57 



ON A FOSSIL ELEPHANT FEOM TEXAS {E. Texianus). 

 Bt Chaeles Caetek Elake, Esq. 



The existence of a fossil species of true elephant distinct from 

 Elephas primigenius in America has been only of late years brought 

 under the notice of palaeontologists. I have slightly alluded to the 

 subject in the ' Geologist,' Vol. lY. p. 470. For many years remains 

 of true Elephant have been found with those of Mastodon at various 

 spots within the New World. 



Cuvier (' Osseuients Fossiles,' ed. 1834, vol. ii. p. 145) mentions 

 only one species of American elephant, the remains of which had 

 been discovered in Kentucky, Carolina, Ohio, Mexico, Louisiana, 

 "Virginia, and Maryland. 



De Blainville (' Osteographie,' Elephans, p. 157 : Atlas, pi. x.) 

 alludes to a tooth of fossil elephant from Texas, which is apparently 

 referable to Eleplias primigenius. He also mentions other remains 

 from Mexico, Mississippi, Carolina, Kentucky, Ohio, Maryland, Vir- 

 ginia, and Behring's Straits. 



Leidy ('Nebraska Fauna,' 1852, p. 9) recognizes specific distinc- 

 tion between the European and American species of elephant, and 

 terms the latter JE. Americanus. 



Humboldt (' Cosmos,' vol. i. p. 280) alludes to certain elephantine 

 remains from the Mexican plateau, but gives no description which 

 might identify the species. 



Dr. Carpenter (Silliman's Journal, 2nd series, vol. i. p. 244) de- 

 scribes a collection of elephant and mastodon remains, collected by 

 Mr. William Huff, from the banks of the Brazos river, near San 

 Felipe de Austin (Texas), some of which are at present in the British 

 Museum. Through the kindness of Mr. Gr. B. Waterhouse, I have 

 been enabled to identify them as those originally alluded to by Dr. 

 Carpenter. 



The most complete, elaborate, and philosophical conspectus of the 

 affinities of the Order Proboscidea has been that from the pen of 

 Dr. Falconer (Quarterly Journal Geographical Society, 1857, p. 319, 

 and 1858, p. 81), in which he distinctly recognizes an American spe- 

 cies of elephant {Eueleplias Columhi), which he says has hitherto 

 been undescribed. He places this apart from Euelephas primigenius, 

 in the same group as E. Indicus and Armeniacus, of which group he 

 discriminates the character as having " Colliculi approximati, macTice- 

 ridihus valde undulatisr The detailed exposition of his memoir has 

 not been published up to Februarv, 1862, although it was read on 

 June 3, 1857. 



Mr. William Bollaert, F.B.G.S., who has contributed original me- 

 moirs on the geography of Texas to the Geographical Society (Jour- 

 nal, 1851, vol. XX. p. 115), mentions the fact that he was the dis- 

 coverer of a tooth of " Mastodon" from San Felipe de Austin, Texas. 

 This tooth was carefully preserved by him, and was submitted to me 



YOL. Y. I 



