$90 THEORY OF THE EARTH. 



The Megalonysc has been very similar to it in 

 its characters, but has been somewhat less ; its 

 claws much longer and sharper in the edges. 

 Some bones and entire toes of it have been found 

 in certain caves in Virginia, and in an island on 

 the coast of Georgia *. 



These two enormous edentata have only hi- 

 therto presented their remains in America ; but 

 Europe possesses one of the same class which 

 does not yield to them in magnitude. It is only 

 known by a single terminal joint of a toe, but this 

 fragment is sufficient to assure us that it was very 

 similar to a pangolin or manis, but to a pangolin 

 of nearly twenty-four feet in length. It lived in 

 the same districts as the elephants, rhinoceroses, 

 and gigantic tapirs ; for its bones have been 

 found along with theirs in a sandy deposit in the 

 county of Darmstadt, not far from the Rhinef . 



The osseous breccias also contain, but very rare- 

 ly, bones of carnivora J, which are much more 

 numerous in caverns, that is to say, in cavities 

 wider and more complicated than the fissures or 

 veins containing osseous breccia. The Jura chain 

 in particular, is celebrated for them in the part of 

 it which extends into Germany, where, for ages 



* See ray " Researches," vol. v. part i. p, 160, 

 Id, vol. v. p. 193, t Id, vol, iv. p, 193. 



