Humiliated by his error in reconstructing the plesiosaur Elasmosaurus, Cope tried to cover up his mistake by purchasing every copy he could find of the journal in which it was published.
Sentíndose humillado polo seu erro á hora de reconstruír o plesiosauro Elasmosaurus, Cope intentou encubrir a súa equivocación mercando tódalas copias que atopou da revista na que foi publicada a reconstrución.