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THE

WA?WIIAIfIIicr!

Stag- or Eed Deer.
Native of Scotland

LONDON. HENRY 0. BOHN.

YORK STREET. COVENT GARDEN .

THE

NATURALIST'S LIBRARY.

EDITED BY

SIR WILLIAM JARDINE, BART.

F.B.S.E., F.L.S., ETC., ETC.

VOL. XXI.

MAMMALIA.

DEER, ANTELOPES, CAMELS, &c.

BY THE EDITOE.

LONDON:

HENRY G, BOHN, YORK STREET, COYENT GARDEN.

C 0 N T E N T &

FACE

Memoir of Camper. ......

17

Ruminating Animals, .

83

The Camels, .

Bactrian Camel.

100

Camelus Bactrianus. Plate I.

Arabian Camel or Dromedary.

103

C. dromedarius , .

The Brown Llama.

104

Auchenia Llama. Plate II. .

The Thibetian Musk.

113

Moschus moschiferus. Plate III. .

The Napu Musk.

116

Moschus Javanicus. Plate IV.

119

Deer, .

The Elk or Moose.

122

Alces Americanus. Plate V.

The Rein-deer.

125

Rangifer Tarandus. Plate VI.

The Common Fallow-deer.

133

Dama vulgaris. Plate VII. .

The Fossil Elk.

152

Cervus giganteus. Plato VIII.

154

CONTENTS.

PAGE

Stags, . 156

The Wapiti.

Cervus Canadensis. Plate IX. . . . 156

Nepaul Stag.

Cervus Wallichii. Plate X. . . . 161

The Great Rusa.

Rusa hippelaphus. Plate XI. . . . 163

The Rusa of Timor.

Rusa Peronii? Plate XII. . . . 165

The Spotted Axis.

Axis maculatus. Plate XIII. . . - 167

The Brown Porcine Axis.

Axis porcinus. Plate XIV . 169

The Common Roebuck.

Capreolus dorcus. Plate XV. . . . 171

The Guazupuco-deer.

Mazama paludosa. Plate XVI. . . . 173

The Guazufi-deer.

Mazama campestris. Plate XVII> » « 17 i

Sttbulo, . 177

The Guazu-pita.

Subulo rufus. Plate XVIII. - -> , 173

The Munijak.

Stylocerus Muntjak. Plate XIX. . . 131

Head and Horns of the Muntjak. Plate XX. 184

Giraffid^e, . 186

The Cameleopard of North Africa.

Camelopardalis antiquorum. Plate XXI. 187

Caprtd.®, . 190

The Prong-horned Antelope.

Dicranocertis furcifer. Plate XXII. . . 193

The Takhaitze.

Antilope barbata. Plate XXIII. . . 199

Oryx, . 201

The Algazel.

Antilope besoartria. Plate XXIV. . . 203

The Addax.

Oryx addax. Plate XXV . 2Q2

CONTENTS.

page

The Kevel.

Gazella kevella. Plate XXVI. . . . 208

The Springer or Springbock.

Antilope euchore. Plate XXVII. . . 213

Soemmering’s Antelope.

Gasella Scemmeringii. Plate XXVIII. . 215

The Pallah.

A. melampus, Plate XXIX. . . . 217

The Klip Springer.

Oreotragus saltatrix. Plate XXX. . . 221

The Chickara.

Tetracerus chickara. Plate XXXI. . . 224

The Grim.

Cephaloplius grimmia. Plate XXXII. . 227

Salt’s Antelope.

Neotragus Saldana. Plate XXXIII. . 229

Portrait of Camper, . 2

Vignette Title-page. The European Stag, . . tt

In all Thirty-Jive I'iates in this Volume.

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

In directing the attention of our readers to
sketch of the life of the celebrated Camper, we be¬
lieve that little is necessary in the way of explana*
tion, far less of apology. It is true, that, by pro
fession, he was not a naturalist, but a physician anl
anatomist, and in these respects belonged to a clas
of men, somewhat numerous, who devote only a
share of their attention to the prosecution of zoolo¬
gical research. But, whilst it must be conceded
that such men can bestow only a divided atten¬
tion on the pursuits of the science, it must be
allowed, that, from the nature of their early edu¬
cation, and from the circumstances of their often¬
times changing and eventful lives, to say nothing
of peculiar tastes and original genius, they pos¬
sess remarkable facilities, such as are seldom en¬
joyed by more systematic students. It must be
admitted also, that the bias of the class of men to
whom we now allude, often lies in one particular
direction, and that comparative anatomy, and minute
structure^ and physiological disquisition, are apt t«
eceive a somewhat large share of their regard. Bu

18

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

this allowed, it ought surely to be reckoned rathe?
as an advantage than as a subject of regret and de¬
preciation. The mechanism of the Divine Archi¬
tect which they thus unfold, yields in interest to no
natural objects that can be presented to our contem¬
plation ; while its varied adaptation 't® purposes as
extraordinary and astonishing as they are benevolent
and wise, tends not more to exercise the powers of
the understanding, than to awaken the best and
noblest sentiments of our nature. To any one who
doubts the justice of these observations, we recom¬
mend a perusal of the life of Dr Camper, and an
examination of his varied and deeply interesting re¬
searches.

Peter Camper, the subject of this memoir, waa
born On the 11th of May 1722, at Leyden, where
his family had for a long period held distinguished
situations in the magistracy. His grandfather exer¬
cised the profession of medicine ; and his father,
Florent Camper, was a Protestant clergyman, who,
after discharging his functions for several years in
Batavia, the then flourishing capital of the Dutch
settlements in the Easfc Indies, returned in 1715
to his native country, where he continued to be
highly esteemed, and most intimately connected
with Boerhaave, and the other eminent men whose
names at that period conferred lustre on the Uni¬
versity of Leyden. He was also an ardent admirer
of the fine arts, associating much with those who

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

19

cultivated them, and was always ready to extend a
delicate and generous liberality to such artists as re¬
quired it.

Young Camper was, no doubt, greatly indebted
for his success to the fortunate circumstances in
which he was placed in early life, being surrounded
ny men of enlarged and cultivated understandings,
eminent for their taste as well as their learning,
and having at the same time every incentive to ex¬
ertion that a careful and judicious education could
supply. Nature had endowed him with that in¬
herent desire of knowledge, that capacity, and that
vigour and activity of mind, which, united as they
were with a robust constitution of body, enabled
him to reap the full benefit of his situation. He
gave very early promise of those mental faculties
which lay the foundation of future eminence ; and
his father discovering with delight the early pro¬
mises of genius, judiciously removed whatever might
cramp its growth, and avoided imposing upon him
as a task, those instructions which he seemed so
well inclined to acquire and pursue as an amuse¬
ment.

His love of knowledge kept pace with his years.
Whilst assiduously prosecuting the ordinary pursuits
of youth, and contending foi the common prizes of the
public schools, he found time to attend to the study
of drawing, of architecture and perspective : he had
also a taste for mensuration, and for turning ; and
the manipulation of the different tools of these me-

20

MEMOIR OP CAMPER.

chanical arts was afterwards of use to him in the
prosecution of his more important pursuits.

In drawing, he had the able instructions of Le
Chevalier Moor and his son ; and in that art, and
also in engraving, which formed another of his fa¬
vourite amusements, he made extraordinary profi¬
ciency. Throughout the whole course of his life,
he derived immense advantage from the skill with
which he used the pencil, in delineating every ob¬
ject in which he was interested, whether among the
objects of art or nature, or the offspring of his own
conceptions. The use to which he turned these ac¬
quirements, is calculated to shew in a strong light
the importance of these arts as branches of early
education.

He was indebted to Laborde for his first lessons
in geometry, and was instructed in natural philoso¬
phy by Muschenbroeck and Gravesande, who were
the intimate friends of his father, and whose names
will be ever illustrious in the annals of science.
From these pursuits he was led to the study of me¬
dicine, of which the elementary branches have so
close an alliance with the physical sciences ; and
having entered the University of Leyden, he be¬
came the pupil of Gaubius, Von Rooyen, and the
elder Albinus, — Boerhaave being at this time inca¬
pacitated, by the infirmities of age, from continuing
his exertions as a public teacher. Camper earned
the first fruits of his academical labours, by receiving
in 1746, the degree of Doctor in Philosophy and

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

21

Medicine, on which occasion he published two dis¬
sertations, the one On Vision , and the other On
Certain Parts of the Eye , both of which have been
preserved by Haller. In the former, he illustrates
and defends Smith’s theory of vision, and in the lat¬
ter he describes and gives plates of the canal of Pe¬
tit, in the eyes of several of the lower animals.

The acquaintance which Camper had formed with
several foreigners of merit, had long inspired him
with the desire of travelling, and gratifying his thirst
for knowledge, by visiting different countries, and
conversing with men distinguished for their acquire¬
ments in the several branches of science. But the
declining health of his parents, who were now ad¬
vancing in years, and required the continual presence
and kindest attentions of their son, long prevented
him from accomplishing his wishes. Their death,
however, which happened in 1748, released him
from duties which he had the consolation of reflect¬
ing had been assiduously discharged ; and he soon
after, at the age of twenty-six, embarked for Eng¬
land.

Furnished with the best letters of introduction, he
soon made the acquaintance of many of the most emi¬
nent scientific men in London, and assiduously attend-
ed the courses of instruction which were then deliver¬
ed. Of the individuals who thus became his masters
and future friends, we may mention, among medical
men, Dr Mead and the Hunters, Smellie, Pringle, and
Pitcairn, whilst by his intercourse with such men

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

QO

as Sir Hans Sloane, Catesby, Hill, and Collinson,
bis interest in natural history was greatly augment¬
ed. The various museums of the English capital,
also, became the objects of his careful review, and
lie thus became intimate with Watson, Knight, and
Stephens. He studied botany under Elliot, and as¬
tronomy under Short, and was instructed in the use
of the microscope by Baker, who was then applying
this instrument with so much success to objects of
natural history. Camper seemed determined to al¬
low no opportunity of amassing knowledge to escape
him, and although his views embraced a wide range
of subjects, he was never satisfied with a superficial
glance, nor trusted to the reports of others, when
there was a possibility of examining with his own
eyes. Accordingly, he visited the principal manu¬
factories, and was indefatigable- in collecting instruc¬
tions from artists of eminence in every department
His eager curiosity even extended to the details of
naval architecture, to the study of which he devoted
a considerable portion of time. He was in the ha¬
bit, during all his travels, of making notes of every
thing he saw and learned ; and he made sketches on
the spot of every object of which a delineation could
be useful.

After remaining about a year in London, and vi¬
siting the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge,
he proceeded to Paris, where he came in contact
with Winslow and Astruc, Petit, Ledran and Ques-
nay, medical men of first-rate reputation, and with

MEMOIR OF CAMPER. 23

Reaumur, Buffon, and Jussieu, no less celebrated
among naturalists. After remaining two months in
this capital, he proceeded to Lyons and Geneva.
It was during his residence in this latter city, that
he was appointed Professor of Medicine and Sur¬
gery at Franeker in Friesland, which induced him
without delay to return to his native country. In
his journey, he passed through Lausanne, Berne,
Baale, Strasburg, Manheim, and Bonn, where many
interesting objects invited his regard. At Baale, he
met the great Bernouilli, and examined the manu¬
scripts of Erasmus, and the paintings of Holbein.
The itinerary which he kept of this journey is a cu¬
rious and valuable depository, and contains many
useful observations on agriculture and mineralogy,
upon the external forms of the mountain ranges, and
the fossils and the petrifactions which they contain.

In consequence of severe illness in 1749, Camper
was obliged to defer entering upon the duties of his
new professorship till the autumn of the following
year, when, in conformity with a prevalent custom
on these occasions, he pronounced a solemn inaugural
discourse, choosing for his subject De Mundo Op¬
timo — on a better world. At the same time, he
was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Lon¬
don.

His proximity to England, atid still more the
great public establishments which there abound, to¬
gether with the advantage which he had derived
from the intercourse with the learned men he had

24

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

associated with in London, induced him to revisit
that capital during the vacation of 1752. On this
occasion, he resumed his various pursuits with re¬
doubled ardour. Among other objects, his attention
was much directed to the method of inoculating for
the smallpox, the practice of which was yet confined
to England. On his return to Franeker, ho resumed
his lectures, which were every year more numerous¬
ly attended, and gained him such increasing cele¬
brity, that he was soon ranked as one of the ablest
men of science in Holland. In 1755, he was ap¬
pointed Professor of Anatomy and Surgery to the
1 Athenaeum at Amsterdam, and came in consequence
to settle in that city, then the seat of opulence and
earning. In 1758, he was appointed Professor of
Medicine ; and thus delivered two other inaugural
discourses, the former on the utility of anatomy in
all sciences, and the latter De Certo in Medicina.
In 1756, he married the widow of the burgomaster
of Harlingen.

After continuing six years in Amsterdam, his avo¬
cations became so multiplied and so fatiguing, that
he resolved to change the scene, and, by doing so,
to yield to the strong desire which Mrs Camper had
long entertained of retiring into Friesland. He ac¬
cordingly resigned his chair at Amsterdam — being
allowed, however, to retain the honorary title of Pro¬
fessor; and, once more, he took up his abode at
Klein-Lankum, his country residence near Franeker.
His principal work during the time he held the chair

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

25

of the Athenaeum, was the first volume of his De-
monstrationes Anatomico-Pathologicce ; hut the lei¬
sure he now enjoyed in his retirement, allowed him
to devote much more of his time to science, and en¬
abled him, through the press, to supply to the public
some of those stores of information he had been so
long accumulating. Accordingly, the second vo¬
lume of the work above named, and which, we may
remark, was most highly esteemed, for the execution
both of the pen and the pencil, made its appearance
in 1762. He also published, in the Dutch lan¬
guage, an interesting memoir on an important sur¬
gical disease frequently occurring in new-born in¬
fants, another upon The Physical Education of In¬
fants, and a third, An Anatomical Description of
the Organ of Hearing in Fishes.

Camper’s son claims the entire merit of this dis¬
covery in the anatomy of fishes for his father ; but
some of our readers will be aware, that of the many
discoveries in natural history, the priority and ho¬
nour of which have been disputed by contending
claimants, this is one of the most remarkable. Zoo¬
logists in Germany and Italy, as well as in France,
Holland, and England, have asserted their respective
pretensions, among whom we shall only name M.
Geofiroy and the celebrated John Hunter. This is
not the place to enter into the examination of such
a controversy ; and we shall only therefore remark,
that, unless Mr Hunter can be supposed capable o
deliberate falsehood, his claim to priority of disco-

26

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

very is unquestionable ; for, in respect to Camper,
it is not stated that he claims to have made the dis¬
covery earlier than 1761, while J. Hunter’s words
are, “ Before quitting my anatomical pursuits in
1760, 1 had discovered the organ of hearing in fishes,
and had the parts exposed and preserved in spirits.
In some instances, the canals were injected with co¬
loured wax, in others with metals, which, when the
bone was afterwards corroded, made elegant casts.”

Camper’s Essay on the Physical Education of In¬
fants , was occasioned by the subject having been pro¬
posed as a prize-essay by the Society of Sciences of
Haarlem ; and to such challenges we shall find that
Camper gave a ready and usually a successful response.
Among the points discussed, are the clothing of in¬
fants, their nourishment, their instruction, and, last¬
ly, their inoculation, at that time a subject new and
much canvassed, and to which our author lent the
whole weight of his authority. When treating of
clothing, he alludes to the melancholy fact, of the
number of girls in the higher and middling classes of
society, who, from diseased spine, grow up deformed,
and shews that the deformity is scarcely to be met
with among rude nations, or the children of the poor.
He inquires into the cause, and protests, in strong
terms, against the excess of care and peculiarity of
dress which cramps and thwarts the intentions and
operations of nature, and urges free and unrestrained
exercise and activity. We ridicule, says he, the Chi¬
nese, for maiming the feet of their female children,

MEMOIR OF CAMPER. 27

and yet we are guilty of a far greater folly in the
treatment of our own. The subjects of squinting
and stammering are a)SO brought under review, and
curious facts are stated with regard to them. The
questions regarding the phenomena of the early vi¬
sion of children are puzzling, and do not seem even
yet to be determined. It cannot be denied, he re¬
marks, that, with many animals, no sooner are they
born than they enjoy the faculty of distinguishing
objects with the utmost precision. Tlius, ducklings,
for example, not only swim from the first, but they
dart upon the flies and other insects for food, the
moment they are hatched. They therefore judge of
the form and distance of objects without any assist¬
ance from the sense of touch ; whilst the theories of
Molineux, Locke, and Cheselden, concerning the
vision of infants, would lead to very different con¬
clusions as respects their visual powers. For this
essay the Society of Haarlem voted him their ho¬
norary medal.

Camper had spent two years in the retirement of
the country, when he was again called to the ardu¬
ous duties of an academical life, by the appointment
which was conferred upon him of Professor of Me¬
dicine, Surgery, and Anatomy, in the University of
Groningen. The proximity of this city to his pre¬
sent habitation, the natural activity of his mind, and
a desire to be useful to the community, concurred
with a love of fame, which retirement had not ex¬
tinguished, in inducing him to undertake the office

28

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

which he was now so honourably called upon to dis¬
charge. He accordingly established himself and fa¬
mily at Groningen in the autumn of 1763 ; and was
shortly afterwards appointed the physician of the city.
At his inauguration as professor in 1764, he deli¬
vered a discourse, On the Extraordinary Analogy
between Vegetables and Animals; and this was soon
followed by an essay On Lameness , and its natu¬
ral Causes; and, shortly after, by a memoir On
the Mode in which broken Bones are healed; which
being sent to one of the learned societies of Edin¬
burgh, led to his being elected a member of its Royal
Society, and also of the Royal College of Physi¬
cians.

The subject of the analogy between vegetables
and animals is at once most interesting and difficult.
The Professor contended that the grand and leading
difference between these two kingdoms in nature
consisted in this, that animals have nerves, which
being connected with all the senses, unite them in a
common centre ; whilst, on the other hand, no dis¬
tinct nervous filaments were discoverable in vege¬
tables. But, while the Professor laid down this
broad distinction, he still argued, that, since vege¬
tables are provided with bloodvessels and glands, and
divided by the distinction of sexes, and as, moreover,
it cannot be denied that in animals there are irritable
parts, in which nervous matter makes a part, though
it cannot be demonstrated to the senses ; so, he con¬
tended, it might be admitted that a substance ana-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

2 9

logous to the nervous matter of animals might con¬
stitute a portion of the structure of vegetables also,
though it had not yet been traced. As vegetables
possess bloodvessels, without a heart, and absorbing
vessels without digesting organs, so it might be pre¬
sumed they have a peculiar nervous apparatus without
a brain. Botany in general, and that part of it espe¬
cially which is connected with minute anatomy and
physiology, has made vast progress since the days in
which this discourse was published. But it is not to
be forgotten, that the subject of this memoir had his
own share of merit in introducing and canvassing the
subject, and propounding his views, according to the
then ascertained facts of the science, and the ana¬
logies of living nature.

This preliminary address from the chair of ana¬
tomy and medicine in the University of Groningen,
clearly manifested that Camper wished it to be un¬
derstood, that he did not mean to take a confined
view of the different branches he had undertaken to
teach, but was desirous to lead his pupils over a
wide range of that field to which their attention was
directed. Hence it was that he did not confine him¬
self to human anatomy, but made it his constant
aim to illustrate every particular by the interesting
diversities of structure met with in the lower ani¬
mals ; and in this way he succeeded in infusing a
keen relish for natural history far beyond the limits
of his class-room. During the whole time of his
continuance in this city, he directed a large share of

30

MEMOIR OF CAMPER,

his attention to this department of science, and it
will be proper here to present our readers with a
brief analysis of these interesting labours.

In the course of the year after his settlement in
Groningen, the Professor delivered a lecture to the
public, on the colour of the skin of the Negro. His
introductory remarks shew the enlarged character of
his views. “ Every science,” he observes, “ of what¬
ever kind it may be, ought to have an object of ge¬
neral interest, as well as one of particular utility.
Thus anatomy, which comprehends a knowledge of
the bodily frame, would, in my view, be only a ste¬
rile study, if it were limited to what relates to me¬
dicine and surgery, without embracing other sciences
also. It should never be forgotten, that it forms
the most beautiful and the most important branch
of natural history, and is that study which, of all
others, most impresses us with sentiments of admira¬
tion and gratitude to the great First Cause.” He
seems to have been directed to the immediate sub¬
ject of this public lecture, not merely by its in¬
trinsic interest, but because it was a fashion with
many about the middle of the last century, some of
whom bore the name even of philosophers, to depre¬
ciate the character of the Negroes, and to question
whether they were derived from the same parent
stock. “ The difference of the colour of the skin/'
be observes, “ gives, at first sight, so marked a cha¬
racter, that some writers have thought that the Ne¬
groes constitute a peculiar race, which has

some

MEMOIR OP CAMPER.

31

other origin than the first man who was created
have resolved, then, to discuss this interesting suo
ject, and, if I can, to throw light upon the trutn,
that, at the beginning of the world, God created
only one man, who was Adam, to whom all man¬
kind owe their origin, whatever may be the traits o .
their countenance, or the colour of their skin. Some,
indeed, who will believe nothing but what has been
actually demonstrated, make objections to this view;
but these objections will, I trust, vanish, after the
exposition which I purpose to make.” He mentions
that the illustrious Mekel, one of the most distin¬
guished pupils of Haller, wrote from Berlin in 1757,
that the Negroes appear to be of a totally different
race of men, because their brain and their blood are
black, and hence arises, according to him, the colour
of their skin. Others, again, at this time, proceeded
even farther, denying that they were entitled to be
classed in the human family at all, and maintaining
that they formed a link between man and those ge¬
nera of animals which were most nearly allied to him.
The lecturer repelled these insinuations, and opposed
all such opinions with a warm and just indignation.
As we shall presently find, he had paid an extraor¬
dinary degree of attention to the genera of animals
above referred to, and he declares, in explicit terms,
that there were no more points of resemblance be¬
tween them and the Negro, than there were between
..em and men with a different coloured skin.

He then examines into the cause of the diversit y

32

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

of colour; and first, as to the exact situation of
the peculiarity. “ Examine,” says he, “ the skin of
this Negro. You see that the true shin is perfectly
white ; that over it is placed another membrane,
called the reticular tissue, and that this is the mem¬
brane that is black ; and finally, that it is covered by
a third membrane, the scarf-skin, which has been
compared to a fine varnish, lightly extended over
the coloured membrane, and designed to protect it.
Examine also this piece of skin, belonging to a very
fair person : you perceive over the true white shin
a membrane of a slightly brownish tint, and over
that, again, but quite distinct from it, a transparent
membrane. In other words, it clearly appears, that
Ihe whites, and the copper-coloured, have a coloured
membrane, which is placed under the scarf-skin, and
immediately above the true skin, just as it is in the
Negro.”

‘ ' The infants of Negroes are born white, or ra¬
ther reddish, like those of other people, but in two or
three days, the colour begins to change ; they speedi¬
ly become copper-coloured ; and, by the seventh or
eighth day, though never exposed to the sun, they
appear quite black.”

It is known that Negroes, in some rare instances,
are born quite white, or are true albinoes. Some¬
times, after being black for many years, they become
piebald, or wholly white, without their general health
suffering under the change. Camper, in this lec¬
ture, mentions another and yet more singular meta-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

33

morpbosis, which would not be very agreeable to the
prejudices of many amongst us : it is that of the white
becoming piebald with black, as deep as ebony. He
had seen only one case of this himself, but he refers
to other instances which had occurred under the
observation of others.

As to the efficient cause of the blackness of the
Negro, our author agrees with Aristotle and Galen
among the ancients, deservedly high authorities, and
Buffon and many others among the moderns, in
thinking, that it is owing to the great heat of the
climate which he inhabits ; and, in still more general
terms, he states, that it would appear that the tem¬
perature of the climate which men inhabit is the
cause of the tint of the colour which their skin as¬
sumes ; and that, after a long sojourn under the
scorching sun, a white race of men would become
black, and, in opposite circumstances, a black race
would become white. This is a very simple and
natural, and, it must be allowed, plausible supposition.
We cannot, however, now enter upon this interesting
and disputed subject ; only we think it right, in a
single word, to warn our readers, that the point is
by no means considered as settled, even at the pre¬
sent day, and that the mass of evidence, as well as
of authority, tends to throw considerable doubt on
the doctrine of the cause of colour as maintained by
Camper.

Whether our author was right or wrong in his
speculations on this particular point, it is impossible

c

34

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

3ot to admire the generous feelings by which he was
animated, at a time when the tide of prejudice, rest¬
ing on ignorance, and often strengthened by sordid
interest, and debasing cruelty, set most strongly in
an opposite direction. “ Thus am I satisfied,” says
he, “ with having proved, by anatomical observations
on our bodies, and particularly on our skin, that
there is no room for believing that the race of Ne¬
groes does not descend from Adam as our own.
****** Take all these things into your con¬
sideration, and you will find no difficulty in consi¬
dering them as much the genuine descendants of the
common father of our race as yourselves ; nor will
you hesitate with me to tender to the Negro a bro¬
ther’s hand.” This lecture was, at a later date,
transmitted to the Academie des Sciences of Paris,
and could not fail to produce its effect upon that
learned body, and on the reading population through¬
out France and the world.

♦

Veiy early in his career, Camper, influenced appa¬
rently by his hostility to the degrading views of the
Negro then so generally entertained, directed a large
share of his attention to the orang-outang, and to
the whole race of the monkey tribe. He prosecuted
his researches with uncommon ardour from the year
1754 down to a late period of his life, dissecting five
specimens of the orang-outang with his own hands,
and particularly examining three others when alive,
besides examining baboons, apes, &c. in numbers
that could not easily be reckoned. The result of
these labours he left in a work extending to about

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

35

half the size of an ordinary octavo volume- This
treatise on tins interesting family, though it could not
now-a-days be regarded as a complete monograph of
the genus, yet exhibits great knowledge for the time
it was composed, and unwearied perseverance in the
elucidation of the subject. We do not assert that
all the opinions which it promulgates would now be
admitted as correct, but we unhesitatingly affirm,
that there is a vast collection of curious and original
matter contained in the essay, especially much mi¬
nute detail in comparative anatomy; and that any
one wishing to make himself master of the subject,
and of the successive steps by which correct views
have been entertained, would be a great loser if he
neglected to make himself thoroughly acquainted with
the labours of Camper.

One circumstance is particularly conspicuous in
our author’s work on the Monkey tribe, as indeed it
is in all his treatises .on the different subjects of na¬
tural history which he undertakes to elucidate, and
we shall here take occasion to mention it, once for
all, as a marked characteristic of all his investiga¬
tions — we allude to the patient research he inva¬
riably displays in investigating what was previously
known on the subject, whether contained in the
writings of the ancient naturalists, such as Aristotle,
Galen, &c. or found in the works of Eustachius, Ve-
salius, and others, who, on the revival of learning,
led the way to renewed scientific observation. He
<thus does much to connect the knowledge of former

O

36

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

days with the discoveries of his own time, and dis¬
plays a laudable anxiety that every valuable fact,
once ascertained, shall not be again lost to the ar¬
chives of science.

The introduction to this curious work on Mon¬
keys, is mainly occupied in discussing what spe¬
cies were known to the ancients ; and in this con¬
nection he introduces about twelve of them to our
notice. This investigation naturally leads our author
to an interesting question, viz. How far the an¬
cients, and especially Galen, in the composition of
his great work on anatomy, acquired his knowledge
directly from the human subject, or how far it was
inferred from the structure of the lower animals,
especially those most approximating to man, such as
the orang-outang. It would occupy too much time
to attempt even the shortest analysis of his observa¬
tions and arguments on this subject, which, how¬
ever, are extremely pertinent, and such as could not
easily be controverted. His conclusion is that Ga¬
len, the favourite physician of Marcus Aurelius, and
probably the most popular, as the most famous phy¬
sician which Rome ever saw, had never dissected a
human subject, and made no use of such dissection
in the composition of his works on anatomy, and
other departments of medicine which have come
down to our times.

The body of the work is divided into ten chapters,
which treat of the nomenclature of the orang-outang ;
its classification, involving that of the species most

MEMOIR OP CAMPER.

37

nearly resembling it; of the organ of voice ; then, in
detail, of the internal viscera, in both sexes ; then of
the skeleton generally, compared with that of man,
and with others of the Simiadce; then particularly
of the head, vertebrae, pelvis, and lower and upper
extremities. On all these points, the treatise is most
minute and particular, passing by nothing of moment,
or which could throw light on the peculiar habits of
any of the species.

We shall now introduce to the notice of our
readers a few detached sentences only, concerning a
very singular structure in the necks of these animals,
which our author seems to have been the first to
discover, or, at all events, to investigate and eluci¬
date in a way at all satisfactory. The novelty of
his observations on the subject is sufficiently mani¬
fested by an anecdote he relates as having occurred
in the Royal Menagerie of Petit Loo. On Cam¬
per’s visiting it one day, he found the superinten¬
dent of the establishment in great dismay, at the
sudden appearance of an elastic swelling about the
neck of the orang-outang, extending along the front
and sides of the throat, and descending to nearly the
middle of the chest. The keeper supposed that it
was the commencement of some alarming malady,
and the Professor had considerable difficulty in per¬
suading him of the contrary.

“ In my first dissection of a monkey at Franeker,
I was not aware of the necessity of studying the
parts connected with the organ of voice, because tho

38

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

peculiarities presented in this organ by these ani¬
mals was not then known, and I had never seen any
allusion to it in any work on anatomy. When I
went to Amsterdam, I had abundant opportunities of
prosecuting my researches in these matters, and I
then discovered, that, in most of the species, there was
a perfect resemblance in this peculiarity, though there
were a few in whom it did not exist. I then, too,
found that Galen’s general description of this organ
corresponds neither with what is found in man, nor
with that which I am about to mention. Tyson’3
mark, also, that the organ of voice in the orang¬
outang, or pigmy, which he had examined, was ex¬
actly similar to that of man, only prompted me to
renewed research. None of the anatomists of the
two last centuries allude to the structure I am
about to describe. Buffon does not, nor does Dau-
benton, although it is not easy to conceive how it
escaped them.

“ On opening the throat of an African monkey, I
discovered, immediately under the skin, a pouch,
which I traced into the bone at the root of the
tongue — the os hyoides. It had an oval form, and
could easily be inflated with air. I found it com¬
municated with the throat, by a small chink at the
base of the epiglottis. Again, in dissecting a great
Mandril, I could discover there was a great cavity
in the neck, which could be filled with air, and which
then swelled up above the breast bone. Raising the
superficial parts with care, I observed this pouch be-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

39

gan immediately under the chin, and extended to
the collar and breast bones, and laterally to the
shoulder-blades. When inflated with air, it mea¬
sured seven inches by four. The communicating
opening in this animal was between the tongue-bone
and the pomum Adami. Lastly, in tne orang-outang,
I carefully raised the superficial parts, occasionally
inflating the bag with the blowpipe. Here I found
a double bag, and an opening for each side : the bag
extended below the upper part of the breast-bone,
and was in fact covered with the pectoral muscles.
Upwards it extended high above the collar-bones,
and far back, so as to get beneath the shoulder-
blades. It is here worthy of remark, that, in this
third variety, I at last found the exact anatomy de¬
scribed by Galen in reference to the organs of voice
generally, applying it to man, and never hinting at
the orang at all.” Thus, then, in some species of
this family, there is no hag, in others two, and some¬
times three, communicating with the os hyoides.
When this is the case, he adds, “ the structure bears
a considerable resemblance to the whistle which hun¬
ters use in calling their dogs ; for the air compressed
by the lungs into the cavity of the larynx, is forced
violently into the bony case, and from thence for¬
ward by the opening beneath the epiglottis into the
mouth of the animal, and so to a great distance.
It is thus I would account for the extraordinary noise
these animals produce, so as to be heard from an im-«
mense distance, which Markgraaf and other travel-

40

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

lers state to be altogether surprising, and which Buf-
fort has clearly established. Sometimes I have my¬
self noticed, that the orang-outang, when enraged,
utters hoarse and disagreeable sounds, and some¬
times, again, peculiar plaintive cries, which, 1 be¬
lieve, are produced by this singular apparatus.”

This peculiarity of the organ of voice is illustrated
by sketches and drawings made by the author him¬
self at the moment, according to his invariable prac¬
tice. Of the success and accuracy with which he
performed this part of his task, we are able to form
a tolerably accurate estimate, by the examination of
the folio volume of plates accompanying his works,
mostly prepared by himself, and executed from the
originals by the famous Vinkeles : it contains thirty-
four plates, and several hundred figures. The in¬
valuable habit of minute accuracy of observation,
derived from his practice of drawing, is well illus¬
trated by the following observation : “ M. Alla-

mand,” he says, “ the illustrious Conservator of the
Public Museum at Leyden, having published his
work on the orang, sent me a copy of the plate
which accompanied it. Upon examination, I found
that he had distinctly delineated nails upon the great
toes, as did also Mr Edwards, the Librarian of the
London College of Physicians, in the work edited
by him. On my calling his attention to the fact,
M. Allamand immediately corrected his mistake ;
qnd I speedily learned from a friend in the British
Museum, that Mr Edwards had been alike incau-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

41

tious and inaccurate.’ Camper’s correct observa¬
tion enabled him to detect another mistake — in some
respects of more importance — which had been com¬
mitted by many naturalists, and which consisted
in making the eye of the orang very closely to
resemble that of man. On this point, our author
observes : “ The coloured portion of the eye is very
large in the orang-outang, as in ail monkeys, and ir)
most quadrupeds, so that the white of the eye can¬
not be seen, and there is a total want of that sweet¬
ness and vivacity which so peculiarly distinguishes
the regard of man. M. de Seve has done the Jocko
of the Cabinet du Roi at Paris the honour of as¬
similating him to man in these particulars ; and
the orang delineated by M. Allamand is not free
from the same fault.” Upon another point, he again
observes, in a similar strain : “ It is the same with
the position of the lower limbs, and the whole gait
and bearing of the figure. And why, it may be
asked, have Tyson, Buffon, and other naturalists, re¬
presented these animals so like to man ? We unhe¬
sitatingly answer, to approximate them to the hu¬
man species — without in the meanwhile reflecting,
that, by their authority, they lead others into error.
It is not therefore only ignorant travellers, and un¬
informed amateurs, who, by the wonders they re¬
count from distant lands, propagate the erroneous
opinion, that there are animals which perfectly re¬
semble man, if they be not truly of the human race ;
but it is the directors of the principal museums in
Europe who contribute quite as much to this error

42

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

by the little care which they exercise in represent¬
ing these animals, and in preparing them for being
exhibited in their different collections.” This leads
him to a disquisition on the best modes of stuffing
and preserving animals, by taking casts, &c. all
of which appear admirable, and being the result of
much experience and ingenuity, merits the especial
regard of those engaged in such labour.

One of the investigations which, at this era of his
history, most deeply interested Camper, related to a
remarkable and highly interesting peculiarity in the
structure of birds. In all animals, the osseous or
bony system subserves two grand purposes. As it
includes all the hard and more solid parts of the
machine, it &cts,Jirst, as a substantial framework, to
which the soft parts are attached, and, in conjunc¬
tion with which, the process of locomotion is ac¬
complished ; and, secondly , it affords a covering and
defence to the many very delicate internal organs by
which the phenomena of life are maintained. The
lungs, again, are those organs by which, in all the
higher classes of animals, respiration is performed,
the purification of the blood is effected, and the vital
heat is preserved. These, in general terms, are the
principal functions performed by the osseous and re¬
spiratory apparatus in man and quadrupeds. Now,
up to the period under review, it had not been sus-
pected that there was any marked peculiarity in the
uses to which in birds these parts were appropriated.
Camper, however, whilst engaged in some minute

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

4 3

researches, was led to suspect that there was in
birds an extraordinary and peculiar connexion be¬
tween the two systems ; that the air-passages com¬
mon to all breathing animals, communicated in birds,
by free conduits, with nearly the whole osseous
structure, filling the interior of all the principal bones
with air, thus greatly lessening the specific gravity
of the animals, and facilitating their elevation into a
rarer medium. Camper not only discovered such
to be the fact, but he found that this valuable and im¬
portant end was attained by variations in the anato¬
mical structure of birds, so slight that it was not
surprising they should have previously eluded ana¬
tomical observation ; and in this very circumstance
he brought to light a remarkable manifestation of the
endless resources, the surpassing wisdom, and the
infinite power of the Almighty Architect.

It appears evident that the Professor assumes to
himself the whole merit of this great discovery in
natural history; and yet his claim has been disputed,
and John Hunter again appears as his competitor.
In this instance, however, it is evident that our au-r
thor had considerable priority, and superior and un¬
questionable right to all the honour, though Mr
Hunter, by subsequently going over the same ground,
may have somewhat extended the discovery. There
is so much naivete and natural feeling in the words
in which Camper speaks of his discovery, as well as
so much intrinsic interest in the subject itself, that
we shall quote his words somewhat freely.

44

Memoir of camper.

c< When,” says he, “ I examine the internal struo
ture of animals, I am forced to admire an observa¬
tion of the great Galileo — that we are ever meet¬
ing with new wonders ! Thus was I ravished, and,
as I think, not without reason, at the beautiful dis¬
covery in birds I made in February 1771, and com¬
municated immediately to my friends. The hones
of the wing, the clavicles, the bones of the chest,
the ribs, the vertebrae of the back, and in many also
those of the skull, and of the legs, are quite hollow,
without marrow, and receive into their cavities, along
with the respiration, common air, which renders the
birds lighter, and more capable of raising themselves
in the air. This is a discovery which is entirely
new, and which I made whilst busied about the me¬
chanism of their respiration, t was aware, accord¬
ing to the statement of Galileo and Borelli, that the
bones of birds are thin and hollow, so aiding them
in their flight : the general function of respiration
was also so well known, as to require no explana¬
tion ; but the respiration in the bones of the trunk,
wings, and legs, merits a more particular detail.

“ I call it a discovery, because I do not know an
author who gives the least hint of it. Count Mar-
sigli knew that the bones in the pelican were hollow
and very light; but he never dreamt of their con¬
taining air, nor of the manner in which it obtained
entrance into them. BufFon was well acquainted
with all that was known on this point previous to
his time, and he made good use of that knowledge

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

45

in his excellent discourse on the nature of birds,
but he says nothing concerning this extraordinary
adaptation of structure.

“ There was brought me on the 1st of February
1771 a great sea-eagle, of which I made a minute
dissection. Among other parts, I prepared one of
the thigh-bones, chiefly to shew its cavity, and the
fibres which support the bony plate in its interior.
I expected to find marrow, but was disappointed,
discovering nothing but the periosteum, and a large
vein, and some traces of air. Astonished at this
peculiarity, I took a sketch of it, and instantly went
to examine the skeletons of a common eagle, an ara,
and an owl. I found a great foramen in the upper
part of the thigh-bone of the eagle, but no appear¬
ance of one in the other two birds ; but I at the
same time discovered a foramen near the head of the
great bone of the wing, in the whole of my skele¬
tons of birds. This was true also with the recent
sea-eagle, and hence the first step of my reasoning ;

— there is a foramen in the leg bone, and air in it;

— there is also a foramen in the wing bone, and pro¬
bably there is air in it also, though, as yet, I know
not whence it comes. It happened that at this time
I had an owl which had just died : I drilled a small
hole in the principal bone of its wing ; to this I ap¬
plied a blowpipe, and found, to my great delight,
hat, in blowing through it, I inflated the whole of
the chest, and also of the abdomen ; after this, the
air made its escape by the windpipe I then re-

46

MEMOIR OP CAMPER.

versed the experiment, by introducing the instru¬
ment into the windpipe, and discovered that the air
escaped through the small hole I had drilled. When
I drilled a hole in the bone of the thigh, the same
results did not follow.

“ It happened that the chest of the eagle had
been too much injured by the shot to allow me to
repeat all the experiments upon it. However, I di¬
rected a stream of air through its thigh-bone, and
perceived that the lining membrane of the lungs,
which extended into the abdomen, formed a mem*,
branous conduit, which, running along with the ves¬
sels of the leg, terminated at the foramen in the
thigh-bone, and thus offered a free passage by which
the air could enter. This redoubled my ardour to
push my researches farther.”

He then made experiments upon the turkey-cock,
and other domestic fowls, and also on the stork and
heath-cock. In the former, the structure was like
that of the owl : in the latter, again, it resembled
that of the eagle ; and, from this circumstance, he
inferred, that the transmission of air into the thigh-
bones was not common to all birds, but peculiar to
those which were strong on the wing. He also ex¬
amined a great number of our most common birds,
such as the sparrow, the lark, &c. and thereby found
his views so far confirmed.

In conclusion, he remarks (for we must not ex¬
tend our analysis further), “ I flatter myself that I
have discovered, that, in many birds, and more cs-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

47

pecially in birds of prey, all the bones which can
communicate with the chest or abdomen, are filled
with air, and I have demonstrated the foramina bv
which the air regularly enters and issues, with the
respiration. The air which thus fills the cavities,
must necessarily become lighter, as affected by the
temperature of the body, so that the weight of the
animals must thus become specifically less than that
of the air, thereby enabling them to fly with much
greater facility.” *

He then remarks, that traces of these osseous air-
cells are to be found in some other animals, and that
there is an instance of it even in man, in the bony
protuberance behind the ear, which is filled with air,
received from the common air-passages ; and he
draws some conclusions respecting the use of the
maiTow, the growth and reparation of bone, and the
formation of callus, which are important in a phy¬
siological and pathological point of view.

This interesting subject he prosecuted with great
ardour for a succession of years. As already stated,
he immediately demonstrated the discovery to his
class, and sent a memoir on the subject to the
Batavian Society of Rotterdam ; and next year
transmitted a paper to Id Academie des Sciences ,
which afterwards appeared in its Transactions — a
proof, as the Professor remarks, that at this epoch
no one had previously known this singular structure.

* The Solan Goose ( Sula alba ) will present one of the
most beautiful illustrations of this curious structure. — Ed.

48

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

Other papers on the subject were published by him
from time to time ; and we apprehend, that, on the
most critical investigation, no one can deny to him
that fair fame which he here claims as a discoverer.

Along with the memoir just alluded to, Camper
transmitted to the Academic des Sciences other pa¬
pers on natural history. One was on the anato¬
mical structure of the Peccari, a peculiar animal of
the hog family; and another on the structure of the
Ant-eater (fourmilier) of the Cape of Good Hope,
the existence of which had previously been doubted

bv Buffon. About the same time, he sent to the
*

Society at Haarlem a memoir On the Organ of
Hearing in the Whale , and another on the Por¬
poise,

We have already mentioned, that, when Camper
removed to Groningen in 1763, to undertake the
duties of Professor in the University, he was shortly
afterwards appointed to the office of Physician to
the City. As many may be unacquainted with the
nature of this appointment, inasmuch as nothing si¬
milar exists in this country, it may be right to re¬
mark, that in several of the continental states, it has
long been the practice for the general government,
or the municipal rulers, to select one or more me¬
dical men of eminence, to whom, in all emergencies
affecting the public health, they are in the habit of
applying for counsel ; and a part of whose duty it
is to keep a watchful eye on every thing that en¬
dangers or threatens the public safety : they con-

i

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

49

stitute, in short, a permanent medical police, from
whose watchfulness and intelligence much benefit is
expected, and, we may add, is not unfrequently de¬
rived. It was to this honourable office in Gronin¬
gen, that, as above stated, Camper was appoint¬
ed.

He, however, was the last man to confine himself
to the merely prescribed routine of official duty, and
therefore no one will be surprised to learn, that, ani¬
mated by those enlarged and benevolent views to
which we have already had occasion to advert, he
very speedily exerted himself in the formation of an
agricultural society for the district, the chief object
of which was to promote experiments and improve¬
ments in all the various branches of farming and
husbandry. In this society he was prevailed upon
to undertake the laborious duties of secretary ; and
it was not long before his energy and his scientific
acquirements were put into requisition, and in a way
which did the highest honour to his patriotism. He
was in fact an enthusiastic agriculturist ; and, more
especially in his own department, that which con¬
cerned live stock, their health and their diseases, he
displayed a zeal which, so far as our information ex¬
tends, has never been exceeded. As a striking proof
of his zeal, we may mention, that, during the exist¬
ence of an epidemic disorder which raged among the
cattle, he, in the course of his inquiries into its na¬
ture, dissected with his own hands more than sjx
hundred animals which had become its victims.

50

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

Our author’s investigations regarding this epide¬
mic, and other matters relating to cattle, are of
so much interest, that our readers, we doubt not,
will thank us for the following notices concerning
them.

The first epidemic disorder among the cattle to
which we shall allude, is one which made its appear¬
ance at Groningen and its neighbourhood in 1768.
The visitation proved most disastrous, especially in
those rural districts where the inhabitants depended
almost wholly on the prosperity of their flocks. In
some villages it left not a solitary individual of the race
behind ; so that we need not wonder that it excited
the most general attention, and created no small panic.
In West Friesland, the province in which Groningen
is situated, it attacked, according to tables published
by order of the Etats de Holland , within the period
of six months, upwards of 64,000 head, in East
Friesland 68,000, whilst in Holland proper the num¬
ber exceeded 153,000 : in the three provinces toge¬
ther, the number attacked amounted to 286,647, of
which 208,354 died within six months ?

Under these circumstances, many of the inhabi¬
tants of the country, as well as the magistrates oi
the capital, applied to Camper, and consulted him
on the best mode of combating, and, if possible, of
extirpating this disorder. This was a sufficient sti¬
mulus to his zeal, and, availing himself of the occa¬
sion, he endeavoured, in a variety of ways, to serve
his countrymen. He determined to gratify their

9

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

51

curiosity, by delivering public lectures on the epi¬
demic, thereby to combat every injurious prejudice,
and spread that intelligence which could not fail to
be productive of benefit. He also established a new
society, the specific object of which was to promote
experiment and inquiry into the best modes of op¬
posing the dreadful scourge. His course of public
lectures was not confined to the mere epidemic, but
he took occasion to prefix to it several lectures on
the structure of oxen, which was only in keeping
with many of his other plans for exciting a taste for
natural history. These lectures were highly popu¬
lar, and excited the keenest interest in all classes of
the community. They were immediately published,
and were speedily translated into German, and so
spread over the Empire, which had too much rea¬
son to feel deeply interested in the subject. The
early lectures were occupied by a regular demonstra¬
tion of the anatomy of the animal, with the physio¬
logy, including the phenomena and the uses of ru¬
mination, &c. ; and the later lectures were dedicated
to a description of the epidemic itself. This was
pursued in his usual regular and ample method, in¬
cluding the history, nature, symptoms, and cure of
the disorder. Concerning the history , he seems to
have ransacked the records of history, and supplies
references and notices from before the Christian era,
concerning those epidemics which, at various periods,
had attacked the lower animals. He quoted from
the elder Cato’s work on agriculture, from Cola-

52

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

mella, and other of the ancients, and so down to his
own day. From this survey, it would appear, that
previous epidemics among the cattle had frequently
occurred. From 1710 to 1719 there was a great
mortality among them all over Europe ; and again,
in 1740, when it attracted the attention of such men
as Laneisi, Haller, and Sauvages, and led to discus¬
sions in the Memoires de V Academie des Sciences ,
and to the introduction of papers in the London
Philosophical Transactions. Concerning its nature ,
we shall only observe, that Camper considered it as
most allied to the low putrid fever in man.

Very many were the disappointments before any
thing was discovered which could at all be regarded
as a remedy, for every medicine which was tried
proved wholly unavailing. Inoculation for the com¬
plaint had been recently introduced into England,
but the trials first made in Holland promised very
small success ; out of seventeen animals inocu¬
lated, only three lived ; and it is therefore not sur¬
prising that the peasantry offered opposition, and in
some instances became quite furious against the ex¬
periments. By-and-by, however, it was observed
that when an animal once recovered, it seldom or
never became the subject of a future attack, and this
suggested the idea of inoculating only the calves
bred from animals that were thus protected. This
was done, when, having been sedulously guarded
against all exposure, they were in high health, and
had undergone a course of medicine which was sup-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

53

posed to put them in the best possible condition for
withstanding the disease. Under this plan it was
found that the vast majority came through the com¬
plaint, and were never afterwards liable to its inva¬
sion. But we give this important result in our au¬
thor’s own words. “ The beneficial results are too
important to our farmers that they should ever be
induced to give up this easy method of saving
their stock. They had remarked that calves dropt
by cows which had undergone the distemper, had in
general far less violent attacks as the results of the
inoculation ; and that they recovered in much
greater numbers than the calves of other cows. Con¬
fining, then, the experiment to this class, under this
combination of circumstances, the disease was so
mild, that the farmers often doubted if the calves,
though inoculated, really underwent the disease.
I have sometimes myself inoculated between two
and three score at a time, and observed the calves
disporting themselves gaily in the stable-yard. Those
of them which were most seriously affected, would
withdraw for a time, but speedily returned, and thus
they all passed safely through the disorder, so that
scarcely one in a hundred perished. Sometimes,
indeed, it happened, that when the inoculated dis¬
ease was not well marked, or where perhaps the
operation had altogether failed, these calves were af¬
terwards unexpectedly seized with the disorder, and
became its victims, while feeding with herds which
were infected by it. This liability, alike prejudicial

54

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

to the farmer and the trader, presently led the way
to a double inoculation ; first ere the calf left the
cow-house ; and secondly, when it had attained the
age of three or four months ; and this was resorted
to, not because it was believed that they were twice
susceptible of taking the disease by inoculation or
otherwise, but that no doubt might possibly remain

that they had in reality taken, and so passed through

* , >>

It.

Mankind have been in a most especial manner in¬
debted to the cow, inasmuch as inoculation was su¬
perseded by vaccination — the security against one
of the greatest plagues which was ever indicted up¬
on our race. Would our modern Jenners be of¬
fended, if we should venture to hint, that the com¬
plete success which attended the method of vacci¬
nation in the case of the cow, might, by possibility,
supply them with a hint which would afresh remove
the alarm, the uncertainty, and the danger which,
at the present moment, is experienced on the sub¬
ject of vaccination?

And as we have been thus bold in tendering a
hint to the profession of which Camper was so great
an ornament, so we may venture to suggest that his
inquiries into another disease to which cattle are
subject, may supply to them a piece of useful infor¬
mation.

It is a matter of general notoriety, that a wound
proceeding from the body of a dead person, is often the
most poisonous and deadly of any that can be inflicted.

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

55

It is also, vve believe, very well known, that a wound
equally dangerous is occasionally the result of con¬
tact, not of a human body, but of an animal slaught¬
ered by the butcher, and exposed in the shambles.
When, in this country, an accident happens from this
latter cause, it is usually numbered among those ano¬
malous occurrences of which no explanation is to be
expected. Our indefatigable agriculturist, however,
has thrown some light on the point, by informing us
that the poisonous property resides in the flesh of
cattle which have died of a certain disease, of which
he gives the symptoms, and supplies the history.

“ In some districts of Friesland, for it does not
pervade the whole, and these usually low and damp
situations, the disease in question annually occurs
epidemically, and under the name of The poison —
('t fenyn ), proves fatal to many cattle. It has also
been observed in Livonia, Finland, and in some parts
of Russia.” According to our author, Van Phelsum
is the only writer who had previously taken notice
of it. It is a disease, consequently, which previously
had been little known, and the cause of which was
very obscure. The first symptoms are loss of appe¬
tite and diminution of the milk in milch cows ; then
the rumination nearly ceases, and sometimes large
tumours appear under the skin, which are not, how¬
ever, critical , and sometimes disappear. This is fol¬
lowed by a violent but low fever, under which the
animal expires. The whole family of black cattle,

56

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

are alike subject to this disorder, though it does not
appear, as has been asserted, to attack either sheep
or horses. “ It is certain,” says our author, “ that
where the fluids of the animals which have thus died,
are received into the human system, whether by a
wound, more or less recent, or sometimes through
the skin itself, though wholly unbroken, they pro¬
duce inflammation and mortification, which frequent¬
ly ends in death. Thus butchers cooks, tanners,
&c. occasionally fall victims to this disorder.” It is
a fresh proof of Camper’s zeal for science, that not¬
withstanding the hazard he thereby incurred, he
made accurate examinations after death, and mi¬
nutely recorded the morbid appearances he discover¬
ed in these animals.

Nor are these the only valuable contributions
which Camper has supplied to the veterinary art.
“ In Friesland, the name of Bilzucht is attached to
a disease which attacks young calves in all seasons of
the year, in winter and summer, in the stable-yards
and in the meadows. In a few days, without any
previous warning, it produces death. It consists of
a swelling, which usually appears on their thighs and
haunches, and more rarely on their shoulders. It
then very rapidly produces mortification, which is not
confined to the swelling, but pervades all the neigh¬
bouring muscles, and penetrates even to the bone.
It is always incurable, and death is the certain con¬
sequence. I have dissected the parts after death ;

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

57

they were sphacelated, as the external appearances
indicated, but 1 could discover no cause of disease
in any of the internal viscera.”

One other proof of Camper’s zeal as an agricultu¬
rist, and we have done with him in this useful and
honourable character.

During some years, the calves which went to pas¬
ture were attacked with cough, &c., which gradually
got worse, and terminated in destroying the animal
with intense suffering. The disease was uniformly
fatal. A thousand head were cut off' in the neigh¬
bourhood of Groningen in a short time by this dis¬
ease, without the cause being discovered, or any
efficient remedy suggested.

“ To inquire if any thing could be attempted for
its removal, I went,” says Camper, “to visit one of
my acquaintances, who, of fifty calves, lost, in the
month of August, more than thirty, in a meadow
where they fed along with many cows, heifers, horses,
sheep, &c. not one of which, however, was affected.
On the 2d of September, I examined one of the car¬
casses, and found the digestive organs were all sound.
On opening the chest with great care, I found it was
quite free from inflammation, I then removed the
tongue and windpipe, and scarcely had I opened the
gullet when I discovered millions of worms. They
were from an inch and a half to two inches long,
white and slender. I traced them down the wind¬
pipe, and found myriads of them in the proper sub¬
stance of the lungs. In another individual, I found

58

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

a great cluster of many millions of these worms,
which obstructed the wind-pipe, and had choked
the animal. In all that died from the disease, the
cellular membrane of the lungs was filled with the
worms, while the air-cells were free. Examined
through the microscope, the worms were found point¬
ed at head and tail, and about one- sixth of an inch
in width ; they were also discovered to be viviparous.
I have made extensive, though fruitless researches,
to find any account of this disease in authors, or any
description of the worms in the works of naturalists.
Klien, Linnaeus, Pallas, and Muller, and all those
who write particularly on worms, have, confounded
them with the Vena medinensis. The appellation
gordius has been given to a filiform worm, but in
comparing it with this pulmonary one, it is evidently
distinct. It is singular that Gesner has given to a
worm somewhat similar, the name of Wasser-kalb ,
at the same time observing, that he does not know
its origin. He, however, likewise knew that the
calves sometimes swallowed them with the water
which they drank, and at the great peril of their
lives. Gesner, therefore, knew that there were
worms which induced a disease in calves which was
frequently mortal.” The celebrated M. Goese, in
his admirable essay, Hist. Nat. des Vers Intestin .
des Animaux , written several years afterwards, de¬
nominated this species Les Vers de Camper.

“ I lost no time,” he continues, “ in stating in the
public papers a discovery so important for the coun-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

59

try, inviting co-operation in my labours, and volun*
teering to come and examine the disease in any dis¬
trict where it might break out. If ever any cases
should again occur under my control, I should direct
the animals to he shut up in huts made for the pur¬
pose, where, by continual fumigations, they should
breath a medicated air. The subject is important,
not to my native country only, but to Europe ; and
I would invite all naturalists, not merely to examine
the nature of the disease, but also to inquire into the
most effectual and least expensive remedies. I can¬
not reflect upon the benevolent and humane disposi¬
tion now so prevalent, without experiencing the liv-
liest delight, that there no where exists the people
who will not, free from all petty national interest,
take their share in this great object, which alike con¬
cerns us all.”

Camper’s lectures on Cattle, will manifest that
our author Aid not confine his regards to the class of
regular’ students, but was anxious that his fellow-ci¬
tizens at large should enjoy the benefit of his in¬
structions ; and numerous were the occasions which
he took to manifest this desire. Thus, if any thing
occurred to prevent the regular demonstrations in
the anatomical theatre, or any little incident awak¬
ened public curiosity, such as the capture of a mer¬
maid or a whale, he readily appeared before his fel¬
low-citizens, at once to gratify and instruct them ;
and we need scarcely add that these benevolent ef¬
forts were usually crowned with the most gratifying

60

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

success. “ How often,” on one occasion he remarks,

“ have I made you regardless of the asperities of
winter, while your attention has been rivetted when
I explained to you the structure of the tortoise, the
chamois, or some other and still rarer animal.”

One of these occasions occurred during the long
continued and severe winter of 1771-2, when Cam¬
per had recently received from the Governor of the
Cape of Good Hope, the head of a double-horned
rhinoceros. It had reached him, we may remark,
at a peculiarly fortunate time ; for many fossil bones
and heads of this animal had, from time to time, been
found in Siberia, and had been frequently described,
whilst no specimen of the animal was contained in
any of the European cabinets, nor was there any sa¬
tisfactory account of a living one; in fact, it was sup¬
posed it had become extinct, or was antediluvian.
Delighted with his valuable present, Camper opened
his class-room to the inhabitants of Gn&ingen, and
lectured on the subject, prefacing his instructions
with a discourse on the delights of Natural History,
and its connexion with belles lettres and antiquities.
He then took occasion to congratulate his audience
on the benefits which their extended commerce con¬
ferred on science. He remarked, that their own
country, and Europe itself, was too confined for theii
curiosity, and that the four quarters of the globe
were put under requisition for them. “ Visit,” says
he, “ our principal towns, and look at the splendid
museums supplied from every climate under heaven,

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

61

and you will be satisfied that the industrious mer¬
chant knows how to amass treasures which, in his
quiet retreat, assist him in admiring the wonders of
creation.” The subjects involved in these lectures,
including the antique models, the mosaic of Pales¬
trina, the statements of Pausanias, and the epigrams
of Martial, were such as he expatiated upon with
delight, and into which we regret that we must not
follow him. “ Besides all this,” he exclaims, “ through
our very love of these delightful studies, we enjoy
the felicity of communicating the discoveries we
make to thousands of our fellow-men, thus scatter¬
ing the profusion of our riches without diminishing
the amount of our knowledge or of our enjoy¬
ments.”

His popularity as a lecturer, combined with the
general estimation in which he was held, led to the
solicitation of another class of his fellow-citizens, that
he would lecture to them on a very different sub¬
ject. The requisitionists were the lawyers, the sub¬
ject, Legal Medicine. This request was made in
1773, the last year of his sojourn at Groningen ; and
it was no sooner made than complied with. The
course was attended among others, by most of his
colleagues in the University, and also by the Magi¬
strates of the City. The most marked tokens of ge¬
neral approbation were not wanting, and these were
ever to Camper the richest reward for all his la¬
bours.

We have still to introduce to the notice of our

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

readers one other course of lectures, on & subject
essentially different from any of the others to which
we have adverted, viz. On the Connexion between
the Science oj Anatomy , and the Arts of Drawing,
Painting and Sculpture. This subject began se¬
riously to occupy our author’s mind at an early epoch
of bis history, and continued to interest him till nearly
the close of his life. But he shall speak for himself.
“ Painting, and whatever relates to the art, has been
my favourite amusement from my earliest years ; and
as the characteristic differences in men and animals
appeared to me one of the most interesting objects
in nature, I was disposed to pay them more than or¬
dinary attention.

“ When I copied from the models of the ancient
Greeks, or placed before me the beautiful figures of
Michael-Angelo, and other celebrated masters of
later date, I observed a very great difference between
the faces of these artists and our own. At sixteen
years of age I began to paint in oil, chiefly from the
Flemish masters; but as I was already captivated with
the superior dignity observable in the antique models,
the style of these masters was not agreeable to me.
As I advanced in years my attention increased ; and
I imagined, that hy a single glance, I could distinguish
antiques, and fix the very period in which they were
executed.

“ When I gave lectures in the Athenaeum at Am¬
sterdam, I was fully convinced that the ball of the
head, forming the cavity destined to contain the

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

63

brain, was in general very uniform ; and that the po¬
sition of the upper and lower jaws was the manifest
cause of the most striking differences. The same
observation may be extended from quadrupeds down
to the finny race.

“ The above examination also enabled me to dis¬
cover whence those changes arose which progres¬
sively take place in our features, from infancy to the
most advanced age. I was still, however, unable
to explain in what manner it was that the Greeks
should have acquired, at a very remote period, the
singular and dignified expression they gave to their
figures, and which I had never seen perfectly equal¬
led. I perceived, moreover, that in the copies taken
from them the facial line did not differ from our own.

“ Having contemplated the inhabitants of various
nations with the greatest attention, I conceived that
a striking difference was occasioned, not merely by
the position of the lower jaw, but also by the quad¬
rangular form, and by the breadth of the face. Or.
comparing a great many heads together, I also ob¬
served that a line drawn down the forehead and pass¬
ing the upper lip indicated much of the difference in
natural physiognomy. This discovery formed the
basis of my edifice.

“ The populous city of Amsterdam afforded me
great facilities for further observation, from early in¬
fancy to decrepit old age. By comparing these with
each other, my thoughts were directed to the natu¬
ral differences occasioned by the gradual growth of

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

U

the parts in youth, and their decay in advanced age ;
and also to the manner in which this discrepancy in
years might be most accurately delineated. Hence
arose the Jirst-story of my edifice. The second was
formed by a critical examination of the line which
the ancient masters preferred. Finally, I discovered
a new and more simple manner of portraying any
form of head I pleased, whether of man or amnia* ,
with much greater precision.

“ These pursuits, however, were nearly totally n ®-
glected until the year 1767, when examining in the
house of the Count de Bentinck a number of beautiful
intaglios and cameos, I was able immediately to dis¬
tinguish the originals from counterfeits, and the
Grecian from the Roman. This led to inquiry into
the principles of my knowledge, and a request to ar¬
range and more fully explain my views.

“ Upon retiring into the country for relaxation, I
began the task ; when the work swelling under my
hands, not only became more extensive, but pro¬
mised to be more generally useful. I flattered my¬
self it would prove acceptable not only to those who
admire the masterly performances of the ancient
masters, but also to those who are engaged in the
study of natural history, and drawing and sculpture
The first sketch of the work was finished in 1768.

“ Delighted with my discoveries, as is generally
the case, I communicated them to several admirers
of the fine arts, who imagined that service might be
rendered to the science of painting, and more parti-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

er

cularly to the Academy of Drawing established at
Amsterdam, were I there to lecture on the subject.
The first lectures were delivered in 1770, the sub¬
sequent ones in 1774 and 1778.”

To this sketch of the method in which these in¬
vestigations were made, we shall now add the most
summary account of the discoveries themselves ; and
this we are happy to do in the words of the late emi¬
nent Dr Cogan, who, attracted to the work by its high
celebrity in Holland, and convinced of the truth and
great utility of the principles advanced, undertook
its translation, and executed it in a manner that has
been regarded as a model of such performances.
The translation extends to the size of a handsome
quarto of 260 pages, divided into two books, and
containing nearly a hundred illustrative sketches.

“ The work is based upon the discovery of a more
immediate and intimate connexion between the
sciences of human and comparative anatomy, and of
the natural history of animals, with the art of deli¬
neation, than could have been supposed to exist.
The first books contain the substance of several lec¬
tures, which was afterwards revised and carefully
prepared for publication by Professor Camper him¬
self. The great object was to shew that natural dif¬
ferences might be reduced to rules ; of which the
direction of the facial line forms the fundamental
norma or canon ; and that these directions and inclina¬
tions are always accompanied by correspondent form,
size, and position of the other parts of the cianium.

E

66

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

a knowledge of which will prevent the artist from
blending the featjres of different nations in the same
individual, and enable him to give that true charac¬
ter to national figures, which has been always felt as
a beauty, and the want of it as a defect, though the
cause has lain concealed. This subject may justly
be considered as new in the natural history of man,
and will require the joint labours of physiologists to
surmount all the difficulties attending it.

“ The other articles minutely treated of in this
book, relate to a new manner of drawing portraits in
profile, according to certain rules deduced from the
conformation of the cranium, and the changes made hy
age; which, being founded on indisputable principles,
cannot be subject to any incertitude. The great
utility of the remarks concerning the beauties of the
ancients, will be generally apparent.

“ The contents of the second book, are the small
remains of lectures upon another subject relative to
drawing, the ideas of which suggested themselves
while the Professor was engaged in the pursuit of
the first object. They were collected from imper¬
fect manuscripts, and published by his son, in as com¬
plete a manner as circumstances would allow. Al
though from this cause, the lectures on the manne
of delineating the different passions, and on the points
of similarity between quadrupeds, birds, and fishes,
founded upon this similarity, are necessarily imper¬
fect, yet they may be deemed a valuable acquisition
to the painter. They abound with mucji criticism.

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

67

furnish hints which promise peculiar advantage
to the delineator of human passions, or the objects
of natural history. It is a work of entirely a prac¬
tical nature, and replete with important rules.” In
conclusion, Dr Cogan states, that if the principles
advanced and illustrated, should appear to the Eng¬
lish connoisseurs as important as they did to the au¬
thor, and to his admirers in the Dutch Netherlands,
the work must be highly prized in Britain.

Having now endeavoured to convey within our
limits, and in the fewest possible words, some gene¬
ral notion of the objects and plan of this very cele¬
brated work, we can only select from it a single point
on which to insist for a moment longer. It is re¬
specting that line and angle used by the naturalist,
and known by the name of Camper’s angle, from the
great attention he devoted to it, and the success with
which be brought it into general notice. Having
observed, as a general law, that there is a corre¬
spondence between the outer table of the cranium,
and the brain itself, so that the size of the latter may
be generally inferred from the appearance of the
former, and having also observed from his examina¬
tions of the heads of men and animals, that there
was a great diversity between the relative bearings
of the front part of the cranium and the jaw bones, he
denominated a line drawn along the frontal bone
downwards, and passing the insertion of the front
teeth, the facial line ; which again being met by an¬
other line, extending from the external opening of

68

BXEMOIR OF HAMPER.

the ear to the same point of the upper jaw, formed
with the former line an angle, which he called the
facial angle ; the relative size of which produced the
most marked difference in the expression of the coun¬
tenance, as it was also regarded a gage of the intel¬
lect of man and beast.

His own estimate of the value of this observation
may be gathered from the following quotation. “ I
have observed that in quadrupeds, both genus and
species may be distinguished by the position of the
upper jaw bones immediately before, above, or oblique
under the ball of the cranium. I have drawn the
heads of many different animals on the same line ;
which exhibits an appearance that not only would
be of inconceivable service in natural history, but of
the greatest use to the painter.” In another place,
he remarks, “ The two extremities of the facial angle
are 70 or 100 degrees — from the Negro to the Gre¬
cian antique; make it under 70 degrees, and you
describe an orang-outang, or an ape : lessen it more,
and you havy the head of a dog ; increase the mini¬
mum, and you form a fowl, a snipe for example,
the facial line of which is nearly parallel with the
horizon. No space is now left for the teeth, and
hence they have none. If the projecting part of the
forehead be made to exceed 100°, the head becomes
misshapen, and assumes the appearance of hydroce¬
phalus. It is very surprising that the artists of an¬
cient Greece should have chosen precisely the maxi¬
mum ; whilst the best Roman artists have limited

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

69

themselves to the 95th degree, which is by no means
so pleasing.”

In such occupations and labours as these were ten
years of Camper’s busy and active life passed amidst
a celebrity which was daily increasing. Often used
he to say that he considered the years he spent at
Groningen, as among the happiest of his life ; and
probably he would never have quitted this residence,
had not the wishes of his wife, and his own anxiety
to superintend the education of his children, induced
him to make the sacrifice of his own enjoyments,
and once more to remove to the neighbourhood of
Franeker, at the academy of which town his sons
were to be placed.

In this comparative retirement, being relieved from
a variety of public avocations, he rejoiced to find
time upon his hands, which he might employ in the
prosecution of his scientific pursuits. Some years
previous to his quitting Groningen, the small-pox
had been committing great ravages, and he exerted
himself much in endeavours to mitigate the fearful
plague. Inoculation was then making its way from
England over the Continent, and he was among the
first to promote its adoption. The early experi¬
ments which he made in artificially inducing the
disease, under favourable circumstances, shewed him
its comparative safety, and consequent value ; and he
accordingly strongly urged its adoption in a pamphlet,
whicn was speedily translated into German at Leip-

70

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

zig in 1772. It was this same year, that he ob¬
tained the Gold Medal of the Royal Academy of
Toulouse, for his answer to the question, “ What is
the best method for Inoculating for the Small-pox ?
And now, in 1774, this memoir was published, along
with Critical Observations on Van-Swieten’s Com¬
mentaries on Small-pox. About this time he also
received the prize of the Royal Academy of Lyons,
for a work on the Chronic Diseases of the Lungs .
To this last Academy, he sent three other commu¬
nications on professional subjects ; and about the
same time published three pamphlets at Leeuwarden,
on Suicide , Infanticide , and the Signs of Life or
Death in New-born Infants. Much about the same
time, he received two Gold Medals from L’Academie
Royale de Chirm-gene of Paris, the one for a commu¬
nication On the Effects , good and bad , of Air in
Surgical Diseases ", and the other On the Effects of
Ointments , 8$c. on Wounds . To the Batavian So¬
ciety at Rotterdam, besides a Surgical Essay, he
transmitted a memoir On the Croaking of the Frog ;
and busied himself during the winter in minutely
examining a young elephant wnich had died in the
Menagerie of the Prince of Orange. He imme¬
diately published a succinct account of this exami¬
nation in one of the Dutch periodicals, and devoted
a considerable portion of time in succeeding years,
to the examination of other species of the genus, and
in perfecting this treatise ; which was ultimately pub¬
lished in French by his son, who himself seems

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

71

thoroughly to have studied the subject, and incor¬
porated his own views, along with those of his fa¬
ther.

Our remarks on the important work must neces¬
sarily be very brief. We must, however, observe,
that it is perhaps the most extensive and complete
treatise to be found amongst his writings ; it occu¬
pies the larger half of a common-sized octavo volume,
and is illustrated by more than ninety figures, drawn
by himself. He had an opportunity of examining
six specimens, and, as usual, he seems to be perfectly
familiar with the views entertained by the ancients,
as well as those promulgated in more modern times.
The work contains ten chapters, including a learned
discussion on the species and native habitat of the
elephant, and a description of the external form ; the
internal parts taken up seriatim ; the soft parts of the
head, including the proboscis, eyes, ears, tongue,
throat and brain, also the tusks and teeth, the bones
of the cranium, and finally the vertebrae, and anterior
and posterior extremities; all discussed with an en¬
largement of view, and an accuracy of detail, which
leave little to desire.

We had intended to introduce many passages cal¬
culated to exhibit Camper’s acumen and success as
a naturalist, but our limited space forbids; and we
must therefore content ourselves with a few short
extracts, taken very much, at random.

The chapter on the different species is remarkably

72

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

interesting. He remarks, “ The history of the great
quadrupeds which are strangers to the temperate
zone, especially require revision, and a judicious
comparison of former observations ; the most inaccu¬
rate ideas are generally entertained of these colossal
animals, and the mechanism of their organs, and the
discrimination of the species is buried in deep ob¬
scurity. It was reserved for comparative anatomy
to draw aside the veil, and point out the differences
which distinguish the living species of the genus, as
well as their alliances with those branches of the
original stock, of which only fossil debris now re¬
main. It has usually been supposed that the former
were descended from one identical family, and that
the latter were peculiar in every respect.” “ Cam¬
per,” says his son, “ was the first of the moderns to
point out the distinctive characters of the genus, and
he immediately communicated his discoveries to
such of his acquaintances as were interested in Na¬
tural History.” He examines how far the tusks
constitute a ground of distinction ; at the same time
stating in which species, whether Asiatic, African,
or fossil, they are found or wanting; and then points
out a less equivocal mark, in the minute structure of
the great molares, which both Blumenbach and Cu¬
vier have adopted in their classifications. We may
describe this mark in the language of Blumenbach.
“ Elephas Asiaticus, dentium molarium corona,
lineis undulatis distincta. Elephas Africanus*

MEMOIR OF CAMPER,

73

dentium molarium corona, rhombis distincta ; o
which the only accurate translation is to be found in
an examination of the plates, or of specimens.

The debris of the fossil elephants which are found,
whether near the surface, or at greater depths, ac¬
cording to our author, appear to belong to two dis¬
tinct species, if not genera ; and, judging from the
form of the cranium, and the minute structure o,
the molares, the one approximates to the Asiatic,
and the other to the African variety. The former
is the j Elephas primogenius of Blumenbach — the
mammoth of Russia; and the other is the gigantic
Hippopotamus of Buffon and Daubenton — the false
elephant of Dr William Hunter, — the mastodon of
America, which Camper, in 1775, contended was
most closely allied with the true elephant.

His observations on the bones of the head are
also very interesting. “ The cranium considered
externally, exhibits a larger volume than the brain
requires ; but this formation was necessary to aug¬
ment the surface of the bone which is required for
the muscles. It was absolutely necessary that the
muscles of the lower jaw, those of the proboscis, and
of the neck, should be endowed with great power,
or in other words, should consist of many fibres, the
attachment of which requires a large surface ; and
moreover, they require to be inserted at a convenient
distance from the centre of motion of each of these
parts. A simple bony covering, similar to that
which envelopes the brain of carnivorous animals,

7 4

MEMOIR ( CAMPER.

would never have fulfilled this double object. That
the brain might be packed aright, and to relieve the
head of useless weight, we at the same time see that
the tables of the cranium are parted asunder by a
great number of bony cells, to the distance of many
inches. These communicate with the throat, and
are filled with air instead of marrow, and are thus
analogous 10 the heads of birds.

His remarks on the brain itself, in which he con¬
tends, in opposition to certain great zoologists, that
its size is in keeping with the bulk of the animal,
and points out the relative position of the cerebrum
and cerebellum ; on the eye, describing the third
eyelid, with its peculiar muscles ; on the proboscis,
describing its minute structure, its muscles, its uses,
in the young, &c. ; on Galen’s statement, that there
is a bone in the elephant’s heart, one of which he
himself possessed ; also on the much disputed point
whether it has a gall-bladder or not ; his remarks, we
say, on these, and many other analogous points, are
at once most minute and satisfactory.

Such was the nature of Camper’s occupations till
the beginning of 1776, when he sustained a heavy
6troke of affliction in the death of his wife, in whom
his affections had been centred during a union of
nearly twenty years; and whose domestic virtues
and exemplary attention to her children, had secured
her the esteem and respect of all who knew her.

As the most efficacious mode of soothing his grief,
he determined to vary the scene, by making an ex-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

f

7b

cursion in the neighbouring parts of the Continent.
He accordingly visited the cities which offered the
greatest attractions ; and after gratifying his taste for
painting, by the sight of the master-pieces of Rubens,
Vandyke, and other masters of the Flemish school
at Antwerp, and his taste for Natural History, by
examining the beautiful Museums of Prince Charles

♦

of Loraine, and Dr Burtin at Brussels, he again re¬
turned to Franeker, after an absence of two months.

This sad loss, however, in his domestic circle, to¬
gether with his entire freedom from university duty,
seems to have revived in him that love of travel
which was early manifested, and had now for a long
time been dormant. We accordingly find that a
considerable portion of his declining years was spent
in this fascinating and improving occupation. His
former trip was now followed by a second visit to
Paris, where he had the honour of being asso¬
ciated with most of the learned bodies. Here he
was cheered with the society and friendship of such
men as Franklin, Diderot, Louis, Tenon, Portal,
Daubenton, and Geoffroy ; and many an hour was
spent in the Jardin des Plantes, and other public
establishments. During his stay, he read a paper
to each of the three great societies, L’Academie des
Sciences, de Chirurgerie, et de la Medecine.

In 1778, he received a prize from two learned
societies at Berlin, for his answer to a prize question
proposed by them. He was also elected a member
of these bodies ; as also of the Royal Academy of

76

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

Toulouse, and of the Agricultural Society of Rotter¬
dam.

In 1779, the Academy of Dijon conferred its
Gold Medal on Camper, for a communication on
Specifics ; and he also this year sent a long paper to
the Royal Society of London, and published several
Essays in the Dutch journals. One of these was on
the Rhinoceros, which Professor Pallas inserted in
the Commentaries of the Academy of Sciences of
St Petersburg ; and the other was on the Rein-deer,
of which our space will not allow us to give the ana¬
lysis which it richly merits.

He this year visited Hamburgh, Zell, Hanover,
Gottingen, and Cassel, and left nothing unexamined
which was worthy of attention. In the first named
of these towns, he visited that Tower which has been
made so famous by the astronomical observations of
Tycho -Brahe ; at Zell he became acquainted with
the celebrated Zimmerman, and visited the tomb of
Liebnitz ; and at Hanover examined the museums of
Natural History, founded by Andrase and Ebel.
During his stay at Gottingen, his name was enrolled
among the members of the University, and he asso¬
ciated with such men as Wiesberg and Blumen-
bach ; whilst at Cassel, he spent a considerable time
with Scemmering.

Next year he renewed, and extended his travels
in Germany ; and passing through Brunswick, Magde-
berg, Brandenburgh, &c., made a considerable stay
in Berlin. With this city he was much delighted,

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

77

rejoicing in the company of its learned men, of whom
Nicolai, Lecat, Bode, and Walther, may be named ;
examining the cabinets of Bloch and Gerhard, and
attending the meetings of its several learned Socie¬
ties, of which he was admitted a member. At Pots¬
dam, he had the honour of being introduced to the
hereditary Prince, who then filled the throne of
Prussia, and next day he was admitted to the palacfc
of the great Frederick, who granted him a long au¬
dience, in which the arts and sciences were particu¬
larly discussed, and Camper was astonished not more
with the extreme affability of the monarch, than with
his extensive knowledge. He also spent two days
with Prince Henry, the brother of Frederick, and
ever afterwards spake with delight of the happiness
he had experienced in visiting a Court where merit
had such easy access to the throne, and which not
only protected learned men, but vouchsafed to them
its bounties and its charms.

On his return home, Camper again engaged with
his writings and scientific labours. Among these
one of the most remarkable, as shewing the versati¬
lity of his powers, was “ On the best form of shoes,’
a work which has been thought worthy of being
translated into French. It has been stated, that when
Camper was in company with some of his elder
pupils, the conversation turned on the best subjects
for Medical Dissertations, when it was maintained
that they were nearly exhausted. The professor
opposed this view, ai d contended that a subject the

78

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

least important and most unpromising, such as that
of making a shoe, would become interesting in able
hands. This led to a challenge that he should him¬
self undertake it, which, being unwilling to decline,
he forthwith executed and published. He considered
the foot as an anatomist, a painter, a shoemaker, and
a shoe wearer (recommending rights and lefts, then
little known), and in each of these characters, it will
require no words of ours to convince that he could
say much to interest and delight.

During the summer of 1782, Camper undertook
a journey to Maestricht, Liege, Spa, Aix-la-Cha-
pelle, and Dusseldorf, and had the pleasure of exa¬
mining the Natural History Collection of the cele¬
brated Hoffman. In 1783, he wrote a memoir on
the questions, Why is man more subject to disease
than other animals ; and are there any hints sup¬
plied by Comparative anatomy, which would assist
in restoring his health ? This was a subject entirely
to his taiste. It led him to numerous statements
concerning the diseases of animals ; but we have no
room for particulars, and can only refer to it in the
work published by his son. It was translated into
German by Herbell.

In 1785, Camper was elected a member of the
Royal Academie des Sciences of Paris, an honour
which, being confined to eight foreigners, was conse¬
quently of the most flattering description. He this
year paid a fourth visit to England, renewing his
acquaintance with Sir Joseph Banks, Herschel, the

MEMOIR OP CAMPER.

n

Hunters, Magellan, De Luc, See. Next year he
transmitted to the Royal Society a memoir upon
the fossil bones of unknown fishes which are found
on Mount St Pierre, at Maestricht, a valuable pro¬
duction, from which we might easily quote many
interesting passages, but to which we shall only re¬
fer, as in the Philosophical Transactions for 1786.
He this year also published a short description of
the Dugon — the Halicore of Cuvier, belonging to
the order Cetacea , and of the Siren lacertina of
Linnaeus. Of the former, he says, this very rare
animal deserves to be better known, more espe¬
cially as the great naturalists of the age, Artedi,
Klein, Linna3us, Buffon, Pennant and Brisson, have
only thrown us into confusion about it. At the close
of these interesting papers, he remarks, “ I am de¬
lighted with this opportunity of describing to my
fellow countrymen two fishes which had not pre¬
viously been accurately described by any naturalist.”
About this time, also, he sent to the Natural History
Society of Berlin two memoirs, one On the Classifi¬
cation of Fishes according to the System of Linnceus ,
and another On the Unicorn , which was published in
its transactions. Finally, during the concluding
years of his life, he transmitted to the Petersburg!!
Academy, papers on the following subjects: — On
the Fossil Bones of unknovon and rare Animals ;
On the Head of the Bison ; On the Gigantic Head
of a Buffalo ; On the enormous Teeth of an Fde-

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

pliant ; On the Head of certain large Stags ; On
the Bones of the Mammoth ; On the Wild Boar of
Africa ; and On the Kangaroo .

Camper’s journey to England would probably have
been the last of his life, had not the serious indispo¬
sition of one of his sons, who was then at Paris, in¬
duced him to resort to that capital to administer to
his comfort and restoration. On arriving1, his fears
were most agreeably disappointed ; and ho had thus
once more the felicity of renewed intercourse with
Buffon, Louis, and other friends of his early years.

After thus shortly adverting to the principal events
of Camper’s active life, and reviewing his scientific
.abours, we have still to remark, that these occupa¬
tions, numerous and important as they were, did
not preclude him from taking an active part in the
political concerns of his country. In 1762, he was
returned as Depute cles Etats by the province of
Friesland ; and in 1776, he appeared as deputy for
Idaarderadeel. In 1778, he persuaded the Assem¬
bly to reject a proposition for the restoration of the
maritime dykes of that province, as by much too
expensive, if not impossible ; and then, as at various
subsequent periods, he published largely on the prin¬
ciples of the construction and maintenance of these
embankments. In 1783, on the recommendation
of the Stadtholder, he was nominated a Councillor
for the town of Workheim, which created him a
member of the Admiralty of Friesland- In 1787,

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

81

he became a member of the Council of State, and
was then of course obliged to reside at the Hague.
During the revolution, which immediately after¬
wards occurred in Holland, he remained firmly at¬
tached to the party of the Stadtholder, without,
however, yielding his unqualified approbation to all
its measures. The triumph of his own party was
even accompanied with circumstances which gave
him much concern, and embittered the latter period
of his life. He died of a violent pleurisy, on the
7th April 1789, at the age of sixty-seven years ;
and his remains were deposited in the tomb of his
ancestors, in St Peter’s at Leyden.

To a mind enriched with vast stores of knowledge,
and adorned with a taste at once elegant and refined,
Camper united the most benevolent affections, and
possessed all the virtues of social and domestic life.
His conduct in the several relationships of son, of
husband, and father, were in all respects exemplary.
His manners were remarkably placid, and bespoke
that habitual equanimity which formed the charac¬
teristic quality of his temper, and which, amidst
strong sensibility to the affections of humanity, he
constantly studied to preserve. Nature had bestow¬
ed upon him a dignified and graceful form, and a
remarkably animated and expressive countenance.
His voice, which was sonorous and flexible, was ex¬
cellently adapted for public speaking. Besides all
this, he had a singular facility in acquiring languages,
and spoke fluently Latin, English, French, and Geri

F

82

MEMOIR OF CAMPER.

man, and he had besides attained considerable know¬
ledge of Greek and Italian.

Few men have ever received, during their lives,
so many honourable marks of distinction. Besides
those which we have already mentioned, he was
chosen member of the Scientific Societies of Flush¬
ing, Rotterdam, Haarlem, Toulouse, and Manches¬
ter; and was Foreign Associate of the Royal So¬
ciety of Medicine of Paris ; and on seven different
occasions, including those we have named, he car¬
ried off the prize offered for Essays on Special Sub¬
jects, by different learned bodies throughout Eu¬
rope.

Notwithstanding the ample notices we have fur¬
nished of many of his literary labours, the reader
must understand that we have not presented a full
list of them all; nor can we undertake to complete
it now, as that would tend considerably to lengthen
this memoir. We must refer generally to the ex¬
cellent sketch of his life by his son, and to his eloge
oy Yicq d’Azyr; as also to Dr Cogan’s translation
of his work on the Connection between Anatomy
and Design; to the Philosophical Transactions, and
to the memoirs of the several academies, Dutch,
French, Prussian, and Russian, in all of which will
be found numerous papers, which have not been
published in a separate form. j

83

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

As we reckon among the most useful tribes of the
feathered race the families of the Gallinaceous Birds,
including Turkeys and Pheasants, &c. ; so, among
the Mammalia, the Oxen and Sheep, the Camels,
and the elegant and varied forms of the Deer and
Antelope, are of the greatest utility, and appear to
represent the same part in this higher circle of
creatures.

The Ruminantia, or those animals which chew
the cud, have been so named from the faculty which
the greater part of them possess, of bringing up their
food from their stomachs, and again additionally
masticating it — a property which, while it seems
to impart a pleasing sensation, will render essential
service in assisting the digestion of the various ve¬
getable substances, after they have undergone a pre¬
paration by the heat and juices of the stomach.
They constitute the Order Pecora of Linnaeus, and
the eighth order of the Mammiferes of Cuvier, who

64

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

considers them as one of the most natural and best
determined groups among the Mammalia. The ex¬
ternal characters may be placed here, to indicate the
order : “ Incisive teeth only in the lower jaw, where
they are generally eight in number. In the upper
jaw, instead of teeth, there is a callous pad. Be¬
tween the i.pcjsivp t.peth and the grinders there is
generally an empty space ; out in a tew genera, as
the Camels and Musks, this is partly supplied by
one or two canine teeth sometimes assuming the
form of tusks. The grinders are almost always six
on each side of each jaw, and have their crown or
surface marked with two double crosses, of which
the convexity is turned inwards in the upper teeth,
and outwards in the lowrer. The four feet are ter¬
minated by two toes, defended by two hoofs, which
are applied to each other with a flat surface, so as
to resemble a single hoof which has been cleft. Be¬
hind these hoofs there are sometimes two small or
rudimentary hoofs, which are the only appearances of
lateral toes: the two metacarpal and metatarsal bones
are united in one, which receives the name of ‘ Can¬
non bone'* The head is most frequently furnished
with horns, sometimes common to both sexes, some¬
times confined to the male only, deciduous, or with
a bony core. The hair is sometimes crisp, thick,
and slightly curled, or long, and bearing the title of

* Tn some species there are traces of lateral metatar¬
si and metacarpal bones.

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

85

wool. They inhabit the known world, with the ex¬
ception of Australia.”

In the form of the Ruminantia, we find a structure
as admirably fitted for their wants as in the groups
we have already surveyed. In the Quadrumana and
Carnivora , the fore extremities present marked ar¬
rangements for particular purposes : in the one, a
power of prehension ; in the other, that of wielding
an immense force by a blow; and the chest and neck
in these are particularly powerful, as connected with
the necessary organization of their extremities. The
one is omnivorous, and generally procures its food
by search or stratagem ; the other is carnivorous, and
always exerts its great strength and formidable wea¬
pons for the seizure of its sustenance. The rumi¬
nating animals, on the contrary, subsist entirely on
the produce of the vegetable world. * They inha¬
bit the forsaken plains, or vast forests, and even the
more arid deserts of the tropics : they gain their
livelihood entirely on the herbage and foliage which
Nature has generally in those situations so bountifully
and variously supplied ; and where it is more scanty
or limited, they possess a lightness of form, and swift¬
ness, which carries the herd in a few hours from the
exhausted pasture to one fresher and more abundant.

* In Persia, a great proportion of the food of the small
humped cows (zebu) and sheep is dried fish, a little salted.
The cattle become very fond of this, mixed with pounded
date stones, and the natives assert that both the quantity

and quality of the milk is improved _ Fraser's Travels ,

quoted from Jameson's Journal.

86

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

Preferring a solitary country, far from the haunts
of men, and freed from interruption, this large fa¬
mily lives apparently seeking little except sustenance
and the continuation of the species. They are ti¬
morous and watchful, and wage no war on weaker
races, and, except during the season of love, their
lives with one another are peaceful and unintruding.
Their defence is watchfulness and speed, for many of
them are the swiftest animals in the world ; and where
these properties are less developed, they have strong
horns, or large and thick or cutting antlers. The
Buffalo of the Cape will often defeat the lion with
his powerful front ; and the combat has even proved
fatal to the king of beasts. The antlers of the larger
stags are formidable barriers, which can seldom be
broken in upon, and, when brought to act upon the
defensive, and assisted by the cutting strokes of
the fore- feet, inflict serious and sometimes fatal
wounds.

The outward appearance of the Ruminantia is in
general elegant and pleasing. A few are of clumsy
proportions, as the Camel, &c. ; and an appearance
of extraordinary disproportion appears in the Gi¬
raffe ; but the extensive family of the Deer exhibit
the height of beauty and symmetry, chaste colour¬
ing, and mild expression, embodying the whole
imagery of the sometimes fanciful descriptions of
the poets. The Bovidse or Oxen, again, shew the
greatest combination for strength ; but among the
wool-bearing animals, the symmetrical parts are con-

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

87

eealed by their thick and useful covering, which ren¬
ders their apparent shape unattractive. In nearly
the whole, a most striking feature will appear to every
observer, that of horns implanted in the head, and
sometimes of a very large and unwieldy appearance ;
and it is remarkable, that the few species which want
these organs of defence or adornment, possess the
tusks or cutting teeth which are deficient in the
others.

The skeleton of the Ruminantia hears a lower
grade of strength and firmness than in the more per¬
fect Mammalia. The form of it is in general con¬
structed for a power of walking or running with
great swiftness ; and the consolidation of the bones
of the extremities, while it detracts from actual
strength, materially assists the locomotive action.
Like the horse, and the animals belonging to the same
division of Mammalia , they have cannon hones ;
but the hoof is divided, which adds to the elasticity
or spring of the motions, while the splitting may as¬
sist in the more easily withdrawal from soft or miry
ground ; but in the camel, where there is the exception
of its being united on its under surface, the use is to
prevent sinking in the soft and running sand. The
neck is lengthened sufficiently to enable the animals
to reach the ground with the mouth, and to pluck
with ease, or gather in with the tongue, the herbage
which compose their food. At the same time, it is
furnished with a ligament of great strength, to wield
the neck, and support the head, generally heavy, and

8

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

in many instances extremely ponderous, from the
weight of the horns or antlers. The other marked
distinctions are — the small size of the cavity of the
skull, compared with the face — the want of teeth in
the jaws — the longitudinal suture of the frontal bone
— the compression of the chest — the want of cla¬
vicles, which lessens the power of seizure or pre¬
hension ; — while the lengthened form of the bones
of the legs, and almost imperfect feet, are very mark¬
ed peculiarities indicating swiftness ; a power which
is confirmed, when the pulley-like form of all the
joints is examined, by which additional security and
elasticity is given to them.

In the internal structure, the most remarkable
provision is that exhibited by the digestive organs.
Their food being composed entirely of substances
which yield little nourishment, compared with the
bulk of material, it was required that as much as
possible should be extracted from it ; and, for this
purpose, we have a machine with various compart¬
ments, performing each their office in preparing and
extracting the vegetable juices from the leaves, or
blades, or the stalks and woody parts of the plants.
Ruminating animals have generally been said to pos¬
sess four stomachs : we shall look, however, on the
organ as a single bag, but with divisions, which act
independent of each other, and for the sake of
clearness they are numbered. The first or largest,
called the 'paunch , immediately receives the food
from the mouth with little mastication. This is

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

by far the largest, and the food remains in it in a
comparatively dry state, to undergo a preparation of
softening. The second is of much smaller size, and
the sides internally have numerous folds, forming
polygonal cells, commonly called the honeycomb :
here water or any liquid is received from the mouth,
and it is from this that the food, after having passed
and undergone its preparation, is passed to the mouth,
and undergoes the operation of a second mastica¬
tion, or “ chewing of the cud.” When the food is
again swallowed, it passes at once to the third sto¬
mach or compartment, which contains various septa
or leaves, which are so placed, that whatever comes
from the second stomach must fall between them,
and describe three-fourths of a circle before it can
reach the orifice of the fourth stomach. This, in the
common language of Scotland, is called the “ viony-
plies from hence the food is conveyed to the
fourth division, where true digestion from the juices
takes place, and it is entirely changed in its proper¬
ties ; milk is coagulated, &c.

In these animals a very beautiful process also
takes place in the young, where the milk, then their
only sustenance, requires no process of rumination.

90

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

“ When the young calf is fed on milk, that liquor,
which docs not require to he ruminated, is conveyed
directly from the oesophagus to the fourth cavity, not
passing into the first or second, nor between the
plicae of the third, which at that time adhere toge¬
ther.”

This is the general process which the stomach
of ruminating animals perform; but we shall also
find modifications of the structure in the animals
which recede from the most typical forms, gene¬
rally somewhat assimilating with the race to which
they most nearly approximate. One of the most
marked as well as admirable in its adaptation, is seen
in the stomach of the camel. One cavity is fitted
to answer the purposes of two of the bullock, and
the second is employed as a reservoir for water, and
has nothing to do with the preparation of the food.

t

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

91

This is of a cellular structure in its interior, and in¬
dependent of its general use to retain water alone,
it appears that longer deprivation from liquid enables
the animal to dilate the cells, and renders the com¬
partment capable of containing a greater quantity of
its invaluable store.

The horns, the hoofs, and hair, present peculia¬
rities in the ruminating animals. The horns in
many of the species, particularly in the deer of
temperate climates, are deciduous annually ; and
when the nourishing vessels, as it were, become ob¬
literated by their growth, they lose their vitality, and
fall off, to give way for the reproduction of the new
material, which commences about the period when the
system becomes influenced by the desires of rutting.
In these animals, it springs from, and is for the time
attached to, the prolongation of the frontal bone,
which serves as a base or root ; and when in its per¬
fect state, or when the complete obliteration of the
nourishing arteries takes place, it is of the consist¬
ence of bone, and remarkably compact and hard, en¬
tirely different in composition from the substance of
true horn, as seen among the Bovidrn or Oxen, &c.
Sir Everard Home looks upon their consistence as
similar to bone, and thus describes their formation :
“ Besides the common bones of an animal body,
there are others peculiar to particular animals, which
only last for a season. Of this kind are the bony
projections or horns on the skull of the deer, pecu¬
liar to the male. As these are of quick growth, and

92

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

only last for a season, the different stages of their
formation can be readily traced ; and when they are
completed, and the supply of blood is withdrawn, the
process of exfoliation, by means of which they drop
off, is a beautiful illustration of that operation.

In their growth, the first change that takes place,
is a very considerable enlargement of the arteries
leading to that part of the skull ; then the horn, as
it is termed, begins to shoot. In the early stages,
it is a vascular cartilaginous structure, covered with
a velvet-like cutaneous covering. The cartilage is
gradually converted into bone; and when this pro¬
cess is completed, the covering becomes so thin,
that it is readily rubbed off by friction in the use of
the horn.

“ As soon as the horns become hard, the blood¬
vessels going to them gradually diminish in size till
the horns are deprived of all support, after which
they are exfoliated like any other dead bone. This
is perhaps the most beautiful instance in nature, of
a bone being formed for a temporary use, and cut
off by absorption, as soon as the purpose is answered
for which it was intended : the use of the velvet-like
covering is evident, as it corresponds to the perios¬
teum of other bones, being the medium through
which the nourishment is received ; and as soon as
that is separated, in both cases death takes place.

“ That this weapon of defence in the male of the
deer kind should owe its growth, and its decay, to
the state of the organs of generation, is a very ex-

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

93

traordinary circumstance, and is such a deviation from
the common course of nature, that it excites our
wonder and astonishment.” *

In some of the deer of the tropics, however, the
horns of the same original structure appear to be
continuous, and do not drop off : this is the case
with the Indian Muntjak. In the Cameleopard,
again, the frontal prolongations are not surmounted
oy any horny substance, but merely with a few strong
horny bristles ; and it has been placed at the termi¬
nation of the Deer, which mostly shed their horns,
and the commencement of the Antelopes, which be¬
gin to have these ornaments of the head of the sub¬
stance of true horn, having a hollow bony core. In
these, and among the Oxen, the structure of the
outward covering is in lengthened fibres or lamina*
cemented together, in a comparatively soft or elastic
state while the animal is in life and health, and act¬
ing as a sheath or defence to the delicate cellular
and highly vascular structure of the interior.

The hoofs are of the same substance with the true
horn, and serve simply as a covering and defence to
the toes. In some animals, we find variations of struc-

* Sir E. Home’s Lectures, i. p. 66.

94

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

ture adapted to their living. In the Musk-ox, an
animal entirely an inhabitant of an arctic country, and
consequently often having occasion to traverse plains
covered with ice, the “ under parts of the hoofs and
frog, shew a singular softish, transversely ribbed sur¬
face, of a brown red colour, seemingly intended to se¬
cure the foot on slippery snow or ice, the outer hoof is
round, the other crooked and pointed.” * In some
African antelopes, the hoofs are low and flat, and in
the broad-hoofed antelope they extend almost an
inch laterally, a structure supposed to be of use to
those species which inhabit a trackless expanse of
sandy desert. The broad foot of the Rein-deer,
and some others which inhabit a country covered for
many months with snow, afford facilities when it is
newly fallen and yet soft, and give them great power
when exercising another mode of progression, by
swimming across the large lakes and rivers, which
otherwise would prove an knpassable march-fence.
“ The rein-deer swim so swiftly, their broad feet,
struck with great force, impell them so fast in the
strongest currents, and across the broadest rivers,
that a boat well manned can scarcely keep pace with
them.”

The hair of the ruminating animals assumes also
different forms, according to circumstances, and is
produced in greater or less profusion. In all those
of the colder and temperate regions, it is abundantly

* Hamilton Smith, Note to Griffith s Cuvier.

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

95

produced, affording a thick and warm covering, and
affording that most useful kind of it denominated
wool. In some, a9 the sheep, the whole covering
partakes of this structure : in others, as many of
the arctic deer, it becomes the ground or root only.
In the true deer, again, the hair is of a crisp struc¬
ture, but is very close and thick ; while in many of
the antelopes which inhabit the sandy tracts of Africa,
the hair is remarkably scanty, affords no covering,
and is no encumbrance amidst the heat, and the co¬
lour of the animals is represented by that of the skin,
which becomes changed almost immediately after
death.

In geographical distribution the ruminating animals
are spread over nearly the whole world — New Hol¬
land, and some of the South Sea islands, alone be¬
ing without them. The great mass of the family is
comprised in the deer and antelopes, and are princi¬
pally distributed over India, Africa, and the Ame¬
ricas. In these countries, they lead lives with very
different habits. In India and America, where the
true deer principally abound, they frequent the thick¬
est jungle, and umbrageous forest. There they re¬
ceive shelter from the sun, lie lazily in the shade
during the heats of the day, and wander during the
cool of evening to the outskirts and open glades in
search of food and water. In Africa, where we have
the antelopes chiefly, innumerable herds people her
deserts, mingled with the zebra and ostrich, without
a shelter, and delighting, as it were, in the heats o.

96

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

noonday. These herds change their pasture according
to its freshness and duration : they migrate in search
of new food, and, like the locusts, mark the tract
which they pursue ; — woe to the colonist whose ten¬
der corns grow in the passage of these migratory
troops, his efforts are unavailing, the destruction of
the food alone drives them off. * In Europe, a few

* The following note, extracted from Thompson’s Tra¬
vels in South Africa, is descriptive of one of this graceful
tribe, and is curious in detailing the migrations which they
seem to perform periodically:

“ It is scarcely possible for a person passing over some
of the extensive tracts of the interior, and admiring that
elegant antelope the Springbok, thinly scattered over the
plains, and bounding in playful innocence, to figure to him¬
self, that these ornaments of the desert can often become
as destructive as the locusts themselves. The incredible
number which sometimes pour in from the north, during
protracted droughts, distress the farmer inconceivably.
Any attempt at numerical computation would be vain ;
and by trying to come near the truth, the writer would
subject himself, in the eyes of those who have no knowledge
of the country, to a suspicion that he was availing himself
of a traveller’s assumed privilege. Yet it is well known in
the interior, that, on the approach of the Trek-bokken, the
grazier makes up his mind to look for pasturage for his
flocks elsewhere, and considers himself entirely dispossessed
of his lands until heavy rains fall. Every attempt to save
his cultivated fields, if they be not enclosed by high and
thick hedges, proves abortive. Heaps of dry manure (the
fuel of the Sneeuwbergen and other parts) are placed close
to each other round the fields, and set on fire in the even¬
ing, so as to cause a dense smoke, by which it is hoped the
antelopes will be deteired from their inroads ; but the dawn
of day exposes the inefficacy of the precautions, by shew¬
ing the lands, which appeared proud of their promising

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

97

only are to be found : these are fast falling before
the march of civilization, and are only to be seen in

verdure the evening before, covered with thousands, and
reaped level with the ground. Instances have been known
of some of these prodigious droves passing through flocks
of sheep, and numbers of the latter carried along with the
torrent, being lost to their owners, and becoming a prey to
the wild beasts. As long as these droughts last, their in¬
roads and depredations continue ; and the havock commit¬
ted upon them is of course great, as they constitute the
food of all classes; but, no sooner do the rains fall, than
they disappear, and, in a few days, become as scarce on
the northern borders as in the more protected districts of
Bruentjes-Hoogte-Camdebor.

“ The African colonists themselves can form no concep¬
tion of the cause of the extraordinary appearance of these
animals; and, from their not being able to account for it,
those who have not been eye-witnesses of these scenes con¬
sider their account as exaggerated ; but a little more mi¬
nute inspection of the country south of the Orange River
solves the difficulty at once. The immense desert tracts
between that river and our colony, westward of the Zeekoe
river, destitute of permanent springs, and therefore unin¬
habitable by human beings for any length of time, are, not¬
withstanding, interspersed with stagnant pools, and ‘ vleys1
or natural reservoirs of brackish water, which, however bad,
satisfies the game. In these extensive boundless plains,
Springboks multiply, undisturbed by the hunter (except
when occasionally a Bosjesman is by starvation driven to
make the attempt), until the country literally swarms with
them ; when perhaps one year, out of four or five, a lasting
drought leaves the pools exhausted, and parches up the
soil, naturally inclined to sterility. Want, then, princi¬
pally of water, drives those myriads of animals either to
the Orange River, or to the colony, when they intrude in
the manner above described. But when the bountiful
thunder-clouds pour their torrents upon our burnt-up coun¬
try, reanimating vegetation» and restoring plenty to all

G

98

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

the wildest and most remote districts. It may he
here remarked, that, among the deer, the largest
species seem to he found in the temperate districts.
The Elk, Wapiti, and Rein-deer, reach even an arc¬
tic latitude, and, in their numbers, afford an abun¬
dant support where other necessaries of life are less
plentiful. The larger stags also follow the tempe¬
rate and exalted regions. One fine animal, the Red
Deer, is still found in Britain ; and the mountain
ranges of India appear to possess more than another
species.

Among the other families, the proportion of num¬
bers is less, but the utility of the individuals is
much increased. Among the Camels, that of the
ancients can scarcely now be traced in a state of na¬
ture ; but without this creature, the nations of the
east could not pass the deserts, and as a beast of
burden it is invaluable. Other animals belonging to
this section, and also extensively used, are found on
the American Andes ; but, unless introduced, these
creatures do not extend either to Africa or India.
The Giraffe, again, is confined entirely to Africa.
The tribe of Sheep and Goats are nearly equally dis¬
tributed in the three great continents; but those of

graminivorous animals, then, when we could, perhaps af¬
ford to harbour these handsome visitors, their instinct, and
our persecutions, propel them again to their more sterile
but more peaceful valleys and plains, to recruit their num¬
bers lost during their migration, and to resume their attacks
upon us when their wants shall again compel them.” —
Thompson's Travels in South Africa> vol, i. p. 266.

RUMINATING ANIMALS.

99

kmg hair and fine wool are found mostly in the
warmer but alpine districts of Asia. Of the Bo-
vidae or Oxen, so important for food and labour, two
are found in America, another in Africa ; but the
Asiatic continent appears to be their stronghold, and
possesses several species, which have in their turn
been subjected to the will and for the use of man.

We shall now review the families separately, and
»nter more at large into the peculiarities of form
and structure which has been observed in each ;
and, first,

THE CAMELS.

Among the Camelidae or Camels, we include the
South American animals, which, forming a distinct
group, take the place of the Camel of the ancients in
the New World, and in many instances are employed
for somewhat similar purposes. They are charac¬
terized by an unwieldy form, placed high above the
ground, a long and rather slender neck. The upper
lip swollen and cleft in the centre, possessing a
power of motion, and used to feel or examine the
shrubby food before it is conveyed to the mouth.
They have canine teeth in both jaws, and on each
side two additional pointed teeth implanted in the
incisive bones. The lower incisor teeth are six in
number, the grinders either eighteen or twenty ; the
cuboide and scaphoid bones of the tarsus are sepa¬
rate, and they have the three bones of the second
range of the carpus, which distinguish them from
all the other Ruminants, and exhibits one link of con¬
nexion between this order and the Pachydermata.
There is one small hoof which is fixed to the last
phalanx, as in the feet of the Pachydermata, and the
toes alone are free, being connected beneath by a
horny sole. The stomach is furnished with cells ca¬
pable of retaining1 or producing motion. The uvula

THE CAMEL.

101

of the males is swollen during the rutting season,
and protrudes from the mouth like a bag or bladder.

The Camels of the Old World, if we consider all
the circumstances of their native country, may be
perhaps considered as among the most useful of the
ruminants. They are in fact the only animals which
could perform the journey in the desert, and support
for sufficient length of time, the heat of the burning
sands, and the deprivation of sustenance, to which
they are exposed ; and while thus fitted for life and
labour in countries of this description, they are of
lecessity, from organization, prevented from living
,n those which possess much humidity of climate,
moisture producing inflammation of the feet and legs,
and becoming as insupportable to the camel, as the
seas of scorching sands would be to the horse or
oxen.

Arabia with its deserts is the countiy most con¬
stantly associated with the Camel, but at the present
day they are used most extensively in north and
western Africa, in Syria and Persia, Chinese Tar¬
tary, and in some parts of India ; in the former coun¬
tries, being the only beast used for burden, and by
its powers, rendering the most barren districts in the
world habitable, and keeping up an intercourse across
a barrier, which, without it, would have remained im¬
passable. The Arabs are dependent on this animal for
every necessary ; like the rein-deer to the Laplander,
it affords them food and raiment, and a carriage for
their burdens. milk in its various forms nou-

THE CAMEL’.

332

liskes their families ; slippers and harness are made
of his skin, and tents and clothing of his hair ;* and
in those perilous journeys where even the merchan¬
dise and profits are thought insignificant compared
with life, the camel is often sacrificed for the sake of
his supply of water to cool the feverish frame of his
master. No wonder, then, that the wealth of these
nations is centred in their herds of camels ; and a
man’s riches is complete “ when the number of his
camels is not known.”

Another remarkable fact in the history of the
Camels of the Old World, is, that they are not at pre¬
sent found in a naturally wild state, and they thus
form the only known instance of an entire race of
animals, living and being continued only under the
care and protection of man ; for although it has been
said by the natives of eastern countries, that in some
districts these animals are still found completely at
large, the information is not of so authentic a cha~
racter as to warrant our now asserting it.

We shall illustrate this form by the

* Voinoy,

PLATE

ACTKIAjr CAMEL.

103

BACTRIAN CAMEL.

Camelus Bac trianus, — Linnjeus.

PLATE I.

Camelus Bactrianus, Linn. — Menagerie du Museum Na¬
tional. — Le Chameau a deux Bosses, Cuv. Regne Ani¬
mal — Bactrian Camel, Hamilton Smith in Griffith's Cu¬
vier, iv. p. 48.

This species is supposed to have been originally-
found in Bactria, the present Turkistan, and there to
have spread over Persia and Tartary to China. It is
the most hardy species, and will bear with much more
variety of climate than that which is more commonly
made use of in the deserts, and they are carried by
the Mongolians even as far as the Lake Baikal. It
is at once distinguished from the other animal, or
the Arabian Camel, by the presence of two large
humps upon the back, composed of a mass of fatty
substance ; the first placed upon the shoulders, the
other near the croup : it is considerably larger, and
more heavily built than the dromedary, and is not
used for any conveyance which requires much dis¬
patch. A full grown animal of this kind will reach

BACTRTASJ CAMEL.

104.

seven feet and a half to the top of the shoulder hunch
The colour of the hair is generally of a dark brown,
though light varieties often occur, and are sometimes
bred ; on some parts of the body it is long and shaggy ;
on the crown of each hunch, the mane, crown of the
head, forepart of the neck, it is thick and lengthened ;
and where the fore leg proceeds from the body, there
is a large bunch, which grows down on the fore arm.

The second species of Camel, or that with only
one hump on the back, is known under the name
of the

ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY.®

C. dromedarius — Linnaeus.

It is by far the most extensively used, and seems
from its constitution to be able to endure for a greater
length of time those fatigues and deprivations to
which it is subjected ; and it is this animal which is
of such vast utility in the east, the fortune of the
Arab, and nearly the only beast of burden in Tur¬
key, Persia, and the north of Africa. It is at once
distinguished from the preceding animal by having
only a single hump placed nearly in the centre of
the back, and is of a size and stature somewhat

* From Apopds, a runner , being used for conveying ex¬
presses, &c.

ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY.

105

smaller, being from five to seven feet in height at
the shoulders. The muzzle is less swollen than in
the others, and the hair is soft, woolly, and very un¬
equal, longest on the neck, the throat, and the hump.
The colour is always lighter than that of the camel,
being, while young, of a dull or dirty white, becom¬
ing with age of a reddish-grey. In the internal
structure they do not differ materially from the
camel.

The Dromedary, according to Major Hamilton
Smith, extends from the foot of Mount Caucasus,
over Persia and Turkey, Arabia, northern Africa, and
India. It is also much used on the western coast
of Africa. Many varieties exist, and are endeavour¬
ed to be continued. The Turkish and Arabian are
the strongest and most hardy ; and another of lighter
form, and possessing much swiftness, is much sought
after, for carrying dispatches from one distant part
of these kingdoms to another. An animal of such
importance is of course looked at with a correspond¬
ing interest, and great care is exercised in tending
and watching the herds. The males are generally
rendered imperfect, and a few only of the most ap¬
proved form is retained, to continue the property of
the owner ; in other circumstances, the fury and un¬
manageable disposition which they display during
the rutting season, would render a large herd dan¬
gerous, and would often prevent numbers from being
useful at the very time they might be most required.
They are carefully trained when young, and taught

J06

ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY.

to kneel and receive their burdens, and are generally
of a mild and submissive disposition, docile and pa¬
tient, but obstinate when overloaded — often re¬
fusing to rise if their burden is felt to be beyond
their strength. The strong dromedary for burden,
will carry 1200 pounds weight for a journey with
the caravans across the deserts, and this at the
rate of from fifteen to twenty-five miles in the
twenty- four hours ; and in cases of extremity, fifty
miles of the desert have been traversed by the Arab
in the same period of time ; but this, while it places
him in safety, and out of the reach from any one
not provided with a similar conveyance, could not
be kept up, and the scanty supply afforded by the
produce of the country passed over, would soon fail
to maintain the strength of the animal.

These caravans or travelling parties, are most fre¬
quently of the most motley description, consisting of
merchants from various countries, exhibiting the
variety of costume and manners incident to each,
and the accompaniments are generally composed of
persons who have chosen this escort for their safety
across the desert, with a rear of followers who have
also chosen the escort for safety, but join to this the
hope of plunder, or of a scanty charity by the way.
At other times, however, some of these expeditions
are more regular ; and it appears that the camels can
be trained to obey orders like the discipline of a troop
of horse. In the continuation of Clapperton’s Jour¬
nal by Lander, we are told of the arrival of 500 ca-

ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY.

107

Otels laden with salt from the borders of the great
desert. “ They were preceded by a party of twenty
Tauriac merchants, whose appearance was grand and
imposing. They entered at full trot, riding on hand¬
some camels, some of them red and white, and others
black and white. All the party were dressed exact¬
ly alike. They wore black cotton, robes and trowsers.
and white caps, with black turbans, which hid every
part of the face except the nose and eyes- In their
right hand they held a long and light polished spear
whilst the left was occupied in holding their shields
and retaining the reins of their camels. Their shields
were made of white leather, with a piece of silver in
the centre. As they passed me, their spears glittering
in the sun, and their whole bearing bold and warlike,
they had a novel and singular effect, which delighted
me. They stopped suddenly before the residence
of the chief, and all of them ex-claiming ‘ Choir,’
each of the camels dropped on its knees, as if by
instinct, whilst the riders dismounted to pay their
respects.”*

The variety to which the name of Dromedary
properly belongs, with the weight of a man only,
can perform very lengthened journeys, and at a very
quick pace. Several of these attend the caravans
when crossing any of the African deserts, performing
the offices of scouts, and keeping a look-out both for
danger from the wandering tribes, and for the ap-

* Clapperton’s Second Expedition, p. 266.

108 ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY.

proach to the water stations. These will travel from
seventy to one hundred and twenty miles in the
twenty-four hours.

It is related by a modern traveller, “ That one of
these animals will in one night, and through a level
country, traverse as much ground as any single horse
can perform in ten. It was often affirmed to him
by the Arabs and Moors, that it makes nothing of
holding its rapid pace, which is a most violent hard
trot, for four and twenty hours upon a stretch, with¬
out shewing the least sign of weariness, or inclina¬
tion to bait, and that having then swallowed a ball
or two of a sort of paste, made up of barley, and
perhaps a little powder of dates among it, with a
bowl of water, or camel’s milk, if to be had, and
which the courier seldom forgets to be provided
with in skins, as well for the sustenance of himself
as of his pegasus, the indefatigable animal will seem
as fresh as at first setting out, and ready to continue
running at the same scarce credible rate for as many
hours longer, and so on from one extremity of the
African desert to the other.”*

They are sometimes also trained to run races, and
are extremely fleet. The same traveller relates, that,
at the celebration of a royal marriage, the bride,
“ Among other entertainments she gave her guests,
a favourite white dromedary was brought forth, ready
saddled and bridled ; the thong, which serves instead

* Morgan’s Algiers.

j

J

ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY. 1 09

of a bridle, was put through the hole purposely mad©
in the gristle of the creature’s nose. The Arab ap¬
pointed to mount was straightly laced, from the very
loins quite to the throat, in a strong leathern jacket,
they never riding those animals any otherwise ac¬
coutred, so impetuously violent are the concussions
the rider undergoes, during the rapid motion. We
were to be diverted with seeing this fine Aashari run
against some of the swiftest barbs of the whole Nija,
which is famed for having good ones of the true Ly-
bian breed, shaped like greyhounds, and which will
sometimes run down an ostrich, which very few of
the best can pretend to do, especially upon a hard
ground perfectly level. We all started like racers,
and for the first spurt, most of the best mounted
among us kept up pretty well, but our grass- fed
horses soon flagged, several of the Numidian runners
held pace till we, who still followed upon a good
round hand gallop, could no longer discern them, and
then gave out, as we were told after their return.
When the dromedary had been out of our sight for
half an hour, we again espied it flying towards us
with an amazing velocity, and in a very few mo¬
ments was among us, and seemingly nothing con¬
cerned, while the horses and mares were all in a
foam, and scarce able to breathe, as was likewise
a fleet tall greyhound bitch, of the young prince’s,
who had followed and kept pace the whole time, and
was no sooner got back to us, but lay down panting
as if ready to expire. I cannot tell how many miles

HO ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY.

we went, but we were near three hours in coming
leisurely back to the tents.”*

We may look upon these animals, then, as sup¬
plying the place of the horse and ox in all these
countries, for although both the former are abundant,
they are scarcely used as beasts of burden, but are
reserved for war and the support of the families, or
in the retinue of the native princes. In north and
western Africa this is particularly observed. There
the herds of cattle are immense, but we do not see
them applied for burden or tillage. Camels only are
applied to for all those laborious occupations, and
the loss of life among them in consequence of hard
labour, or extensive journeys, is often very great, and
'but seldom regarded.

Attempts have been made to introduce the camel
into the West Indian islands, but hitherto without
success. Whether from the ignorance of those who
'had them in charge, or actually from the climate, is
yet uncertain, but we scarcely think that the lower
lands of tropical America, would be suitable to their
•constitutions. Upon the Continent of Europe, and
even in this country, their management has been
much more successful. Several individuals have
lived long and well in the vicinity of London; and
a specimen of the brown or Turkish variety, was
long used to draw water for the other animals in the
Garden of Plants at Paris.

• Morgan's Algiers.

ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY.

Ill

The Camels of the New World, known under the
fommon name of the Llamas, and the scientific title
of Auclienia of Illiger, differ from those we have
been just reviewing, by their much smaller size ; the
largest specimen being only about four feet four
inches high at the shoulder. Their whole appear*
ance is more deer or goat-like, possessing a propor¬
tionally smaller head, long ears, and a lively eye of
much brightness. In the form of the foot they
also materially differ ; it is truly cloven or divided
into two bent or crooked hoofs, and has no connect¬
ing horny sole like the true camels. The outline
of the back is nearly straight, and without any ap¬
pearance of the fatty humps. In the toothing, the
incisors are placed at some distance from each other,
and have exactly the shape of canine teetb. The
true canine teeth are considerably larger, and the
cheek teeth form a regular series like those of the
generality of ruminants, but consisting of only two
false and three true molars. In the lower jaw there
are but six incisors, the two outmost having all the
character of canines. The cheek teeth consist of
one false molar and three true ones.* From the
structure of the stomach also, these animals are en¬
titled to rank with the camels. It was considered
that this organ did not exhibit the same structure
for retaining water as was observable in the Ara¬
bian Camel ; but it was lately shewn by Dr Knox

* Bennett.

ARABIAN CAMEL OR DROMEDARY.

that, with some modifications, the same kind of
structure was present. In the smaller divisions
of the paunch of the Llama, there were sixteen
rows of cells, occupying a surface of from one inch
to an inch and a quarter in breadth ; and in the
greater division there were about an equal number,
hut much larger and deeper. The cells are hollows
which have openings towards the cavity of the sto¬
mach, much narrower than their capacity within.
The second stomach is entirely composed of cells,
which are deep and extensive, and lie as it were im*
bricated and in layers, but in none of those, cells is
there any muscular apparatus to close their mouths
and allow the solid food to enter into the truly di¬
gesting stomach, without going into these cells.*

The Llamas inhabit the Cordilleras of the Andes
of Peru and Chili, living in herds, and exhibit con¬
siderable activity and grace of action. They are
easily domesticated, and are still used as beasts oi
burden.

We illustrate the form by the
* Dr Knox, Edin. dourn. ox Nat. ana Creog. .Science.

run iikdW llama. Native of S-Americi

THE BROWN LLAMA.

Auohenia Llama. — Illioer.

PLATE II.

Mare serial, Menag. du Museum. — Brown Llama, Garden i
and Menagerie of Zool. Soc. i. p. 250.

The individual which formed the subject of the
accompanying plate, forms part of the collection of
animals in the Museum of the University of Edin¬
burgh. It stands about three feet high at the shoul¬
der, and the whole colour of the animal is a deep
and rich vinous chocolate-brown, palest beneath and
on the inside of the legs. The hair is of a woolly
texture, lengthened, and with a fine thick ground of
shorter wool.

The Brown Llama has been occasionally kept in
confinement in this country ; and a pair which served
for the figures of Mareschal, were kept by the Em¬
press Josephine at Malmaison, exhibiting great do¬
cility, with mildness and affection towards each
other.

It is not yet determined how many species of
these animals exist. There seem to be pretty fairly
established the present animal, inhabiting Peru and
Chili ; the Vicugna, appearing at a much higher ele-

H

114

THE BROWN LLAMA.

vation, more insensible to cold, and with a thick
and longer fleece; and the Guanaca. Among these,
however, the synonymy is still somewhat confuse- 1;
and in the accounts of travellers, one animal is oftan
named for another. The facts of their habits ami
domestication in their native regions is therefore al¬
so not always to be depended on. It was one of
these animals which was employed by the ancient
Peruvians at the conquest. They are still used for
transporting burdens. They become very docile,
are trained to kneel when loading, and the drove is
generally preceded by one old and well broken in as
a leader : his head is ornamented with ribbons, small
streamers of cloth, and little bells, and he has rings
in his ears; the rest follow regularly after, and the
Indian driver in the rear whistles to the cadence of
their feet. In this manner they will travel from fif¬
teen to twenty miles daily through the rugged passes
of the Andes, with a weight of 150 lb.

Another of these animals, at least it has not been
identified correctly with any other, the Chilihueque
of Molina, was employed for the cultivation of land,
and to draw a kind of cart. The wool or hair of
them all is used in the manufacture of dresses, which
have the brilliancy of silk. Their milk is also es¬
teemed, and the venison of both the young and old
is eaten ; and the bezoar which is found in the sto¬
mach is in repute as a charm. They are hunted,
and either shot, or taken by the lasso.

115

The form which has been placed next in the Ru-
v»mantia, is the Mvska, a race of animals of small
size, and retired habits, still without horns, but with
the canine teeth, two in number, on each side, much
elongated, sometimes so much as to assume the form
of tusks, with which the males can defend them-
se’ves, and in the rutting season fight and generally
inflict large wounds. They still want the lachry¬

mal oriands. The most celebrated species is

116

THE THIBETIAN MUftK.

Moschus moschiferus. —

PLATE III.

Le Muse, Buffon , Cuvier. — Moschus moschiferus, Linn. Ha¬
milton Smith, &c _ Thibetian Musk, Pennant, Shav*

The Thibetian Musk is the celebrated animal
which produces the substance called Musk. The
specimen in the Royal Museum of the University
of Edinburgh, from which our plate was taken, is
about the size of a small roebuck, scarcely standing
so high upon the legs, and having a thicker and
more clumsy-looking body. It is entirely of a deep
reddish-brown, paler beneath, and on the inside of the
legs. The hair is of great length and thickness, crisp
and curled like that of the true deer, and without
any woolly or downy substance at the roots ; it is
sometimes varied witn white. The canine teem are
longer in this than in any of the other forms, assuming
the form of flat and cutting recurved tusks, which
are visible for an inch outside the mouth. The
hoofs are long, and assist while the animal is climb¬
ing upon the precipices among which it delights to
dwell. Its habits, in fact, are similar to the Cha-

3J.V1 J

. Native of Asia.

1'HE THIBET! AN MUSK.

117

mois aiul some of the mountain goats, climbing
and oounding among the precipices of the alpine
nages of central Asia with astonishing activity, as-
semunng in nerds, and often appearing in very con-
sideraole nunvbers. Tt is extremely shy and wary
easily aiarmed, and difficult to be approached. It
is shot or speared, and sometimes killed by the
cross-bow, -with a string set in the path of the
amma.. They inhabit the region between China
and Tartar v. extending to the mountains above the
sources of the Indus, and northward to near the Lake
Baikal. At times they appear to migrate from
one district to another, assembling previously in large
herds. Some zoologists, however, have considered
this assemblage not connected with migration, but
consisting entirely of males in search of the female.
During winter, they are said to be able to subsist
on a scanty fare of lichens, but during summer, a fa¬
vourite food is the leaves of the Rhododendron
Dauricum.

The musk is contained in a bag situated on the
belly of the male, and appears to have some con¬
nection with the season of love, for at this or during
the rutting period it is secreted in the greatest pro¬
fusion, and of the strongest scent : it is chiefly for
this they are hunted, and, when killed, the bag is cut
off, fastened at the opening, and dried, when it is
ready for sale. Several thousand bags are thus pro¬
cured in a season ; but even with this number the
substance is often adulterated before being brought

118

THE THIBETIAN MUSK.

to market, principally by blood being added. When
first taken from the animal, the scent is extremely
powerful, so much so as sometimes to be with diffi¬
culty supported by the person. Tins flavour be¬
comes mellowed through time, and by many ls much
esteemed as a perfume, which, indeed, is the Di’inci-
pal cause of its being collected : it was also occa¬
sionally used as a medicine. As a perfume, it is
one of the most subtle, and a very small quantity
will suffice, and, when once introduced, is extremely
difficult to be destroyed. In addition to tne em¬
ployment of a part of this animal as a luxury and
medicine, the flesh is sometimes eaten, but is very
strongly flavoured. A warm dress of the skins, with
the fur preserved, is made for a winter clothing, and
a soft and shining leather is prepared by another
process.

The other animals which have been placed with
the true Musk, as congeneric, differ in several par¬
ticulars. The muzzle is very much elongated, and
the accessory hoofs assume the form of adpressed
conical claws. They are the most diminutive in size
of all the ruminating animals, not exceeding the size
of a hare. They inhabit the Indian islands, generally
the thick woody copses, intermixed with rocks. It
is possible these may, when better known, be placed
in a subgenus of Mosckus. We illustrate this form

THE NATH MUSK

N ative of J ava & c.

219

THE ]S APU MUSK.

Moschus Jcvanicus. — Raffles.

PLATE IV.

Moschus Javanicus, Raffles , Trans . Linn. Soc. vol. xiii.

In Griffith’s Synopsis of Quadrupeds, five species
of these pretty little animals are described. Mr
Bennett, in the “ Gardens of the Zoological Society,”
however, makes only four ; and in our present state of
knowledge we are inclined to follow this naturalist.
With the exception of the Moschus Memina , a native
of Ceylon, and distinguished from the others by the
spots, they are all natives of Java and Sumatra, and
are closely allied, the synonymy of the one being often
applied to the others. Our present figure is reduced
and redrawn from the lithographic plate of Frederic
Cuvier’s Histoire Naturelle des Mammiferes ; and
we add the description which Mr Bennett has given
of those alive in the Zoological Society’s Menagerie.

“ In size, it is about equal to a full-grown hare :
its colour above is dark glossy ferruginous-brown,
resulting from the intermixture of black and brown
coloured hairs, somewhat lighter along the middle
line of the back, and varying in intensity according

120

THE T*Al'U MUSK.

to the position in which it is seen. The under parts*
and inside of the legs are pure white, as are also the
throat and chin. The fore part of the chest is
nearly of the same colour with the back of the neck,
and is marked with thr&? broad, l white, radiating
stripes, commencing at the throat, and passing the
central one into the white of the under surface of
the body, with the intervention of only a faint trans¬
verse band, and the two lateral ones nearly to the
shoulders on each side. The bands of Diactasn-
brown which separate these stripes are perfectly dis¬
tinct at their anterior part — a mark of considerable
importance in distinguishing this species from the
Kanchil. On either side a white line passes back¬
wards on the cheeks for some distance from the
margins of the lower lip, which are continuous with
the white of the throat ; and this marking, in the
usual sitting posture of the animal, which is some¬
thing like that of the hare in its form, gives it, when
viewed in front, the appearance of having five ra¬
diating stripes on the breast.”

The Napu, continues the same author, “ frequents
thickets near the sea-shore, and feeds principally up¬
on berries. It seldom visits the larger forests. When
voung, it is tamed with the greatest facility. In
captivity, it appears perfectly at its ease, and quite
indifferent of what is passing around it. Its full
dark eye, and placid air, give it an appearance of a
degree of intelligence which it does not really pos¬
sess ; for the greater part of its existence is passed

THE NAPU MUSK.

121

in eating, drinking, and sleeping. Its voice is scarce¬
ly more than might be produced by a deep but
gentle expiration.”

The Ceyion species, M. Memina, is entirely con¬
fined to that island, ana differs from the others by
being longitudinally striped, and again barred with
whitish, it is anout seventeen inches high, the
ground colour of a cinereous-olive. It inhabits the
thick jungles*

122

DEER.

We next proceed to the Ruminants with horns,
at the commencement of which, the large Deer, or
the Elks and Stags, have been generally placed ; but
their situation next to the diminutive Musks will ap¬
pear extraordinary, and not following that gradation
of form which we have almost invariably perceived.
The true connection appears to be by means of the
Guevi of Fred. Cuvier, and one or two of the small
antelopes, which have in reality been confused and
described as Musks, and which have the low crouch¬
ing form, and larger looking body, and almost re¬
semble the Peccaries.

The horns in the true Deer have a form and
generation accompanied with many remarkable pecu¬
liarities. In form, they are flat or palmated, and of
great size and weight, or they are nearly round, and
branch into a number of projections, termed antlers.
The substance is very compact, hard, and solid, and
without any central support or core, as in those ru¬
minating animals with which we are most familiar.
In a great many, they are annually cast, and' annually
reproduced with great rapidity, and in all these the
production of the horn is intimately connected with
the process of generation. The size of the horn also
Vicreases with the age of the animal, and divaricates
jnto a greater number of antlers. The deciduous
horns, as far as can be yet ascertained, take place
among all the Deer of the temperate countries ; but

DEER.

123

;t is supposed that some of those in hotter climates
do not cast them annually. The palmated form of
the horn, again, seems to be more restricted to those
animals inhabiting an arctic or northern latitude, and
is considered by Major Smith as a provision to re¬
move the snow from their food.

On the first commencement of the horn in the
young animals, it is perceptible like a small lump.
This advances and reaches the condition of a true
horn of a small size, and is cast at the proper sea¬
son. The wound, which at first bleeds, is in a few
hours covered with a fine film : the vessels are cica¬
trized, and the production of the next horn imme¬
diately commences with a burr round the old wound.
When the rutting season begins, generally in spring,
this reproducing power is exerted to the utmost.
The vessels from the roots swell, and an immense
degree of secretion, accompanied with heat and irri¬
tation, is generated. The horn shoots rapidly at this
period, enveloped in a fine and soft downy cover¬
ing, which serves as a protection in its tender state
fr@ni the weather and insects. When it has reach¬
ed its greatest development, or when the power of
the supplying vessels is exhausted, an irritation in¬
duces the animal to rub against trees or rocks, which
inflicts wounds on the external covering : the ves¬
sels, gradually exhausted, dry, and the covering be¬
comes like a skin, and falls or is rubbed off, leaving
the horn hard and solid, and bearing traces of the
course of the many vessels which had been employ-

124

DEER.

ed for its production. The animal now appears in
all its majesty, prepared for the battle, and con¬
tinues thus for a season, when the horns are again
shed, and he is obliged to skulk in the recesses of
the forest until they are again replaced.

The senses of hearing- and smelling are both very
acute in this group, and it is almost impossible to ap¬
proach a herd of Deer down the wind. They are
very nice in the choice of their food, and will not
touch that which has been handled or touched by
any foreign substance. They inhabit the forest or
the plain, and in various forms extend from the poles
to the warmest regions of the world.

In many of them there is a suborbital sinus, or
an opening placed below the eye, and called by the
French “ Larmiers .” This is sometimes only indi¬
cated by an open or fold, but in others is of a consi¬
derable size, and was thought to communicate with
the nostrils, and to assist in maintaining the respira¬
tion during great exertion or swiftness. It seems,,
however, that the communication exists only through
the puncta lachrymalia, and that this opening is con¬
nected only with a glandular apparatus — a peculiar
secretion being largely exuded from them by many
species.

The flesh of many is used as food, and much es¬
teemed under the name of Venison ; and strong and
lasting leather is made from their skins. We shall
first notice the Elks.

125

THE ELK. OR MOOSE.

Aloes Americamis.

PLATE V.

Original , of the French Canadians. — Cervus Alces, Linnaeus
Moose Deer, Richards. Fauna Boreali- A meric, — L'Eian
de l’Amerique septentrionale, Fred. Cuvier , Hist. Nat.
des Mammi feres.

This splendid animal surpasses all the true Deer
in size and strength, being as tall at the shoulders
as a horse, and uniting great swiftness with the most
patient endurance of fatigue.

The Elk has been usually considered as an inha¬
bitant of the northern parts of both the old and new
world ; but, of late, surmises have been made that
the animals of the different countries might prove
distinct species, and there are some minute distinc¬
tions which will entitle it to the rank of at least two
races or varieties, constant under the modification of
climate.

In America, this animal is at present better known
than in Europe. It is much esteemed for food, and,
from its extremely wary and attentive nature, the
success of a moose-hunter is reckoned one of the
greatest trials of skill. The males are said occa-

126

THE ELK, OR MOOSE.

sionally to weigh eleven or twelve hundred pounds.
The neck is remarkably short and strong, detracting
from the elegant deer-like form of the family; but
this form is necessary, to support the weight of the
enormous pa’.mated horns, weignmg from fifty to
sixty pounds, which adorn, perhaps some will say
disfigure, the front. Some of the other proportions
are also rather clumsy, if separated. But if the
whole animal, “ the aggregate of his appearance,” as
Mr Smith expresses it, be taken, it will certainly
combine with the majestic scenery which surrounds
it, and render it a fitting companion to the Ameri¬
can landscape. “ The head, measuring above two
feet in length, is narrow and clumsily shaped, by the
swelling upon the upper part of the nose and nos¬
trils ; the eye is proportionally small and sunk ; the
ears long and hairy, and asinine ; the neck and wi¬
thers are surmounted by a heavy mane, and the
throat is furnished with long coarse hair, and, in the
younger species, encumbered with a pendulous gland:
these give altogether an uncouth appearance to the
animal. Its body, however, is round, compact, and
short ; the tail not more than four inches long ; and
the legs, thougrh very long, are remarkably clean and
firm. This length of limbs, and the overhanging
lips, have caused the ancients to fancy that it grazed
walking backwards. The hair of the animal is coarse
and angular, breaking when bent.

“ Its movements are rather heavy, and the shoul¬
ders being higher than the croup, it does not gallop,

THE ELK, OR MOOSE.

127

but shuffles or ambles along, its joints cracking at
every step with a sound heard to some distance. In¬
creasing its speed, the hind feet straddle, to avoid
treading on its fore heels, tossing the head and
shoulders like a horse about to break from a trot to
a gallop. It does not leap, but steps without effort
over a fallen tree, a gate, or split-fence. During its
progress, it holds the nape up, so as to lay the horns
horizontally back.”

The form of the upper lip is perhaps one of the
most marked characters of the animal, and, as we
shall presently see, is undoubtedly an organ of pre¬
hension, necessary for its mode of life, in which it
is assisted by the lengthened tongue, possessing great
flexibility. The upper lip, like most of the stags, is
not finished by a naked muzzle ; it is entirely co¬
vered with hair, and has only in the centre a small
space entirely naked, and without glands. The
edges of the lips, on the contrary, are covered with
glands, and, towards their commissures, have nume¬
rous fleshy appendages, of four or five lines in depth,
and almost like tentacula.

In its winter dress, the Elk is of a brownish-black,
almost inclining to the latter colour, with the excep¬
tion of the limbs, which are greyish-yellow or fawn
colour. The mane is of a fawn colour : the sides
of the head of a clear dull greyish-brown. In
this state it is represented in the accompanying
Plate. In the dress of summer, it is always of a
browner tint. During the second year, the horns

128

THE ELK, OR MOOSE.

are only about seven or eight inches in length. Du¬
ring the third year, or the second of the horns, in
the animal kept alive in Paris, they only reached the
length of sixteen or eighteen inches, and had not
commenced to palmate. This might be influenced
by confinement. According to Hamilton Smith,
the incipient horns appear the first year to the length
of an inch ; the second they rise to a foot ; the third
they are forked ; the fourth they first assume six
snags, and are somewhat flattened ; the fifth year the
blade is still small, but the expansion from that time
forward is uniform. The snags sometimes amount
to twenty-eight.

The Elk, according to most writers, and the more
accurate accounts we have received, is not grega¬
rious, one or two being only seen together, except
during the breeding-season. During summer, they
frequent the lower countries, near the borders of the
lakes, where they find a refuge in the waters from the
tormenting stings of the mosquitoes ; and during the
rutting season, the fringed banks and beautiful wood¬
ed islands afford cover and shelter to the gravid fe¬
male or the young. To these retreats the does retire
at this important season, the beginning of September,
where they are sought out by the adult males, who
drive away the younger, and keep off all intruders.
In winter, again, they frequent the wooded hills, find¬
ing both shelter and food when the ground has re¬
ceived its winter covering. Their necks are so short,
and the legs so long, that they are unable to feed on

THE ELK, OR MOOSE.

129

the low herbage like cattle, but crop the tops of the
higher plants and low brushwood, or reach and pull
down the branches of trees ; for, as Frederic Cuvier
observes, their upper lip is a true organ of prehension,
and that the whole of the manners of the animal,
which he was enabled to study in confinement, plainly
indicated the adaptation of its form to an abode in
forests, and to a sustenance on the foliage of trees.
The same animal, when wishing to graze, reached
the ground with its muzzle with extreme difficulty,
and often on such occasions fed leaning on its knees.
During winter, the shoots of the willow, birch, and
red willow, are among their favourite food ; and Dr
Richardson, on the authority of Lewis and Clark,
notices the GuaUheria Shallon as much sought af¬
ter to the eastward of the Rocky Mountains.

During winter, it is a favourite object of the chase,
particularly among the Cree Indians, who accoun*
themselves the most dexterous in this pursuit. “ Ii
winter, the hunter tracks the Moose by its footmark
in the snow, and it is necessary he should keep con
stantly to leeward in the chase, and make his advance
with the utmost caution ; for the rustling of a wi¬
thered leaf, or the cracking of a rotten twig, is suffi¬
cient to alarm the watchful beast. The difficulty ol
approach is increased by a habit which the Moose
Deer has, of making a daily sharp turn in its route,
and choosing a place of repose so near some part of
its path that it can hear the least noise made by any
one that attempts to reach it. To avoid this, thv

I

130

THE ELK, OR MOOSE.

judicious hunter, instead of walking in the animal’s
footsteps, forms his judgment, from the appearance
of the country, of the direction it is likely to have
taken, and makes a circuit to the leeward, until he
again finds the tract. This manoeuvre is repeated,
until he discovers, by the softness of the snow in
the footmarks, and other signs, that he is very near
the chase. He then disencumbers himself of every
thing that might embarrass his motions, and makes
his approach in the most cautious manner. If he
gets close to the animal’s lair without being seen, it
is usual for him to break a small twig, which alarm¬
ing the Moose, it instantly starts up ; but not fully
aware of the danger, squats on its hams. In this
posture, it presents the fairest mark, and the hunter's
shot seldom fails to take effect in a mortal part.”

At other times, in winter, when the snow is very
deep, they are hunted and run down on snow-shoes,
and in this chase the endurance of the animal is re¬
markable.

During the rutting season, the Moose lays aside
all his timidity and wariness, attacking every animal,
and even man, if he comes in the way. At this
period, they are attracted by the hunters within shot
by “ scraping on the blade-bone of a deer, and, by
whistling, which, deceiving the male, he blindly has¬
tens to the spot, to assail his supposed rival. If
the hunter fails to give it a mortal wound as it ap¬
proaches, he shelters himself from its fury behind a
tree ; and I have heard of several instances in which

THE ELK, OR MOOSE.

131

the enraged animal has completely stripped the bark
from the trunk of a tree by striking with its fore
feet.” According to Say, at other times, when
wounded, he is also dangerous. His hunters wound¬
ed an animal, which fled to a thicket, where it was
pursued by the party. “ The noble animal finding
his pursuers at his heels, turned on the foremost,
who only saved himself by springing into a thicket,
which the Elk could not penetrate.” In this case,
his horns become his greatest foe, for he soon be¬
came entangled, and fell an easy victim : his head
was enveloped in such a quantity of Cissus, Smilax,
and other twiggy vines, that scarcely the tips of his
horns could be seen.

In Europe, the Elk is less accurately known, and
although, as we observed, surmises of a difference
in the species have been raised, yet nothing definite
has been discovered, and the correct characters, from
European specimens, have not yet been published.
It is said to be found in a part of Prussia, Poland,
Sweden, Norway, Finland, Lapland, and Russia ;
and in Asia, to spread from the thirty- fifth to the
fiftieth degrees.

In Sweden, the powers of this animal were made
subservient to public utility. In the reign of
Charles IX., Elks were made use of for the purpose
of conveying couriers, and were capable of accom¬
plishing 36 Swedish (about 234) English) miles in
a day, when attached to a sledge.

JDorelli, a Swedish gentleman, recommends them

132

THE ELK, OR MOOSE.

to be used in the time of war, to be employed as
flying artillery, to reconnoitre, and carry dispatches.

This is the only animal which will rank in sub¬
genus Alces, though, to another animal, known only
by the horns, the name of coronatus has been ap¬
plied by Cuvier. They are in the Paris Museum,
bear sixteen snags, but are scarcely a foot in length :
they stand about three inches asunder, and more on
the forehead than in the common Elk; and Mr
Smith thinks they must have been borne by an ani¬
mal not larger than the fallow-deer, and states his
opinion that it may prove to be the Kistuke or little
Elk of the Rocky Mountain Indians. The next
form is now known by the subgeneric title of Ran -

PLATE 6.

133

THE REIN-DEER.

Rangifer tarandus.

PLATE VI.

Cervus tarandus, Linnceus and Authors.

As with the moose or elk, we shall consider the
history of the Rein-Deer separately, as an inhabitant
of the Old and New World. In both he fills a very
important part in the economy of the native tribes ;
but it is marked with this peculiarity, that in the
one he is hunted in a state of nature, while in the
other the greater proportion of the race is under the
guidance and protection of man, and is considered
as part of the riches and private property of the in¬
dividuals. Also as with the animal above alluded
to, they present varieties in the different countries,
which have yet been not defined, and which may ul¬
timately lead to a distinction of the species which
inhabit the two continents. We shall first notice
the rein-deer in America.

The works of Hearne, Hutchins, Pennant, Say,
and more lately of Dr Richardson, have given many
details regarding this animal. It inhabits a great
range of country, nearly as far south as Canada, and

134

THE REIN-DEER.

extending north farther than any other deer. Two
varieties at least exist, named by Dr Richardson,
the Barren-ground Caribou, and the Woodland Ca¬
ribou. The latter is the smallest in size, is less es¬
teemed, and in every way reckoned inferior to the
other. It inhabits a limited track of country, a stripe
of low primitive rocks, well clothed with woods,
about one hundred miles wide, and extending, at the
distance of eighty or a hundred miles from the shores
of Hudson’s Bay, from Athapascow Lake to Lake
Superior ; and it is curious, that the woodland cari-
bon migrates or travels to the southward in the
spring — a direction opposite to that of those inha¬
biting the barren grounds. This animal requires in¬
vestigation. A naturalist has yet not had an oppor¬
tunity ; and it is much more than probable that it
may turn out to be distinct from either the other in¬
habitants of America or those of Europe. Horns
of another allied deer are described by Major Smith,
under the title of C. coronatus. The horns of this
variety are known to differ from the others. *

The barren-ground caribou of Dr Richardson is
distributed over the fur countries, and passes the
summer on the shores of the Arctic Sea. This is
an animal of a small size, weighing, when in good
condition, and without the offal, from 90 to 130 lb.
During summer they migrate to the coast, and feed
the young shoots of the grasses which commence
cO spring up in the sheltered arctic valleys. They
* Rich. Faun. Americ. i. 250.

THE REIN-DEER.

135

calf after their arrival on the coast. In September
they commence their return to the woods, where
they spend the winter, and find a sustenance from
the usnese, alectoriae, and the other tree lichens, or on
the cetrarise and cenomyces which clothe the rocks
and ground. In a wild state, this animal is no less
necessary for the support of the native tribes, than
it is to the Laplanders in Europe. “ The Chepew-
yans, the Copper Indians, the Dogribs, and Hare
Indians of Great Bear Lake,” Dr Richardson re¬
marks, “ would be totally unable to inhabit these
frozen grounds, were it not for the immense herds
of deer that exist there. Of the caribou horns they
form their fish-spears and hooks ; and, previous to
the introduction of European iron, ice-chisels and
various other utensils were also made of them. The
hide, dressed with the fur, is excellent for winter
clothing, and supplies the place of both blanket and
feather-bed to the inhabitant of the arctic wilds. It
also forms a soft and pliable leather, adapted for
mocassins and summer clothing ; or, when sixty or
seventy skins are sewed together, they make a tent
sufficient for the residence of a large family. The
shin-bone of the deer, split so as to present a sharp
edge, is the knife that is used to remove the hair in
the process of making the leather. The undressed
hide, after the hair is taken off, is cut into thongs of
various thickness, which are twisted into deer-snares,
bow-strings, net-lines, and in fact supply all the pur¬
poses of rope. The finer thongs are used in the ma-

136

THE REIN-DEER.

nufacture of fishing-nets, or in making snow-shoes ;
while the tendons of the dorsal muscles are split in¬
to fine and excellent sewing thread.”

To the Canadian voyager the venison is an im¬
portant article. By the natives the whole animal
almost is consumed, every part of the interior being
eaten ; but it is from a mixture of the meat and fat
of this animal, that the composition named pemmi-
can is made. If kept dry, it may be preserved for
three or four years, and, containing much nourishment
in small bulk, is well fitted for extensive journeys,
as has already been proved by its utility in the ar¬
duous arctic expeditions of our countrymen. An¬
other mixture of pounded deer’s meat and fish, or
fish- roe, is made, which is either eaten raw, or made
into soup ; it is called Thucchawgan. *

Excellent and appropriate winter dresses are also
made of the skins, by both natives and Europeans,
which exclude the cold in a way hardly to be cre¬
dited. This, however, will be better exemplified
. when vve notice the Rein-Deer of Lapland.

To the European the gun is an indispensable ac¬
companiment of the chase ; but for the native tribes,
necessity has been fertile in expedients to kill or
capture them. They are said to be the most easy
of approach of all the North American deer ; and a
single family of Indians will sometimes destroy two
or three hundred in a few weeks. They are taken
by snares, or shot with the bow and arrow, being ap-
• Richards6n.

THE REIN-DEER.

137

proached by stealth, or driven into the passes, where
an ambuscade lies in wait for them ; or, as they
freely take to the waters of rivers and lakes, they
are easily overtaken in the canoes, and speared.
The Esquimaux also shoot them with arrows, and
exhibit great patience in waylaying their prey. They
are so inquisitive as to examine any object with
which they are unaccustomed ; and to this the hun¬
ter trusts ; or, creeping behind any object of partial
concealment, he imitates the bellow of the animal,
having his deer-skin coat and hood down over his
head. In both cases he is generally successful, and
rarely shoots before the animal reaches a distance of
twelve paces. The most ingenious method of tak¬
ing them is. however, noticed by Dr Richardson, as
practised by the inhabitants to the southward of
Chester field’s Inlet. It is by a trap made of snow
and ice. “ The sides of the trap are built of slabs
of snow, cut as if for a snow-house. An inclined
plane of snow leads to the entrance of the pit, which
is about five feet deep, and of sufficient dimensions
to contain two or three large deers. The pit is co ¬
vered with a large thin slab of snow, which the ani¬
mal is enticed to tread upon, by a quantity of the
lichens oil which it feeds being placed conspicuous¬
ly on an eminence beyond the opening. The exte¬
rior of the trap is banked up with snow, so as to re¬
semble a natural hillock, and care is taken to render
it so steep on all sides but one, that the deer must
pass over the mouth of the trap before it can reach

138

THE REIN-DEER.

the bait. The slab is sufficiently strong to bear the
weight of a deer, until it has passed the middle,
when it revolves on two short axles of wood, preci¬
pitates the deer into the trap, and returns to its place
again, in consequence of the lower end being heavier
than the other.”

Hearne describes another method still, by which
these important animals are brought within reach of
the more imperfect weapons of the Indians, — that of
driving into a pound, as is also done with the wild
buffalo ; the principle is the same. A fence, or the
appearance of it, is placed in the form of an angle,
the entrance being wide, into which, when the herds
enter, they are impelled forward by noise behind,
until they are gradually enclosed in the centre fold.
In the present instance, the centre pound or fold is
sometimes a mile in circumference, and is intersect¬
ed with brush and fences, in which snares made of
thongs of rein-deer skins are fixed, and in which,
when entangled, they are easily speared.

• In Europe, the rein-deer inhabits the more north¬
ern countries, Siberia, Lapland, Finmark, and Swe¬
den ; but is not, we believe, known to the south of
the Baltic Sea. It also extends beyond the Asiatic
boundary, and among some tribes is used as a beast
of burden. In Iceland it has been for some time in¬
troduced. In none of these countries is it so much
esteemed as in Lapland. It there becomes the sole
wealth of the people, being every necessary they re¬
quire ; its care, food, and dressing occupying by far

THE REIN-DEER.

139

the greatest and most valuable portion of their time.
The movements of the Laplander, and his habits of
life, may indeed in reality be said to be under the
control of his deer. He must follow them during
summer in search of adequate pastures, and attend
to their migrations to the coast ; while in winter
many a dreary hour is spent in the snowdrift in look¬
ing after the safety of his herd.

Independent of the indispensable utility for food
and clothing, the rein-deer is also used to transport
merchandise, as a courier, where dispatch is needed,
and for general travelling. Sometimes they are even
used to plough and harrow, and in winter are em¬
ployed to draw hay and fodder laden upon trays. *
Travelling in winter is performed entirely by their
assistance, in a sledge, or, as it is termed, a pulk ;
but before adverting to this conveyance, novel to the
European visitor, we shall notice the speed with which
the animal can travel*

According to the best authorities, one hundred and
fifty miles was performed with one deer in twenty-
four hours, and once by two merchants across the
mountains in nineteen hours, while the same distance
has been performed with three deer in thirteen
hours. But the greatest recorded instance of the
speed of this animal, is that of the deer, of which a
portrait, together with that of its driver, is preserved
in the palace of Drottingholm. In consequence of

* Capel Brooke, p. 83.

140

THE REIN-DEER.

the Norwegians making a sudden irruption into the
Swedish territories, an officer was despatched, with
a sledge and single deer, to convey the intelligence
to Stockholm. The distance, 124 Swedish, or 800
English miles, was performed in forty-eight hours ;
but the deer dropped down lifeless on its arrival. *
This relation of speed is always spoken of as a cer¬
tainly authenticated fact ; but we cannot help sus¬
pecting that there is some error in the time ; both
the time and distance appear incredible ; and, at all
events, it will prove the exception to the general rate
of speed. Sir Arthur de Capel Brooke observed, that
a deer can easily trot ten miles, and perhaps gallop
nearly double the space in an hour, if put to extreme
speed ; but he would be unable to keep it up longer.
That traveller has also given the details of a race, in¬
stituted for the purpose of ascertaining the compara¬
tive speed , and, as the details are short and simple,
we shall insert them : — Tour deer were used ; the
first accomplished 5397 Paris feet in six minutes ;
the second performed the same distance in seven
minutes thirty seconds ; the others were distanced.
This race was performed while the snow was deep,
and consequently a considerable impediment to the
running. Another experiment was afterwards tried
on more favourable ground. The first deer per¬
formed 3089 feet 8 inches in two minutes, being at
the rate of nearly nineteen miles in an hour, and

Capel Brooke, p. 105,

THE REIN-DEER,

141

thus accomplishing 25 feet 8 inches in every se¬
cond.*

To give some idea of travelling in Lapland with
these useful creatures, we have abridged an account
of a journey performed by Sir Arthur de Capel Brooke
in that country, and can recommend the perusal of
his “ Winter in Lapland,” as a work of much inte¬
rest, and containing one of the best histories of the
domestic condition of the rein-deer.

The party of which Sir Arthur formed a part,
were about to travel from Alten to Stockholm in
sledges. They leave Alten ; but, at a distance of
some miles, find themselves stopped by one of the
streams being still unfrozen. Some of the party,
among whom was our traveller, return to Alten to
pass the night, while others take up their quartei‘9
in the cottage of a Finlander, where the rendezvous
was to take place again early next morning. About
nine o’clock the journey wras to be again commenced.
“ The morning was cold and stormy ; I was jaded,
miserably tired for want of rest, and just on the point
of being tied to the tail of a wild deer, and dragged
at random in the dark, in a kind of cock-boat, some
hundred miles across the trackless snows of Lapland.
Our pulks were ranged together in close order ; and
the wappus or guide having performed the last office
for us, by tying each of us in as fast as possible, and
giving us the rein, jumped into his own, and then

* Capel Brooke, p. 107

142

THE REIN-DEER.

slightly touching the deer with his thong, the whole
of them started off like lightning.

“ The want of light rendered it difficult to distin¬
guish the direction which we were going in, and
1 therefore left it entirely to my deer to follow the
rest of the herd, which he did with the greatest ra¬
pidity, whirling the pulk behind him. I soon found
how totally impossible it was to preserve the balance
necessary to prevent its overturning, owing to the
rate we were going at, and roughness of the surface
in parts where the snow had drifted away, the pulk
frequently making a sudden bound of some hundred
yards, when the deer was proceeding down a smooth
slippery declivity. In the space of the first two hun¬
dred yards I was prostrate in the snow several times,
the pulk righting again by my suddenly throwing
my weight on the opposite side. My attention was
too deeply engrossed by my own situation, to ob¬
serve particularly that of my fellow-travellers, or to
be able to assist them. The deer appeared at first
setting off, to be running away in all directions, and
with their drivers alternately sprawling in the snow.
As I passed Mr Heinchen’s deer at full speed, I ob¬
served, to my great wonder, the former turned com¬
pletely over in his pulk, without appearing to sus¬
tain any damage, or his deer at all to relax its pace.
My turn was now arrived ; and as we were descend ¬
ing a trifling declivity, and about to enter the fir fo¬
rest, a sudden jerk threw the pulk so completely on
its broadside, that I was unable to recover it, and I

THE REIN-DEER.

143

was dragged in this manner for a considerable dis¬
tance, reclining on my right side, and ploughing up
the snow, which formed a cloud around me, from
the quick motion of the vehicle. To render my si¬
tuation more helpless, on losing my balance I had
lost also the rein ; and though I saw it dancing in
the snow within an inch of my hands, I was unable,
from the position I lay in, to recover it. Notwith¬
standing the great increase of the weight, the deer
relaxed but little of his speed, making greater exer¬
tions the more he felt the impediment. The depth
of the snow, however, in parts, exhausted the animal,
and he at length stopped for an instant, breathless,
and turned round to gaze upon his unfortunate mas¬
ter. I began to fear I was now going to receive
some punishment for my awkwardness ; but after
resting a moment, he again proceeded. In the mean
time, I had been enabled to recover the rein, as well
as to place myself once more in an upright posture,
and we continued our way at increased speed.’

This accident, however, threw our traveller be¬
hind, and he did not overtake the party until a halt
had been called to collect the stragglers, and we find
them now upon the banks of the Aiby Elv, a stream
which was still open in the centre, and which they
were obliged to cross. This was managed as fol¬
lows : —

“ The Laplanders, to whom these obstacles are
trifles, prepared without hesitation to leap each deer
with its driver and sledge over together. This seemed

144

THE REIN-DEER.

no less difficult than hazardous ; indeed it anpeared
quite impracticable, from the width of the unfrozen
part, woich wa9 about seven feet, and in the centre
of the stream. The whole breadth of the Aiby Elv
Here might perhaps be twenty feet, and on each side
there was a short precipitous bank, the space be¬
tween that on which we were and the open part,
being about six or seven feet, the ice of which ap¬
peared firm and thick.

“ The wappus now getting out of his pulk, sta¬
tioned himself near the open part; and the sledges
then advancing, each deer was urged forward by his
driver to the utmost of his speed, descending the de¬
clivity at full gallop. Nothing less than such an im¬
petus could have carried us across, from the heavy
load of the sledge and driver. The natural force
which its own weight gave it, being thus so greatly
increased by the speed of the deer, and the icy
smoothness of the bank, it made of itself so great a
bound on coming to the open space, as in most in¬
stances to gain the firm part of the opposite ice, and
by the strength of the deer was dragged up the op¬
posite side. The first three or four took their leaps
in fine style, carrying their drivers completely and
safely over. The one immediately before me failed
in the latter respect ; for though it cleared the open
part, yet the sledge, from its weight or some other
cause, not making a sufficient bound, the fore part
of it alone reached the firm ice, and the hinder, with
its driver, was consequently immersed in the water,
till me deer, by main strength, extricated it from it?

THE REIN-DEEK.

145

awkward situation. I relied greatly on mine, from
its size, and fortunately was not disappointed, as it
conveyed me safely across, both deer and sledge
clearing the entire space.”

At night the party, twenty-three in number, halt¬
ed in a birch thicket at the base of the Finmark or
Lapland Alps. The weather changes to a storm of
wind and snow, but after much consultation, it is
determined to proceed and attempt the crossing of
the Solivara Mountains. The ascent was very te¬
dious, from the steepness and the newly fallen snow,
and the weather came on so thick, that the guide
thought it advisable not to attempt crossing the sum¬
mit. In the course of an hour, however, the fog
cleared away, and it was deteimined again to pro¬
ceed, after a short halt, to recruit the strength of the
jaded deer.

“ Our halt scarcely exceeded a quarter of an
hour ; but, before the expiration of this, our twilight
had failed us, and the arch of heaven was studded
with twinkling lights. We had no time to lose ; for
we had yet many a weary stretch of mountain, be¬
fore we should arrive at any place that would afford
us wood for our night’s bivouac. The evening star,
which shone brightly, cheered our lonely way, as we
glided along the frozen top of the Solivara, the high¬
est of the Finmark Alps. The snow on its bleak
surface was hard as adamant, and our deer, refreshed
by the rest they had made, flew swiftly along. We
had at this time accomplished about half the distance

K

146

THE REIN-DEER.

to the commencement of the descent on the opposite
side of the mountains. Hitherto we had considered
ourselves fortunate in the clearness of the weather,
but we were now about to experience a striking re¬
verse. Our guides, with the usual caution of these
people when crossing the mountains, on looking to
the westward, discovered a small misty appearance,
which slightly obscured that quarter, and seemed to
be approaching us. I probably never would have
discovered it myself. The Laplanders, however,
know too well by experience what these mists por¬
tend, and are too fully aware of the danger of meet¬
ing with them, not to keep a constant look-out. In
an instant we were in confusion, our guide quickly
made known the approach of our enemy in the rear,
and the immediate necessity there was of pushing
forward at the utmost speed to which we could put
the deer.

“ The guide coming to me, and whispering in my
ear with a seeming mystery, gave me a piece of ad¬
vice of some importance. The fog, said he with
earnestness, would shortly overtake us, and when
that happened, he briefly counselled me to halloo on
my deer as fast as it could gallop, — to mind no other
person, and never to be in the rear. My deer, in¬
deed, was one of the best and fleetest of the herd,
and I was now so expert in the management of both
animal and pulk, that I felt tolerably confident I
should not be the hindmost, except some accident
occurred. Fastening, therefore, the end of the rein

THE REIN-DEER.

147

tightly round my arm, to prevent dropping it, 1 fol¬
lowed the example of my wappus, flanking the sides
of the animal to increase its speed. The whole
party did the same, and redoubled their swiftness.
Two stars in the south-east had hitherto served as
steering points ; all around us, however, became
quickly obscured. The fog overtook us in our ca¬
reer, and in a few minutes the heavenly bodies were
no longer visible. Our confusion was now gTeatly
increased ; we were suddenly enveloped in a dense
mist, and were unable to discern our nearest neigh¬
bours. Our speed, notwithstanding, was unrelaxed,
and it was a complete helter-skelter race in the dark,
every one minding himself. The utility of the deer’s
bells was here fully shewn, since without them half
our party would probably have been lost.

“ In this manner we scampered along the top of
the Solivara, bewildered and dreading lest the mist
should be succeeded by the snow-drift. By the in¬
clination of the ground, our foremost guide perceived
we were now coming to the descent of the range,
and for the first time was sensible, that the darkness
had brought us into a part of the mountains with
which he was unacquainted. This unpleasant intel¬
ligence made us proceed step by step with the ut¬
most caution, till we found our progress suddenly
arrested. The foremost deer had reached the brink
of a precipice, and had stopped from instinct. We
had fortunately relaxed from our usual pace, or the
whole party would have been over. We now turned

145

THE REIN-DEER.

in a different direction, to endeavour to find a part
where the descent was more gradual. This was not
easy, on account of the darkness, and every step was
pregnant with danger. In a few minutes I heard a
confused noise among the foremost sledges, and had
little time for preparation, when I found myself sud¬
denly descending a precipitous part of the mountain.
The surface was smooth as glass, and both deer and
sledge glided down like lightning. It was in vain
to attempt to stop the latter. The velocity it ac¬
quired in a few yards, from the weight alone, was so
great, that it quickly overtook the animal that drew
it. His legs being now hampered by the traces be¬
tween them, the deer in consequence fell, and the
pulk swinging round in a different direction, came
on its side, and in an instant rolled like a ball. In
this manner it continued its descent, and dragged
the deer along with it. The surface of the snow was
fortunately smooth, and I rolled along with the pulk
with comparative ease; the lowness of it greatly in¬
creasing the facility with which it performed its evo¬
lutions, while the quickness with which it took place,
made me hardly sensible of it.

“ During this time the situation of the other sledges
was similar to my own, and the cry of Wappus ! was
now heard from all quarters to obtain assistance.
The guide, as soon as he could extricate himself,
rame to our aid, setting the deer again on their legs.
We now collected at the bottom, in a state of alarm
naturally created by this sudden and unexpected de-

THE REIN-DEER.

149

scent. The damage sustained, however, was trifling,
and, singular to relate, no one had suffered the least
hurt.”

These sketches from Sir Arthur’s work will serve
to depict travelling in Lapland with rein-deer. The
party arrive in safety at their destination, after many
adventures of a similar kind, which our limits will not
permit us to insert. No other conveyance at many
seasons could traverse that country, and no animal
but the rein-deer could serve the same purposes ;
and though not affording the luxury and certainty of
time of British travelling, there must be much spirit¬
ing incitement after the management of the pulk is
obtained.

The rein-deer used for travelling are often kept
by persons, and let out for that purpose, their owners
generally accompanying any distant expedition, and
acting as guides. A Lapland family generally pos¬
sesses a herd of fifty to five hundred head ; those
with less than a hundred, however, are only able to
enjoy a precarious living, and two or more families
generally join their wealth; while with five hundred
a man can support his family with curd, cheese, and
milk during summer, and in winter can kill deer.
To kill venison is looked upon as independence ;
one possessing a herd of a thousand deer, is talked
of as a rich man, and a few individuals are said to
possess the extravagant wealth of from fifteen hun¬
dred to two thousand.

The food of the rein-deer in Europe during sum-

150

THE REIN-DEER.

raer, is the young shoots of the birch and willow,
with a variety of mountain pasture and shrubs.
During summer a migration to the coast appears es¬
sential to their health ; and when in a state of domes¬
tication, this is yearly observed by the family of the
Laplander migrating with his herds, for a sojourn of
some months to the vicinity of the sea. In winter,
the food consists in a great part of various lichens,
but principally the rein-deer moss, as it is called,
Cenomyce rangiferina. In seeking for this, they
use their broad hoofs, and sometimes the horns, to
remove the snow ; and the sense which the animal
possesses to search for the plant, and to know the
part of the ground where it grows, under a deep
covering of snow, is extremely fine. “ The natural
quickness in this respect,” says Brooke, “ is amazing.
When a halt with the sledges was made, they quickly
set themselves to uncover the moss, but if the stop¬
page happened to be on a lake, the attempt was never
made, though the snow, as in the other case, was
some feet in depth above the ice.” *

There is a singular propensity in the rein-deer to
feed on the lemmings, which they seize and devour
with a sort of unrestrainable passion. During the
migrations of these little animals, the herdsman is
frequently unable to keep his deer together, they dis¬
perse so widely and eagerly in search of them.

Several attempts have been made to introduce the

* Sir A. C. Brooke, p. 502.

THE REIN-DEER.

151

rein-deer into this country, but yet without success,
chiefly, it appears, from the improper selection of a
place to which they might retire on their first land¬
ing.

Following the rein-deer, we advance to another
series of animals, where the horns still retain a pal-
mated form, but they have been arranged in a divi¬
sion or subgenus, from the circumstance of the base
arising from the burr being rounded, the horns as¬
suming the palmated form only at the top ; it has
also no canine teeth, and the muzzle is completely
formed. It has been denominated Dama , and will
illustrated by

*

152

a

THE COMMON FALLOW-DEER.

Dama vulgaris. — Gesner.

PLATE VII.

Dama vulgaris, Gesner — Cervus Dama, Auctorum. — Fal¬
low-Deer of Pennant, Shaw , Bewick , Qc.

This beautiful and common adornment of our
English parks is now scarcely to be met with in a
truly wild state. There are a few places where the
enclosures have, through time, been broken down,
and the deer run at large without food or shelter in
winter, and from thence they have occasionally
strayed into such parts near as are wild, extensive,
and wooded. They are said to be found wild in
Moldavia and Lithuania ; but, on the Continent, ge¬
nerally are kept in parks as in England. In the olden
time, they were royal property, extensive chaces or
forests were devoted to them alone, and property of
all kinds disregarded, to make room for the keeping
up and pursuit of those animals. With the advance
of civilization and agriculture, less bounds were al¬
lotted to them, and, as always happens, the wild
animals gave way to cultivation. The parks where

PLATE

FALLOW DEER.

. '

COMMON FALLOW-DEER.

153

deer are now kept are in a manner limited chaces
or forests ; several thousand acres being sometimes
enclosed, embracing a variety of hill and dale, fo¬
rest timber, water and cover, and stocked in addi¬
tion with a variety of other game. Here, however,
they are attended to in winter, and only such a
number retained as can be sufficiently fed. Six
thousand head of fallow-deer have been kept in one
of these enclosures, and from three thousand to fif¬
teen hundred is now common in most of the larger
English parks. The flesh as venison is very highly
esteemed, and the skins furnish a strong, pleasant,
and durable leather.

The most common colour of this animal in sum¬
mer is of a yellowish-brown, marked with numerous
pale spots. The buttocks are always white, and a
dark line passes along the back. The under parts
and insides of the legs are white. It varies to white,
and there is a constant dark brown variety, the fawns
of which are not even spotted.

Three fossil animals belonging to this group have
been enumerated, but two of these are thought by
some to be identical. These are the Scanian Fal¬
low-Deer, * dug out of peat at Svedala, in Scania ;
and the Fallow-Deer of Abbeville.f Both are larger
than the common species ; but by far the most re¬
markable is the animal known under the name of

* Cervus (Dama) paleodoma. Cervus (Dama) lo*

monensis.

154

THE FOSSIL ELK.

Cervus giganteus — Cuvier.

PLATE VIII.

The remains of this immense animal lias been
dug; up from peat and marl in various parts of Eng¬
land and Ireland ; in Silesia, on the Rhine, France,
and Lombardy ; and the most perfect, from which we
thought it necessary to give a figure, was found in
marl in the Isle of Man, and is now in a beautiful
state of preservation in the Collection of Edinburgh.
The dimensions of “ this animal are six feet high,
nine feet long, and in height, to the top of the right
hom, nine feet seven inches and a half.”

>

TTIE FOSS IE ELK.

Edinr Roy: U.Museimi .

L ixarssc.

155

STAGS.

We now come to what maybe considered the true
Stags, where palmation or flattening of the horns
has ceased. Hamilton Smith has placed these ani¬
mals in a subgenus Elaphus , to which he has given
the character of Horns round ; three antlers turn¬
ed to the front ; summit terminating in a fork or in
snags from a common centre ; suborbital sinus ; ca¬
nine teeth in the males ; a muzzle.” It is to this
small group that the European Stag belongs, repre¬
sented on the Vignette ; but we shall illustrate the
form by

156

THE WAPITI;

Cervus Canadensis,— Brisson.

PLATE IX.

Wapiti, Barton _ Fred. Cuvier, Hist. Nat. des Mammif.—

Landseer's Charact. Sketches _ Cervus Canadensis, Bris.

— Jerv. Wapiti. — Cervus major, Desmarest, Mammalogie,
432 — Griffith's Cnv. Subgenus Elaphas — Cervus strong,
loceros, (Schreiberj Richardson, Fauna Boreal. Amer.
i. 251.

The true Wapiti inhabits the savannahs in the in¬
terior of the more northern parts of North America.
“ The animal does not extend its range farther to
the north than the fifty-sixth or fifty-seventh parallel
of latitude ; nor is it found to the eastward of a line
drawn from the south end of Lake Winnipeg to the
Saskatchewan, in the 103d degree of longitude, and
from thence till it strikes the Elk River in the 111th
degree. They are pretty numerous amongst the
clumps of wood that skirt the plains of the Saskat¬
chewan, where they live in small families of six o'
seven individuals.”*

* Richardson’s Fauna Bor. Amer. 251.

THE WAPITI.

157

With the Canadian Stag of some authors, it has
been confused, sometimes identified, and sometimes
made distinct, but the researches of Baron Cuvier
and of Hamilton Smith have proved to their own
satisfaction that they are identical ; and in our pre¬
sent state of knowledge, we can only use those au
thorities which have most studied the subject, an&
who have had the greatest opportunities of observa¬
tion. Major Smith considers them as varieties re¬
sulting from circumstances, the Canadian animal
living in deep forests and rocky mountains, the Wa¬
piti on the savannahs of the interior. It was also
confused with the European Stag, but either variety
is much larger.

A specimen in the Parisian Menagerie in perfect
health, and about four years old, bore the following
dimensions and colours at the commencement of
autumn. The height at the shoulders is four feet
and a half. The upper parts and lower jaw are of
a pretty lively yellowish-brown, and a black mark
extends from the angle of the mouth along the side
of the lower jaw; around the eyes a circle of brown.
The neck is of a deeper tint than the sides of the
body ; it is mixed with reddish, and has coarse
black hairs depending from it in the form of a dew¬
lap. The hips are a clear French grey; the tail is
yellowish, and scarcely two inches and a half long.
The hair is of mean length on the shoulders, back,
flanks, thighs, and under part of the head ; the sides
and limbs are clothed with shorter hairs, but they

158

THE WAPITI.

are very long on the sides of the head posteriorly,
and on the neck, particularly beneath ; and there is
on the posterior and outer aspect of the hind legs a
brush of tawny hair, which surrounds a narrow, long,
horny substance. The ears are white anteriorly,
and clothed with tufted hairs ; exteriorly, their co¬
lour is the same with that of the neighbouring parts.
There is a naked triangular space round the lachry¬
mal opening near the inner angle of the orbit. The
hoofs are small.

In confinement, this animal was remarkably gentle
with its keeper; but so soon as the rutting season
commenced in autumn, it became furious, and on
the approach of any one threw itself against the sides
of its enclosures, uttering a shrill very strong cry.
In America, the young are brought up and trained
for the sledges. In England, they have also been
often kept in confinement, and have even bred ; and
Lord Glenlyon is said to have had several descents
from the pair which in 1822 were exhibited at Cha-
ring-Cross. These had the same gentle manners
with the Parisian specimens.

The horns of this deer are of immense develop¬
ment, being said to reach a length of six feet. Ma¬
jor Smith possesses a drawing, in which they are
shown five feet in length. The brow and antlers are
the largest ; and he observes, that they seem instru¬
ments of use, for when a small split pine, or bar of a
split fence, sixteen or eighteen feet in length, lies in

THE WAPITI.

159

their way, they will lift and toss it clear over their
backs.

They feed on tender branches and shoots of the
firs, as well as on the various ground herbage, and
during the summer, when tormented by the flies,
have a singular manner of gaining their sustenance,
and at the same time defending themselves from
their attacks. They, at this season, feed on aquatic
plants, and entirely immerse themselves in the lakes
and rivers, browsing completely under water, and
only raising their heads above it to breathe. At this
time they are often so intent on their food, or care¬
less of what surrounds them, that the hunters glide
gently with the stream in a canoe, and often gain
within shot.

Mr Smith introduces in this place another animal
to which he has provisionally given the name of C.
occidental is or North Western Stag. He thinks it
frequents the utmost western limits of North Ame¬
rica beyond the Rocky Mountains ; and in appearance
and colouring is very closely allied to the Wapiti.
The antlers, however, differ much ; and besides the
limited materials which he found in America, he
discovered two pairs of horns in the British Museum,
which corresponded exactly with his sketches, and
presented the character which he considers belonging
to this species, in having the bezantler the longest of
the three in each beam.

The annexed wood-cut will explain this, and be

3 60

THE WAFITI.

a guide to any skins with the horns possessing this
peculiarity.

Our next plate will shew a farther example of the

Stags in the

T A 0

161

NEPAUL STAG.

Cervus Wallichii _ Cuvier.

PLATE X.

L 3 Cerf de Wallicli, Cervus Wallichii, F. Cuv. Hist. Nat.
des Mammif. — Nepaul Stag, Griffith's Cuv. iv. 103, and
Synop.

4

The only authority for this animal is the litho¬
graphic plate published by Frederic Cuvier in his
Mammiferes. That plate is copied from a drawing
procured by M. Duvaucel, from a specimen which
Dr Wallich had sent from Nepaul to the Menagerie
at Barrackpore. The notes and descriptions which
were to have accompanied it were lost, and the
drawing remained alone as the source of informa¬
tion. We can only give a translation from Frede¬
ric Cuvier. “ The Nepaul Stag is of a yellowish-
brown ; the muzzle, lower part of the cheeks, around
the eyes, the lower part of the limbs, and their inner
surface, are of a paler tint than the body; the lower
jaw is white anteriorly, and there is a black spot on
the lower lip at the point where it joins the upper.
The tail is very short and white, as well as a large
soot on the rump. The inside of the ear is also
white. Upon all the body the hair is opening,

L

362

NEPAUI; STAG.

but on the white spot, it is frizzled and curled ; up¬
on the neck, under the throat, it is longer than on
the other parts, while on the head and limbs it is
much shorter. The lachrymal glands are of mo¬
derate size. The horns, which widen from right
to left, so as considerably to overreach the sides
of the head, from the first antlers, are turned back¬
wards, and then rise vertically ; upon each horn
above the bun’, very near to each other, spring two
antlers, which are directed forwards, the first de¬
scending, the second rising ; and in the middle of
the horn a third antler springs, which is directed a
little outwards.

The fossil cranium and horns of a stag have been
found in America, to which Dr Harlan has applied
the name of C. Americanus.

The next group in Major Smith’s arrangement,
are Asiatic Stags, chiefly inhabiting the forests of
India, and distinguished from the other deer by
having round horns, with a brow, but no median ant¬
ler. This has been denominated the Rusa group,
and may stand as a subgenus of Cervus. They are
of large size, and differ principally from the true
Stags in the form of their horns, possessing canine
teeth, and large lachrymal glands. Most of them
have also an ample mane, and long dewlap hairs.

The first species we shall notice is one of those ap¬
parently most anciently known, and by the best con¬
tinental zoologists thought to be identical with the
Ilippelaphas of Aristotle.

PLATE 11.

THE GREAT KUSA.

4H

-

V

■

163

THE GREAT RUSA.

Rusa hxppeiapnus,

PLATE XL

Cerf-Noir du Bengale ou Hippelaphe, F. Cuv. Hist. Nat. des
Mammif. — The Great Rusa, Hamilton Smith in Griffith's
Cuvier , iv. p. 105.

This Deer is thought by Frederick Cuvier to
have been that described by Aristotle, while others
again are inclined to consider the description of that
naturalist might be equally applied to many of the
other Indian species.

Frederick Cuvier mentions it as found in Bengal,
but he is nevertheless uncertain of the country whence
his specimen came ; and the islands in the Indian
Archipelago are much more probably the principal
abode of this animal. The Great Rusa is remark¬
able for the ample mane which clothes its neck and
shoulders, giving it a resemblance in this respect to
a horse, whence the ancients applied their name of
Hippelaphus. The specimen in the Paris Collection
was at the shoulders about three feet in height, with
the dimensions of the other parts in proportion. The

164

THE GREAT RUSA.

coat of hair, of considerable thickness, was remark¬
able for its length. The hair thick, dry, and frizzled.
The colour is of a uniform dull brown, except the
lower part of the belly, round the muzzle, a part of
the internal surface of the ears, and the lower lip,
which are white, and the inside of the limbs and
eyebrows, which are tawny. Another fine specimen
figured by Frederick Ouyierr is

PLATE 12.

THE RUSA of TIMOR

Native o£ the Islaud of Tiiao r

THE RUSA OF TIMOR.

Jlusa Peronii ?

PLATE XII.

Cerf du Timor, Fred. Cuvier , Hist. Nat. des Mammifere»-.

The figure of F. Cuvier has served for the ac¬
companying illustration, originally taken from two
living species in the Paris Menagerie, brought from
the Island of Timor. The general colour is a brown¬
ish-black, duller upon the head, the neck and sides,
and paler upon the flanks, the thighs, and limbs.
Along the back, it is almost black, and a line of that
colour runs downwards on the fore limbs. The hair
upon the neck is stronger and longer than on the
other parts of the body. The horns are those of
the third year. This species is figured with uncer¬
tainty as distinct, being allied to several others.

166

The next group of animals have been separated
from the Rusa by Major Smith, on account of some
distinction which by other zoologists are scarcely
considered sufficiently important. They are cer¬
tainly very closely allied, inhabiting also the iungles
and forests of continental India, and the islands of
the eastern archipelago. Major Smith’s characters
of the Axine group are : “ Homs similar to the
former (Rusa), but more slender; no canines ; small
or no suborbital opening ; generally spotted with
white ; no mane ; tail down to the houghs ; size
middling or small.” The most anciently known
animal, which will exhibit the form, is

PLATF. 13

167

THE SPOTTED AXIS.

Axis aculatus _ Smith.

PLATE XIII.

A of the ancients. — Cervus Axis of authors. — L’Axis,
Fred. Cuvier , Hist. Nat. des Mammif. — Subgenus Axis
Hamilt. Smith , Griffith"1 s Cuv. iv. 116. & Synops.

This beautiful and graceful deer has been by all
its describers compared with the European fallow-
deer, from the nearness of size, and the similarity of
colouring. The form of the horns, however, at once
distinguish it, being destitute of palmation, or broad¬
ening at the tips, and the skin, in all its changes from
the seasons, always retaining the spotted appearance.
The spotted Axis is abundant in Bengal, upon the
£nks of the Ganges, and in many of the eastern
Jands ; and by the British sportsmen in India is
frequently hunted under the appellation of the Spotted
Hog-deer. They frequent chiefly the thick matted
jungles in the vicinity of water, are extremely timo¬
rous and indolent, and feed during the night. In
these shelters they also produce their young, at which
period the bucks lay aside their timidity and boldly
act on the defensive against any assailant. In con-

1G8

THE SPOTTED AXIS.

finement they are mild tempered, and easily tamed,
and, like many of the tribe, extremely nice in tasting
any food which has been much handled or wrought
among. The cry somewhat resembles that of the
stag.

The height of the Axis at the shoulder is 2 feet
6 or 7 inches. The hair is softer than in the other
deer, and not so dry or brittle. The ground colour
of the body is of a rich but delicate fawn colour,
changing to nearly black along the back, and on
the lower parts shaded to a pure white. The flanks,
shoulders, hind quarters, and a part of the neck, are
marked with white spots. These are generally di¬
rected in lines, one along each side of the back, and
one between the belly and the flanks; two also spring
from the shoulders, and descend on the limbs, and
two divide the hind quarters, and descend upon the
belly ; and the whole hinder part of the thigh is bor¬
dered with a lengthened white spot or border. This
is the general distribution of the spots ; but they
vary in different individuals. The females are near¬
ly similar, except being less in size, and wanting
horns; and the young at their birth nearly resemble
their parents in colouring. Several varieties of lesser
size and varied spotting are found ; and it is pro¬
bable that another animal is still mixed up with some
of these.

Another animal, to be referred to this division,
and whose characters have been somewhat obscure,

is

PLATE 14.

169

THE BROWN PORCINE AXIS.

Axis porcinus.

PLATE XIV.

Porcine Deer, Pennant , Quadrup. — Cerf cochon, M. <% F.

Fred. Cuvier , Hist. Hat. des Mammif.

This appears undoubtedly to be the animal fi¬
gured and referred to by Pennant in his History of
Quadrupeds, from a specimen sent to Lord Clive
from Bengal, and named, from its thickness and
clumsy body, “ Hog Deer.” A more modern and
accurate figure has been given of an animal in the
Parisian Menagerie, in the Mammif&res of Frederic
Cuvier, and which seems to have been similar to
that which supplied Mr Pennant’s description. It
is nearly of the size of the Spotted Axis, and is re¬
markable for the rounded outline of the head, and
the heavy and awkward proportions of the body.
The horns in this figure are slender, with a single
short antler at the base, and the fork at the tip
slightly developed. The colour is entirely of a yel¬
lowish-brown, slightly paler on the lower parts. The
insides of the limbs are white, and around the eyes,
with the hinder parts of the cheeks, are yellowish.

170

THE BROWN PORCINE AXIS.

It inhabits the jungles of India, and, notwithstand¬
ing its form, is extremely active.

This animal, with the preceding, seems to go un¬
der the name of Hog-deer, and appears to be one
of the species which are most frequently hunted on
horseback or with greyhounds. It appears to be
a variety of either this or the Spotted Axis which
is introduced by Colonel Williamson in his Oriental
Field Sports as by far the most abundant species in
the jungles. His figures vary from either in having
a single row only of white spots along each side of
the back, and the form of the animal and of its horns ;
while the power it is described to possess when irri¬
tated, would lead us to believe that it is more nearly
allied to the preceding, if it should not turn out to
be an animal distinct from both. It evidently be¬
longs to the present group, and a short notice of
some of the Colonel’s observations may tend to throw
light on the habits of the Axine Deer.

Succeeding these have been placed the Capreo-
line group, varying slightly in form, in the branch¬
ing of the horns, and in the want of a lachrymal
sinus. It will be seen in

THE COMMON ROEBUCK

Edmr Roy. tl. Museum

Native of the Scottish Highlands.

171

THE COMMON ROEBUCK.

Capreolus dorcus. — Gesner.

PLATE XV.

4 ■ .

Cervus capreolus of Authors _ Chevreuil, Buffon . — Roe or

Roebuck of English writers.

The common Roe or Roebuck is one of the most
elegant of our native deer, and forms a most appro¬
priate and beautiful object in the woods and copses
of the Scottish Highlands. In Scotland, north of the
Forth, it is every where abundant, where rock and
wood abounds ; so much so, as in some places to be j
condemned to extirpation, from the damage done to
the young wood. It delights in what may be called
the lower coverts, the civilised woods, and leaves
those of sterner character, more solitary and wild,
to be frequented by that pride of the north, the Stag
or Red Deer. South of the Forth, it is very rare,
one or two wilder parks only possessing a few ; but
frequent traces of its former abundance is found in
the border counties, remains and skeletons being
almost yearly disinterred from most of the larger
peat mosses : in the rugged woods of Westmore¬
land and Cumberland it still abounds. On the con-

172

THE COMMON ROEBUCK.

tinent of Europe it is common in many districts
suited for it, Germany and Silesia, &c. ; and it ex¬
tends across the Asiatic boundary.

Another animal is mentioned as belonging to this
group, the Tartarian Roe, C pygargus , found in
Russia and Siberia. It is larger than the common
roe, brown, with the under parts yellowish. It is a
species yet little known.

The next Deer in our arrangement is the Maza-
mine group, formed of the subgenus Mazania , H.
Smith, and which will be represented by

THE CUAZUP'U CO. DEER. Native of Paraguay.
Lichtenstein

173

THE GUAZUPUCO-DEER,

Mazama paludosa. — H. Smith,

PLATE XYI.

Del Giiazil-pucu, Azara, Apuntamientos , i. p. 33, No. 4.—=
Cervus paludosus, Desm. Mammalogie , p. 443. — Guazvu
puco-deer, Griffith's Cuv. iv. 134. — Cervus paludosus,
Lichtenstein , Saugethiere, pi. xviL

This deer, with the following, seems first to have
been noticed in the works of Azara. They were
afterwards introduced in the Mammalogy of Desma-
rest ; and we have a figure of our present species
in Griffith’s translation of Cuvier, taken from a spe¬
cimen exhibited in London. Later still (in 1829),
it is described and figured in Lichtenstein's Sauge¬
thiere, which has supplied the material for our illus¬
trations. It is nearly as large as the European stag.
The muzzle is large. The general colour is a red¬
dish-bay, except the insides of the ears, the lower
part of the breast, and inside of the limbs, which are
white. The forehead and face is marked with a
dark broad stripe, which runs irregularly down on
each side of the lips, and is relieved by a paler tint
on the eyebrows and cheeks. It inhabits the lower
districts of Paraguay,,

174

THE GUAZUTI-DEER.

Mazama campestris — Smith.

PLATE XVII.

Del Guazuti, Azara, Apvntamientos, p. 41. No. 5 _ Cervus

campestris, Desm. Mammalogie , 444. — Griffith's Cuv. iv.
p. 136. — Lichtenstein , Saugethiere , pi. xix., male female,
and young.

This is another of the beautiful South American
deer, recorded in the works ol Azara, but which for
long after remained in comparative obscurity, and is
now rarely met with in a collection. A figure is given
by Major Smith, from a specimen exhibited in Lon¬
don, under the name of Cushevo ; but we have again
recourse to the plate of Lichtenstein, of a later date,
for the accompanying illustration. It is not nearly
so large as the former, standing only about two feet
six inches high at the shoulder. The horns are more
slender, also, about a foot in length, and with gene¬
rally two snags. It inhabits the open plains, instead
of the forests or thickets, and possesses great swift¬
ness, so much so, that Azara mentions a horse can¬
not overtake it. According to the same author, the
flesh of the young is delicate, but that of the adult

. *

'

■

THE GUAZUTI-DEER.

175

strongly flavoured. A slice of their flesh applied to
the wound is said to cure the bite of poisonous ser¬
pents. It sometimes varies to nearly white.

This group contains also several other South Ame¬
rican species, which are yet in such obscurity as to
render it uncertain whether they will all rank as dif¬
ferent animals, or only as varieties or different states,
from the influence of the season on the colour of
their hair. M. Mexicanus and nemoralis stand in
our systems as separate. Two others, found in
North America, are better known, and may be short¬
ly noticed. The first, the black-tailed or mule-deer,
Cervus macrotis, Say, seems to inhabit the whole ex¬
tent of the plains of the Missouri, Saskatchewan,
and Columbia. This species being of little inte¬
rest, either as an article of food to the natives, or of
profit to the traders, those of North America re¬
mained in uncertainty till the observations of Say
and Dr Richardson have in a great measure removed
it. The following description is that of Mr Say,
from specimens killed during the expedition to the
rocky mountains.*

The antlers slightly grooved, a small branch near
the base ; near the middle of the entire length, they
bifurcate equally, and each of these processes divides
again near the extremity. The ears are very long,
nearly half the length of the whole antler ; the hair
coarse and compressed, and undulated, light red¬
dish-brown above ; sides of the head, and hair on

Expedit. ii. p. 83.

176

THE GUAZUTI-DEER.

the fore portion of the mane above, dull cinereous,
the back intermixed with blackish-tipped hairs, which
form a distinct line on the neck near the head ; tail
pale reddish black at the tip.

Dr Richardson’s specimen stood about two feet
six inches high at the fore shoulder, and the horns
wanted the small basal process which existed in Say’s
specimen.

The other species alluded to is the Virginian deer,
Mazama Virginianaf H. Smith, and which that
author takes as typical of his sub-genus, having
“ The light and elegant form ; a long tapering nose ;
the horns reclining on the head, and turned outwards,
and then with a very decided curve, pointing their
extremities forward ; the horns with a general ten¬
dency to flatten ; a small suborbital pore like a fold,
and no canines.”

177

SUBUJLO,

The next form we have to notice is what Major
Smith has named the Brockets, from their having
horns, during all their ages, similar to those of a deer
of the first year — a single straight and round horn ;
and hence also his generic title of Subulo. They
inhabit South America, are of middling size, have a
small muzzle, a lachrymal sinus, and a tail of mo¬
derate length. They inhabit the woods and jungle.
The first species is

M

178

THE GUAZU-PITA.

Subulo rufus. — Smith.

PLATE XVIII.

Del Guazu-pita, Azara , Apuntamientos , i. p. 51. — Cervu9
rufus, F. Cuvier and Desmarest. — The Pita Brochet, Su¬
bulo rufus, H. Smith; Griff. Cuv. iv. p. 140. — Lichten¬
stein^ Saagethiere, pi. xx., male, female, and young.

First noticed by Azara, and named by him as
above, from the red colouring of the hair. They in¬
habit the low, moist woods, and are polygamous ;
hence ten females are generally seen for one male,
which gave rise to the idea that South America pos¬
sessed deer without horns at all. They are very
fleet for a short time, but are easily tired and over¬
taken by dogs, and are sometimes taken with the
lasso and balls.

1 be height at the shoulders is about twenty-nine
inches. The general colour of the body is a reddish-
brown. The inside of the ears is whitish, the hairs
very short. The same whitish colour surrounds the
lips, the lower part of the head, and of the tail, the
hinder part of the belly, the buttocks, and the inside
of the fore legs, reaching to the knees. The females
want the horns entirely, are nearly of the same red

THE GUAZU-PITA.

179

dish tint, with a white spot above the nose and on
the upper lip.

Another species mentioned by Azara, and enter-
ing this division, is the Guazu-bira, the Bira Roe of
Major Smith, and the Cervus nemorivagus of Lich¬
tenstein. This pretty deer inhabits the woody parts
of the same country with the former, and also owes
its tirst notice to Azara. It is about twenty- six incites
in length. The aspect of the animal is said to be
less deer-like than the preceding, and to approach
somewhat to some of the sheep. The ears are more
rounded at the extremity, and the lachrymal sinus
is nearly imperceptible. The lower part of the head
and lips are whitish ; around the eyes, the inside of
the fore legs, and from the lower part of the breast
to the buttocks, is of a whitish cinnamon colour.
The whole neck, and all the other parts of the ani¬
mal, are of a brownish shade, approaching to greyish,
from each hair having a delicate tip of white. The
horns are short and simple. To these Major Smith
adds another animal, from the collection of Prince
Maximilian of Neuweid, very similar to the first, but
about six inches lower at the shoulder. He has
given it the title of A para Brocket, Cervus ( subulo )
simplicicornis.

The next animals are now known under the title
of Muntjak, and have been placed by Major Smith,
apparently with propriety, at the conclusion of the
true deer, from the remarkable structure of the horns,

180

THE MUNTJAK.

the deciduous part being placed at the extremity of
a lengthened pedicle, or, as it were, surmounting a
fixed horn. He has termed the subgenus Stylocerus ,
and characterized it, “ Horns small, with only one
anterior snag, standing upon elevated pedicles ; long
canines in most males, deep suborbital sinus, a small
muzzle.” They have yet been found only in India,
anu her islands. The first to be noticed is

181

THE MUNTJAK.

Stylocerus Muntjak. — Smith.

PLATE XIX.

Rib- faced Deer, Pennant , Quad — Cervus muntjak, Desm.
Mammalogie ; Horsf. Zool. Researches in Java — Styloce-
rus muntjak, H. Smith; Griff. Cuvier , iv. 143, and Sy¬
nopsis.

The Muntjak, or Sumatra Roe, as it is occasional¬
ly termed, is at present best known by the figure and
description of Dr Horsfield, which appeared some
years since in that naturalist’s “Zoological Researches
in Java.” It is a native of many of the eastern
islands, and while it resembles the roe of Europe in
its general shape, an animal in full health and vigour
is nearly one-fifth larger. They have the same ele¬
gance of appearance, the same springy lightness in
their bounds, and, by native poets of both coun¬
tries, have been employed as emblems of softness,
timidity, or speed.

The height at the shoulders of Dr Horsfield’s ani¬
mal, is about two feet two inches, and that gentle¬
man’s description is nearly as follows. “ The face
affords a peculiar character of the Cervus muntjak ;
it differs in a 9 mall degree in the living animal, and

182

THE MUNTJAK.

in prepared specimens found in collections. In the
former, there exists two rough folds of the skin, which
are considerably distended and elevated ; they are
separated about an inch and a half above, and, fol¬
lowing the direction of the prominent sides of the
forehead, they unite below, so as to mark the face
with the letter V. In the dried subject the folds
are contracted, and three distinct ribs appear, which
have suggested to Pennant the name of Rib-faced
Deer.

“ A few straggling delicate bristles are scattered
over the face, near the nostrils, and over the lower
iip and chin. The ears are of moderate size, erect,
oval, and internally bordered with a series of beauti¬
ful white hairs. The face is marked with two black
lines, following the direction of the lateral ridges, and
continued along the pedestals to the coronal margins,
by which they are terminated. The colour of our
animal is a reddish-brown, but it differs in different
parts in its intensity. The specimens belonging to
the Museum of the India House have a reddish-
brown tint, inclining to fulvous. The inside of the
thighs, region of the pubes, and the under side of
the tail, are white. The lower part of the thighs
and the legs are dark brown, slightly variegated
with gTey; but a streak of reddish-brown extends
along the legs, posteriorly, towards the tarsus, where
it becomes dark and blackish. The colour of the
Muntjak varies at different periods of the year. The
female also, at least in Java, is darker than the male.”

THE MUNTJAK.

18a

But it is in the horns that we see the most re¬
markable form and the character of the subgenus of
Smith. “ In the adult kidang in a perfect state,
they consist of one principal branch, with a smaller
additional antler, rising on the same base from the co¬
ronal margin of the pedestal, and projecting forward
and inward. The latter is simple, very short, and,
from the common base, one inch and a half in length.
The principal branch in the adult animal, is four
inches and a half, and measured along the curve five
inches long. It rises for the space of two inches
nearly erect, then forms a slight curve outward and
forward, and, finally, bending suddenly backward
and inward, nearly at a right angle, forms a hook
with an acute termination, the curve of which va¬
ries in different individuals.” The base of the horns
is finished by a tuberculated burr, but which is
nearly concealed by the hair, which terminates the
pedestals. The pedestals commence, as it were,
with the ridges which are apparent on the face,
which gradually diverge and follow the outline of
the skull. “ Thus they continue gradually increasing
in size, until they have passed the orbits of the eye,
where they enlarge by a lateral swelling, constituting
an outer and inferior margin. Their form here is
irregularly angular, being broader above, and having
an even outer and inferior margin. They diverge
now more abruptly from each other in a lateral di¬
rection, but in their ascent preserve the obliquity of
the line bounding the skull above. Having passed

184

THE MUNTJAK.

the limits of the skull, they assume a cylindrical,
somewhat compressed form, and constitute, on each
side, a pedestal three inches in length, which, in its
whole extent, is covered with integuments and hair,
and at the extremity is crowned with a notched
margin or burr supporting the hairs.”

It has been observed by some naturalists, that we
remain in uncertainty whether the Muntjak sheds its
horns only once, or yearly. If the former were the
case, it would shew a beautiful gradation of structure
between the true deer with deciduous horns, and
those animals where they rise from the bone of the
forehead and are persistent. This will be better
understood by looking at the annexed figures of the
head and horns, from Horsfield’s Illustrations. — See
Plate XX.

The most favourite haunts of the Muntjak in
Java, are the moderately elevated grounds, diversi¬
fied by ridges and valleys, tending towards the ac¬
clivities of the more considerable mountains, or ap¬
proaching the confine of extensive forests. Sac-
charum spicatum and Phyllanthus emblica are among
the most abundant plants in these districts, and con¬
stitute its principal food, together with several other
malvaceous plants, which are also greedily eaten.
The Muntjak is often hunted by the Europeans and
natives of rank. When started, its flight is very swift,
and, taking a circular course, it generally returns to
the spot whence it was raised. If the pursuit be con¬
tinued, it thrusts its head into a thicket, and remains

PLATE 20

FRONT VIEW oK Till. HEAD OK the MUNTJAK .

HoL'stield.

Luarx

THE MUNTJAK.

185

fixed and motionless, as in a place of security, re¬
gardless of the approach of sportsmen. It is hunted
with pariah dogs, which are kept in large packs, and
trained for the purpose, and, when brought to bay,
makes a most vigorous resistance, often fatally
wounding the dogs with its tusks, tearing the neck
and breast, and laying open the belly. At other
times, a wide district is surrounded as in the Nor¬
wegian skaals, and the game driven to a centre.
Horses are trained to the chase, and the sportsman
endeavours to overtake the animal, and kill it by a
stroke of a sword. The rider is mounted on the
naked back, and pursues with a frantic impetuosity,
^vhile the aged delight to recount the dangers and
incidents of the chases long bygone. This animal
is also taken with nooses and a variety of snares,
and seems to be nearly equally persecuted by man
and the beast of prey.

Major Smith notices four other species, which he
refers to this group. They are all, however, com¬
paratively yet unknown. They are, S. Pkillippinus
(C. Pkillippinus, Desmarest), S. subcor nidus, *S. au¬
reus, and S. moschalus , or Nepaui Muntjak.

186

GIRAFFIDiE.

Following the Muntjaks, have been placed those
extraordinary animals the Giraffes , from the circum¬
stance that they possess the two bony elongations
from the skull, covered with hair, and which, in the
skeleton, appear like the bony core of horns, but
which in the living animal are only surmounted with
some stiff bristly hairs, standing erect.

%

187

THE CAMELEOPARD OF NORTH AFRICA

Cameleopardalis antiquorum.

PLATE XXI.

Modern zoologists have considered that the nor¬
thern and southern regions of Africa possessed sepa¬
rate species of this extraordinary animal, and have
lately appropriated to that of the north the title of “ C
antiquorum ,” as being the animal known to the an¬
cient Greeks and Romans, and to the old Egyptians,
as proved by the appearance of the creature on the
sculpture of the latter, and by the histories of the
former, which we have handed down with apparent
authenticity. We are ignorant, however, yet how
far the limits of each extend, but know that one or
other of them range from the most southern extre¬
mity of the Cape to the very north ; — not very un¬
common in the more unexplored regions, but rapidly
decreasing wherever a commencing civilization has
begun to plant her steps.

The present figure is that of an animal from the
north, taken in the vicinity of Senaar and Darfour ;
and the woodcut at the commencement of the de¬
scription is also from the northern animals described
by Ruppel; and as it is in this organ that the princi-

188

THE CAMELEOPARD.

pal specific distinctions appear, it may serve for com¬
parison with those from the southern part of the con¬
tinent.

In both species, the immense length of neck, and
the disproportional height of the fore-quarter, com¬
pared with the hinder, are the appearances which
first strike an observer as unwieldy, clumsy, and un¬
fitted for an active life. The food, however, is de¬
rived in a great measure from the foliage of trees,
particularly a species of Acacia (Acacia Giraffe,
Burch.). It seizes the herbage or foliage with its
tongue, which is long and narrow, and which rolls
round the object with a considerable degree of plia¬
bility, using it as a prehensile organ, and one beau¬
tifully fitted as an accessory to the other parts of its
structure. The perfection of its form enables it to
reach the exalted branches, which are uncropped,
from being above the height of ordinary animals ;
and, on the other hand, a shorter neck would not
have allowed it easily to reach the earth, in districts
where wood was more un frequent. Its pace is
an amble, and, when put in motion, it is capable
of considerable speed, according to Major Denham,
such as to keep a horse at a pretty smart gallop.
It occasionally falls a prey to the lion, the only
beast of prey which dares to attack it ; but the
powerful strokes of both the fore and hind feet are
sometimes an equal match in open combat. The
height of the Giraffe is from fifteen to twenty- one feet.
The general colour is yellowish-wrhite, patched ove*

THE CAMELEOPARD.

189

with large square and irregularly formed spots, of a
yellowish-brown or fawn colour, divided from each
other by a narrow stripe of the pale ground colour, and
represented among the antelopes by the appearance
of the Tragelciplius script a, and one or two othei-9.
The head is adorned with three prolongations of the
bone, two of which, in the usual place of horns, are
generally described as such. They are covered with
a velvety skin similar to those of the deciduous horned
deer at their first growth, but which does not fall oif,
and at the tip they are surmounted by some strong
bristly hairs. In the adult, the internal structure is
hard and solid ; but in the young, Geoffroy St Hi¬
laire observed the appearance of a cellular centre,
nourished by vessels. The third protuberance is in
the centre of the skull, and . appears as a rounded
knob, and is of a very spongy texture. The Ca-
meleopard was seen by Denham and Clapperton in
parties of five or six on the borders of Lake Tchad,
and also met with and described by Ruppel in his
Travels in North Africa; while those of the south
are frequently mentioned in the Travels of Le Var¬
iant and Burchell.

In a state of nature they are timorous, and flee
immediately from danger, but in a state of domesti¬
cation lose a great part of their timidity, become
mild and docile, know their keeper, and take from
tne liana wnat is offered to them.

190

CaPRID^K.

From an animal of so extraordinary form as that
we have been just considering, we proceed to the
fourth great family of the Rumincintia, placed by
Major Smith under the title of Caipridce ; but there
is an evident gap of connexion on both sides of the
Giraffe, which will undoubtedly yet be filled by the
discovery of some animal of this order in the interior
of Africa, tr&ces or hints of something allied having
been already given by several travellers in that fatal,
but yet almost unexplored, interior. The Capridae
contain animals still possessing great grace and swift¬
ness, and gentle dispositions, and many of great uti¬
lity to man in a domesticated state. Their great
distinction from the Cervine or Deer Group, is in the
horns being persistent. Interiorly, they are a pro¬
longation of the bone of the skull, of a very cellular
texture, and nourished by appropriate vessels and
nerves, while the external covering is the substance
called horn, covering the other like a sheath, and
also nourished from the root. The horns scarcely
ever divaricate, or run into^antlers, one animal where
there is an exception being placed at the commence¬
ment of the Family. The character of the horn in

THE CAPRID/E

191

this is in other respects maintained, a single strong
prong jutting from it at the base, and shewing a mo¬
dification of structure which, if not known to exist,
would certainly have been surmised. The horns in
the other species sometimes approach to a flattened
form, are sometimes bent in abrupt knees, or sudden
nooks ; but the general form is rounded, or spirally
twisted, almost always inclining backwards.

The first section of the Capridse will be composed
of the antelopes, forming a subfamily Antelopince ,
and containing by far the greater proportion of the
whole. By Major Smith it has also been divided
into subgenera, which we shall notice in succession,
but in the present volume will be able only to review
a portion of them.

In their general characters they continue the deer¬
like form, and only in some of the concluding forms
resemble in appearance the succeeding groups of the
sheep and goats, while a few indicate the peculiari¬
ties of the next or Bovine Family. The hair con¬
tinues also the quality of that of the deer. The tail
is in general somewhat lengthened. The horns are
not confined to the males only, though in the other
sex they are generally less developed. The greatest
part of them are gregarious, and form one of the
most beautiful and interesting objects in the African
desert. They are easily alarmed, and dart suddenly
off on observing the cause of their distrust : but, pos¬
sessing a great share of curiosity, make sudden
’wheels, and stop to inspect the intruders, without,

192

THE CAPRID.E.

however, allowing them to approach within the reach
of harm. In India they hold various stations in
the mythology of the Hindu, and in the superstitions
of other sects. Their flesh is, however, generally
eaten, that of many of them much esteemed. They
form a great portion of the food of the larger carni¬
vora.

The first animal to be noticed is

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THE PRONG-HORNED ANTELOPE.

Dicranocerus furcifer. — Smith.

PLATE XXII.

Aatilocapra American ord, Journalde Physique — Antilop-e
furcifer, Smith, Linn. Trans, xiii. — Richards. Faun. P's*
reali- Americana — Dicranocerus furcifer, Smith in Griff.
Cuv. iv. 167, and Synop.

This animal retains the cervine form, more than
any of the other antelopes. The character of the
hairing, the short tail, and light coloured disk upon
die buttocks, combined with the slight palmation
and prong of the horns, all contribute to keep up the
resemblance ; and in addition, the structure is also
more allied to the deer.

The prong-horned antelope is found in the north¬
west territory of the United States. It is a common
animal on the plains lying betwixt the Saskatchewan
and Missouri, and is also met with on the plains of
the Columbia. Their most northerly range, accord¬
ing to Dr Richardson, is about lat. 53°, on the banks
of the north branch of the Saskatchewan, where they
are merely summer visitants. They frequent open
prairies and low hills, interspersed with clumps of

N

J94 THE PRONG-HORNED ANTELOPE.

wood ; but are not met with in the continuous wood¬
ed country.

“ This animal has a graceful form, a slender head,
with large eyes, and long delicate limbs. The horns
are black, and rise directly upwards and outwards,
without any inclination either forwards or backward,
and curve sharply in towards each other at their tips.
They are much compressed in a lateral direction, to
about half their height, where they give out a thin
triangular and bracket-shaped process, which pro¬
jects directly forwards for more than an inch. The
surface of the lower half of the horns is striated, and
is rough, with small warts and knobs, two or three
of which project from a quarter to half an inch. The
situation of these knobs varies in different speci¬
mens.”

The hair which clothes the body resembles that
of the moose or rein-deer in its structure ; it is long,
round, tapering from the root to the point, waved,
and of a soft and brittle texture ; its interior is white
and spongy, like the pith of the rush. When the
hair makes its first appearance in summer, it forms
a smooth coat, and has the ordinary flexibility and
appearance of hair ; but as it lengthens, it acquires
the brittle spongy texture at its roots, and, increas¬
ing at the same time in diameter, it becomes erect,
and forms a very close coat. As the spring ap¬
proaches, the fine and flexible points are rubbed off,
particularly on the sides, where the hair appears as
if it had been clipped. The mane on the hind head

THE PRONG-HORNED ANTELOPE.

195

and neck retains its darker points, even when the
winter coat is dropping off.

The upper parts of the body are of a clear yellow¬
ish-brown colour, deepening on the ridge of the back
into blackish-grey. The hairs are much longer be¬
tween the ears and on the back of the neck, where,
they form an erect mane, of a blackish-brown colour
on its tips. The sides and thighs are paler than the
back, and approach in colour to a clear wood-brown.
The under jaw is of a very pale yellowish -brown co¬
lour, fading to white. The hair is bushy about the
angle of the lower jaw, and has a wood-brown colour.
This colour forms three belts across the throat, which

t

differ from each other in breadth, and are separated
by twro patches of pure white. The chest, belly, in¬
sides of the thighs, and legs, the tail, and a large
patch around it, which includes the rump and upper
part of the buttocks, are pure white. There is a
pale yellowish mark at the root of the tail, which is
four and a half inches long. The legs are slender,
with long shank-bones. The fur covering their an¬
terior surfaces is yellowish brown. It has only two
hoofs, there being no vestige of the posterior supple¬
mentary ones.

The length of the animal, from the nose to the
root of the tail, is about four feet four inches. The
height at the shoulder about three feet.

The females examined by Dr Richardson were
nearly without horns, although by some writers both
sexes are said to be furnished with these weapons.

196

THE PRONG-HORNED ANTELOPE.

In those there was merely a short obtuse process of
the frontal bone, scarcely to be felt through the fur,
and not covered with horn. The young at birth are
covered on the upper parts with short hair, of a clove
brown colour, more or less hoary. The situation of
the mane is marked by a dark line. The tail is yel¬
lowish-brown, and the buttocks are pure white. The
dark mark on the nose, the one behind the angle of
the jaw, and the bands across the throat, exists as in
the adult. The legs are of a pure wood brown co¬
lour.

The prong-horned antelope, continues Dr Rich¬
ardson, appears on the banks of the Saskatchewan,
sometimes a solitary animal, sometimes in herds of
ten or twelve. Its sight and sense of smell are acute,
and its speed is greater than any other inhabitant of
the plains, although, when there is a little snow on
the ground, it may, with some little management, be
run down by a high bred horse. The Indian hun¬
ters have no difficulty in bringing an antelope with¬
in gun-shot, by various stratagems, such as lying
down on their backs, and kicking their heels in the
air, holding up a white rag, or clothing themselves
in a white shirt, and shewing themselves only at in¬
tervals. The curiosity of the herd is so much rous¬
ed, that they wheel round the object of their atten¬
tion, and at length approach near enough to enable
the hunter to make sure of his mark.

Major Smith has noticed another animal, under

THE PALMATED ANTELOPE.

197

the title of D. palmata, in which the horns have the
prong much more palmated. — (See annexed cut).

He considers it a more northern animal, and that
the palmation is a necessary provision to remove the
snow from the food. Dr Richardson, however, con¬
siders that the variation of the horns is the etfect of
age, and that no antelope exists in the country as¬
signed to this, “the bleak regions near the frozen
Ocean.” We notice this, and have introduced Ma¬
jor Smith’s representation of the horns to direct fur¬
ther attention to the subject.

We proceed next to an African group, and as the
next three forms are closely allied, we shall add Ma¬
jor Smith’s characters at the commencement of each.

Subgenus Aigocerus , Smith. “ Horns very large,
common to both sexes, pointed, simply bent back,
annulated, placed above the orbits. Half muzzle, no
suborbital sinus, no inguinal pores, tail descending
to the houghs ; mane reversed ; a white mark before
the eyes ; throat and under jaw somewhat bearded;

198

THE PRONG- HORNED ANTELOPE.

mammae two ; stature large ; shoulders higher than
the croup.” The animals composing the subgenus
are found in central parts of South Africa, inhabiting
the borders of the deserts, living in small herds.
Our information regarding any of them is by no means
ample. They are all of large size. Among the
best known may be mentioned the Blauw-bock of the
Cape colonists, A. leucophaea, now a very rare animal,
and extirpated from the colony. It is above four
feet high at the shoulders. At a little distance it ap¬
pears of a silvery bluish-gray, occasioned by long
coarse hairs sparingly scattered over a deep black
skin. Another, the Roan Antelope, A. equina , ex¬
ceeds the preceding in height, and the general colour
is grey, mixed with a reddish tint. It inhabits the
elevated plains in the vicinity of Latakoo.

A third animal allied to the above we have select*
ed to . illustrate this form ; it ia

the takhaitze Native of Airier

Daniel

1 39

THE TAKHAITZE.

Antilope barbata. — Danieil.

PLATE XXIII.

The Takhaitze, Daniell , African Scenery.

This beautiful Antelope is known from the figure
of Daniell, which has served for our illustration, and
it has been surmised that the above was only anothei
name for A. equina and leucophcca. The following is
the notice which accompanies Daniell’s plate : —

(< This extraordinary animal, which has never be¬
fore been drawn or described, is equally unknown to
the colonists of the Cape, being first met with in the
parallel of latitude under which Latakoo is situated.
In the neighbourhood of this place we had the good
fortune to fall in with a couple of them. They are
exceedingly shy, and, when wounded, dangerous to
come near ; nor do the Booshuanas consider it 6afe
to approach them in the rutting season. They rare¬
ly kill them, as they do most other antelopes, with
the spear or assagai, but entrap them in deep pits
covered with sticks and earth, in the same manner as
the Bosjesmans take the hippopotamus. The flesh
is esteemed a great delicacy. This animal is, in ge¬
neral, from four and a half to five feet high, of a bluish

200

THE TAKHAITZE.

colour like that of the Nyl-gau of India, to which,
indeed, its general shape approaches, but it is some¬
times seen of a tavvnv brown. Both male and female
have horns, pointing backwards in a regular curve,
and annulated to within less than one-third of their
length from the point. They are usually found graz¬
ing on the edge of the Karroo Plains, near the foot
of hills that are covered with the common Karroo
mimosa and other shrubby plants ; mostly in pairs,
but sometimes in small herds of five or six together.’

201

ORYX.

Major Smith’s next group is Oryx. “ Horns com¬
mon to both sexes, horizontal, very long, slender,
without ridges, pointed, black, with annules some¬
what spirally twisted to half or two-thirds of their
length. The animals large, with long ears, small or
no suborbital sinus, ovine muzzle, darker coloured
streak through the eyes, mane on the neck reversed ;
tail reaching to the houghs, and terminated by a tuft
of long hairs ; no tufts on the knees nor inguinal
pores; two mammae; stature large; general colour of
the fur rufous or vinous grey upon a white ground.”

This group is remarkable, as it is supposed that
from some of its members the far-famed Unicorn would
be made out. At various times reports have reached
this country, that this animal of anomalous form had
been discovered, sometimes it was in the interior de¬
serts of Africa, sometimes from the unexplored dis¬
tricts of the Indian Mountains. The animal itself,
however, has never reached this country, and most
likely never will. In all the ancient carvings, coins,
and Latin heraldic insignia, the form of the animal
can always be represented as belonging to some one
of the Oryxes. In the ancient carving the horns are
often represented so much in profile as to appear on¬
ly one, while it is well known that among African

202

ORVX.

tribes, the art of twisting, carving, and otherwise
adorning the horns of various animals, which were
kept in domestication or confinement, was carried to
a great extent, to the most fanciful forms, and the two
were sometimes approximated and twisted together.

The Oryxes inhabit the more desert and uninha¬
bited districts, extending from Southern Persia to the
Cape of Good Hope. They are able to subsist on
the most scanty vegetation, and on succulent plants ;
and being possessed of amazing swiftness, are able to
pass quickly over a vast tract of country, and often
change their station where the thin vegetation can be
better obtained. When attacked, they are bold, and
will resist, turning in necessity upon their assailer,
and often with success. Although of the graceful and
elegant proportions which we give to the tribe of
Deer and Antelopes, there is a certain bovine look in
their aspect, which might, perhaps, eventually cause
a change to be made in their station, nearer to that
group, and the native names generally have some re¬
ference to Cow. As an example of L/ryx, we repre¬
sent

PLATE

cV

203

THE ALGAZEL.

Antilope lesoartria _ Pallas.

PLATE XXIV.

Algazelle, Fred. Cuv. Mammiferes _ Oryx Bezoastics.

Ham. Smith, in Griff. Cuvier , iv. 191, and Synopsis.

The prevailing colour of the body of this animal is
pale fawn colour, darkest on the back, and on the
belly and limbs approaching nearly to white. The
head is white, with two spots or marks of dull grey,
which run from the base of the horns, and unite on
the lower jaw, which they surround, in some spe¬
cies, the markings about the head, and on the flanks,
are very dark, as in the species represented, where
they are of a deep chestnut-brown. The horns were
about twenty- eight inches in length, in the species
figured by Fred. Cuvier, and slightly curved back¬
wards ; but by Major Smith they are stated as being
three feet in length. They are ringed at the base,
and although bending backwards, have a much
straighter appearance than any of those we have
seen, and are also more slender. The height at the
shoulder is about three feet and a half. It inhabits
Senegal, and it is from this animal, as the trivial
name implies, that the celebrated bezoar stones were

204

THE ALGAZEL.

procured. These, however, are found in many others,
and are not even confined to this group.

The Caffrarian Oryx ( 0. oryx ) is another fine
species, remarkable for its elegance, and famed for the
flavour of its venison. It inhabits Southern Africa
in its more wooded and rocky region. The male is
nearly four feet high at the shoulder, and six feet in
length. The general colour is a vinous huff, the
breast, belly, and extremities white, and a black list
from the nape of the neck to the root of the tail.

O. leucoryx is another beautiful animal from the
East, inhabiting Eastern Arabia and the deserts of
Persia, the body nearly pure white, the thighs from
rufous dusky to black upon the houghs, the former
with a dark band. Varying somewhat in form and
characters, is another beautiful animal, which has been
placed at the conclusion of the true Oryxes, viz.

XT JL. Jl K

thf, add AX. Native of Nubia.

205

THE ADD AX.

Oryx addax. — Smith.

PLATE XXV.

Oryx addax, II. Smith in Griff. Cuv. iv. p. 103. and Syncpa.
— Fred. Cuvier , Hist. Nat. des Mammif. — Antilope ad¬
dax, Riese in Nordlichen Afrika. — Ruppel , tab. 7.

The distinctions, or rather variations, between this
fine animal and the true Oryxes, are, in “ having the
croup somewhat more elevated than the shoulders,
a lengthened mane on the neck, and a tuft of liaif be¬
low the throat.” The spiral twisting of the horns
will also be seen to vary from those of the animal on
our last plate, where they are nearly straight. Ac¬
cording to Ruppel, the Addax is found in Nubia,
and extends over the whole of' the desert, which
thev are enabled to traverse from their fleetness,
assisted by theii wide-spreading hoofs, which do
not sink in the running sands, nor clog their pro¬
gress. In the plate of this animal given by Ruppel,
which has served for our copy, the whole body and
limbs are white, the head and neck of a greyish-brown,
marked across the forehead and in front of the eyes
with a white band, broadest at the ends as they fall
upon the cheeks. The hair between the horns on

206

THE ADDAX.

the crown and below the throat, are larger and darker,
approaching to chestnut; the tip of the tail the same
colour, and the black hoofs are all the other contrast
to the prevailing tint of white. The horns are above
two feet in length, black, spirally twisted, and ringed
on the forward aspect. The height of this animal
at the shoulder is fully three feet. At some seasons
the colour of the animal is a dull grey, as represented
in the reclining animal.

The only other animal probably belonging to the
Oryxes, is the 0. kemas of Smith, of which scarcely
any thing is known except the horns, which are figured
by the Major. The hair is said to be long and

ample, a variation from all the others which are natives
of the Tropics, and it is supposed that it is an inhabi¬
tant of Alpine India, and that it might be the uni¬
corn of the ancient Persians.

Our next group is of very beautiful form, and one
often alluded to by the Eastern poets, as representing
a light and airy carriage, and an expression of mild¬
ness and beauty. The Gazelles have the horns com¬
mon to both sexes. They are often of a lyrate form,
and either simulated or striated, and the bony core is
solid. They have a smaA lachrymal sinus*, often tufts

THE ADDAX.

207

upon the knees, and dark bands upon the sides.
They are gregarious, inhabit the plains, and rarely
approach the covered or wooded countries, are wary
and timid, and are extremely swift.

It is to these animals that the well known name ol
Gazal belongs, the Barbary Antelope, Gazal of the
Arabs, and Gazella Dorcas of Smith and Lichten¬
stein. This animal has often been confounded in its
synonymes with the Corinna Antelope and Kevel of
our next plate, but appears local, to a certain degree,
in its distribution, being nearly confined to the north
side of the Atlas Mountains, and found in Egypt,
Arabia, and Southern Persia.

208

TfiE KEVEL.

Gazella kevella. — Smith.

PLATE XXVI.

Antiiope kevella, Le Kevel, Buffon, &c. — Le Kevel, male
Fred. Cuvier, Hist. Nat. des Mammif.

This animal is found in great herds in Cen¬
tral Africa, extending beyond the river Congo, and
as far south as the plains of Caffraria. That figured
by Frederic Cuvier, and whose plate we have now
used, was from Senegal. It was tame and familiar
with those whom it knew, the colour entirely of a
reddish fawn, white on the belly, insides of the legs,
and insides or he ears. A dark, nearly black band
divides the reddish colour from the white of the lower
parts, and end of the tail for nearly half its length
was of the same colour. The eye, surrounded by a
white circle, is broader than in G. dorcas ; it extends
also forward, and the under lip is of the same colour.
This animal also differs in the horns being more ro¬
bust and longer.

The next doubtful species, the Korin of Adanson,
is scarcely authenticated now, and if such an ani¬
mal or distinct variety exists, it is found in the very
interior of Africa, bordering on the Sahara. These

PLATE 2G.

THE M HORR.

209

three animals are exactly in the same state as other
three of the same group, which we shall next no¬
tice. There is an uncertainty whether they are
distinct or only local varieties, or races of the same,
and until authentic specimens of each from the dif¬
ferent countries can be procured and compared,
they will remain so. The other three which we al¬
luded to, may be noticed under the M’horr Antelope
of Mr Bennet, the Nanguer of F. Cuvier and Ruppel,
and the Addra. These have been brought from va
rious districts of Africa, and are closely allied in
form and colour. Mr Bennet thus describes the Ga-
zella M’horr: — “The form of the M’horr is light and
elegant ; its neck is long and slender ; its tail of mo¬
derate length ; its limbs extremely slender and deli¬
cate, and its hoofs short, pointed, and form a rather
acute angle at their anterior margin. The head tapers
uniformly with a face moderately prolonged, suborbi-
tal sinus of small extent, and its naked muzzle limit¬
ed to a narrow border round the nostrils, which is
prolonged in a middle line as far as the margin of the
upper lip. The horns are black, imbedded at their
base in long hairs, and marked in this individual with
eight complete, rather distinct, well defined rings,
and one or two incomplete ones, which occupy about
two-thirds of their entire length, the remainder to
wards the points being perfectly smooth and shin
ine:.*

The colour of the upper parts is a deep fulvous o*

* In a living specimen the number of rings is eleven.

0

210

THE M’HORR.

dull bav, which extends about two-thirds down the
sides, where it terminates abruptly in the white of
the belly. It is continued along the middle of the
back to within a short distance of the tail, and is
rounded posteriorly. From the hinder part of the
sides the deep colour is continued in a broad and
somewhat triangular patch upon the haunches, where
it proceeds in a narrowing stripe down the middle of
the outside of the legs as far as the neck, on which
it extends rather broadly backwards, and below which
the stripe crosses obliquely and gradually towards the
front of the limb, terminating a short distance above
the hoofs, and occupying at its termination the ante¬
rior outer part of the fetlock. Throughout this
course, the separation of the fulvous colour from the
pure white immediately adjoining it, is strongly de¬
fined.

The deep fulvous colour of the upper surface ex¬
tends over the whole neck both above and below, and
becomes fainter on the head, passing up the cheeks,
and fading away under the eyes. Between the ears
and behind the horns it is tinged with blackish or
iron-grey. A remarkable white patch is seated about
half way down in front of the neck.

The whole of the lower parts of the sides and un¬
der surface, with the inner, the hinder, and the ante¬
rior surfaces of the limbs, are pure white. The white
of the hinder part of the posterior limbs extends up¬
wards for about four inches above the tail, including
the tail and whole rump, and is prolonged forwards
on each haunch, in a broad streak about five inches

THE m’HORR.

211

in length. The length of this animal from the nose
to the base of the tail is 4 feet 2 inches, height at the
shoulder 2 feet 6 inches. Another specimen was
5 feet 1 inch long, and at the shoulders 2 feet 11
inches high.”

In the colouring of these three animals, “ the dor¬
sal fawn of the Nanguer extends along the back and
sides, nearly as far backwards and downwards as in
the M’horr; while in the young, as well as adult
Addra, it gradually becomes narrower and fainter as
it passes backwards from the lower part of the neck,
leaving not only the haunches and the crupper, but
also the greater part of the sides, white. In M,
Ruppel’s work there is also figured and describ¬
ed a short longitudinal fawn-coloured streak on the
haunches, which is equally wanting in the Nanguer
and IVThorr. In the former of these the haunches
are wholly unmarked, the dorsal colour being cut off
posteriorly in nearly a straight line, extending from
the back downwards ; while in the latter, as we have
seen, they are nearly covered by a broad somewhat
triangular patch continued from the sides, extending
down the hinder leg, and hounded above by a white
streak, which is continuous with the white of the
crupper/’

The M’horr is found in Western Africa, in the ter¬
ritories of the Sheikh of Wedroow ; the Nanguer in
Senegal ; and the Addra in Nubia and Kerdofon.

The first is esteemed rare by the natives, and much
sought after in producing the bezoars.

The Broad-hoofed Antelope, G. my t Hopes, Smith,

212

THE KEVEL.

is another animal belonging to this group, not much
known, but would be distinguished by its heavier
make and the broad form of the hoofs. It is under¬
stood to be found in Western Africa. Another very
elegant animal is the Antilope euchore or Springer,
the Springbock of the Dutch colonists, represented
on our next plate.

PLATE

■

• ' k

f.

213

THE SPRINGER OR SPRINGBOCK.

Antilope euchore.

PLATE XXVII.

Antilope euchore of Authors. — Springbock of the Dutch

Colonists.

“ This is one of the most beautiful of the Antelopes
of Southern Africa, and is certainly one of the most
numerous. The plain afforded no other object to fix
the attention, and even if it had presented many, I
should not readily have ceased admiring these elegant
animals, or have been diverted from watching their
manners. It was only occasionally that they took
those remarkable leaps which have been the origin of
their name ; but when moving or grazing at leisure,
they walked or trotted like other Antelopes, or as the
common deer. When pursued or hastening their
pace, they frequently took an extraordinary bound,
rising with curved or elevated backs, generally to the
height of eight feet, and appearing as if about to take
flight. Some of the herds moved by us almost with¬
in musket-shot ; and I observed that, in crossing the
beaten road, the greater number cleared it by one of
those flying leaps.’* Two thousand of this beautiful
creature were conjectured to form the above mentioned

214 THE SPRINGER OR SPRINGBQCK.

flock described by Mr Burchell, and their numbers
everywhere met with is immense ; but Pringle again
observes, that, on the banks of the little Fish River,
“ so numerous were these herds, that they literally
speckled the face of the country as far as the eye
could reach, insomuch that we calculated we hail
sometimes within view not less than 20,000 of these
beautiful animals.”

The general colour of the Springbock is fulvous
brown, beneath white, but the colours are distinctly
separated by a dark brown band upon the flanks ;
but the most curious appearance in the structure of
the animal, is two folds of skin ascending from the
root of the tail, and terminating upon the croup.
They dilate when the animal is bounding, and expose
a large triangular space (otherwise concealed) of pure
white-coloured hair, edged by two dark-coloured
streaks.

It is this animal which commits so much damage
during the passage of its vast migratory herds ; while
at the same time it affords a most ample sustenance
to the African beasts of prey.

Plate Twenty-eight exhibits another animal belong¬
ing apparently to this group, inhabiting Northern Af¬

rica.

SOEMMERING'S ANTELOPE. Native of'Afric;
Rupp el.

SCEMMERING’S ANTELOPE.

Gasella Scsmmeringn,

PLATE XXVIIL

Antilope Scemmeringii, RuppeVs Afrika Zool. Atlas , fol. 1&

A very beautiful and delicately coloured animal,
standing about two feet seven inches high at the
shoulder, and in length about four feet and a half.
The colour of the upper parts, outsides of the ears
and legs, a delicate reddish-grey Isabella colour "
the lower parts, insides of the limbs and buttocks,,
pure white. The forehead extending along the ridge
of the nose, deep brownish-black, with a pale line
above each eye, and a darker streak from the lower
angle of the eye to the nostril. Inhabits north eastern
Africa.

Another series of Antelopes have received from
Major Smith the title of “ The Antelopine Group
and that naturalist retains also the generic title of
“ Antelope.” They are much allied to the last, but
differing in some lesser modifications of form, as in
the horns being scarcely ever lyrate, having no dark
bands on the sides, &c. ; they are more decidedly

216

scemmering’s antelope.

distinguished by the males only being furnished with
horns. The females are nearly coloured like the
males, but generally paler. The ears in both sexes
are longer than usual.

The species which most naturally occurs fires, is

PLATE 2!>.

THE PALI. AH. Native of Africa
Daniel. »

217

THE PALLAH,

A. me lam pus _ DesMarest.

PLATE XXIX.

Pallah, Daniell's African Scenery _ A. melampus, Desma-

rest. — A. Pallah, Cuvier.

In this graceful animal we see the horns still re¬
taining a lyrate form. It inhabits the interior of
Caffraria, and Booshowana country ; according to
Daniell, appearing only in flocks of a few together.
It is easily tamed, but extremely timid, and possesses
great swiftness. At the shoulder it is about three feet
high, and in length about five. The general colour
of the upper parts of the body is a reddish or yellow¬
ish-brown, sometimes with a streak of a deeper tint
along the back. The breast, belly, buttocks, insides
of the legs, are white ; around the muzzle, and above
the eyes, is white, or very light coloured fawn ; and
above the spurious hoof on each leg, there is a spot
of black, more or less conspicuous.

Another animal belonging to this group, has been
named by Major Smith, A. adenota , from the cir-

218

THE C MMON ANTELOPE.

eumstance of its* having a small gland or tubercle on
the loins, about equidistant between the hips and the
root of the tail. Major Smith does not, however,
surmise what purpose this would serve. The speci¬
mens to which the name was applied, were part of
the collection in Exeter Change, and stood about
twenty-six inches high. The general colour a fulvous
bay. The belly and insiae of tne limbs white. They
were brought from the west coast of Africa.

The Saiga, A. coins, Smith, is a European animal
very little known. The collections of Petersburgh
and Vienna, according to Major Smith, being the
only museums, in 1827, where entire specimens of
this animal were preserved. It is a large animal,
nearly equal to the size of the fallow-deer, but more
clumsily made; the horns intermediate between the
lyrate form and the twisted appearance of the com¬
mon Antelope. The colour in summer a grey dun,
with a dark stripe down the back. The under parts
whitish. It is found on the shores of the Danube,
the Carpathian range, Caucasian Mountains, and the
Altaic Chain. It is migratory, and said to assemble
in troops of ten thousand (singular that our informa¬
tion is so scanty regarding them). It is also said to
be easily tamed, and become gentle. The horns are
used by the Chinese for their lanterns.

The last animai, but that most typical of the group,
is the Common Antelope, A. cervicapra. A native
of India, and celebrated for the religious superstition
in which it is held by the natives, being consecrated
to some of their deities, and alone permitted to be

THE COMMON ANTELOPE.

219

eaten in some of the religious ceremonies of the Brah¬
mins. It is found abundantly over the whole Indian
Peninsula, and is extremely graceful, and swift. “ It
is pleasing to see a herd of antelopes, consisting per¬
haps of fifty or sixty does, and led by a fine dark co¬
loured buck, bounding over a plain. The height
and distance taken at each bound, is wonderful ; they
often vault at least twelve feet high, and over twenty-
five or thirty feet of ground. It is folly to slip grey¬
hounds after Antelopes. Instances have been known
of their being run down, but few dogs have survived
the exertion/’

“ The best method of shooting Antelopes, is to
get a pair of very quiet bullocks, and walk between
them, under the guidance of a native, who should
hold a plough. The antelopes, to whom this sight
is perfectly familiar, will, by this device, await with
seeming confidence, and enable the sportsman to ap¬
proach sufficiently near to get a good shot.”*

The young are of a pale fulvous colour, which
darkens with age to a sepia brown, sometimes to
deep black, the centre of the flank becoming darker,
and shewing a streak, as in some of the gazelles. The
lower parts and insides of the legs are white, and the
nose, around the orbits and the throat, is often of the
same colour. The horns are spirally twisted, and are
sometimes two feet in length.

Major Smith's next group is formed of animafo
having the horns in a great measure bending forward.

* Williamson’s Oriental Field Sports, ii« 226.

220

THE COMMON ANTELOPE.

The appearance a little more sheep-like, the propor¬
tions not so fine ; the hair thicker and longer ; live
in pairs, and frequent rocky districts. The title of
Redunca has been given to the subgenus, but we
have been unable to procure a figure of any species,
of which four or five have been described. A. villosa
will be an example of it.

The next animal, of which alone the subgenus
Orzotragus has been made, is a remarkable form ; it is

THE KLIP SPKINGElt

Daniel.

Native of Africa.

221

THE KLIP SPRINGER

Oreotragus saltatrix.

PLATE XXX.

Klip Springer, Darnell's African Scenery — A. oreotragus.

Smith.

This animal delights in the most precipitous
rocks and precipices, where man or dog can scarcely
follow. They are said to delight in perching upon
the highest pinnacles ; and in their general character
have more of the habits of the ibex or goats than
of the antelope. It is an animal of about twenty-two
inches in height. The colour of Daniell's figure iso*
a yellowish-grey, and Major Smith describes the hair
as of three colours, ashy at the root, brown in the
middle, and yellow at the point, producing the singu¬
lar effect of a lively olive-green. The hair itself is
hard, flat, spiral, flexible, and erect upon the skin, and
forms a natural elastic pad to protect the body from
bruises. The horns are about five inches in length,
pointed and black, and anulated at the base. They
are wanting in the female. Klip Springers were for¬
merly abundant in the colony of Cape, but have lately
much decreased, the venison being in high reputation,
and the hair being much sought after to stuff saddles.

222

THE GRYSBACK, &C.

Of the next animals, Major Smith makes another
section, “ The Traguline group,” and describes four
species, of none of which we have been able to obtain
any figure. The animals are all small, stand high upon
their legs, and nearly want the tail, and the horns are
short, round, and simple. The Grysback, Tragulus
grisea , Smith, is one of the most frequent, but like
many others of the African antelopes, the colonial
name is often applied to several of the allied species.
It is about nineteen inches high at the shoulder, and
is generally of a chestnut-red, paler on the under
parts of the body. It inhabits the mountains, and is
very swift and vigilant. The Bleekhock, T. pallida ,
is another, but considered by some as only a pale
coloured variety of the last. Major Smith is of a
different opinion, considering the form somewhat
different ; and it varies also, as inhabiting the plains
covered with bushes.

Another animal has been named and characterised
as a subgenus, from the horns alone, specimens of
which are in the Museum of the Royal College of
Surgeons, London. They were brought from India,
and Major Smith considers them so distinct, as to
leave little doubt of the animal to which they belong
being different from any of those forming his “ Tra¬
guline Group*' He has named it Raphicerus .sw-
bulata, or Awl-Horned Antelope, distinct from the
R • acuticornis , which was previously described from
specimens in the same collection.

Our next group presents very remarkable con-

THE GRYSBACK, <kC.

223

figuration, in the animals belonging to it possessing
four horns. It has been named as a subgenus Tetra-
cerus. It appears that there is a possibility of two
species with four horns existing, in the one perfectly
smooth, in the other, rugged at the base ; the mate-,
rials, however, for establishing the latter, are imper¬
fect ; and, at present, we shall confine ourselves to
chat first described by General Hardwicke.

224

THE CHICKARA

Tetracerus chickara _ Leach.

PLATE XXXI.

Antilope chickara, Hardwicke, Trans. Liwn. Soc. xiv. p.

— 520. — Tetracerus chickara, Major Smith , Griffith's Cu¬
vier , iv. p. 254.

This animal is about twenty inches and a half in
height at the shoulder, and about thirty-three inches
in length. The horns are black and perfectly smooth,
and about three inches in length ; in front of these
the true horns* between the eyes, arise other two
horns, about three quarters of an inch in length, and
an inch and a half in circumference at the base, thence
suddenly tapering to a point. The general colour of
the animal is an uniform bright bay ; on all the upper
parts, and on the chin, the under line of the neck,
the abdomen, the inner sides of the thighs, and under
the tail, are inclined to white, more or less mixed with
sandy coloured hairs. The female is lighter, and
without horns.

These animals were kept in confinement by Ge¬
neral Hardwicke, and produced young in his posses¬
sion, two at a birth, a male and female.

The male, in the rutting season, becomes exceed-

PLATE 31 .

sPse

THE CH.rC KARA or l-’OVR HORNED ANTELOPE . ,'..i l

F Cuvier

THE CH1CKARA.

225

ingly wild and mischievous ; and although partly do¬
mesticated, continued dangerous, running at every
animal within its reach, whether deer, goat, or man.
Even the feeder could only approach him on the verge
of the circle, to which the rope he was tied with al¬
lowed him to reach. It inhabits the forests and hilly
tracts along the western provinces of Bengal, Behor,
and Orissa; and is extremely wild and agile.

The other species if found to be distinct, will stand
as T. quadricornes.

The next group, <f The Cephalopkine Group ” of
Major Smith, extend over southern Africa. They
still contain animals of inconsiderable size, though
some are large, and frequent busnes and low covers.
They possess a curious manner of standing upon their
hind legs to look out for danger (a habit we find in the
hare and some of the Rodentia), and of even leaping
into the air to overlook the surrounding vegetation.
The horns are short and small, and they are all dis¬
tinguished by a tuft of hair rising from the forehead,
and by a pouch or sack opening between the orbits
and the nostrils.

The largest of the group is the Bush Antelope,
C. sylvicultrix , standing nearly three feet high. It
is more clumsily made, and not so fleet as the other
antelopes. The horns short and bending backwards.
The colour principally of a dark brown, paler on the
neck and flanks, greyish on the thighs and buttocks,
almost yellow on the throat, and Isabella colour along
the spine, widening over the loins, where the hair

P

226

THE BUSH ANTELOPE.

lengthens to two inches. It inhabits the vicinity of
Sierra Leone, and is esteemed for its venison.

Another animal is closely allied to this, C. platous,
Broad-Eared Antelope ; hut, for want of materials,
Major Smith has provisionally kept them distinct.
A more remarkable antelope is what that naturalist
describes under the title of C. quadriscopa, or Four
Tufted Antelope, from a specimen which was exhi¬
bited in Exeter Change, and so named from brushes
or tufts of a dark coloured hair being on each of the
knees. The general colour was of a sepia grey ;
beneath whitish, the size about that of a roebuck;
it was brought from Bengal. Burch ell's Antelope,
and the Duiher Buck of the colonists, will also be
placed here, and an example of an animal of the same
form, but much less size, will be seen ia

'JTvn

THE GRIM.

Cephalophus grimmia.

PLATE XXXII.

Le Grim, Fred. Cuvier , Hist. Naturelle des Mammifcrcj. —
Antilope grimmia, Pallas's Spicil. Zool. p. 35, t. iii.

The earliest authentic description of the Grim, is
in Pallas’s Spicilegia Zoologica, described from two
living males ; a female had also been attempted to be
brought to Europe, but had died on the passage ;
she was said to be destitute of horns, but the circum¬
stance was not authenticated. They are described
as timid but most agile creatures. They were fed
on bread or chopped carrots, and were very fond of
potatoes. The entire length of the animal two feet
seven inches ; its height in front one foot five inches.
Horns two inches nine lines, thick in proportion, black
and straight, longitudinally striated, and annulated at
the base with about four rings. In Frederic Cuvier's
piate and description, which we have used for our
illustration, this little animal is represented as about
twenty-six inches high. The proportions of its head
and body are rather heavy, but its agility is great,
and is displayed in the fineness of the form of its

228

THE GRIM.

limbs. The body is covered with a yellowish co¬
loured hair, except along the back, where the hairs
are of a rich grey.*’ The end of the muzzle, with the
extremity of the lower jaw, and the edge of the up¬
per lip, is white ; between the nostrils and the eyes
appear two dark streaks, whence issues a dark co¬
loured secretion from a suborbital sinus, which the
animal appears always anxious to express by rubbing
against every convenient substance. The horns were
three inches in height, but did not appear to have
reached their full development. The specimen was
brought from Senegal.

The last form which we shall be enabled to notice in
the limits of the present volume, is composed of very
diminutive animals, inhabiting central and southern
Africa, Neotragus of Major Smith. The best known
species will be the Anti/ope pygmea of Dr Shaw,
the Guevi of Frederic Cuvier. It is scarcely a foot
in height, delicately formed, and possesses great agi¬
lity. The colour is a reddish grey on the upper parts
and sides, almost white on the neck and belly. Fre-
deric Cuvier has given a figure of a female guevi, in
which short and stumpy horns are exhibited, a cir¬
cumstance which is at variance with the characters
given by Major Smith to Neotragus. We shall il¬
lustrate the group by

f.

SALT’S ANTELOPE

Neotragus Saltiana.

PuAiE X&AlII,

Antilope Saltiana, Blainville, Ruppel, Allas Zuder Reis
im Nordliken A/rika, t. 2i. — Neotragus Madoka, Major
Smith , Griffith's Cuvier.

This beautiful animal was first noticed by M. de
Blainville, from imperfect specimens brought from
Abyssinia by the British Consul, Mr Salt, and named
in honour of that enlightened individual. M. Ed.
Ruppel has, however, since published figures of both
sexes in his Zoological Atlas of Northern Africa,
which we have used for our illustrations. The height
at the shoulder is only about thirteen inches, and the
whole form of the limbs is of great delicacy. The fore¬
head, where the hair is lengthened back, and outside
of the limbs, are of a reddish-brown ; the outsides of
the forelegs spotted with whitish. The neck and
sides are grey, and the lower parts are nearly pure
white. The male only is possessed of horns, about
three inches in length.

.

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