TAPIRUS AMERICANUS. 167 



yellow on their outer or cortical substance, and of a dark ash colour on 

 their inside. 



Of the Parts of Generation. — These parts appear to be the same with 

 those of the horse. 



The vasa deferentia swell into two canals behind the bladder. The 

 two vesiculse seminales are large, oblong bags, of a gentle pyramidal 

 figure ; the fundus the largest. There is a long small duct 1 between 

 the two vasa deferentia, running in the doubling of the peritoneum 

 that unites them behind the bladder, which is forked at its extreme end 

 similarly to that in the horse ; this opens into the urethra between the 

 openings of the two vasa deferentia. 



The Tapir [Tapirus Americanus^']. 



This animal is about the size of a common-sized hog 3 ; and, when seen 

 at a little distance, so as not to see its peculiarities, it would be taken 

 for one. The body is shaped like a hog's ; the back is arched ; the legs 

 are thick and short ; the fore-foot has four toes with small hoofs of a 

 dark colour : I call these hoofs, as they inclose the toe. The hind-foot 

 has only three. The tail is remarkably small and short. The one from 

 which this description is taken measured, from the tip of the nose to 

 the end of the tail, 5 feet 6 inches : the height at the shoulder was 

 2 feet 8 inches; at the crista of the ileum 2 feet 5 inches. The 

 character of the head seems to be between that of the rhinoceros and 

 the hog. The nose projects about 2 inches beyond the teeth, forming 

 a proboscis, which is muscular ; and from the nasal bones arise two 

 considerable muscles, which are inserted into the tip of the nose ; all of 

 which must give this part considerable motion ; and the two last 

 mentioned muscles must give considerable strength in raising the pro- 

 boscis, which is probably used in digging up the earth in search of food. 

 The eyes are small and of a darkish colour. The ears project upwards 

 and backwards, and are rounded. The anus is very large, and the 

 common skin of the body terminates all at once in the gut, not becom- 

 ing gradually thinner and thinner till lost in the intestine 4 : this 

 termination looks like a cut edge in the common skin, and is a little 

 scolloped. The colour of the hair is of a dusky hue, and short, ex- 



1 [The ' protometra : ' Hunt. Prep. No. 2544.] 



2 [The skull of this animal is No. 2879, Osteol. Series.] 



3 [The immaturity of the animal is shown by the concealment of the last molar 

 tooth in its formative cavity, in both jaws of No. 2879.] 



* [Hunt. Prep. No. 754.] 



