The vegetative innervation of the inferior part of the oesophagus and the cardiac part of the stomach of a dog is nothing different from that in human (STÖHR, SATO), a white mouse (OHI) and a hedgehog (TOYOTA) alimentary tract in essence, but in development, it stands below that of man but above that of a white mouse or a hedgehog, especially in the high evolution of the nerve cells. In a dog, the nerve cells in the AUERBACH's plexus are indeed somewhat inferior in development than those in man, but DOGIEL's types I and II cells are present in distinguishable maturity and in a similar frequency, beside some unspecialized infantile type cells. The nerve cells in the MEISSNER's plexus are very poorly developed, representing only infantile type cells. It is noteworthy that infantile nerve cells are not rarely also found in the muscularis mucosae and the propria mucosae of the cardiac part of the canine stomach.<br>The vegetative nerve fibres terminate in these parts, as well in other parts of the body, in STÖHR's terminalreticulum, which stands in tactile control over all tissue cells coming in contact.<br>In the inferior part of the oesophagus of a dog have been found some sensory fibres and their terminations, although, may be, in a small quantity. The first type of the sensory terminations in the inferior oesophagus is that of very irregularly arranged branched terminations found in the AUERBACH's plexus, much inferior in development than those in man (SADA). The second represents the serpentine and similar terminations. These terminations do not ramify, as is usual in man, but always end unbranched in the muscularis mucosae and the propria mucosae. The third consists of unbranched and simple branched terminations of fibres chiefly formed in the propria which do not show any winding worth mentioning in their courses. No complex-typed glomerular terminations as found in the propria of the human oesophagus could be detected here in the canine oesophagus.<br>There are also a small number of sensory fibres and their terminations found in the cardiac part of the canine stomach. They are rarely formed in the tunica muscularis, as is usual in man, but in most cases in the submucosa and the propria mucosae, and especially in a large number in the latter, an observation strongly reminding of the stomach of hedgehogs (TOYOTA).<br>These terminations generally belong to the unbranched or simplest terminations, such complex terminations of glomerular and branched types as found in human stomachs being scarcely observable. These terminations are of the serpentine type ending in peculiar sinuous courses and of similar conformation, but not send out lateral branches, as in man, and the fibres end in sharp points in most cases.<br>The above stated fact that there are found some sensory nerve terminations in unmistakable existence in the inferior part of the oesophagus and the cardiac part of a dog, in corraboration of the results of many works in this field carried out at this laboratory, endorses the theory that the reception of sensory stimuli in these parts does not rely upon vegetative fibres, but is effected by cerebrospinal sensory fibres in all cases.