THE ANTLERS. ' 179 



The tips of the antlers, which are the last formed, are the first 

 to become solidified quite through, and from these points the so- 

 lidifying process goes on down through the branches and the 

 beam, till the passages through the surface of the antler, which 

 admitted the circulation from the periosteum, have become closed, 

 soon after which the velvet is discarded. This circulation from 

 the periosteum into the antler is first shut off at the upper ex- 

 tremities, and thence downwards, but the blood flows freely into 

 this outer vascular covering all this time, for it is provided, 

 though imperfectly, with a venous as well as an arterial sys- 

 tem. 



This velvet will never spontaneously disengage itself ; but if it 

 is not detached by violence, the blood-vessels which sustain it will 

 soon close of themselves, not by mechanical compression at the 

 burr, but in obedience to some law of nature not clearly under- 

 stood. I think the most probable cause is the imperfection of the 

 venous system of this periosteum, which is inadequate to return 

 the blood as fast as it is thrown up by the arteries, now that the 

 canals to the interior are closed, and so, after a longer or shorter 

 struggle, this outer covering must die, if not previously torn 

 away. It is rare that a portion of the velvet is thus retained, 

 yet I have several specimens in my collection where it has died 

 upon the antler, and presents the appearance of a thin sheet of 

 gutta percha adhering to the antler with great tenacity, fre- 

 quently resisting all subsequent attempts of the animal to remove 

 it ; but all the fur is worn off, and it is smoothly polished by sub- 

 sequent friction. This rubbing process is not suspended so soon 

 as the velvet is removed, but continued throughout the rutting 

 season, when the upper part of the antler becomes finely polished, 

 and the outer surfaces of the tubercles, which frequently appear 

 on the lower part of the beam, are appreciably worn down. This 

 process is carried on not only against the trunks of small trees, 

 which are sometimes denuded of their bark for several feet, but 

 also against the branches which are within reach. Indeed, the 

 elk are often seen twisting their antlers among the extremities of 

 the branches, and I once found a branch two inches in diameter 

 which had been thus twisted off from a hickory tree, and which 

 was divided into shreds for several inches at the end. It must 

 have taken an incredible amount of hard work, and consumed 

 much time in the accomplishment of the feat. 



But we must return to the growth of the antler, and follow it 

 to its completion and final rejection. 



