Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1909-09-03

thatf 90 INV cun tn1WS tutui Out WI
exposure, the air is tainted with the
odor of decaying flesh.
The remains OF the mammoth are
found chiefly in post-glaclal deposits.
They occur I'm the post-glacial river
gravels all over the north temperate
zone. and beneath the deposits az
loess (which are connected with the
close of the glacial period) In the Mis-.
souri, valley. But the situation in
which they most frequently occur is
in peat boys. where they seem to
have been mired soon after the glacial
period. and slowly enveloped with the
accommodating vegetable and earthly de
posits. Usually the bones are con-
siderably scattered. SO that good
deal of digging has to be done to get
all the parts. In Siberia they are
found in complete preservation in the
ice and frozen soil that cover the
northern portion of that vast area.
In 1903 MIR. Adams found an entire
carcass so perfectly preserved that
the flesh when thawed out was eager.
ly devoured by wolves and bears. This
skeleton, with portions OF the skin
and ligaments. is now mounted In the
museum of st. Petersburg. 1t is nine
feet high and 16 feet long.
In 1S46 a young Russian engineer
named Benkendorf saw one of these
huge animals Just as II was uncov-
cred in the frozen bank of the Indi.
girka river during a food. In its
stomach were the chewed fragments
OF the shoots and cones OF fir and
pine trees. showing upon what the
animal lived. So vivid is his descrip-
ton that II is worth while to repro
duce II.
Picture to yourself an elephant
with body covered with thick fur,
about 1S feet In height. and Is in
length, with tusks feet long. thick,
and curving outward at their ends,
stout trunk of feet in length, colos.
sal limbs of " feet in thickness. and
tail. naked up to the end. which
was covered with thick fluffy hair.
The animal was fat, and well grown;
death had overtaken him in the full
ness of his powers. His parchment
like, large, naked ears lay turned up
over the head: about the shoulders
and the back he had stiff hair. about
foot In length, like a name. The
long outer hair was deep brown, and
coarsely rooted Tho top of the head
looked so wild. and so penetrated
with pitch. that II resembled the rind
of an old oak tree. On the sides II
was cleaner, and under the outer hair
there appeared everywhere a wool.
very soft, warm and thick. and of
fallow-brown color. The giant was
well protected against the cold
THE whole appearance OF the ami
NAL was fearfully strange and wild.
II had not the shape of our present
elephants. AS compared with our In
dian elephants. its head was rough.
the brain-base low and narrow. but
the trunk and mouth were much lar
ger. The teeth were very powerful.
Our elephant Is an awkward animal,
but compared with this mammoth II
Is an Arabian steed to coarse, ugly
dray horse. l could not divest my
self of feeling of fear as / ap-
preached the head; the broken. wide
ly open eyes gave the animal an APP
pearance OF life, as though 1t might
move In moment and destroys us
with roar. The bad smell
of the body warned us that II was
time to save what we could. and the
swelling Hood. too. bade us hasten.
But | had the stomach sep
arated and brought on one side. II
was well filled, and the contents in
structive and well preserved. The
principal were young shoots of the fir
and pine; a quantity of young fir
cones, also in chewed state, were
mixed with the moss"