THE ANTLERS OF DEER. 349 
shall presently see they are organized in the same way. They 
. are anomalous bones, no doubt, and they differ in their economy 
from ordinary bone:just so far and no farther, than these peculi- 
arities require. They differ from all other bones in being entirely 
superficial. They are of very rapid growth, speedily mature, die 
and are soon thrown off, while all other bones are of very slow 
growth and persistent with the animal through life. 
Like all other bones, for their growth and sustenance, they are 
provided with a periosteum with Manent canals and systems and 
medullary arteries. 
ese external bones are grown upon a permanent process of 
the skull called pedicels. The periosteum of the antler, during its 
growth, together with a black cuticle covering it in which a coat 
of fine fur is inserted, is called the velvet. In this are a great mul- 
titude of large arteries which everywhere give off branches, which 
penetrate the growing antler and convey the blood to the Haversian 
canals, which are surrounded by, and connected with, Haversian 
systems, the same as in the long internal bones. 
Besides this supply of nutriment from without an internal sup- 
ply is provided for in two ways. First, a main artery, with a 
multitude of auxiliaries, passes up through the pedicel into the 
antler, which answers well to the medullary artery, and secondly 
a number of large arteries branch off from those of the periosteum 
at the end of the pedicel, and pass in through the articulation 
where the transitory unites with the permanent bone. These also 
pass up into the new-growing antler. Let any one take the first 
deer’s head’ with horns which he finds in the market, and dissect 
away the skin at the butt of the antlers, and he will see with the 
naked eye the canals for these arteries passing into the articulation. 
The veins are mostly internal. 
Thus understanding the system of blood-vessels provided for 
this external bone, and remembering that the blood-vessels are re- 
quired to be, as they are, vastly larger than for internal bones, we 
are now prepared to follow its growth from the beginning to the 
end. 
When the dead antler is cast off, which generally occurs with all 
but one of our American species in early winter, the blood-vessels 
of the periosteum reaching the butt of the antler are ruptured and 
a tolerably copious flow of blood from them ensues. They imme- 
diately set to work and extend the periosteum over the end of the 
