8o STUDIES IN LIFE AND SENSE. 



important particulars, whilst some authorities have been even found 

 to suggest that it represents a connecting link between the elephants 

 and the sea-cow or manatee order (Sirenia). The tusks of the deino- 

 therium spring from the lower jaw (fig. 4) ; and instead of being 

 curved forwards and upwards, they bend abruptly downwards and 

 backwards. The use of these tusks is extremely difficult to deter- 

 mine, but it has been suggested that the deinotherium was an aquatic 

 animal, living in shallow waters, and that these huge teeth may have 

 enabled it to root up the plants on which it fed, or have enabled it 

 to climb, as does the living walrus, from the sea on to the river banks. 



In addition to these latter elephants, which are essentially distinct 

 from the living species, certain extinct forms may be mentioned 

 which, in their essential characteristics, resembled existing probosci- 

 dians more or less closely. Thus, we know that elephants closely 

 related, to the Indian species, existed in Asia in Miocene times, the 

 remains of at least six species being obtained from Indian deposits 

 of that age ; and we also know that Europe boasted of elephants in 

 that period of geology known as the " Pliocene ; " for in the deposits 

 of France and Italy, as well as in the formations of that age in 

 Britain, elephant remains occur. Later in point of time come the 

 curious " pigmy elephants " of Malta, whose remains exist in that 

 island, and whereof one (Elephas Melitensis] attained the size of a 

 donkey, whilst another (Elephas Falconen) was smaller still, and 

 averaged z\ or 3 feet in height. 



The geological order and the succession in time of these various 

 elephants is important to trace ; for the unravelling of so much of 

 the past history of the elephants as is known to us depends upon the 

 knowledge of their succession and of the periods of their appearance 

 and extinction. If we tabulate the rocks wherewith the past of the 

 elephants is concerned, we may render their arrangement clear 

 thus : 



( QUATERNARY (Recent (Soils, &c.) 



TERTIARY ROCKS PLIOCENE 1 Post-Pliocene (Ice Age), 

 including 1 MIOCENE 

 I EOCENE 



Thus the oldest and lowest of the Tertiary rocks which are them- 

 selves collectively the most recently formed is the " Eocene," and 

 the succeeding " Miocene," " Pliocene," and " Quaternary," are 

 given in their due order; the latter formations bringing us to the 

 soils and surface accumulations of our own day. The " Ice Age," or 

 "Glacial Epoch," we may also note, occurred during the Post-Pliocene 

 period, as shown above. 



Turning now to the past history of the elephants, we find the first 

 chapter of that biography to open in the " Miocene " age. The 



