MASTICATION AND DEGLUTITION. 71' 



"During mastication, there occurs a flow of saliva b , which is a 

 frothy fluid," consisting, according to Berzelius, of 

 Water - .x+b: i.'>tf h; 



A peculiar animal matter i&jpHj ;/; 



MUCUS - - !{><IC 'fO^iji B.^.-'i; ;,!>; 



i . ; . Alkaline muriates - vrt *,'_ ? ^ . *y *t *; 



Lactate of soda and animal matter >JM 



Pure soda . '' -y* r: ; .' .r*r: ' - - h'V fiQisfc; 



1000.0 C 



What Berzelius calls mucus, Dr. Thomas Thomson and Dr. Bos- 

 tock regard as albumen. This mucus is insoluble in water, and, 

 when incinerated, but not before, yields a large .portion of phos- 

 phate of lime. d 



According to an examination by Tiedemann and Gmelin, saliva, 

 mixed with more or less mucus, consists of 



A peculiar matter termed salivary; osmazome; mucus; all 

 essential to its composition : 



Sometimes a little albumen : 



A little fatty matter, united with phosphorus : 



Potass, united with acetic, phosphoric, sulphuric, hydro-chloric, 

 and sulpho-cyanic acid ; all soluble salts : 



A large quantity of phosphate, and a smaller of carbonate, of 

 lime ; a minute quantity of magnesia ; - all three insoluble. 



The solid contents amount to about -fa per cent. The alkaline 

 properties of saliva were before ascribed to a free alkali, and that 

 alkali was supposed to be soda. In the dog the alkali is soda, 

 very little potass being discoverable. 6 



*M. Rastail remarks, that whatever other" persons examine the 

 saliva will have still other results, as different substances are 

 mixed in it at different times, and names are given to the mixture 

 the elements of which are not determined. He discovers that the 



b " J. Earth. Siebold, Historia Systematis Salivalis. Jen. 1797. 4to." 

 c J. Berzelius, Medico- Chirurgical Transactions, vol. iii. p. 242. 

 d The tartar of the teeth arises from its gradual decomposition upon them, and 

 consists, according to Berzelius, of 



Earthy phosphates - ' - 79.0 



Undecomposed mucus - - 12.5 



Peculiar salivary matter - \-, - 1-0 

 Animal matter soluble in muriatic acid - 7.5 



' 100.0 



* Die Verdauung nach Versuchcn, &c. By Fred. Tiedemann and Leopold 

 Gmelin, Professors in the University of Heidelberg. 



