THE OMENTUM-THE SPLEEN. 
277 
they spread out into innumerable minute branches, traversing 
through every part of the liver. During the passage of the 
blood through the liver, a fluid is separated from it, which 
is called the bile. This is carried by the gall-duct, /, into 
the duodenum, m, in such quantities as are required for 
aiding digestion. The horse has no gall-bladder, and,, 
consequently, the bile flows into the duodenum, or first 
intestine, m, immediately after it is separated from the 
blood. As we have already mentioned, the stomach of the 
horse is small in proportion to the quantity of food which 
he must consume, and consequently must be much oftener 
emptied ; and hence the necessity for uninterrunted flow of 
bile to aid the process of digestion. 
The diseases connected with the liver are inflammation 
and jaundice, treated of at page 89. 
THE OMENTUM, OR CAUL. 
This is a doubling of the peritoneum, investing the lower 
portion of the stomach, to the great curvature of which, and 
to that portion of the colon which crosses the spine to form 
the sigmoid flexure, or last turn, it is attached. The omen¬ 
tum is small in the horse, and seldom contains much adipose 
matter. It is situated between the intestines and walls of 
the abdomen, to prevent concussion and injury during rapid 
movements of the horse. See fig. 2, c. 
THE SPLEEN. 
This is situated on the left side of the stomach, fig. 2, e , 
and between it and the short ribs, with the hinder cartilages 
of which its margin beneath corresponds, so that if the 
belly were pierced from the left side posteriorly to the last 
rib, this organ would escape injury. It is attached to the 
left half of the great curvature of the stomach, but the 
