325 
character, viz., — the Pre-glacial period, when Yorkshire was 
inhabited by the Lion, Tiger, Hyaena, Bear, Wolf, Elephant, 
Rhinoceros, Hippopotamus, Giant Deer, Urus, and also 
other animals similar to those of the present day. 
An accidental, though highly interesting discovery, how- 
ever, having been recently made in the neighbourhood of 
Leeds, which militates against the latter supposition, or, at 
least, that part of it which teaches that the larger pachy- 
•derms ceased to exist with the Pre-glacial period ; and as 
the placing on record any fact regarding the discovery in a 
fresh locality of remains of the former inhabitants of this 
island is of great importance, either in confirmation of, or dis- 
proving the accuracy of existing theories, I am induced to 
occupy the attention of this Society for a few minutes, in 
order to lay before them a short notice of the exhumation 
of a considerable number of bones of the Great Northern 
Hippopotamus in the township of Wortley, and parish of 
Leeds. On the 3rd of April, last year (1852), as some 
workmen in the employ of the Messrs. Longley, of Leeds, 
were digging clay for the purpose of making bricks, they dis- 
covered, at the depth of 10 feet, in a dark blue sedimentary 
clay, almost approaching mud, several large bones, some of 
which attracting their attention more than the others, were 
brought to me, and, from the situation in which they were 
found, it was highly probable that the animals to which they 
belonged had lived and died in the immediate vicinity, and 
were subsequently drifted, together with fragments of trees, 
to the bottom or lower part of a swamp, for not only is 
this particular bed of clay confined to one portion of the 
field, but the whole series of beds of clay become much thicker 
as they approach this spot, thus clearly indicating it to have 
been lower than the remainder. I was much surprised in 
observing that, although the field is very limited in extent, 
the variation in the strata or deposits in those parts which 
