THE MAMMALIA— MAN AND BEASTS. 
95 
lachrymal ducts and pores. It may also be noticed, that the olfactory system tends 
gradually to diminish. 
In the organs of locomotion, it is observed that the bones lose their medullary 
cavity, and become spongy throughout their whole extent in the Cetacea. But the 
most remarkable part of their conformation consists in the general fish-like shape 
which the true Cetacea exhibit. Their bodies usually ending in a point both before 
and behind, and expanded in the middle, approach nearly in form to the solid of least 
possible resistance. Already wc remark a tendency towards this form in the Otters, 
and still more so in the Seals, although these animals possess four complete limbs. 
1 heir resemblance in shape to the Fishes i.s, moreover, most perfect in the Lamanfins 
and proper Cetacea, where there exist only a few slight rudiments of a pelvis, and 
wliere the vertebral column is terminated by a powerful arul broad tail, formed exter- 
nally by a large horizontal expansion, sometimes biftircatod ami acting as a fin. 
GEVERAL REVIEW OF THE M.AMMALTA CONTINUED. 
lU'lations of thu Ma7nmalia to Alan — Their itijuries and depredations^JScono- 
mical purposes to which thvir prorhic.ls tii'e applied — Management of the do~ 
mestic Afummalia^ relative to StalioUf Soil, and Climate. 
As the other Mammalia are influenced by the same wants and necessities as Man, 
as they are under an equal necessity with him of secicing their own preservation, of 
finding their food, an<l reproducing Iheiv kind, it will often happen that these in- 
stincts will run counter, and appear in opposition or competition with the corre- 
sponding wants of Man. Hence result those injuries to his person arul property 
which some of them inflict. 
The Tiger, the I^anthor, and Jaguar, arc the principal carnivorous animals which 
venture to attack our species by open force, in the forests of those warm countries 
which they inhabit. It has often been said and repeated, tliat tlic Lion is generous 
towards Man ; but his generosity is that of a Cat, and there are few who would be 
disposed voluntarily to place their persons within his reach. The Wolves, Ilymnas, 
and Bears, do not attack I\Ian except wlicn jircsscd with hunger, or when they have 
young ones, \^hic)l they think it necessary to defend. The greater part of the re- 
maining Carnassiers confine ihemselvcs in all cases to a defensive combat. Certain 
foreign Bats are said, probably witli some exaggeration, to be capable of inflicting 
death on a sleeping person, by opening a vein, and then sucking the blood, through 
means of certain horny papilla: with which their tongue is supplied. In our own 
country, an<l on the continent of Europe, it sometime.**, though very rarely, happens 
that a M’casel or Pole-cat insinuates itself into the cradle of a newdy-born infant, 
and sucks Its blood, so as to occasion death. It is well known that the domestic 
Pig, which devours flesh with avidity, often occasions similar accident®. In gene* 
ral, we find that the C.ariiassiers attack women and children, with whose feebleness 
or tenderness of flesh they seem to be instinctively acquainted, in preference to the 
adult IMan. 
Some of the larger herbivorous animals, such as the BuITalos, in the neighbour- 
hood of the Cape of Good Hope, and certain Elephants of a savage disposition, and 
known in the East Indies by Iho name of Grondahs, a.s wcdl as the Rhinoceros, do 
f»ot hesitate to attack Man, if they hap}>en to meet him in their road, and speedily put 
him to death, by trampling him under foot. 
Ccitain Mammalia maintain a continual war against those flocks of herbivorous 
animals, or domestic fowls, which Man has tamed for his own use. The Wolves on 
the continent of Europe roam continually round the parks wiierc the Sheep are as- 
sembled, and carry oft' all stragglers. The Foxes, Weasels, and Polecats, introduce 
themselves into the farm-yards, where they destroy the fowls, and devour their eggs. 
Many otlicr species of Martens, as well as the Opossums of North America, and the 
Pasytircs of New Holland, make depredations similar to the preceding. Even 
Horses are attacked by Wolves in mountainous and woody regions, in preference to 
other animals, against which enemies they have no other defence than their heels ; 
hut by an admirable instinct of sedf-preservation, tliey collect, together in a circle 
''hh their heads towards the centre, and the hinder feet in the circumference. The 
^xen of Africa are sometirae.s surprised by the Lions. After killing tlicm by biting 
through the hinder part of the neck, the Lions transport ihcir victims to their re- 
‘’’eats, with a degree of case, wliich serves to exemplify the extraordinary force of 
^hese animals. The herds of Paraguay arc likewise diminished in number by similar 
attacks from the .laguars. 
Hut the Carnasniers arc far from inflicting so severe an injury on Manas the horb- 
^''orous animals, and c.^pccially those belonging to the smallest species, which attack 
^he seed when' under ground, the harvest on its surface, or the hoards of the granary 
*'^d store-house. The wild D.'or. Goats, Hares, and U'lhliits of Europe, devour the 
^oru while in leaf ; Rats, FIcld-Rats, and Hamsters, devour it uhile in grain, anil 
ho last-mentioned species, not content with destniyiug its share, amasses a stove 
/^‘■ future use, which may be estimated, on an average, at about a bushel for each 
'mlividual. Tlio common and garden Dormou.se attack the fruits of our garden trees ; 
Hats and IMico destroy our provisions of every dcjcription; and the Moles, while 
seeking their food, consisting of Earthworms, Insects, and tlu-ir larva:, plough the 
“Wrfacft of our meadows. On the continent of Europe, the wild Boars, whose dc- 
*l^*'uction, except by a privileged few, is prohibited in some countries by game-laws 
doubtful justice, advance in innuinernble troops to attack the stores of potatoes, 
P-^rhaps are the only resource of the injured cultivator uf the soil. The Otters 
P ^ndcr the fish-ponds of the Conthicrd, and Uie Water-Rat, by living on the fry of 
fishes, prevents tboir increase. Our own country is happily exempted, by its in- 
•'‘^od situation, from many of these depredations, 
kind of animal, which lays waste our own territory or that of our continental 
^^‘jighbours, finds analogous plunderers in more remote or foreign countries. In 
*iea the Apes, descending in iimnenEo numbers, fill their cheek-pouches with grains 
Qf when molested, take to flight, their hands being filled with as many ears 
H'cy cttii conveniently carry. In America the Agouli.s, Cabnus, and 
execute the same kind of devastations which, in our country, arc inflicted by 
the Hares and Rabbits. A herd of forty or fifty Elephants soon causes every vest- 
ige of cultivation to disappear from an entire canton of the East Indies. In the 
North of Europe, thousands of Lemmings, descending in a body from the mountains 
of Norway and Lapland, direct their route in a straight lino towards the south, and 
may almost bo said to destroy every plant in their way. These legions of the north- 
ern hive are soon followed by another plague. Innumerable Foxes, which at first 
followed the Lemmings, and lived at their e.xpense, are soon obliged to change their 
prey ; and, after the complete annihilation of the Lemmings has been effected, to re- 
gale themselves on the fowls of the farm-yard, or some of the smaller quadrupeds. 
However great these injuries already enumerated may appear, they arc fully com- 
pensated by advantages of a more solid kind, derived from the use of that small num- 
ber of species which Man has succeeded in laming for economical purposes. 
The flesh of the herbivorous Mammalia forms a well known article of food. Those 
animals chiefly u-sed in European countries for this purpose are the Bull, the Hog, 
the Sheep, the Goat, the Hare, the Rabbit, the Stag or Red Doer, the Fallow Deer, 
the Roe-buck, the Chamois Antelope, the Ibex, the Squirrel, the Dormouse, and a 
few others. The Laplanders feed chiefly on the flesh of the Rein Deer ; the Cana- 
dians upon that of the Wapiti (Cervus Canadensis), and of the Elk (C. alces). 
The Negroes eat that of the Elephant, the Rhinoceros, the Hippopotamus, the Ma- 
nis, and several Apes. Tlie Americans of New Spain do not refuse the flesh of the 
Armadilloes ; the inhabitants of Chile esteem that of the Lama and Vicugna ; and 
the Arabs cat the flesh of the Horse and Dromedary. With the inhabitants of the 
Indian Archipelago, the flesh of the Roussette Bats forms a daily article of food. 
Certain species have been interdicted in some countric.s by laws dictated either by 
superstition or convenience. The flesh of the Hog is lield in horror by the ortho- 
dox Turk and Jew, while the Bull is the object of veneration among the Brahmins. 
Particular parts of some of the larger Mammalia are highly esteemed by certain 
nat'.nns. Thus, the foot of the Elephant is generally considered by the Negroes of 
Africa as a delicious article of food ; while the Dutch sailors, who pass half their 
lives in the midst of the polar ice, look upon the tongue of the Whales as a very deli- 
cate mor.sel. 
Seals, Dogs, and Otters, are the only carnivorous animals forming articles of food. 
The first two arc in common use among the inhabitants of Karatchatska, and the 
last, from its fishy flavour, is in great request among the monks of Catholic countries 
during Lent. 
A few of those IMaminalia which Man has succeeded in taming and subjugating com- 
pletely to his use, appear to have been distributed, like him, from the more elevated 
parts of Central Asia, to all other points of the globe. These species are the Horse, 
the Ass, the Sheep, and the Goat. The Dog and the Rein Deer are ])roper to the 
climates of the Nortli ; the Buffalo and Elephant to those regions of India situate 
at the foot of the elevated mountains of Central Asia. The Lama is peculiar In the 
New Continent. Our race of Bulls, usually considered to be peculiar to Europe, is, 
with x'cry great probability, identical with the Zebu, or Humped Bull of India ; and, 
according to M. Desmarest, it doe.s not differ specifically from the "Yak, or Grunt- 
ing Bull of Thibet and the frontiers of Cliina, 
Two species of Mammalia, in particular, have served to assist in subjugating the 
remainder ; being the Horse and the Dog. Many others are employed in hunting, 
such as the Chetah or Hunting- Leopard, and the Ferret ; or for fishing, as the Otters. 
Others have been destined to carry burthens of greater or less weight ; of these 
we may paiticularizc the Bull, the Camel, the Dromedary, the Yak, the Horse, the 
Elephant, the Ass, and the Lama. IMany have been liarnessed to carriages of vari- 
ous forms, such as the Dog, the Rein Deer, the Horse, and the Bull ; or have served 
for riding, as tlie Elephant, the Horse, the Ass, and the Bull. 
To some, Man has confided the care of his property. The Dog seems as it were 
consecrated for this purpose; while the Cat, the Guinea-Pig, and, it is said, also 
the Ichneumon of Egypt, have been destined to defend his provisions from the at- 
tacks of the smaller parasitical species. 
The art of medicine has derived many useful materials from this class of animals. 
Without noticing the ridiculous properties which have been a.ssigned to the excre- 
ments of Dogs and Rats {Album Gra'cnm and AlbwA nipnnn), it is generally ad- 
mitted that the flesh of the Calf possesses relaxing properties ; the empyreumatic oil, 
procured by the distillation of horns, is used on several occasions, and especially as a 
vermifuge. The blood of the Ibex, Goat, or Chamois Antelope, was once considered 
ns a useful medicine during attacks of pleurisy. 
The organic products of the Mammalia have, from the earliest ages, furnished the 
materials for a variety of useful arts. The horns and bones are used for comb?, 
boxes, button-moulds, the handles of cutting instruments, and the innumerable pro- 
ducts of the toy maiiufaeturer. The longer hairs, such as those of the mane or tail, 
are used for fishing lines, or coarse stuffs; the shorter or finer hairs, such as wool, 
the hair of the Goat, the Rabbit, and Cat, when dressed and spun, enter into the 
fabrication of a multitude of different tissues; the bristles, or laige and .«liff hairs, 
serve for brushes ; and the finer hairs of other species fr:r pencils. The skin, pre- 
pared ill divers manners, furnislies the soles or upper leathers of shoes, the materials 
for gloves, har-nesses, portmanteaus, the roofs of coaches, bottles, &c. See. ’, and the 
Korekis form boat-sails with the skin of the Rein-Deer. 
Tho blood of the IMammalia serves to clarify liquids, arul is particularly useful to 
sugar-refiners, and in the manufacture of Prussian blue. Tho tendons arc used for 
thiead by the Sanioiedes, the Laplanders, and the Cireenlanders. The fat, more or 
less liquid, according to the species from which it is taken, may be u-ed under the 
form of lamp-oil, lard, or suet. The marrow of the bones forms tlie ba<is of many 
kinds of pomatum. The intestines, after having been washed, dried, and twisted, 
compose the strings of some musical instruments ; and tho gal) serves for extracting 
grease from stuffs, or for laying on colours over u greasy surface. 
The distillation of flesh and bones yields many chemical products of great utility in 
the arts, such as ammonia, phospliorus, &c. Finally, tho manure of the Herbivorous 
animals may with justice be said to be tho prhnnm vwhileoi Agriculture. It restores 
to tlio soil those principles which arc annually c.xtracted from it, and thus conduces 
eminently to its futility. Indeed, it has always been found, that tho success of agri- 
