ITS CHARACTERISTIC ANIMALS. 188 
into the Arctic Ocean. During the warmer sum- 
mer-weather, he noticed, that, as the snow gradu- 
ally melted, this mound assumed a more distinct 
and prominent outline, and at length, on one side 
of it, where the heat of the sun was greatest, a 
dark body became exposed, which, when com- 
pletely uncovered, proved to be that of an im- 
mense elephant, in so perfect a state of preserva- 
tion that the dogs and wolves wero attracted to it 
as by the smell of fresh meat, and came to feed 
upon it at night. The man knew little of the 
value of his discovery, but the story went abroad, 
and an Englishman travelling in Eussia, being 
curious to verify it, visited the spot, and actually 
found the remains where they had been reported 
to lie, on the frozen shore of the Arctic Sea, — 
strange burial-place enough for an animal never 
known to exist out of tropical climates. Little 
beside the skeleton was left, though parts of the 
skin remained covered with hair, showing how 
perfect must have been the condition of the body 
when first exposed. The tusks had been sold by 
the fisherman ; but Mr. Adams succeeded in re- 
covering them ; and collecting all the bones, ex 
cep t those of one foot, which had been carried off 
by the wolves, he had them removed to St. Pe- 
tersburg, where the skeleton now stands in the 
Imperial Museum. The inhabitants of Siberia 
seem to be familiar with this animal, which they 
