will perhaps here recur to recollection. A person complained that he
had been imposed upon by the purchase of an animal represented to be
'an elephant rat;' that is, a rat with a trunk and tusks resembling
those of an elephant. The trunk was nothing more than part of a rat's
tail stuck into the snout of the animal, where it grew as if natural.
As for the tusks, they were two of the teeth in the upper jaw which
had been suffered to grow by removing the two corresponding teeth in
the lower jaw against which they used to grind and be kept short. More
ingenious than honest, the fraud was duly punished.
Crocodiles have enormous tails; of sixty vertebræ there are more than
forty which are caudal. The organ is rather cumbrous to them on land,
and this fact affords an opportunity of escaping from them by making
quick turns, which they do not readily follow. But their powerful tail
must be of immense value to them in swimming.
There is strong probability that the tail of some animals covered with
fur serves the purpose of a protection to the air-passages of mouth and
nose during sleep, as also the retention of heat. This will be apparent
to any one who observes the position into which the tail is curled in
such cases, and the face brought into contact with it.
Frogs have no proper tails, but in the tadpole stage they have,
and their locomotion by means of them is familiar to everybody. A
similar mode of locomotion is observable in the minute animals termed
Flagellata, which advance by lashing their tails from side to side. The
motions of several of those microscopic organisms known as _Bacteria_,
found in putrefying infusions of organic matter, are at present
somewhat enigmatical. But they are to a certain extent explained by
an interesting observation made lately by MM. Colin and Warming.
With sufficient magnifying power these naturalists have found tails
in several of the Bacteria. They vary in number from one to three,
are situated at one end of the axis of length, and capable of rapid
motion; by which the movements of these minute creatures may fairly be
accounted for.
The last thing we have to say on the subject is to express our
gratification at the change which has taken place in treating the tails
of horses. The odious and cruel practice of, docking them, once so
prevalent, has been happily abandoned, and the horse's tail is now left
to attain its natural graceful dimensions.
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Printed and Published by W. & R. CHAMBERS, 47 Paternoster Row, LONDON,
and 339 High Street, EDINBURGH.
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_All Rights Reserved._
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[Transcriber's Note--The following correction has been made to this
text: on page 348, "perternaturally" changed to "preternaturally".]