132 Life of a Fossil Hunter 



for many miles must have been converted into a 

 series of lakes; and all the animals in the vicinity, 

 after having gathered at the highest points they 

 could find to escape death, must have been finally 

 overwhelmed by some great flood that covered every 

 inch of ground. Then after maceration took place, 

 the bones might have been scattered by other floods. 



A theory of my own, equally plausible, is that the 

 animals were buried beneath a sandstorm, which 

 tore loose the fine sand of the flood-plain, and scat- 

 tered it in suffocating volumes over the frightened 

 multitudes which had herded together in search of 

 safety or courage. 



This land, now three thousand feet above sea 

 level, was only a few feet above when these rhinoc- 

 eroses moved over it in countless herds. Every- 

 where were swamps filled with sponge moss, and 

 tropical streams, whose wealth of vegetation formed 

 thick jungles along their banks. On firmer ground, 

 great areas were covered with a dense growth of 

 rushes, through which the paths of these animals 

 were the only trails; while higher up still, the soft 

 damp soil gave a foothold to forests, through which 

 the great mastodons sounded their trumpet calls, as 

 they roamed about, tearing up trees with their pow- 

 erful trunks and feasting upon the rich, juicy roots. 



That year, 1884, in which I explored the quarry 

 at Long Island, was a memorable one, not only be- 



