Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-18

Cialy scientific folks.
before these fossils were
found, were not entire
ly without excuse for
doubling the existence
of such creatures The
fact is that the only
animals now living. -,
barring insects. that Inc oissn'ic I1me,iS
can really fly are birds opfe2o o, ~
and bats. Many ami From Restoration Eoss Sy Fsa,
mails said to fly. as, for
instance, flying squir-
rels do not really fly: but capable of sailing
down from higher to lower position In a
more or less slanting direction. only by the
aid of flap of skin extending along the
TANKS from the fore legs to the hind ones,
which. when the limbs are spread apart as far
as possible makes a sort of parachute like eN-
tension from the body. preventing an abrupt
really fly: but, impelled by vigorous rush
through the water, spring. wet and glittering.
from wave, and. upborne on their large, flat
breast wings. which serve them as aeroPlanes,
are carried in a straight course through the air
as long as the impetus lasts or their wings re-
| main wet. after which they drop incontinently
back into their native element They some
times travel for two hundred yards at the rate
of fifteen miles an hour. rising twenty-five
feet above the water 1t is magnificent: but
it is not flying
There are several species of lizards too that
take short swoops through the air. supported
by an expansion of the skin stretched on sew
eral much elongated ribs, so as to form sort
| of half kite each side of their bodies One
species called the flying gecko is furnished
with a broad flap or rim which extends around
body, tail. and limbs
But the most singular of these SO called fly
ers is the flying treetoad. which. by means OF
membranes extending between its fingers and
easily from branch to branch.
The Real Flyers
THE real flyers. in fact, belong to only two out
of the six great classes into which natural
| lists have divided all animals possessing back
bones,-the birds. and the bats. There IS not
hint among all the different species OF reptiles
now living of the possibility of wing develop
| ment our forebears In their realm OF science,
| upon the evidence then before them, could not
we'll do otherwise than disbelieve in the posi-
bility of flying reptiles To the science of their
day. flying reptiles were unthlnkable
But, like many other things that have been
unthinkable to men of science.-such. for IN
stance. as the existence of marine animals at
enormous depths in the ocean, the actual ex-
istence of which has been demonstrated by
catching and dragging them through miles of
water to the surface,-the fact that flying rep
tiles really lived on the earth at one time In the
world history can no longer be disputed by
those who possess even limited acquaintance
with science.
Used by the First Artist
NORTH of the Danube River in Bavaria is
= y found whitish yellow limestone "Litho-
| graphic stone" artists call it and employ it to
| make their pictures on: but Nature, the
first of all artists used it long before for this
same purpose. 1t forms series of low,
flat topped hills, separated from one another
where parts of the formation have been grad
ually worn away by ice and water. Biologists
call this the white jura limestone of Germany,
and assure us that calcareous mud it once
formed the bottom of that existed only in
remote times
In the inconceivably remote period to which
reference is here made, many objects that had
fallen into its waters and sunk to the bottom
were buried in fresh accumulations of this
mud. deposited by currents from inland streams
which emptied into it.-multitudes of Shells
of course. fish. large and small, sea urchins.
king crabs. and even the forms of the quickly
dissoving jellyfish. together with fragments
of land plants. dragon flies and other insects.
and turtles and lizards. even birds still COW
cred with their feathers.-birds of which no
human being ever living specimen. and
last. though by means the least, remains
of the wonderful pterodactyls.