64 THE ELEPHANT. 



rubbing it with a pumice (tone ; and then they 

 arc anointed with perfumed oils, and painted 

 with various colours. 



The ftrudture of the elephant's feet and legs 

 frill differs from that of mod other animals. The 

 fore legs appear to be longer than the hind legs, 

 and yet the former are fomewhat fhorter * The 

 hind legs are not bended in two places like thofe 

 of the horfe and ox, in whom the thigh-bone is 

 almoft totally concealed in the buttock, the knee 

 is fituated near the belly., and the bones of the 

 foot are fo high and fo long, that they appear to 

 conftitute a great part of the leg. But the foot 

 of the elephant is very fhort, and refts on the 

 ground. His knee, like that of man, is placed 

 near the middle of the leg. The fhort foot of 

 the elephant is divided into five toes, which are 

 fo covered with the fkin as not to be vifible. 

 We only fee a kind of nails, the number of which 

 varies, though that of the toes remains always 

 the fame. There are uniformly five toes on 

 each foot, and commonly five nails']"; but fome- 

 times there are only four J, or even three nails; 



andj 



* Mem. pourfervlr a l'hift. des anim. part. 3. p. 102. 



+ The royal academy of fciences recommended to me to 

 examine whether all the elephants had nails on their feet. I 

 never faw a Tingle elephant which had not five on each foot at 

 the extremities of the five large toes. But the toes are fo 

 ihort, that they hardly project from the foot ; Premier voyage 

 du P. Tachard, p. 273. 



\ All thofe who have written concerning the elephant, 

 aflign five nails to each foot : but, in our fubjeft, there were 



only 



