256 



THE WONDERS OF GEOLOGY. Lect. III. 



The examination of the fossil teeth at once showed that 

 the animals were herbivorous, the enamel and ivory being 

 disposed in the manner already explained (p. 141) ; the 

 crown of the tooth is composed of two or three simple 

 crescents, as in certain pachydermata ; thus differing from the 

 ruminants, which have double crescents, and each four lines 

 of enamel. Following out the inquiry, Cuvier at length 

 ascertained that a great proportion of the bones and teeth, 

 belonged to two extinct genera of pachyderms, related to 

 the tapir, rhinoceros, and hippopotamus. 



Every one is familiar with the forms and habits of the two 

 last animals ; but the Tapirs are not so well known ; they 

 are a family of pachyderms confined to Sumatra and South 

 America. The Malay Tapir, a stuffed specimen of which 

 may be seen in the British Museum, sometimes attains 

 eight feet in length, and six in circumference. It has a 

 flexible proboscis, a few inches long ; its general appearance 

 is heavy and massive, resembling that of the hog. The 

 eyes are small, the ears roundish ; the skin is thick and 

 firm, and covered with stout hair, and the tail short. It 

 inhabits the banks of lakes and rivers, and has been ob- 

 served to walk under water, but never to swim. 



40. Pal^eotheria, and anoplotheria. — It is unneces- 

 sary to enter at large on the structure and habits of the 

 animals to which these remains belonged ; for even the 

 forms of these extinct beings must be familiar to the reader, 

 as Cuvier's restorations of their living lineaments, are to be 

 found in every popular work that treats of the ancient 

 inhabitants of our globe. 



The Anoplotheria are remarkably distinguished by having 

 feet with but two toes, as in the ruminants, and are the 

 most ancient form of bi-hoofed animal known in a fossil 

 state. They had an uninterrupted dental system, the teeth 

 being placed in a continuous series, as in man, without any 

 interval between them. The A, commune (IAgri* 45, jig. 4), 



