Naturalists, finding these explanations merely acknow ledgments of the difficulty, and still attaching to the idea of elephant a warm region, fancied that these fossil bones belonged to elephants formerly reared in Asia, and afterwards transported by some violent cause to their present situation. The Deluge was instantly resorted to, and the elephants browsing on the banks of the Gan ges, were supposed to have been transported by the flood from their native haunts, and interred in the plains of Europe. But the high state of preservation of these bones, the situation of nearly entire skeletons in beds, formed at different though not remote intervals, and their general distribution over such extensive tracts, forbade the introduction of any torrent to bring them to their present position.
Had naturalists attended more to an examination of facts, the difficulty here complained of would soon have disappeared, and a rational explanation would have been obtained of so curious a phenomenon. It is to the la bours of the illustrious Cuvier that we stand indebted for the first accurate observations on the subject. Some approaches to the truth had indeed been made by the la bours of other anatomists, who had ascertained that the remains of the elephant found in a fossil state bear a closer resemblance to the bones of the Asiatic than to the bones of the African elephant. Hence some were disposed to believe, that these fossil bones had belonged to individuals of the Asiatic species. But Cuvicr has now clearly proved, that the points of difference are so numerous, that the fossil elephant has a title to rank as a distinct species. In the fossil elephant, he ascertained that the teeth are larger in proportion than those belong ing to the Asiatic species; that the processes of enamel on the surface of the grinders, are not only more nume rous, but less festooned ; that the tusks are larger, and more curved ; and that the sockets of the tusks ate much more produced. This last circumstance must have influenced the form of the trunk, and given to its base a thickness and size widely different from those of the existing species. Its general height seems to have been little more than the Asiatic species sometimes at tains, but its form must have been more rounded and thick.
Viewing all the circumstances in connection, it ap pears certain that the fossil bones belong to a species of elephant which formerly inhabited Europe in considera ble numbers, but which has become extinct, in conse quence of the revolutions which the earth has under gone. Nor has this extinction extended to the elephant a.lone : species of the genus Rhinoceros, Hippopotamus, and Tapir, besides many genera of fishes, shells, and co rals, have shared the same fate. The crust of the earth appears to have been inhabited by very different races of beings, during the different periods of its formation and progress. Thus, during the period of the deposition of the flcetz rocks, the then existing animals appear to have been very different from those which we find in the subsequent formations of chalk and gypsum. And the organic remains which occur in the older alluvial strata, differ from the species which now exist, in form, habit, and geographical distribution.
It may surprise sonic, perhaps, to be told, that species of the elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, and tapir, animals confined at present to the warmest regions, for merly ranged our forests, and lived on the continent of Europe. But why be deceived merely by the name ? The European ox, and the Indian arnee, our horse and the African zebra, are species of the same genera, yet they inhabit very different regions. It is not unreasona ble therefore to conclude, that the elephants which for merly lived in Europe possessed a constitution and co vering which fitted them to dwell on the shores of the 'lanais, the Lina, the Rhine, and the Po.
It is fortunate that we are not left to conjecture on this subject. The rhinoceros found on the banks of the Lina, with its skin and part of its flesh preserved, had, according to the observation of Pallas, more hair on one of its feet than is to be found on the whole body of any of the existing species; thus indicating its aptitude to endure the cold of a northern climate. And the follow ing curious discovery of a fossil elephant places beyond a doubt the fact, that it was adapted to live in high lati tudes, and endure the rigours of a northern winter.
" In the year 1799, a Tungusian fisherman observed a strange shapeless mass projecting from an ice-bank near the mouth of a river in the north of Siberia, the nature of which lie did not understand, and which was so high in the bank as to be beyond his reach. The next year, he observed the same object, which was then rather more disengaged from among the ice, but he was still unable to conceive what it was. Towards the end of the fol lowing summer, 1801, he could distinctly see that it was the frozen carcase of an enormous animal, the entire flank of which, and one of its tusks, had become disen gaged from the ice. In consequence of the ice begin ning to melt earlier, and to a greater degree than usual, in 1803, the fifth year of this discovery, the enormous carcase became entirely disengaged, and fell down from the ice-crag on a sand-bank forming part of the coast of the Arctic Ocean. In the month of March of that year, the Tungusian carried away the two tusks, which ne sold for the value of 50 rubles ; and at this time (says Cu vier, whose relation we quote) a drawing was made of the animal, of which I possess a copy. Two years af terwards, or in 1806, Mr Adams went to examine this animal, which still remained on the sand-bank where it had fallen from the ice ; but its body was then greatly mutilated. The Tuckuts of the neighbourhood had ta ken away considerable quantities of its flesh to feed their dogs ; and the wild animals, particularly the white bears, had also feasted on the carcase : yet the skeleton remain ed quite entire, except that one of the fore legs was gone. The entire spine, the pelvis, one shoulder-blade, and three legs, were still held together by their ligaments and by some remains of the skin ; and the other shout• der blade was found at a short distance. The head re mained covered by the dried skin, and the pupil of the eve was still distinguishable. The brain also remained rti ithin the scull, but a good deal shrunk and dried up, and one of the cars was in excellent preservation, still a tuft of strong bristly hair. The upper hp 1...as a good deal eaten away, and the under hp was en tirely gone, so that the teeth were distinctly seen. The animal was a male, and had a long mane on its neck. The skin was extremely thick and heavy, and as much of it remained as required the exertions of ten men to carry away, which they did with considerable difficulty. More than thirty pounds weight of the hair and bristles of this animal were gathered from the wet sand-bank, having been trampled into the mud by the white bears AS Idle devouring the carcase. Some of the hair was pre sented to our Museum of Natural History, by NI. Mize, censor in the Lyceum of Charlemagne. It consists of three distinct kinds. One of these is stiff black bris tles, a foot or more in length ; another is thinner bris tles, or coarse flexible hair, of a reddish brown colour ; and the thud is a coarse reddish brown wool, which grew among the mots of the long hair. These afford an un deniable proof* that this animal had belonged to a race of elephants inhabiting a cold region, with which we are now unacquainted, and by no means fitted to dwell in the torrid zone. It is also evident, that this enormous ani mal must have been frozen up by the ice at the moment of its death. Mr Adams, who bestowed the utmost care in collecting all the parts of the skeleton of this animal, proposes to publish an exact account of its osteology, which must be an exceedingly valuable present to the philosophical world. In the mean time, from the draw ing (says Cuvicr) which I have now before rne, I have every reason to believe that the sockets of the teeth of this northern elephant have the same proportional lengths with those of other fossil elephants, of which the entire sculls have been found in other places." The geographical distribution of this species, presents many curious and important facts. Its remains have been dug up in all the countries of Europe, from the Sea to the Arctic Circle. In Asiatic Russia they occur in the greatest abundance. They have likewise been found in the European isles, as Iceland, and various parts of Great Britain and Ireland. Its bones have even been dug up in South and in North America, and in Hudson's Bay.