THE ANTLERS. 189 
broken points to unknown lengths. In this I was disappointed ; 
the ends grew over, presenting something the appearance 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 long. These fragments have rarely 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, which 
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 
