SCIENCE HAS FAILED TO IDENTIFY MONSTER BONES FOUND ON FORKS ROAD FARM

Horn is Eight Feet Long and Weighs 250 lb.-Tooth the size of a Man’s Head-Owner has been offered Flattering sums for his find. Photo of the mysterious and as yet unclassified horn of a prehistoric animal.

[Welland Telegraph, 24 October 1911]

             Buried four feet under the surface of the earth on the farm of Harry Smith in Wainfleet township a peculiar horn of immense size was found over a month ago.

             Since that time experts from all parts of Canada and the United States have visited the strange find, but have been unable to give it a name. All state that in no museum in the world have they been able to find any trace of any other animal which inhabited this earth which in the least resembles the bones of the one found on his farm in Welland county.

             When it inhabited this country and what sort of an animal it was will likely remain a mystery. Judging from the size of the horn it must have been of an immense size unequalled by any living animal today.

             The horn found must not be confused with an ordinary tusk for it is not such. Tusks of this size are common.

             How long it has lain under the earth is not known but it must have been a long time because of the depth it had sunken into the clay.

             Along with the horn was found a quantity of other bones, but these were badly decayed.

             One of the teeth found is shown in this picture. It weighs over six pounds.

             The horn, now a mere shell, weighs over 250 pounds. The head of the animal to carry a weight like this must have been some size.

             Mr. Smith was excavating for a pond when he made the find which stirred interest in the leading scientists of America.

             It is seldom that evidence of early life in this part of the country is brought to light. Consequently Mr. Smith is very proud of his treasure and has refused flattering offers for it. History does not record an animal having a horn of this size. However the photo speaks for itself.

             The remarkable feature of it all is that the horn is still in such a good state of preservation. All the bones were decayed but they were the same size in proportion as the horns.

             Experts who saw the horn declare that they had never seen anything nearly so large and that they knew of no name for it.

             The horn is of a bony composition and tapers gradually to a point. It is eight feet in length and twenty-six inches in circumference at the large end.

             A number of rings, similar to those on an ordinary cow horn, circle the horn at the large end.

 *Note: Mastodont skeleton, Mammut americanum donated to ROM in 1919.