i8o 
LIFE OF DEAN BUCKLAND. 
[CH. VII. 
in this respect those of the rhinoceros, tapir, and palaeo- 
therium, the only herbivorous animals that have this sort of 
structure. Hence there is no doubt that the sivatherium 
was invested with a trunk, and probably this organ had an 
intermediate character between the trunk of the tapir and 
that of the elephant.” 
The Sivatherium is one of a group of a remarkable series 
of animals, all of which (with the exception of the giraffe) 
are extinct. Buckland pointed out the importance of these 
newly discovered fossil animals in filling up intervals in the 
order of pachydcrmata, where links were previously wanting 
to connect many living genera, between which the distance 
is much wider than in any other species of mammalia. 
The famous Moa or Dinornis was also brought before 
Buckland. On May 29th, 1843, he read some interesting 
letters detailing the discovery of the bones of a gigantic 
bird, which must have recently inhabited New Zealand, 
even if it did not prove to be still an inhabitant of that 
colony. The announcement of its supposed existence 
was conveyed in a letter from Dr. Buckland’s Torquay 
friend, Mr. William Williams, dated February 28th, 1842. 
The writer says that, hearing from the natives of an extra¬ 
ordinary monster which inhabited a cave on the side of 
a hill near the river Weiroa, he was induced to offer a 
reward to any person who produced either the bird or one 
of its bones. In consequence of this offer a large but 
much worn bone was found, and, shortly after, another of 
smaller size was discovered in the bed of a stream which 
runs into Poverty Bay. The natives were then induced to 
go in large numbers to turn up the mud in the bed of 
the same river, and soon brought to Mr. Williams a large 
