266 NOTES AND COMMENTS [aimui, 



took him to a cavern where it was said to have been found, buried in 

 earth, two years previously. Dr. Moreno at once began to make 

 excavations, but did not succeed in recovering anything more except 

 some unimportant bones of rodents. He had therefore to remain 

 contented with the skin which he first noticed, and transmitted this 

 direct to the La Hata Museum. He learned that Dr. Otto Nor- 

 denskjold had already taken a piece of the specimen to Sweden, and 

 that some Chilian officers had carried away other pieces ; he also had 

 reason to believe subsequently that Dr. Ameghino had obtained a 

 portion. Dr. Moreno's impression was, that the skin belonged to the 

 extinct ground -sloth, Mylodon. Although the specimen had an 

 extremely fresh aspect, and had evidently been removed from the 

 carcase by man, he perceived no difficulty in this supposition ; for the 

 Mylodonts were known to have been contemporaneous with man in 

 other parts of Argentina farther north, while in another cave in the 

 same district he had already found a well-preserved mummified human 

 body of an extinct race, which was entirely unknown even to the 

 existing Tehuelche Indians of that region. 



At the Zoological Society's meeting, Mr. Smith Woodward began 

 his observations by emphasising the remarkably fresh aspect of the 

 skin. A coating of dried serum was even still preserved on the old 

 cut edges. He would, indeed, have unhesitatingly pronounced the 

 skin to belong to a recent animal killed quite lately, had not Dr. 

 Moreno been able to give so circumstantial an account of the discovery. 

 The specimen was doubtless referable to an Edentate, but it was unique 

 even for a member of that order in having the armour of ossicles 

 confined to the lower half of the dermis, while the covering of hair 

 was implanted in every part of the upper half. The ossicles were 

 very similar in structure to the bony plates of the armadillos ; in fact, 

 intermediate between the latter and the known ossicles of Mylodon. 

 The hair was also like that of the armadillos, and there was no under- 

 fur. Mr. Woodward thought he could recognise part of the left ear 

 and left cheek at one corner of the specimen, which would imply that 

 the skin belonged to the neck-region ; and in this case it was quite 

 large enough for Mylodon. The bony armour of this part of Mylodon, 

 however, was still unknown ; the ossicles of the skin of this great 

 beast had only been definitely described from the lumbar region. 

 Hence the impossibility of deciding between the two rival hypotheses 

 of Drs. Moreno and Ameghino. Mr. Woodward said he could only 

 confirm the opinion that the skin truly belonged to a Mylodont ground- 

 sloth ; he could not determine the genus without more evidence. 



In the interesting discussion which followed these observations, 

 Professor Eay Lankester expressed his hesitation in accepting the 

 problematical skin as that of an armoured ground-sloth. From the 

 structure of the hair and the ossicles he suspected it might possibly 

 represent an unknown group of armadillos ; but he anxiously awaited 



