THE SALIVARY GLANDS. 315 



of even such tough structures as ligaments. Tamed tigers 

 have been known to draw blood by licking the hand of 

 their master. 



In health the surface of the tongue is moist, covered by 

 little "fur/' and in childhood of a red color. In adult 

 life the natural color of the tongue is less red, except 

 around the edges and tip; a bright-red glistening tongue 

 being, then, usually a symptom of disease. When the 

 digestive organs are deranged the tongue is commonly 

 covered with a thick yellowish coat, composed of a little 

 mucus, some cells of epithelium shed from the surface, and 

 numerous microscopic organisms known as bacteria; and 

 there is frequently a "bad taste" in the mouth. The 

 whole alimentary mucous membrane is in close physio- 

 logical relationship; and anything disordering the sto- 

 mach is likely to produce a "furred tongue." 



The Salivary Glands. The saliva, which is poured into 

 the mouth and which, mixed with the secretion of minute 

 glands imbedded in its lining membrane, moistens it, is 

 secreted by three pairs of glands, the parotid, the subniaxil- 

 lary and the suUingual The parotid glands lie in front 

 of the ear behind the ramus of the lower jaw; each sends 

 its secretion into the mouth by a tube known as Stenon 9 * 

 dud, which crosses tho cheek and opens opposite the second 

 upper molar tooth. In the disease known as mumps * the 

 parotid glands are inflamed and enlarged. The submaxillary 

 glands lie between the halves of the lower jaw-bone, near 

 its angles, and their ducts open beneath the tongue near the 

 middle line. The sublingual glands lie beneath the floor 

 of the mouth, covered by its mucous membrane, between 

 the back part of the tongue and the lower jaw-bone. Each 

 has many ducts (8 to 20), some of which join the submaxil- 

 lary duct, while the rest open separately in the floor of the 

 mouth. 



The Fauces is the name given to the aperture which can 

 be seen at the back of the mouth (Fig. 89), leading from it 

 into the pharynx below the soft palate. It is bounded 

 above by the soft palate and uvula, below by the root of the 

 tongue, and on the sides by muscular elevations, covered by 



* Parotitis, in technical language. 



