Of the numerous divisions of even-toed ungulates the oxen present the best cases for study of the various ways in which the hair is disposed, and among them the best as well as the most accessible is the domestic ox. Again we have a familiar friend of man and innumerable specimens for examination as in the case of the horse. So this chapter will, like the preceding one, resolve itself into the study of one typical animal, with whose habits of life we are intimately acquainted. Before describing the habits and hair of the domestic ox or cow, I would like to point out why I value so highly the negative evidence which consists in the comparative rarity of whorls, featherings and crests in even-toed ungulates. This brings us back to the general fact of the _raison d’être_ of the horse and his group on the one hand, and the ox and his numerous relatives on the other. There are deer, antelopes and gazelles which for a spurt would beat any horse and even the Thibetan wild ass, so I am not trying here to disparage the power of this graceful swift group in the matter of sprinting. But this term, however colloquial it may be, clearly marks off the powers and habits of deer, antelopes and gazelles from those of the horse, for, except when trying to escape from an enemy, no deer, antelope or gazelle is fool enough to sprint or even trot for mere pleasure or want of occupation, and certainly not in the service of man. Thus it comes to pass that animal pedometers are few and small in this second group of ungulates, and I submit this negative fact gives strong support to the views advanced throughout this volume. A Cow’s Habits. A cow is a very restful animal except when disturbed by extraneous causes, and the active habits of her life are of little interest here, the chief importance of her for study being the passive side of her life or small minor tricks. As a domestic animal she lives to eat--and be eaten and drunk--but her wild ancestors and relatives have had far from an easy life, though this (in them even) has not expressed itself in animal pedometers. But on her neck, back, flanks, legs and haunches the cow has some interesting specimens of areas where the normal hair-slope is reversed in accordance with her habits. The most striking of these is shown in Figs. 34 and 35, where the bare form of the animal is shown and the dark thick arrows are made paramount in order to make the remarkable arrangement of her hair along the back so clear, that little verbal description is needed. [Illustration: Figs. 34 and 35. (A) Side view of cow, showing arrangement of hair-streams on the back. (B) View of back of cow, showing the same.]