96 Smithsonian Exploration in Alaska in 1904 



similar or nearly so to that which now exists, the habits and ranges 

 of the ferine animals at the two dates, though the species differ, may 

 have had a close analogy. The mammoth and other beasts that 

 browsed on the twigs of willows or larger trees may have ranged as 

 far north, at least in summer, as the moose-deer does now, or up to 

 the seventieth parallel ; and lichenivorous or herbivorous ruminants 

 may have extended their spring migrations still further north : these 

 journeys in quest of seclusion and more agreeable food being quite 

 compatible with the co-existence of vast wandering herds of the same 

 species in more southern lands, reaching even beyond the limits over 

 which the drift has been traced, and where the final extinction of the 

 entire race may be owing to causes operating in comparatively recent 

 periods [p. 3]. 



" The St. Petersburg Transactions, and other works contain 

 accounts of the circumstances attending the discovery of the entire 

 carcases of a rhinoceros and of two mammoths in arctic Siberia ; and 

 one cannot avoid regretting that they were beyond the reach of 

 competent naturalists, who might, by examining the contents of the 

 stomach, the feet, external coverings, and other important parts, 

 have revealed to us much of the habits of these ancient animals and 

 of the nature of the country in which they lived. The inexhaustible 

 deposits of organic remains in the Kotclnoi or New Siberian Archi- 

 pelago lying off the Sviatoi Noss, may yet disclose some equally 

 perfect carcases ; and their exploration by a scientific expedition is a 

 project that promises a rich return for the labour and expense of 

 such an undertaking. 



" In arctic America such remains have been discovered in a north- 

 eastern corner alone, and as yet, bones, horns, and hair only have 

 been obtained, without any fresh muscular fiber ; but all the collectors 

 describe the soil from which they were dug as exhaling a strong and 

 disagreeable odour of decomposing animal matter, resembling that 

 of a well-filled cemetery. In August, 1816, Kotzebue, Chamisso. 

 and Eschscholtz discovered, in the bay which now bears the name of 

 the last mentioned naturalist, some remarkable cliffs, situated a short 

 way southwards of the Arctic Circle, and abounding, in the bones of 

 mammoth, horses, oxen, and deer. The cliffs were described by their 

 discoverers as pure icebergs one hundred feet high, and covered with 

 soil on which ordinary arctic vegetation flourished. These novel 

 circumstances excited strongly the attention of the scientific world ; 

 and when Captain Beechey and his accomplished surgeon Collie, ten 

 years later, visited the same place, their best efforts were made to 

 ascertain the true nature of the phenomenon. Dr. Buckland drew 



