THE GLANDS. 265 
My opportunities to examine the Barren-ground Caribou for 
this gland have been limited. I have but two hind feet and one 
fore foot of this animal, which I have carefully dissected. On 
the fore foot there is no appearance of the gland. On one hind 
foot I found it very conspicuous. It was an inch and five lines 
in depth and six lines in diameter, and was literally filled with 
coarse, stiff hairs, pointing to and even protruding from the ori- 
fice. All of the hairs within the sack were stained a tawny yel- 
low color, deepest near the orifice, but beyond it the ends faded 
out to nearly white. When soaked and washed much of this 
coloring matter is removed, but still the hairs do not become 
white. ‘This coloring matter is the exudation of the glandular 
ducts, which is very abundant upon and near the skin among the 
lower part of the hairs, and is found in detached particles adher- 
ing to the hairs for some distance up from their roots. I observed 
no odor from this secretion, nor should I have expected any after 
the specimen had been dried for a year or two. On the left 
hind foot as well as on the fore foot of this Caribou, this gland 
was entirely wanting. The fact that it was conspicuously pres- 
ent in the right hind foot and wanting in the left foot of the 
same animal, shows that in that species at least this mark is not 
reliable. The same thing may occur in other deer, but I have 
heard of no example of it unless it be in the Woodland Caribou. 
I have not had an opportunity to examine the feet of the Wood- 
land Caribou, but Dr. Gilpin informs me that he finds these 
glands in the hind feet of this animal and not in the fore feet of 
the adult, though he found them distinct though very small in 
a fawn of this species, which suggested to him the possibility 
that they might be present in the fawns and become obliterated 
in the adult. This I understand also corresponds with the obser- 
vations of Mr. Morrow of Halifax. My examination of the wild 
reindeer which I brought from Norway shows that they agree 
with the Woodland Caribou in having the interdigital glands in 
the hind feet and not in the fore feet. 
From the many specimens examined of our Elk, I think I may 
safely say that this gland is entirely wanting in all of its feet ; 
at least I have never found a vestige of it in any specimen. The 
cleft or indentation between the phalangeal bones is very deep, 
but that is all. 
I have no reliable information whether this gland is present in 
any of the feet of the Moose or not, and so must leave that to 
future observations. 
