172 Mr. Home on the Structure of the Stomachs 
Finding this contraction was met with, when the human 
stomach was nearly empty, I endeavoured to produce it in the 
cat, by having the stomach emptied by means of an emetic a 
short time before the animal’s death. This did not however 
succeed ; for although in the contracted state the line between 
the cardiac and pyloric portions was very distinct, and the last 
more contracted than the former, yet upon distending the sto- 
mach with air, the middle portion relaxed equally with the 
rest. The contraction at this part is therefore only to be seen, 
when these fibres have acted independently of the others ; 
which takes place while the functions of the stomach are going 
on, but cannot be artificially produced. 
In examining the stomach of a dog in a contracted state, and 
afterwards when it was distended, the line between the two 
portions could be distinctly perceived, even after the contraction 
was destroyed, by the longitudinal folds of the internal mem- 
brane of the pyloric portion all terminating there. 
That the food is dissolved in the cardiac portion of the human 
stomach, is proved by that part only being found digested after 
death; the instances of which are sufficientlv numerous to 
require no addition being made to them. This could not take 
place unless the solvent liquor was deposited there. Mr. 
Hunter goes so far as to say, in his paper on this subject, 
<c there are few dead bodies in which the stomach at its great 
“ end is not in some degree digested.” 
That the chyle is not formed there, and also that it is com- 
pletely formed before the food passes through the pylorus, is 
proved by the result of some experiments of Mr. Hunter’s 
made upon dogs in the year 1760; and as they were insti- 
tuted for a very different purpose, — that of determining whe- 
