90 THE STOCK owner's ADVISER. 



the astragalus and calcaneiim. The other bones of the hind ex- 

 tremity are similar to those described below the knee of the fore 

 extremity. 



Kext may be mentioned the bones of the head. The most 

 noteworthy of these are the superior and inferior maxillaries, 

 the upper and lower jawbones. In these are set the teeth, 

 twenty-four molars, or grinders — six on each side, both above 

 and below; twelve incisors, or front teeth— six above and six 

 below, and four canine teeth, or tushes — one on each side, above 

 and below. Excluding the teeth and the internal bones of the 

 ear, there are thirty-eight bones in the skull — six single ones, the 

 rest in pairs. There are winding cavities in the bones of the 

 face called sinuses. They communicate freely with each other 

 and with the nasal fossae, of wdiich they may be regarded as pro- 

 longations. They number four on each side — viz., the frontal, 

 the maxillary, the sphenoidal, and the ethnoidal. The head 

 articulates with the first cervical vertebra, from which it is sus- 

 pended by its posterior extremity', its anterior extremity being 

 free. 



Here begins the line of the vertebrae; extending the w^hole 

 length of the body, it consists of a series of single bones, termed 

 vertebrso, firmly united and presenting horizontally a succession 

 of curves; thus in the horse the neck, back, and croup are usually 

 curved, while the loins are nearly straight. The vertebral chain 

 is usually divided into five regions, exclusive of the cranial por- 

 tion. These are the cervical, dorsal, lumbar, sacral, and coccy- 

 geal, respectively the regions of the neck, back, loins, croup, and 

 tail. The bones of these regions are seven cervical; eighteen 

 dorsal, corresponding in number with the pairs of ribs; five or 

 six lumbar; five sacral, and the coccygeal, varying from thirteen 

 to twenty. The dorsal vertebrae superiorily, the ribs and their 

 cartilages laterally, and the sternum or breast bone inferiorly, 

 form the cavity called the thorax. In the horse the ribs usually 

 number eighteen, eight of these being true ribs and attached to 

 the sternum; the ten posterior ribs, having only an indirect 



