276 Master Minds of Modern Science 



extinct animals, yet the discovery of hair and hide in the 

 case of the giant sloth is not the only one of its kind, and 

 Sir Arthur spoke of a case which is probably unique, the 

 discovery of the Siberian mammoth. 



One day in 1908 a Siberian hunter saw foxes gnawing at 

 something which stuck out of the earth on the edge of a 

 river, and when he went to see what it was that they were 

 eating he discovered the head of a mammoth exposed by 

 a flood which had cut deep into the frozen bank of the 

 stream. The native Siberians are superstitiously afraid 

 of mammoth remains, and this man fled, but when he 

 reached the nearest town, Kasachia, he spoke of his dis- 

 covery, and by good luck the news came to the ears of an 

 educated Russian, who went out at once and poured water 

 over the head so as to form a protective coating of ice. 

 Then he sent word of his discovery to St Petersburg, and 

 the Academy at once dispatched a well-equipped expedi- 

 tion to excavate the remains. 



So perfect were they found to be that the flesh was 

 fresh and eatable. Some of it was actually thawed, 

 cooked, and eaten, as an experiment. Truly a strange 

 experience, to eat the meat of an animal which had died 

 perhaps fifty thousand years earlier I The skin was taken 

 off and sent back to Russia with the skeleton, and the 

 whole animal was set up. And there it is to-day, looking 

 almost as it did on the day it died. 



Even the cause of the great beast's death was dis- 

 covered. Its legs were twisted under it, and the scientists 

 found that a large blood-vessel near the heart had been 

 ruptured. It was quite clear that the animal had fallen 

 into a hole while grazing, and that the force of the fall or 

 its first struggle to get out had killed it. The grass which 

 it had been eating was actually still in its mouth, showing 

 that it had not even had time to swallow the mouthful. 



Although the mammoth had a long coat of thick hair, 

 and was therefore protected to some extent against the 



