140 



codile; and of these, one has the additional peculiarity of being 

 continuous with the common integument. 



" The only part of the intestinal canal that presented anything 

 worthy of notice, in addition to previous descriptions, was the sto- 

 mach. This viscus, from its shining lateral tendons and muscular 

 structure, has generally been considered as a gizzard ; but the pro- 

 priety of this denomination has been questioned by M. GeofFroy- 

 Saint-Hilaire, on the ground of its wanting a cuticular lining. In 

 this individual, however, the interior of the stomach presented two 

 smooth round patches about the size of a crown-piece, situated on 

 opposite sides of the cavity ; they were not, indeed, detachable as a 

 membrane distinct.fiom the villous coat, and appeared to differ only 

 in having a smoother surface : this appearance, however, adds to 

 the analogy that this vhcus bears to the gizzards of birds. Another 

 circumstance in favour of this analogy is the fact of pebbles 

 being commonly found in the stomach. M. GeofFroy-Saint- 

 Hilaire met with them in the Egijptian Crocodile, and observed that 

 they were rendered smooth by the action of triturating the ali- 

 mentary substances. In the present instance, there were five small 

 pebbles in the stomach, the largest of which was about 8 lines in 

 the longest diameter. 



" The valve at the orifice by which the small pyloric cavity 

 communicates with the duodenum appears rather to oppose the 

 passage of matter into that intestine ; and both orifices are remark- 

 ably small as compared with the size of the stomach, and especi- 

 ally with the size of the cardiac aperture : the diameter of each did 

 not exceed 3 lines. 



" The duodemim formed the same double fold as described by 

 M. Geoffroy-Saint-Hilaire in the Egyptian species. As he makes 

 no mention of a pancreas, but describes the outer spaces of this 

 part as occupied only by fat, I was induced to examine it minutely, 

 and discovered the gland between the first and last portions of the 

 gut; and having laid open the duct, an eye-probe passed readily 

 through it into the upper end of the last portion of the duodenum, 

 a quarter of an inch beyond the orifice of the biliary duct. 



" The rest of the small intestines varied only in diameter where 

 jiatus had accumulated, and at these parts the zigzag rugae were 

 almost obliterated. Mr. Hunter has remarked in his .'\natomy of 

 Whales (Phil. Trans. Ixxvii. p. 410), that he has ' never found any 

 air in the intestines of this tribe : nor indeed in any of the aquatic 

 animals.' But this remark does not appear to apply to those ani- 

 mals whose habits are only partially aquatic. 



" The rectum opens directly into the genito-urinary cavity, and 

 does not pass beyond it, as in Tortoises, to terminate in the outer 

 cavity or ve$,t\\i\i\e[vestihiduyn commune, Geoff.) The termination 

 in this instance was denoted by a valve not circular, but rather 

 spirally disposed ; and the character of the lining membrane of the 

 genito-urinary cavity was very distinct from that of the rectum, 

 being more coarsely villous, and of a redder colour: this cavity 

 was an inch in length ; the ureters opened at the lower part, just 



