52 DESTRUCTION OF THE HIPPOPOTAMI 



crushing into the more accessible caves, and swarming 

 over the ground at their entrance, until overtaken 

 by the waters and destroyed. A few of the more 

 agile animals may have escaped to higher unsubmerged 

 ground, inland, for though the remains of Deer, Ox, 

 Bear, and various FelidcB occur, they are exceedingly 

 scarce ; whereas the unwieldy Hippopotami perished 

 in hundreds. 



As the land afterwards emerged by intermittent 

 stages, rocky debris and large blocks from the sides 

 of the hills were hurlM down by the current of 

 water, crushing and smashing the bones, which are, 

 with few exceptions, broken into thou&ands of frag- 

 ments. I would account for the existence of such 

 herds of Hippopotami 1 by the fact that after the 

 formation of the Eaised Beaches there was, as in the 

 Channel, a considerable elevation of the coast, which 

 led to a large increase of the land area : so that the 

 plain of Palermo would then have been of greater 

 extent, and the rivers much larger than at present. 

 Judging from the habits of those animals and the 

 extent of pasture grounds they must have required, 

 the conjecture before referred to of a connection with 

 Africa by the elevation of the Mediterranean area 

 is rendered the more probable. This profusion of 

 Hippopotami gives strength to the conjecture. 



The extremely fresh condition of the bones, proved 

 \)j the retention of so large a proportion of animal 

 matter, and the fact that animals of all ages were 



1 Besides these animals which perished on the spot, many of 

 their bodies may have floated away and been lost. 



