M A L 



C 155 ] 



MAM 



ness of the leaf not exceeding s^gth of an 

 inch. 

 MA'LLEUS. (malleus, Lat. a hammer.) 



1. One of the bones of the ear, thus named 

 from its supposed resemblance to a ham- 

 mer. 



2. A bivalve shell of the family Malleacea. 

 MALM ROCK. The name given to a variety 



of firestone, a member of the chalk series. 



MA'LTHA. A variety of bitumen ; called 

 also mineral pitch. This substance bears 

 a considerable resemblance to pitch. Co- 

 lour black or dark brown. Specific gra- 

 vity from 1-45 to 2-07. 



MA'MMA. (mamma, Lat.) The breast. 



MAMMA'LIA. (frommamma, Lat. the breast. 

 A name given to that class of animals 

 which suckle their young by teats or nip- 

 ples.) The highest class of animals is 

 that which comprehends man, and all 

 animals which, like man, possess a vivi- 

 parous mode of generation. These ani- 

 mals have a heart consisting of four cavi- 

 ties ; they have hot and red blood. Their 

 most essential character is that of their 

 being viviparous, and suckling their young 

 by teats, and they are thence called Mam- 

 malia. The mammalia are placed at the 

 head of the animal kingdom, not only be- 

 cause it is the class to which man himself 

 belongs, but also because it is that which 

 enjoys the most numerous faculties, the 

 most delicate sensations, the most varied 

 powers of motion, and in which all the 

 different qualities seem combined in order 

 to produce a more perfect degree of intel- 

 ligence the one most fertile in resources, 

 most susceptible of perfection, and least 

 the slave of instinct. The muscular sys- 

 tem and the living movements of mam- 

 malia are more varied than in any other 

 vertebrated class, for some are organized 

 to plough the deep or to clamber on the 

 rocky coasts ; some to burrow in the earth 

 or to bound over the plains ; some to 

 gamble on lofty trees or cliffs, or to wing 

 their way through the air, and these dif- 

 ferent conditions affect more especially 

 the organs of motion. The bones of all 

 the mammalia are nearly of the same 

 colour and general appearance as those of 

 man ; they are covered with a periosteum, 

 and contain marrow, which in the whale 

 tribe is fluid. The skeleton of mammalia 

 is divided into head, trunk, and extremi- 

 ties. Next to man, the ape tribe is found 

 to have the largest skull in proportion to 

 the face, but, even in the ape, it is found 

 to be small when compared with that of 

 man. The facial angle, which in the adult 

 European is about 85, is in the ourang 

 outang 67, gradually descending in some 

 of the monkeys as low as 30, till among 

 the other genera of quadrupeds it does 

 not sometimes exceed 20. The young 



of mammalia are nourished for some time 

 after birth by milk, a fluid peculiar to 

 animals of this class, which is produced 

 by the mammae at the time of parturition, 

 and remains as long as it is necessary. 

 Mammalia constitutes the first class of 

 Spini-Cerebrata or Vertebrata, and this 

 class has been divided by some into ten 

 orders. 



1. Bimanum, or two-handed ; the 

 thumbs separate on the superior extremi- 

 ties only. 



2. Quadrumana, or four-handed ; the 

 thumb, or great toe, capable of being op- 

 posed to the other fingers or toes on each 

 of the four extremities. The ape is an 

 example. 



3. Bradypoda, or slow moving animals, 

 with their bodies generally covered by a 

 hard crust. The armadillo is an example. 



4. Cheiroptera, or animals having their 

 fingers elongated for the expansion of 

 membranes, which serve as wings. This 

 membrane commences at the side of the 

 neck, extends between the feet and toes, 

 serves to support them in the air, and 

 enables such of them to fly as have their 

 hands sufficiently developed for that pur- 

 pose. The bat is an example. 



5. Glires, or Rodentia. Gnawing ani- 

 mals, having large incisors in each jaw, 

 separated from the molars by an empty 

 space, by which they divide hard sub- 

 stances. They have no canine teeth ; 

 they cannot seize living prey nor tear 

 flesh ; they cannot even, with their teeth, 

 cut their food, but they gnuw or file it, 

 hence their name. The squirrel, mouse, 

 hare, &c., are familiar examples. 



6. Ferse, or predaceous and carnivorous 

 animals. They have large canine teeth, 

 the molares forming pointed prominences 

 for tearing and cutting the food. The 

 bear, hedge-hog, &c., are examples. 



7. Solidungula, or Solipeda. Animals 

 having a single toe, or hoof, on each foot. 

 These have six incisor teeth in each jaw, 

 and are all of them herbivorous. The 

 horse is an example. 



8. Ruminantia, or Pecora. The term 

 ruminantia indicates the peculiar property 

 possessed by these animals of chewing the 

 cud, that is, of masticating their food a 

 second time, by bringing it back to the 

 mouth after having swallowed it. This 

 property depends upon the structure of 

 their stomachs, of which they have four, 

 the three first being so disposed that the 

 food may enter into either of them, the 

 sesophagus, or gullet, terminating at the 

 point of communication. They have two 

 toes on each foot, and no incisors in the 

 upper jaw. The sheep, goat, ox, &c., are 

 familiar examples. 



9. Pachydermata, or Belluae. Thick- 



