PREHISTORIC HORSES. 697 



the osseous debris^ and that grooves and scratches have 

 been made on the bones during the process of fracture. 

 Similar grooves and scratches on other parts of the bones, 

 indicate that the wild hunters removed both flesh and 

 hides by means of their roughly-fashioned flint instru- 

 ments. 



" In the Trou de Chaleux, 157 tail vertebrae of pre- - 

 historic horses have been found. As they are all thrown 

 about in disorder, and as extremely few of the first four 

 tail vertebrae were among them, M. Dupont infers that 

 the inhabitants of that place used to dock horses at the 

 fifth or sixth vertebrae, where disarticulation is easy, 

 only to obtain the long hair, and not to keep the tails 

 as trophies" {^PUtrement). They probably employed this 

 hair as string. 



Professor von Zittel tells us, that mankind inhabited 

 Europe, North Africa, Asia, North and South America, 

 and probably other parts of the world, during the ' 

 Pleistocene period ; but although it is probable that 

 human beings existed in the Tertiary age, we have no 

 positive evidence on that point. 



With respect to the question of these horses being wild 

 or domesticated, M. Pietrement emphasises the fact, that 

 in the case of the fossil remains at Solutre, which is near 

 Macon (Saone-et-Loire), the large majority of horses that 

 have been killed by prehistoric men, were from five to seven 

 years old. He states that " when a herd of horses at 

 liberty is attacked by carnivora, which make their on- 

 slaughts in a manner similar to those of Quaternary men 

 who were armed with weapons of chipped flint, the horses 

 form themselves into a circle or semi-circle, according 

 to the nature of the ground and the severity of the attack. 

 The strongest animals place themselves on the outside 

 of the line, which is the most dangerous post ; and the foals 

 and brood mares take refuge in the centre, or escape in 

 the direction opposite to the assault. It is therefore certain 

 that in such attacks on horses living in the open, vigorous 



