3o8 
EXTINCT MONSTERS 
appetite of scientists, and even of the curious public, who have 
no special knowledge of palaeontology, for more, will now be 
reinforced by Dr. Stirling, Mr. Zietz, and another member of the 
Museum staff. More than that, provision will now be made for 
the conveyance to Adelaide of larger portions of the remains than 
it has hitherto been possible to despatch. 
“ Mr. Hurst has laboured under great disadvantages in the 
past, owing to the lack of facilities for transporting to the city 
the results of his excavations. It is to be borne in mind that the 
fossils are spread over a large tract of country embracing several 
square miles in extent. Moreover, this singular burial-place of 
the marsupial and other monsters, which were wont to roam over 
the continent of Australia, is situated in a remote and com- 
paratively waterless region, so that the difficulties in the way of 
disinterment and removal are exceedingly great. It is only 
fitting that those officials of the Museum, who are most skilled 
in natural history, should be on the spot to superintend operations, 
and we may rest satisfied that everything that can be done to 
secure the best illustrations obtainable of the fossil remains will 
be done. The object to be aimed at is to procure complete 
specimens, and, from what has been said by those who have 
visited the locality, it should be practicable to achieve this. 
Obviously no pains or expense should be spared to bring togethe ^ 
bone to his bone, the framework of the gigantic creatures belong- 
ing to a bygone age, whose relics are embedded in the hardened 
mud and debris of what were once the huge swamps of the Far 
North -East.” 
The late Professor Newton, of Cambridge, also received a letter 
from Dr. Stirling, which was published in The Proceedings of ^l.e 
Zoological Society for May 2, 1893. From this letter we learn 
that Diprotodon has five well-developed toes; the bones of the 
