30 THE HOESE. 



thereby greater stability to the carpal region as a 

 whole (see Fig. 1, p. 15). A corresponding change in 

 the tarsus brings the cuboid into articular relation 

 with the astragalus, which it wants in the primitive 

 condition. 



In the number of the digits a considerable modi- 

 fication has taken place in both feet. In the fore- 

 limbs, instead of five, there are but four toes, a 

 number which was long retained by a considerable 

 section of the order, and persists even to the present 

 day in the one family of tapirs. A foot thus formed 

 may appear at first sight to belong to the Artiodac- 

 tyle or even-toed type, especially as the missing toe 

 is the first, and the four that remain are exactly 

 those of the Artiodactyles. But on examining a 

 little more closely it will be seen to present all the 

 structural characteristics of the five-toed Perisso- 

 dactyles, only changed by the removal of the first 

 toe. The third is still the largest, and forms the 

 center of support ; the second and third are of equal 

 size and form a pair arranged on each side of it. 

 The fifth is an odd toe with nothing to balance it on 

 the inner side of the foot. There is no trace of the 

 symmetry around a line drawn between the third 

 and fourth toes, or of the equality of these two which 

 is seen in Artiodactyles. By referring to the dia- 

 gram at p. 15 (Fig. 1), it will be easily understood 



