GRU1>ITING OX. 
length of the tail in the British Museum^ 
whicli probably did not reach the ground, no 
known figure of the animal ever representing 
the tail as descending qnite to the heels, it may 
be fairly inferred, that the Grunting Ox, some- 
times, at least, attains to an enormous size* 
In the New Memoirs of the Academy of Pe- 
tersburgh, M. Gmelin has given a descriptioa 
of this animal, which he saw alive in Siberia. 
Ic came from Calmuck,. and was about two 
and a half Russian ells in length. His de- 
scription, in general, corresponds with what 
Vvc have given. ** The excrements," he says^ 
are more solid than those of the Cow; and^ 
when tlie animal discharges uri-ne, it draws it's 
body backward.. It lows not like an Ox, h\^t 
grunts like a hog.. It is wild, and even fero- 
cious ; for, except the man from whom it re-. 
• eeives it's food, it gives blows with it's head to 
all wha come near.. The presence of domes- 
tic Cows i<t hardly suffers :. whenever it per- 
ceives one of them, it grunts, which it seldom 
does on any other occasion.'*" To this Gme- 
Ma adds, that it is the animal mentioned by 
Rubruquls, in his Travels ; and that there are 
two. species,, among the Calmucks, somewhat 
different 
