238 THE BOOK OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 



instance came under my notice recently of how important it is to 

 carefully examine the remains of animals before casting them on one 

 side as useless and uninteresting. Excavations were being made 

 near an old manor house whose history is mostly obscured in the 

 mist of ages, for in its immediate vicinity a Roman Villa of great 

 antiquity was discovered not long since, and beautiful examples of 

 Roman pottery and other epitaphs of the Roman era have been 

 unearthed close by. A biological friend of mine happened to be 

 present during the time the excavations were taking place, and he 

 was handed some bones of an animal which might or might not 

 have been of interest. My friend pronounced the bones to be those 

 of a Wild Boar, which assurance met with some amount of derision 

 from certain so-called wiseacres who had assembled. They made 

 fun of his pronouncement, ventured the opinion that the bones were 

 probably those of a Domestic Pig, and the matter ended for the 

 time being. Presently one of the men engaged in the work of 

 excavation dug out the tusks of a Wild Boar, and my friend was 

 at once heralded as a remarkable prophet. A little incident, it is 

 true, but one which clearly illustrates how important it is to always 

 be on the look-out for the remains of animals, for, as a result, an 

 interesting link in a broken chain may often be supplied. 



The Wild Boar, then, chooses as its habitat a swampy forest- 

 thicket, an uncommon environment which is little resorted to by 

 many kinds of mammals. We thus find that the beast is particularly 

 adapted for frequenting such a habitat, and can the better appreciate 

 how* it is that the domestic animal known to every one seems to revel 

 in wallowing in slush amid the squalid surroundings of its pigsty 

 home. The Wild Boar attains a height of about three feet up to the 

 shoulders, a length of about six and a half feet, and weighs about 

 four hundred pounds. 



Dr. Schmeil considers this animal from five very interesting 

 standpoints, namely, as an inhabitant of the forest, as an inhabitant 

 of the marsh, as an omnivorous feeder, as a burrowing animal, 

 and from its position in the economy of nature and in regard to 

 man. 



Briefly summarized, the results of Dr. Schmeil's investigations 

 under these five heads may thus be given. As an inhabitant of the 

 forest the Wild Boar is, like the Elephant, well adapted for forcing 

 its way through the thickets and undergrowth by reason of the 

 conical-shaped head which it pushes like a wedge through the bushes. 



