ODONTOGRAPHY. 69 



fang of the elephant's tooth in its early development. The second, third, The Fangs, 

 fourth, and fifth fangs are in a great measure consolidated into one ; retain- 

 ing, however, distinctly a partial division between them. The extremity 

 of the three posterior consolidated fangs broken off exposes a cavity occupy- 

 ing the bodies of the four posterior, which, in the recent state, was filled 

 with vessels and other soft textures. Each of the fangs is striated trans- 

 versely by depressions at the distance of an eighth of an inch apart, which 

 extend across and disappear at the line of junction of the fangs. This 

 beautiful striated appearance calls to mind the anterior face of the human 

 trachea. It has been noticed, in regard to this tooth, that the crown and 

 fangs were hollow. This appears to be generally true of teeth recently 

 developed, while those which have been long used gradually become filled 

 with osseous matter, so that when the anterior extremity of the tooth gives 

 way, in the process of mastication, no cavity is opened and exposed, but 

 a solid mass of dentine fills the corresponding part of the crown, and even 

 of the fangs, so far as I have noticed. 



The anterior extremity of the specimen before me is flattened, the pos- 

 terior rounded ; it measures antero-posteriorly, eight inches ; transversely, 

 three inches ; in height, six inches and a half ; around the neck, eighteen 

 inches. 



The teeth in the upper jaw of the Mastodon Giganteus have not yet Teeth of 



the Upper 



been fully described. Of these the first two are wanting ; the third is found Jaw. 

 in the Mastodon head represented in Plate IV. ; the fourth in both the 

 heads of Plate IV. and Plate VI. ; the fifth in that of Plate VI. ; and the 

 fourth, fifth, and sixth in the Shawangunk head, Plate XVI. The two 

 anterior or milk molars have not, that I know of, been found in place ; and, 

 of course, any description of them is hypothetical. Fortunately we have 



