194 
THE BOVINE TRIBE OR OXEN. 
with certainly the most important, and endeavour to 
trace the stock of our domestic races of cattle, and 
the forms they are supposed to assume in extra Eu- 
ropean countries. These stand in our systems as 
the Bos taurus of the older naturalists, the B. tau- 
rus domesticus of Linnseus. 
It may be observed in this place, that our author, 
whose arrangement we have followed, divides this 
group into three subgenera, Bubalus, Bison, and 
Taurus. Mr Swainson, in his Natural System, 
makes Bos as pre-eminently typical of the Booidoe. 
By most persons it is thought that the domestic 
races of our cattle are originally sprung from the 
Bos bubalus, the Indian and European Buffalo. 
Some, again, treat of them as arising from the Au- 
rochs or wild cattle of Germany and Poland. These, 
according to the system of Smith, come into subge- 
nera different from the domestic breeds ; and from 
both these suppositions the opinion of the Baron 
Cuvier varies, as he is inclined to consider our pre- 
sent cattle identical with a species no longer existing 
in a wild state, but which has, by the exertions of 
man, as in the instance of the Camel and Drome- 
dary, been for ages entirely subjected to his power. 
The remains of this animal has been found in a fos- 
sil state, and it is upon the comparison of these re- 
mains with the skeleton of the Auroch, the Buffalo, 
and our domestic races, that the Baron has founded 
his opinion. 
In examining the skull of any of the breeds of 
