Digestion

Proce or proce es to which food is subjected preparatory to its absorption into the system. By the saliva a portion of the starch is converted into sugar; by the gastric juice secreted by the stomach the food is disintegrated, and some of the albumens and albuminoids converted into peptones, the whole ma being known as chyme; after pa age into the intestines, the remainder of the albumen and starch are converted respectively into peptones and maltose, the fat saponified or emulsified by the action of the bile and pancreatic and intestinal juices, giving rise to a milky fluid, the chyle. Fat is absorbed by the lacteals, and the remaining constituents by the blood-ve els. The indigestible residue of the food, with some of the waste products of the body, constitute the fæces. Animal digestion lies at the root of all discu ions of fodders and cattle-feeding, but as yet is imperfectly understood.