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THE HISTORY OF ANIMALS.
1. Some parts of animals are simple, and these can be divided into like parts, as flesh into pieces of flesh; others are compound, and cannot be divided into like parts, as the hand cannot be divided into hands, nor the face into faces. Of these some are not only called parts, but members, such as those which, though entire in themselves, are made up of other parts, as the head and the leg, the hand and the entire arm, or the trunk; for these parts are both entire in themselves, and made up of other parts.
2. All the compound parts also are made up of simple parts, the hand, for example, of flesh, and sinew, and bone. Some animals have all these parts the same, in others they are different from each other. Some of the parts are the same in form, as the nose and eye of one man is the same as the nose and eye of another man, and flesh is the same with flesh, and bone with bone. In like manner we may compare the parts of the horse, and of other animals, those parts, that is, which are the same in species, for the whole bears the same relation to the whole as the parts do to each other. And in animals belonging to the same class, the parts are the same, only they differ in excess or defect. By class, I mean such as bird or fish, for all these differ if either compared with their own class or with another, and there are many forms of birds and fishes.
3. Nearly all their parts differ in them according to the opposition of their external qualities, such as colour or shape, in that some are more, others are less affected, or [Pg 2] sometimes in number more or less, or in size greater and smaller, or in any quality which can be included in excess or defect. For some animals have a soft skin, in others the skin is shelly; some have a long bill, as cranes, others a short one; some have many feathers, others very few; some also have parts which are wanting in others, for some species have spurs, others have none; some have a crest, others have not. But, so to say, their principal parts and those which form the bulk of their body, are either the same, or vary only in their opposites, and in excess and defect.
4. By excess and defect I mean the greater and the less. But some animals agree with each other in their parts neither in form, nor in excess and defect, but have only an analogous likeness, such as a bone bears to a spine, a nail to a hoof, a hand to a crab's claw, the scale of a fish to the feather of a bird, for that which is a feather in the birds is a scale in the fish. With regard then to the parts which each class of animal possesses, they agree and differ in this manner, and also in the position of the parts. For many animals have the same parts, but not in the same position, as the mamm which are either pectoral or abdominal. But of the simple parts some are soft and moist, others hard and dry.
5. The soft parts are either entirely so, or so long as they are in a natural condition, as blood, serum, fat, tallow, marrow, semen, gall, milk (in those animals which give milk), flesh, and other analogous parts of the body. In another manner also the excretions of the body belong to this class, as phlegm, and the excrements of the abdomen and bladder; the hard and dry parts are sinew, skin, vein, hair, bone, cartilage, nail, horn, for that part bears the same name, and on the whole is called horn, and the other parts of the body which are analogous to these.
6. Animals also differ in their manner of life, in their actions and dispositions, and in their parts. We will first of all speak generally of these differences, and afterwards consider each species separately. The following are the points in which they vary in manner of life, in their actions and dispositions. Some animals are aquatic, others live on the land; and the aquatic may again be divided into two classes, for some entirely exist and procure their food in the water, and take in and give out water, and cannot live without it; [Pg 3] this is the nature of most fishes. But there are others which, though they live and feed in the water, do not take in water but air, and produce their young out of the water. Many of these animals are furnished with feet, as the otter and the latax[1] and the crocodile, or with wings, as the seagull and diver, and others are without feet, as the water-serpent. Some procure their food from the water, and cannot live out of the water, but neither inhale air nor water, as the acalephe[2] and the oyster.
7. Different aquatic animals are found in the sea, in rivers, in lakes, and in marshes, as the frog and newt, and of marine animals some are pelagic, some littoral, and some saxatile. Some land animals take in and give out air, and this is called inhaling and exhaling; such are man, and all other land animals which are furnished with lungs; some, however, which procure their food from the earth, do not inhale air, as the wasp, the bee, and all other insects.[3] By insects I mean those animals which have divisions in their bodies, whether in the lower part only, or both in the upper and lower. Many land animals, as I have already observed, procure their food from the water, but there are no aquatic or marine animals which find their food on land. There are some animals which at first inhabit the water, but afterwards change into a different form, and live out of the water; this happens to the gnat in the rivers, and ...[4] which afterwards becomes an strum.[5]
8. Again, there are some creatures which are stationary, while others are locomotive; the fixed animals are aquatic, but this is not the case with any of the inhabitants of the land. Many aquatic animals also grow upon each other; this is the case with several genera of shell-fish: the sponge also exhibits some signs of sensation, for they say that it is drawn up with some difficulty, unless the attempt to remove it is made stealthily. Other animals also there are which are alternately fixed together or free, this is the case with a certain kind of acalephe; some of these become separated during the night, and emigrate. Many animals are separate from each other, but incapable of voluntary movement, as [Pg 4] oysters, and the animal called holothuria.[6] Some aquatic animals are swimmers, as fish, and the mollusca,[7] and the malacostraca, as the crabs. Others creep on the bottom, as the crab, for this, though an aquatic animal, naturally creeps.
9. Of land animals some are furnished with wings, as birds and bees, and these differ in other respects from each other; others have feet, and of this class some species walk, others crawl, and others creep in the mud. There is no animal which has only wings as fish have only fins, for those animals whose wings are formed by an expansion of the skin can walk, and the bat has feet, the seal has imperfect feet. Among birds there are some with very imperfect feet, which are therefore called apodes; they are, however, provided with very strong wings, and almost all birds that are similar to this one have strong wings and imperfect feet, as the swallow and drepanis;[8] for all this class of birds is alike both in habits and in the structure of their wings, and their whole appearance is very similar. The apos[9] is seen at all times of the year, but the drepanis can only be taken in rainy weather during the summer, and on the whole is a rare bird.
10. Many animals, however, can both walk and swim. The following are the differences exhibited by animals in their habits and their actions. Some of them are gregarious, and others solitary, both in the classes which are furnished with feet, and those which have wings, or fins. Some partake of both characters, and of those that are gregarious, as well as those that are solitary, some unite in societies and some are scattered. Gregarious birds are such as the pigeon, stork, swan, but no bird with hooked claws is gregarious. Among swimming animals some fish are gregarious, as the dromas,[10] tunny, pelamis,[11] amia.[12]
11. But man partakes of both qualities. Those which have a common employment are called social, but that is not the case with all gregarious animals. Man, and the bee, the wasp, and the ant, and the stork belong to this class. Some of these obey a leader, others are anarchical; the stork and the bee are of the former class, the ant and many others belong to the latter. Some animals, both in [Pg 5] the gregarious and solitary class, are limited to one locality, others are migratory. There are also carnivorous animals, herbivorous, omnivorous, and others which eat peculiar food, as the bee and the spider; the former eats only honey and a few other sweet things, while spiders prey upon flies and there are other animals which feed entirely on fish. Some animals hunt for their food, and some make a store, which others do not. There are also animals which make habitations for themselves, and others which do not. The mole, the mouse, the ant, and the bee, make habitations, but many kinds both of insects and quadrupeds make no dwelling.
12. With regard to situation, some are troglodite, as lizards and serpents, others, as the horse and dog, live upon the surface of the earth. Some kinds of animals burrow in the ground, others do not; some animals are nocturnal, as the owl and the bat, others use the hours of daylight. There are tame animals and wild animals. Man and the mule are always tame, the leopard and the wolf are invariably wild, and others, as the elephant, are easily tamed. We may, however, view them in another way, for all the genera that have been tamed are found wild also, as horses, oxen, swine, sheep, goats, and dogs.
13. Some animals utter a loud cry, some are silent, and others have a voice, which in some cases may be expressed by a word, in others it cannot. There are also noisy animals and silent animals, musical and unmusical kinds, but they are mostly noisy about the breeding season. Some, as the dove, frequent fields, others, as the hoopoe, live on the mountains; some attach themselves to man, as the pigeon. Some are lascivious, as the partridge and domestic fowl, and others are chaste, as the raven, which rarely cohabits.
14. Again, there are classes of animals furnished with weapons of offence, others with weapons of defence; in the former I include those which are capable of inflicting an injury, or of defending themselves when they are attacked; in the latter those which are provided with some natural protection against injury.
15. Animals also exhibit many differences of disposition. Some are gentle, peaceful, and not violent, as the ox. Some are violent, passionate, and intractable, as the wild boar. Some [Pg 6] are prudent and fearful, as the stag and the hare. Serpents are illiberal and crafty. Others, as the lion, are liberal, noble, and generous. Others are brave, wild, and crafty, like the wolf. For there is this difference between the generous and the brave—the former means that which comes of a noble race, the latter that which does not easily depart from its own nature.
16. Some animals are cunning and evil-disposed, as the fox; others, as the dog, are fierce, friendly, and fawning. Some are gentle and easily tamed, as the elephant; some are susceptible of shame, and watchful, as the goose. Some are jealous, and fond of ornament, as the peacock. But man is the only animal capable of reasoning, though many others possess the faculty of memory and instruction in common with him. No other animal but man has the power of recollection. In another place we will treat more accurately of the disposition and manner of life in each class.
1. All animals possess in common those parts by which they take in food, and into which they receive it. But these parts agree or differ in the same way as all the other parts of bodies, that is, either in shape or size, or proportion or position; and besides these, almost all animals possess many other parts in common, such as those by which they reject their excrements, (and the part by which they take their food,)[13] though this does not exist in all. The part by which the food is taken in is called the mouth, that which receives the food from the mouth is called the stomach. The part by which they reject the excrement has many names.
2. The excrement being of two kinds, the animals which possess receptacles for the fluid excrement have also receptacles for the dry; but those which have the latter are not always furnished with the former. Wherefore all animals which have a bladder have a belly also, but not all that have a belly have a bladder; for the part appropriated to the reception of the liquid excrement is called the bladder, and that for the reception of the dry is called the belly.
3. Many animals possess both these parts, and that also by which the semen is emitted. Among animals that have the power of generation, some emit the semen into themselves, [Pg 7] and some inject it into others. The former are called female, the latter male. In some animals there is neither male nor female, and there is a diversity in the form of the parts appropriated to this office. For some animals have a uterus, others have only something analogous to the uterus. These are the most essential organs; some of which exist in all animals, others in the majority only.
1. There is only one sense, that of touch, which is common to all animals; so that no exact name can be given to the part in which this sense resides, for in some animals it is the same, in others only analogous.
2. Every living creature is furnished with moisture, and must die, if deprived of this moisture either in the course of nature or by force. But in what part of the body this moisture resides is another question. In some animals it is found in the blood and veins, in others the situation is only analogous, but these are imperfect, as fibres and serum.[14] The sense of touch resides in the simple parts, as in the flesh and in similar places, and generally in those parts which contain blood, at least in those animals which have blood; in others it resides in the analogous parts, but in all animals in the simple parts.
3. The capacity of action resides in the compound parts, as the preparation of food in the mouth, and the power of locomotion in the feet or wings, or the analogous parts. Again, some animals are sanguineous, as man, the horse, and all perfect animals, whether apodous, bipeds, or quadrupeds; and some animals are without blood, as the bee and the wasp, and such marine animals as the sepia and the carabus,[15] and all animals with more than four legs.
1. There are also viviparous, oviparous, and vermiparous animals. The viviparous, are such as man, and the horse, the seal, and others which have hair, and among marine animals the cetacea, as the dolphin and those which are called selache.[16] [Pg 8] Some of these are furnished with a blow-hole, but have no gills, as the dolphin and the whale. The dolphin has its blow-hole on the back, the whale in its forehead; others have open gills, as the selache, the galeus,[17] and the batus.[18] That is called the egg of the perfect ftus, from which the future animal is produced, from a part at first, while the remainder serves for its food. The worm is that from the whole of which the future animal is produced, and the ftus afterwards acquires parts and increases in size.
2. Some viviparous animals are internally oviparous, as the selache; others are internally viviparous, as mankind and the horse. In different animals the ftus assumes a different form, when first brought into the world, and is either a living creature, an egg, or a worm. The eggs of some animals, as birds, are hard-shelled, and are of two colours. Those of the selache and some other animals are soft-skinned, and have only one colour. Some species of the vermiform ftus are capable of motion, others are not. But in another place, when we treat of generation, we will dwell more accurately on these subjects.
1. Some animals have feet, others have none; of the former some have two feet, as mankind and birds only; others have four, as the lizard and the dog; others, as the scolopendra and bee, have many feet; but all have their feet in pairs.
2. And among apodous swimming animals some have fins, as fish; and of these some have two fins in the upper and two in the lower part of their bodies, as the chrysophys[19] and labrax;[20] others, which are very long and smooth, have only two fins, as the eel and conger; others have none at all, as the lamprey and others, which live in the sea as serpents do on land, and in like manner swim in moist places; and some of the genus selache, as those which are flat and have tails, as the batos and trygon, have no fins; these fish swim by means of their flat surfaces; but the batrachus[21] has fins, and so have all those fish which are not very thin in proportion to their width.
3. But the animals which have apparent feet, as the cephalopods, [Pg 9] swim both with their feet and fins, and move quickly upon the hollow parts of their bodies, as the sepia, teuthis, and polypus: but none of them can walk except the polypus. Those animals which have hard skins, as the carabus, swim with their hinder parts, and move very quickly upon their tail, with the fins which are upon it, and the newt both with its feet and tail, and (to compare small things with great) it has a tail like the glanis.[22]
4. Some winged animals, as the eagle and the hawk, are feathered; others, as the cockchafer and the bee, membranaceous wings; and others, as the alopex[23] and the bat, have wings formed of skin. Both the feathered and leather-winged tribes have blood; but the insects, which have naked wings, have no blood. Again, the feathered and leather-winged animals are all either bipeds or apodous, for they say that there are winged serpents in Ethiopia.[24]
5. The feathered tribe of animals is called birds; the other two tribes have no exact names. Among winged creatures without blood some are coleopterous, for they have elytra over their wings, as the cockchafer and the beetles, and others are without elytra. The animals of this class have either two or four wings. Those with four wings are distinguished by their greater size or a caudal sting. The diptera are either such as are small, or have a sting in their head. The coleoptera have no sting at all; the diptera have a sting in their head, as the fly, horse-fly, gad-fly, and gnat.
6. All bloodless animals, except a few marine species of the cephalopoda, are smaller than those which have blood. These animals are the largest in warm waters, and more so in the sea than on the land, and in fresh water. All creatures that are capable of motion are moved by four or more limbs. Those with blood have four limbs only, as man has two hands and two feet. Birds have two wings and two feet; quadrupeds and fishes have four feet or four fins. But those animals which have two wings or none at all, as the serpent, are nevertheless moved by four limbs; for the bendings of their body are four in number, or two when they have two wings.
[Pg 10]7. Those bloodless animals which have more than four feet, whether furnished with feet or wings, always have more than four organs of locomotion, as the ephemera, which has four feet and four wings; and in this it not only agrees with its peculiar manner of life, from which also it derives its name, but also that it is winged and four-footed; and all creatures, whether they have four feet or many feet, move in the same direction, for they all move in the long way of their bodies. All other animals have two leading feet, the crab alone has four.
1. The following are the principal classes which include other animals—birds, fishes, cetacea. All these have red blood. There is another class of animals covered with a shell, and called shell fish, and an anonymous class of soft-shelled animals (malacostraca), which includes carabi, carcini, and astaci; and another of mollusca, such as teuthis, teuthos, and sepia; and another class of annulose animals. All these are without blood, and the species with feet have many feet. There are no large classes of other animals; for there are many forms which are not included under a single form, but either stand alone, having no specific difference, as man, or have specific differences, but the classes are anonymous.
2. All animals with four feet and no wings have blood. Some of these are viviparous, others oviparous. The viviparous are not all covered with hair, but the oviparous have scales. The scale of a reptile is similar in situation to the scale of a fish. The class of serpents, sanguineous land animals, is naturally without feet. Though some have feet, this class is also covered with scales. All serpents, except the viper, are oviparous. The viper alone is viviparous, so that not all viviparous animals have hair; for some fishes also are viviparous. All animals, however, that have hair are viviparous; for we may consider the prickles of the hedgehog and porcupine as analogous to the hair of animals; for they answer the purpose of hair, and not, as in marine animals that are so covered, of feet.[25]
3. There are also many classes of viviparous quadrupeds, [Pg 11] but they have never received names. Each kind must, therefore, be taken separately, as man, as we speak of lion, stag, horse, dog, and of others in like manner. There is, however, one class of those that have a mane called lophuri,[26] as the horse, ass, mule, ginnus,[27] hinnus, and those which in Syria are called mules,[28] from their resemblance, though not quite of the same form. They copulate and produce young from each other, so that it is necessary to consider well the nature of each of them separately.
4. We have now treated of these things in an outline, for the sake of giving a taste of what we are afterwards to consider, and of how many. Hereafter we will speak of them more accurately, in order that we may first of all examine into their points of difference and agreement; and afterwards we will endeavour to inquire into the causes of these things, but it will be a more natural arrangement to do so when we treat of the history of each. For it is evident from these things what they are, and what we have to demonstrate.
5. Our first subject of consideration must be the parts of which animals are made up, for these constitute the chief and the whole difference among them; either because they have them or are without them, or these parts vary in position or arrangement, or in any of the differences mentioned before, in form, size, proportion, and difference of accidents. First of all, then, we will consider the parts of the human body; for, as every one can best understand the standard of money with which he is most familiar, so it is in other things. And of necessity, man must be the best known to us of all animals. The parts of the body are, indeed, plain enough to every one's common sense; but, that we may not forsake our arrangement, and may have reason as well as perception, we will speak, first of all, of the organic, and afterwards of the simple, parts.
1. These are the principal parts into which the whole body is divided. The head, neck, trunk, two arms, and two legs. [Pg 12] The whole cavity, from the neck to the pudenda, is called the trunk. That part of the head which is covered with hair is called the cranium, the fore part of this is called the sinciput. This is the last formed, being the last bone in the body which becomes hard; the hinder part is the occiput, and between the occiput and sinciput is the crown of the head. The brain is placed beneath the sinciput, and the occiput is empty;[29] the cranium is a thin spherical bone covered with a skin without flesh. The skull has sutures: in women there is but one placed in a circle; men have generally three joined in one, and a man's skull has been seen without any sutures at all. The middle and smooth part of the hair is called the crown of the head; in some persons this is double, for there are some people double-crowned, not from any formation of the bone, but only from the division of the hair.
1. The part immediately beneath the cranium is called the face in mankind alone, for we do not speak of the face of a fish or of an ox; the part immediately beneath the sinciput and between the eyes is called the forehead. Those in whom this feature is large are tardy; those who have a small forehead are easily excited; a broad forehead belongs to those who are liable to be carried away by their feelings; a round forehead is a sign of a passionate disposition.
2. Under the forehead are two eyebrows; if they are straight, it is a mark of a gentle disposition; the eyebrows bent down to the nose are an evidence of an austere temper; if they incline towards the temples, of a mocker and scoffer; if they are drawn down, it is a sign of an envious person. Beneath these are the eyes, which by nature are two in number: the parts of each eye are, first, the upper and under eyelid, the edges of which are furnished with hair. Within the eye, the moist part with which we see is called the pupil; round this is the iris, and this is surrounded by the white. Two corners of the eye are formed at the junction of the eyelids, one in the direction of the nose, the other towards the temple. If these corners are large, they are a sign of an evil disposition; if those near the nose are fleshy, and have a swollen appearance, they are an evidence of wickedness.
[Pg 13]3. All other classes of animals have eyes, except shell-fish, and some other imperfect creatures, and all viviparous animals except moles have eyes. A person might, however, conclude from the following observation, that it has eyes, though it is quite without them, for it certainly does not see at all, nor has it any external eyes; but, when the skin is taken off, there is a place for the eyes, and the iris of the eye is in the place which it would naturally occupy on the outside, as if they had been wounded in their birth, and the skin had grown over the place.
4. The white of the eye is generally the same in all animals, but the iris is very different. In some it is black, in others decidedly grey, in others dark grey, and in some it is the colour of the goat's eye, and this is a sign of the best disposition, and is most to be prized for acuteness of vision. Man is almost the only animal which exhibits a variety of colouring in the eye; there are, however, some horses with grey eyes.
5. The eyes of some persons are large, others small, and others of a moderate size—the last-mentioned are the best. And some eyes are projecting, some deep-set, and some moderate, and those which are deep-set have the most acute vision in all animals; the middle position is a sign of the best disposition. Some people have an eye which is perpetually opening and closing, others have an eye always intent, and others a moderately-intent eye: this last is the best disposed; of the others, the one is impudent, and the other a sign of infirmity.
1. The part of the head by which we hear, but do not breathe, is the ear; for Alcmon is mistaken when he says that goats breathe through their ears. One part of the ear has not received any name, the other part is called the lobe. The whole ear is made up of cartilage and flesh. Internally, the ear has the nature of a shell, and the last bone is similar to the ear itself. The sound reaches this part last, as it were in a chamber. There is no passage from the ear into the brain, but there is to the roof of the mouth; and a vein extends from the brain to each ear.[30] The eyes also are connected with the brain, and each eye is placed upon a vein.
[Pg 14]2. Man is the only animal with ears that cannot move them. Among animals which have the faculty of hearing; some have ears, and others, as winged and scaly creatures, have no ear, but an open orifice in the head; all viviparous animals, except the seal, and the dolphin, and other cetacea, have ears; the selache also are viviparous. The seal has open orifices by which it hears; the dolphin can hear, though it has no ears; all other animals can move their ears, but man alone does not move them.
3. The ears (of man) lie in the same circle with his eyes, and not above them, as in some quadrupeds. The ears are either smooth, hairy, or moderate. These last are the best for hearing, but they do not in any way indicate the disposition. They are large, or small or middling, or they are erect, or not at all, or only moderately erect. The moderately erect are a sign of the best disposition; large and erect ears are an evidence of foolish talking and loquacity. The part of the head between the eye and the ear is called the temple.
4. In the middle of the face is the nose, the passage for the breath, for through this animals inhale and exhale, and through it also they sneeze; this is the expulsion of a concentrated breath, and is the only kind of breathing which is esteemed ominous or sacred: moreover, inhaling and exhaling is into the chest, and without the nostrils it is impossible to inhale or exhale, for inhaling and exhaling is from the breast by the windpipe, and not from any part of the head. But it is possible to live without this respiration through the nostrils. The smell also resides in this part; this is the sense of odour. The nostril is very moveable, and not naturally immoveable like the ear.
5. One part of the nose, namely, the division between the nostrils, is cartilaginous, but the passage is empty, for the nose is formed of two divisions. In the elephant, the nostril is very large and strong, and it answers to the purpose of a hand, for the animal can extend it, and with it take its food, and convey it to its mouth, whether the food is moist or dry. This is the only animal that can do so.
6. There are also two jaws, the upper and the under. All animals move the lower jaw, except the river-crocodile, and this moves the upper jaw only. Below the nose are two lips, the flesh of which is very moveable. The mouth is the [Pg 15] centre of the jaws and the lips. The upper part is called the roof of the mouth, the lower, the pharynx. The tongue is the organ of taste. This sense resides in the tip, and, if food is placed on the broad part of the tongue, the taste is less acute. The tongue partakes of all the other sensations, as harshness, heat, and cold, as well as that of taste, in common with the rest of the flesh.
7. The flat part of the tongue is either narrow or moderate in size, the moderate is the best, and most apt for clear elocution. The tongue may be either too loose, or tied down, as in stammerers and inarticulate speakers. The flesh of the tongue is porous and spongy. The epiglottis is a portion of the tongue, the double part of the mouth is the tonsils; that in many divisions the gums, they are fleshy, and in them are fixed the bony teeth. Within the mouth there is another part, the uvula, a pillar filled with blood. If this part is swelled with relaxation, it is called a grape, and chokes.
1. The neck is the part between the head and the trunk; the front part is called the larynx, behind this is the sophagus. The voice and the breath pass through the front part, the trachea, which is cartilaginous, but the sophagus is fleshy, and placed farther in, near the vertebra of the neck. The back of the neck is called the epomis. These are the parts as far as the thorax. The parts of the thorax are some before and some behind. First of all, below the neck is the breast with two mamm; on these are two nipples, through which the milk of the female passes. The mamma is porous. There is also milk in the breasts of men. The flesh of the mamma in men is thick, in women it is spongy and full of pores.
2. The part below the thorax, in front, is the belly, and of this the navel is the centre. Beneath this centre, the part on each side is called the iliac region; the part in the centre, beneath the navel, is called the hypogastric region; the lowest part of this is called pubes; above the navel is the epigastric region; the lumbar region is situated between the epigastric and iliac regions.
3. Of the hinder parts the loin forms the division of the body, whence also its name is derived ( quasi ). The part of the central region which is like a seat is the buttock; [Pg 16] that on which the thigh turns, the cotyledon. The peculiar part of women is the uterus; of men the penis, it is external, at the extremity of the trunk in two parts; the upper part is fleshy and smooth, and is called glans; this is covered with an anonymous skin, which, if it is cut asunder, does not unite again, neither does the cheek nor the eyelid.
4. Common to this and the glans is the prepuce, the remaining part is cartilaginous, readily increases in size, and it is drawn in and out, contrary to that of the class of animals called lophuri. Beneath the penis are two testicles, surrounded by a skin called the scrotum; the testicles are not of the same nature as flesh, nor are they made of flesh. In another place we shall treat of the nature of all these parts more accurately.
5. The pudendum muliebre is contrary to that of the male, for it is hollow under the pubes, not projecting like that of the male, and the urethra is outside the womb, for the passage of the semen of the male, and for the fluid excrement of both. The part of the body which joins the neck and the breast is called the jugulum; that which unites the side, the arm, and the shoulder is the arm-pit. The region between the thigh and the hypogastric region is called the groin; the part common to the thigh and the buttock on the inside is the perineum, that of the thigh and buttock on the outside is called hypoglutis.
6. We have previously treated of the trunk. The hinder part of the breast is called the back: the parts of the back are two shoulder blades and the back-bone; below the thorax, and opposite the stomach, are the loins; the ribs belong both to the back and the front of the trunk, and are eight on each side, for we have never heard anything worthy of credit concerning the Ligyes, who are said to have seven ribs.
1. Man has upper and lower side, the front and the back, and right and left side. The right and the left are nearly alike in their parts and in every particular, except that the left side is the weaker; but the back parts are not like the front; nor the lower parts to the upper, except in this particular, that the parts below the hypogastric region are full-fleshed or lean in proportion to the face, and the arms also answer [Pg 17] to the proportion of the legs. Those persons who have a short humerus have also generally a short thigh: those who have small feet have also small hands.
2. One of the double parts of the body is the arm. The parts of the arm are the shoulder, humerus, elbow, cubitus, and the hand; the parts of the hand are the palm and five fingers; the jointed part of the finger is the condyle, the unjointed part the phalanx. The thumb has but one joint, all the rest have two. The bending of the arm and finger is always inwards. The arm is also bent at the elbow: the inner part of the hand is called the palm; it is fleshy, and divided by strong lines. Long-lived persons have one or two lines which extend through the whole hand; short-lived persons have two lines not extending through the whole hand. The joint of the hand and arm is the wrist. The outside of the hand is sinewy, and has not received any name.
3. The other double part of the body is the leg. The double-headed part of the leg is called the thigh, the moveable part is called the patella, that which has two bones the tibia; the front of this part is the shin, the hind part the calf of the leg. The flesh is full of sinews and veins; in those persons who have large hips, the flesh is drawn upwards towards the hollow part under the knee, in those who have not it is drawn down. The lowest part of the shin is the ankle, and this is double in each leg. The part of the leg with many bones is called the foot, the hind part of which is the heel. The front part is divided into five toes; the under part, which is fleshy, is called the sole of the foot; the upper part, (the instep,) is sinewy, and has not received any name. One part of the toe is the nail, the other is the joint; the nail is on the extremity of the toe, and the toes are bent inwards. Those who have the sole of the foot thick, and not hollow, but walk upon the whole of the foot, are knavish. The common joint of the thigh and the leg is the knee.
1. These parts are possessed in common by the male and female; the position of the external parts, whether above or below, before or behind, on the right side or the left, will appear on mere inspection. It is necessary, however, to enumerate [Pg 18] them, for the reasons which I have mentioned before, that its proper place being assigned to each part, any difference in their arrangement in man and other animals may be less likely to escape our notice.
2. In man, the parts of the body are more naturally divided into upper and lower than in any other animal, for all the upper and lower parts of his body are arranged according to the order of nature above and below; in the same way, also, the fore and hind parts, and those on the right and left, are placed naturally. But in other animals some of these parts are either not at all so placed, or they are much more confused than in man. The head is placed above the body in all animals, but in man alone, as we have said, is this part corresponding to the order of all things.
3. Next to the head is the neck, then the breast and the back, the one before and the other behind; and each of them in the following order:—the stomach, loins, pudenda, haunch, then the thigh and leg, and, last of all, the foot. The legs have the joint bent forwards, in which direction also is their manner of walking, and the more moveable part of the legs as well as the joint is bent forward: the heel is behind. Each of the ankles is like an ear. From the right and left side come arms, having the joint bent inwards, so that the flexures both of the legs and arms are towards each other, especially in man.
4. The senses and the organs of sense, the eyes, nostril, and tongue are in the same position, and in the anterior part of the body; but the hearing, and its organ, and the ears are at the side, and upon the same circumference as the eyes. Man has the eyes closer together, in proportion to his size, than other animals. The sense of touch is the most accurate of the human senses, and next to this the taste. In the rest of his senses he is far surpassed by other animals.
1. The external parts of the body are arranged in this manner; and, as I have said, are for the most part named and known from habit. But the internal parts are not so well known, and those of the human body are the least known. So that in order to explain them we must compare them with the same parts of those animals which are most nearly allied.
[Pg 19]2. First of all, the brain is placed in the fore-part of the head, and it occupies the same position in all animals that have this part, which belongs to all sanguineous and cephalopodous animals. In proportion to his size, man has the largest brain of all animals, and the moistest. Two membranes enclose the brain: that outside the skull is the strongest; the inner membrane is slighter than the outer one. In all animals the brain is in two portions. The cerebellum is placed upon the brain at its lowest extremity. It is different from the brain both to the touch and in appearance.
3. The back of the head is empty and hollow in all animals in proportion to their size, for some have a large head, but the part lying under the face is less in those animals which have round faces; others have a small head and large jaws, as the whole tribe of Lophuri. In all animals the brain is without blood, nor does it contain any veins, and it is naturally cold to the touch. The greater number of animals have a small cavity in the centre of the brain. And round this a membrane filled with veins: this membrane is like skin, and encloses the brain. Above the brain is the smoothest and weakest bone in the head—it is called sinciput.
4. Three passages lead from the eye to the brain; the largest and the middle-sized to the cerebellum, the least to the brain itself. The least is that which is nearest the nostril; the greater are parallel, and do not meet; but the middle-sized passages meet: this is most evident in fishes, and these passages are nearer to the brain than the larger, but the least separate from each other, and do not meet.
5. Within the neck is the sophagus, which also derives its additional name, the isthmus, from its length and narrowness, and the trachea. The trachea lies in front of the sophagus in all animals which possess this part, that is, all animals which breathe from the lungs. The trachea is cartilaginous in its nature, and contains but little blood: it is surrounded with many smooth rings of cartilage, and it lies upon the upper part towards the mouth, opposite the passage from the nostril to the mouth, wherefore, also, if any liquid is drawn into it in drinking, it passes out of the mouth through the nostrils.
6. Between the passages is the epiglottis, which can be folded over the passage which extends from the trachea to the [Pg 20] mouth; by the epiglottis the passage of the tongue is closed, at the other extremity the trachea reaches to the middle of the lungs, and afterwards divides to each side of the lungs. For the lung is double in all animals which possess this part, though the division is not so marked in viviparous animals, and least of all in man. The human lungs are anomalous, neither being divided into many lobes, as in other animals, nor being smooth.
7. In oviparous animals, such as birds and the oviparous quadrupeds, the parts are very widely separated, so that they appear to have two lungs; they are, however, only two divisions of the trachea extending to each side of the lungs; the trachea is also united with the great vein and with the part called the aorta. When the trachea is filled with air, it distributes the breath into the cavities of the lungs, which have cartilaginous interstices ending in a point; the passages of these interstices go through the whole lungs, always dividing from greater into less.
8. The heart is connected with the trachea by fatty and cartilaginous muscular bands. There is a cavity near the junction, and in some animals, when the trachea is filled with breath, this cavity is not always distinguishable, but in larger animals it is evident that the breath enters it. This then is the form of the trachea, which only inhales and exhales breath, and nothing else either dry or moist, or it suffers pain till that which has passed down is coughed up.
9. The sophagus is joined to the mouth from above, near the trachea, being united both to the spine and the trachea by membranaceous ligaments. It passes through the diaphragm into the cavity of the stomach, is fleshy in its nature, and is extensible both in length and breadth. The human stomach is like that of a dog, not a great deal larger than the entrail, but like a wide bowel; after this there is an entrail simply rolled together, then an entrail of moderate width. The lower part of the abdomen is like that of a hog, for it is wide, and from this to the seat it is short and thick.
10. The omentum is united to the abdomen in the middle, and is in its nature a fatty membrane, as in other animals with a single stomach and teeth in both jaws. The mesenterium is over the bowels; it is membranaceous, broad, and fat; it is united to the great vein and the aorta: through it extend [Pg 21] many numerous veins at its junction with the intestines, reaching from above downwards. This is the nature of the sophagus, trachea, and the parts of the abdominal cavity.
1. The heart has three cavities: it lies above the lungs, near the division of the trachea. It has a fat and thick membrane, by which it is united to the great vein and the aorta, and it lies upon the aorta near the apex; and the apex is placed in the same situation in all animals which have a chest; and in all animals, whether they have or have not a chest, the apex of the heart is forwards, though it often escapes notice by the change of position in the parts when dissected. The gibbous portion of the heart is upwards; its apex is generally fleshy and thick, and there is a sinew in the cavities.
2. In all other animals which have a chest the heart is placed in the centre; in man it is rather on the left side, inclining a little from the division of the mamm towards the left breast in the upper part of the chest; it is not large; its whole form is not long, but rather round, except that the extremity ends in a point. It has three cavities, as I have said. The greatest is that on the right, the least on the left, the middle one is of intermediate size. They are all perforated towards the lungs. It has both the two smaller, and all of them perforated towards the lungs, and this is evident in one of the cavities downwards from its point of attachment.
3. Near the principal cavity it is attached to the great vein to which also the mesenterium is united, and in the middle it is attached to the aorta. Passages lead from the lungs to the heart, and they are divided in the same way as the trachea, following the passages from the trachea throughout the whole lungs, and the passages leading from the heart are on the upper part. There is no passage which is common to them both, but by their union they receive the breath and transmit it through the heart; for one of the passages leads to the right cavity, and the other to the left. We will hereafter speak of the great vein and the aorta in the portion of our work which treats of these parts.
4. In all animals which have lungs and are viviparous, either internally or externally, the lung has more blood than all the [Pg 22] other parts; for the whole lung is spongy, and through each perforation branches of the great vein proceed. Those persons are deceived who say that the lungs are empty, drawing their conclusion from dissected animals, from which all the blood has escaped. Of all the viscera the heart alone contains blood, and in the lungs the blood is not in the lungs themselves, but in the veins by which they are perforated. But in the heart itself the blood is in each of the cavities, but the thinnest blood is in the middle cavity.
5. Beneath the lungs is that division of the trunk which is called the diaphragm. It is united to the ribs, the hypochondriac region, and the spine. In the centre is a smooth membranous part, and there are veins extending through it. The human veins are thick in proportion to the size of the body. Under the diaphragm, on the right side is the liver, on the left the spleen, alike in all animals which are furnished with these parts in their natural form and without monstrosity, for already there has been observed an altered order in some quadrupeds. They are joined to the abdomen near the omentum.
6. The appearance of the human spleen is narrow and long, like that of the hog. Generally speaking, and in most animals, the liver is not furnished with a gall, though this is found in some animals. The human liver is round, like that of the ox. This is the case also in animals offered for sacrifice, as in the district of Chalcis, in Euba, where the sheep have no gall, and in Naxos it is so large in nearly all the animals, that strangers who come to sacrifice are surprised, and think that it is ominous, and not at all natural. The liver is united with the great vein, but has no part in common with the aorta. For a vein branches off from the great vein through the liver, at the place where the gates of the liver, as they are called, are situated. The spleen also is only connected with the great vein, for a vein extends from this to the spleen.
7. Next to these are the kidneys, which lie close to the spine. In their nature they are like the kidneys of oxen. In all animals that have kidneys the right kidney lies higher than the left, and is covered with less fat, and is more dry than the left. This is the same in all animals. Passages lead from them to the great vein and to the aorta, but not to the cavity; for all animals, except the seal, have [Pg 23] a cavity in their kidneys, though it is greater in some than in others. The human kidneys; though similar to those of oxen, are more solid than in other animals, and the passages that lead to them end in the body of the kidney; and this is a proof that they do not pass through them, that they contain no blood in the living animal, nor is it coagulated in them when dead; but they have a small cavity, as I said before. From the cavity of the kidneys two strong passages lead to the bladder, and two others, strong and continuous, lead to the aorta.
8. A hollow, sinewy vein is attached to the middle of each kidney, which extends from the spine through small branches, and disappears towards the hip, though it afterwards appears again upon the hip. The branches of these veins reach to the bladder; for the bladder is placed lowest of all, being united to the passages which proceed from the kidneys by the neck which reaches to the urethra; and nearly all round its circumference it is united by smooth and muscular membranes, very similar in form to those upon the diaphragm of the chest.
9. The human bladder is moderately large in size, and the pudendum is united to the neck of the bladder, having a strong passage above and a small one below. One of these passages leads to the testicles; the other, which is sinewy and cartilaginous, to the bladder. From this are appended the testicles of the male, concerning which we will treat in the part devoted to their consideration. These parts are the same in the female, who differs in none of the internal parts except the womb, the appearance of which may be learned from the drawings in the books on anatomy. Its position is upon the entrails. The bladder is above the uterus. In a future book we will speak of the nature of the uterus generally; for it is not alike, nor has it the same nature in them all.
These are the internal and external parts of the human body, and this is their nature and their manner.
