THE ANTLERS. 189 



broken points to unknown lengths. In this I was disappointed ; 

 the ends grew over, presenting something the apjjearance of the 

 end of an amputated limb after it is healed, but only on one 

 point was there any considerable elongation and that did not 

 exceed three or four inches. The new growth was principally 

 expended in the enlargement of the old remaining parts. Of 

 these the actual diameter was appreciably increased, but the 

 greatest volume consisted in large tubercles all over the surface, 

 some with large bases, others attached to the parent stem by 

 small necks. These tubercles are largest on the lower part of the 

 antler and especially about the burr, some extending down over 

 the pedicel, and one nearly two inches broad now extends down 

 over the face nearly to the eye. 



This animal is now carrying these antlers the eighth winter. 

 Each year portions have been broken off from the ends by acci- 

 dent, so that now but tineless stubs remain scarcely eighteen 

 inches lonw. These frao'ments have rarelv been found, and I 

 have been able to add but one to my collection. The actual 

 diameters of these shafts have been more than doubled. Some 

 of the old tubercles are broken off annually, and those remaining 

 are enlarged somewhat each year, and new ones crowd their way 

 out among the old, but the number of new ones and the growth 

 of the old ones seem to diminish each year as the animal grows 

 older. One of these tubercles I found hanging by the skin, Avhich 

 I secured. That was sufficient to show that they are composed 

 of the same cancellous tissue as the main stem on this and the 

 growing antler on the perfect animal. The periosteum, and the 

 cuticle covering it in which the fine soft fur of the velvet is in- 

 serted, expand with the growth of the tubercles, so as to com- 

 pletely envelop them, penetrating them with the nutriment con- 

 duits, the same as described when treating of the growth of the 

 antler on the perfect animal. 



On the 15th of July I castrated a common buck four years old, 

 when his antlers were more than three quarters grown. He 

 soon recovered from the wound. I watched the result, compar- 

 ing his antlers with those of several others of about the same age 

 not castrated. I could detect no difference in the progress of 

 growth till all seemed to have attained their full size. Those on 

 the castrated animal never so far matured as to lose the velvet, 

 while that on the perfect animal was of course rubbed off as 

 usual. The results of my experiments seem to establish this 

 state of facts : that the removal of the testes of the deer whose 



