490 



THE HOKSE'S POSITION IN THE ANIMAL WORLD 



Man presents the entire under surfaces of the bones of the tarsus {hock of 

 the horse), with the metatarsal bones and the four phalanges, to the ground 

 surface, while the horse stands on the fourth or terminal phalanx. Fig. 659 

 shows the positions reversed; the foot of the man has the points of the 

 toes on the ground in a position corresponding to that which is natural 

 in the horse, and the horse is supposed to be in the impossible position 

 of having the whole of the bones from the point of the hock to the last 

 phalanx of the toe on the ground as in the foot of the man. The teaching 

 of the diagram is that for the horse to exhibit a perfect foot, the bones 

 below the carpus (knee) and the tarsus (hock) would have to be included 



Fig. 659. — Foot of Man and Foot of Horse Compared (positions reversed) 

 (Note position of ground surface in each case.) 



The names of the several bones are given below fig. 658 on the preceding page 



in the structures of the organ; instead of this being the case, it is 

 obvious that what is called the foot of the horse only includes the two 

 last phalanges. 



It will be noticed in comparing the above illustrations with the 

 skeletons in fig. 655, page 486, that in man the bones of the leg (the tibia 

 and fibula) up to the knee, and the thigh-bone (femur) from the knee 

 to the hip -joint, form a column which is nearly a straight line. The 

 limbs of the horse, on the contrary, present very decided angles at several 

 points, chiefly at the shoulder, elbow, hip, stifle, and hock joints; and 

 also from the fetlock-joints to the ground surface, an arrangement which 

 is eminently calculated to give freedom of movement, and at the same 

 time les!5en the eff'ect of concussion. 



Muscular System. — The bones of the skeleton form the framework 

 of the body. Joints are obviously arranged to admit of motion, they 



