A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder James De Mille
A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder James De Mille
A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder James De Mille
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m<strong>in</strong>d him, doctor. He's a professional cynic, sceptic, and scoffer.<br />
Oxenden and I, however, are open to conviction, and want to know more<br />
about those birds and beasts. Can you make anyth<strong>in</strong>g out of the<br />
opmahera?"<br />
The doctor swallowed a glass of w<strong>in</strong>e, and replied:<br />
"Oh yes; there are many birds, each of which may be the opmahera.<br />
There's the fossil bird of Massachusetts, of which noth<strong>in</strong>g is left but<br />
the footpr<strong>in</strong>ts; but some of these are eighteen <strong>in</strong>ches <strong>in</strong> length, and<br />
show a stride of two yards. The bird belonged to the order of the<br />
Grallae, and may have been ten or twelve feet <strong>in</strong> height. Then there<br />
is the Gastornis parisiensis, which was as tall as an ostrich, as<br />
big as an ox, and belongs to the same order as the other. Then there<br />
is the Palapteryx, of which rema<strong>in</strong>s have been found <strong>in</strong> New Zealand,<br />
which was seven or eight feet <strong>in</strong> height. But the one which to my m<strong>in</strong>d<br />
is the real counterpart of the opmahera is the D<strong>in</strong>ornis gigantea,<br />
whose rema<strong>in</strong>s are also found <strong>in</strong> New Zealand. It is the largest bird<br />
known, with long legs, a long neck, and short w<strong>in</strong>gs, useless for<br />
flight. One specimen that has been found is upward of thirteen feet <strong>in</strong><br />
height. There is no reason why some should not have been much taller.<br />
More compares its height to that of a giraffe. The Maoris call this<br />
bird the Moa, and their legends and traditions are full of mention<br />
of it. When they first came to the island, six or seven hundred years<br />
ago, they found these vast birds everywhere, and hunted them for food.<br />
To my m<strong>in</strong>d the d<strong>in</strong>ornis is the opmahera of More. As to rid<strong>in</strong>g on them,<br />
that is likely enough; for ostriches are used for this purpose, and<br />
the d<strong>in</strong>ornis must have been far stronger and fleeter than the ostrich.<br />
It is possible that some of these birds may still be liv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the<br />
remoter parts of our hemisphere."<br />
"What about those monsters," asked Featherstone, "that More speaks of<br />
<strong>in</strong> the sacred hunt?"<br />
"I th<strong>in</strong>k," said the doctor, "that I understand pretty well what they<br />
were, and can identify them all. As the galley passed the estuary<br />
of that great river, you remember that he mentions see<strong>in</strong>g them on<br />
the shore. One may have been the Ichthyosaurus. This, as the name<br />
implies, is a fish-lizard. It has the head of a lizard, the snout of<br />
a dolph<strong>in</strong>, the teeth of an alligator, enormous eyes, whose membrane<br />
is strengthened by a bony frame, the vertebrae of fishes, sternum and