There are two hundred and forty-six, and they are apportioned to the various parts of the body in the following numbers:—

Head8
Ears6
Face14
Teeth32
Back-bone and its base26
Chest, &c.26
Arms and Hands64
Legs and Feet62
Small moveable bones8

"Our bones are scattered at the grave's mouth, as when one cutteth and cleaveth wood upon the earth."—Psalm cxli.


924. Of what substances are the bones composed?

One hundred parts of bone consist of

Cartilage32·17parts
Blood-vessels1·13"
Carbonate of lime11·30"
Phosphate of lime51·04"
Fluate of lime2·00"
Phosphate of Magnesia1·16"
Soda, chloride of sodium1·20"
———
100·00

925. What are the uses of the bones?

They protect soft and delicate organs; they form a framework to which the organs are attached, and by which they are kept in their places; and they supply a mechanism, by which the motions of the body are produced, in combination with the muscles.