European representative we are still in doubt. The Scandinavian elk is undoubtedly very near it, if not the same.

The enormous palmation and weight of the horns in this species is very striking. Colonel Smith says that the horns sometimes weigh fifty pounds. The present specimen weighs 32 lb., but that is inclusive of the head. Sir John Richardson, in his account of the animal, records a statement relating to the horns of deer which I think must have originated in some curious mistake. Speaking of the moose deer, he says," It is probable, however, that La Hontan in this passage confounds the Canada stag and moose deer together. He mentions the animal being able to run in the summer season for three days and nights in succession, and the excellent flavour of its flesh-facts which apply to the moose deer, but not to the Canada stag; on the other hand, the weight of the horns, which he says sometimes amounts to four hundred weight, is true only of the stag." Now, the Canada stag, or wapiti, is the representative of the red deer in America, and was indeed long thought to be identical it is a larger animal than our stag, but smaller than the moose, which is as high as a horse. Large specimens of the male moose are mentioned, which have attained a weight of eleven or twelve hundred pounds; and is it possible that a smaller animal should have horns weighing four hundred weight? I suspect a cypher has been added, and that we should read 40 lb. instead of 400, which would then make it clear that the animal referred to by La Hontan was the moose. With regard to the moose being able to run for three days and nights in succession, an instance of its doing so is recorded in the narrative of Captain Franklin's second journey, where three hunters pursued a moose deer for four successive days, until the footsteps of the deer were marked with blood, although they had not yet got a view of it. At this period of the pursuit, the principal hunter had the misfortune to sprain his ankle, and the two others were tired out; but one of them having rested for twelve hours, set out again, and succeeded in killing the animal, after a further pursuit of two days' continuance. The cause of the footsteps being marked with blood might be from the phalanges of the hoof splitting, or possibly from the

hoof becoming worn down by incessant and long-continued action on the icy crust of the snow. We are accustomed to hear of the cattle in long journeys in the Cape of Good Hope and Australia becoming knocked up, and the traveller being arrested in his journey by the failure of his beasts of burden. I daresay many people entertain the idea (as I did myself) that this knocking up was the consequence of physical exhaustion on the part of the cattle. Mr Ford, one of the best zoological draftsmen in Britain, first enlightened me on this point. He had accompanied Dr, now, deservedly, Sir Andrew Smith in one or more of his exploratory expeditions to the interior of the Cape; and he told me that this failure of the cattle was occasioned, not by exhaustion, but by the actual wearing away of the hoof, till blood oozed from it at every pore. The Calahari desert was particularly obnoxious, as it is composed of a slaty formation, highly inclined, which shivered easily off into sharp fragments. It was like walking on bundles of penknives, with their edges placed upwards. The cattle gave in sooner in this desert than in any other district, in consequence of the greater abrasion of the hoofs upon this slaty formation; and, till they grew again, the animal was useless, and scarcely. even to crop its food, would it stir from the spot where it was unyoked. I do not know what length of time would be necessary to incapacitate an ox,-of course, it must be various, according to the extent and nature of the ground travelled over; but although soft snow might protect it longest, I imagine the brittle fragments of a hard frozen crust of snow might be not much less destructive than the slaty splinters of Calahari.

I have examined the hair of the moose deer, and find that its structure is the same as that of the rein-deer, which I have already described in my paper last year.

ALPINE HARE (Lepus glacialis, Leach).-This beautiful hare furnishes an admirable example of the adaptation of structure to habit. For heat and comfort nothing can surpass its thick, delicate, white fur, which, on the under side of the paws, assumes such a compact, double-plied, felt-like character, that one would think no degree of cold could penetrate

it. The whiteness of its colour also is so pure that it is most difficult to discern it on the snow. Sir John Richardson notices that in one of the boat voyages in which he took part along with Franklin, they landed on a rocky islet off Cape Parry, which, although not above 300 yards in diameter, was tenanted by a solitary Alpine hare. The whole party went in pursuit of this poor animal; but it availed itself so skilfully of the shelter of the rocks, and retreated with so much cunning and activity from stone to stone, that none of them could obtain a shot at it, although it never was able to conceal itself from their search for more than a minute or two at a time.

Its flesh is said to be better eating than either the American or European hare.

QUEBEC MARMOT (Arctomys empetra, Schreb.)—This animal, although recorded as being found in the Hudson Bay Company's territories, would appear to be confined to their southern parts. I have received none from my northern correspondents, but only from Canada, where it would appear not to be rare.

MUSK RAT (Fiber zibethicus, Cuv.)-This is a very common species in the Hudson Bay Company's territories, and supplies a large portion of the furs sent to this country. Its skin is used as medicine or medicine-bags by the natives, in which state the specimens sent to me have arrived.

BEAVER (Castor Americanus, Brandt).—Considering the immense number of animals both of this, and more especially of the preceding species, which have for a long series of years. been taken for the purpose of supplying the wants of civilized Europe, we might have expected that specimens would be by no means rare in our museums. The contrary is the case, however, so much so that when my friend Dr J. A. Smith a year or two ago wished to compare the semi-fossil bones of a beaver found in a superficial deposit in Scotland with the recent skeleton of a beaver, the comparison could not be made in Scotland from want of a specimen of the recent animal in any of the museums in that country. I

applied to Mr Mackenzie to assist us in remedying this deficiency, and he has very kindly done so by sending both a full-grown living beaver, and a foetus taken from the mother before birth. In sending a living specimen, Mr Mackenzie remarked that it would probably ultimately answer the purpose of a skeleton, should the climate of Edinburgh not agree with the animal's constitution. I had destined it for the pond in the Edinburgh Royal Botanic Gardens, where Professor Balfour could have given those interested in natural history an opportunity of studying its habits at their leisure. It might easily have been kept alive if it once had reached the gardens. There would have been no difficulty in supplying it with birch twigs and branches, its native and proper food; and Mr Mackenzie informs me that it is by no means particular in its food, and that if it had the run of the kitchen (that is, I presume, the opportunity of selecting what it chose from the debris of an ordinary family's table) it would do very well. Unfortunately, it never got the chance of trying the climate of Edinburgh, nor we the chance of trying experiments upon it or its food. It reached London alive, but that was all. It died next morning. It was, however, carefully transmitted to me, and along with the foetus received last year was presented by me to Professor Goodsir, who has undertaken to make a careful dissection of it, and to communicate anything he might think of interest. There are a number of points in the internal anatomy on which information is wanted, such as the castor, and the glands which produce it, and others which might throw light on some disputed (I cannot call them doubtful) points in its economy and habits. For instance, we know from Hearne, that the usually received notion that the animal uses its tail as a trowel to plaster its work, is merely a vulgar prejudice, arising from its flapping it on the ground occasionally, and more particularly when about to plunge into the water. Now an examination of the muscles of the tail might, were it necessary, throw light upon this point. But I imagine that the whole structure and habits of the animal explain the use of the tail sufficiently even without anatomical assistance. On examining its external peculiarities we find that its fore paws and feet are short and comparatively

small and weak, and not provided with a web; the claws are strong, and well adapted for digging, but not equal to those of the hind feet. The hind feet and legs are enormously strong, the fingers united by a strong broad web, the claws excessively developed, and each in the form of a strong gouge. The combination of machinery in the fore and hind legs and feet thus corresponds with what we know of the habits of the animal so far as that can be observed; and the structure of that portion whose working is difficult to be observed in action, or has not been noticed sufficiently, shows what its real working is. Those who have observed the animal in its native haunts, tell us that it uses the fore paws for carrying the mud and stones used in its constructions, and that it carries this stuff between them and its breast, which quite corresponds with their attitude in my dead specimen. It no doubt uses the fore paws for other purposes, as digging, swimming, and walking (for nature seldom or never creates an organ merely to fulfil one purpose). As clearly, the hind paws are much used in digging, but most in swimming;-the powerful hind leg, enormous web foot, and strong claws, would prove this although no one had ever seen the animal using them. Combine these different actions of the fore and hind feet together and see what would be the result. Suppose the animal swimming across its pond or river with a burden of heavy materials clasped to its breast by its fore paws, and powerfully propelled by its hind legs, and that it had no tail or only a common tail-what must inevitably be the consequence? The hind feet would propel the animal rapidly enough—no doubt about that—but where to ?-why, to the bottom, for, being overloaded in front, it would be top heavy, and its head becoming directed obliquely downwards the more violent the exertions of the hind feet, the sooner it would reach the bottom, and the deeper its head would be buried in the mud. That this is the necessary and inevitable consequence of the want of the action of the fore paws, will be evident to every one if they will merely fancy what would be the result of their trying to swim with their arms folded; of course, if there is not only the inaction or abeyance of the fore arms to be conquered, but also the weight of a load of mud or stones to be counteracted, a counterpoising lever of more than ordinary power will be ne