Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1906-03-02
MUMMIES OF
OLD EGYPT
SAME ANIMALS ROAM THERE TO
DAY As IN THE ANCIENT
TIMES.

IUMeS.
Some 20 centuries ago the Egyp-
tians began to embalm the dead. View.
ing their work with delighted satisfac.
tion-lke the late lamented Pencil,
who admired even the backs of his pic.
tures-they kept on with it, and en-
balmed everything that could by hook
or crook be embalmed. The irrever-
ent Psychologist who digs the soil of
the old Nile valley finds it honey
ccmbed with the graves of kings,
queens, priests, dignitaries and folk of
low degree. wnife Underground Egypt
has yielded up its millions and even
billions of mummied animals. Many
OF them found practical use as fer
tilizers.
From time to time it mas occurred
to naturalsts that these mummied an
imals would repay study, and though
many of the deposits have been ex.
hausted, NJ. Maspero succeeded in Sc.
curing remnants of them, and in hand
ing the remnants over to competent
naturalists. Hence the beautiful book
which MN. LOrtet and Gaillard of Ly-
ons have brought out under the title
Id Faune Momifee de rAncienne
Eeypte'
have said that the Egyptians EN-
balmed almost everything, and as
matter of literal fact, their animal
burying grounds contain monkeys,
dogs, jackals. cats, shrew mice. rats.
cattle, antelope, gazelles, sheep, wild
sheep and goats, to say nothing of
birds-among them the ibis-and such
reptiles as the serpent and the croc-
odile. with plentiful supply of fish
mollusks and insects. Each species
boasts countless examples.
Jomard's Prophecy.
From all this We may extract at
least a respectable amount of philos-
ophy. When Napoleon invaded Egypt,
Jomard propounded an interesting
problem in his Description de lEgy-
pte.' Said JomaN: These various
mummies and fragments of animals
will one day enable naturalists to tell
what species inhabited Egypt during
very remote period. Indeed. there
is no other way of knowing whether
the animals that now thrive in Egypt
are the same as those that throve
there centuries ago, or to establish the
grave question as to the invariability
of essential Or specific forms through
out the ages To the question put
by JOmard, the Lyons naturalists give
a categorical reply. The species en-
balmed 20, 80 or even 70 centuries ago
have not changed in the least. the
animals of modern Egypt are the ami
mails of ancient Egypt.
Is this equivalent to saying that
| evolution is humbug? Not at all. For
| every naturalist can name species that
have remained unchanged, not merely
for 20 centuries but for thousands of
centuries. Some of these are brachi-
opods, whose origin dates from the
most ancient period of life upon the
globe. On the other hand, evolution
| doesn't depend in the least upon prov
ing that species have changed. Such
| necessity exists solely when environ.
ment changes, or when an animal en-
! tiers a new environment. An animal
| adapted TO its environment changes
only when the environment changes.
Now in Egypt the environment has
long been what it is today, and we
should have no reason to expect to
| find the animals of present-day Egypt
! at all different from their ancestors
| of go Or 20 centuries ago. And they
certainly are not Far from militat
/ ing against the theory of evolution
| the study of the mummied animals OF
Egypt precisely fulfill the evolutionist's
| expectations and predictions. | need
not dwell further upon this highly i'm
portant fact; let us pass now to the ex.
| animation of certain secondary facts
brought out by the Lyons naturalists.
| We shall find them instructive.
Evolution Of the Cat.
Everyone knows that Egypt wor.
SHIPPED the cat The cat was a sacred
animal, the emblem of the Goddess
Sekhet, or Best, who had a temple al
Bubastes. Mummied cats abound il
Egypt. The Metropolis of Stabl-An
tar. half mile long, is packed will
them. The one that was most fire
quently embalmed (and therefor,
doubtless the most highly venerated
was the magnificent gloved cat, fell
maniculate, which still exists in
l III ,tSSt- t.