In none of these cases can we be even proximately certain of the length of the animal.
In the first instance we may err to the amount of the length of the head; as it is not stated whether the measure was taken when the head was extended in a line with the back, or in a position at right angles with the back, or in any intermediate position.
The following outline will illustrate this:—
It is obvious that the length of a line from the nose to the tail will vary according to the different positions of the head of the animal.
In the second instance (taking it for granted that the measure was taken from the nose), the same difficulty exists with respect to the head, and another difficulty presents itself in our being left to guess the length of the tail, which might be eighteen inches, or it might be four feet.
In the third instance, the same difficulty exists with respect to the head, and the difficulty is further complicated by our being left to guess whether the root or the end of the tail is meant.
In the fourth we are completely "at sea."
The true value of these characteristic distinctions, definitions, or descriptions, are left to the appreciation of the judicious reader. Colonel Smith may doubtless be, what he has been styled, "an indefatigable naturalist," and "in general" an exact one; but in this special instance of the Genus Bos, his warmest admirers must allow that his accuracy and precision have not kept pace with his industry.
