112 THE STOCK OWXEk's ADVISER. 



rather in front of the fraennni lingnie. The sublingual gland is 

 situated under the tongue. It opens by from fifteen to twenty 

 small ducts, known as ducts of Bivinus. There are other small 

 salivary glands situated in the cheek and under the mucous 

 membrane of the lips. Glands are found at the base of the 

 tongue and along its sides and in the soft palate. The use of 

 saliva is to liquefy starch foods and change the starch into 

 dextrin and maltose. It moistens the food, and therefore assists 

 in mastication and deglutition. It administers to the sense of 

 taste by dissolving the food. 



THE TEETH. 



The teeth perform a most important function in preparing 

 the food for digestion. The horse, like man, has two sets — the 

 temporary or milk teeth and the permanent set, the former num- 

 bering twenty-four, the latter forty. In the mare there are 

 usually thirty-'six permanent teeth, the tusks being wanting or 

 rudiiuentary. 



The incisors, or front teeth, in the horse are twelve in num- 

 ber, six in each jaw; the upper ones are longer than the lower. 

 The central pair, or nippers, are called the central incisors, 

 the two adjoining teeth the lateral, while the outer ones, which 

 are the smallest, are termed the corner incisors. The ante- 

 rior surface of a young incisor tooth j^resents a triangular 

 shape, with the base at the table. As it wears it naiTOws 

 laterally, but its short axis widens, until in old age it is nearly 

 round. The incisor teeth have a single fang, which is cov- 

 ered by crusta petrosa. Towards the center of the table, in a 

 young tooth, a second ring of enamel is visible, which is known 

 as the cup, or infundibulurci. The cup is ovoid, following that 

 of the table. The cup wears with the tooth, becoming smaller, 

 and ultimately vanishing. It wears away about one-third in 

 each year. The incisor milk teeth are whiter than the perma- 

 nent ones, and have distinct necks, the necks of the latter being 

 imaginary. The tushes, or canine teeth, are four in number, a 

 pair above and below. They are found in the interdental space. 



