Primceval Man in the Valley of the Lea. 143 
Hippopotamus, Rhinoceros, Bison, Lion, Hyaena, Horse, 
Reindeer, Irish Elk, and other animals, that he probably 
hunted these animals, and lived upon the flesh of some of 
them. The drift-men must have been safer and freer from 
surprise on the river-banks ; they could not venture far into 
woody places without danger from savage beasts. We know 
that primaeval man had no domestic animals—no dog, no 
sheep, no goat, no domestic ox. A description of all the 
animals that lived w T ith primaeval man would, be beyond the 
province of this paper, but every member of the Club knows 
what has been done in this direction by Sir Antonio Brady 
and other geologists. The brick-earths of Ilford and Clapton 
have also been studied by Dr. W. Martin Cooke, and examples 
of the bones both from Ilford and Clapton are now deposited 
in the British Museum, with other Essex specimens from 
Clacton-on-Sea and Grays Thurrock. 
We know that Palaeolithic men were unacquainted with 
agriculture; so after the flesh of beasts w r e may reasonably 
assume that the men consumed the wild apple, pear, sloe, 
and possibly the fruit of the oak, hazel, and beech, with other 
wild fruits and succulent roots. They probably knew the use of 
and mode of procuring fire, but their wood could seldom have 
been very dry. Whether they used missiles or not for throwing 
is not proved : they did not mount their weapons. The sling 
is doubtful, and the bow was probably unknown. My impres¬ 
sion is, the men sometimes used meta-tarsal bones of horses 
and animals of a like build for clubs ; a number of these 
bones have been more than once found in company in the 
Lea Valley; they probably used suitable branches of trees as 
natural clubs also. That primaeval men were fierce and 
strong is probable, but they undoubtedly had friendship for 
each other, as they lived in large companies. That they 
had an idea of ornament is proved by their beautifully formed 
implements, and by the use they probably made of the 
bead-like Coscinopora globalaris. 
Our knowledge, however, of primaeval man, as a man, is at 
present a mere shadow. Still we are as certain of his former 
existence as we are of our present existence, but we cannot 
