30 THE BONES. 



and have no vertebral foramina ; the posterior facets for articulation with the axis are 

 nearly flat and join each other. The axis has a semicylindrical, not a conical, odontoid 

 process, which is so concave on its upper surface that it looks like a groove. Its spinous 

 process is not so thick as in the Horse, and is not bifid posteriorly. 



In the five succeeding vertebra?, a rugged continuous lamina unites the anterior articular 

 processes to the posterior. The spinous process inclines forward and is flattened trans- 

 versely at its summit, which is sometimes bifid ; it augments progressively in height 

 from the third to the fifth vertebra. 



In the sixth, the transverse processes have only two prolongations a superior and 

 inferior ; the latter, large and flattened on both sides, is bent abruptly downwards. The 

 spinous process has already attained the height of 1 to 2 inches in this vertebra, and 

 is flattened laterally. 



The seventh well deserves the name of prominens- its spinous process being no less 

 than from 4 to 4f inches. 



2. Dorsal vertebrx. In the Ox these bones are longer and thicker than in the Horse. 

 Their spinous processes are larger and incline more backward ; their transverse processes 

 are very voluminous, and are provided with a convex facet from above to below ; while 

 their posterior notches are nearly always converted into foramina. 



Considered individually, they are more slender in the middle than at the extremities. 

 Their spinous processes diminish in width, especially at their summits, from the first to 

 the eleventh vertebra, and widen again in the two last ; they progressively increase in 

 slope to the tenth, after which they become more and more upright ; the first four are 

 the longest, and are nearly the same in height ; the others gradually decrease. 



In the first four or five vertebrae, the articular facet of the transverse processes, while 

 retaining its vertical convexity, is concave in an antero-posterior direction. This facet is 

 always absent in the last vertebra, and sometimes even in the preceding one. The two 

 bones terminating the dorsal region show, in addition, the articular processes disposed 

 like those of the lumbar vertebrae. 



The dorsal vertebrae of the Sheep and Goat are relatively less strong than those of the 

 Ox ; their spinous processes are not so wide, and their posterior notches are never con- 

 verted into foramina. 



3. Lumbar vertebras. The lumbar vertebrae of the Ox are longer and thicker than in 

 the Horse. The transverse processes are also generally more developed, are concave on the 

 anterior border, convex on the posterior, and incline slightly downward, with the 

 exception of the two first, which remain nearly horizontal. They increase in length from 

 the first to tUe fourth vertebra ; in the latter and the fifth, they are nearly of the same 

 dimensions ; in the last they suddenly become shorter. Their width gradually decreases 

 from before to behind. In the fifth and sixth vertebra, these processes have no articular 

 facets between them and the sacrum, these being only met with in solipeds. The artic- 

 ular processes are prominent, and further removed from the median line as they belong 

 to posterior vertebrae. 



In the G )at the transverse processes are more inclined downwards. 



In the Sheep, on the contrary, the processes rise up towards their extremities. 



4. Sacrum. Tiie tacrum of the Ox is more voluminous and curved than that of the 

 Horse. The spinous processes are entirely consolidated, and are surmounted by a thick 

 rugged lip ; they are lengthened at their base and on each side by a ridge that represents 

 the rudiments of the articular processes. The lateral borders are sharp and bent down- 

 wards. The surfaces that serve to unite the sacrum to the ossa innominata have a some- 

 what vertical direction. There are no lateral facets on the base of the bone for the union 

 of the sacrum with the transverse processes of the last lumbar vertebra. In the Sheep 

 and Goat, the sacrum is shorter ; sometimes the consolidation of the spinous processes is 

 late, or never occurs. 



5. Coccygeal vertebras. In proportion, the coccygeal vertebrae of ruminants are 

 stronger and more tuberous than those of the Horse. The anterior articular processes 

 exist in a rudimentary condition. 



B. VERTEBRA OF THE PIG. 1. Cervical vertebras. Of all the domesticated animals, 

 this has the shortest, the widest, the most tuberous, and consequently the strongest cervi- 

 cal vertebras. The body of these bones is deprived of its crest on the inferior face ; its 

 he id, but little detached, is scarcely round, and looks as if driven back on itself ; con- 

 sequently, its posterior cavity is not deep. 



The vertebral laminae are very narrow, and scarcely extend from one part of the 

 vertebra to the other in the superior portion ; so that the spinal canal appears at this 

 point to be incomplete. 



In the atlas, the transverse processes are yet less inclined than in ruminants ; the 

 vertebral foramen is not constant, and when it exists, opens on one side, under the 



