THE HORSE. 107 



callosities, which, however, will scarcely bear 

 scientific criticism. They say that, before birth, 

 the fore and hind legs of a young foal are joined 

 together at these spots ; and they give as a 

 reason for this supposed state of affairs the in- 

 jury which might result to the dam if the un- 

 born colt were free to exercise his limbs, which, 

 as is well known, are very strong and muscular 

 even at birth. It is scarcely necessary to say 

 that no student of equine embryology who has 

 studied the subject in a practical manner finds 

 any confirmation of this oriental story. 



We know that nature makes nothing in vain ; 

 and therefore these callosities on the legs of the 

 horse either serve some useful purpose now, or 

 else at some earlier period of his history played 

 an important part in the economy of equine life. 

 It is fairly certain that nowadays the horse would 

 be just as well off without such appendages as 

 with them, and hence they are probably historical 

 relics of some phase of existence belonging to the 

 remote past. 



Certain circumstances of environment rendered 

 the callosities necessary to the horse, and fixed 

 them where we find them on his legs. Since 

 they differ both in shape and distribution in the 

 zebra and the ass, one may reasonably infer that 



