128 NATURAL HISTORY ESSAYS 



uplands of Pliocene France — could one exchange 

 the mammalia of to-day for their prehistoric 

 ancestors, substituting the mastodon for the ele- 

 phant, the tinoceras for the hippopotamus, the 

 brontops for the rhinoceros, the helladotherium 

 for the giraffe, the hipparion for the zebra, and the 

 sabre-toothed tiger for the African lion — even then 

 the animals thus conjured up by so preposterous 

 a transformation, would hardly exceed in interest 

 and variety the magnificent fauna of South Africa 

 as it appeared to the astonished gaze of the early 

 settlers. 



During the decline and fall of this splendid 

 fauna (caused by the introduction of firearms), the 

 same ruin fell alike on all the largfer P"ame animals. 

 Rarity became a mere prelude to extinction, either 

 local or general : and since the same miserable 

 history applies in varying degree to each of the 

 larger species, we may, on the principle of ex pede 

 Hercleni, select for special study one animal [to 

 stand for all the others. For this purpose we 

 proceed to consider an eminently typical form — 

 the great white rhinoceros. 



The white, square-mouthed, or Burchell's rhin- 

 oceros (Rhinoceros simus) — wit rhenoster of the 

 Boers — chuckuroo and mohohu of the Bechuanas 

 and Matabele — is, after the elephant, the largest 

 of all terrestrial mammals, standing six feet high 

 at the shoulder, and attaining a length of sixteen 



