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endless diversity of form, size, and colour; nor, indeed, were we to devote our labour to the utmost in the endeavour, is it probable that we should arrive at any thing like a satisfactory conclusion. Our aim will be, therefore, to take a glance of the various domestic races as they now present themselves, and then to notice a few of those species which are truly distinct, and which roam the plains and the morasses at large, unsubdued by man.

To dwell upon the utility of this tribe of animals would be superfluous; we have but to consider the benefits derived from it, its importance in a national point of view, and the allusions to it in the Holy Scriptures, to be convinced that it is one upon which the human race is more immediately dependent than upon any other which the Almighty in his wisdom has created. Herds of cattle, of sheep, and of goats, were the wealth of ancient days; and, indeed, are they not so now? for what are gold and silver but the representatives of these and of other things, without which man would drag on a miserable existence?

The races of cattle, as we find them in Europe, are all pretty nearly alike, differing only in such particulars as are produced by different modes of feeding, and which are too trivial for us to notice. When, however, we pass into India, we are struck with the contrast of characters which the various breeds there present; characters which, but that we know what domestication can effect, would almost lead us to imagine we were contemplating a distinct species. Instead of the straight back, the square-turned head, the small ears, the fiery eye, and the short muscular limbs of our cattle, the INDIAN Ox, or Brahmin Bull, as it is commonly called, (Bos taurus, var. Indicus,) (See Engraving, No. 59,) is distinguished by a more elongated form of skull, with a decidedly concave line of profile, an arched neck, a hump of fatty substance rising from the withers, an arched back sinking and rounded off on the crupper, an enormous dewlap hanging down in folds, long pendulous ears, a mild and sleepy eye, and limbs long and taper. This race, of which numerous breeds occur, "varying in size from that of a large mastiff dog to that of a full grown buffalo, are spread more or less extensively," says the author of "The Gardens Delineated," over the whole of Southern Asia, the islands of the Indian Archipelago, and the eastern coast of Africa from Abyssinia to the Cape of Good Hope. In all these countries, the Zebu, (for so is the humped variety termed,) supplies the place of the Ox both as a beast of burden, and as an article of food and domestic economy. In some parts of India, it executes the duties of a horse also, being either saddled and ridden, or harnessed in a carriage, and performing in this manner journeys of considerable length with tolerable celerity. Some of the older writers speak of fifty or sixty miles a day as its usual rate of travelling; but the more moderate computation of recent authors does not exceed from twenty to thirty. Its beef is considered by no means despicable, though far from equalling that of the European ox. The hump, which is chiefly composed of fat, is reckoned the most delicate part. As might naturally be expected from its perfect domestication and

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wide diffusion, the Zebu is subject to as great a variety of colours as those which affect the European race. Its most common hue is light ashy grey, passing into cream colour or milk white; but it is not unfrequently marked with various shades of red or brown, and occasionally it becomes perfectly black. The hump is sometimes elevated in a remarkable degree, and usually retains its upright position, but sometimes it becomes half pendulous, and hangs partly over towards one side. Instances are cited, in which it had attained the enormous weight of fifty pounds. A distinct breed is spoken of as common in Surat, which is furnished with a second hump."

The Hindoos, it is well known, treat the whole of the breeds of oxen with superstitious veneration, holding it sinful to deprive them of life, and regarding the feeding upon their flesh with the greatest abhorrence. To the larger breed in particular they pay the utmost reverence; and in many towns and villages numbers of these privileged animals wander at ease about the streets, supplied by the hands of superstitious devotees. Emboldened by the toleration they experience, they make free with every vegetable to which they take a fancy, no one daring to resist or drive them away: often they lie down in the street; no one must disturb them; every one must give place to the sacred Ox of Brahma: thus they frequently prove nuisances which superstition alone would endure. We might be inclined to smile at all this, did we not see in it proofs of a moral and intellectual debasement, exciting us, at the same time, to pity and condemn. Idolatry and superstition seem to have made their strong hold in the East from the remotest times, fencing themselves around with a panoply of rites and observances as absurd as cruel. Heavy is the galling yoke of idolatry; painful and degrading are all its observances; but oh, how different are the precepts of that pure and holy faith proclaimed by the blessed Redeemer, whose "yoke is easy, and whose burden is light!" these purify and exalt, and give a dignity to our nature which it never had before; and while they bid the "weary and heavy laden" approach and find relief, they teach them to place their affections on things above, and not on things below.

The domestic breed of European cattle has been carried into various regions where it was previously unknown; and in some it has emancipated itself from the dominion of man, and increased in great abundance. In South America, for example, where the Ox was first introduced by the Spaniards, herds wander at pleasure over the rich savannahs and plains teeming with a luxuriant vegetation, fleet and wild. The Mexican hunts them on horseback; and, singling out an individual, throws his lasso over the horns or around the limbs with unerring precision; the end of this lasso or noose of leather is fastened to the girths of the horse, which is trained to resist the sudden strain of the wild and furious bull rushing in his headlong course. One lasso is scarcely fixed before another rider, galloping by, throws his also; another, and perhaps another, succeed: the plunging, struggling beast, thus securely enveloped, is dragged along to the slaughter, or slain on the spot.

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The Scripture allusions to the Ox are too numerous for us to recapitulate, and will not fail to suggest themselves to the reader's recollection. From various hints, we learn how nearly the same as in the present day were the uses for which it was anciently employed in the East: it applied its neck to the yoke, it dragged the plough, and trod out the grain upon the threshing-floor; and laws were instituted, by the command of God, to regulate its treatment and its reward: "Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn," Deut. xxv. 4.

There is in Europe an animal of this genus which has never been reclaimed, and which was once spread over the greatest portion of that continent; but which, since the advance of cultivation, has become bounded in the limits of its habitat. The animal we allude to is the AuROCHS, or Zubr, (Bos urus.) Some naturalists have supposed the Aurochs to be the wild origin of our domestic race. This opinion, however, is without foundation; it is truly a distinct species; and this distinction rests not on external characters only, but on a singular anatomical difference, which at once decides the question. In all domestic cattle, however, the breeds may vary in size or other distinctions of a similar nature, their internal anatomy remains unmodified: we find the number of ribs on each side to be uniformly thirteen; but in the Aurochs we find the number increased to fourteen; and in an allied species in North America we shall find a still additional rib, making fifteen. The Aurochs is the largest of European mammalia; it is characterized by the breadth and the convexity of its forehead, by the attachment of its horns below the occipital ridge, and by the elevation of its limbs. A sort of crisped wool, intermingled with shaggy coarse hair, covers the shoulders, head, and neck of the male, and forms a full beard beneath the throat; its voice is hoarse and grunting; its colour is dirty greyish brown.

The Aurochs is a savage and ferocious animal, thinly scattered through the marshy forests of Lithuania. Little is known of its habits; it lives secluded in the deepest recesses, where a rank and luxuriant vegetation supplies it with food. When Europe was a mighty forest, when the lands now enclosed, and teeming with harvests, were morasses and swamps, this creature was the chase of the savage hunter throughout all the central regions; but, like all savage beasts, its numbers have dwindled, and its range has become restricted by the introduction of arts and letters.

Southern Africa produces the CAPE BUFFALO, (Bos Caffer,) an animal of enormous size and of great ferocity, inhabiting the woods and jungles by marshes and rivers, where it wallows in the mud like the rhinoceros, remaining concealed during the heats of the day. The aspect of the Buffalo is cunning and savage; the eyes being deeply sunk, and overshadowed by the horns, which arise each from a flattened base of enormous thickness, rough with irregular ridges, in contact at the roots, and covering the whole upper part of the skull with an impenetrable mass of horn; from this solid portion the horn,

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as it proceeds, sweeps downwards in a lateral direction, and then turns upwards, ending in a conical point. The weight of these formidable instruments is very great, requiring amazing power in the neck and shoulders. The ears hang down; the limbs are short and bony; the body muscular; the hair is dark brown, harsh, thin, and straggling. The hide is of great thickness, and forms a hard impenetrable leather; the flesh is coarse, but, it is said, not unpleasant.

India produces many wild species; of these, the ARNI is confined to the central regions. It is distinguished by the size and figure of its horns, which rise upwards with a sweep outwards, and gradually incline together at the points, so as to give a figure somewhat lyreshaped; their length is often five feet.

The Arni, (Bos arni,) is supposed by some to be a variety of the Common Buffalo, (Bos bubalus,) an animal which is spread from India through the adjacent countries, and was formerly, as in the present day, used as a beast of burden in Egypt, Greece, and Italy. In the latter country, herds of the common buffalo exist wild in the morasses and woods of the Maremma, a region extending from the sea-shore to the lower ridges of the Apennines.

Besides the arni, India produces the GOUR, (Bos gour,) which lives in small herds in the forests of the interior. Its horns are short, but thick and ponderous, and bending downwards at the point; its colour is deep bluish black; the tail is thick and bushy. It was first discovered in the mountains of Myn-pat; and it is said to be fierce and bold.

The GYHAL, (Bos frontalis,) is another of the Indian races, and is chiefly found in the eastern districts of Bengal. In its general characters it much resembles the common domestic breed; but the horns are flattened from before backwards, and proceed without any angle or twist, in a lateral direction, more or less upwards. The hair is short and black, except on the forehead and along the spine, where it is grey or yellowish; the limbs being white. In the mountainous districts of the north-east of India, the Gyhal is domesticated and used for burdens.

In Eastern Tartary we find a singular species, the YACK, (Bos grunniens, LIN.,) frequenting the woods and recesses among the mountains of Thibet. The Yack is not unlike the buffalo in its general form, but of smaller size; it is distinguished by the tail being furnished with full flowing hair, like that of a horse, and by a sort of mane along the neck and back; the hair of the body is smooth, and short in summer; but it becomes thick and harsh in winter; its colour is black. This animal is savage and dangerous; it is, however, domesticated by the Mongols ; and its tail forms the standards of battle, and regulates the distinctions of rank and titles; hence the pachas are classed as those of one, two, or three tails. It was known to the ancients, and is mentioned by Ælian.

Having thus glanced at the principal species

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of this genus which the older continents afford, it remains for us to notice those which are exclusively natives of America, and which in the plains and forests there represent the wild breeds of Europe or Asia. These races we have seen to be pretty numerous and extensively diffused, each country having its peculiar species. America possesses two species, and both are peculiar to the higher latitudes of the northern portion. Of these, the first we shall notice is the BISON, (Bos Americanus, GMEL.) The Bison associates in vast herds, which roam over the uninhabited plains of the countries bordering the Missouri, the great Slave Lake, and other districts where European civilization has not hitherto advanced.

At no distant date the Bison was found abundantly in the western parts of Pennsylvania and in Kentucky; but the species has gradually retired before the influx of white population, and the southern and eastern limits of its range are bounded by the Ohio and the Mississippi. Formerly the migrations of this animal westward were limited by the Rocky Mountain range; but they have of late opened for themselves a passage "across the mountains near the sources of the Saskatchewan, and their numbers to the westward are annually increasing." The Bison delights in level prairies, covered with luxuriant vegetation, bordering the hills of limestone formation, where saline springs or marshes abundantly occur. Wherever there are saltlicks, as these saline springs are called, there herds of this animal are sure to congregate, and remain throughout the year, scraping away the snow in winter to obtain the herbage beneath. In other parts, however, they migrate, with the seasons, in search of pasturage. The Bison is a shy and wary animal; usually it flies before its pursuers; but it sometimes happens that, led by an infuriated individual, the whole herd will turn and rush towards the hunters, trampling them down in their headlong course. Nor is it safe for the hunter to show himself after having wounded a Bison, for, though the creature be heavy, it will easily overtake the fleetest runner. Dr. Richardson, (vide Fauna Boreali-Americana,) in speaking of the danger of attacking the Bison, says, "Mr. Finnan M'Donald, one of the Hudson's Bay Company's clerks, was descending the Saskatchewan in a boat, and one evening, having pitched his tent for the night, he went out in the dusk to look for game. It had become nearly dark when he fired at a Bison Bull, which was galloping over a small eminence, and as he was hastening forward to see if his shot had taken effect, the wounded beast made a rush at him. He had the presence of mind to seize the animal by the long hair on its forehead as it struck him on the side with its horn, and being a remarkably tall and powerful man, a struggle ensued, which continued till his wrist was severely sprained, and his arm was rendered powerless he then fell, and, after receiving two or three blows, became senseless. Shortly afterwards he was found by his companions lying bathed in blood, being gored in several places, and the Bison was couched beside him apparently waiting to renew the attack had he shown any signs of life. Mr. M'Donald recovered from the

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immediate effects of the injuries he received, but died a few months afterwards. Many other instances might be mentioned of the tenaciousness with which this animal pursues its revenge; and we have been told of a hunter having been detained for many hours in a tree by an old bull which had taken its post below to watch him." In contending with a dog, the Bison strikes violently with his fore hoofs. Its mode of running is singular, leaning as it gallops along for a short space of time, first to one side, and then to the other alternately. Its flesh is excellent; the tongue, and the haunch, covering the spinous processes of the first vertebræ of the back, are reckoned especial delicacies. Its hide is valuable, and, when dressed with the fine woolly hair on, forms an excellent blanket or travelling wrapper, and sells in Canada for three or four pounds sterling.

The aspect of the Bison is fierce, wild, and malicious, the eyes being small, fiery, and half hid in the profusion of long shaggy hair, intermingled with wool, which envelopes the head, neck, and shoulders. The head is large and ponderous, with a convex line of profile; the withers are high, owing to the elongation of the spinous processes there for the attachment of the ligament, and of the enormous muscles of the neck, serving for the support of the head; besides which there is added a fatty deposition or sort of hunch. From the withers, the back gradually declines, the hind quarters appearing disproportionably weak and small. All this part of the body is clothed with shorter wool. The limbs are rather short, and possess amazing power; the tail is tufted with coarse straight hair; the horns are short, tapering, and erect; the general colour is dark umber brown, becoming tinged with a greyish hue in winter.

The height of the Bison at the shoulders is upwards of six feet; its weight is twelve or fourteen hundred pounds. The female is smaller.

Of the distinction of species between the Bison and all others of its genus, there can be no doubt. We stated, it will be remembered, that in the domestic ox, and its numerous varieties, the number of its ribs on each side was always thirteen; that in the Aurochs of Poland, the number was increased to fourteen; in the present animal, we find an additional increase, the number being fifteen. Anatomical tests are of all others the surest: Nature cannot err; and in following her characters, the naturalist will never find himself bewildered in the mazes of conjecture; but in a genus like the present, where outward forms seem peculiarly liable to change, according to the combined operation of united causes, such anatomical minutiæ are of tenfold importance.

Our next and last example is the MUSK OX, or Oomingmak of the Esquimaux, (Bos moschatus, GMEL.) The Musk Ox has been placed by Blainville in a genus separate from that of Bos, in consequence of the want of a naked muzzle, which is possessed by the rest of the race; hence being, according to his views, an intermediate link between the ox and the sheep. The genus thus characterized is termed by him Ovibos; but we have retained the old generic name, because we are unwilling to separate a single species