78 



THE BALTIMORE TOOTH. 



A very interesting fossil tooth (Plate XXVI.) lias been found in the United 

 States, near Baltimore, an account of which may conveniently be placed here, 

 its geological character and position not having yet been fully settled. 

 Discovery Dr. Ducatel, of Baltimore, being engaged as geological surveyor of the 



of the . 



Tooth. State of Maryland, anterior to 1840, noticed a spot in Caroline County, near 

 the banks of a small river, where he thought some valuable fossils might 

 be discovered. He pointed out the place to his assistant, Dr. Tilden ; 

 requesting him to examine it, and send to him at Baltimore the product 

 of his examination. Dr. Tilden, his brother Mr. Tilden, and a negro boy, 

 accordingly proceeded to dig into the side of the river-bank ; when, a 

 heavy substance falling out, Dr. T. directed the boy to wash it in the 

 stream, and found it to be a tooth whose character was unknown to him. 

 Suspecting that there might be some other bones, he followed up his 

 researches, and exposed other fossil remains, but none of the Mastodon. 



History. This tooth remained in the possession of Dr. Ducatel for some time, 



without attracting much attention. Mr. Charlesworth, a distinguished 

 geologist, and now Secretary of the British Natural History Society, when 

 travelling in this country pronounced it to be a grinder of the Mastodon 



