59 



cannot be depended upon, as to the countries 

 their goods come from, yet the general opinion 

 of the whole trade, that these skins were the 

 produce of Spanish America, is a further proof 

 of their being common to both continents. 



From the remains, then, befyj;e us ; from 

 all the foregoing remarks ; and, above all, from 

 the conviction that the megalonyx is of the 

 lion kind, let us form to ourselves some idea 

 of his character. 



His length 60 ft. his height 25 ; his figure 

 magnificent; his looks determined; his gait 

 stately; his voice tremendous I In a word, 

 his body must have been the best model of 

 deadly strength, joined to the greatest agility. 

 And, from the force expressed by the visible 

 seat of his muscles, his bounds must have been 

 prodigious, enabling him to fall upon his prey, 

 to seize it with his teeth ; tear it with his claws^ 

 and devour it. Accustomed to measure his 

 strength with that of all other animals he used 

 to encounter, the habit of coliquering must 

 have rendered him haughty and intrepid! 



Having, perhaps, never experienced the 



