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THE WORLD. 



marks yet discovered, occur upon some member of the new re*3 

 sandstone grotrp. On the same stone are impressions of raia 

 drops. "It is a most interesting thought," observes Prof. 

 Hitchcock, M that while millions of men who have striven hard 

 to transmit some trace of their existence to future generations,. 

 have sunk into utter oblivion, the simple footsteps of animals, 

 that existed thousands, nay, tens of thousands of years ago, 

 should remain as fresh and distinct as if yesterday impressed; 

 even though nearly every other vestige of their existence has- 

 vanished. Nay still more strange is it, that even the pattering 

 of a shower at that distant period, should have left marks equally 

 distinct, and registered with infallible certainly the direction of 

 the wind/' When these foot prints were first discovered their 

 enormous size seemed an insuperable objection to the opinion that 

 they were bird tracks. But recently in the island of New Zea- 

 land, the bones of an immense wingless bird have been found to 

 which the name Dinornis, or terrible bird, has been given. Be- 

 low is an outline representing the size of this extraordinary ani- 

 mal compared with a man. 



Immediately above the new red sandstone in some parts of th e 



