Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1858-06-10

SIT Win Us d minute. wen smooth your Uach
Until you purr-become magetized, as oul
friends the mcsmerists would say, and then
You must let Us look at your foot, that dainty
little foot of yours, that yon take such nice
care to keep from the wet
First let US look at the soft pad at the bot
tom, on which she treads. How noisIessly she
steals along through the dark When she
approaches, the long ears of the mouse, though
they can detect the slightest rustic hear nc
sound. When the OK or the horse moves as
swiftly, the very earth tFembes beneath bis
tread but the whole cat tribe steal on their
prey and doom them in death-like stiffness
Both these tribes Of animals are alike in
this-they walk on the ends Of their toes =
that is, what corresponds to the toes in man
Hence they are called digitigrades to distin.
gush them from such fat footed animals as We,
and the bearS-the plaHtigradss
The feet Of dgitrigraies are made after one
plan In the horse and COW the toe nails are
verY thick and stout; in fact are hoofs, and
enclose the pad, which is almost then as hard as
horn, and is called the frog. In the horse
there is but one toe, and consequently but one
toe ual on each foot bat that one is made
very large and hard in order to bear fast travel
on firm ground In this respect the foot Of
the horse corresponds in structure TO the iron
rails on q railroad while the cloTen foot Of
the OK and other ruminatng animals more
nearly corresponds to the mechanism of plank
road. Hence the horse prefers dry ground,
and shuns wet, swampy places, for when his
foot is sunk in the miTe is very diIicu!. TO
draw out
When the OK, however, treads on soft
ground, his split hoof spreads little as it
sinks into the earth, so that when he begins
TO extract it, it becomes smaller, and comes
out more readily. Hence oxen are better
adapted than horses to boggy ground or deep
snow and this structure of the foot allows Of
habit cows have Of fregueutiug mar.by pools
in hot weather.
In the reindeer, on animal made to inhabit
the polar regiOns the tTo rudimentary toes
above the heel, which in oxen and swine are
called dcr dqrs, are so large as to be used in
deep snow, Ike the other toes thus making
the animals foot spread over u great surface
liEe snowshoe yet when the foot has sunk
into the SHOW, it is drawn ont as readily as
that of the OK The feet Of the birds that
wade In marshes are made after the same plan
and for the same reason
When We place the finger on the pad under
the cats fO0:, and press gently on the upper
side Of the toes with the thurrb, four sharp
claws pr0,rude. Their points are ike needles
Tne do- the squirrel and the wooichuck also
have claws, Dat they are so exposed TO the
weather and the dirt that they are dull How
are the eats claws Kept sharp
By very simple and beautiful arrangement.
The last joint OF :he toe, that which supports
the las doubles backward and - ole side.
iuto the space between two toes 50 that
when she wa.ks shr does not, Ike other ami
malS, put the joint foremost, bu: rather the
second Joint When she nails, together With
the last joint, are d0cbled back in this way
between the two toes, the cords which run to
them are placed at such disadvantage that
they can only move the toes for the pGrpoSe of
walking. When the eat seize her prey, how
ever, i.t:le muscle throws the last joint of
the toe, that which supports the claw, over
into The same position as in other animals, and
then the claw IS driven by the same muscle
and with the same power wign which the aui-
NAL moves the foot The Tiger wieldS these
terrible weapons with as m0ch force as j horse
kicks so that single blow from the frOat
side Of one Of bis claws, as the beast was leap
ing ever. has been known 70 fracture the skull
Of man
In aajrals Ike the squirrel, made to in
habit trees, the claws are intended Tor holding
fast TO the bark, and so are not retractile Ike
those Of the cat tribe. 0ae OF the toes also i
turned backwards, so as 10 acc Ike ! thumb
in cIiDgiug TO limos and in holding TO nuts
By means Of these thumb Ike toaS, squirrels
-aa down tree almost as readily as Up.
In the sloih, South American animal that
.i7es almost exclusively in trees, hanging jy
its fore paws, the cles of the fore feet are
large aud leug-qGite too large %
be retracted Ike those Of the cat. When on
the gCaaad. they must be doubled directly u
der the foot. % that the animal walks very
awkwardIy. IS il we're 90 its k0ucsles.
NJ Jefferson, having discovered some Of
the claws aud bones Of the foot Of an ext.nc:
animal Of this sort, supposed they must have
belonged 10 q kind q lisa, Is large rs an els-
pLant He sent the bones 70 N Clvier. tie
great French naturalist. who on examining
them. could iul DO marks Of the backward
and sidew.se joint. that exist in the czt .Fibe,
and - concluded tie animal 10 have been
rather huge sloih, than q lion.