Page:The fairy tales of science.djvu/19



"Mighty pre-Adamites that walked the earth

Of which ours is the wreck."—.

NCE upon a time—if we are to believe our Fairybooks—a terrible race of monsters devastated this fair earth. Dragons and Griffins roamed at large, and a passing visit from one of these rapacious creatures was held to be the greatest calamity that could befall a nation. All the King's horses and all the King's men were powerless in the presence of such a foe, and the bravest monarch stooped to purchase his