ON THE STOMACH IN MAN AND THE ANTHROPOID APE. 37 



these specimens brings forcibly before us the stereotyped character of the control which 

 is exercised by the nervous mechanism upon the musculature of the stomach. 



Specimen IV. B (fig. 33) was obtained in the dissecting-room from an adult female 

 subject. The organ is bent acutely upon itself at the incisura angularis. The body of 

 the stomach, which contained a small amount of contents, is divided by a notch in the 

 greater curvature into two nearly equal parts. This indicates the physiological 

 division of the stomach — the upper part being the representative of the cardiac sac, 

 and the lower part representing the portion of the body of the stomach which contracts 

 and enters into the formation of the gastric tube. 



Specimen XI. B (fig. 34) was obtained from the post-mortem room. It is absolutely 

 empty, and the same characters and subdivisions as in Specimen IV. B are visible. The 

 extremely small size of the section which represents the cardiac sac is remarkable. 

 This is due to the firm contraction of its walls. The separation of the body of the 

 stomach into its two physiological portions is more clearly seen than in Specimen IV. B , 

 but the intervening constriction is broad and shallow ; still, at this point the girth 

 of the stomach is reduced to 90 mm. The part of the body of the stomach below this 

 expands again until it attains a girth of 135 mm. 



Specimen V. B (fig. 35), obtained from an adult male subject, presents some features 

 of special interest. Specimens of a somewhat similar form have been described as 

 multilocular stomachs. When compared with the two other forms with which it is 

 associated (figs. 33 and 34), there is little difficulty in recognising that it exhibits 

 precisely similar parts, although these are marked off from each other in a much more 

 definite manner. The deep indentation in the greater curvature clearly indicates the 

 lower limit of the cardiac sac : indeed, the general form of this upper section of the 

 body of the stomach suggests its character. Between this and the incisura angularis, 

 the lower part of the body of the organ shows a saccular expansion on the greater 

 curvature, but nevertheless the general tubular form of the portion of the stomach 

 formed by this and the pyloric part is apparent. 



In PL IV. fig. 38 the interior of this specimen is seen, and the cut surface of its wall, 

 which follows the outline of the two curvatures, shows some points of importance. 

 The pyloric canal in its whole length is tightly closed and its passage occluded by 

 longitudinal infoldings of the mucous membrane. This is brought about by the firm 

 contraction of the thick sphincteric cylinder. Wherever a constriction in the wall of 

 the stomach occurs, the circular muscular fasciculi will be observed to be greatly thick- 

 ened at the bottom of the indentation. This is particularly noticeable in the case of 

 the incisura angularis ; but it can also be seen in the notch in the greater curvature 

 which limits the cardiac sac below, and likewise to a less degree in the depression on 

 the greater curvature opposite the incisura angularis. These thickenings of the circular 

 coat are the result of strong contraction of the muscle-fasciculi, and in the same situations, 

 but more especially in the deep furrow in the greater curvature between the two 

 physiological portions of the stomach, the longitudinal fibres are also strongly contracted. 



