al vertebrae are,
as just stated, in appearance fourteen; but out of twenty-three
skeletons in a fit state for examination, in five of them, namely, in
two Games, in two pencilled Hamburghs, and in a Polish, the fourteenth
vertebra bore ribs, which, though small, were perfectly developed with
a double articulation. The presence of these little ribs cannot be
considered as a fact of much importance, for all the cervical vertebrae
bear representatives of ribs; but their development in the fourteenth
vertebra reduces the size of the passages in the transverse processes,
and makes this vertebra exactly like the first dorsal vertebra. The
addition of these little ribs does not affect the fourteenth cervical
alone, for properly the ribs of the first true dorsal vertebra are
destitute of processes; but in some of the skeletons in which the
fourteenth cervical bore little ribs, the first pair of true ribs had
well-developed processes. When we know that the sparrow has only nine,
and the swan twenty-three cervical vertebrae,[432] we need feel no
surprise at the number of the cervical vertebrae in the fowl being, as
it appears, variable.

There are seven dorsal vertebrae bearing ribs; the first dorsal is never
{267} anchylosed with the succeeding four, which are generally
anchylosed together. In one Sultan fowl, however, the two first dorsal
vertebrae were free. In two skeletons, the fifth dorsal was free;
generally the sixth is free (as in _G. bankiva_), but sometimes only at
its posterior end, where in contact with the seventh. The seventh
dorsal vertebra, in every case excepting in one Spanish cock, was
anchylosed with the lumbar vertebrae. So that the degree to which these
middle dorsal vertebrae are anchylosed together is variable.

Seven is the normal number of true ribs, but in two skeletons of the
Sultan fowl (in which the fourteenth cervical vertebra was not
furnished with little ribs) there were eight pairs; the eighth pair
seemed to be developed on a vertebra corresponding with the first
lumbar in _G. bankiva_; the sternal portion of both the seventh and
eighth ribs did not reach the sternum. In four skeletons in which ribs
were developed on the fourteenth cervical vertebra, there were, when
these cervical ribs are included, eight pairs; but in one Game-cock, in
which the fourteent