The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1848-08-05
a Geological E.eurfIeu.
Vinoit Omnia HrAa,.-OvID.

and some old verities' have made him testy
enough. Scores of ancient authorities has
he exploded like Ruper's drops, by a blow
upon their tales: but at the same time he
has bleached many black-looking stories in
to white ones, and turned some tremendous
bouncers into what the French call accom-
plislsed facts. Look at the Megatherum
or Mastodon, which century ago even
credulity would have secuted, and now we
have Mantell1pieces Of their bones. The
headstrong fiction which Mrs. Malaprop
treated as a mere alIegOry on the banks OF
the Nile, is now the Igudnodon! 10 ven-
ture prophecy, there are more such prodi-
gies to come true. Suppose it fine morn
ing, Ammo Domini 1000; and the royal pe-
clogisis, with Won Hammer at their head
pioneers, excavators, borers, trappists. grey
wackers, carbonari, feld-sparrers, and what
not, are marching to have grand feld-day
an Tilgale Forest. A good cover has been
marked out for a find. Well to work they
go; hammer and tOngs, msllets and three
men beetles, banging. splitting, digging,
shOveling; signing like paviors, blasting
like miners, putting like smiths bellows
hot as his forge-dusty as millers-muddy
as eels-what with sandstone and gritstone,
and pudding stone, blue clay and brown,
mari and bog-earth-now unsextonizing
petrifSd bachelors b1ttOn--now a stone
tOm-tt-nOw a marble goOseberry bush
now hapor Of Barcelona nuts geologised
into two pen'orth Of marbles-now couple
of n anfsch 1karr.a. Ill
Scotch Pebbles-and now fossil red her.
ring with hard rOrV of flint. But these
are geological bagatellesl We wsnt the or
ganic remains Of one OF 0g's bulls, or Gog's
hogs-that is, the MastodOn-or Magogs
pet lizard, that's the IgNanodon-or Poly
phenus's elephant, that's the Megatherinnl.
So in they 60 again, with crash like Thor's
scandinavian hammer, and a touch of the
earthquake, and lo another and greater
B0ngpdTt to exhumel HuzEai shouts Field.
sPaHer, who will spar with any one and
give him stone. Hold on, cries one-let
60, shouts anolher-here be comes, says
third-no, he don't, says fourth. Where's
his head9-where's his mouth?-where's his
csndal? What fatiguing work it is only to
look at him, he's 50 prodigiousl There,
there now, % does it! Just hoist bit
a little, little more! Pray, pray, pray
take care Of his lumbar processes, they're
very friable. Never you fear, zur-if be be
FRIABLE, I'll eat un.' Bravol-there's his
cranium-Is that brain, wonder, or mud.
No, tbs conglomerate. Now for the cervi. |
cal vertebra. Stop,-sonebody hold his
Jaw. That's your sort there's his scapula.
Now then, dig boys dig, dig into his ribs. |
Work away lads-you shall have oceans oil
strong beer, and mountains Of bread and
cheese, when you've got him ont. We can't
be above hundred yards from his tall
Huzza! there's bis temsri | wish | could
shout from here to London. There's bis
tarsasi Work away, my good fellows
never give up; we shall all 60 down to pos
terity. It's the hrst-the frst--the first no
body knows what-that's been discovered
in tbe world. Here, lend me spade, and
I'll help. So, III tell you what, ace're all
COlumbHses, every man Jack Of us but
can't dig-it breaks my back. Never mind:
there he is-and his tail with broad arrow
at the end It's Hyleosaurus! but no
that scaPula's wing-by Saint George, it's
a flying dlagon. Huzzal shouts Boniface,
the landlord Of the village Inn that has the
ST. George and the Dragon as his sign
Huzza. echoes every Knight OF the Garter.
Huzzal cries each schoolboy who has read
the Seven Champions. Huzzal huzza, roars
the illustrator Of Schiller's Hampf init dem
Drachen. Huzzal huzzal huzzal chorus the
descendants Of Moor Of Moor Hall. The
legends are all true, them Not bit OF IL
cries stony-hearted Professor Of fossil os-
teology-Look at the teeth. they're all mo-
lar! he's Mylodon! That creature ate
neither sheep, nor oxen, nor children, nor
tender virgins, nor hoay pilgrims. nor even
geese and turkeys-he lived on What?
what! what they all exclaim.-Why, on
raw potatoes and undressed salads, to be
sure,-T Thomas Hood. ii
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