PRIMEVAL MAN 249 



brother of the north, and, hke this brother, big- 

 ger and more speciaHzed than any of his Old 

 World kin, which were probably already extinct. 

 Among the ungulates of native origin was 

 the long-necked, high-standing macrauchenia, 

 shaped something like a huge, humpless camel 

 or giraffe, and with a short proboscis. This 

 animal doubtless browsed among the trees. 

 Another native ungulate, the toxodon, as big 

 and heavily made as a rhinoceros, was probably 

 amphibious, and had teeth superficially resem- 

 bhng those of a rodent. The edentates not only 

 included various ground-sloths, among them the 

 megatherium, which was the size of an elephant, 

 and the somewhat smaller mylodon, but also 

 creatures as fantastic as those of a nightmare. 

 These were the glyptodons, which were bulkier 

 than oxen and were clad in defensive plate- 

 armor more complete than that of an armadillo; 

 in one species the long, armored tail terminated 

 in a huge spiked knob, like that of some forms 

 of mediaeval mace. 



The glyptodons doubtless trusted for pro- 

 tection to their mailed coats. The ground- 

 sloths had no armor. Like the terrestrial ant- 

 bear of Brazil they walked slowly on the outer 

 edges of their fore feet, which were armed with 

 long and powerful digging claws. They could 



