach; the 

 latter, by the liver, which lies at the right side of the 

 stomach, partially overlapping it. 



All along the small intestine are scattered minute 

 little glands buried in the mucous membrane, which 

 make another fluid, called the intestinal juice. At the 

 lower right-hand corner of the abdominal cavity, the 



