Page:Willich, A. F. M. - The Domestic Encyclopædia (Vol. 2, 1802).djvu/445

Rh  animals; as they afford a palatable and wholesome food. In a domestic state, they are very restless, and make a continual noise, similar to the grunt of a young pig.  . See.  GULL, or Larus, in ornithology, a genus of aquatic birds, comprising eleven species, the most remarkable of which is the parasiticus, or : it is about 21 inches in length; the upper parts of its body, wings, and tail, are black: the lower part of the breast dusky, &c. It commonly frequents the Hebrides in the month of May, and retires about August. It is also found in the Orkney Islands, and on the coasts of Yorkshire, where it is called the feaser. The female constructs her nest of grass and moss, on a hillock, in some marshy situation in which she deposits two ash-coloured eggs spotted with black, and about the size of those of a hen.—, a German naturalist, informs us that these eggs are found in such numbers, on an island which is uninhabited, in the vicinity of Amsterdam, that it is lett at the annual rent of 20,000 florins.

Gulls, in general, fly but slowly; though, when in pursuit of other birds, they often attack and compel them to disgorge the fish, or other food, which the gulls devour with avidity.  GULLET, or Oesophagus, in anatomy, is a long, round, and capacious tube, destined to convey the food from the mouth into the stomach. It descends between the (which see) and the joints of the neck and back, as far as the fifth joint of the spine, where it turns somewhat to the right till it arrives at the ninth; where it again changes its direction towards the left, climbs over the aorta, or the largest blood-vessel in the human body; and, after rising above it, penetrates the midriff, and then extends to the left orifice of the stomach.

Instead of enlarging upon the situation and structure of the gullet, we shall give a few directions for removing substances stopt between the mouth and the stomach.

If the matter detained within the gullet, is of an alimentary or harmless nature, it may then safely be pushed down by means of a heated and oiled wax-candle, to render it flexible; because the manner in which the obstruction is formed, may often occasion death.

On the contrary, if the substances swallowed are indigestible, such as pins, needles, pieces of bone, glass, buckles or other pointed bodies, immediate attempts should be made to extract them: When they have not descended too low, the fingers will frequently be sufficient to reach and withdraw them, but if they be deeper within the gullet, other means must be instantly adopted; as delay may prove fatal. For this purpose, the most simple instrument is a crotchet, or a kind of hook, made of smooth and thin iron wire, by bending it into an oblong ring at one end, reflecting the wire to the top, and forming a large handle: thus, no pointed part will injure the throat by introducing the hook; and there will be no danger of its slipping from the operator's hand. We have seen a more effectual instrument contrived by a double and triple ring or thin wires crossing each other in an oval form, so as to leave spaces between them, in order to loosen and extract a pin, or other sharp substance: the handle must,