THE SKELETON. 23 



capable of exteuding itself far forYv^ard and holding 

 out far backward behind the perpendicular, though 

 the shoulder may be a little longer or shorter. 



A short shoulder by excellent length of the arm 

 bone we find in all animals, which by a high location 

 of the shoulder joint, distinguish themselves by supe- 

 rior swiftness — as greyhounds, deer, etc. The ex- 

 amination of horses, which by great freedom of 

 shoulder show extraordinary speed, proves that they 

 frequently have a very oblique— not a long-shoul- 

 der, but a very' long arm bone; whereas the defect 

 of a short arm bone cannot be counterbalanced by a 

 long and oblique shoulder; the long and far-reach- 

 ing steps out of the latter, consequently disappears, 

 and only the high action is left. A shoulder only 

 long, but without obliqueness, may become detrimen- 

 tal, the shoulder joint being placed too low down. 

 Furthermore, it must be taken in consideration that 

 the shoulder-blade forms the basis for the neck, 

 which will be set up higher, the more oblique 

 the shoulders are; but, on the other hand, will appear 

 broader and more projecting, the straighter the latter 

 are. The farther the head and neck are projecting, the 

 f:\rther is the leg compelled to step forward to sup- 

 port the weight; but, with a straight shoulder, this 

 is impossible, although very necessary. With the 

 length of the steep shoulder, the basis of the neck 



