CHAP. ii. SKELETON OF THE HORSE. 897 



high-bred animals, such as the "English Hunter," has been advocated 

 by many authorities as likely to be conducive to the great improve- 

 ment of the breed of horses ordinarily used on the farm. Whether 

 such high-bred " blood " as that of the hunter be so used or not, 

 certainly, in view of the wretched " screws " which are too often used 

 for the sake of economy to raise stock with, some decided reform was 

 obviously required. In this direction, the work undertaken by the 

 Royal Commission on Horse Breeding is likely to have a salutary and 

 permanent influence upon the equine stock of Great Britain. 



CHAPTEE II. 



THE ANATOMY OF THE HORSE. 



nnHOUGH it is possible to treat this branch of the subject in only 

 J_ the briefest fashion, it is believed that the few facts related in this 

 chapter will prove of direct interest to breeders. 



THE SKELETON. The " backbone " of the horse is made up of 7 

 cervical (or neck) vertebrae ; 18 thoracic (or dorsal) vertebrae, support- 

 ing the ribs ; 6 lumbar vertebrae ; 5 sacral vertebrae, fused together to 

 form the sacrum ; and about 17 caudal (or tail) vertebrae. Above the 

 cervical vertebrae is the stout ligament of the neck, the ligamentum 

 nuchee. Of the spines on the upper faces of the thoracic vertebrae, that 

 on the fifth is the longest, that on the sixteenth is vertical. Those in 

 front of the sixteenth are inclined backwards (see fig. 90). 



The thorax, or chest, is a cone-shaped cage supported by a bony 

 framework, consisting of the thoracic vertebrae above, the ribs at the 

 sides, and the sternum, or breast bone, below. The sternum is much 

 compressed laterally, and projects forward like the prow of a boat. 

 Within the thorax is lodged the heart, on either side of which are the 

 lungs. The thorax is completely shut off from the larger hinder cavity 

 of the body (the abdomen) b} r a tense muscular sheet or skirt, called the 

 diaphragm, which, however, is pierced by the great blood-vessels and the 

 gullet. In the abdomen are lodged the stomach and intestines, with 

 their attendant glands (liver, pancreas, and spleen), also the kidneys, the 

 urinary bladder, and (in the female) the ovaries and uterus. The cavity 

 is traversed, in the upper median line, by the dorsal aorta conveying 

 blood from the heart, and the inferior vena cava taking blood to the 

 heart. 



The ribs number 18 pairs, so that between them there are 17 inter- 

 costal spaces. Each rib articulates with a vertebra above ; and 

 communicates with the sternum below, either directly or indirectly, by 

 means of costal cartilages. Each rib consists, therefore, of a bony part 



