MASTODON AND WOOLLY RHINOCEROS. 225 



the head and two feet of the animal, all well preserved. The 

 rest of it was too much decomposed, and so was left. The head 

 was quite recognisable, since it was covered with . its leathery 

 skin. The eyelids had escaped total decay (see Fig. 55). The 

 skin and tendons of the head and feet still preserved considerable 

 flexibility. He was, however, compelled to cross the Baikal lake 

 before the ice broke up, and so could neither draw up a sufficiently 

 careful description nor make sketches of those parts which were 

 sufficiently preserved. Plate XXII. is a restoration. 



The rhinoceros in question was neither large for its species 

 nor advanced in age ; but it was at least fully grown. The horns 

 were gone, but had left evident traces on the head. The skin 

 which covered the orbits of the eyes and formed the eyelids was 

 so well preserved, that the openings of the eyelids could be seen, 

 though deformed and scarcely penetrable to the finger. The 

 foot that was left — after some parts had unfortunately been 

 burned while left to dry slowly on the top of a furnace — was 

 furnished with hairs. These hairs adhering in many places to 

 the skin, were from one to three lines in length, tolerably stiff 

 and ash-coloured. What remained proved that the foot was 

 covered with bunches of hair hanging down. 



Like the Mammoth and the Mastodon, its contemporaries, the 

 Woolly Rhinoceros has given rise to some curious legends. In 

 the city of Klagenfurt, in Carinthia, is a fountain on which is 

 sculptured the head of a monstrous dragon with six feet, and 

 a head surmounted by a stout horn. According to popular 

 tradition, still prevalent at Klagenfurt, this dragon lived in a 

 cave, whence it issued from time to time to frighten and ravage 

 the country. A bold cavalier killed the dragon, paying with his 

 life for this proof of courage. The same kind of legend seems to 

 be current in every country, such as that of the valiant St. George 

 and the dragon, and of St, Martha, who about the same time 

 conquered the famous Tarasque of the city of Languedoc, which 

 bears the name of Tarascon. 



Q 



