INTRODUCTORY AND EXPLANA- 
TORY 
At the present time the interest in the ancient 
life of this earth is greater than ever before, and 
very considerable sums of money are being ex- 
pended to dispatch carefully planned expeditions 
to various parts of the world systematically to 
gather the fossil remains of the animals of the 
past. That this interest is not merely confined 
to a few scientific men, but is shared by the gen- 
eral public, is shown by the numerous articles, 
including many telegrams, in the columns of the 
daily papers. The object of this book is to tell 
some of the interesting facts concerning a few of 
the better known or more remarkable of these 
extinct inhabitants of the ancient world ; also, 
if possible, to ease the strain on these venerable 
animals, caused by stretching them so often. be- 
yond their due proportions. 
The book is admittedly somewhat on the lines 
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