V 
Strufture and Oeconomy of Whales. ■ ^37 ' 
turn to its apex: when opened, it appears to be a canal full 
of fmall perforations, probably the paflages of the branches 
from the auditory nerve. 
This bony procefs has feveral perforations in it ; one of them 
large, for the paflage of the feventh pair of nerves. The lize 
of the portio mollis, before its entrance into the organ, is verv 
large, and bears no proportion to that which enters. The 
paflage for this nerve is very wide, and feems to have an irre- 
gular blind conical, and fomewhat fpiral, termination ; its 
being fpiral ar-ifes from the clofenefs to the point of the cochlea. 
In the terminating part there are a number of perforations 
into the cochlea, and one into the femicircular canals, which 
afford a paflage to the different divifions of the auditory nerve. 
There is a conflderable foramen in its anterior fide near the 
bottom, for the paflage of the portio dura, and which is con- 
tinued backward to the cavity of the tympanum near the flapes, 
and emerges near the pofterior and upper part of this bone.. 
Of the Organ of Seeing . ■ 
The eye in this tribe of animals is conftruTed upon nearly 
the fame principle as that of quadrupeds, differing, however, 
in fome circumftances ; by which it is probably better adapted 
to fee in the medium through which the light is to pafs. It 
is upon the whole fmall for the fize of the animal, which 
would lead to the fuppofition, that their locomotion is not 
great ; for, I believe, animals that fwim are in this refped: 
fimilar to thofe that fly; and as this tribe come to the furface 
of the medium in which they live, they may be confidered in 
the fame view with birds which foar; and we find, birds 
that 
