THE SEAKCH FOU THE KI'VOHXIS 9Î> 



Bay lias deepened this impression, aiul Frot'essor Krause will 

 t)y to establish the trutli ot' the theoiy tliat the egg is of ré- 

 cent origin and not curiously preserved tlirough centuries. 

 Several French adventiirers hâve tried to penetrate into the 

 interior, but they hâve returned without detinite results, tel- 

 ling only of brief* gHmpses of (jueer animais, vvhich were not 

 accepted as-valuable by scientists. P^ssibly the (Jerman explo- 

 rers may be more fortunate. 



The eç^g tbnnd is the tliirty-fourth in existence, and the lar- 

 gest is 9 by 14 inclies in diaineter. The bird itself is believed 

 by scientists to hâve been t'ully tifteen t'eet liigh and to hâve 

 weighed more than a ton, far larger tlian the ostrich, which is 

 itself a dangerous bird to handle ; a blow from its claws would 

 be fatal. Stories of some such bird in the interior hâve long 

 been extant among natives, not only of Madagascar, but of 

 other countries, and interest in thein has been awakened by 

 the tindingof the nevv egg. The trials the expédition will hâve 

 to contend with will be the inhospitability of the inhabitants, 

 scorching beat, scarcity of water, malarial swamps, and extrê- 

 me périls of journeying through primeval tropical forests. 

 'l'wo other parties in search of the epyornis met death in the 

 burning déserts of Kiliarivo, but, with the better appliances car- 

 ried by Pro^e.'^sor Krause and his party, it is believed that they 

 will make discoveries that will prove the existence or non- 

 existence of (his great bird of prehistoric times. Previous re- 

 searches hâve not been carried on beyond the high table-land, 

 but the (Jermans will tiy to penetrate the wilds bej^ond the 

 ( )nilahy River. 



( 'r rail II d il II ) 



\jA trouvaille récente d'un œuf du grand Epyornis. tlottant 

 dans les eaux de la baie Saint-Augustin, côte sud-ouest de 

 ^fadaga.scar, a poussé un groupe d'Allemands à entreprendre, 

 sous la direction de l'explorateur allemand (xottlieb Adolf 

 Krause, l'exploration des parties reculées «le l'intérieur de ]\ra- 

 dagascar, on pouri-aient se trouver des individus vivants de co 



