XVIII PREFACE TOVNEW EDITION 
by means of fifty-five plates and a hundred and thirteen figures in 
the text. Mere descriptions without drawings would be of little 
use for our present purpose. Perhaps some young people who 
are fond of looking at living animals in the Zoological Gardens 
or in picture-books, may care to look at some of our illustrations 
of ancient monsters and compare them with the familiar living 
types which have in the course of ages descended from them by 
evolution. 
Many of the illustrations are due to the kind co-operation 
of geologists and naturalists; and for this kind help the writer 
begs to tender his very sincere thanks. It has come in many 
ways, and from many lands; but especially from the United 
States and Russia, while English geologists have ever been most 
willing to offer help and advice. 
It may be convenient here to indicate briefly what is new 
matter, and, at the same time, express our obligations to those 
who have contributed new illustrations. 
In Chapter VII., dealing with that strange reptilian order 
the Anomodonts, the reader will see some new photographs of 
skulls and skeletons. These were very kindly sent by Professor 
Amalitzky, of Warsaw. They show some of the wonderful 
discoveries made by him in recent years. His workshop teems 
with bones of the Pareiasaurus and other remarkable beasts of 
Permian age discovered by him on the banks of the Northern 
Dwina, near Archangel, and only extracted from the hard nodules 
containing them with very great labour and patience. They 
used to be broken up for mending the roads! In the same 
geological period lived the strange reptile Naosaurus, seen in 
Plate XIII, which is from a photograph sent by Professor 
H. F. Osborn of the American Museum of Natural History. 
Passing on to the Dinosaurs, we must again offer our thanks 
