. The Bible and science. PlG. 120.—Fore-limb of young dolphin, showing how the hones areinodifitd tofoiinthe so-called tin. s, scapula ; h, humerus ; r, radius ; u, ulna ; c, carpus ;7n, meta-carpus : p, phalanges. The next order is that of the Carnivora, or beastsofprey, which live almost entirely upon other teeth are suited for the purpose of killiug andtearing up their victims. They have generally sixincisors in each jaw% the canines are always four innumber, two in each jaw, and they are very long andstrong. The molars have generally sharp edges forcutting up the flesh on whi


. The Bible and science. PlG. 120.—Fore-limb of young dolphin, showing how the hones areinodifitd tofoiinthe so-called tin. s, scapula ; h, humerus ; r, radius ; u, ulna ; c, carpus ;7n, meta-carpus : p, phalanges. The next order is that of the Carnivora, or beastsofprey, which live almost entirely upon other teeth are suited for the purpose of killiug andtearing up their victims. They have generally sixincisors in each jaw% the canines are always four innumber, two in each jaw, and they are very long andstrong. The molars have generally sharp edges forcutting up the flesh on which they feed, their feet arealso provided with claws, which are usually sharjo and SUBDIVISIONS OF THE CARNIVORA. 231 enable the animal readily to lay hold of its prey. Theorder is divided into three groups; the first is that ofthe Digitigrade animals, such as cats and dogs, so calledbecause they walk upon their toes. Weasels and ottersdo so likewise, but they also put a part of the sole of. Fio. 121.—Polecat. the foot to the ground, and thus form an intermediatelink between the Digitigrade and the next group, thePlantigrade, such as bears which apply the whole of thesole to the ground in w^alking. The third group, orthe Pinnigrade, contains those carnivora, such as sealsand walruses, which live in tbe water, and are fittedby their external form for their mode of life, their hindfeet being placed far back, and nearly in a line withthe body, so that they serve the same purpose as thetail-fin of a fish. We now come to the next order, the Rodentia. Inall the orders yet considered, the placenta forms a bandaround the uterus, but in those we have now to con-sider it forms simply a disc. In both vegetable and animal kingdoms, when wo 232 MAMMALIx\—RODENTIA. want to find out the affinities of different groups, wemust take them in their early or embryonic, and not in


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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectnaturalhistory, booky