. Tribune popular science . it was scarcely larger than a fox. Its skull wasproportionally shorter than that of the horse, andthe orbit of the eye was not inclosed behind by abridge of bone. But the remarkable characteristicof the Orohippus was that his fore feet had four toesand his hind feet three toes, all of which reached theground. Above the eocene, in the order of geological de-posit, many centuries doubtless having elapsed inits formation, theniiocene appears. A district knownas the Bad Lands of Dakota, Nebraska, and Colo-rado, and another west of the Blue Mountains inEastern Oregon, co
. Tribune popular science . it was scarcely larger than a fox. Its skull wasproportionally shorter than that of the horse, andthe orbit of the eye was not inclosed behind by abridge of bone. But the remarkable characteristicof the Orohippus was that his fore feet had four toesand his hind feet three toes, all of which reached theground. Above the eocene, in the order of geological de-posit, many centuries doubtless having elapsed inits formation, theniiocene appears. A district knownas the Bad Lands of Dakota, Nebraska, and Colo-rado, and another west of the Blue Mountains inEastern Oregon, contain deposits of lakes that ex-isted in the miocene period. In thelatter of these lo-calities Prof. Marsh has obtained the remains of theMiohippus. It resembles the Orohippus in severalparticulars, but had this noteworthy peculiarity—ithad only three toes in the fore feet as well as these toes reached the ground, and were useful,or, at all events, usable. There is no depression infront of the orbit of the SKULL OF THE ANCHITIIEKHM. In these miocene lake deposits another animal iafound, closely allied to Miohippus. but differing inhaving a deep depresssion in the skull in front ofthe orbit. Prof. Marsh has discovered some andProf. Leidy other species of this animal, which 13 28 Tribune Extras—Lecture and Letter Series. called the Anchithcrium. It had three toes ou eachfore foot and three on each hind foot; but its outertoes were proportionally smaller than those of theMiobippus. The Anchitherium and the Miohippuswere about the size of a sheep. Alinvc tin- mioeene formation is the a ires have elapsed while this deposit was form-ing, and here again \ve liave animals of the horsekind. Let us Delect Two of tlieui for exaiuiiiation,the llipnarioii and the Irotohippus. Each has threetoes In-fore and three behind, l>ut in no case do theouter toes touch the ground; they are like the pos-terior hooflets of the modern deer and ox. The ser-v in a i i
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectscience, bookyear1874
