THE TEETH 187 



bone. This pad is of a somcAvhat more fibrous and elastic nature 

 than the bars, and stands in the place of upper incisor or cutting 

 teeth. The grass is collected and rolled together by means of the 

 tongue; is firmly held between the lower cutting-teeth and the pad, 

 the cartilaginous upper lip assisting in this ; and then by a sudden 

 nodding motion of the head, in which the pterigoid muscles are the 

 chief agents, the little roll of herbage is partly both torn and L-*t. 



The intention of this singular method of gathering the food, it is 

 difficult satisfatorily to explain. It is peculiar to ruminants, who 

 have one large stomach, in which the food is kept as a kind of reser- 

 voir until it is ready for the action of the other storo.achs. While 

 kept there it is in a state of maceration, exposed to the united in- 

 fluence of moisture and warmth, and the consequence is, that a spe- 

 cies of decomposition sometimes commences, and gas is extricated. 

 That this should not take place in the natural process of retention 

 and maceration, nature possibly established this mechanism for the 

 first gathering of the food. It is impossible that half of that which 

 is thus procured can be fairly cut through ; part will be torn up by 

 the roots ; many a root mingles with the blades of grass ; and these 

 have sometimes much earth about them. The beast, however, 

 seems not to regard this ; he eats on, dirt and all, until his paunch 

 is filled. 



That this earth should be gathered and swallowed, was the mean- 

 ing of this mechanism. A portion of absorbent earth is found in 

 every soil, sufficient not only to prevent the evil that would result 

 from occasional decomposition, by neutralizing the acid principle as 

 rapidly as it is evolved, but perhaps, by its presence, preventing 

 that decomposition from taking place. Hence the eagerness with 

 which stall-fed cattle, who have not the opportunity of plucking up 

 the roots of grass, evince for earth. When decomposition commences 

 and the acescent principle begins to be developed, the animal feels 

 uneasiness on that account, and has recourse to the earth ; and the 

 acid uniting itself to the earth, the uneasy feeling is relieved, and a 

 purgative neutral salt manufactured in the paunch. , 



THE TEETH. 



The mouth contains the principal agents in mastication, the teeth. 

 The mouth of the ox when full contains thirty-two teeth ; eight in- 

 cisors in the lower jaw, and six molars in each jaw, above and below, 

 and on either side. The incisor teeth are admirably adapted to per- 

 form their function. If there be no corresponding ones opposed, 

 but merely an elastic pad, they must possess an edge of considerable 

 sharpness in order to perform this half-cutting, half-tearing pi'ocess. 

 With a blunt edge there could be no cutting at all ; but all the 

 grass would be torn up by the roots, the pasture destroyed, and the 

 animal choked with earth. The part of the tooth above the gum is 



