Chapter I: Part 1

DELINEATIONS

OF

THE OX TRIBE.

DELINEATIONS

OF

THE OX TRIBE;

OR,

THE NATURAL HISTORY OF

BULLS, BISONS, AND BUFFALOES.

EXHIBITING

ALL THE KNOWN SPECIES

AND THE MORE REMARKABLE VARIETIES

OF

THE GENUS BOS.

BY GEORGE VASEY.

ILLUSTRATED BY 72 ENGRAVINGS ON WOOD, BY THE AUTHOR.

LONDON: PUBLISHED BY G. BIGGS, 421, STRAND. 1851.

C. AND J. ADLARD, PRINTERS, BARTHOLOMEW CLOSE.

* * * * *
TO

WILLIAM YARRELL, Esq., F.L.S., F.Z.S.,

WHOSE SCIENTIFIC WORKS ON ZOOLOGY

PLACE HIM IN THE FIRST RANK OF NATURALISTS;

AND, MOREOVER,

WHOSE UNOSTENTATIOUS KINDNESS IN CONSULTING THE FEELINGS

AND ADVANCING THE INTERESTS OF OTHERS

IS RARELY EQUALLED,

This Volume is inscribed,

BY HIS SINCERE FRIEND AND ADMIRER,

THE AUTHOR.

PREFACE.

The primary object of the present work, is to give as correct and comprehensive a view of the animals composing the Ox Tribe, as the present state of our knowledge will admit, accompanied by authentic figures of all the known species and the more remarkable varieties.

Although this genus (comprising all those Ruminants called Buffaloes, Bisons, and Oxen generally,) is as distinct and well characterised as any other genus in the animal kingdom, yet the facts which are at present known respecting the various species which compose it, are not sufficiently numerous to enable the naturalist to divide them into sub-genera. This is abundantly proved by the unsuccessful result of those attempts which have already been made to arrange them into minor groups. Nor can we wonder at this want of success, when we consider that even many of the species usually regarded as distinct are by no means clearly defined.

The second object, therefore, of this treatise, is (by bringing into juxta-position all the most important facts concerning the various individual specimens which have been described, and by adding several other facts of importance which have not hitherto been noticed,) to enable the naturalist to define, more correctly than has yet been done, the peculiarities of each species.

A third object is to direct the attention of travellers more particularly to this subject; in order that, by their exertions, our information upon this class of animals may be rendered more complete.

A new and important feature in the present Monograph, is the introduction of a Table of the Number of Vertebrae, carefully constructed from an examination of the actual skeletons, by which will be seen at a glance the principal osteological differences of species which have hitherto been confounded with each other. A Table of the Periods of Gestation is likewise added, which presents some equally interesting results.

Several of the descriptions have been verified by a reference to the living animals, seven specimens of which are at present (1847) in the Gardens of the Zoological Society, Regent's Park. The several Museums in the Metropolis have likewise been consulted with advantage.

I am indebted to Judge FURNAM, of the United States, for some original information respecting the American Bison; and also to the late Mr. COLE, who was forty years park-keeper at Chillingham, for answers to several questions which I proposed to him on the subject of the Chillingham Cattle.

I beg to acknowledge my obligation to Mr. CATLIN for kindly allowing me, not only to make extracts, but also to copy some of the outlines from his 'Letters and Notes on the North American Indians,' a work which I do not hesitate to pronounce one of the most curious and interesting which the present century has produced,--whether we regard the graphic merits of its literary or pictorial department.

To Professor OWEN and the Officers of the Royal College of Surgeons, to the Officers of the Zoological Society, and to the Officers of the Zoological Department of the British Museum, my sincere thanks are due for the kindness and promptness with which every information has been given, and every facility afforded to my inquiries and investigations.

With respect to the engraved figures, I have striven to produce correct delineations of form and texture, rather than to make pretty pictures by sacrificing truth and nature for the sake of ideal beauty and artistic effect.

I cannot conclude this Preface without expressing my thanks to Messrs. ADLARD for the first-rate style in which this volume has been printed; particularly for the successful manner in which the impressions of the engravings have been produced, superior, in general, to India-proof impressions.

_King Street, Camden Town;_
_May, 1851._

ADDENDUM.

PENNANT--BUFFON--GOLDSMITH--BEWICK--BINGLEY.

In addition to the critical remarks on the writings of others, on this subject, which the reader will find in the following pages, I have further to observe that, although Pennant and Buffon have held a very high character, for many years, as scientific naturalists, the portion of their works which treats of the _Genus Bos_, appears to have been the result of the most careless and superficial observation. With the exception of the facts and observations furnished by such men as Daubenton and Pallas, Buffon's works are little more than flimsy speculations. As to Pennant's history of the Ox Tribe, it is calculated rather to bewilder than to inform; it is, in fact, an incoherent mass of dubious statements, huddled together in a most inextricable confusion: as a piece of Natural History it is absolutely worse than nothing.

Goldsmith, Bewick, and Bingley, three of our most popular writers on Natural History, appear to have done little more than compile from Pennant and Buffon, and consequently are but little deserving of credit. These strictures apply exclusively to such portions of their works as relate to the Ox Tribe.

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

Page

Introduction 1

American Bison 21

Aurochs 40

Yak 45

Gyall 51

Gayal 57

Domestic Gayal 68

Jungly Gau 71

Buffalo 75

Italian Buffalo 76

Manilla Buffalo 81

Condore Buffalo 84

Cape Buffalo 86

Pegasse 95

Gaur 97

Arnee 105

Zamouse 112

Musk Ox 115

Galla Ox 120

Zebu, or Brahmin Bull 125

Backeley Ox 133

African Bull 137

Chillingham Cattle 140

Kyloe, or Highland Ox 150

Table of the Number of Vertebrae 152

Table of the Periods of Gestation 153

Note on the Skeleton of the American Bison 154

APPENDIX.
Page

Free Martin 155

Short-nosed Ox 159

On the utility of the Ox Tribe to Mankind 160

Account of Alpine Cowherds
--Notice of Ranz des Vaches 164

Table of Habitat 168

---- Mode of Life 169

Indefinite Definitions of Col. H. Smith 170

Mr. Swainson's Transcendental Attempt at
Classification 176

On Species and Variety 181

Banteng (_Bos Bantiger_) 185

British Domestic Cattle 186

Influence of Colour in Breeding ib.

Influence of Male in Breeding 187

Generative Precocity ib.

Milk 188

Butter 189

Mr. Youatt's Philosophy of Rabies 190

Statistics 192

LIST OF ENGRAVINGS.

(_The Engravings not otherwise acknowledged are from original Drawings._)

Page

1. Frontispiece.--The Sangu, or Abyssinian Ox i

2. Stomach of Manilla Buffalo 4

3. Gastro-duct (Oesophagean Canal), after Flourens 6

4. Stomach of a young Calf 12

5. Stomach of a full-grown Cow 13

6. Skull of Domestic Ox 17

7. Skeleton of Domestic Ox 20

8. American Bison 21

9. Young Female Bison 23

10. Wounded Bison 24

11. Indian shooting a Bison 29

12. Bison surrounded by Wolves 32

13. Bison Calf, after Cuvier 33

14. Skin Canoes of the Mandan Indians 36

15. Head of young Male Bison 39

16. Aurochs, or European Bison 40

17. Yak, from Asiatic Transactions 45

18. Yak, from Oriental Annual 49

19. Gyall (_Bos Frontalis_) 51

20. Head of Gyall 53

21. Gayal, from Asiatic Transactions 58

22. Head of Asseel Gayal 67

23. Domestic Gayal 68

24. Skull of Domestic Gayal 69

25. Occipital View of the same Skull ib.

26. Head of Domestic Gayal ib.

27. Jungly Gau, after Cuvier 71

28. Syrian Ox, anon. 74

29. Italian Buffalo--Brandt and Ratzeburg 76

30. Herefordshire Cow, after Howitt 80

31. Manilla Buffalo 81

32. Outlines of Buffaloes Backs 82

33. Head of Manilla Buffalo 83

34. Pulo Condore Buffalo 84

35. Short-horned Bull, after Howitt 85

36. Cape Buffalo 86

37. Young Cape Buffalo, after Col. Smith 90

38. Head of Cape Buffalo 94

39. Pegasse, from a Drawing in the Berlin Library 95

40. Horns of Cape Buffalo 96

41. Gaur, from Specimen in British Museum 97

42. Horns of Gaur, Edin. Phil. Trans. 103

43. Head of Gaur 104

44. Arnee, from Shaw's Zoology 105

45. Horns of Young Arnee, from 'The Bee' 107

46. Horns of Arnee, from Mus. Coll. Surg. 108

47. Horns of Arnee, from British Museum ib.

48. Arnee from Indian Painting 111

49. Zamouse, or Bush Cow 112

50. Head of Zamouse 114

51. Musk Ox 115

52. Foot of Musk Ox, Griff., Cuv. 117

53. Head of Musk Ox 119

54. Horns of Galla Ox, Mus. Coll. Surg. 123

55. Horns of Hungarian Ox, Brit. Mus. 124

56. Brahmin Bull, Harvey, Zool. Gar. 125

57. Zebu (var. beta), after Cuvier 128

58. Zebus (var. gamma) and Car, anon. 129

59. Zebu (var. delta), anon. 132

60. African Bull, Harvey 137

61. Eyes of African Bull, Harvey 139

62. Lateral Hoofs of African Bull, Harvey ib.

63. Dewlap of African Bull, Harvey 139

64. Chillingham Bull 140

65. Heads of Chillingham Cattle 148

66. Kyloe, or Highland Ox, Howitt 150

67. Free Martin, Hunter's Animal Economy 156

Skull of Domestic Ox, (repetition of fig. 6) 158

68. Skull of Short-nosed Ox of the Pampas 159

69. Outlines of Manilla Buffalo 174

70. Hungarian Ox, from British Museum 175

71. Banteng, from a Specimen in Brit. Mus. 185

72. Alderney Cow, after Howitt 189

INTRODUCTION.

Ruminantia is the term used by naturalists to designate those mammiferous quadrupeds which chew the cud; or, in other words, which swallow their food, in the first instance, with a very slight mastication, and afterwards regurgitate it, in order that it may undergo a second and more complete mastication: this second operation is called ruminating, or chewing the cud. The order of animals which possess this peculiarity, is divided into nine groups or genera, namely:--

CAMELS.
LLAMAS.
MUSKS.
DEER.
GIRAFFES.
ANTELOPES.
GOATS.
SHEEP.
OXEN.

The last named forms the subject of the following pages, and is called, in zoological language, the _Genus Bos_, in popular language, the OX TRIBE.

One of the most interesting occupations which the wide field of Zoology offers to the naturalist, is the investigation of those remarkable adaptations of organs to functions, and of these again to the necessities and well-being of the entire animal. Nor does it in the least diminish our interest in the investigation of individual adaptations, or our admiration on becoming acquainted with them, that we know, _a priori_, this universal truth, that all the constituents of every organised body, be that organisation what it may, are invariably adapted, in the most perfect manner, to each other, and to the whole.

It is by a knowledge of this exact harmony in the animal economy, that the comparative anatomist can determine, with almost unerring precision, the genus, or even species of an animal, by an examination of any important part of its organisation, as the teeth, stomach, bones, or extremities. In some cases, a single bone, or even the fragment of a bone, is sufficient to convey an idea of the entire animal to which it belonged.

In illustration of this:--if the viscera of an animal are so organised as only to be fitted for the digestion of recent flesh, we find that the jaws are so contracted as to fit them for devouring prey; the claws for seizing and tearing it to pieces; the teeth for cutting and dividing its flesh; the entire system of the limbs, or organs of motion, for pursuing and overtaking it; and the organs of sense for discovering it at a distance. Moreover, the brain of the animal is also endowed with instincts sufficient for concealing itself, and for laying plans to catch its necessary prey.

Again, we are well aware that all _hoofed_ animals must necessarily be herbivorous, or vegetable feeders, because they are possessed of no means of seizing prey. It is also evident, having no other use for their fore-legs than to support their bodies, that they have no occasion for a shoulder so vigorously organised as that of carnivorous animals; owing to which they have no clavicles, and their shoulder-blades are proportionally narrow. Having also no occasion to turn their forearms, their radius is joined by ossification to the ulna, or is at least articulated by gynglymus with the humerus. Their food being entirely herbaceous, requires teeth with flat surfaces, on purpose to bruise the seeds and plants on which they feed. For this purpose, also, these surfaces require to be unequal, and are, consequently, composed of alternate perpendicular layers of enamel and softer bone. Teeth of this structure necessarily require horizontal motions to enable them to triturate, or grind down the herbaceous food; and accordingly the condyles of the jaw could not be formed into such confined joints as in the carnivorous animals, but must have a flattened form, correspondent to sockets in the temporal bones. The depressions, also, of the temporal bones, having smaller muscles to contain, are narrower and not so deep; and so on, throughout the whole organisation.

The digestive system of the ruminantia is more complicated in structure than that of any other class of animals; and, owing to this complexity, and the consequent difficulty of investigating it, its nature and functions have been less perfectly understood.

The stomach of the Manilla Buffalo, which will serve as an example of all the other species, is divided into four cavities or ventricles, which are usually (but improperly) considered as four distinct stomachs.

The following figure represents the form, relative size, and position of these four cavities when detached from the animal, and fully inflated.

_b._ Second ditto, the honeycomb bag.

_c._ Third ditto, the many-plies.

_d._ Fourth ditto, the reed, or rennet.

_e._ A portion of the oesophagus, showing its connection with the stomach.

_f._ The pylorus, or opening into the intestines.]

The interior of those cavities present some remarkable differences in point of structure, which, in the present work, can only be alluded to in a very general manner. For a particular account of the internal anatomy of these complicated organs, the reader is referred to the interesting work on 'Cattle,' by W. Youatt.

The paunch is lined with a thick membrane, presenting numerous prominent and hard papillae. The inner surface of the second cavity is very artificially divided into angular cells, giving it somewhat the appearance of honeycomb, whence its name "honeycomb-bag." The lining membrane of the third cavity forms numerous deep folds, lying upon each other like the leaves of a book, and beset with small hard tubercles. These folds vary in breadth in a regular alternate order, a narrow fold being placed between each of the broader ones. The fourth cavity is lined with a velvety mucous membrane disposed in longitudinal folds. It is this part of the stomach that furnishes the gastric juice, and, consequently, it is in this cavity that the proper digestion of the food takes place; it is here, also, that the milk taken by the calf is coagulated. The reed or fourth cavity of the calf's stomach retains its power of coagulating milk even after it has been taken from the animal. We have a familiar instance of its operation in the formation of curds and whey.

The first and second cavities (_a_ and _b_) are placed parallel (or on a level) with each other; and the oesophagus (_e_) opens, almost equally, into them both. On each side of the termination of the oesophagus there is a muscular ridge projecting, so that the two together form a sort of groove or channel, which opens almost equally into the second and third cavities (_b_ and _c_).

[As there has not been, as far as I am aware, any appropriate name given to this very remarkable part of the stomach of ruminants, I here take the liberty of suggesting the term _Gastro-duct_, by which epithet this muscular channel will be designated in the following pages.]

_a._ A portion of the oesophagus cut open, showing the internal folds of the mucous membrane.

_b._ The opening of the oesophagus into the paunch.

_c, c._ The gastro-duct.

_d, d._ Muscular fibres passing completely round the edge of the gastro-duct, and forming a sort of sphincter.

_e._ The opening from the gastro-duct into the third cavity.]

All these parts, namely, the oesophagus, the gastro-duct, and the first three cavities, not only communicate with each other, but they communicate by one common point, and that point is the gastro-duct. At the extremity of the third cavity, opposite to that at which the gastro-duct enters it, is an aperture which communicates immediately with the fourth cavity (_d_).

Such is a very brief description of the complicated stomach of the Ox Tribe. In what manner the food passes through this curious arrangement of cavities is a problem which has engaged the attention of naturalists from a very early period. A host of great men might be cited who have failed to solve it. The French physiologist, M. Flourens, by his recent experiments, has done more than any or all of his predecessors to give clearness and precision to this intricate subject.

The following is an abstract of the most important of his experiments:--

A sheep having been fed on fresh trefoil, was killed and opened immediately,--that is, before the process of rumination had commenced. He (M. Flourens) found the greatest part of this herb (easily recognised by its leaves, which were still almost entire,) in the paunch; but he also found a certain portion (_une partie notable_) of those leaves (in the same unmasticated state) in the honeycomb. In the other two cavities, (the many-plies and the reed,) there was absolutely none.

M. Flourens repeated this experiment a great many times, with herbs of various kinds, and the result was constantly the same: from which it appears, that herbaceous food, on its first deglutition, enters into the honeycomb, as well as into the paunch; the proportion, however, being considerably greater into the paunch than into the honeycomb. It appears equally certain that, in the first swallowing, this kind of food _only_ enters into the first two cavities, and never passes into the many-plies or the reed.

Having ascertained this fact with respect to _herbs_, he instituted a similar series of experiments, in which the animals were fed upon various kinds of _grain_,--rye, barley, wheat, oats, &c. The animals were killed and examined, as in the former experiments, immediately after being fed. He found the greater part of the grain unmasticated (_tout entier_) in the paunch; but, as in the case of the herbs, he also found a certain portion, in the same unmasticated state, in the honeycomb. Neither the many-plies nor the reed contained a single grain. He repeated these experiments many times, and always with the same result.

He then tried the effect of carrots cut into pieces, from half an inch to an inch in length; and in order that the animals might not chew them, he passed them into the pharynx by means of a tube. In one of these sheep he found all the morsels in the paunch; but, in the other two, some of the morsels were in the honeycomb, and some in the paunch. In all the three cases, there was none either in the many-plies or in the reed.

He then proceeded to ascertain the effect of substances previously comminuted. He caused a certain quantity of carrots to be reduced to a kind of mash, with which he fed two sheep, and opened them immediately afterwards. He found the greatest part of this mash in the paunch and in the honeycomb; but he likewise found a certain portion in the many-plies and in the reed.

His next experiments were made upon plain fluids. It is the opinion of the generality of authors on this subject that fluids pass immediately and _entirely_, along the gastro-duct, into the third and fourth cavities. But, according to the experiments of M. Flourens, this is not the case. He found, by making artificial openings (_anus artificiel_) in the stomachs of various sheep, that, as the animals drank, the fluid came directly out at the opening, in whatever cavity it might have been made.

It is clear, then, that fluids pass, in part, into the first and second cavities, and, in part, into the third and fourth; and they pass as directly into the former as into the latter.

The following is the result of some experiments which M. Flourens made respecting the formation of the pellets.

In the first place, after the animal has swallowed a certain quantity of food the first time, successive pellets are formed of this food, which remount singly to the mouth; secondly, there is a particular apparatus, which forms these pellets; and, thirdly, this apparatus consists of the two closed apertures (_ouvertures fermees_) of the many-plies, and of the oesophagus. Thus, the first two cavities, in contracting, push the aliments which they contain between the edges of the gastro-duct; and the gastro-duct, contracting in its turn, draws together the two openings of the many-plies and oesophagus; and these two openings, _closed_ at this moment of their action, seize a portion of the food, detach it, and form it into a pellet.

The chief utility of rumination, as applicable to all the animals in which it takes place, and the final purpose of this wonderfully-complicated function in the animal economy, are still imperfectly known; what has been already suggested on these points is quite unsatisfactory. Perrault and others supposed that it contributed to the security of those animals, which are at once voracious and timid, by showing the necessity of their remaining long employed in chewing in an open pasture; but the Indian buffalo ruminates, although it does not fly even from the lion; and the wild goat dwells in Alpine countries, which are inaccessible to beasts of prey.

Whatever may be our ignorance of the cause or the object of rumination, it is certain that the nature of the food has a considerable influence in increasing or diminishing the necessity for the performance of that function. Thus, dry food requires to be entirely subjected to a second mastication, before it can pass into the many-plies and reed; whilst a great portion of that which is moist and succulent passes readily into those cavities, on its first descent into the stomach.

It has already been shown by the illustration, (p. 4,) that the paunch is the largest of the four cavities; but this is not the case with the stomach of the young calf, which, while it continues to suck, does not ruminate; in this case the _reed_, which is the true digestive cavity, is actually larger than the other three taken together.

When the calf begins to feed upon solid food, then it begins to ruminate; and as the quantity of solid food is increased, so does the size of the paunch increase, until it attains its full dimensions. In this latter case, the _paunch_ has become considerably larger than the other three cavities taken together.

A curious modification of an organ to adjust itself to the altered condition of the animal is beautifully shown in the instance now under consideration, the nature of which will be easily understood by a reference to the following diagrams, giving the exact relative proportions of the different cavities of the stomach to each other in the young calf and in the full-grown cow.

[I am informed by Professor Symonds, of the Royal Veterinary
College, that the two following sketches should be placed in
the page so as to be viewed with the oesophagus to the right,
and the pylorus to the left, instead of being, as they now are,
at the top and the bottom; but as the present object is only to
show the relative sizes of the different cavities, the error is
not of much consequence.]

The letters refer to the same parts in each figure: _a_, the paunch; _b_, the honeycomb bag; _c_, the many-plies; _d_, the reed.

[These engravings, illustrative of the comparative sizes of the different stomachal cavities, are copied from original drawings taken from preparations of the stomachs which I made expressly for this purpose.]

In all herbivorous animals, and especially those of the ruminating kind, the alimentary canal is of an enormous length; measuring in a full grown ox, as much as sixty yards. The paunch, in such an animal, will hold from fifteen to eighteen gallons.

Blumenbach observes, that the process of rumination supposes a power of voluntary motion in the oesophagus; and, indeed, the influence of the will throughout the whole process is incontestible. It is not confined to any particular time, since the animal can delay it according to circumstances, even when the paunch is quite full. It has been expressly stated of some men, who have had the power of ruminating, that it was quite voluntary with them. Blumenbach knew four men who ruminated their food, and they assured him they had a real enjoyment in doing it: two of them had the power of doing or abstaining from it at their pleasure.

A case of human rumination occurred some years ago at Bristol, the particulars of which are minutely recorded in the 'Philosophical Transactions.' It seemed, in this instance, to have been hereditary, as the father of the individual was subject to the same habit. The young man usually began to chew his food over again, within a quarter of an hour after eating. His ruminating after a full meal generally lasted about an hour and a half; nor could he sleep until this task was completed. The victuals, upon its return, tasted even more pleasantly than at first; and seemed as if it had been beaten up in a mortar. If he ate a variety of things, that which he ate first, came up again first; and if this return was interrupted for any length of time, it produced sickness and disorder; nor was he ever well till it returned. These singular cases are caused, no doubt, by some abnormal structure of the interior of the stomach. No account has yet been given of the dissection of an individual so constituted.

When cattle are at rest, or not employed in grazing or chewing the cud, they are observed frequently to lick themselves. By this means they raise up the hair of their coats, and often swallow it in considerable quantities. The hair thus swallowed gradually accumulates in the stomach, where it is formed into smooth round balls, which, in time, become invested with a hardish brown crust, composed, apparently, of inspissated mucilage, that, by continual friction from the coats of the stomach, becomes hard and glossy. It is generally in the paunch that these hair-balls are found. They vary in weight from a few ounces to six or seven pounds. Mr. Walton, author of an 'Account of the Peruvian Sheep,' makes mention of one that he had in his possession which weighed eight pounds and a quarter. This hair-ball had been taken from a cow that fed on the Pampas of Buenos Ayres. It was of a flat circular shape, and measured two feet eleven inches and a half in circumference; two feet eight inches round the flat part; nine inches diameter also in the flat part; eleven inches diameter in the cross part; and, on immersing it in water, it displaced upwards of eight quarts, which made its bulk correspond to 462 cubic inches. The digestive functions are sometimes seriously impaired by these concretions; a loss of appetite ensues, and general debility.

In the Museum of Daniel Crosthwaite, there is a very extraordinary ball of hair, taken from a fatted calf only seven weeks old. The ball of hair, when taken out of the animal's stomach, and full of moisture, weighed eleven ounces. The calf was fatted by Daniel Thwaite, of Dale Head Hall, within six miles of Keswick; and slaughtered by John Fisher, butcher, Keswick. The calf was a particularly healthy animal.

Before closing this brief sketch of the digestive apparatus of the ox, it may not be uninteresting to quote some of the quaint speculations of Nathaniel Grew on this subject, from his 'Comparative Anatomy of Stomachs and Guts.'

He says: "The _voluntary_ motion of the stomach is that only which accompanies rumination. That it is truly voluntary, is clear, from the command that ruminating animals have of that action. For this purpose it is, that the muscules of their venters are so thick and strong; and have several duplicatures, as the bases of those muscules, whereupon the stress of their motion lies. By means whereof they are able with ease to rowl and tumble any part of the meat from one cell of the same venter to another; or from one venter to another; or from thence into the gullet, whensoever they are minded to do it; so that the ejectment of the meat, in rumination, is a voluntary eructation.

"The pointed knots, like little papillae, in the stomachs of ruminating beasts, are also of great use, namely, for the tasting of the meat. The inner membrane of the first three venters is fibrous (like the gustatory papillae of the tongue) and not glandulous; the fourth only being glandulous, as in a man. Of the fibres of this membrane, and the nervous, are composed those pointed knots, which are, both in substance and shape, altogether like to those upon the tongue. Whence I doubt not, but that the said three ventricles, as they have a power of voluntary motion, so, likewise, that they are the seat of taste, and as truly the organs of that sense, as is the tongue itself."

The mouth of animals of the Ox Tribe contains, when full, thirty-two teeth. Six molars in each jaw, above, below, and on either side; and eight incisors in the lower jaw. In the upper jaw there are no incisors; but instead thereof a fibrous and elastic pad, or cushion, which covers the convex extremity of the anterior maxillary bone, and which is well worthy of observation.

The final cause of this pad (which stands in the place of upper incisor teeth) and the part it plays in the procuring of food, is thus described by Youatt. "The grass is collected and rolled together by means of the long and moveable tongue; it is firmly held between the lower cutting teeth and the pad, the cartilaginous upper lip assisting in this; and then by a sudden nodding motion of the head, the little roll of herbage is either torn or cut off, or partly both torn and cut.

"The intention of this singular method of gathering the food, it is somewhat difficult satisfactorily to explain. It is peculiar to ruminants, who have one large stomach, in which the food is kept as a kind of reservoir until it is ready for the action of the other stomachs. While it is kept there it is in a state of maceration; it is exposed to the united influence of moisture and warmth, and the consequence of this is, that a species of decomposition sometimes commences, and a vast deal of gas is extricated.

"That this should not take place in the natural process of retention and maceration, nature possibly established this mechanism for the first gathering of the food. It is impossible that half of that which is thus procured can be fairly cut through; part will be torn, and no little portion will be torn up by the roots. If cattle are observed while they are grazing, it will be seen that many a root mingles with the blades of grass; and these roots have sometimes no inconsiderable quantity of earth about them. The beast, however, seems not to regard this; he eats on, dirt and all, until his paunch is filled.

"It was designed that this earth should be gathered and swallowed; it was the meaning of this mechanism. A portion of absorbent earth is found in every soil, sufficient not only to prevent the evil that would result from occasional decomposition, by neutralizing the acid principle as rapidly as it is evolved; but, perhaps, by its presence, preventing that decomposition from taking place. Hence the eagerness with which stall-fed cattle, who have not the opportunity of plucking up the roots of grass, evince for mould. It is seldom that a cow will pass a newly-raised mole hill without nuzzling into it, and devouring a considerable portion of it. This is particularly the case where there is any degree of indigestion."

The general disposition of animals of this class, when unmolested, is inoffensive and retiring; but when excited and irritated, they are fierce and courageous, and extremely dangerous to encounter. It is a remarkable circumstance in their history, that they are generally provoked to attack at the sight of red, or any very bright and glaring colour.

_a._ Cervical vertebrae.
_b._ Dorsal vertebrae.
_c._ Lumbar vertebrae.
_d._ Sacrum.
_e._ Caudal vertebrae, or coccygeal bones.
_f._ Ribs.
_g._ Costal cartilages.
_h._ Scapula.
_i._ Humerus,
_k._ Radius.
_l._ Ulna
_m._ Carpus, or knee.
_n._ Large metacarpal, or cannon.
_pp._ Sesamoid bones.
_qq._ Phalanges.
_r._ Pelvis.
_s._ Femur.
_t._ Patella.
_u._ Tibia.
_v._ Rudimentum fibulae.
_w._ Hock and tarsals.
_x._ Large metatarsal.
_y._ Small metatarsal.

1. Inferior maxilla (lower jaw).
2. Superior maxilla (upper jaw).
3. Anterior maxilla
4. Nasal bone.
5. Frontal.
6. Parietal.
7. Occipital.

Skeleton of Domestic Ox, from a specimen in the Royal College of Surgeons.]

THE OX TRIBE

OR

_Genus_ BOS,

Is distinguished from other Genera of Ruminantia by possessing hollow persistent horns, growing on a bony core; the tail long, terminated by a tuft of hair; and four inguinal mammae.

THE AMERICAN BISON.

_Bos Americanus._

The head of this animal is enormously large; larger, in fact, in proportion to the size of its body, than that of any other species of the Ox Tribe. This huge head is supported by very powerful muscles, attached to the projecting spinous processes of the dorsal vertebrae; and these muscles, together with a quantity of fat, constitute the hump on the shoulders. The horns are short, tapering, round, and very distant from each other, as are also the eyes, which are small and dark. The head, neck, shoulders, and fore-legs, to the knee-joints, are covered with long woolly hair, which likewise forms a beard under the mouth. The rest of the body is clothed only by short, close hair, which becomes rather woolly in the depth of winter. The colour is of a deep brown, nearly black on the head, and lighter about the neck and shoulders. The legs are firm and muscular; the tail is short, with a tuft at the end.

The female is, in every respect, much smaller than the male; her horns are more slender, and the hair on her neck and shoulders is not so thick or long, nor the colour so dark. She brings forth in the spring, and rarely more than one. The calves continue to be suckled nearly twelve months, and follow the cows for a much longer period. It is said that the cows are not unfrequently followed by the calves of two, or even three, breeding seasons.

These animals, both male and female, are timid and shy, notwithstanding their fierce appearance; unless they are wounded, or during the breeding season, when it is dangerous to approach. Their mode of attack is to throw down, by pushing, as they run with their head; then to crush, by trampling their enemy under their fore-feet, which, surmounted as they are, by their tremendous head and shoulder, form most effectual weapons of destruction.

The following account, by Dr. Richardson, affords an instance of the danger to be apprehended from these powerful animals, when wounded, and not disabled: "Mr. Finnan M'Donald, one of the Hudson's Bay Company's clerks was descending the Saskatchewan in a boat; and one evening, having pitched his tent for the night, he went out in the dusk to look for game. It had become nearly dark when he fired at a Bison bull, which was galloping over an eminence; and as he was hastening forward to see if this shot had taken effect, the wounded beast made a rush at him. He had the presence of mind to seize the animal by the long hair on the forehead, as it struck him on the side with its horn, and being a remarkably tall and powerful man, a struggle ensued, which continued until his wrist was severely sprained, and his arm was rendered powerless; he then fell, and after receiving two or three blows, became senseless. Shortly afterwards he was found by his companions, lying bathed in his blood, being gored in several places, and the Bison was couched beside him, apparently waiting to renew the attack, had he shown any signs of life. Mr. M'Donald recovered from the immediate effects of the injuries, but he died a few months afterwards. Many instances might be mentioned of the tenaciousness with which this animal pursues its revenge; and I have been told of a hunter being detained for many hours in a tree, by an old bull, which had taken its post below, to watch him."

The capture of the Bison is effected in various ways, chiefly with the rifle, and on foot. Their sense of smelling, however, is so acute, that they are extremely difficult of approach, scenting their enemy from afar, and retiring with the greatest precipitation. Care, therefore, must be taken to go against the wind, in which case they may be approached very near, being almost blinded by the long hair hanging over their foreheads. The hunters generally aim at the shoulder, which, if effectually hit, causes them to drop at once; otherwise they are infuriated, and become dangerous antagonists, as was proved in the result of Mr. M'Donald's adventure.

When flying before their pursuers, it would be in vain for the foremost to halt, or attempt to obstruct the progress of the main body, as the throng in the rear, still rushing onwards, the leaders must advance, although destruction await the movement. The Indians take advantage of this circumstance to destroy great quantities of this favorite game; and certainly no method could be resorted to more effectually destructive, nor could a more terrible devastation be produced, than that of forcing a numerous herd of these large animals to leap from the brink of a dreadful precipice upon a rocky and broken surface, a hundred feet below.

When the Indians determine to destroy Bisons in this way, one of their swiftest-footed and most active young men is selected, who is disguised in a Bison skin, having the head, ears, and horns adjusted on his own head, so as to make the deception very complete; and thus accoutred, he stations himself between the Bison herd and some of the precipices, which often extend for several miles along the rivers. The Indians surround the herd as nearly as possible, when, at a given signal, they show themselves, and rush forward with loud yells. The animals being alarmed, and seeing no way open but in the direction of the disguised Indian, run towards him, and he, taking to flight, dashes on to the precipice, where he suddenly secures himself in some previously ascertained crevice. The foremost of the herd arrives at the brink,--there is no possibility of retreat, no chance of escape; the foremost may, for an instant, shrink with terror, but the crowd behind, who are terrified by the approaching hunters, rush forward with increasing impetuosity, and the aggregate force hurls them successively into the gulf, where certain death awaits them.

Sometimes they are taken by the following method:--A great number of men divide and form a vast square; each band then sets fire to the dry grass of the savannah, where the herds are feeding; seeing the fire advance on all sides, they retire in great consternation to the centre of the square; the men then close and kill them without the least hazard.

Great numbers are also taken in pounds, constructed with an embankment of such an elevation as to prevent the return of the Bisons when once they are driven into it. A general slaughter then takes place with rifles or arrows.

The following vivid sketch is from the narrative of John Tanner, who, when about seven or eight years of age, was stolen from his parents by the Indians, and remained with them during a period of thirty years.

"By the end of the second day after we left Pembinah we had not a mouthful to eat, and were beginning to be very hungry. When we laid down in our camp (near Craneberry River) at night, and put our ears close to the ground, we could hear the tramp of the buffaloes, but when we sat up we could hear nothing; and on the following morning nothing could be seen of them; though we could command a very extensive view of the prairie. As we knew they must not be far off in the direction of the sounds we had heard, eight men, of whom I was one, were selected and dispatched to kill some, and bring the meat to a point where it was agreed the party should stop next night. The noise we could still hear next morning, by applying our ears to the ground; and it seemed about as far distant, and in the same direction, as before. We started early, and rode some hours before we could begin to see them; and when we first discovered the margin of the herd, it must have been at least ten miles distant. It was like a black line drawn along the edge of the sky, or a low shore seen across a lake. The distance of the herd from the place where we first heard them could not have been less than twenty miles. But it was now the rutting season, and various parts of the herd were all the time kept in rapid motion by the severe fights of the bulls. To the noise produced by the knocking together of the two divisions of the hoof, when they raised their feet from the ground, and of their incessant tramping, was added the loud and furious roar of the bulls, engaged, as they all were, in their terrific and appalling conflicts. We were conscious that our approach to the herd would not occasion the alarm now, that it would at any other time, and we rode directly towards them. As we came near we killed a wounded bull, which scarcely made an effort to escape from us. He had wounds in his flanks, into which I could put my whole hand. As we knew that the flesh of the bulls was not now good to eat, we did not wish to kill them, though we might easily have shot any number. Dismounting, we put our horses in the care of some of our number, who were willing to stay back for that purpose, and then crept into the herd to try to kill some cows. I had separated from the others, and advancing, got entangled among the bulls. Before I found an opportunity to shoot a cow, the bulls began to fight very near me. In their fury they were totally unconscious of my presence, and came rushing towards me with such violence, that in some alarm for my safety, I took refuge in one of those holes which are so frequent where those animals abound, and which they themselves dig to wallow in. Here I found they were pressing directly upon me, and I was compelled to fire to disperse them, in which I did not succeed until I had killed four of them. By this firing the cows were so frightened, that I perceived I should not be able to kill any in this quarter; so regaining my horse, I rode to a distant part of the herd, where the Indians had succeeded in killing a fat cow. But from this cow, as is usual in similar cases, the herd had all moved off, except one bull, who, when I came up, still kept the Indians at bay. 'You are warriors,' said I, as I rode up, 'going far from your own country, to seek an enemy, but you cannot take his wife from that old bull, who has nothing in his hands.' So saying, I passed them directly towards the bull, then standing something more than two hundred yards distant. He no sooner saw me approach, than he came plunging towards me with such impetuosity, that, knowing the danger to my horse and myself, I turned and fled. The Indians laughed heartily at my repulse, but they did not give over their attempts to get at the cow. By dividing the attention of the bull, and creeping up to him on different sides, they at length shot him down. While we were cutting up the cow, the herd were at no great distance; and an old cow, which the Indians supposed to be the mother of the one we had killed, taking the scent of the blood, came running with great violence towards us. The Indians were alarmed and fled, many of them not having their guns in their hands; but I had carefully reloaded mine, and had it ready for use. Throwing myself down close to the body of the cow, and behind it, I waited till the other came up within a few yards of the carcase, when I fired upon her; she turned, gave one or two jumps, and fell dead. We had now the meat of two fat cows, which was as much as we wanted; accordingly we repaired, without delay, to the appointed place, where we found our party, whose hunger was already somewhat allayed by a deer one of them had killed."

In hunting the Bison, the spear and the arrow are still much in use among the Indians. The following sketch (after Catlin) represents an Indian in the act of shooting a Bison with the arrow:--

In the 'Letters and Notes on the North-American Indians,' by Catlin, there are a great many interesting details of the Bison (or Buffalo, as it is there called).

"Six days of severe travelling have brought us from the Camanchee village to the north bank of the Canadian, where we are snugly encamped on a beautiful plain, and in the midst of countless numbers of buffaloes; and halting a few days to recruit our horses and men, and dry meat to last us the remainder of our journey.

"The plains around this, for many miles, seem actually speckled, in distance and in every direction, with herds of grazing buffaloes; and for several days, the officers and men have been indulged in a general license to gratify their sporting propensities; and a scene of bustle and cruel slaughter it has been, to be sure! From morning till night, the camp has been daily almost deserted. The men have dispersed in little squads, in all directions, and are dealing death to these poor creatures to a most cruel and wanton extent, merely for the pleasure of destroying, generally without stopping to cut out the meat. During yesterday and to day, several hundreds have undoubtedly been killed, and not so much as the flesh of half a dozen used. Such immense swarms of them are spread over this tract of country, and so divided and terrified have they become, finding their enemies in all directions where they run, that the poor beasts seem completely bewildered, running here and there, and, as often as otherwise, come singly advancing to the horsemen, as if to join them for their company, and are easily shot down. In the turmoil and confusion, when their assailants have been pushing them forward, they have galloped through our encampment, jumping over our fires, upsetting pots and kettles, driving horses from their fastenings, and throwing the whole encampment into the greatest consternation and alarm."

Speaking of the attacks made upon them by the Wolves, he says, "When the herd is together the Wolves never attack them, as they instantly gather for combined resistance, which they effectually make. But when the herds are travelling, it often happens that an aged or wounded one lingers at a little distance behind, and when fairly out of sight of the herd, is set upon by the voracious hunters, which often gather to the number of fifty or more, and are sure at last to torture him to death, and use him up at a meal. The Buffalo, however, is a huge and furious animal, and when his retreat is cut off, makes desperate and deadly resistance, contending to the last moment for the right of life, and oftentimes deals death by wholesale to his canine assailants.

"During my travels in these regions, I have several times come across such a gang of these animals surrounding an old or wounded bull, where it would seem, from appearances, that they had been for several days in attendance, and at intervals desperately engaged in the effort to take his life. But a short time since, as one of my hunting companions and myself were returning to our encampment, with our horses loaded with meat, we discovered at a distance a huge bull, encircled with a gang of white wolves. We rode up as near as we could without driving them away; and being within pistol-shot, we had a remarkably good view, where I sat for a few moments and made a sketch in my note-book. After which we rode up, and gave the signal for them to disperse, which they instantly did, withdrawing themselves to the distance of fifty or sixty rods, when we found, to our great surprise, that the animal had made desperate resistance, until his eyes were entirely eaten out of his head; the gristle of his nose was mostly gone; his tongue was half eaten off, and the skin and flesh of his legs torn almost literally into strings. In this tattered and torn condition the poor old veteran stood bracing up in the midst of his devourers, who had ceased hostilities for a few minutes, to enjoy a sort of parley, recovering strength to resume the attack in a few moments again. In this group, some were reclining to gain breath, whilst others were sneaking about, and licking their chaps in anxiety for a renewal of the attack; and others, less lucky, had been crushed to death by the feet or the horns of the bull. I rode nearer to the pitiable object, as he stood bleeding and trembling before me, and said to him,--"Now is your time, old fellow, and you had better be off." Though blind, and nearly destroyed, he straightened up, and, trembling with excitement, dashed off at full speed upon the prairie, in a straight line. We turned our horses, and resumed our march; and when we had advanced a mile or more, we looked back, and again saw the ill-fated animal surrounded by his tormentors, to whose insatiable voracity he unquestionably soon fell a victim."

It has frequently been noticed, that whenever a female Bison, having a calf, is slain, the young one remains by its fallen dam, with signs of strong natural affection, and instinctively follows the inanimate carcase of its parent to the residence of the hunter. In this way many calves are secured.

According to Mr. Catlin's account these young animals are induced to follow any one who merely breathes in their nostrils. "I have often," says he, "in concurrence with a known custom of the country, held my hands over the eyes of the calf, and breathed a few strong breaths into its nostrils; after which I have, with my hunting companions, rode several miles into our encampment, with the little prisoner busily following the heels of my horse the whole way, as closely as its instinct would attach it to the company of its dam.

"This is one of the most extraordinary things that I have met with in the habits of this wild country; and although I had often heard of it, and felt unable exactly to believe it, I am now willing to bear testimony to the fact, from the numerous instances which I have witnessed since I came into the country. During the time that I resided at this post (Teton River) in the spring of the year, on my way up the river, I assisted in bringing in, in the above manner, several of these little prisoners, which sometimes followed for five or six miles close to our horse's heels, and even into the Fur Company's Fort, and into the stable where our horses were led. In this way, before I left for the head waters of the Missouri, I think we had collected about a dozen, which Mr. Laidlaw was successfully raising with the aid of a good milch cow, and which were to be committed to the care of Mr. Chouteau, to be transported, by the return of the steamer, to his extensive plantation in the vicinity of St. Louis."