§3.14.15ἔχει δὲ διαφορὰς πολλάς, 15 καθάπερ ἡ κοιλία, καὶ τοῦτο τὸ μόριον.
15 This part also, just like the stomach, has many differences.
τοῖς μὲν γὰρ ἀπλοῦν ἐστὶ καὶ ὅμοιον ἀναλυόμενον, τοῖς δʼ ἀνόμοιον· ἐνίοις μὲν γὰρ εὐρύτερον τὸ πρὸς τῇ κοιλίᾳ, τὸ δὲ πρὸς τῷ τέλει στενώτερον (διόπερ αἱ κύνες μετὰ πόνου προΐενται τὴν τοιαύτην περίττωσιν), τοῖς δὲ πλείοσιν ἄνωθεν στενώτερον, πρὸς τῷ τέλει δʼ εὐρύτερον. §3.14.16μείζω δὲ καὶ ἀναδιπλώσεις ἔχοντα πολλὰς 16 τὰ τῶν κερατοφόρων ἐστί, καὶ οἱ ὄγκοι τῆς κοιλίας τούτοις μείζους καὶ τῶν ἐντέρων διὰ τὸ μέγεθος· πάντα γὰρ ὡς εἰπεῖν μεγάλα τὰ κερατοφόρα διὰ τὴν κατεργασίαν τὴν τῆς τροφῆς. §3.14.17πᾶσι δὲ τοῖς μὴ εὐθυεντέροις 17 προῖοῦσιν εὐρύτερον γίνεται τὸ μὸριον τοῦτο, καὶ τὸ καλούμενον κόλον ἔχουσι, καὶ τοῦ ἐντέρου τυφλόν τι καὶ ὀγκῶδες, εἶτʼ ἐκ τούτου πάλιν στενώτερον καὶ εἱλιγμένον.
For in some animals it is simple and uniform when unraveled, but in others it is not uniform; for in some, the part near the stomach is wider, and the part near the end is narrower (wherefore dogs discharge such residue with pain), but in most animals it is narrower above, and wider near the end. 16 And those of the horned animals are larger and have many foldings, and the bulks of the stomach and of the intestines in these are larger because of their size; for almost all horned animals are large for the sake of the processing of food. 17 And in all those that do not have a straight intestine, as one proceeds, this part becomes wider, and they have what is called the colon, and a certain blind and bulbous part of the intestine, and then from this it becomes narrower again and coiled.
τὸ δὲ μετὰ τοῦτο εὐθὺ πρὸς τὴν ἔξοδον διατείνει τοὺ περιττώματος, καὶ τοῖς μὲν τοῦτο τὸ μόριον, ὁ καλούμενος ἀρχός, κνισώδης ἐστί, τοῖς δʼ ἀπίμελος. §3.14.1818 πάντα δὲ ταύτα μεμηχάνηται τῇ φύσει πρὸς τὰς ἁρμοττούσας ἐργασίας περὶ τὴν τροφὴν καὶ τοῦ γινομένου περιττώματος.
And the part after this extends straight to the outlet of the residue, and in some, this part, called the rectum, is fatty, while in others it is fatless. 18 And all these things have been devised by nature for the appropriate operations concerning food and the residue that is produced.
προϊόντι γὰρ καὶ καταβαίνοντι τῷ περιττώματι εὐρυχωρία γίνεται, καὶ πρὸς τὸ μεταβάλλειν ἱσταμένῳ τοῖς εὐ εὐχιλοτέροις τῶν ζῴων καὶ πλείονος δεομένοις τροφῆς, διὰ τὸ μέγεθος ἢ τὴν θερμότητα τῶν τόπων.
For as the residue proceeds and descends, a wide space arises, and for those of the animals that are more rich in juices and need more food, it stays there to change, because of the size or the heat of the places.
εἶτʼ ἐντεῦθεν πάλιν, ὥσπερ ἀπὸ τῆς ἄνω κοιλίας δέχεται στενώτερον ἔντερον, οὕτως ἐκ τοῦ κώλου καὶ τῆς εὐρυχωρίας ἐν τῇ κάτω κοιλίᾳ πάλιν εἰς στενώτερον ἔρχεται καὶ εἰς τὴν ἕλικα τὸ περίττωμα ἐξικμασμένον πάμπαν, ὅπως ταμιεύηται ἡ φύσις καὶ μὴ ἀθρόος ᾖ ἡ ἔξοδος τοῦ περιττώματος. §3.14.1919 ὅσα μὲν οὖν εἶναι δεῖ τῶν ζῴων σωφρονέστερα πρὸς τὴν τῆς τροφῆς ποίησιν εὐρυχωρίας μὲν οὐκ ἔχει μεγάλας κατὰ τὴν κάτω κοιλίαν, ἕλικας δʼ ἔχει πλείους καὶ οὐκ εὐθυέντερά ἐστιν.
Then from there again, just as a narrower intestine receives from the upper stomach, so from the colon and the wide space in the lower stomach, the residue, having been completely drained of moisture, goes again into a narrower part and into the coil, so that nature may ration it and the exit of the residue may not be all at once. 19 Therefore, those of the animals that must be more moderate in regard to the intake of food do not have large wide spaces in the lower stomach, but have more coils and are not straight-gutted.
ἡ μὲν γὰρ εὐρυχωρία ποιεῖ πλήθους ἐπιθυμίαν, ἡ δʼ εὐθύτης ταχυτῆτα ἐπιθυμίας· διόπερ ὅσα τῶν ζῴων ἢ ἁπλᾶς ἔχει ἢ εὐρυχώρους τὰς ὑποδοχάς, τὰ μὲν εἰς πλῆθος γαστρίμαργα τὰ δʼ εἰς τάχος ἐστίν. §3.14.2020 ἐπεὶ δʼ ἐν τῇ ἄνω μὲν κοιλίᾳ κατὰ τὴν πρώτην εἴσοδον τῆς τροφῆς νεαρὰν ἀναγκαῖον εἶναι τὴν τροφὴν, κάτω δὲ προῖοῦσαν κοπρώδη καὶ ἐξικμασμένην, ἀναγκαῖον εἶναί τι καὶ τὸ μεταξύ, ἐν μεταβάλλει καὶ οὔτʼ ἔτι πρόσφατος οὕτʼ ἤδη κόπρος.
For the wide space produces a desire for quantity, while the straightness produces a speed of desire; wherefore those of the animals that have either simple or wide-spaced receptacles, some are gluttonous for quantity, while others are for speed. 20 And since in the upper stomach, at the first entry of the food, the food must be fresh, but as it proceeds lower, it must be fecal and drained of moisture, it is necessary that there is also a certain intermediate part, in which it changes and is neither still fresh nor yet feces.
διὰ τοῦτο πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα ζῴα τὴν καλουμένην ἔχει νῆστιν καὶ ἐν τῷ μετὰ τὴν κοιλίαν ἐντέρῳ τῷ λεπτῷ· τοῦτο γὰρ μεταξὺ τῆς τʼ ἄνω, ἐν ᾗ τὸ ἄπεπτον, καὶ τῆς κάτω, ἐν ᾗ τὸ ἄχρηστον ἤδη περίττωμα. §3.14.2121 γίνεται δʼ ἐν πᾶσι μέν, δήλη δʼ ἐν τοῖς μείζοσι καὶ νηστεύσασιν ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἐδηδοκόσιν· τότε γὰρ ἤδη μεταίχμιον γίνεται τῶν τόπων ἀμφοτέρων, ἐδηδοκότων δὲ μικρὸς ὁ καιρὸς τῆς μεταβολῆς.
For this reason, all such animals have what is called the jejunum in the thin intestine after the stomach; for this is between the upper part, in which is the undigested food, and the lower, in which is the already useless residue. 21 And it occurs in all, but is clear in those that are larger and have fasted but not eaten; for then it is already the boundary between both places, but in those that have eaten, the time of change is short.
τοῖς μὲν οὖν θήλεσι γίνεται ὅπου ἂν τύχῃ τοῦ ἄνω ἐντέρου ἡ νῆστις· οἱ δʼ ἄρρενες ἔχουσι πρὸ τοῦ τυφλοῦ καὶ τῆς κάτω κοιλίας.
Therefore, in females the jejunum occurs wherever it happens to be in the upper intestine; but males have it before the cecum and the lower stomach.