and by this means, in a very unexpected direction, struck upon a large collection of bones, which were dug to and taken up with every possible care. They proved to be a humerus, or large bone of the right leg, with the radius and ulna of the left, the right scapula, the atlas, and, the great object of our pursuit, a complete under jaw!

After such a variety of labour and length of fruitless expectation, this success was extremely grateful to all parties, and the woods echoed with repeated huzzas. “Gracious God, what a jaw! how many animals have been crushed between it!” was the exclamation of all; a fresh supply of grog went round, and the hearty fellows, covered with mud, continued the search. The upper part of the head was found twelve feet distant, but so extremely rotten that we could only preserve the teeth and a few fragments. In its form it exactly resembled the head found at Masten’s, but as that was much injured by rough usage, this from its small depth beneath the surface, had the cranium so rotted away as only to shew the form around the teeth and thence extending to the condyles of the neck; the rotten bone formed a black and greasy mould above that part which was still entire, yet so tender as to break to pieces on lifting it from its bed.

This collection was rendered still more complete by the addition of those formerly taken up, and presented to us by Drs. Graham and Post. They were a rib, the sternum, a femur, tibia and fibula, and a patella or knee-pan.

Some of the neighbours, with an eye to the certain prospect of profit, began to think of finding a similar treasure in their morasses; and one actually began his operations, but was quickly deterred by the rising difficulties, although he had some reason to hope for success, eighteen years before, several bones having been discovered in the same spot, and by a German physician forwarded to England. We examined the place, and were of opinion, as the morass had been since drained, that the remaining bones must necessarily have decayed in consequence of their exposure to the air, alternately wet and dry.

We visited every spot in the neighbourhood where any bones had ever been found, and we knew of seven within ten miles square; but there appeared no prospect of success adequate to the expence and difficulty: So that, after a laborious campaign of three months, we carefully packed up, in distinct cases, our venerable relics, and loading two waggons with them, bade adieu to the vallies and mountains of Shawangunk.

After the laborious task of mending the ribs and other bones, and putting together the fragments of the head (of which no other idea could be formed than appears in the skeleton), it remained to determine the number and situation of each kind. The three setts were kept distinct; out of the two collections which were most numerous it was intended to form two skeletons, by still keeping them separate, and filling up the deficiencies in each by artificial imitations from the other, and from counterparts in themselves. For instance, in the first skeleton the under jaw was formed from this, which is the only entire one we have ever heard of, although we have seen considerable fragments of at least ten different jaws; while on the other hand, the upper jaw of this animal, which was found in the extreme of decay, was completed, so far as it goes, from the more solid fragment in the former skeleton. Several feet-bones in this skeleton were made from that; and a few in that were made from this. In this the right humerus being real, the imitation for the left one was made with the utmost certainty; and the radius and ulna of the left leg being real, those on the right side followed in course. The collection of ribs in both cases was pretty entire; therefore, having discovered from a correspondence between the number of vertebræ and ribs in both animals, that there were nineteen pair of the latter, it was only necessary in four or five instances where there was not a complete pair, either to make an artificial counterpart, or to take the same formed rib from the collection found at Captain Barber’s. In this manner the two skeletons were formed, and are in both instances composed of the appropriate bones of the animal, or exact imitations from the real bones in the same animal, or from those of the same proportion in the other: Nothing is imaginary, and what we do not unquestionably know, we leave deficient; which happens in only two instances, the summit of the head and the end of the tail.

The tusk which belongs to the skeleton at Philadelphia, I have brought with me: in taking it from the ground it was broken into three pieces, but they were carefully put together, and give the entire form, composed of a strong arch and a spiral twist resembling an ox’s horn, ten feet six inches in length and twenty-one inches in circumference. In the Leverian Museum there is a fossil elephant’s tusk found in England, about seven feet in length: On making a comparison between these it will be observed, that in the Leverian tusk there is not the smallest twist, and but a gentle curve; whereas in this animal they are much more crooked in every respect; the consequence of which is, that as the cavities for the reception of the tusks lie more horizontal (from a similar direction between the teeth and the condyle of the neck), the tusks are much more elevated, and the ends pointing backwards. It is the opinion of many, that these tusks might have been reversed in the living animal, with their points downwards; but as we know not the kind of enemy it had to fear, we judged only by analogy in giving them the direction of the elephant, especially as we know of no other carnivorous animal with only eight grinders and two tusks: Neither the tusk itself, nor the cavities for the reception of them, could assist in the determination, as they were both very straight, and would equally answer one way as the other.

There is one bone less in the neck of this animal than in the elephant; and we are confident of having the whole, for two reasons; 1st, The neck-bones were found with the first skeleton all together, in their natural positions, and the first bone of the back, with which the sixth vertebræ of the neck articulated as exactly as it did with the fifth; and, from the configuration of these bones, every anatomist knows this could not be the case was there a bone wanting: This is strong presumption, had we not the completely satisfactory proof of finding them all together. And, 2dly, Among the collections of bones which we have seen, we have never met with a single bone resembling a seventh vertebra of the neck.

It was a more difficult task to determine the number of dorsal and lumber vertebræ, as those we dug up ourselves were not only found much scattered, but several which had been dug up by the farmer were in the possession of some of the workmen in the neighbourhood, to the distance of seven miles round: these we collected with all possible care, and had the satisfaction to find they agreed in number with those of the elephant; still further corroborated by a perfect agreement between them and the nineteen pair of ribs, leaving three vertebræ for the loins.

But in the head the great distinguishing characters are to be found. I believe it has been well enough ascertained that the teeth of this animal are perfectly carnivorous, as they have every quality of form and substance that is required: the roots are not in such a massy body as the elephant’s, and the teeth are composed of a bony substance projecting into strong obtuse points to form the grinding surface, and all this surface encrusted with a strong coat of enamel; whereas all graminivorous animals have teeth whose grinding surface is flat, and composed of an intermixture of bone and enamel; the enamel running in laminæ or veins from the surface to the roots. In carnivorous animals the surface of the enamel is constantly changing, and