QUADRUPEDS.. 
341 
of new teeth, as the old ones become unfit for the masti- 
cation of its food.”* 
In the Ruminaxtia generally the dentition is still in- 
complete; the incisors are absent from the upper jaw, the 
gums forming there a callous pad to receive the action of 
the lower teeth. Canines are found only in a few families. 
It is not uutil we reach the Unguiculate or Clawed 
quadrupeds that wo see the full complement of teeth. 
Among the Carnivora, for example, both the upper and 
under jaws are armed with molar's, canines, and incisors; 
the molars terminate iu triangular cutting lobes, the 
canines are stout, conical, and pointed; and the incisors 
numerous, but small, flattened, and chisel-shaped. And 
this seems to be the most perfect form of dentition iu the 
xVnimal Kingdom, that which belongs to a type of organi- 
zation iu which the characteristic attributes of an animal 
are most fully developed. 
Let us, then, examine one of the Cat tribe ( Felida ) a 
little more in detail. How admirably every part of the 
structure is adapted to one end— the capture and destruc- 
tion of living active prey— and how thoroughly all the 
organs, and all the parts of the body, are ancillary to each 
other ! The feet — the front pair iu particular — are armed 
with five strong, hooked, compressed, sharp talons. Ihese 
are the weapons principally relied on for dealing the death- 
blow; it is needful, therefore, that they bo kept always 
clean, pointed, and in order. A beautiful mechanism 
secures this. Every child knows, who has handled the 
velvet paw of a Cat, that, in its ordinary condition, the 
talons are quite concealed, hut that in excitement they 
* Corse, in Brewster’s “Encyclop.” 
