ANATOMY. 



serves for the attachment of the capsular ligament, 

 and the tendons of muscles, connected with the 

 motion of the joint; and other processes from their 

 aituntion, as the nasal palatine, and orbital processes. 

 By bearing those explanations in mind, the student 

 of anatomy will have less difficulty in comprehend, 

 ing the precise meaning of anatomical details, 

 which, with all possible simplicity of language, is 

 yet too freiiuently little better than unintelligible 

 jargon, decked out in technical phraseology. If a 

 process be large and of a spherical shape, such as 

 the upper end of the thigh bone, or bone of the 

 arm, it is termed sometimes the caput or head ; if, 

 on the contrary, the head or end of the bone is 

 flattened, it takes the name of a condyle. Other 

 processes are termed mastoid, or mamillary, from 

 their resemblance to a nipple st.yloid ; and coracoid, 

 from their similitude to a stiletto, or the beak of a 

 crow ; some spinous, which appear like thorns ; 

 while others derive their names from their direction, 

 us the longitudinal, perpendicular, horizontal, 

 oblique, or transverse processes. A variety of 

 eminences and depressions, to some of which we 

 have now alluded, termed processes, spines, con- 

 dyles, &c. characterise a number of the bones. 

 There is one kind of eminence peculiar to bones, 

 which deserves particular notice, which is called 

 an ipiphysis, and which should be distinguished 

 from an apophysis. The latter is nothing more 

 than a process, or head of a bone, but an epipbysis 

 is a part of a bone connected to that bone, by an 

 intervening cartilage, and of this, a beautiful de- 

 monstration may be seen every day in the thigh 

 bone of a calf, or young pig, in which, when boiled, 

 the epiphysis or head of the bone may be easily 

 removed, and the part which adhered to the body 

 of the bone will be found lined with cartilage ; and 

 thus the condyles of the thigh bone of a child are 

 epiphysis, and are separable from the femur. In 

 the course of time, however, the intervening 

 cartilage assumes a bony character, a firm union 

 takes place, and the epiphyses of the child become 

 apophyses in the adult. Many other very interest- 

 ing facts in osteology, may be learned from an at- 

 tentive inspection of the bones of the inferior 

 animals, a knowledge of which will amply repay 

 the inquisitive for the time they may bestow on 

 the subject. The eminences and depressions are 

 observed to be most strongly marked, in those per- 

 sons who take any active exercise, and in the 

 male more than the female, and in the adult more 

 than in the child. The eminences of articulation 

 are generally the expanded extremities of bones, 

 forming surfaces of union with other bones, in 

 which there are corresponding depressions ; but 

 these will come to be noticed more particularly, 

 when treating of the joints. Eminences and de- 

 pressions, from apparent impression, are such as the 

 irregularities of the inner surface of the skull, or 

 such as muscular impressions on other bones pre- 

 sent. They are supposed to be occasioned by the 

 pressure of different organs on the surface in their 

 growth or actions. If those are not actually the re- 

 sult of the compression of the organs on these bones, 

 they show that the bones are provided with forms 

 admirably accommodated to the adjacent parts. 

 There are almost innumerable cavities on the ex- 

 terior of bones, which are intended for the inser- 

 tion of muscles, tendons, or ligaments, such ir- 

 regularity of surface extending the fibrous attach- 

 ment without increasing the diameter of the bone. 

 There are other cavities which are destined to re- 



ceive an organ and protect it, while there is a 

 third class, for affording a gliding passage for ten- 

 dons, and for the transmission of vessels and 

 nerves, and for the two last, there are a multipli- 

 city appearing, like small perforations in the bones 

 in general, and in the extremities of the long 

 bones in particular ; a fact that will be more parti- 

 cularly noticed in a subsequent section. 



It is scarcely possible to perceive any difference 

 in the osseous substance of the female and that of 

 the male. 



In the fcetus and infant, the colour of bone is 

 much redder than in the adult, and it becomes 

 gradually paler as the individual approaches to 

 maturity, and in the decline of life generally ac- 

 quires a deeper tint of yellow. In point of con- 

 sistence, it will be found to be softer, and more 

 elastic, the younger ; and harder, and more brittle, 

 the older. Its specific gravity, too, almost invari- 

 ably increases with the age of the individual. The 

 vascularity of bone is much greater in early life than 

 at maturity, and much less in old age, and to this, 

 no doubt, in part the difference of its colour is 

 owing. 



With respect to the composition of bone, there 

 is no texture of the body of which the chemical 

 properties have been more frequently or more 

 minutely investigated. The specific gravity of bones 

 differs in different parts ; that of adults' teeth is, 

 according to Dr T. Thomson, '2-2727, that of 

 children's teeth 2-0833. Bone, however, consists 

 essentially of only two different substances ; 

 namely, a cartilaginous and earthy. Berzelius 

 found the constitutents of human bone to be as 

 follows 



Cartilage 



Soda, and common salt 



Carbonate of lime 



Phosphate of lime 



I* luate of lime 



Phosphate of magnesia - 



Man. 

 33-30 



1-20 

 11 30 

 51-04 



2-00 



1-16 



Ox. 

 33 SC 



2-45 



385 

 55-45 

 2-W) 

 205 



100-00 100-00 



From these analyses, it appears that there is 

 nearly the same proportion of cartilaginous sub- 

 stance in ox as in human bones, and almost the same 

 proportion of the other principal constituent, the 

 phosphate of lime, while the difference in the other 

 constituents is more remarkable. In such diseases 

 as caries of the bones, the phosphate of lime seems 

 to be diminished, as appears from the analysis of a 

 carious bone by Lassaigne. 



Animal matter 

 Carbonate of lime 



i j. j. phiiif of lime 



40-5 

 - 21-5 



3*0 



ibo-o 



The bony part of the teeth, according to 

 Berzelius, differs considerably in the proportion of 

 its constituents from that of the other bones. 



Phosphate of lime 



Fluate of lime 



Carbonate of lime - 



Phosphate of magnesia - 



Soda, with a little muriate of soda 



Gelatine water, &c. 



- 61-96 



2-10 

 - 550 



- 1-05 

 - 1'40 



2800 



100-00 



With respect to chemical properties, it is suffi- 

 cient to remark, that the quantity of calcareous 

 matter contained in bone, proportionally to the car- 

 tilaginous part, is always greater the older the sub- 

 ject. This accounts for the difference in its spe- 

 cific gravity, hardness, and strength, at different 

 periods of life, and in part also for the difference 



