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ftraw colour, very elaftic, ftrong, and covered with a 
loofe thin membraneous coat. On the abdomen 
were three layers of thofe tendons, which croffed each 
other obliquely, and, in their diredtion and fltuation, 
greatly refembled the obliqnus afcendens and the 
tratijverfalis of the human body, and they became 
flefhy where the linea alba is in the human body, 
and at the lumbal vertebras. The tendons which 
appear to arife from the upper ribs, the dorfal verte- 
bra , and the vertebra of the neck, arofe flefhy, were 
both flatter and flronger than in any other part of 
the body, and running along the head with little 
obliquity, feemed to be inferted . tendinous into the 
cranium , &c. Confidering the tail as the os j'acrum 
ora continuation of the fpine, the tendinous mufcles 
belonging to it arofe towards the procels of one ver- 
tebra, and running almofl: round, was inferted into 
the procefs of another, and have much the fame 
effedl on the tail as the fupinator and pronators have 
in turning the hand ; which circumflance, if true, 
mud be of great utility in performing the feveral 
motions neceffary in the progreflion of this animal. 
The fubflance, improperly called fpermaceti , and 
erroneoufly faid to be prepared from the fat of the 
brain, was every were contained in a fluid ftate in 
the cavity of the head along with the brain, but quite 
diftinft from it. Was this fubflance in a flate of flui- 
dity when the animal was in life? Very probably not; 
but it turned into that form by means of a heat occa- 
fioned by a fermentation of the different fluids, which 
foon began after the death of the fifh, and increafed 
to fuch a degree as at length to caufe many cracks in 
the fkin, to burft the body in the back, and to 
T t 2 throw 
