24 THE CAT 



with a space for storage, or is, again, able to 

 resist the demands of a long famine. The an- 

 gular joints of the legs show power and possi- 

 bility of quick movement, without, however, 

 great speed or extension of stride. 



It must be understood here that the enor- 

 mous jumps which the cat is capable of tak- 

 ing are due to the great power and the closed 

 angles of the joints of its legs; whereas the 

 stride of the animal at a walk, trot, or run is 

 very limited. 



Figures 3 and 4 show the skull of the cat 

 and its dentition. It will be seen that the 

 cat's teeth are set at more or less of a hooklike 

 angle, with the points turned toward the inside 

 of the mouth, which gives it a very powerful 

 hold of anything which it grasps. The cat has 

 thirty teeth in all. It will be seen in Figure 4 

 which represents the teeth of one side of the 

 jaw that there is first in front a row of in- 

 cisors (three on either side six in all), which 

 are very small, and are practically rudimentary 

 in this animal then two enormous tush teeth, 

 which enable it to grasp its prey in the shape 

 of the mouse, bird, or a simple piece of meat, 



