124 



THE TWO-TOED ARTIODACTYLA. 



for the sake of its excellent flesh, but more 

 particularly on account of its tail, which is 

 employed to sweep away flies, and is held in 

 no little esteem as an ornament for banners 

 and as an emblem of war among the tribes 

 of the highlands of Central Asia. The so- 



called horse-tails of the pashas and beys were 

 originally yak tails. The ancients knew this 

 species under the name of Poephagus. The 

 yak has been tamed, and is employed chiefly 

 to ride on and as a beast of burden. Its milk 

 also is used. Domesticated yaks are gentle, 



Fig. 195. The Gaur (Bos g aurus). 



readily associate with ordinary oxen, and are 

 contented with any kind of food, but are liable 

 at times to outbursts of fury. They carry 

 tolerably large burdens in those elevated 

 regions where it is difficult for both men and 

 animals to breathe. The yak is now to be 

 seen in all zoological gardens. 



The Gaur (Bos (Gav&us) gaurus], fig. 195, 

 is a native of the Indian Peninsula, where 

 it is often known by the name of the bison. 

 It is most abundant in the southern part of 

 the peninsula, and prefers the stony wooded 

 or bushy heights. It closely resembles the 

 large species of our domesticated oxen, has 

 short shining hair, a short thick head, long 



ears, and a tufted tail. The colour is a very 

 dark brown, almost black, but the feet are 

 white. At the shoulders, where there is 

 very little indication of a hump, the height 

 is nearly 6^ feet. The old bulls are danger- 

 ous when hunted; but if a few English 

 officers have lost their life in the chase, one 

 ought to bear in mind that these gentlemen 

 expose themselves to danger with rather too 

 naive rashness. The natives have sometimes 

 managed to tame specimens of this ox. In 

 Europe this species is rarely seen. 



The Gayal (Bos (Bibos) frontalis), fig. 196, 

 is a distinct species rarely brought to Europe, 

 a native of the mountains on the east and 



