‘violent emotions of the 
flion. 
DIGESTION, 
Rot affeéted for the fame reafon 3 yet, when the fomach i is 
dead, it yields, like other matter, to the gaftric juice, and in 
particular cafes becomes foftened, and partly deftroyed. This 
circumftance was firft noticed by Mr. Hy: nter, and the cafes 
in which it has happened are thofe of fudden deaths, where 
the. tay was previcully in good health, and had lately 
eate n feme, confeffedly rare examples, a large hole has 
wen (una in the ee frou this caufe, with the margins 
ragged and foft. s the facts: mentioned r. Hunter 
ave been queflioned, the writer of this article can add one, 
als 
even very peuiteeely alfolved in t 
eafily kill them under circumftanc 
likely to take place. In the panea ‘fubjeet the great end of 
the ftomach will often be found pulpy and foft on its internal 
furface, although i it be not atual-y diflolved through. 
We have already noticed the coagulating power of the 
calf’s ftomach: it is found that coagulable animal fluids, as 
milk or jelly, introduced into the ftomach, are coaguiated 
before they are digefted. This fa@ is obvious with refpe 
to the milk vomited by fuckling children. They mutt after- 
wards be diffulved like the more folid Eparts of the food. 
The proof of the facts already g the action 
of the gaftric juice, is derived a ex periments, in which 
food enclofed in apenas tubes taken into the ftomach, and 
returned again by vomiting, has been comely. eianged 
into chyme. Spallanzani a repeated his refearches almoft 
unneceffarily on this point, in the various claffes of animala, 
» by means of gaftric ju 
thods explained above; t 
o its ation in the temperature of the human bo y, were 
diffoived, while they remained unchanged in water under the 
fame circumftances 
tevens met with a very favourable opportunity of 
afcertaining the ation of the gaftric juice on fubftances en- 
clofed in tubes and {wallowed, in a man who 
o llowing fto i 
n tubes were voided in 
 afecrained of ee nip and po 
boiled ‘falt, boning: and roaft tu 
ufk, was unaltered: 
and earth-worms.were completely Santis In the ttomach 
of a dog 3 fcruples 16 gr. of ivo ft 2 fcruples: and 
‘bone was cee eee Cintlaze was not changed, nor 
fat fo much as 
The gaftric uid then will exert - oe on the dead 
ftomach, and it will even at on alimentary matters out of 
the bo ay, Yet we muft not com eee gine thefe cafes 
with that of digeftion in the ftomach; not to regard 
that organ asa chemical veffel, in on accompofitions and 
recombinations are going on; we muft take into confidera- 
the ufe of narcotics and opium, profoun 
mind, will i 
Dumas has ee fever. al e 
this fubje& ; he found the gaftric fecretion deminifhe b 
introducing opium into the ftomach, aifo by acids and al- 
cohol; increafed-by volatile alkali, emetic tartar, and cor- 
rofive {ublimate; and interrupted or paeenere by caufes 
7 
that affeGted the nervous fyftem in a as shoe pains 
When the natural funétions of t 
om 
e nat and a gee 
ich it is performe 
trary to the uniformity of chemical aie. 
- The 
ly ; an ae onceived againft even a contr 
food, will prevent its digeftion. If the living powers of the 
omach rong, the food will be perfeGily digefled ; 
undergo chemical changes. » if lar 
tity, jor an ind'geftible fort of food, ‘or fuch as the flomach 
has not been accuftomed to, be taken into a wea 
it will be converted into a matter, which m 
and particularly fach as‘are habituated to any particular 
kind’ of food, derive perfect nourifhment from fuch food, 
whatever it be. Thus, 
alone, without aoe arta dr 
vegetable food ; others ie on fhell-fifh, dead and ud 
feals and hale, ee ence, particular kinds of food are 
ble, in ya eee of affording good chyle 
ae be adapted to the ftate of the 
moft proper 
in pe ood is, in itfelf, 
wholefome or unwholefome, but as it is compare red with t 
ee ftate of the ftomach and organs of di 
year, any 
formed in the ftomach, me he appears to confider it asa 
chemical procefs, effe y the living powers of the 
ftomach. ae erves, “that - fubftances oloyed for 
food, yield t d that 
on fo 
re) 
hem a decompotiton and See. of 
Cita 
t pie {eems an effential condition to the right 
performance e digeftion ; sane fala it, and this 
has been proved by direét cree on two dogs 
were fed at the fame time. Ome as ioee to le down 
quiet, while the other was taken out hunting, and they were 
then both killed. The aliment in the “8 who had been 
exerting himfelf was. unchanged. 
The 
