190 



CHAPTER XLVI. 



ORDERS OF MAMMALIA (Continued). 



Carnivoea. 



Order XII. Carnivora. — The twelfth order of Mammals is 

 that of the Carnivora, comprising the Fcra\ or Beasts of 

 Prey, along with tlie old order of the Fin^iipedia, or Seals 

 and Walruses, these latter being now nniversally regarded as 

 merely a group of the Carnivora modified to lead an aquatic- 

 life. 



The Carnivora. are distinguished by always possessing two 

 sets of teeth, vjhich are si^nply covered hy enamel, and arc cdn'ays 

 of three kinds — incisors, canines, and molars — differing from 



one another in sliaijc and size. The incisors are generally 



1—1 



(except in some Seals); the canines are always , and are 



invariuhly mneli larger and longer than the incisors. Thcprm- 

 molars and molars are mostly furnished with cutting or trenchant 

 edges ; hut they graducde from a cutting to a tubereulcde form, as 

 the diet is strictly carnivorous, or becomes more or less miscellane- 

 ous. In the typical Carnivores (such as the Lion and Tiger), 

 the last tooth but one in the upper jaw and the last tooth in 

 the lower jaw are known as the " carnassial " teeth, having a 

 sliarp cutting edge adapted for dividing flesh, and generally 

 a more or less developed tuberculated heel or internal pro- 

 cess. A varying number, however, of the molars and pr;e- 



