,,the ,,geological ,,evidence ,,of ,,the
 ,,antiquity ,,of ,,man  ,by ,sir       
,charles ,lyell1 ,,bt41 ,f4,r4,s41 ,etc4
  ,london3 ,published ,by ,j4,m4 ,dent  
,sons ,ltd4  ,and ,in ,new ,york ,by    
,e4,p4 ,dutton  ,co4   ,with            
,introduction ,and ,notes ,by ,r4,h4    
,rastall1 ,m4,a41 ,f4,g4,s4             
,,everyman      ,i ,,will ,,go ,,with   
,,thee       ,,be ,,thy ,,guide         
,,in ,,thy ,,most ,,need      ,,to ,,go 
,,by ,,thy ,,side4        ,,everyman',s 
,,library       ,,edited ,,by ,,ernest  
,,rhys4       ,,science4        ,,hoc   
,,solum ,,scio ,,quod ,,nihil ,,scio4   
,,introduction4  ,the ,antiquity of ,man
 was published in #ahfc1 and ran into a 
third edition in the course of that     
year4 ,the cause of this is not far to  
seek4 ,darwin's ,origin of ,species     
appeared in #ahei1 only four years      
earlier1 and rapidly had its effect in  
drawing attention to the great problem  
of the origin of living beings4 ,the    
theories of ,darwin and ,wallace brought

 to a head and presented in a concrete  
shape the somewhat vague speculations as
 to development and evolution which had 
long been floating in the minds of      
naturalists4 ,in the actual working out 
of ,darwin's great theory it is         
impossible to overestimate the influence
 of ,lyell4 ,this is made abundantly    
clear in ,darwin's letters1 and it must 
never be forgotten that ,darwin himself 
was a geologist4 ,his training in this  
science enabled him to grasp the import 
of the facts so ably marshalled by      
,lyell in the ,principles of ,geology1 a
 work which1 as ,professor ,judd has    
clearly shown199 contributed greatly to 
the advancement of evolutionary theory  
in general4 799 ,judd ,the ,coming of   
,evolution 7,cambridge ,manuals of      
,science and ,literature7 ,cambridge    
#aiaj chapters #f and #g47  ,from a     
study of the evolution of plants and of 
the lower animals it was an easy and    
obvious transition to man1 and this step
 was soon taken4 ,since in his physical 

structure man shows so close a          
resemblance to the higher animals it was
 a natural conclusion that the laws     
governing the development of the one    
should apply also to the other1 in spite
 of preconceived opinions derived from  
authority4 ,unfortunately the times were
 then hardly ripe for a calm and logical
 treatment of this question3 prejudice  
in many cases took the place of         
argument1 and the result was too often  
an undignified squabble instead of a    
scientific discussion4 ,however1 the    
dogmatism was not by any means all on   
one side4 ,the disciples as usual went  
farther than the master1 and their      
teaching when pushed to extremities     
resulted in a peculiarly dreary kind of 
materialism1 a mental attitude which    
still survives to a certain extent among
 scientific and pseudo-scientific men of
 the old school4 ,in more ,recent times 
this dogmatic agnosticism of the middle 
,victorian period has been gradually    
replaced by speculations of a more      

positive type1 such as those of the     
,mendelian school in biology and the    
doctrines of ,bergson on the            
philosophical side4 ,with these later   
developments we are not here concerned4 
,in dealing with the evolution and      
history of man as with that of any other
 animal1 the first step is undoubtedly  
to collect the facts1 and this is       
precisely what ,lyell set out to do in  
the ,antiquity of ,man4 ,the first      
nineteen chapters of the book are purely
 an empirical statement of the evidence 
then available as to the existence of   
man in pre-historic times3 the rest of  
the book is devoted to a consideration  
of the connection between the facts     
previously stated and ,darwin's theory  
of the origin of species by variation   
and natural selection4 ,the keynote of  
,lyell's work1 throughout his life1 was 
observation4 ,lyell was no cabinet      
geologist2 he went to nature and studied
 phenomena at first hand4 ,possessed of 
abundant leisure and ample means he     

travelled far and wide1 patiently       
collecting material and building up the 
modern science of physical geology1     
whose foundations had been laid by      
,hutton and ,playfair4 ,from the facts  
thus collected he drew his inferences1  
and if later researches showed these    
inferences to be wrong1 unlike some of  
his contemporaries1 he never hesitated  
to say so4 ,thus and thus only is true  
progress in science attained4  ,lyell is
 universally recognised as the leader of
 the ,uniformitarian school of          
geologists1 and it will be well to      
consider briefly what is implied in this
 term4 ,the principles of               
,uniformitarianism may be summed up     
thus3 ,,the ,,present ,,is ,,the ,,key  
,,to ,,the ,,past4 ,that is to say1 the 
processes which have gone on in the past
 were the same in general character as  
those now seen in operation1 though     
probably differing in degree4 ,this     
theory is in direct opposition to the   
ideas of the ,,catastrophic school1     

which were dominant at the beginning of 
the nineteenth century4 ,the            
catastrophists attributed all past      
changes to sudden and violent           
convulsions of nature1 by which all     
living beings were destroyed1 to be     
replaced by a fresh creation4 ,at least 
such were the tenets of the extremists4 
,in opposition to these views the school
 of ,hutton and ,lyell introduced the   
principle of continuity and development4
 ,there is no discrepancy between       
,uniformitarianism and evolution4 ,the  
idea of ,uniformitarianism does not     
imply that things have always been the  
same2 only that they were similar1 and  
between these two terms there is a wide 
distinction4 ,evolution of any kind     
whatever naturally implies continuity1  
and this is the fundamental idea of     
,lyellian geology4  ,in spite1 however1 
of this clear and definite conception of
 natural and organic evolution1 in all  
those parts of his works dealing with   
earth-history1 with the stratified rocks

 and with the organisms entombed in     
them1 ,lyell adopted a plan which has   
now been universally abandoned4 ,he     
began with the most ,recent formations  
and worked backwards from the known to  
the unknown4 ,to modern readers this is 
perhaps the greatest drawback to his    
work1 since it renders difficult the    
study of events in their actual         
sequence4 ,however1 it must be admitted 
that1 taking into account the state of  
geological knowledge before his time1   
this course was almost inevitable4 ,the 
succession of the later rocks was fairly
 well known1 thanks to the labours of   
,william ,smith and others1 but in the  
lower part of the sequence of stratified
 rocks there were many gaps1 and more   
important still1 there was no definite  
base4 ,although this want of a starting 
point has been largely supplied by the  
labours of ,sedgwick1 ,murchison1 ,de la
 ,beche1 ,ramsay1 and a host of         
followers1 still considerable doubt     
prevails as to which constitutes the    

oldest truly stratified series1 and the 
difficulty has only been partially      
circumvented by the adoption of an      
arbitrary base-line1 from which the     
succession is worked out both upwards   
and downwards4 ,so the problem is only  
removed a stage further back4 ,in the   
study of human origins a similar        
difficulty is felt with special         
acuteness2 the beginnings must of       
necessity be vague and uncertain1 and   
the farther back we go the fainter will 
naturally be the traces of human        
handiwork and the more primitive and    
doubtful those traces when discovered4  
,the reprinting of the ,antiquity of    
,man is particularly appropriate at the 
present time1 owing to the increased    
attention drawn to the subject by recent
 discoveries4 ,ever since the           
publication of the ,origin of ,species  
and the discussions that resulted from  
that publication1 the popular           
imagination has been much exercised by  
the possible existence of forms         

intermediate between the apes and man2  
the so-called ,missing ,link4 ,much has 
been written on this subject1 some of it
 well-founded and some very much the    
reverse4 ,the discovery of the          
,neanderthal skull is fully described in
 this volume1 and this skull is         
certainly of a low type1 but it is more 
human than ape-like4 ,the same remark   
applies still more strongly to the      
,engis skull1 the man of ,spy1 the      
recently discovered ,sussex skull1 and  
other well-known examples of early human
 remains4 ,the ,pithecanthropus of ,java
 alone shows perhaps more affinity to   
the apes4 ,the whole subject has been   
most ably discussed by ,professor       
,sollas in his recent book entitled     
,ancient ,hunters4  ,the study of       
,palaeolithic flint implements has been 
raised to a fine art4 ,both in ,england 
and ,france a regular succession of     
primitive types has been established and
 correlated with the gravel terraces of 
existing rivers1 and even with the      

deposits of rivers no longer existing   
and with certain glacial deposits4 ,but 
with all of these the actual bodily     
remains of man are comparatively scanty4
 ,from this it may be concluded that    
primitive methods of burial were such as
 to be unfavourable to the actual       
preservation of human remains4 ,attempts
 have also been made to prove the       
existence of man in pre-glacial times1  
but hitherto none of these have met with
 general acceptance1 since in no case is
 the evidence beyond doubt4  ,one of the
 most important results of recent       
research in the subject has been the    
establishment of the existence of man in
 interglacial times4 ,when ,lyell wrote1
 it was not fully recognised that the   
glaciation of ,europe was not one       
continuous process1 but that it could be
 divided into several episodes1         
glaciations1 or advances of the ice1    
separated by a warm interglacial period4
 ,the monumental researches of ,penck   
and ,bruckner in the ,alps have there   

established four glaciations with mild  
interglacial periods1 but all of these  
cannot be clearly traced in ,britain4   
,one very important point also is the   
recognition of the affinities of certain
 types of ,palaeolithic man to the      
,eskimo1 the ,australians1 and the      
,bushmen of ,south ,africa4 ,however1 it
 is impossible to give here a review of 
the whole subject4 ,full details of     
recent researches will be found in the  
works mentioned in the notes at the end 
of the book4  ,another point of great   
interest and importance1 arising        
directly from the study of early man is 
the nature of the events constituting   
the glacial period in ,britain and      
elsewhere4 ,this has been for many years
 a fertile subject of controversy1 and  
is likely to continue such4 ,lyell1 in  
common with most of the geologists of   
his day1 assumes that during the glacial
 period the ,british ,isles were        
submerged under the sea to a depth of   
many hundreds of feet1 at any rate as   

regards the region north of a line drawn
 from ,london to ,bristol4 ,later       
authors1 however1 explained the observed
 phenomena on the hypothesis of a vast  
ice-sheet of the ,greenland type1       
descending from the mountains of        
,scotland and ,scandinavia1 filling up  
the ,north ,sea and spreading over      
eastern ,england4 ,this explanation is  
now accepted by the majority1 but it    
must be recognised that it involves     
enormous mechanical difficulties4 ,it is
 impossible to pursue the subject here2 
for a full discussion reference may be  
made to ,professor ,bonney's            
presidential address to the ,british    
,association at ,sheffield in #aiaj4    
,it will be seen1 therefore1 that the   
,antiquity of ,man opens up a wide field
 of speculation into a variety of       
difficult and obscure though interesting
 subjects4 ,in the light of modern      
research it would be an easy task to    
pile up a mountain of criticism on      
points of detail4 ,but1 though easy1 it 

would be a thankless task4 ,it is       
scarcely too much to say that the       
dominant impression of most readers     
after perusing this book will be one of 
astonishment and admiration at the      
insight and breadth of view displayed by
 the author4 ,when it was written the   
subject was a particularly thorny one to
 handle1 and it undoubtedly required    
much courage to tackle the origin and   
development of the human race from a    
purely critical and scientific          
standpoint4 ,it must be admitted on all 
hands that the result was eminently     
successful1 taking into account the     
paucity of the available material1 and  
the ,antiquity of ,man must ever remain 
one of the classics of prehistoric      
archaeology4  ,this edition of the      
,antiquity of ,man has been undertaken  
in order to place before the public in  
an easily accessible form one of the    
best known works of the great geologist 
,sir ,charles ,lyell2 the book had an   
immense influence in its own day1 and it

 still remains one of the best general  
accounts of an increasingly important   
branch of knowledge4  ,in order to avoid
 a multiplicity of notes and thus to    
save space1 the nomenclature has been to
 a certain extent modernised3 a new     
general table of strata has been        
inserted in the first chapter1 in place 
of the one originally there printed1    
which was cumbrous and included many    
minor subdivisions of unnecessary       
minuteness4  ,the notes have been kept  
as short as possible1 and they          
frequently contain little more than     
references to recent literature         
elucidating the points under discussion 
in the text4  ,r4,h4 ,,rastall4  #aiad4 
,,bibliography4      ,the passage of the
 ,beresina 7in verse71 #ahae4           
,principles of ,geology1 being an       
attempt to explain the former           
changes of the earth's surface1 by      
reference to causes now in              
operation1 #ahcj-cc     7third edition1 
#ahcd2     fourth1 #ahce2     fifth1    

#ahcg2     sixth1 #ahdj2     seventh1   
#ahdg2     ninth1 entirely revised      
edition1 #ahec2     tenth1 entirely     
revised edition1 #ahfg1 #ahfh2          
eleventh1 entirely revised edition1     
#ahgb2     twelfth1 edited by ,l4       
,lyell1 #ahge74      ,elements of       
,geology1 #ahch     7second edition1    
#ahda74      ,a ,manual of ,elementary  
,geology     7third and entirely revised
 edition of the former work1 #ahea2     
fourth and entirely revised edition1    
#aheb2     fifth1 enlarged edition1     
#ahee2     ,supplement to the fifth     
edition1 #aheg2     second edition of   
the ,supplement1 revised1 #aheg74       
,elements of ,geology1     sixth        
edition1 greatly enlarged1 #ahfe4       
,travels in ,north ,america1 with       
geological observations        on the   
,united ,states1 ,canada1 and ,nova     
,scotia1 #ahde4      ,a ,second ,visit  
to the ,united ,states of ,north        
,america1 #ahdi4      ,the ,students'   
,elements of ,geology1 #ahga     7second

 edition1 revised and corrected1 #ahgd2 
third1 revised1 with a table of ,british
 fossils        by ,r4 ,etheridge1      
#ahgh2     fourth1 revised by ,p4,m4    
,duncan1 with a table of ,british       
fossils        by ,r4 ,etheridge1       
#ahhd74      ,the ,geological ,evidences
 of the ,antiquity of ,man1        with 
remarks on theories of the origin of    
species        by variation1 #ahfc2     
7second edition1 revised1 #ahfc2        
third edition1 revised1 #ahfc2          
fourth edition1 revised1 #ahgc74        
,there has also been published ,the     
,student's ,lyell3 a ,manual of         
,elementary ,geology1 edited by ,j4,w4  
,judd1 #ahif 7second edition     revised
 and enlarged1 #aiaa74  ,,lectures1     
,,addresses1 ,,and ,,articles3    ,on a 
,recent ,formation of ,freshwater       
,limestone in ,forfarshire              
7,transactions of the ,geological       
,society #bnd series1 volume #b1        
#ahbf1 part #a74    ,on a ,dike of      
,serpentine in the ,county of ,forfar   

7,edinburgh ,journal   of ,science      
#ahbe74    ,english ,scientific         
,societies 7,quarterly ,review volume   
#cd2 three   papers with ,sir ,roderick 
and ,mrs4 ,murchison2 ,edinburgh        
,philosophical ,journal1 #ahbi2 abstract
 in ,proceedings of the   ,geological   
,society #a2 ,annales des ,sciences     
,naturelles #ahbi2   abstract in        
,proceedings of the ,geological ,society
 #a74    ,address delivered at the      
,geological ,society of ,london1 #ahcf4 
,lectures on ,geology--,eight ,lectures 
on ,geology1 delivered at the           
,broadway ,tabernacle1 ,new ,york 7,new 
,york ,tribune #ahdb74    ,a ,paper on  
,madeira 7,quarterly ,journal of the    
,geological ,society   #aj1 #ahec74     
,on the ,structure of ,lavas which have 
,consolidated on ,steep ,slopes         
7,philosophical ,transactions #aheh74   
,address 7to the ,british ,association7 
#ahfd4    ,,translations3    ,antiquity 
of ,man1 translated into ,french by ,m4 
,chaper1 #ahfd2 and   into ,german by   

,l4 ,buchner1 #ahgd4    ,elements of    
,geology 7sixth edition71 translated    
into ,french by ,m4   ,j4 ,gineston1    
#ahfg4    ,report1 extracted from the   
,aberdeen ,free ,press and translated   
into ,french1 of ,sir ,c4 ,lyell's      
address before the ,british             
,association1 #ahei1 under the title of 
,antiquities antediluviennes3           
,l'homme fossile4  ,,life3    ,life1    
,letters and ,journals of ,sir ,charles 
,lyell1 edited by his   sister-in-law1  
,mrs4 ,lyell1 #ahha4    ,see also3      
,life and ,letters of ,charles ,darwin1 
#ahhg4    ,life and ,letters of         
,sedgwick1 by ,clark and ,hughes1 #ahij4
     ,,list ,,of ,,contents4     ,,chap4
 #a4    ,,introductory4    ,preliminary 
,remarks on the ,subjects treated of in 
this ,work4   ,definition of the terms  
,recent and ,pleistocene4   ,tabular    
,view of the entire ,series of          
,fossiliferous ,strata4     ,,chap4 #b4 
,,recent ,,period--,,danish ,,peat ,,and
 ,,shell ,,mounds--      ,,swiss        

,,lake-,,dwellings4    ,works of ,art in
 ,danish ,peat-,mosses4   ,remains of   
three ,periods of ,vegetation in the    
,peat4   ,ages of ,stone1 ,bronze1 and  
,iron4   ,shell-,mounds or ancient      
,refuse-,heaps of the ,danish ,islands4 
,change in geographical ,distribution of
 ,marine ,mollusca      since their     
,origin4   ,embedded ,remains of        
,mammalia of ,recent ,species4   ,human 
,skulls of the same ,period4   ,swiss   
,lake-,dwellings built on ,piles4       
,stone and ,bronze ,implements found in 
them4   ,fossil ,cereals and other      
,plants4   ,remains of ,mammalia1 wild  
and domesticated4   ,no extinct         
,species4   ,chronological ,computations
 of the ,date of the ,bronze and ,stone 
,periods in ,switzerland4               
,lake-,dwellings1 or artificial ,islands
 called ,crannoges1      in ,ireland4   
,,chap4 #c4    ,,fossil ,,human         
,,remains ,,and ,,works ,,of ,,art ,,of 
,,the ,,recent ,,period--continued4     
,delta and ,alluvial ,plain of the      

,nile4   ,burnt ,bricks in ,egypt before
 the ,roman ,era4   ,borings in         
#ahea-ed4   ,ancient ,mounds of the     
,valley of the ,ohio4   ,their          
,antiquity4   ,sepulchral ,mound at     
,santos in ,brazil4   ,delta of the     
,mississippi4   ,ancient ,human ,remains
 in ,coral ,reefs of ,florida4          
,changes in ,physical ,geography in the 
,human ,period4   ,buried ,canoes in    
,marine ,strata near ,glasgow4          
,upheaval since the ,roman ,occupation  
of the ,shores of the      ,firth of    
,forth4   ,fossil ,whales near          
,stirling4   ,upraised ,marine ,strata  
of ,sweden on ,shores of the ,baltic    
and the ,ocean4   ,attempts to compute  
their ,age4     ,,chap4 #d4             
,,pleistocene ,,period--,,bones ,,of    
,,man ,,and ,,extinct ,,mammalia        
,,in ,,belgian ,,caverns4    ,earliest  
,discoveries in ,caves of ,languedoc of 
,human ,remains      with ,bones of     
extinct ,mammalia4   ,researches in     
#ahcc of ,dr4 ,schmerling in the ,liege 

,caverns4   ,scattered ,portions of     
,human ,skeletons associated with ,bones
      of ,elephant and ,rhinoceros4     
,distribution and probable ,mode of     
,introduction of the ,bones4            
,implements of ,flint and ,bone4        
,schmerling's ,conclusions as to the    
,antiquity of ,man ignored4   ,present  
,state of the ,belgian ,caves4   ,human 
,bones recently found in ,cave of       
,engihoul4   ,engulfed ,rivers4         
,stalagmitic ,crust4   ,antiquity of the
 ,human ,remains in ,belgium how proved4
     ,,chap4 #e4    ,,pleistocene       
,,period--,,fossil ,,human ,,skulls ,,of
 ,,the      ,,neanderthal ,,and ,,engis 
,,caves4    ,human ,skeleton found in   
,cave near ,dusseldorf4   ,its          
geological ,position and probable ,age4 
,its abnormal and ape-like ,characters4 
,fossil ,human ,skull of the ,engis     
,cave near ,liege4   ,professor         
,huxley's ,description of these ,skulls4
   ,comparison of each1 with extreme    
,varieties of the native                

,australian ,race4   ,range of ,capacity
 in the ,human and ,simian ,brains4     
,skull from ,borreby in ,denmark4       
,conclusions of ,professor ,huxley4     
,bearing of the peculiar ,characters of 
the ,neanderthal ,skull      on the     
,hypothesis of ,transmutation4          
,,chap4 #f4    ,,pleistocene ,,alluvium 
,,and ,,cave ,,deposits ,,with ,,flint  
,,implements4    ,general ,position of  
,drift with extinct ,mammalia in        
,valleys4   ,discoveries of ,m4 ,boucher
 de ,perthes at ,abbeville4   ,flint    
,implements found also at ,st4 ,acheul1 
near ,amiens4   ,curiosity awakened by  
the systematic ,exploration of the      
,brixham ,cave4   ,flint ,knives in     
same1 with ,bones of extinct ,mammalia4 
,superposition of ,deposits in the      
,cave4   ,visits of ,english and ,french
 ,geologists to ,abbeville and ,amiens4 
,,chap4 #g4    ,,peat ,,and             
,,pleistocene ,,alluvium ,,of ,,the     
,,valley ,,of ,,the ,,somme4            
,geological ,structure of the ,valley of

 the ,somme and of the      surrounding 
,country4   ,position of ,alluvium of   
different ,ages4   ,peat near           
,abbeville4   ,its animal and vegetable 
,contents4   ,works of ,art in ,peat4   
,probable ,antiquity of the ,peat1 and  
,changes of ,level      since its       
,growth began4   ,flint ,implements of  
antique ,type in older ,alluvium4       
,their various ,forms and great         
,numbers4     ,,chap4 #h4               
,,pleistocene ,,alluvium ,,with ,,flint 
,,implements ,,of ,,the ,,valley        
,,of ,,the ,,somme--concluded4          
,fluvio-marine ,strata1 with ,flint     
,implements1 near ,abbeville4   ,marine 
,shells in same4   ,cyrena fluminalis4  
,mammalia4   ,entire ,skeleton of       
,rhinoceros4   ,flint ,implements1 why  
found low down in ,fluviatile ,deposits4
   ,rivers shifting their ,channels4    
,relative ,ages of higher and           
lower-level ,gravels4   ,section of     
,alluvium of ,st4 ,acheul4   ,two       
,species of ,elephant and ,hippopotamus 

coexisting with ,man      in ,france4   
,volume of ,drift1 proving ,antiquity of
 ,flint ,implements4   ,absence of      
,human ,bones in tool-bearing ,alluvium1
 how explained4   ,value of certain     
,kinds of negative ,evidence tested     
thereby4   ,human ,bones not found in   
drained ,lake of ,haarlem4     ,,chap4  
#i4    ,,works ,,of ,,art ,,in          
,,pleistocene ,,alluvium ,,of ,,france  
,,and ,,england4    ,flint ,implements  
in ancient ,alluvium of the ,basin of   
the ,seine4   ,bones of ,man and of     
extinct ,mammalia in the ,cave of ,arcy4
   ,extinct ,mammalia in the ,valley of 
the ,oise4   ,flint ,implement in       
,gravel of same ,valley4   ,works of    
,art in ,pleistocene ,drift in ,valley  
of the ,thames4   ,musk ,ox4   ,meeting 
of northern and southern ,fauna4        
,migrations of ,quadrupeds4   ,mammals  
of ,mongolia4   ,chronological ,relation
 of the older ,alluvium of the ,thames  
to the ,glacial ,drift4   ,flint        
,implements of ,pleistocene ,period in  

,surrey1 ,middlesex1      ,kent1        
,bedfordshire1 and ,suffolk4     ,,chap4
 #aj4    ,,cavern ,,deposits1 ,,and     
,,places ,,of ,,sepulture ,,of ,,the    
,,pleistocene ,,period4    ,flint       
,implements in ,cave containing ,hyaena 
and other extinct      ,mammalia in     
,somersetshire4   ,caves of the ,gower  
,peninsula in ,south ,wales4            
,rhinoceros hemitoechus4   ,ossiferous  
,caves near ,palermo4   ,sicily once    
part of ,africa4   ,rise of ,bed of the 
,mediterranean to the ,height of three  
hundred      ,feet in the ,human ,period
 in ,sardinia4   ,burial-place of       
,pleistocene ,date of ,aurignac in the  
,south of ,france4   ,rhinoceros        
tichorhinus eaten by ,man4   ,m4 ,lartet
 on extinct ,mammalia and ,works of ,art
 found in the      ,aurignac ,cave4     
,relative ,antiquity of the same        
considered4     ,,chap4 #aa4    ,,age   
,,of ,,human ,,fossils ,,of ,,le ,,puy  
,,in ,,central ,,france      ,,and ,,of 
,,natchez ,,on ,,the ,,mississippi      

,,discussed4    ,question as to the     
,authenticity of the ,fossil ,man of    
,denise1      near ,le ,puy-en-,velay1  
considered4   ,antiquity of the ,human  
,race implied by that ,fossil4          
,successive ,periods of ,volcanic       
,action in ,central ,france4   ,with    
what ,changes in the ,mammalian ,fauna  
they correspond4   ,the ,elephas        
meridionalis anterior in ,time to the   
,implement-bearing      ,gravel of ,st4 
,acheul4   ,authenticity of the ,human  
,fossil of ,natchez on the ,mississippi 
discussed4   ,the ,natchez ,deposit1    
containing ,bones of ,mastodon and      
,megalonyx1      probably not older than
 the ,flint ,implements of ,st4 ,acheul4
     ,,chap4 #ab4    ,,antiquity ,,of   
,,man ,,relatively ,,to ,,the ,,glacial 
,,period      ,,and ,,to ,,the          
,,existing ,,fauna ,,and ,,flora4       
,chronological ,relation of the ,glacial
 ,period1 and the earliest      known   
,signs of ,man's ,appearance in ,europe4
   ,series of ,tertiary ,deposits in    

,norfolk and ,suffolk immediately       
antecedent to the ,glacial ,period4     
,gradual ,refrigeration of ,climate     
proved by the ,marine ,shells      of   
successive ,groups4   ,marine ,newer    
,pliocene ,shells of ,northern          
,character near ,woodbridge4   ,section 
of the ,norfolk ,cliffs4   ,norwich     
,crag4   ,forest ,bed and ,fluvio-marine
 ,strata4   ,fossil ,plants and         
,mammalia of the same4   ,overlying     
,boulder ,clay and ,contorted ,drift4   
,newer freshwater ,formation of         
,mundesley compared to that of ,hoxne4  
,great ,oscillations of ,level implied  
by the ,series of ,strata      in the   
,norfolk ,cliffs4   ,earliest known     
,date of ,man long subsequent to the    
existing      ,fauna and ,flora4        
,,chap4 #ac4    ,,chronological         
,,relations ,,of ,,the ,,glacial        
,,period      ,,and ,,the ,,earliest    
,,signs ,,of ,,man',s ,,appearance ,,in 
,,europe4    ,chronological ,relations  
of the ,close of the ,glacial ,period   

and the earliest geological ,signs of   
the ,appearance of ,man4   ,effects of  
,glaciers and ,icebergs in polishing and
 scoring ,rocks4   ,scandinavia once    
encrusted with ,ice like ,greenland4    
,outward ,movement of ,continental ,ice 
in ,greenland4   ,mild ,climate of      
,greenland in the ,miocene ,period4     
,erratics of ,recent ,period in ,sweden4
   ,glacial ,state of ,sweden in the    
,pleistocene ,period4   ,scotland       
formerly encrusted with ,ice4   ,its    
subsequent ,submergence and             
,re-elevation4   ,latest ,changes       
produced by ,glaciers in ,scotland4     
,remains of the ,mammoth and ,reindeer  
in ,scotch ,boulder ,clay4   ,parallel  
,roads of ,glen ,roy formed in ,glacier 
,lakes4   ,comparatively modern ,date of
 these ,shelves4     ,,chap4 #ad4       
,,chronological ,,relations ,,of ,,the  
,,glacial ,,period      ,,and ,,the     
,,earliest ,,signs ,,of ,,man',s        
,,appearance ,,in ,,europe--continued4  
,signs of extinct ,glaciers in ,wales4  

,great ,submergence of ,wales during the
 ,glacial ,period       proved by       
,marine ,shells4   ,still greater       
,depression inferred from ,stratified   
,drift4   ,scarcity of ,organic ,remains
 in ,glacial ,formations4   ,signs of   
extinct ,glaciers in ,england4   ,ice   
,action in ,ireland4   ,maps            
illustrating successive ,revolutions in 
,physical ,geography      during the    
,pleistocene ,period4   ,southernmost   
,extent of ,erratics in ,england4       
,successive ,periods of ,junction and   
,separation of ,england1 ,ireland1      
and the ,continent4   ,time required for
 these ,changes4   ,probable ,causes of 
the ,upheaval and ,subsidence of the    
,earth's ,crust4   ,antiquity of ,man   
considered in relation to the ,age of   
the existing      ,fauna and ,flora4    
,,chap4 #ae4    ,,extinct ,,glaciers    
,,of ,,the ,,alps ,,and ,,their         
,,chronological ,,relation      ,,to    
,,the ,,human ,,period4    ,extinct     
,glaciers of ,switzerland4   ,alpine    

,erratic ,blocks on the ,jura4   ,not   
transported by floating ,ice4   ,extinct
 ,glaciers of the ,italian ,side of the 
,alps4   ,theory of the ,origin of      
,lake-,basins by the erosive ,action    
of ,glaciers considered4   ,successive  
phases in the ,development of ,glacial  
,action in the ,alps4   ,probable       
,relation of these to the earliest known
 ,date of ,man4   ,correspondence of the
 same with successive ,changes in the   
,glacial ,condition of the ,scandinavian
 and ,british ,mountains4   ,cold       
,period in ,sicily and ,syria4          
,,chap4 #af4    ,,human ,,remains ,,in  
,,the ,,loess1 ,,and ,,their ,,probable 
,,age4    ,nature1 ,origin1 and ,age of 
the ,loess of the ,rhine and ,danube4   
,impalpable ,mud produced by the        
,grinding ,action of ,glaciers4         
,dispersion of this ,mud at the ,period 
of the ,retreat of the      great       
,alpine ,glaciers4   ,continuity of the 
,loess from ,switzerland to the ,low    
,countries4   ,characteristic ,organic  

,remains not ,lacustrine4   ,alpine     
,gravel in the ,valley of the ,rhine    
covered by ,loess4   ,geographical      
,distribution of the ,loess and its     
,height above the ,sea4   ,fossil       
,mammalia4   ,loess of the ,danube4     
,oscillations in the ,level of the ,alps
 and lower ,country required      to    
explain the ,formation and ,denudation  
of the ,loess4   ,more rapid ,movement  
of the ,inland ,country4   ,the same    
,depression and ,upheaval might account 
for the      ,advance and ,retreat of   
the ,alpine ,glaciers4   ,himalayan ,mud
 of the ,plains of the ,ganges compared 
to      ,european ,loess4   ,human      
,remains in ,loess near ,maestricht1 and
 their probable      ,antiquity4        
,,chap4 #ag4    ,,post-,,glacial        
,,dislocations ,,and ,,foldings ,,of    
,,cretaceous ,,and      ,,drift ,,strata
 ,,in ,,the ,,island ,,of ,,moen1 ,,in  
,,denmark4    ,geological ,structure of 
the ,island of ,moen4   ,great          
,disturbances of the ,chalk posterior in

 ,date to the      ,glacial ,drift1 with
 ,recent ,shells4   ,m4 ,puggaard's     
,sections of the ,cliffs of ,moen4      
,flexures and ,faults common to the     
,chalk and ,glacial ,drift4   ,different
 ,direction of the ,lines of successive 
,movement1      ,fracture1 and ,flexure4
   ,undisturbed ,condition of the ,rocks
 in the adjoining ,danish ,islands4     
,unequal ,movements of ,upheaval in     
,finmark4   ,earthquake of ,new ,zealand
 in #ahee4   ,predominance in all ,ages 
of uniform ,continental ,movements      
over those by which the ,rocks are      
locally convulsed4     ,,chap4 #ah4     
,,the ,,glacial ,,period ,,in ,,north   
,,america4    ,post-glacial ,strata     
containing ,remains of ,mastodon        
giganteus      in ,north ,america4      
,scarcity of ,marine ,shells in ,glacial
 ,drift of ,canada and the      ,united 
,states4   ,greater southern ,extension 
of ,ice-action in ,north ,america than  
in ,europe4   ,trains of ,erratic       
,blocks of vast ,size in ,berkshire1    

,massachusetts4   ,description of their 
,linear ,arrangement and ,points of     
,departure4   ,their ,transportation    
referred to ,floating and ,coast ,ice4  
,general ,remarks on the ,causes of     
former ,changes of ,climate      at     
successive geological ,epochs4          
,supposed ,effects of the ,diversion of 
the ,gulf ,stream in a      ,northerly  
instead of ,north-,easterly ,direction4 
,development of extreme ,cold on the    
opposite ,sides of the ,atlantic      in
 the ,glacial period not strictly       
simultaneous4   ,effect of ,marine      
,currents on ,climate4   ,pleistocene   
,submergence of the ,sahara4     ,,chap4
 #ai4    ,,recapitulation ,,of          
,,geological ,,proofs ,,of ,,man',s     
,,antiquity4    ,recapitulation of      
,results arrived at in the earlier      
,chapters4   ,ages of ,stone and        
,bronze4   ,danish ,peat and            
,kitchen-,middens4   ,swiss             
,lake-,dwellings4   ,local ,changes in  
,vegetation and in the wild and         

domesticated      ,animals and in       
,physical ,geography coeval with the    
,age of      ,bronze and the later      
,stone ,period4   ,estimates of the     
positive ,date of some ,deposits of the 
later      ,stone ,period4   ,ancient   
,division of the ,age of ,stone of ,st4 
,acheul and ,aurignac4   ,migrations of 
,man in that ,period from the ,continent
 to ,england      in ,post-,glacial     
,times4   ,slow ,rate of ,progress in   
barbarous ,ages4   ,doctrine of the     
superior ,intelligence and ,endowments  
of the      original ,stock of ,mankind 
considered4   ,opinions of the ,greeks  
and ,romans1 and their ,coincidence with
      those of the ,modern              
,progressionist4     ,,chap4 #bj4       
,,theories ,,of ,,progression ,,and     
,,transmutation4    ,antiquity and      
,persistence in ,character of the       
existing ,races      of ,mankind4       
,theory of their ,unity of ,origin      
considered4   ,bearing of the ,diversity
 of ,races on the ,doctrine of          

,transmutation4   ,difficulty of        
defining the ,terms ,species and ,race4 
,lamarck's ,introduction of the ,element
 of ,time into the ,definition      of a
 ,species4   ,his ,theory of ,variation 
and ,progression4   ,objections to his  
,theory1 how far answered4   ,arguments 
of modern ,writers in favour of         
,progression in the      ,animal and    
,vegetable ,world4   ,the old ,landmarks
 supposed to indicate the first         
,appearance of ,man1      and of        
different ,classes of ,animals1 found to
 be erroneous4   ,yet the ,theory of an 
advancing ,series of ,organic ,beings   
not      inconsistent with ,facts4      
,earliest known ,fossil ,mammalia of low
 ,grade4   ,no ,vertebrata as yet       
discovered in the oldest ,fossiliferous 
,rocks4   ,objections to the ,theory of 
,progression considered4   ,causes of   
the ,popularity of the ,doctrine of     
,progression as      compared to that of
 ,transmutation4     ,,chap4 #ba4       
,,on ,,the ,,origin ,,of ,,species ,,by 

,,variation ,,and ,,natural ,,selection4
    ,mr4 ,darwin's ,theory of the       
,origin of ,species by ,natural         
,selection4   ,memoir by ,mr4 ,wallace4 
,manner in which favoured ,races prevail
 in the ,struggle for      ,existence4  
,formation of new ,races by breeding4   
,hypotheses of definite and indefinite  
,modifiability equally      arbitrary4  
,competition and ,extinction of ,races4 
,progression not a necessary            
,accompaniment of ,variation4           
,distinct ,classes of ,phenomena which  
,natural ,selection explains4   ,unity  
of ,type1 ,rudimentary ,organs1         
,geographical ,distribution1            
,relation of the extinct to the living  
,fauna and ,flora1      and mutual      
,relations of successive ,groups of     
,fossil ,forms4   ,light thrown on      
,embryological ,development by ,natural 
,selection4   ,why large ,genera have   
more variable ,species than small ones4 
,dr4 ,hooker on the ,evidence afforded  
by the ,vegetable ,kingdom      in      

favour of ,creation by ,variation4      
,steenstrup on alternation of           
,generations4   ,how far the ,doctrine  
of ,independent ,creation is opposed to 
the      ,laws now governing the        
,migration of ,species4     ,,chap4 #bb4
    ,,objections ,,to ,,the ,,hypothesis
 ,,of ,,transmutation ,,considered4     
,statement of ,objections to the        
,hypothesis of ,transmutation           
founded on the ,absence of ,intermediate
 ,forms4   ,genera of which the ,species
 are closely allied4   ,occasional      
,discovery of the missing ,links in a   
,fossil ,state4   ,davidson's ,monograph
 on the ,brachiopoda4   ,why the        
,gradational ,forms1 when found1 are not
 accepted as      ,evidence of          
,transmutation4   ,gaps caused by       
,extinction of ,races and ,species4     
,vast ,tertiary ,periods during which   
this ,extinction has been going      on 
in the ,fauna and ,flora now existing4  
,genealogical ,bond between ,miocene and
 ,recent ,plants and ,insects4          

,fossils of ,oeningen4   ,species of    
,insects in ,britain and ,north ,america
 represented by      distinct           
,varieties4   ,falconer's ,monograph on 
living and fossil ,elephants4   ,fossil 
,species and ,genera of the ,horse      
,tribe in ,north and      ,south        
,america4   ,relation of the ,pliocene  
,mammalia of ,north ,america1 ,asia1    
and ,europe4   ,species of ,mammalia1   
though less persistent than the         
,mollusca1      change slowly4          
,arguments for and against              
,transmutation derived from the         
,absence of ,mammalia in ,islands4      
,imperfection of the ,geological        
,record4   ,intercalation of newly      
discovered ,formation of intermediate   
,age      in the chronological ,series4 
,reference of the ,st4 ,cassian ,beds to
 the ,triassic ,periods4   ,discovery of
 new organic ,types4   ,feathered       
,archaeopteryx of the ,oolite4          
,,chap4 #bc4    ,,origin ,,and          
,,development ,,of ,,languages ,,and    

,,species ,,compared4    ,aryan         
,hypothesis and ,controversy4   ,the    
,races of ,mankind change more slowly   
than their ,languages4   ,theory of the 
gradual ,origin of ,languages4          
,difficulty of defining what is meant by
 a ,language as distinct      from a    
,dialect4   ,great ,number of extinct   
and living ,tongues4   ,no ,european    
,language a ,thousand ,years old4       
,gaps between ,languages1 how caused4   
,imperfection of the ,record4   ,changes
 always in ,progress4   ,struggle for   
,existence between rival ,terms and     
,dialects4   ,causes of ,selection4     
,each ,language formed slowly in a      
single ,geographical ,area4   ,may die  
out gradually or suddenly4   ,once lost 
can never be revived4   ,mode of ,origin
 of ,languages and ,species a ,mystery4 
,speculations as to the ,number of      
original ,languages or      ,species    
unprofitable4     ,,chap4 #bd4          
,,bearing ,,of ,,the ,,doctrine ,,of    
,,transmutation ,,on ,,the ,,origin ,,of

 ,,man1      ,,and ,,his ,,place ,,in   
,,the ,,creation4    ,whether ,man can  
be regarded as an ,exception to the     
,rule if the      ,doctrine of          
,transmutation be embraced for the rest 
of the      ,animal ,kingdom4           
,zoological ,relations of ,man to other 
,mammalia4   ,systems of                
,classification4   ,term ,quadrumanous1 
why deceptive4   ,whether the ,structure
 of the ,human ,brain entitles ,man to  
form      a distinct ,sub-class of the  
,mammalia4   ,intelligence of the lower 
,animals compared to the ,intellect and 
,reason of ,man4   ,grounds on which    
,man has been referred to a distinct    
,kingdom      of ,nature4   ,immaterial 
,principle common to ,man and ,animals4 
,non-discovery of intermediate ,links   
among ,fossil ,anthropomorphous         
,species4   ,hallam on the compound     
,nature of ,man1 and his ,place in the  
,creation4   ,great ,inequality of      
mental ,endowment in different ,human   
,races and      ,individuals developed  

by ,variation and ordinary ,generation4 
,how far a corresponding ,divergence in 
physical ,structure may      result from
 the ,working of the same ,causes4      
,concluding remarks4   ,,notes4         
,,plates ,,and ,,figures4  ,,plate #a4  
,a ,,village ,,built ,,on ,,piles ,,in  
,a ,,swiss ,,lake4  ,,figure #a4        
,,section ,,of ,,the ,,neanderthal      
,,cave4  ,,figure #b4 ,,side ,,view ,,of
 ,,the ,,cast ,,of ,,part ,,of ,a       
,,human ,,skull ,,found ,,by ,,dr4      
,,schmerling ,,embedded ,,amongst ,,the 
,,remains ,,of ,,extinct ,,mammalia ,,in
 ,,the ,,cave ,,of ,,engis4  ,,figure   
#c4 ,,side ,,view ,,of ,,the ,,cast ,,of
 ,a ,,part ,,of ,a ,,human ,,skull      
,,from ,a ,,cave ,,in ,,the             
,,neanderthal4  ,,figure #d4 ,,outline  
,,of ,,the ,,skull ,,of ,,an ,,adult    
,,chimpanzee1 ,,of ,,that ,,from ,,the  
,,neanderthal1 ,,and ,,of ,,that ,,of ,a
 ,,european4  ,,figure #e4 ,,skull      
,,associated ,,with ,,ground ,,flint    
,,implements4  ,,figure #f4 ,,outlines  

,,of ,,the ,,skull ,,from ,,the         
,,neanderthal1 ,,of ,,an ,,australian   
,,skull ,,from ,,port ,,adelaide1       
,,and ,,of ,,the ,,skull ,,from ,,the   
,,cave ,,of ,,engis4  ,,figure #g4      
,,section ,,across ,,the ,,valley ,,of  
,,the ,,somme ,,in ,,picardy4  ,,figure 
#h4 ,,flint ,,implement ,,from ,,st4    
,,acheul1 ,,near ,,amiens1 ,,of ,,the   
,,spear-,,head ,,shape4  ,,figure #i4   
,,oval-,,shaped ,,flint ,,hatchet ,,from
 ,,mautort4  ,,figure #aj4 ,,flint      
,,tool ,,from ,,st4 ,,acheul4  ,,figures
 #aa1 #ab ,,and #ac4 ,,dendrites ,,on   
,,surfaces ,,of ,,flint ,,hatchets ,,in 
,,the ,,drift ,,of ,,st4 ,,acheul4      
,,figure #ad4 ,,flint ,,knife ,,or      
,,flake ,,from ,,below ,,the ,,sand     
,,containing ,cyrena fluminalis4        
,,figure #ae4 ,,fossils ,,of ,,the      
,,white ,,chalk4  ,,figure #af4         
,,section ,,of ,,fluvio-,,marine        
,,strata1 ,,containing ,,flint          
,,implements ,,and ,,bones ,,of         
,,extinct ,,mammalia4  ,,figure #ag4    

,cyrena fluminalis1 ,o4,f4 ,muller1 sp4 
,,figure #ah4 ,elephas primigenius4     
,,figure #ai4 ,elephas antiquus1        
,falconer4  ,,figure #bj4 ,elephas      
meridionalis1 ,nesti4  ,,figure #ba4    
,,section ,,of ,,gravel ,,pit           
,,containing ,,flint ,,implements ,,at  
,,st4 ,,acheul4  ,,figure #bb4          
,,contorted ,,fluviatile ,,strata ,,at  
,,st4 ,,acheul4  ,,figure #bc4 ,,section
 ,,across ,,the ,,valley ,,of ,,the     
,,ouse4  ,,figure #bd4 ,,section        
,,showing ,,the ,,position ,,of ,,the   
,,flint ,,weapons ,,at ,,hoxne4         
,,figure #be4 ,,section ,,of ,,part ,,of
 ,,the ,,hill ,,of ,,fajoles4  ,,figure 
#bf4 ,,section ,,through ,,the          
,,alluvial ,,plain ,,of ,,the           
,,mississippi4  ,,figure #bg4 ,,diagram 
,,to ,,illustrate ,,the ,,general       
,,succession ,,of ,,the ,,strata ,,in   
,,the ,,norfolk ,,cliffs4  ,,figure #bh4
 ,cyclas 7,pisidium7 amnica var4787     
,,figure #bi4 ,,cliff #ej ,,feet ,,high 
,,between ,,bacton ,,gap ,,and          

,,mundesley4  ,,figure #cj4 ,,folding   
,,of ,,the ,,strata ,,between ,,east    
,,and ,,west ,,runton4  ,,figure #ca4   
,,section ,,of ,,concentric ,,beds      
,,west ,,of ,,cromer4  ,,figure #cb4    
,,included ,,pinnacle ,,of ,,chalk ,,at 
,,old ,,hythe ,,point4  ,,figure #cc4   
,,section ,,of ,,the ,,newer            
,,fresh-,,water ,,formation ,,in ,,the  
,,cliffs ,,at ,,mundesley4  ,,figure    
#cd4 ,paludina marginata1 ,michaud 7,p4 
minuta1 ,strickland74 ,hydrobia         
marginata4  ,,figure #ce4 ,,oval ,,and  
,,flattish ,,pebbles4  ,,plate #b4      
,,view ,,of ,,the ,,mouths ,,of ,,glen  
,,roy ,,and ,,glen ,,spean4  ,,figure   
#cf4 ,,map ,,of ,,the ,,parallel ,,roads
 ,,of ,,glen ,,roy4  ,,figure #cg4      
,,section ,,through ,,side ,,of ,,loch4 
,,figure #ch4 ,,dome-,,shaped ,,rocks1  
,,or ,,roches ,,moutonees4  ,,figure    
#ci4 ,,map ,,of ,,the ,,british ,,isles 
,,and ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,north-,,west  
,,of ,,europe1 ,,showing ,,the ,,great  
,,amount ,,of ,,supposed ,,submergence  

,,of ,,land ,,beneath ,,the ,,sea       
,,during ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,glacial    
,,period4  ,,figure #dj4 ,,map ,,showing
 ,,what ,,parts ,,of ,,the ,,british    
,,islands ,,would ,,remain ,,above      
,,water ,,after ,a ,,subsidence ,,of    
,,the ,,area ,,to ,,the ,,extent ,,of   
#fjj ,,feet4  ,,figure #da4 ,,map ,,of  
,,part ,,of ,,the ,,north-,,west ,,of   
,,europe1 ,,including ,,the ,,british   
,,isles1 ,,showing ,,the ,,extent ,,of  
,,sea ,,which ,,would ,,become    ,,land
 ,,if ,,there ,,were ,a ,,general ,,rise
 ,,of ,,the ,,area ,,to ,,the ,,extent  
,,of    #fjj ,,feet4  ,,figure #db4     
,,map ,,showing ,,the ,,supposed        
,,course ,,of ,,the ,,ancient ,,and     
,,now ,,extinct ,,glacier ,,of ,,the    
,,rhone4  ,,figure #dc4 ,,map ,,of ,,the
 ,,moraines ,,of ,,extinct ,,glaciers   
,,extending ,,from ,,the ,,alps ,,into  
,,the ,,plains ,,of ,,the ,,po ,,near   
,,turin4  ,,figure #dd4 ,succinea       
oblonga4  ,,figure #de4 ,pupa muscorum4 
,,figure #df4 ,helix hispida1 ,lin42 ,h4

 plebeia1 ,drap4  ,,figure #dg4         
,,southern ,,extremity ,,of ,,moens     
,,klint4  ,,figure #dh4 ,,section ,,of  
,,moens ,,klint4  ,,figure #di4         
,,post-,,glacial ,,disturbances ,,of    
,,vertical1 ,,folded1 ,,and ,,shifted   
,,strata ,,of ,,chalk ,,and ,,drift1    
,,in ,,the ,,dronningestol4  ,,figure   
#ej4 ,,map ,,showing ,,the ,,relative   
,,position ,,and ,,direction ,,of       
,,seven ,,trains ,,of ,,erratic ,,blocks
 ,,in ,,berkshire1 ,,massachusetts1     
,,and ,,in ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,state    
,,of ,,new ,,york4  ,,figure #ea4       
,,erratic ,,dome-,,shaped ,,block ,,of  
,,compact ,,chloritic ,,rock4  ,,figure 
#eb4 ,,section ,,showing ,,the          
,,position ,,of ,,the ,,block ,,in      
,,figure #ea4  ,,figure #ec4 ,,section  
,,through ,,canaan ,,and ,,richmond     
,,valleys ,,at ,a ,,time ,,when ,,they  
,,were ,,marine ,,channels4  ,,figure   
#ed4 ,,upper ,,surface ,,of ,,brain ,,of
 ,,chimpanzee1 ,,distorted4  ,,figure   
#ee4 ,,side ,,view ,,of ,,brain ,,of    

,,chimpanzee1 ,,distorted4  ,,figure    
#ef4 ,,correct ,,side ,,view ,,of       
,,chimpanzee',s ,,brain4  ,,figure #eg4 
,,correct ,,view ,,of ,,upper ,,surface 
,,of ,,chimpanzee',s ,,brain4  ,,figure 
#eh4 ,,side ,,view ,,of ,,human         
,,brain47     ,,geological ,,evidence   
,,of ,,the ,,antiquity ,,of ,,man4      
,,chapter #a4 -- ,,introductory4        
,preliminary ,remarks on the ,subjects  
treated of in this ,work4   ,definition 
of the ,terms ,recent and ,pleistocene4 
,tabular ,view of the entire ,series of 
,fossiliferous ,strata4  ,no subject has
 lately excited more curiosity and      
general interest among geologists and   
the public than the question of the     
,antiquity of the ,human ,race--whether 
or no we have sufficient evidence in    
caves1 or in the superficial deposits   
commonly called drift or diluvium1 to   
prove the former co-existence of man    
with certain extinct mammalia4 ,for the 
last half-century the occasional        
occurrence in various parts of ,europe  

of the bones of ,man or the works of his
 hands in cave-breccias and stalagmites1
 associated with the remains of the     
extinct hyaena1 bear1 elephant1 or      
rhinoceros1 has given rise to a         
suspicion that the date of ,man must be 
carried farther back than we had        
heretofore imagined4 ,on the other hand 
extreme reluctance was naturally felt on
 the part of scientific reasoners to    
admit the validity of such evidence1    
seeing that so many caves have been     
inhabited by a succession of tenants and
 have been selected by ,man as a place  
not only of domicile1 but of sepulture1 
while some caves have also served as the
 channels through which the waters of   
occasional land-floods or engulfed      
rivers have flowed1 so that the remains 
of living beings which have peopled the 
district at more than one era may have  
subsequently been mingled in such       
caverns and confounded together in one  
and the same deposit4 ,but the facts    
brought to light in #aheh1 during the   

systematic investigation of the ,brixham
 cave1 near ,torquay in ,devonshire1    
which will be described in the sequel1  
excited anew the curiosity of the       
,british public and prepared the way for
 a general admission that scepticism in 
regard to the bearing of cave evidence  
in favour of the antiquity of ,man had  
previously been pushed to an extreme4   
,since that period many of the facts    
formerly adduced in favour of the       
co-existence in ancient times of ,man   
with certain species of mammalia long   
since extinct have been re-examined in  
,england and on the ,continent1 and new 
cases bearing on the same question1     
whether relating to caves or to alluvial
 strata in valleys1 have been brought to
 light4 ,to qualify myself for the      
appreciation and discussion of these    
cases1 ,i have visited in the course of 
the last three years many parts of      
,england1 ,france1 and ,belgium1 and    
have communicated personally or by      
letter with not a few of the geologists1

 ,english and foreign1 who have taken   
part in these researches4 ,besides      
explaining in the present volume the    
results of this inquiry1 ,i shall give a
 description of the glacial formations  
of ,europe and ,north ,america1 that ,i 
may allude to the theories entertained  
respecting their origin1 and consider   
their probable relations in a           
chronological point of view to the human
 epoch1 and why throughout a great part 
of the northern hemisphere they so often
 interpose an abrupt barrier to all     
attempts to trace farther back into the 
past the signs of the existence of ,man 
upon the earth4  ,in the concluding     
chapters ,i shall offer a few remarks on
 the recent modifications of the        
,lamarckian theory of progressive       
development and transmutation1 which are
 suggested by ,mr4 ,darwin's work on the
 ,origin of ,species by ,variation and  
,natural ,selection1 and the bearing of 
this hypothesis on the different races  
of mankind and their connection with    

other parts of the animal kingdom4      
,,nomenclature4  ,some preliminary      
explanation of the nomenclature adopted 
in the following pages will be          
indispensable1 that the meaning attached
 to the terms ,recent1 ,pleistocene1 and
 ,post-,tertiary may be correctly       
understood4 #a  ,previously to the year 
#ahcc1 when ,i published the third      
volume of the ,principles of ,geology1  
the strata called ,tertiary had been    
divided by geologists into ,lower1      
,middle1 and ,upper2 the ,lower         
comprising the oldest formations of the 
environs of ,paris and ,london1 with    
others of like age2 the ,middle1 those  
of ,bordeaux and ,touraine2 and the     
,upper1 all that lay above or were newer
 than the last-mentioned group4  ,when  
engaged in #ahbh in preparing for the   
press the treatise on geology above     
alluded to1 ,i conceived the idea of    
classing the whole of this series of    
strata according to the different       
degrees of affinity which their fossil  

testacea bore to the living fauna4      
,having obtained information on this    
subject during my travels on the        
,continent1 ,i learnt that ,m4 ,deshayes
 of ,paris1 already celebrated as a     
conchologist1 had been led independently
 by the study of a large collection of  
,recent and fossil shells to very       
similar views respecting the possibility
 of arranging the ,tertiary formations  
in chronological order1 according to the
 proportional number of species of      
shells identical with living ones1 which
 characterised each of the successive   
groups above mentioned4 ,after comparing
 #cjjj fossil species with #ejjj living 
ones1 the result arrived at was1 that in
 the lower ,tertiary strata there were  
about #c #a_/b per cent identical with  
,recent2 in the middle ,tertiary 7the   
faluns of the ,loire and ,gironde71     
about #ag per cent2 and in the upper    
tertiary1 from #ce to #ej1 and sometimes
 in the most modern beds as much as #ij 
to #ie per cent4  ,for the sake of      

clearness and brevity1 ,i proposed to   
give short technical names to these sets
 of strata1 or the periods to which they
 respectively belonged4 ,i called the   
first or oldest of them ,eocene1 the    
second ,miocene1 and the third          
,pliocene4 ,the first of the above      
terms1 ,eocene1 is derived from ,greek  
eos1 dawn1 and ,greek kainos1 recent2   
because an extremely small proportion of
 the fossil shells of this period could 
be referred to living species1 so that  
this era seemed to indicate the dawn of 
the present testaceous fauna1 no living 
species of shells having been detected  
in the antecedent or ,secondary rocks4  
,some conchologists are now unwilling to
 allow that any ,eocene species of shell
 has really survived to our times so    
unaltered as to allow of its specific   
identification with a living species4 ,i
 cannot enter in this place into this   
wide controversy4 ,it is enough at      
present to remark that the character of 
the ,eocene fauna1 as contrasted with   

that of the antecedent ,secondary       
formations1 wears a very modern aspect1 
and that some able living conchologists 
still maintain that there are ,eocene   
shells not specifically distinguishable 
from those now extant2 though they may  
be fewer in number than was supposed in 
#ahcc4  ,the term ,miocene 7from ,greek 
meion1 less2 and ,greek kainos1 recent7 
is intended to express a minor          
proportion of ,recent species 7of       
testacea72 the term ,pliocene 7from     
,greek pleion1 more2 and ,greek kainos1 
recent71 a comparative plurality of the 
same4  ,it has sometimes been objected  
to this nomenclature that certain       
species of infusoria found in the chalk 
are still existing1 and1 on the other   
hand1 the ,miocene and ,older ,pliocene 
deposits often contain the remains of   
mammalia1 reptiles1 and fish1           
exclusively of extinct species4 ,but the
 reader must bear in mind that the terms
 ,eocene1 ,miocene1 and ,pliocene were  
originally invented with reference      

purely to conchological data1 and in    
that sense have always been and are     
still used by me4  ,since the first     
introduction of the terms above defined1
 the number of new living species of    
shells obtained from different parts of 
the globe has been exceedingly great1   
supplying fresh data for comparison1 and
 enabling the palaeontologist to correct
 many erroneous identifications of      
fossil and ,recent forms4 ,new species  
also have been collected in abundance   
from ,tertiary formations of every age1 
while newly discovered groups of strata 
have filled up gaps in the previously   
known series4 ,hence modifications and  
reforms have been called for in the     
classifications first proposed4 ,the    
,eocene1 ,miocene1 and ,pliocene periods
 have been made to comprehend certain   
sets of strata of which the fossils do  
not always conform strictly in the      
proportion of ,recent to extinct species
 with the definitions first given by me1
 or which are implied in the etymology  

of those terms4 ,these innovations have 
been treated of in my ,elements or      
,manual of ,elementary ,geology1 and in 
the ,supplement to the fifth edition of 
the same1 published in #ahei1 where some
 modifications of my classification1 as 
first proposed1 are introduced2 but ,i  
need not dwell on these on the present  
occasion1 as the only formations with   
which we shall be concerned in the      
present volume are those of the most    
modern date1 or the ,post-,tertiary4 ,it
 will be convenient to divide these into
 two groups1 the ,recent and the        
,pleistocene4 ,in the ,recent we may    
comprehend those deposits in which not  
only all the shells but all the fossil  
mammalia are of living species2 in the  
,pleistocene those strata in which1 the 
shells being ,recent1 a portion1 and    
often a considerable one1 of the        
accompanying fossil quadrupeds belongs  
to extinct species4  ,cases will occur  
where it may be scarcely possible to    
draw the line of demarcation between the

 ,newer ,pliocene and ,pleistocene1 or  
between the latter and the recent       
deposits2 and we must expect these      
difficulties to increase rather than    
diminish with every advance in our      
knowledge1 and in proportion as gaps are
 filled up in the series of geological  
records4  ,the annexed tabular view     
7,table #a_/a7 of the whole series of   
fossiliferous strata will enable the    
reader to see at a glance the           
chronological relation of the ,recent   
and ,pleistocene to the antecedent      
periods4 #b   ,,table #a_/a4            
,,stratified ,,rocks4  ,,kainozoic ,,or 
,,tertiary3 ,pleistocene and ,recent4   
,pliocene4   ,miocene4   ,oligocene4    
,eocene4  ,,mesozoic ,,or ,,secondary3  
,cretaceous4  ,jurassic4   ,triassic4   
,,palaeozoic ,,or ,,primary3 ,permian4  
,carboniferous4   ,devonian or old ,red 
,sandstone4   ,silurian4   ,ordovician4 
,cambrian4  ,,precambrian ,,or          
,,archaean4    ,,chapter #b4 -- ,,recent
 ,,period--,,danish ,,peat ,,and ,,shell

 ,,mounds--,,swiss ,,lake-,,dwellings4  
,illustration3 ,,plate #a4 ,a ,,village 
,,built ,,on ,,piles ,,in ,a ,,swiss    
,,lake    7,restored by ,dr4 ,f4        
,keller1 partly from ,dumont            
,d',urville's    ,sketch of similar     
habitations in ,new ,guinea47    ,works 
of ,art in ,danish ,peat-,mosses4       
,remains of three ,periods of           
,vegetation in the ,peat4   ,ages of    
,stone1 ,bronze1 and ,iron4             
,shell-,mounds or ancient ,refuse-,heaps
 of the ,danish ,islands4   ,change in  
geographical ,distribution of ,marine   
,mollusca      since their ,origin4     
,embedded ,remains of ,mammalia of      
,recent ,species4   ,human ,skulls of   
the same ,period4   ,swiss              
,lake-,dwellings built on ,piles4       
,stone and ,bronze ,implements found in 
them4   ,fossil ,cereals and other      
,plants4   ,remains of ,mammalia1 wild  
and domesticated4   ,no extinct         
,species4   ,chronological ,computations
 of the ,date of the ,bronze and        

,stone ,periods in ,switzerland4        
,lake-,dwellings1 or artificial ,islands
 called ,crannoges1     in ,ireland4    
,,works ,,of ,,art ,,in ,,danish ,,peat4
  ,when treating in the ,principles of  
,geology of the changes of the earth    
which have taken place in comparatively 
modern times1 ,i have spoken of the     
embedding of organic bodies and human   
remains in peat1 and explained under    
what conditions the growth of that      
vegetable substance is going on in      
northern and humid climates4 ,of late   
years1 since ,i first alluded to the    
subject1 more extensive investigations  
have been made into the history of the  
,danish peat-mosses4 ,of the results of 
these inquiries ,i shall give a brief   
abstract in the present chapter1 that we
 may afterwards compare them with       
deposits of older date1 which throw     
light on the antiquity of the human     
race4  ,the deposits of peat in         
,denmark199 varying in depth from #aj to
 #cj feet1 have been formed in hollows  

or depressions in the northern drift or 
boulder formation hereafter to be       
described4 799 ,an excellent account of 
these researches of ,danish naturalists 
and antiquaries has been drawn up by an 
able ,swiss geologist1 ,m4,a4 ,morlot1  
and will be found in the ,bulletin de la
 ,societe ,vaudoise des ,sci4 ,nat4 tome
 #f ,lausanne #ahfj47 ,the lowest       
stratum1 #b to #c feet thick1 consists  
of swamp-peat composed chiefly of moss  
or sphagnum1 above which lies another   
growth of peat1 not made up exclusively 
of aquatic or swamp plants4 ,around the 
borders of the bogs1 and at various     
depths in them1 lie trunks of trees1    
especially of the ,scotch fir 7,pinus   
sylvestris71 often #c feet in diameter1 
which must have grown on the margin of  
the peat-mosses1 and have frequently    
fallen into them4 ,this tree is not now1
 nor has ever been in historical times1 
a native of the ,danish ,islands1 and   
when introduced there has not thriven2  
yet it was evidently indigenous in the  

human period1 for ,steenstrup has taken 
out with his own hands a flint          
instrument from below a buried trunk of 
one of these pines4 ,it appears clear   
that the same ,scotch fir was afterwards
 supplanted by the sessile variety of   
the common oak1 of which many prostrate 
trunks occur in the peat at higher      
levels than the pines2 and still higher 
the pedunculated variety of the same oak
 7,quercus robur1 ,l47 occurs with the  
alder1 birch 7,betula verrucosa1        
,ehrh471 and hazel4 ,the oak has now in 
its turn been almost superseded in      
,denmark by the common beech4 ,other    
trees1 such as the white birch 7,betula 
alba71 characterise the lower part of   
the bogs1 and disappear from the higher2
 while others again1 like the aspen     
7,populus tremula71 occur at all levels1
 and still flourish in ,denmark4 ,all   
the land and freshwater shells1 and all 
the mammalia as well as the plants1     
whose remains occur buried in the       
,danish peat1 are of ,recent species4 #c

  ,it has been stated1 that a stone     
implement was found under a buried      
,scotch fir at a great depth in the     
peat4 ,by collecting and studying a vast
 variety of such implements1 and other  
articles of human workmanship preserved 
in peat and in sand-dunes on the coast1 
as also in certain shell-mounds of the  
aborigines presently to be described1   
the ,danish and ,swedish antiquaries and
 naturalists1 ,,mm4 ,nilsson1           
,steenstrup1 ,forchhammer1 ,thomsen1    
,worsaae1 and others1 have succeeded in 
establishing a chronological succession 
of periods1 which they have called the  
ages of stone1 of bronze1 and of iron1  
named from the materials which have each
 in their turn served for the           
fabrication of implements4  ,the age of 
stone in ,denmark coincided with the    
period of the first vegetation1 or that 
of the ,scotch fir1 and in part at least
 with the second vegetation1 or that of 
the oak4 ,but a considerable portion of 
the oak epoch coincided with the age of 

bronze1 for swords and shields of that  
metal1 now in the ,museum of            
,copenhagen1 have been taken out of peat
 in which oaks abound4 ,the age of iron 
corresponded more nearly with that of   
the beech tree499       799 ,morlot     
,bulletin de la ,societe ,vaudoise des  
,sci4 ,nat4      tome #f page #bib47 #d 
,m4 ,morlot1 to whom we are indebted for
 a masterly sketch of the recent        
progress of this new line of research1  
followed up with so much success in     
,scandinavia and ,switzerland1 observes 
that the introduction of the first tools
 made of bronze among a people          
previously ignorant of the use of       
metals1 implies a great advance in the  
arts1 for bronze is an alloy of about   
nine parts of copper and one of tin2 and
 although the former metal1 copper1 is  
by no means rare1 and is occasionally   
found pure or in a native state1 tin is 
not only scarce but never occurs native4
 ,to detect the existence of this metal 
in its ore1 then to disengage it from   

the matrix1 and finally1 after blending 
it in due proportion with copper1 to    
cast the fused mixture in a mould1      
allowing time for it to acquire hardness
 by slow cooling1 all this bespeaks no  
small sagacity and skilful manipulation4
 ,accordingly1 the pottery found        
associated with weapons of bronze is of 
a more ornamental and tasteful style    
than any which belongs to the age of    
stone4 ,some of the moulds in which the 
bronze instruments were cast1 and tags1 
as they are called1 of bronze1 which are
 formed in the hole through which the   
fused metal was poured1 have been found4
 ,the number and variety of objects     
belonging to the age of bronze indicates
 its long duration1 as does the progress
 in the arts implied by the rudeness of 
the earlier tools1 often mere           
repetitions of those of the stone age1  
as contrasted with the more skilfully   
worked weapons of a later stage of the  
same period4  ,it has been suggested    
that an age of copper must always have  

intervened between that of stone and    
bronze2 but if so1 the interval seems to
 have been short in ,europe1 owing      
apparently to the territory occupied by 
the aboriginal inhabitants having been  
invaded and conquered by a people coming
 from the ,east1 to whom the use of     
swords1 spears1 and other weapons of    
bronze was familiar4 ,hatchets1 however1
 of copper have been found in the       
,danish peat4  ,the next stage of       
improvement1 or that manifested by the  
substitution of iron for bronze1        
indicates another stride in the progress
 of the arts4 ,iron never presents      
itself1 except in meteorites1 in a      
native state1 so that to recognise its  
ores1 and then to separate the metal    
from its matrix1 demands no             
inconsiderable exercise of the powers of
 observation and invention4 ,to fuse the
 ore requires an intense heat1 not to be
 obtained without artificial appliances1
 such as pipes inflated by the human    
breath1 or bellows1 or some other       

suitable machinery4   ,,danish          
,,shell-,,mounds1 ,,or                  
,,kjokkenmodding499       799 ,mr4 ,john
 ,lubbock published1 after these sheets 
were      written1 an able paper on the 
,danish ,shell-mounds in the            
,october number of the ,natural ,history
 ,review #ahfa page      #dhi1 in which 
he has described the results of a recent
 visit      to ,denmark1 made by him in 
company with ,mr4 ,busk47  ,in addition 
to the peat-mosses1 another class of    
memorials found in ,denmark has thrown  
light on the pre-historical age4 ,at    
certain points along the shores of      
nearly all the ,danish islands1 mounds  
may be seen1 consisting chiefly of      
thousands of cast-away shells of the    
oyster1 cockle1 and other molluscs of   
the same species as those which are now 
eaten by ,man4 ,these shells are        
plentifully mixed up with the bones of  
various quadrupeds1 birds1 and fish1    
which served as the food of the rude    
hunters and fishers by whom the mounds  

were accumulated4 ,i have seen similar  
large heaps of oysters1 and other marine
 shells with interspersed stone         
implements1 near the seashore1 both in  
,massachusetts and in ,georgia1         
,u4,s4,a41 left by the native ,north    
,american ,indians at points near to    
which they were in the habit of pitching
 their wigwams for centuries before the 
white man arrived4  ,such accumulations 
are called by the ,danes1               
,kjokkenmodding1 or kitchen-middens4    
,scattered all through them are flint   
knives1 hatchets1 and other instruments 
of stone1 horn1 wood1 and bone1 with    
fragments of coarse pottery1 mixed with 
charcoal and cinders1 but never any     
implements of bronze1 still less of     
iron4 ,the stone hatchets and knives had
 been sharpened by rubbing1 and in this 
respect are one degree less rude than   
those of an older date1 associated in   
,france with the bones of extinct       
mammalia1 of which more in the sequel4  
,the mounds vary in height from #c to   

#aj feet1 and in area are some of them  
#ajjj feet long1 and from #aej to #bjj  
wide4 ,they are rarely placed more than 
#aj feet above the level of the sea1 and
 are confined to its immediate          
neighbourhood1 or if not 7and there are 
cases where they are several miles from 
the shore71 the distance is ascribable  
to the entrance of a small stream1 which
 has deposited sediment1 or to the      
growth of a peaty swamp1 by which the   
land has been made to advance on the    
,baltic1 as it is still doing in many   
places1 aided1 according to ,puggaard1  
by a very slow upheaval of the whole    
country at the rate of #b or #c inches  
in a century4  ,there is also another   
geographical fact equally in favour of  
the antiquity of the mounds1 namely1    
that they are wanting on those parts of 
the coast which border the ,western     
,ocean1 or exactly where the waves are  
now slowly eating away the land4 ,there 
is every reason to presume that         
originally there were stations along the

 coast of the ,north ,sea as well as    
that of the ,baltic1 but by the gradual 
undermining of the cliffs they have all 
been swept away4  ,another striking     
proof1 perhaps the most conclusive of   
all1 that the kitchen-middens are very  
old1 is derived from the character of   
their embedded shells4 ,these consist   
entirely of living species2 but1 in the 
first place1 the common eatable oyster  
is among them1 attaining its full size1 
whereas the same ,ostrea edulis cannot  
live at present in the brackish waters  
of the ,baltic except near its entrance1
 where1 whenever a north-westerly gale  
prevails1 a current setting in from the 
ocean pours in a great body of salt     
water4 ,yet it seems that during the    
whole time of the accumulation of the   
kitchen-middens the oyster flourished in
 places from which it is now excluded4  
,in like manner the eatable cockle1     
mussel1 and periwinkle 7,cardium edule1 
,mytilus edulis1 and ,littorina         
littorea71 which are met with in great  

numbers in the middens1 are of the      
ordinary dimensions which they acquire  
in the ocean1 whereas the same species  
now living in the adjoining parts of the
 ,baltic only attain a third of their   
natural size1 being stunted and dwarfed 
in their growth by the quantity of fresh
 water poured by rivers into that inland
 sea499       799 ,see ,principles of   
,geology chapter #cj47  ,hence we may   
confidently infer that in the days of   
the aboriginal hunters and fishers1 the 
ocean had freer access than now to the  
,baltic1 communicating probably through 
the peninsula of ,jutland1 ,jutland     
having been at no remote period an      
archipelago4 ,even in the course of the 
nineteenth century1 the salt waters have
 made one irruption into the ,baltic by 
the ,lymfiord1 although they have been  
now again excluded4 ,it is also affirmed
 that other channels were open in       
historical times which are now silted   
up499       799 ,see ,morlot ,bulletin  
de la ,societe ,vaudoise des ,sci4      

,nat4 tome #f47  ,if we next turn to the
 remains of vertebrata preserved in the 
mounds1 we find that here also1 as in   
the ,danish peat-mosses1 all the        
quadrupeds belong to species known to   
have inhabited ,europe within the memory
 of ,man4 ,no remains of the mammoth1 or
 rhinoceros1 or of any extinct species  
appear1 except those of the wild bull   
7,bos urus1 ,linn41 or ,bos primigenius1
 ,bojanus71 which are in such numbers as
 to prove that the species was a        
favourite food of the ancient people4   
,but as this animal was seen by ,julius 
,caesar1 and survived long after his    
time1 its presence alone would not go   
far to prove the mounds to be of high   
antiquity4 ,the ,lithuanian aurochs or  
bison 7,bos bison1 ,l41 ,bos priscus1   
,boj471 which has escaped extirpation   
only because protected by the ,russian  
,czars1 surviving in one forest in      
,lithuania7 has not yet been met with1  
but will no doubt be detected hereafter1
 as it has been already found in the    

,danish peat4 ,the beaver1 long since   
destroyed in ,denmark1 occurs           
frequently1 as does the seal 7,phoca    
,gryppus1 ,fab471 now very rare on the  
,danish coast4 ,with these are mingled  
bones of the red deer and roe1 but the  
reindeer has not yet been found4 ,there 
are also the bones of many carnivora1   
such as the lynx1 fox1 and wolf1 but no 
signs of any domesticated animals except
 the dog4 ,the long bones of the larger 
mammalia have been all broken as if by  
some instrument1 in such a manner as to 
allow of the extraction of the marrow1  
and the gristly parts have been gnawed  
off1 as if by dogs1 to whose agency is  
also attributed the almost entire       
absence of the bones of young birds and 
of the smaller bones and softer parts of
 the skeletons of birds in general1 even
 of those of large size4 ,in reference  
to the latter1 it has been proved       
experimentally by ,professor            
,steenstrup1 that if the same species of
 birds are now given to dogs1 they will 

devour those parts of the skeleton which
 are missing1 and leave just those which
 are preserved in the old               
kitchen-middens4  ,the dogs of the      
mounds1 the only domesticated animals1  
are of a smaller race than those of the 
bronze period1 as shown by the          
peat-mosses1 and the dogs of the bronze 
age are inferior in size and strength to
 those of the iron age4 ,the domestic   
ox1 horse1 and sheep1 which are wanting 
in the mounds1 are confined to that part
 of the ,danish peat which was formed in
 the ages of bronze and iron4  ,among   
the bones of birds1 scarcely any are    
more frequent in the mounds than those  
of the auk 7,alca impennis71 now        
extinct4 ,the ,capercailzie 7,tetrao    
urogallus7 is also met with1 and may1 it
 is suggested1 have fed on the buds of  
the ,scotch fir in times when that tree 
flourished around the peat-bogs4 ,the   
different stages of growth of the       
roedeer's horns1 and the presence of the
 wild swan1 now only a winter visitor1  

have been appealed to as proving that   
the aborigines resided in the same      
settlements all the year round4 ,that   
they also ventured out to sea in canoes 
such as are now found in the            
peat-mosses1 hollowed out of the trunk  
of a single tree1 to catch fish far from
 land1 is testified by the bony relics  
of several deep-sea species1 such as the
 herring1 cod1 and flounder4 ,the       
ancient people were not cannibals1 for  
no human bones are mingled with the     
spoils of the chase4 ,skulls1 however1  
have been obtained not only from peat1  
but from tumuli of the stone period     
believed to be contemporaneous with the 
mounds4 ,these skulls are small and     
round1 and have a prominent ridge over  
the orbits of the eyes1 showing that the
 ancient race was of small stature1 with
 round heads and overhanging            
eyebrows--in short1 they bore a         
considerable resemblance to the modern  
,laplanders4 ,the human skulls of the   
bronze age found in the ,danish peat1   

and those of the iron period1 are of an 
elongated form and larger size4 ,there  
appear to be very few well-authenticated
 examples of crania referable to the    
bronze period--a circumstance no doubt  
attributable to the custom prevalent    
among the people of that era of burning 
their dead and collecting their bones in
 funeral urns4  ,no traces of grain of  
any sort have hitherto been discovered1 
nor any other indication that the       
ancient people had any knowledge of     
agriculture4 ,the only vegetable remains
 in the mounds are burnt pieces of wood 
and some charred substance referred by  
,dr4 ,forchhammer to the ,zostera       
marina1 a sea plant which was perhaps   
used in the production of salt4  ,what  
may be the antiquity of the earliest    
human remains preserved in the ,danish  
peat cannot be estimated in centuries   
with any approach to accuracy4 ,in the  
first place1 in going back to the bronze
 age1 we already find ourselves beyond  
the reach of history or even of         

tradition4 ,in the time of the ,romans  
the ,danish ,isles were covered1 as now1
 with magnificent beech forests4        
,nowhere in the world does this tree    
flourish more luxuriantly than in       
,denmark1 and eighteen centuries seem to
 have done little or nothing towards    
modifying the character of the forest   
vegetation4 ,yet in the antecedent      
bronze period there were no beech trees1
 or at most but a few stragglers1 the   
country being then covered with oak4 ,in
 the age of stone again1 the ,scotch fir
 prevailed1 and already there were human
 inhabitants in those old pine forests4 
,how many generations of each species of
 tree flourished in succession before   
the pine was supplanted by the oak1 and 
the oak by the beech1 can be but vaguely
 conjectured1 but the minimum of time   
required for the formation of so much   
peat must1 according to the estimate of 
,steenstrup and other good authorities1 
have amounted to at least #djjj years2  
and there is nothing in the observed    

rate of the growth of peat opposed to   
the conclusion that the number of       
centuries may not have been four times  
as great1 even though the signs of      
,man's existence have not yet been      
traced down to the lowest or amorphous  
stratum4 ,as to the kitchen-middens1    
they correspond in date to the older    
portion of the peaty record1 or to the  
earliest part of the age of stone as    
known in ,denmark4   ,,ancient ,,swiss  
,,lake-,,dwellings1 ,,built ,,on        
,,piles4  ,illustration3 ,plate #a4     
,swiss ,lake-,dwellings  ,in the shallow
 parts of many ,swiss lakes1 where there
 is a depth of no more than from #e to  
#ae feet of water1 ancient wooden piles 
are observed at the bottom sometimes    
worn down to the surface of the mud1    
sometimes projecting slightly above it4 
,these have evidently once supported    
villages1 nearly all of them of unknown 
date1 but the most ancient of which     
certainly belonged to the age of stone1 
for hundreds of implements resembling   

those of the ,danish shell-mounds and   
peat-mosses have been dredged up from   
the mud into which the piles were       
driven4  ,the earliest historical       
account of such habitations is that     
given by ,herodotus of a ,thracian      
tribe1 who dwelt1 in the year #ebj      
,b4,c41 in ,prasias1 a small            
mountain-lake of ,paeonia1 now part of  
modern ,roumelia499       799 ,herodotus
 lib4 #e cap4 #af4 ,rediscovered by ,m4 
de ,ville      ,natural ,history ,review
 volume #b #ahfb page #dhf47  ,their    
habitations were constructed on         
platforms raised above the lake1 and    
resting on piles4 ,they were connected  
with the shore by a narrow causeway of  
similar formation4 ,such platforms must 
have been of considerable extent1 for   
the ,paeonians lived there with their   
families and horses4 ,their food        
consisted largely of the fish which the 
lake produced in abundance4  ,in rude   
and unsettled times1 such insular sites 
afforded safe retreats1 all             

communication with the mainland being   
cut off1 except by boats1 or by such    
wooden bridges as could be easily       
removed4  ,the ,swiss lake-dwellings    
seem first to have attracted attention  
during the dry winter of #ahec-ed1 when 
the lakes and rivers sank lower than had
 ever been previously known1 and when   
the inhabitants of ,meilen1 on the ,lake
 of ,zurich1 resolved to raise the level
 of some ground and turn it into land1  
by throwing mud upon it obtained by     
dredging in the adjoining shallow water4
 ,during these dredging operations they 
discovered a number of wooden piles     
deeply driven into the bed of the lake1 
and among them a great many hammers1    
axes1 celts1 and other instruments4 ,all
 these belonged to the stone period with
 two exceptions1 namely1 an armlet of   
thin brass wire1 and a small bronze     
hatchet4  ,fragments of rude pottery    
fashioned by the hand were abundant1    
also masses of charred wood1 supposed to
 have formed parts of the platform on   

which the wooden cabins were built4 ,of 
this burnt timber1 on this and other    
sites1 subsequently explored1 there was 
such an abundance as to lead to the     
conclusion that many of the settlements 
must have perished by fire4 ,herodotus  
has recorded that the ,paeonians1 above 
alluded to1 preserved their independence
 during the ,persian invasion1 and      
defied the attacks of ,darius by aid of 
the peculiar position of their          
dwellings4 ,but their safety1 observes  
,mr4 ,wylie199 was probably owing to    
their living in the middle of the lake1 
7,greek7 en mese te limne1 whereas the  
ancient ,swiss settlers were compelled  
by the rapidly increasing depth of the  
water near the margins of their lakes to
 construct their habitations at a short 
distance from the shore1 within easy    
bowshot of the land1 and therefore not  
out of reach of fiery projectiles1      
against which thatched roofs and wooden 
walls could present but a poor defence4 
799 ,w4,m4 ,wylie ,archaeologia volume  

#ch #ahei1 a valuable      paper on the 
,swiss and ,irish lake-habitations47    
,to these circumstances and to          
accidental fires we are probably        
indebted for the frequent preservation1 
in the mud around the site of the old   
settlements1 of the most precious tools 
and works of art1 such as would never   
have been thrown into the ,danish       
kitchen-middens1 which have been aptly  
compared to a modern dusthole4  ,dr4    
,ferdinand ,keller of ,zurich has drawn 
up a series of most instructive memoirs1
 illustrated with well-executed plates1 
of the treasures in stone1 bronze1 and  
bone brought to light in these          
subaqueous repositories1 and has given  
an ideal restoration of part of one of  
the old villages 7see ,plate #a         
above7199 such as he conceives may have 
existed on the lakes of ,zurich and     
,bienne4       799,keller ,pfahlbauten1 
,antiquarische ,gesellschaft in ,zurich 
,bd4 #ab and #ac #aheh-ahfa4 ,in the    
fifth number of the ,natural            

,history ,review ,january #i1 #ahfb1    
,mr4 ,lubbock has published      an     
excellent account of the works of the   
,swiss writers on      their            
lake-habitations47  ,in this view1      
however1 he has not simply trusted to   
his imagination1 but has availed himself
 of a sketch published by ,m4 ,dumont   
d',urville1 of similar habitations of   
the ,papuans in ,new ,guinea in the ,bay
 of ,dorei4 ,it is also stated by ,dr4  
,keller1 that on the ,river ,limmat1    
near ,zurich1 so late as the last       
century1 there were several fishing-huts
 constructed on this same plan499       
799 ,keller ,pfahlbauten1 ,antiquarische
 ,gesellschaft in      ,zurich ,bd4 #i  
page #ha note47  ,it will be remarked   
that one of the cabins is represented as
 circular4 ,that such was the form of   
many in ,switzerland is inferred from   
the shape of pieces of clay which lined 
the interior1 and which owe their       
preservation apparently to their having 
been hardened by fire when the village  

was burnt4 ,in the sketch 7,plate #a71  
some fishing-nets are seen spread out to
 dry on the wooden platform4 ,the ,swiss
 archaeologist has found abundant       
evidence of fishing-gear1 consisting of 
pieces of cord1 hooks1 and stones used  
as weights4 ,a canoe also is introduced1
 such as are occasionally met with4 ,one
 of these1 made of the trunk of a single
 tree1 fifty feet long and three and a  
half feet wide1 was found capsized at   
the bottom of the ,lake of ,bienne4 ,it 
appears to have been laden with stones1 
such as were used to raise the          
foundation of some of the artificial    
islands4  ,it is believed that as many  
as #cjj wooden huts were sometimes      
comprised in one settlement1 and that   
they may have contained about #ajjj     
inhabitants4 ,at ,wangen1 ,m4 ,lohle has
 calculated that #dj1jjj piles were     
used1 probably not all planted at one   
time nor by one generation4 ,among the  
works of great merit devoted specially  
to a description of the ,swiss          

lake-habitations is that of ,m4 ,troyon1
 published in #ahfj499       799 ,sur   
les ,habitations lacustres47  ,the      
number of sites which he and other      
authors have already enumerated in      
,switzerland is truly wonderful4 ,they  
occur on the large lakes of ,constance1 
,zurich1 ,geneva1 and ,neufchatel1 and  
on most of the smaller ones4 ,some are  
exclusively of the stone age1 others of 
the bronze period4 ,of these last more  
than twenty are spoken of on the ,lake  
of ,geneva alone1 more than forty on    
that of ,neufchatel1 and twenty on the  
small ,lake of ,bienne4  ,one of the    
sites first studied by the ,swiss       
antiquaries was the small lake of       
,moosseedorf1 near ,berne1 where        
implements of stone1 horn1 and bone1 but
 none of metal1 were obtained4 ,although
 the flint here employed must have come 
from a distance 7probably from the south
 of ,france71 the chippings of the      
material are in such profusion as to    
imply that there was a manufactory of   

implements on the spot4 ,here also1 as  
in several other settlements1 hatchets  
and wedges of jade have been observed of
 a kind said not to occur in            
,switzerland or the adjoining parts of  
,europe1 and which some mineralogists   
would fain derive from the ,east2 amber 
also1 which1 it is supposed1 was        
imported from the shores of the ,baltic4
  ,at ,wangen near ,stein1 on the ,lake 
of ,constance1 another of the most      
ancient of the lake-dwellings1 hatchets 
of serpentine and greenstone1 and       
arrow-heads of quartz have been met     
with4 ,here also remains of a kind of   
cloth1 supposed to be of flax1 not woven
 but plaited1 have been detected4       
,professor ,heer has recognised lumps of
 carbonised wheat1 ,triticum vulgare1   
and grains of another kind1 ,t4         
dicoccum1 and barley1 ,hordeum          
distichum1 and flat round cakes of      
bread2 and at ,robbenhausen and         
elsewhere ,hordeum hexastichum in fine  
ears1 the same kind of barley which is  

found associated with ,egyptian mummies1
 showing clearly that in the stone      
period the lake-dwellers cultivated all 
these cereals1 besides having           
domesticated the dog1 the ox1 the sheep1
 and the goat4  ,carbonised apples and  
pears of small size1 such as still grow 
in the ,swiss forests1 stones of the    
wild plum1 seeds of the raspberry and   
blackberry1 and beech-nuts1 also occur  
in the mud1 and hazel-nuts in great     
plenty4  ,near ,morges1 on the ,lake of 
,geneva1 a settlement of the bronze     
period1 no less than forty hatchets of  
that metal have been dredged up1 and in 
many other localities the number and    
variety of weapons and utensils         
discovered1 in a fine state of          
preservation1 is truly astonishing4  ,it
 is remarkable that as yet all the      
settlements of the bronze period are    
confined to ,western and ,central       
,switzerland4 ,in the more eastern lakes
 those of the stone period alone have as
 yet been discovered4  ,the tools1      

ornaments1 and pottery of the bronze    
period in ,switzerland bear a close     
resemblance to those of corresponding   
age in ,denmark1 attesting the wide     
spread of a uniform civilisation over   
,central ,europe at that era4 ,in some  
few of the ,swiss aquatic stations a    
mixture of bronze and iron implements   
has been observed1 but no coins4 ,at    
,tiefenau1 near ,berne1 in ground       
supposed to have been a battle-field1   
coins and medals of bronze and silver1  
struck at ,marseilles1 and of ,greek    
manufacture1 and iron swords1 have been 
found1 all belonging to the first and   
pre-,roman division of the age of iron4 
,in the settlements of the bronze era   
the wooden piles are not so much decayed
 as those of the stone period2 the      
latter having wasted down quite to the  
level of the mud1 whereas the piles of  
the bronze age 7as in the ,lake of      
,bienne1 for example7 still project     
above it4  ,professor ,rutimeyer of     
,basle1 well-known to palaeontologists  

as the author of several important      
memoirs on fossil vertebrata1 has       
recently published a scientific         
description of great interest of the    
animal remains dredged up at various    
stations where they had been embedded   
for ages in the mud into which the piles
 were driven499       799 ,die ,fauna   
der ,pfahlbauten in der ,schweiz ,basel 
#ahfa47  ,these bones bear the same     
relation to the primitive inhabitants of
 ,switzerland and some of their         
immediate successors as do the contents 
of the ,danish kitchen-middens to the   
ancient fishing and hunting tribes who  
lived on the shores of the ,baltic4     
,the list of wild mammalia enumerated in
 this excellent treatise contains no    
less than twenty-four species1 exclusive
 of several domesticated ones3 besides  
which there are eighteen species of     
birds1 the wild swan1 goose1 and two    
species of ducks being among them2 also 
three reptiles1 including the eatable   
frog and freshwater tortoise2 and       

lastly1 nine species of freshwater fish4
 ,all these 7amounting to fifty-four    
species7 are with one exception still   
living in ,europe4 ,the exception is the
 wild bull 7,bos primigenius71 which1 as
 before stated1 survived in historical  
times4 ,the following are the mammalia  
alluded to3--,the bear 7,ursus arctos71 
the badger1 the common marten1 the      
polecat1 the ermine1 the weasel1 the    
otter1 wolf1 fox1 wild cat1 hedgehog1   
squirrel1 field-mouse 7,mus sylvaticus71
 hare1 beaver1 hog 7comprising two      
races1 namely1 the wild boar and        
swamp-hog71 the stag 7,cervus elaphus71 
the roe-deer1 the fallow-deer1 the elk1 
the steinbock 7,capra ibex71 the        
chamois1 the ,lithuanian bison1 and the 
wild bull4 ,the domesticated species    
comprise the dog1 horse1 ass1 pig1 goat1
 sheep1 and several bovine races4  ,the 
greater number1 if not all1 of these    
animals served for food1 and all the    
bones which contained marrow have been  
split open in the same way as the       

corresponding ones found in the         
shell-mounds of ,denmark before         
mentioned4 ,the bones both of the wild  
bull and the bison are invariably split 
in this manner4 ,as a rule1 the lower   
jaws with teeth occur in greater        
abundance than any other parts of the   
skeleton--a circumstance which1         
geologists know1 holds good in regard to
 fossil mammalia of all periods4 ,as yet
 the reindeer is missing in the ,swiss  
lake-settlements as in the ,danish      
kitchen-middens1 although this animal in
 more ancient times ranged over ,france1
 together with the mammoth1 as far south
 as the ,pyrenees4  ,a careful          
comparison of the bones from different  
sites has shown that in settlements such
 as ,wangen and ,moosseedorf1 belonging 
to the earliest age of stone1 when the  
habits of the hunter state predominated 
over those of the pastoral1 venison1 or 
the flesh of the stag and roe1 was more 
eaten than the flesh of the domestic    
cattle and sheep4 ,this was afterwards  

reversed in the later stone period and  
in the age of bronze4 ,at that later    
period also the tame pig1 which is      
wanting in some of the oldest stations1 
had replaced the wild boar as a common  
article of food4 ,in the beginning of   
the age of stone1 in ,switzerland1 the  
goats outnumbered the sheep1 but towards
 the close of the same period the sheep 
were more abundant than the goats4  ,the
 fox in the first era was very common1  
but it nearly disappears in the bronze  
age1 during which period a large        
hunting-dog1 supposed to have been      
imported into ,switzerland from some    
foreign country1 becomes the chief      
representative of the canine genus4  ,a 
single fragment of the bone of a hare   
7,lepus timidus7 has been found at      
,moosseedorf4 ,the almost universal     
absence of this quadruped is supposed to
 imply that the ,swiss lake-dwellers    
were prevented from eating that animal  
by the same superstition which now      
prevails among the ,laplanders1 and     

which ,julius ,caesar found in full     
force amongst the ancient ,britons499   
799 ,commentaries lib #e chapter #ab47  
,that the lake-dwellers should have fed 
so largely on the fox1 while they       
abstained from touching the hare1       
establishes1 says ,rutimeyer1 a singular
 contrast between their tastes and ours4
  ,even in the earliest settlements1 as 
already hinted1 several domesticated    
animals occur1 namely1 the ox1 sheep1   
goat1 and dog4 ,of the three last1 each 
was represented by one race only2 but   
there were two races of cattle1 the most
 common being of small size1 and called 
by ,rutimeyer ,bos brachyceros 7,bos    
longifrons1 ,owen71 or the marsh cow1   
the other derived from the wild bull2   
though1 as no skull has yet been        
discovered1 this identification is not  
so certain as could be wished4 ,it is1  
however1 beyond question that at a later
 era1 namely1 towards the close of the  
stone and beginning of the bronze       
period1 the lake-dwellers had succeeded 

in taming that formidable brute the ,bos
 primigenius1 the ,urus of ,caesar1     
which he described as very fierce1      
swift1 and strong1 and scarcely inferior
 to the elephant in size4 ,in a tame    
state its bones were somewhat less      
massive and heavy1 and its horns were   
somewhat smaller than in wild           
individuals4 ,still in its domesticated 
form1 it rivalled in dimensions the     
largest living cattle1 those of         
,friesland1 in ,north ,holland1 for     
example4 ,when most abundant1 as at     
,concise on the ,lake of ,neufchatel1 it
 had nearly superseded the smaller race1
 ,bos brachyceros1 and was accompanied  
there for a short time by a third bovine
 variety1 called ,bos trochoceros1 an   
,italian race1 supposed to have been    
imported from the southern side of the  
,alps4 7,caesar ,commentaries lib #e    
chapter #ab47 ,this last-mentioned race1
 however1 seems only to have lasted for 
a short time in ,switzerland4  ,the wild
 bull 7,bos primigenius7 is supposed to 

have flourished for a while in a wild   
and tame state1 just as now in ,europe  
the domestic pig co-exists with the wild
 boar2 and ,rutimeyer agrees with       
,cuvier and ,bell199 in considering our 
larger domestic cattle of northern      
,europe as the descendants of this wild 
bull1 an opinion which ,owen            
disputes49999       799 ,british        
,quadrupeds page #dae47       79999     
,british ,fossil ,mammal4 page #ejj47   
,in the later division of the stone     
period1 there were two tame races of the
 pig1 according to ,rutimeyer2 one      
large1 and derived from the wild boar1  
the other smaller1 called the marsh-hog1
 or ,sus scrofa palustris4 ,it may be   
asked how the osteologist can           
distinguish the tame from the wild races
 of the same species by their skeletons 
alone4 ,among other characters1 the     
diminished thickness of the bones and   
the comparative smallness of the ridges1
 which afford attachment to the muscles1
 are relied on2 also the smaller        

dimensions of the tusks in the boar1 and
 of the whole jaw and skull2 and1 in    
like manner1 the diminished size of the 
horns of the bull and other             
modifications1 which are the effects of 
a regular supply of food1 and the       
absence of all necessity of exerting    
their activity and strength to obtain   
subsistence and defend themselves       
against their enemies4  ,a middle-sized 
race of dogs continued unaltered        
throughout the whole of the stone       
period2 but the people of the bronze age
 possessed a larger hunting-dog1 and    
with it a small horse1 of which genus   
very few traces have been detected in   
the earlier settlements--a single tooth1
 for example1 at ,wangen1 and only one  
or two bones at two or three other      
places4  ,in passing from the oldest to 
the most modern sites1 the extirpation  
of the elk and beaver1 and the gradual  
reduction in numbers of the bear1 stag1 
roe1 and freshwater tortoise are        
distinctly perceptible4 ,the aurochs1 or

 ,lithuanian bison1 appears to have died
 out in ,switzerland about the time when
 weapons of bronze came into use4 ,it is
 only in a few of the most modern       
lake-dwellings1 such as ,noville and    
,chavannes in the ,canton de ,vaud      
7which the antiquaries refer to the     
sixth century71 that some traces are    
observable of the domestic cat1 as well 
as of a sheep with crooked horns and    
with them bones of the domestic fowl4   
,after the sixth century1 no extinction 
of any wild quadruped nor introduction  
of any tame one appears to have taken   
place1 but the fauna was still modified 
by the wild species continuing to       
diminish in number and the tame ones to 
become more diversified by breeding and 
crossing1 especially in the case of the 
dog1 horse1 and sheep4 ,on the whole1   
however1 the divergence of the domestic 
races from their aboriginal wild types1 
as exemplified at ,wangen and           
,moosseedorf1 is confined1 according to 
,professor ,rutimeyer1 within narrow    

limits4 ,as to the goat1 it has remained
 nearly constant and true to its        
pristine form1 and the small race of    
goat-horned sheep still lingers in some 
alpine valleys in the ,upper ,rhine2 and
 in the same region a race of pigs1     
corresponding to the domesticated       
variety of ,sus scrofa palustris1 may   
still be seen4  ,amidst all this        
profusion of animal remains extremely   
few bones of ,man have been discovered2 
and only one skull1 dredged up from     
,meilen1 on the ,lake of ,zurich1 of the
 early stone period1 seems as yet to    
have been carefully examined4           
,respecting this specimen1 ,professor   
,his observes that it exhibits1 instead 
of the small and rounded form proper to 
the ,danish peat-mosses1 a type much    
more like that now prevailing in        
,switzerland1 which is intermediate     
between the long-headed and short-headed
 form4 7,rutimeyer ,die ,fauna der      
,pfahlbauten in der ,schweiz page #aha47
  ,so far1 therefore1 as we can draw    

safe conclusions from a single specimen1
 there has been no marked change of race
 in the human population of ,switzerland
 during the periods above considered4   
,it is still a question whether any of  
these subaqueous repositories of ancient
 relics in ,switzerland go back so far  
in time as the kitchen-middens of       
,denmark1 for in these last there are no
 domesticated animals except the dog1   
and no signs of the cultivation of wheat
 or barley2 whereas we have seen that1  
in one of the oldest of the ,swiss      
settlements1 at ,wangen1 no less than   
three cereals make their appearance1    
with four kinds of domestic animals4    
,yet there is no small risk of error in 
speculating on the relative claims to   
antiquity of such ancient tribes1 for   
some of them may have remained isolated 
for ages and stationary in their habits1
 while others advanced and improved4    
,we know that nations1 both before and  
after the introduction of metals1 may   
continue in very different stages of    

civilisation1 even after commercial     
intercourse has been established between
 them1 and where they are separated by a
 less distance than that which divides  
the ,alps from the ,baltic4  ,the       
attempts of the ,swiss geologists and   
archaeologists to estimate definitely in
 years the antiquity of the bronze and  
stone periods1 although as yet          
confessedly imperfect1 deserve notice1  
and appear to me to be full of promise4 
,the most elaborate calculation is that 
made by ,m4 ,morlot1 respecting the     
delta of the ,tiniere1 a torrent which  
flows into the ,lake of ,geneva near    
,villeneuve4 ,this small delta1 to which
 the stream is annually making          
additions1 is composed of gravel and    
sand4 ,its shape is that of a flattened 
cone1 and its internal structure has of 
late been laid open to view in a railway
 cutting #ajjj feet long and #cb feet   
deep4 ,the regularity of its structure  
throughout implies that it has been     
formed very gradually1 and by the       

uniform action of the same causes4      
,three layers of vegetable soil1 each of
 which must at one time have formed the 
surface of the cone1 have been cut      
through at different depths4 ,the first 
of these was traced over a surface of   
#ae1jjj square feet1 having an average  
thickness of #e inches1 and being about 
#d feet below the present surface of the
 cone4 ,this upper layer belonged to the
 ,roman period1 and contained ,roman    
tiles and a coin4 ,the second layer1    
followed over a surface of #be1jjj      
square feet1 was #f inches thick1 and   
lay at a depth of #aj feet4 ,in it were 
found fragments of unvarnished pottery  
and a pair of tweezers in bronze1       
indicating the bronze epoch4 ,the third 
layer1 followed for #ce1jjj square feet1
 was #f or #g inches thick and #ai feet 
deep4 ,in it were fragments of rude     
pottery1 pieces of charcoal1 broken     
bones1 and a human skeleton having a    
small1 round and very thick skull4 ,m4  
,morlot1 assuming the ,roman period to  

represent an antiquity of from sixteen  
to eighteen centuries1 assigns to the   
bronze age a date of between #cjjj and  
#djjj years1 and to the oldest layer1   
that of the stone period1 an age of from
 #ejjj to #gjjj years4  ,another        
calculation has been made by ,m4 ,troyon
 to obtain the approximate date of the  
remains of an ancient settlement built  
on piles and preserved in a peat-bog at 
,chamblon1 near ,yverdun1 on the ,lake  
of ,neufchatel4 ,the site of the ancient
 ,roman town of ,eburodunum 7,yverdun71 
once on the borders of the lake1 and    
between which and the shore there now   
intervenes a zone of newly-gained dry   
land1 #bejj feet in breadth1 shows the  
rate at which the bed of the lake has   
been filled up with river sediment in   
fifteen centuries4 ,assuming the lake to
 have retreated at the same rate before 
the ,roman period1 the pile-works of    
,chamblon1 which are of the bronze      
period1 must be at the least #ccjj years
 old4  ,for the third calculation1      

communicated to me by ,m4 ,morlot1 we   
are indebted to ,m4 ,victor ,gillieron1 
of ,neuveville1 on the ,lake of ,bienne4
 ,it relates to the age of a            
pile-dwelling1 the mammalian bones of   
which are considered by ,m4 ,rutimeyer  
to indicate the earliest portion of the 
stone period of ,switzerland1 and to    
correspond in age with the settlement of
 ,moosseedorf4  ,the piles in question  
occur at the ,pont de ,thiele1 between  
the lakes of ,bienne and ,neufchatel4   
,the old convent of ,st4 ,jean1 founded 
#gej years ago1 and built originally on 
the margin of the ,lake of ,bienne1 is  
now at a considerable distance from the 
shore1 and affords a measure of the rate
 of the gain of land in seven centuries 
and a half4 ,assuming that a similar    
rate of the conversion of water into    
marshy land prevailed antecedently1 we  
should require an addition of sixty     
centuries for the growth of the morass  
intervening between the convent and the 
aquatic dwelling of ,pont de ,thiele1 in

 all #fgej years4 ,m4 ,morlot1 after    
examining the ground1 thinks it highly  
probable that the shape of the bottom on
 which the morass rests is uniform2 but 
this important point has not yet been   
tested by boring4 ,the result1 if       
confirmed1 would agree exceedingly well 
with the chronological computation      
before mentioned of the age of the stone
 period of ,tiniere4 ,as ,i have not    
myself visited ,switzerland since these 
chronological speculations were first   
hazarded1 ,i am unable to enter         
critically into a discussion of the     
objections which have been raised to the
 two first of them1 or to decide on the 
merits of the explanations offered in   
reply4   ,,irish ,,lake-,,dwellings ,,or
 ,,crannoges4  ,the lake-dwellings of   
the ,british isles1 although not        
explored as yet with scientific zeal1 as
 those of ,switzerland have been in the 
last ten years1 are yet known to be very
 numerous1 and when carefully examined  
will not fail to throw great light on   

the history of the bronze and stone     
periods4  ,in the lakes of ,ireland     
alone1 no less than forty-six examples  
of artificial islands1 called crannoges1
 have been discovered4 ,they occur in   
,leitrim1 ,roscommon1 ,cavan1 ,down1    
,monaghan1 ,limerick1 ,meath1 ,king's   
,county1 and ,tyrone499       799 ,w4,m4
 ,wylie ,archaeologia volume #ch #ahei  
page #h47  ,one class of these stockaded
 islands1 as they have been sometimes   
called1 was formed1 according to ,mr4   
,digby ,wyatt1 by placing horizontal oak
 beams at the bottom of the lake1 into  
which oak posts1 from #f to #h feet     
high1 were mortised1 and held together  
by cross beams1 till a circular         
enclosure was obtained4  ,a space of    
#ebj feet diameter1 thus enclosed at    
,lagore1 was divided into sundry        
timbered compartments1 which were found 
filled up with mud or earth1 from which 
were taken vast quantities of the bones 
of oxen1 swine1 deer1 goats1 sheep1     
dogs1 foxes1 horses1 and asses4 ,all    

these were discovered beneath #af feet  
of bog1 and were used for manure2 but   
specimens of them are said to be        
preserved in the museum of the ,royal   
,irish ,academy4 ,from the same spot    
were obtained a great collection of     
antiquities1 which1 according to ,lord  
,talbot de ,malahide and ,mr4 ,wylie1   
were referable to the ages of stone1    
bronze1 and iron499       799 ,w4,m4    
,wylie ,archaeologia volume #ch #ahei   
page #h1 who      cites ,archaeological 
,journal volume #f page #aja47  ,in     
,ardekillin ,lake1 in ,roscommon1 an    
islet of an oval form was observed1 made
 of a layer of stones resting on logs of
 timber4 ,round this artificial islet or
 crannoge thus formed was a stone wall  
raised on oak piles4 ,a careful         
description has been put on record by   
,captain ,mudge1 ,r4,n41 of a curious   
log-cabin discovered by him in #ahcc in 
,drumkellin bog1 in ,donegal1 at a depth
 of #ad feet from the surface4 ,it was  
#ab feet square and #i feet high1 being 

divided into two stories each #d feet   
high4 ,the planking was of oak split    
with wedges of stone1 one of which was  
found in the building4 ,the roof was    
flat4 ,a staked enclosure had been      
raised round the cabin1 and remains of  
other similar huts adjoining were seen  
but not explored4 ,a stone celt1 found  
in the interior of the hut1 and a piece 
of leather sandal1 also an arrow-head of
 flint1 and in the bog close at hand a  
wooden sword1 give evidence of the      
remote antiquity of this building1 which
 may be taken as a type of the early    
dwellings on the ,crannoge islands4     
,the whole structure1 says ,captain     
,mudge1 was wrought with the rudest kind
 of implements1 and the labour bestowed 
on it must have been immense4 ,the wood 
of the mortises was more bruised than   
cut1 as if by a blunt stone chisel499   
799 ,mudge ,archaeologia volume #bf47   
,such a chisel lay on the floor of the  
hut1 and by comparing it with the marks 
of the tool used in forming the         

mortises1 they were found to correspond 
exactly1 even to the slight curved      
exterior of the chisel2 but the logs had
 been hewn by a larger instrument1 in   
the shape of an axe4 ,on the floor of   
the dwelling lay a slab of freestone1 #c
 feet long and #ad inches thick1 in the 
centre of which was a small pit three   
quarters of an inch deep1 which had been
 chiselled out4 ,this is presumed to    
have been used for holding nuts to be   
cracked by means of one of the round    
shingle stones1 also found there1 which 
had served as a hammer4 ,some entire    
hazel-nuts and a great quantity of      
broken shells were strewed about the    
floor4  ,the foundations of the house   
were made of fine sand1 such as is found
 with shingle on the seashore about #b  
miles distant4 ,below the layer of sand 
the bog or peat was ascertained1 on     
probing it with an instrument1 to be at 
least #ae feet thick4 ,although the     
interior of the building when discovered
 was full of bog or peaty matter1 it    

seems when inhabited to have been       
surrounded by growing trees1 some of the
 trunks and roots of which are still    
preserved in their natural position4    
,the depth of overlying peat affords no 
safe criterion for calculating the age  
of the cabin or village1 for ,i have    
shown in the ,principles of ,geology    
that both in ,england and ,ireland1     
within historical times1 bogs have burst
 and sent forth great volumes of black  
mud1 which has been known to creep over 
the country at a slow pace1 flowing     
somewhat at the rate of ordinary        
lava-currents1 and sometimes            
overwhelming woods and cottages1 and    
leaving a deposit upon them of bog-earth
 #ae feet thick4  ,none of these ,irish 
lake-dwellings were built1 like those of
 ,helvetia1 on platforms supported by   
piles deeply driven into the mud4 ,the  
,crannoge system of ,ireland seems1 says
 ,mr4 ,wylie1 well nigh without a       
parallel in ,swiss waters4    ,,chapter 
#c4 -- ,,fossil ,,human ,,remains ,,and 

,,works ,,of ,,art ,,of ,,the ,,recent  
,,period--,,continued4    ,delta and    
,alluvial ,plain of the ,nile4   ,burnt 
,bricks in ,egypt before the ,roman     
,era4   ,borings in #ahea-ed4   ,ancient
 ,mounds of the ,valley of the ,ohio4   
,their ,antiquity4   ,sepulchral ,mound 
at ,santos in ,brazil4   ,delta of the  
,mississippi4   ,ancient ,human ,remains
 in ,coral ,reefs of ,florida4          
,changes in ,physical ,geography in the 
,human ,period4   ,buried ,canoes in    
,marine ,strata near ,glasgow4          
,upheaval since the ,roman ,occupation  
of the ,shores of the ,firth of ,forth4 
,fossil ,whales near ,stirling4         
,upraised ,marine ,strata of ,sweden on 
,shores of the ,baltic and the ,ocean4  
,attempts to compute their ,age4        
,,delta ,,and ,,alluvial ,,plain ,,of   
,,the ,,nile4  ,some new facts of high  
interest illustrating the geology of the
 alluvial land of ,egypt were brought to
 light between the years #ahea and      
#ahed1 in consequence of investigations 

suggested to the ,royal ,society by ,mr4
 ,leonard ,horner1 and which were partly
 carried out at the expense of the      
,society4 ,the practical part of the    
undertaking was entrusted by ,mr4       
,horner to an ,armenian officer of      
engineers1 ,hekekyan ,bey1 who had for  
many years pursued his scientific       
studies in ,england1 and was in every   
way highly qualified for the task4  ,it 
was soon found that to obtain the       
required information respecting the     
nature1 depth1 and contents of the ,nile
 mud in various parts of the valley1 a  
larger outlay was called for than had   
been originally contemplated4 ,this     
expense the late viceroy1 ,abbas ,pasha1
 munificently undertook to defray out of
 his treasury1 and his successor1 after 
his death1 continued the operations with
 the same princely liberality4  ,several
 engineers and a body of sixty workmen  
were employed under the superintendence 
of ,hekekyan ,bey1 men inured to the    
climate and able to carry on the sinking

 of shafts and borings during the hot   
months1 after the waters of the ,nile   
had subsided1 and in a season which     
would have been fatal to ,europeans4    
,the results of chief importance arising
 out of this inquiry were obtained from 
two sets of shafts and borings sunk at  
intervals in lines crossing the great   
valley from east to west4 ,one of these 
consisted of no fewer than fifty-one    
pits and artesian borings1 made where   
the valley is #af miles wide from side  
to side between the ,arabian and ,libyan
 deserts1 in the latitude of            
,heliopolis1 about #h miles above the   
apex of the delta4 ,the other line of   
borings and pits1 twenty-seven in       
number1 was in the parallel of ,memphis1
 where the valley is only five miles    
broad4  ,everywhere in these sections   
the sediment passed through was similar 
in composition to the ordinary ,nile mud
 of the present day1 except near the    
margin of the valley1 where thin layers 
of quartzose sand1 such as is sometimes 

blown from the adjacent desert by       
violent winds1 were observed to         
alternate with the loam4  ,a remarkable 
absence of lamination and stratification
 was observed almost universally in the 
sediment brought up from all points     
except where the sandy layers above     
alluded to occurred4 ,mr4 ,horner       
attributes this want of all indication  
of successive deposition to the extreme 
thinness of the film of matter which is 
thrown down annually on the great       
alluvial plain during the season of     
inundation4 ,the tenuity of this layer  
must indeed be extreme1 if the ,french  
engineers are tolerably correct in their
 estimate of the amount of sediment     
formed in a century1 which they suppose 
not to exceed on the average #e inches4 
,when the waters subside1 this thin     
layer of new soil1 exposed to a hot sun1
 dries rapidly1 and clouds of dust are  
raised by the winds4 ,the superficial   
deposit1 moreover1 is disturbed almost  
everywhere by agricultural labours1 and 

even were this not the case1 the action 
of worms1 insects1 and the roots of     
plants would suffice to confound        
together the deposits of two successive 
years4  ,all the remains of organic     
bodies1 such as land-shells1 and the    
bones of quadrupeds1 found during the   
excavations belonged to living species4 
,bones of the ox1 hog1 dog1 dromedary   
and ass were not uncommon1 but no       
vestiges of extinct mammalia4 ,no marine
 shells were anywhere detected2 but this
 was to be expected1 as the borings1    
though they sometimes reached as low as 
the level of the ,mediterranean1 were   
never carried down below it--a          
circumstance much to be regretted1 since
 where artesian borings have been made  
in deltas1 as in those of the ,po and   
,ganges1 to the depth of several hundred
 feet below the sea level it has been   
found1 contrary to expectation1 that the
 deposits passed through were fluviatile
 throughout1 implying1 probably1 that a 
general subsidence of those deltas and  

alluvial formations has taken place4    
,whether there has been in like manner a
 sinking of the land in ,egypt1 we have 
as yet no means of proving2 but ,sir    
,gardner ,wilkinson infers it from the  
position in the delta on the shore near 
,alexandria of the tombs commonly called
 ,cleopatra's ,baths1 which cannot1 he  
says1 have been originally built so as  
to be exposed to the sea which now fills
 them1 but must have stood on land above
 the level of the ,mediterranean4 ,the  
same author adduces1 as additional signs
 of subsidence1 some ruined towns1 now  
half under water1 in the ,lake          
,menzaleh1 and channels of ancient arms 
of the ,nile submerged with their banks 
beneath the waters of that same lagoon4 
,in some instances1 the excavations made
 under the superintendence of ,hekekyan 
,bey were on a large scale for the first
 #af or #bd feet1 in which cases jars1  
vases1 pots and a small human figure in 
burnt clay1 a copper knife1 and other   
entire articles were dug up2 but when   

water soaking through from the ,nile was
 reached the boring instrument used was 
too small to allow of more than         
fragments of works of art being brought 
up4 ,pieces of burnt brick and pottery  
were extracted almost everywhere1 and   
from all depths1 even where they sank   
#fj feet below the surface towards the  
central parts of the valley4 ,in none of
 these cases did they get to the bottom 
of the alluvial soil4 ,it has been      
objected1 among other criticisms1 that  
the ,arabs can always find whatever     
their employers desire to obtain4 ,even 
those who are too well acquainted with  
the sagacity and energy of ,hekekyan    
,bey to suspect him of having been      
deceived1 have suggested that the       
artificial objects might have fallen    
into old wells which had been filled up4
 ,this notion is inadmissible for many  
reasons4 ,of the ninety-five shafts and 
borings1 seventy or more were made far  
from the sites of towns or villages2 and
 allowing that every field may once have

 had its well1 there would be but small 
chance of the borings striking upon the 
site even of a small number of them in  
seventy experiments4  ,others have      
suggested that the ,nile may have       
wandered over the whole valley1         
undermining its banks on one side and   
filling up old channels on the other4   
,it has also been asked whether the     
delta with the numerous shifting arms of
 the river may not once have been at    
every point where the auger pierced499  
799 ,for a detailed account of these    
sections1 see ,mr4      ,horner's paper 
in the ,philosophical ,transactions for 
#ahee      to #aheh47  ,to all these    
objections there are two obvious        
answers3--,first1 in historical times   
the ,nile has on the whole been very    
stationary1 and has not shifted its     
position in the valley2 secondly1 if the
 mud pierced through had been thrown    
down by the river in ancient channels1  
it would have been stratified1 and would
 not have corresponded so closely with  

inundation mud1 we learn from ,captain  
,newbold that he observed in some       
excavations in the great plain          
alternations of sand and clay1 such as  
are seen in the modern banks of the     
,nile2 but in the borings made by       
,hekekyan ,bey1 such stratification     
seems scarcely in any case to have been 
detected4  ,the great aim of the        
criticisms above enumerated has been to 
get rid of the supposed anomaly of      
finding burnt brick and pottery at      
depths and places which would give them 
claim to an antiquity far exceeding that
 of the ,roman domination in ,egypt4    
,for until the time of the ,romans1 it  
is said1 no clay was burnt into bricks  
in the valley of the ,nile4 ,but a      
distinguished antiquary1 ,mr4 ,s4       
,birch1 assures me that this notion is  
altogether erroneous1 and that he has   
under his charge in the ,british        
,museum1 first1 a small rectangular     
baked brick1 which came from a ,theban  
tomb which bears the name of ,thothmes1 

a superintendent of the granaries of the
 god ,amen ,ra1 the style of art1       
inscription1 and name1 showing that it  
is as old as the #ahth dynasty 7about   
#adej ,b4,c472 secondly1 a brick bearing
 an inscription1 partly obliterated1 but
 ending with the words of the temple of 
,amen ,ra4 ,this brick1 decidedly long  
anterior to the ,roman dominion1 is     
referred conjecturally1 by ,mr4 ,birch1 
to the #aith dynasty1 or #acjj ,b4,c4   
,sir ,gardner ,wilkinson has also in his
 possession pieces of mortar1 which he  
took from each of the three great       
pyramids1 in which bits of broken       
pottery and of burnt clay or brick are  
embedded4  ,m4 ,girard1 of the ,french  
expedition to ,egypt1 supposed the      
average rate of the increase of ,nile   
mud on the plain between ,assouan and   
,cairo to be five ,english inches in a  
century4 ,this conclusion1 according to 
,mr4 ,horner1 is very vague1 and founded
 on insufficient data2 the amount of    
matter thrown down by the waters in     

different parts of the plain varying so 
much that to strike an average with any 
approach to accuracy must be most       
difficult4 ,were we to assume six inches
 in a century1 the burnt brick met with 
at a depth of #fj feet would be #ab1jjj 
years old4  ,another fragment of red    
brick was found by ,linant ,bey1 in a   
boring #gb feet deep1 being #b or #c    
feet below the level of the             
,mediterranean1 in the parallel of the  
apex of the delta1 #bjj metres distant  
from the river1 on the ,libyan side of  
the ,rosetta branch499       799 ,horner
 ,philosophical ,transactions #aheh47   
,m4 ,rosiere1 in the great ,french work 
on ,egypt1 has estimated the mean rate  
of deposit of sediment in the delta at  
#b #a_/d inches in a century299 were we 
to take #b #a_/b inches1 a work of art  
#gb feet deep must have been buried more
 than #cj1jjj years ago4       799      
,description de l',egypte ,histoire     
,naturelle tome #b page      #did47     
,but if the boring of ,linant ,bey was  

made where an arm of the river had been 
silted up at a time when the apex of the
 delta was somewhat farther south1 or   
more distant from the sea than now1 the 
brick in question might be comparatively
 very modern4  ,the experiments         
instituted by ,mr4 ,horner at the       
pedestal of the fallen statue of ,king  
,rameses at ,memphis1 in the hope of    
obtaining an accurate chronometric scale
 for testing the age of a given         
thickness of ,nile sediment1 are held by
 some experienced ,egyptologists not to 
be satisfactory1 on the ground of the   
uncertainty of the rate of deposit      
accumulated at that locality4 ,the point
 sought to be determined was the exact  
amount of ,nile mud which had           
accumulated there since the time when   
that statue is supposed by some         
antiquaries to have been erected4 ,could
 we have obtained possession of such a  
measure1 the rate of deposition might be
 judged of1 approximately at least1     
whenever similar mud was observed in    

other places1 or below the foundations  
of those same monuments4 ,but the       
ancient ,egyptians are known to have    
been in the habit of enclosing with     
embankments the areas on which they     
erected temples1 statues1 and obelisks1 
so as to exclude the waters of the      
,nile2 and the point of time to be      
ascertained1 in every case where we find
 a monument buried to a certain depth in
 mud1 as at ,memphis and ,heliopolis1 is
 the era when the city fell into such   
decay that the ancient embankments were 
neglected1 and the river allowed to     
inundate the site of the temple1        
obelisk1 or statue4  ,even if we knew   
the date of the abandonment of such     
embankments1 the enclosed areas would   
not afford a favourable opportunity for 
ascertaining the average rate of deposit
 in the alluvial plain2 for ,herodotus  
tells us that in his time those spots   
from which the ,nile waters had been    
shut out for centuries appeared sunk1   
and could be looked down into from the  

surrounding grounds1 which had been     
raised by the gradual accumulation over 
them of sediment annually thrown down4  
,if the waters at length should break   
into such depressions1 they must at     
first carry with them into the enclosure
 much mud washed from the steep         
surrounding banks1 so that a greater    
quantity would be deposited in a few    
years than perhaps in as many centuries 
on the great plain outside the depressed
 area1 where no such disturbing causes  
intervened4   ,,ancient ,,mounds ,,of   
,,the ,,valley ,,of ,,the ,,ohio4  ,as  
,i have already given several ,european 
examples of monuments of prehistoric    
date belonging to the ,recent period1 ,i
 will now turn to the ,american         
continent4 ,before the scientific       
investigation by ,messrs4 ,squier and   
,davis of the ,ancient ,monuments of the
 ,mississippi ,valley199 no one         
suspected that the plains of that river 
had been occupied1 for ages before the  
,french and ,british colonists settled  

there1 by a nation of older date and    
more advanced in the arts than the ,red 
,indians whom the ,europeans found      
there4      799 ,smithsonian            
,contributions volume #a #ahdg47  ,there
 are hundreds of large mounds in the    
basin of the ,mississippi1 and          
especially in the valleys of the ,ohio  
and its tributaries1 which have served1 
some of them for temples1 others for    
outlook or defence1 and others for      
sepulture4 ,the unknown people by whom  
they were constructed1 judging by the   
form of several skulls dug out of the   
burial-places1 were of the ,mexican or  
,toltec race4 ,some of the earthworks   
are on so grand a scale as to embrace   
areas of #ej or #ajj acres within a     
simple enclosure1 and the solid contents
 of one mould are estimated at #bj      
million of cubic feet1 so that four of  
them would be more than equal in bulk to
 the ,great ,pyramid of ,egypt1 which   
comprises #ge million4 ,from several of 
these repositories pottery and          

ornamental sculpture have been taken1   
and various articles in silver and      
copper1 also stone weapons1 some        
composed of hornstone unpolished1 and   
much resembling in shape some ancient   
flint implements found near ,amiens and 
other places in ,europe1 to be alluded  
to in the sequel4  ,it is clear that the
 ,ohio mound-builders had commercial    
intercourse with the natives of distant 
regions1 for among the buried articles  
some are made of native copper from     
,lake ,superior1 and there are also     
found mica from the ,alleghenies1       
sea-shells from the ,gulf of ,mexico1   
and obsidian from the ,mexican          
mountains4  ,the extraordinary number of
 the mounds implies a long period1      
during which a settled agricultural     
population had made considerable        
progress in civilisation1 so as to      
require large temples for their         
religious rites1 and extensive          
fortifications to protect them from     
their enemies4 ,the mounds were almost  

all confined to fertile valleys or      
alluvial plains1 and some at least are  
so ancient that rivers have had time    
since their construction to encroach on 
the lower terraces which support them1  
and again to recede for the distance of 
nearly a mile1 after having undermined  
and destroyed a part of the works4 ,when
 the first ,european settlers entered   
the valley of the ,ohio1 they found the 
whole region covered with an            
uninterrupted forest1 and tenanted by   
the ,red ,indian hunter1 who roamed over
 it without any fixed abode1 or any     
traditionary connection with his more   
civilised predecessors4 ,the only       
positive data as yet obtained for       
calculating the minimum of time which   
must have elapsed since the mounds were 
abandoned1 have been derived from the   
age and nature of the trees found       
growing on some of these earthworks4    
,when ,i visited ,marietta in #ahdb1    
,dr4 ,hildreth took me to one of the    
mounds1 and showed me where he had seen 

a tree growing on it1 the trunk of which
 when cut down displayed eight hundred  
rings of annual growth499       799     
,lyell's ,travels in ,north ,america    
volume #b page #bi47  ,but the late     
,general ,harrison1 ,president in #ahda 
of the ,united ,states1 who was well    
skilled in woodcraft1 has remarked1 in a
 memoir on this subject1 that several   
generations of trees must have lived and
 died before the mounds could have been 
overspread with that variety of species 
which they supported when the white man 
first beheld them1 for the number and   
kinds of trees were precisely the same  
as those which distinguished the        
surrounding forest4 ,we may be sure1    
observed ,harrison1 that no trees were  
allowed to grow so long as the          
earthworks were in use2 and when they   
were forsaken1 the ground1 like all     
newly cleared land in ,ohio1 would for a
 time be monopolised by one or two      
species of tree1 such as the yellow     
locust and the black or white walnut4   

,when the individuals which were the    
first to get possession of the ground   
had died out one after the other1 they  
would in many cases1 instead of being   
replaced by the same species1 be        
succeeded 7by virtue of the law which   
makes a rotation of crops profitable in 
agriculture7 by other kinds1 till at    
last1 after a great number of centuries 
7several thousand years1 perhaps71 that 
remarkable diversity of species         
characteristic of ,north ,america1 and  
far exceeding what is seen in ,european 
forests1 would be established4          
,,mounds ,,of ,,santos ,,in ,,brazil4   
,i will next say a few words respecting 
certain human bones embedded in a solid 
rock at ,santos in ,brazil1 to which ,i 
called attention in my ,travels in      
,north ,america in #ahdb499       799   
,volume #a page #bjj47  ,i then imagined
 the deposit containing them to be of   
submarine origin--an opinion which ,i   
have long ceased to entertain4 ,we learn
 from a memoir of ,dr4 ,meigs that the  

,river ,santos has undermined a large   
mound1 #ad feet in height1 and about #c 
acres in area1 covered with trees1 near 
the town of ,st4 ,paul1 and has exposed 
to view many skeletons1 all inclined at 
angles between #bj and #be degrees1 and 
all placed in a similar east and west   
position499       799 ,meigs            
,transactions of the ,american          
,philosophical      ,society #ahbh page 
#bhe47  ,seeing1 in the ,museum of      
,philadelphia1 fragments of the         
calcareous stone or tufa from this spot1
 containing a human skull with teeth1   
and in the same matrix1 oysters with    
serpulae attached1 ,i at first concluded
 that the whole deposit had been formed 
beneath the waters of the sea1 or at    
least1 that it had been submerged after 
its origin1 and again upheaved2 also1   
that there had been time since its      
emergence for the growth on it of a     
forest of large trees4 ,but after       
reading again1 with more care1 the      
original memoir of ,dr4 ,meigs1 ,i      

cannot doubt that the shells1 like those
 of eatable kinds1 so often accumulated 
in the mounds of the ,north ,american   
,indians not far from the sea1 may have 
been brought to the place and heaped up 
with other materials at the time when   
the bodies were buried4 ,subsequently1  
the whole artificial earthwork1 with its
 shells and skeletons1 may have been    
bound together into a solid stone by the
 infiltration of carbonate of lime1 and 
the mound may therefore be of no higher 
antiquity than some of those above      
alluded to on the ,ohio1 which1 as we   
have seen1 have in like manner been     
exposed in the course of ages to the    
encroachments and undermining action of 
rivers4   ,,delta ,,of ,,the            
,,mississippi4  ,i have shown in my     
,travels in ,north ,america that the    
deposits forming the delta and alluvial 
plain of the ,mississippi consist of    
sedimentary matter1 extending over an   
area of #cj1jjj square miles1 and known 
in some parts to be several hundred feet

 deep4 ,although we cannot estimate     
correctly how many years it may have    
required for the river to bring down    
from the upper country so large a       
quantity of earthy matter--the data for 
such a computation being as yet         
incomplete--we may still approximate to 
a minimum of the time which such an     
operation must have taken1 by           
ascertaining experimentally the annual  
discharge of water by the ,mississippi1 
and the mean annual amount of solid     
matter contained in its waters4 ,the    
lowest estimate of the time required    
would lead us to assign a high          
antiquity1 amounting to many tens of    
thousands of years 7probably more than  
#ajj1jjj7 to the existing delta4        
,whether all or how much of this        
formation may belong to the recent      
period1 as above defined1 ,i cannot     
pretend to decide1 but in one part of   
the modern delta near ,new ,orleans1 a  
large excavation has been made for      
gas-works1 where a succession of beds1  

almost wholly made up of vegetable      
matter1 has been passed through1 such as
 we now see forming in the cypress      
swamps of the neighbourhood1 where the  
deciduous cypress 7,taxodium distichum71
 with its strong and spreading roots1   
plays a conspicuous part4 ,in this      
excavation1 at the depth of sixteen feet
 from the surface1 beneath four buried  
forests superimposed one upon the other1
 the workmen are stated by ,dr4 ,b4     
,dowler to have found some charcoal and 
a human skeleton1 the cranium of which  
is said to belong to the aboriginal type
 of the ,red ,indian race4 ,as the      
discovery in question had not been made 
when ,i saw the excavation in progress  
at the gas-works in #ahdf1 ,i cannot    
form an opinion as to the value of the  
chronological calculations which have   
led ,dr4 ,dowler to ascribe to this     
skeleton an antiquity of #ej1jjj years4 
,in several sections1 both natural in   
the banks of the ,mississippi and its   
numerous arms1 and where artificial     

canals had been cut1 ,i observed erect  
stumps of trees1 with their roots       
attached1 buried in strata at different 
heights1 one over the other4 ,i also    
remarked1 that many cypresses which had 
been cut through1 exhibited many        
hundreds of rings of annual growth1 and 
it then struck me that nowhere in the   
world could the geologist enjoy a more  
favourable opportunity for estimating in
 years the duration of certain portions 
of the ,recent epoch499       799       
,dowler cited by ,dr4 ,w4 ,usher in     
,nott and ,gliddon's ,types      of     
,mankind page #ceb47   ,,coral ,,reefs  
,,of ,,florida4  ,professor ,agassiz has
 described a low portion of the         
peninsula of ,florida as consisting of  
numerous reefs of coral1 which have     
grown in succession so as to give rise  
to a continual annexation of land1      
gained gradually from the sea in a      
southerly direction4 ,this growth is    
still in full activity1 and assuming the
 rate of advance of the land to be one  

foot in a century1 the reefs being built
 up from a depth of #ge feet1 and that  
each reef has in its turn added ten     
miles to the coast1 ,professor ,agassiz 
calculates that it has taken #ace1jjj   
years to form the southern half of this 
peninsula4 ,yet the whole is of         
,post-,tertiary origin1 the fossil      
zoophytes and shells being all of the   
same species as those now inhabiting the
 neighbouring sea499      799 ,agassiz  
in ,nott and ,gliddon ibid4 page #ceb47 
,in a calcareous conglomerate forming   
part of the above-mentioned series of   
reefs1 and supposed by ,agassiz1 in     
accordance with his mode of estimating  
the rate of growth of those reefs1 to be
 about #aj1jjj years old1 some fossil   
human remains were found by ,count      
,pourtales4 ,they consisted of jaws and 
teeth1 with some bones of the foot4     
,,recent ,,deposits ,,of ,,seas ,,and   
,,lakes4  ,i have shown1 in the         
,principles of ,geology1 where the      
recent changes of the earth illustrative

 of geology are described at length1    
that the deposits accumulated at the    
bottom of lakes and seas within the last
 #djjj or #ejjj years can neither be    
insignificant in volume or extent4 ,they
 lie hidden1 for the most part1 from our
 sight2 but we have opportunities of    
examining them at certain points where  
newly-gained land in the deltas of      
rivers has been cut through during      
floods1 or where coral reefs are growing
 rapidly1 or where the bed of a sea or  
lake has been heaved up by subterranean 
movements and laid dry4  ,as examples of
 such changes of level by which marine  
deposits of the ,recent period have     
become accessible to human observation1 
,i have adduced the strata near ,naples 
in which the ,temple of ,serapis at     
,pozzuoli was entombed499       799     
,principles of ,geology ,index          
,serapis47  ,these upraised strata1 the 
highest of which are about #be feet     
above the level of the sea1 form a      
terrace skirting the eastern shore of   

the ,bay of ,baiae4 ,they consist partly
 of clay1 partly of volcanic matter1 and
 contain fragments of sculpture1        
pottery1 and the remains of buildings1  
together with great numbers of shells1  
retaining in part their colour1 and of  
the same species as those now inhabiting
 the neighbouring sea4 ,their emergence 
can be proved to have taken place since 
the beginning of the sixteenth century4 
#e  ,in the same work1 as an example of 
a freshwater deposit of the ,recent     
period1 ,i have described certain strata
 in ,cashmere1 a country where violent  
earthquakes1 attended by alterations in 
the level of the ground1 are frequent1  
in which freshwater shells of species   
now inhabiting the lakes and rivers of  
that region are embedded1 together with 
the remains of pottery1 often at the    
depth of fifty feet1 and in which a     
splendid ,hindoo temple has lately been 
discovered1 and laid open to view by the
 removal of the lacustrine silt which   
had enveloped it for four or five       

centuries4  ,in the same treatise it is 
stated that the west coast of ,south    
,america1 between the ,andes and the    
,pacific1 is a great theatre of         
earthquake movements1 and that permanent
 upheavals of the land of several feet  
at a time have been experienced since   
the discovery of ,america4 ,in various  
parts of the littoral region of ,chile  
and ,peru1 strata have been observed    
enclosing shells in abundance1 all      
agreeing specifically with those now    
swarming in the ,pacific4 ,in one bed of
 this kind1 in the island of ,san       
,lorenzo1 near ,lima1 ,mr4 ,darwin      
found1 at the altitude of #he feet above
 the sea1 pieces of cotton-thread1      
plaited rush1 and the head of a stalk of
 ,indian corn1 the whole of which had   
evidently been embedded with the shells4
 ,at the same height1 on the            
neighbouring mainland1 he found other   
signs corroborating the opinion that the
 ancient bed of the sea had there also  
been uplifted #he feet since the region 

was first peopled by the ,peruvian race4
 ,but similar shelly masses are also met
 with at much higher elevations1 at     
innumerable points between the ,chilean 
and ,peruvian ,andes and the sea-coast1 
in which no human remains have as yet   
been observed4 ,the preservation for an 
indefinite period of such perishable    
substances as thread is explained by the
 entire absence of rain in ,peru4 ,the  
same articles1 had they been enclosed in
 the permeable sands of an ,european    
raised beach1 or in any country where   
rain falls even for a small part of the 
year1 would probably have disappeared   
entirely #f  ,in the literature of the  
eighteenth century1 we find frequent    
allusion to the era of existing         
continents1 a period supposed to have   
coincided in date with the first        
appearance of ,man upon the earth1 since
 which event it was imagined that the   
relative level of the sea and land had  
remained stationary1 no important       
geographical changes having occurred1   

except some slight additions to the     
deltas of rivers1 or the loss of narrow 
strips of land where the sea had        
encroached upon its shores4 ,but modern 
observations have tended continually to 
dispel this delusion1 and the geologist 
is now convinced that at no given era of
 the past have the boundaries of land   
and sea1 or the height of the one and   
depth of the other1 or the geographical 
range of the species inhabiting them1   
whether of animals or plants1 become    
fixed and unchangeable4 ,of the extent  
to which fluctuations have been going on
 since the globe had already become the 
dwelling-place of ,man1 some idea may be
 formed from the examples which ,i shall
 give in this and the next nine         
chapters4   ,,upheaval ,,since ,,the    
,,human ,,period ,,of ,,the ,,central   
,,district ,,of ,,scotland4  #g ,it has 
long been a fact familiar to geologists1
 that1 both on the east and west coasts 
of the central part of ,scotland1 there 
are lines of raised beaches1 containing 

marine shells of the same species as    
those now inhabiting the neighbouring   
sea499       799 ,r4 ,chambers ,sea     
,margins #ahdh and papers by ,mr4 ,smith
 of      ,jordan ,hill ,memoirs of the  
,wernerian ,society volume #h and       
by ,mr4 ,c4 ,maclaren4 7  ,the two most 
marked of these littoral deposits occur 
at heights of about #ej and #be feet    
above high-water mark1 that of #ej feet 
being considered as the more ancient1   
and owing its superior elevation to a   
continuance of the upheaving movement4  
,they are seen in some places to rest on
 the boulder clay of the glacial period1
 which will be described in future      
chapters4  ,in those districts where    
large rivers1 such as the ,clyde1       
,forth1 and ,tay1 enter the sea1 the    
lower of the two deposits1 or that of   
#be feet1 expands into a terrace        
fringing the estuaries1 and varying in  
breadth from a few yards to several     
miles4 ,of this nature are the flat     
lands which occur along the margin of   

the ,clyde at ,glasgow1 which consist of
 finely laminated sand1 silt1 and clay4 
,mr4 ,john ,buchanan1 a zealous         
antiquary1 writing in #ahee1 informs us 
that in the course of the eighty years  
preceding that date1 no less than       
seventeen canoes had been dug out of    
this estuarine silt1 and that he had    
personally inspected a large number of  
them before they were exhumed4 ,five of 
them lay buried in silt under the       
streets of ,glasgow1 one in a vertical  
position with the prow uppermost as if  
it had sunk in a storm4 ,in the inside  
of it were a number of marine shells4   
,twelve other canoes were found about   
#ajj yards back from the river1 at the  
average depth of about #ai feet from the
 surface of the soil1 or #g feet above  
high-water mark2 but a few of them were 
only #d or #e feet deep1 and            
consequently more than #bj feet above   
the sea-level4 ,one was sticking in the 
sand at an angle of #de degrees1 another
 had been capsized and lay bottom       

uppermost2 all the rest were in a       
horizontal position1 as if they had sunk
 in smooth water499       799 ,j4       
,buchanan ,report of the ,british       
,association #ahee page      #hj2 also  
,glasgow1 ,past and ,present #ahef47    
,almost every one of these ancient boats
 was formed out of a single oak-stem1   
hollowed out by blunt tools1 probably   
stone axes1 aided by the action of fire2
 a few were cut beautifully smooth1     
evidently with metallic tools4 ,hence a 
gradation could be traced from a pattern
 of extreme rudeness to one showing     
great mechanical ingenuity4 ,two of them
 were built of planks1 one of the two1  
dug up on the property of ,bankton in   
#ahec1 being #ah feet in length1 and    
very elaborately constructed4 ,its prow 
was not unlike the beak of an antique   
galley2 its stern1 formed of a          
triangular-shaped piece of oak1 fitted  
in exactly like those of our day4 ,the  
planks were fastened to the ribs1 partly
 by singularly shaped oaken pins1 and   

partly by what must have been square    
nails of some kind of metal2 these had  
entirely disappeared1 but some of the   
oaken pins remained4 ,this boat had been
 upset1 and was lying keel uppermost1   
with the prow pointing straight up the  
river4 ,in one of the canoes1 a         
beautifully polished celt or axe of     
greenstone was found1 in the bottom of  
another a plug of cork1 which1 as ,mr4  
,geikie remarks1 could only have come   
from the latitudes of ,spain1 ,southern 
,france1 or ,italy499       799 ,geikie1
 ,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological 
,society      volume #ah #ahfb page     
#bbd47  ,there can be no doubt that some
 of these buried vessels are of far more
 ancient date than others4 ,those most  
roughly hewn1 may be relics of the stone
 period2 those more smoothly cut1 of the
 bronze age2 and the regularly built    
boat of ,bankton may perhaps come within
 the age of iron4 ,the occurrence of all
 of them in one and the same upraised   
marine formation by no means implies    

that they belong to the same era1 for in
 the beds of all great rivers and       
estuaries1 there are changes continually
 in progress brought about by the       
deposition1 removal1 and redeposition of
 gravel1 sand1 and fine sediment1 and by
 the shifting of the channel of the main
 currents from year to year1 and from   
century to century4 ,all these it       
behoves the geologist and antiquary to  
bear in mind1 so as to be always on     
their guard1 when they are endeavouring 
to settle the relative date1 whether of 
objects of art or of organic remains    
embedded in any set of alluvial strata4 
,some judicious observations on this    
head occur in ,mr4 ,geikie's memoir     
above cited1 which are so much in point 
that ,i shall give them in full1 and in 
his own words4  ,the relative position  
in the silt1 from which the canoes were 
exhumed1 could help us little in any    
attempt to ascertain their relative     
ages1 unless they had been found        
vertically above each other4 ,the       

varying depths of an estuary1 its banks 
of silt and sand1 the set of its        
currents1 and the influence of its tides
 in scouring out alluvium from some     
parts of its bottom and redepositing it 
in others1 are circumstances which      
require to be taken into account in all 
such calculations4 ,mere coincidence of 
depth from the present surface of the   
ground1 which is tolerably uniform in   
level1 by no means necessarily proves   
contemporaneous deposition4 ,nor would  
such an inference follow even from the  
occurrence of the remains in distant    
parts of the very same stratum4 ,a canoe
 might be capsized and sent to the      
bottom just beneath low-water mark2     
another might experience a similar fate 
on the following day1 but in the middle 
of the channel4 ,both would become      
silted up on the floor of the estuary2  
but as that floor would be perhaps #bj  
feet deeper in the centre than towards  
the margin of the river1 the one canoe  
might actually be twenty feet deeper in 

the alluvium than the other2 and on the 
upheaval of the alluvial deposits1 if we
 were to argue merely from the depth at 
which the remains were embedded1 we     
should pronounce the canoe found at the 
one locality to be immensely older than 
the other1 seeing that the fine mud of  
the estuary is deposited very slowly and
 that it must therefore have taken a    
long period to form so great a thickness
 as #bj feet4 ,again1 the tides and     
currents of the estuary1 by changing    
their direction1 might sweep away a     
considerable mass of alluvium from the  
bottom1 laying bare a canoe that may    
have foundered many centuries before4   
,after the lapse of so long an interval1
 another vessel might go to the bottom  
in the same locality and be there       
covered up with the older one on the    
same general plane4 ,these two vessels1 
found in such a position1 would         
naturally be classed together as of the 
same age1 and yet it is demonstrable    
that a very long period may have elapsed

 between the date of the one and that of
 the other4 ,such an association of     
these canoes1 therefore1 cannot be      
regarded as proving synchronous         
deposition2 nor1 on the other hand1 can 
we affirm any difference of age from    
mere relative position1 unless we see   
one canoe actually buried beneath       
another499       799 ,geikie1 ,quarterly
 ,journal of the ,geological ,society   
volume #ah #ahfb1 page #bbb47  ,at the  
time when the ancient vessels1 above    
described1 were navigating the waters   
where the city of ,glasgow now stands1  
the whole of the low lands which        
bordered the present estuary of the     
,clyde formed the bed of a shallow sea4 
,the emergence appears to have taken    
place gradually and by intermittent     
movements1 for ,mr4 ,buchanan describes 
several narrow terraces one above the   
other on the site of the city itself1   
with steep intervening slopes composed  
of the laminated estuary formation4     
,each terrace and steep slope probably  

mark pauses in the process of upheaval1 
during which low cliffs were formed1    
with beaches at their base4 ,five of the
 canoes were found within the precincts 
of the city at different heights on or  
near such terraces4  ,as to the date of 
the upheaval1 the greater part of it    
cannot be assigned to the stone period1 
but must have taken place after tools of
 metal had come into use4  ,until       
lately1 when attempts were made to      
estimate the probable antiquity of such 
changes of level1 it was confidently    
assumed1 as a safe starting-point1 that 
no alteration had occurred in the       
relative level of land and sea1 in the  
central district of ,scotland1 since the
 construction of the ,roman or ,pictish 
wall 7the ,wall of ,antonine71 which    
reached from the ,firth of ,forth to    
that of the ,clyde4 ,the two            
extremities1 it was said1 of this       
ancient structure1 bear such a relation 
to the present level of the two         
estuaries1 that neither subsidence nor  

elevation of the land could have        
occurred for seventeen centuries at     
least4  ,but ,mr4 ,geikie has lately    
shown that a depression of #be feet on  
the ,forth would not lay the eastern    
extremity of the ,roman wall at         
,carriden under water1 and he was       
therefore desirous of knowing whether   
the western end of the same would be    
submerged by a similar amount of        
subsidence4 ,it has always been         
acknowledged that the wall terminated   
upon an eminence called the ,chapel     
,hill1 near the village of ,west        
,kilpatrick1 on the ,clyde4 ,the foot of
 this hill1 ,mr4 ,geikie estimates to be
 about #be or #bg feet above high-water 
mark1 so that a subsidence of #be feet  
could not lay it under water4           
,antiquaries have sometimes wondered    
that the ,romans did not carry the wall 
farther west than this ,chapel ,hill2   
but ,mr4 ,geikie now suggests1 in       
explanation1 that all the low land at   
present intervening between that point  

and the mouth of the ,clyde1 was sixteen
 or seventeen centuries ago1 washed by  
the tides at high water4  ,the wall of  
,antonine1 therefore1 yields no evidence
 in favour of the land having remained  
stationary since the time of the        
,romans1 but on the contrary1 appears to
 indicate that since its erection the   
land has actually risen4 ,recent        
explorations by ,mr4 ,geikie and ,dr4   
,young1 of the sites of the old ,roman  
harbours along the southern margin of   
the ,firth of ,forth1 lead to similar   
inferences4 ,in the first place1 it has 
long been known that there is a raised  
beach containing marine shells of living
 littoral species1 at a height of about 
#be feet1 at ,leith1 as well as at other
 places along the coast above and below 
,edinburgh4 ,inveresk1 a few miles below
 that city1 is the site of an ancient   
,roman port1 and if we suppose the sea  
at high water to have washed the foot of
 the heights on which the town stood1   
the tide would have ascended far up the 

valley of the ,esk1 and would have made 
the mouth of that river a safe and      
commodious harbour2 whereas1 had it been
 a shoaling estuary1 as at present1 it  
is difficult to see how the ,romans     
should have made choice of it as a port4
  ,at ,cramond1 at the mouth of the     
river ,almond1 above ,edinburgh1 was    
,alaterva1 the chief ,roman harbour on  
the southern coast of the ,forth1 where 
numerous coins1 urns1 sculptured stones 
and the remnant of a harbour have been  
detected4 ,the old ,roman quays built   
along what must then have been the sea  
margin1 have been found on what is now  
dry land1 and although some silt carried
 down in suspension by the waters of the
 ,forth may account for a part of the   
gain of low land1 we yet require an     
upward movement of about #bj feet to    
explain the growth of the dreary expanse
 of mud now stretching along the shore  
and extending outwards1 where it attains
 its greatest breadth1 well-nigh two    
miles1 across which vessels1 even of    

light burden1 can now only venture at   
full tide4 ,had these shoals existed    
eighteen centuries ago1 they would have 
prevented the ,romans from selecting    
this as their chief port2 whereas1 if   
the land were now to sink #bj feet1     
,cramond would unquestionably be the    
best natural harbour along the whole of 
the south side of the ,forth499         
799 ,geikie1 ,edinburgh ,new            
,philosophical ,journal for ,july       
#ahfa47  ,corresponding in level with   
the raised beach at ,leith1 above       
mentioned 7or about #be feet above      
high-water mark71 is the ,carse of      
,stirling1 a low tract of land          
consisting of loamy and peaty beds1 in  
which several skeletons of whales of    
large size have been found4 ,one of     
these was dug up at ,airthrie199 near   
,stirling1 about a mile from the river1 
and #g miles from the sea4       799    
,bald1 ,edinburgh ,philosophical        
,journal #a page #cic and      ,memoirs 
of the ,wernerian ,society #c page      

#cbg47  ,mr4 ,bald mentions that near it
 were found two pieces of stag's horn1  
artificially cut1 through one of which a
 hole1 about an inch in diameter1 had   
been perforated4 ,another whale1 #he    
feet long1 was found at ,dunmore1 a few 
miles below ,stirling199 which1 like    
that of ,airthrie1 lay about #bj feet   
above high-water mark4       799        
,edinburgh ,philosophical ,journal #aa  
pages #bbj1 #dae47  ,three other        
skeletons of whales were found at ,blair
 ,drummond1 between the years #ahai and 
#ahbd1 #g miles up the estuary above    
,stirling199 also at an elevation of    
between #bj and #cj feet above the sea4 
,near two of these whales1 pointed      
instruments of deer's horn were found1  
one of which retained part of a wooden  
handle1 probably preserved by having    
been enclosed in peat4 ,this weapon is  
now in the museum at ,edinburgh4        
799 ,memoirs of the ,wernerian ,society 
volume #e page #ddj47  ,the position of 
these fossil whales and bone implements1

 and still more of an iron anchor found 
in the ,carse of ,falkirk1 below        
,stirling1 shows that the upheaval by   
which the raised beach of ,leith was    
laid dry extended far westward probably 
as far as the ,clyde1 where1 as we have 
seen1 marine strata containing buried   
canoes rise to a similar height above   
the sea4  ,the same upward movement     
which reached simultaneously east and   
west from sea to sea was also felt as   
far north as the estuary of the ,tay4   
,this may be inferred from the ,celtic  
name of ,inch being attached to many    
hillocks1 which rise above the general  
level of the alluvial plains1 implying  
that these eminences were once          
surrounded by water or marshy ground4   
,at various localities also in the silt 
of the ,carse of ,gowrie iron implements
 have been found4  ,the raised beach1   
also containing a great number of marine
 shells of recent species1 traced up to 
a height of #ad feet above the sea by   
,mr4 ,w4,j4 ,hamilton at ,elie1 on the  

southern coast of ,fife1 is doubtless   
another effect of the same extensive    
upheaval499       799 ,proceedings of   
the ,geological ,society volume #b #ahcc
      page #bhj47  ,a similar movement  
would also account for some changes     
which antiquaries have recorded much    
farther south1 on the borders of the    
,solway ,firth2 though in this case1 as 
in that of the estuary of the ,forth1   
the conversion of sea into land has     
always been referred to the silting up  
of estuaries1 and not to upheaval4 ,thus
 ,horsley insists on the difficulty of  
explaining the position of certain      
,roman stations1 on the ,solway1 the    
,forth1 and the ,clyde1 without assuming
 that the sea has been excluded from    
certain areas which it formerly         
occupied499       799 ,britannia page   
#aeg #ahfj47  ,on a review of the whole 
evidence1 geological and archaeological1
 afforded by the ,scottish coast-line1  
we may conclude that the last upheaval  
of #be feet took place not only since   

the first human population settled in   
the island2 but long after metallic     
implements had come into use1 and there 
seems even a strong presumption in      
favour of the opinion that the date of  
the elevation may have been subsequent  
to the ,roman occupation4  ,but the #be 
feet rise is only the last stage of a   
long antecedent process of elevation1   
for examples of ,recent marine shells   
have been observed #dj feet and upwards 
above the sea in ,ayrshire4 ,at one of  
these localities1 ,mr4 ,smith of        
,jordanhill informs me that a rude      
ornament made of cannel coal has been   
found on the coast in the parish of     
,dundonald1 lying #ej feet above the    
sea-level1 on the surface of the        
boulder-clay or till1 and covered with  
gravel containing marine shells4 ,if we 
suppose the upward movement to have been
 uniform in central ,scotland before and
 after the ,roman era1 and assume that  
as #be feet indicate seventeen          
centuries1 so #ej feet imply a lapse of 

twice that number1 or #cdjj years1 we   
should then carry back the date of the  
ornament in question to fifteen         
centuries before our era1 or to the days
 of ,pharaoh1 and the period usually    
assigned to the exodus of the           
,israelites from ,egypt4 #h  ,but all   
such estimates must be considered1 in   
the present state of science1 as        
tentative and conjectural1 since the    
rate of movement of the land may not    
have been uniform1 and its direction not
 always upwards1 and there may have been
 long stationary periods1 one of which  
of more than usual duration seems       
indicated by the #ej-;foot raised beach1
 which has been traced for vast         
distances along the western coast of    
,scotland4   ,,coast ,,of ,,cornwall4   
,sir ,h4 ,de la ,beche has adduced      
several proofs of changes of level1 in  
the course of the human period1 in his  
,report on the ,geology of ,cornwall and
 ,devon1 #ahci4 ,he mentions 7page #djf7
 that several human skulls and works of 

art1 buried in an estuary deposit1 were 
found in mining gravel for tin at       
,pentuan1 near ,st4 ,austell1 the skulls
 lying at the depth of #dj feet from the
 surface1 and others at ,carnon at the  
depth of #ec feet4 ,the overlying strata
 were marine1 containing sea-shells of  
living species1 and bones of whales1    
besides the remains of several living   
species of mammalia4  ,other examples of
 works of art1 such as stone hatchets1  
canoes1 and ships1 buried in ancient    
river-beds in ,england1 and in peat and 
shell-marl1 ,i have mentioned in my work
 before cited4   ,,sweden ,,and         
,,norway4  ,in the same work ,i have    
shown that near ,stockholm1 in ,sweden1 
there occur1 at slight elevations above 
the sea-level1 horizontal beds of sand1 
loam1 and marl1 containing the same     
peculiar assemblage of testacea which   
now live in the brackish waters of the  
,baltic4 ,mingled with these1 at        
different depths1 have been detected    
various works of art implying a rude    

state of civilization1 and some vessels 
built before the introduction of iron1  
and even the remains of an ancient hut1 
the marine strata containing it1 which  
had been formed during a previous       
depression1 having been upraised1 so    
that the upper beds are now #fj feet    
higher than the surface of the ,baltic4 
,in the neighbourhood of these recent   
strata1 both to the north-west and south
 of ,stockholm1 other deposits similar  
in mineral composition occur1 which     
ascend to greater heights1 in which     
precisely the same assemblage of fossil 
shells is met with1 but without any     
intermixture1 so far as is yet known1 of
 human bones or fabricated articles4    
,on the opposite or western coast of    
,sweden1 at ,uddevalla1 ,post-,tertiary 
strata1 containing recent shells1 not of
 that brackish water character peculiar 
to the ,baltic1 but such as now live in 
the ,northern ,ocean1 ascend to the     
height of #bjj feet2 and beds of clay   
and sand of the same age attain         

elevations of #cjj and even #fjj feet in
 ,norway1 where they have been usually  
described as raised beaches4 ,they are1 
however1 thick deposits of submarine    
origin1 spreading far and wide1 and     
filling valleys in the granite and      
gneiss1 just as the ,tertiary           
formations1 in different parts of       
,europe1 cover or fill depressions in   
the older rocks4  ,although the fossil  
fauna characterising these upraised     
sands and clays consists exclusively of 
existing northern species of testacea1  
it is more than probable that they may  
not all belong to that division of the  
,pleistocene strata which we are now    
considering4 ,if the contemporary       
mammalia were known1 they would1 in all 
likelihood1 be found to be referable1 at
 least in part1 to extinct species2 for1
 according to ,loven 7an able living    
naturalist of ,norway71 the species do  
not constitute such an assemblage as now
 inhabits corresponding latitudes in the
 ,north ,sea4 ,on the contrary1 they    

decidedly represent a more arctic fauna4
 ,in order to find the same species     
flourishing in equal abundance1 or in   
many cases to find them at all1 we must 
go northwards to higher latitudes than  
,uddevalla in ,sweden1 or even nearer   
the pole than ,central ,norway4         
,judging by the uniformity of climate   
now prevailing from century to century1 
and the insensible rate of variation in 
the geographical distribution of organic
 beings in our own times1 we may presume
 that an extremely lengthened period was
 required even for so slight a          
modification in the range of the        
molluscous fauna1 as that of which the  
evidence is here brought to light4      
,there are also other independent       
reasons for suspecting that the         
antiquity of these deposits may be      
indefinitely great as compared to the   
historical period4 ,i allude to their   
present elevation above the sea1 some of
 them rising1 in ,norway1 to the height 
of #fjj feet or more4 ,the upward       

movement now in progress in parts of    
,norway and ,sweden extends1 as ,i have 
elsewhere shown199 throughout an area   
about #ajjj miles north and south1 and  
for an unknown distance east and west1  
the amount of elevation always          
increasing as we proceed towards the    
,north ,cape1 where it is said to equal 
#e feet in a century4       799         
,principles #ith edition chapter #cj47  
,if we could assume that there had been 
an average of #b #a_/b feet in each     
hundred years for the last fifty        
centuries1 this would give an elevation 
of #abe feet in that period4 ,in other  
words1 it would follow that the shores1 
and a considerable area of the former   
bed of the ,north ,sea1 had been        
uplifted vertically to that amount1 and 
converted into land in the course of the
 last #ejjj years4 ,a mean rate of      
continuous vertical elevation of #b     
#a_/b feet in a century would1 ,i       
conceive1 be a high average2 yet1 even  
if this be assumed1 it would require    

#bd1jjj years for parts of the sea-coast
 of ,norway1 where the ,pleistocene     
marine strata occur1 to attain the      
height of #fjj feet4 #i    ,,chapter #d4
 -- ,,pleistocene ,,period--,,bones ,,of
 ,,man ,,and ,,extinct ,,mammalia ,,in  
,,belgian ,,caverns4    ,earliest       
,discoveries in ,caves of ,languedoc of 
,human ,remains with      ,bones of     
extinct ,mammalia4   ,researches in     
#ahcc of ,dr4 ,schmerling in the ,liege 
,caverns4   ,scattered ,portions of     
,human ,skeletons associated with ,bones
      of ,elephant and ,rhinoceros4     
,distribution and probable ,mode of     
,introduction of the ,bones4            
,implements of ,flint and ,bone4        
,schmerling's ,conclusions as to the    
,antiquity of ,man ignored4   ,present  
,state of the ,belgian ,caves4   ,human 
,bones recently found in ,cave of       
,engihoul4   ,engulfed ,rivers4         
,stalagmitic ,crust4   ,antiquity of the
 ,human ,remains in ,belgium how proved4
  ,having hitherto considered those     

formations in which both the fossil     
shells and the mammalia are of living   
species1 we may now turn our attention  
to those of older date1 in which the    
shells being all recent1 some of the    
accompanying mammalia are extinct1 or   
belong to species not known to have     
lived within the times of history or    
tradition4   ,,discoveries ,,of ,,mm4   
,,tournal ,,and ,,christol ,,in #ahbh   
,,in ,,the ,,south ,,of ,,france4  ,in  
the ,principles of ,geology1 when       
treating of the fossil remains found in 
alluvium and the mud of caverns1 ,i gave
 an account in #ahcb of the             
investigations made by ,,mm4 ,tournal   
and ,christol in the ,south of          
,france499       799 #ast edition volume
 #b chapter #ad #ahcb1 and #ith edition 
page #gch1 #ahec47  ,m4 ,tournal stated 
in his memoir that in the cavern of     
,bize1 in the department of the ,aude1  
he had found human bones and teeth1     
together with fragments of rude pottery1
 in the same mud and breccia cemented by

 stalagmite in which land-shells of     
living species were embedded1 and the   
bones of mammalia1 some of extinct1     
others of recent species4 ,the human    
bones were declared by his              
fellow-labourer1 ,m4 ,marcel de ,serres1
 to be in the same chemical condition as
 those of the accompanying quadrupeds499
       799 ,annales des ,sciences       
,naturelles tome #ae #ahbh page #cdh47  
,speaking of these fossils of the ,bize 
cavern five years later1 ,m4 ,tournal   
observed that they could not be         
referred1 as some suggested1 to a       
diluvial catastrophe1 for they evidently
 had not been washed in suddenly by a   
transient flood1 but must have been     
introduced gradually1 together with the 
enveloping mud and pebbles1 at          
successive periods499       799 ,annales
 de ,chimie et de ,physique #ahcc page  
#afa47  ,m4 ,christol1 who was engaged  
at the same time in similar researches  
in another part of ,languedoc1 published
 an account of them a year later1 in    

which he described some human bones1 as 
occurring in the cavern of ,pondres1    
near ,nimes1 in the same mud with the   
bones of an extinct hyaena and          
rhinoceros499       799 ,christol1      
,notice sur les ,ossements humains des  
,cavernes      du ,gard ,montpellier    
#ahbi47  ,the cavern was in this        
instance filled up to the roof with mud 
and gravel1 in which fragments of two   
kinds of pottery were detected1 the     
lowest and rudest near the bottom of the
 cave1 below the level of the extinct   
mammalia4  ,it has never been questioned
 that the hyaena and rhinoceros found by
 ,m4 ,christol were of extinct species2 
but whether the animals enumerated by   
,m4 ,tournal might not all of them be   
referred to quadrupeds which are known  
to have been living in ,europe in the   
historical period seems doubtful4 ,they 
were said to consist of a stag1 an      
antelope1 and a goat1 all named by ,m4  
,marcel de ,serres as new2 but the      
majority of palaeontologists do not     

agree with this opinion4 ,still it is   
true1 as ,m4 ,lartet remarks1 that the  
fauna of the cavern of ,bize must be of 
very high antiquity1 as shown by the    
presence1 not only of the ,lithuanian   
aurochs 7,bison europaeus71 but also of 
the reindeer1 which has not been an     
inhabitant of the ,south of ,france in  
historical times1 and which1 in that    
country1 is almost everywhere           
associated1 whether in ancient alluvium 
or in the mud of caverns1 with the      
mammoth4  ,in my work before cited199 ,i
 stated that ,m4 ,desnoyers1 an observer
 equally well versed in geology and     
archaeology1 had disputed the conclusion
 arrived at by ,,mm4 ,tournal and       
,christol1 that the fossil rhinoceros1  
hyaena1 bear1 and other lost species had
 once been inhabitants of ,france       
contemporaneously with ,man4       799  
,principles #ith edition page #gci47    
,the flint hatchets and arrow-heads1 he 
said1 and the pointed bones and coarse  
pottery of many ,french and ,english    

caves1 agree precisely in character with
 those found in the tumuli1 and under   
the dolmens 7rude altars of unhewn      
stone7 of the primitive inhabitants of  
,gaul1 ,britain1 and ,germany4 ,the     
human bones1 therefore1 in the caves    
which are associated with such          
fabricated objects1 must belong not to  
antediluvian periods1 but to a people in
 the same stage of civilization as those
 who constructed the tumuli and altars4 
,in the ,gaulish monuments1 he added1 we
 find1 together with the objects of     
industry above mentioned1 the bones of  
wild and domestic animals of species now
 inhabiting ,europe1 particularly of    
deer1 sheep1 wild boars1 dogs1 horses1  
and oxen4 ,this fact has been           
ascertained in ,quercy and other        
provinces2 and it is supposed by        
antiquaries that the animals in question
 were placed beneath the ,celtic altars 
in memory of sacrifices offered to the  
,gaulish divinity ,hesus1 and in the    
tombs to commemorate funeral repasts1   

and also from a superstition prevalent  
among savage nations1 which induces them
 to lay up provisions for the manes of  
the dead in a future life4 ,but in none 
of these ancient monuments have any     
bones been found of the elephant1       
rhinoceros1 hyaena1 tiger1 and other    
quadrupeds1 such as are found in caves1 
which might certainly have been expected
 had these species continued to flourish
 at the time that this part of ,gaul was
 inhabited by ,man499       799         
,desnoyers1 ,bulletin de la ,societe    
,geologique de ,france      tome #b page
 #beb2 and article on ,caverns1         
,dictionnaire      ,universelle         
d',histoire ,naturelle ,paris #ahde47   
,after giving no small weight to the    
arguments of ,m4 ,desnoyers1 and the    
writings of ,dr4 ,buckland on the same  
subject1 and myself visiting several    
caves in ,germany1 ,i came to the       
opinion that the human bones mixed with 
those of extinct animals1 in osseous    
breccias and cavern mud1 in different   

parts of ,europe1 were probably not     
coeval4 ,the caverns having been at one 
period the dens of wild beasts1 and     
having served at other times as places  
of human habitation1 worship1 sepulture1
 concealment1 or defence1 one might     
easily conceive that the bones of ,man  
and those of animals1 which were strewed
 over the floors of subterranean        
cavities1 or which had fallen into      
tortuous rents connecting them with the 
surface1 might1 when swept away by      
floods1 be mingled in one promiscuous   
heap in the same ossiferous mud or      
breccia499       799 ,principles #ith   
edition page #gdj47  ,that such         
intermixtures have really taken place in
 some caverns1 and that geologists have 
occasionally been deceived1 and have    
assigned to one and the same period     
fossils which had really been introduced
 at successive times1 will readily be   
conceded4 ,but of late years we have    
obtained convincing proofs1 as we shall 
see in the sequel1 that the mammoth1 and

 many other extinct mammalian species   
very common in caves1 occur also in     
undisturbed alluvium1 embedded in such a
 manner with works of art1 as to leave  
no room for doubt that ,man and the     
mammoth coexisted2 ,such discoveries    
have led me1 and other geologists1 to   
reconsider the evidence previously      
derived from caves brought forward in   
proof of the high antiquity of ,man4    
,with a view of re-examining this       
evidence1 ,i have lately explored       
several caverns in ,belgium and other   
countries1 and re-read the principal    
memoirs and treatises treating of the   
fossil remains preserved in them1 the   
results of which inquiries ,i shall now 
proceed to lay before the reader4       
,,researches1 ,,in #ahcc-ahcd1 ,,of     
,,dr4 ,,schmerling ,,in ,,the ,,caverns 
,,near ,,liege4  ,the late ,dr4         
,schmerling of ,liege1 a skilful        
anatomist and palaeontologist1 after    
devoting several years to the exploring 
of the numerous ossiferous caverns which

 border the valleys of the ,meuse and   
its tributaries1 published two volumes  
descriptive of the contents of more than
 forty caverns4 ,one of these volumes   
consisted of an atlas of plates1        
illustrative of the fossil bones499     
799 ,recherches sur les ,ossements      
fossiles decouverts dans      les       
,cavernes de la ,province de ,liege1    
,liege #ahcc-ahcd47  ,many of the       
caverns had never before been entered by
 scientific observers1 and their floors 
were encrusted with unbroken stalagmite4
 ,at a very early stage of his          
investigations1 ,dr4 ,schmerling found  
the bones of ,man so rolled and         
scattered as to preclude all idea of    
their having been intentionally buried  
on the spot4 ,he also remarked that they
 were of the same colour1 and in the    
same condition as to the amount of      
animal matter contained in them1 as     
those of the accompanying animals1 some 
of which1 like the cave-bear1 hyaena1   
elephant1 and rhinoceros1 were extinct2 

others1 like the wild cat1 beaver1 wild 
boar1 roe-deer1 wolf1 and hedgehog1     
still extant4 ,the fossils were lighter 
than fresh bones1 except such as had    
their pores filled with carbonate of    
lime1 in which case they were often much
 heavier4 ,the human remains of most    
frequent occurrence were teeth detached 
from the jaw1 and the carpal1           
metacarpal1 tarsal1 metatarsal1 and     
phalangeal bones separated from the rest
 of the skeleton4 ,the corresponding    
bones of the cave-bear1 the most        
abundant of the accompanying mammalia1  
were also found in the ,liege caverns   
more commonly than any others1 and in   
the same scattered condition4           
,occasionally1 some of the long bones of
 mammalia were observed to have been    
first broken across1 and then reunited  
or cemented again by stalagmite1 as they
 lay on the floor of the cave4  ,no     
gnawed bones nor any coprolites were    
found by ,schmerling4 ,he therefore     
inferred that the caverns of the        

province of ,liege had not been the dens
 of wild beasts1 but that their organic 
and inorganic contents had been swept   
into them by streams communicating with 
the surface of the country4 ,the bones1 
he suggested1 may often have been rolled
 in the beds of such streams before they
 reached their underground destination4 
,to the same agency the introduction of 
many land-shells dispersed through the  
cave-mud was ascribed1 such as ,helix   
nemoralis1 ,h4 lapicida1 ,h4 pomatia1   
and others of living species4 ,mingled  
with such shells1 in some rare          
instances1 the bones of freshwater fish1
 and of a snake 7,coluber71 as well as  
of several birds1 were detected4  ,the  
occurrence here and there of bones in a 
very perfect state1 or of several bones 
belonging to the same skeleton in       
natural juxtaposition1 and having all   
their most delicate apophyses uninjured1
 while many accompanying bones in the   
same breccia were rolled1 broken1 or    
decayed1 was accounted for by supposing 

that portions of carcasses were         
sometimes floated in during floods while
 still clothed with their flesh4 ,no    
example was discovered of an entire     
skeleton1 not even of one of the smaller
 mammalia1 the bones of which are       
usually the least injured4  ,the        
incompleteness of each skeleton was     
especially ascertained in regard to the 
human subjects1 ,dr4 ,schmerling being  
careful1 whenever a fragment of such    
presented itself1 to explore the cavern 
himself1 and see whether any other bones
 of the same skeleton could be found4   
,in the ,engis cavern1 distant about    
eight miles to the south-west of ,liege1
 on the left bank of the ,meuse1 the    
remains of at least three human         
individuals were disinterred4 ,the skull
 of one of these1 that of a young       
person1 was embedded by the side of a   
mammoth's tooth4 ,it was entire but so  
fragile1 that nearly all of it fell to  
pieces during its extraction4 ,another  
skull1 that of an adult individual1 and 

the only one preserved by ,dr4          
,schmerling in a sufficient state of    
integrity to enable the anatomist to    
speculate on the race to which it       
belonged1 was buried #e feet deep in a  
breccia1 in which the tooth of a        
rhinoceros1 several bones of a horse1   
and some of the reindeer1 together with 
some ruminants1 occurred4 ,this skull1  
now in the museum of the ,university of 
,liege1 is figured in ,chapter #e       
7,figure #b71 where further observations
 will be offered on its anatomical      
character1 after a fuller account of the
 contents of the ,liege caverns has been
 laid before the reader4  ,on the right 
bank of the ,meuse1 on the opposite side
 of the river to ,engis1 is the cavern  
of ,engihoul4 ,bones of extinct animals 
mingled with those of ,man were observed
 to abound in both caverns2 but with    
this difference1 that whereas in the    
,engis cave there were several human    
crania and very few other bones1 in     
,engihoul there occurred numerous bones 

of the extremities belonging to at least
 three human individuals1 and only two  
small fragments of a cranium4 ,the like 
capricious distribution held good in    
other caverns1 especially with reference
 to the cave-bear1 the most frequent of 
the extinct mammalia4 ,thus1 for example
 in the cave of ,chokier1 skulls of the 
bear were few1 and other parts of the   
skeleton abundant1 whereas in several   
other caverns these proportions were    
exactly reversed1 while at ,goffontaine 
skulls of the bear and other parts of   
the skeleton were found in their natural
 numerical proportions4 ,speaking       
generally1 it may be said that human    
bones1 where any were met with1 occurred
 at all depths in the cave-mud and      
gravel1 sometimes above and sometimes   
below those of the bear1 elephant1      
rhinoceros1 hyaena1 etc4  ,some rude    
flint implements of the kind commonly   
called flint knives or flakes1 of a     
triangular form in the cross section 7as
 in ,figure #ad71 were found by         

,schmerling dispersed generally through 
the cave-mud1 but he was too much       
engrossed with his osteological         
inquiries to collect them diligently4   
,he preserved some few of them1 however1
 which ,i have seen in the museum at    
,liege4 ,he also discovered in the cave 
of ,chokier1 #b #a_/b miles south-west  
from ,liege1 a polished and jointed     
needle-shaped bone1 with a hole pierced 
obliquely through it at the base2 such a
 cavity1 he observed1 as had never given
 passage to an artery4 ,this instrument 
was embedded in the same matrix with the
 remains of a rhinoceros499       799   
,schmerling part #b page #agg47         
,another cut bone and several           
artificially-shaped flints were found in
 the ,engis cave1 near the human skulls 
before alluded to4 ,schmerling observed1
 and we shall have to refer to the fact 
in the sequel 7,chapter #h71 that       
although in some forty fossiliferous    
caves explored by him human bones were  
the exception1 yet these flint          

implements were universal1 and he added 
that none of them could have been       
subsequently introduced1 being precisely
 in the same position as the remains of 
the accompanying animals4 ,i therefore1 
he continues1 attach great importance to
 their presence2 for even if ,i had not 
found the human bones under conditions  
entirely favourable to their being      
considered as belonging to the          
antediluvian epoch1 proofs of ,man's    
existence would still have been supplied
 by the cut bones and worked flints499  
799 ,schmerling1 part #b page #agi47    
,dr4 ,schmerling1 therefore1 had no     
hesitation in concluding from the       
various facts ascertained by him1 that  
,man once lived in the ,liege district  
contemporaneously with the cave-bear and
 several other extinct species of       
quadrupeds4 ,but he was much at a loss  
when he attempted to invent a theory to 
explain the former state of the fauna of
 the region now drained by the ,meuse2  
for he shared the notion1 then very     

prevalent among naturalists1 that the   
mammoth and the hyaena99 were beasts of 
a warmer climate than that now proper to
 ,western ,europe4       799 ,ibid4 part
 #b pages #gj and #if47  ,in order to   
account for the presence of such        
tropical species1 he was half-inclined  
to imagine that they had been           
transported by a flood from some distant
 region2 then again he raised the       
question whether they might not have    
been washed out of an older alluvium1   
which may have pre-existed in the       
neighbourhood4 ,this last hypothesis was
 directly at variance with his own      
statements1 that the remains of the     
mammoth and hyaena were identical in    
appearance1 colour1 and chemical        
condition with those of the bear and    
other associated fossil animals1 none of
 which exhibited signs of having been   
previously enveloped in any dissimilar  
matrix4 ,another enigma which led       
,schmerling astray in some of his       
geological speculations was the supposed

 presence of the agouti1 a ,south       
,american rodent1 proper to the torrid  
zone4 ,my friend ,m4 ,lartet1 guided by 
,schmerling's figures of the teeth of   
this species1 suggests1 and ,i have     
little doubt with good reason1 that they
 appertain to the porcupine1 a genus    
found fossil in ,pleistocene deposits of
 certain caverns in the south of        
,france4  ,in the year #ahcc1 ,i passed 
through ,liege1 on my way to the ,rhine1
 and conversed with ,dr4 ,schmerling1   
who showed me his splendid collection1  
and when ,i expressed some incredulity  
respecting the alleged antiquity of the 
fossil human bones1 he pointedly        
remarked that if ,i doubted their having
 been contemporaneous with the bear or  
rhinoceros1 on the ground of ,man being 
a species of more modern date1 ,i ought 
equally to doubt the co-existence of all
 the other living species1 such as the  
red deer1 roe1 wild cat1 wild boar1     
wolf1 fox1 weasel1 beaver1 hare1 rabbit1
 hedgehog1 mole1 dormouse1 field-mouse1 

water-rat1 shrew1 and others1 the bones 
of which he had found scattered         
everywhere indiscriminately through the 
same mud with the extinct quadrupeds4   
,the year after this conversation ,i    
cited ,schmerling's opinions1 and the   
facts bearing on the antiquity of ,man1 
in the #crd edition of my ,principles of
 ,geology 7page #afa1 #ahcd71 and in    
succeeding editions1 without pretending 
to call in question their               
trustworthiness1 but at the same time   
without giving them the weight which ,i 
now consider they were entitled to4 ,he 
had accumulated ample evidence to prove 
that ,man had been introduced into the  
earth at an earlier period than         
geologists were then willing to believe4
  ,one positive fact1 it will be said1  
attested by so competent a witness1     
ought to have outweighed any amount of  
negative testimony1 previously          
accumulated1 respecting the             
non-occurrence elsewhere of human       
remains in formations of the like       

antiquity4 ,in reply1 ,i can only plead 
that a discovery which seems to         
contradict the general tenor of previous
 investigations is naturally received   
with much hesitation4 ,to have          
undertaken in #ahcb1 with a view of     
testing its truth1 to follow the        
,belgian philosopher through every stage
 of his observations and proofs1 would  
have been no easy task even for one     
well-skilled in geology and osteology4  
,to be let down1 as ,schmerling was1 day
 after day1 by a rope tied to a tree1 so
 as to slide to the foot of the first   
opening of the ,engis cave199 where the 
best-preserved human skulls were found2 
and1 after thus gaining access to the   
first subterranean gallery1 to creep on 
all fours through a contracted passage  
leading to larger chambers1 there to    
superintend by torchlight1 week after   
week and year after year1 the workmen   
who were breaking through the           
stalagmitic crust as hard as marble1 in 
order to remove piece by piece the      

underlying bone-breccia nearly as hard2 
to stand for hours with one's feet in   
the mud1 and with water dripping from   
the roof on one's head1 in order to mark
 the position and guard against the loss
 of each single bone of a skeleton2 and 
at length1 after finding leisure1       
strength1 and courage for all these     
operations1 to look forward1 as the     
fruits of one's labour1 to the          
publication of unwelcome intelligence1  
opposed to the prepossessions of the    
scientific as well as of the            
unscientific public--when these         
circumstances are taken into account1 we
 need scarcely wonder1 not only that a  
passing traveller failed to stop and    
scrutinise the evidence1 but that a     
quarter of a century should have elapsed
 before even the neighbouring professors
 of the ,university of ,liege came forth
 to vindicate the truthfulness of their 
indefatigable and clear-sighted         
countryman4       799 ,schmerling part  
#a page #cj47  ,in #ahfj1 when ,i       

revisited ,liege1 twenty-six years after
 my interview with ,schmerling1 ,i found
 that several of the caverns described  
by him had in the interval been         
annihilated4 ,not a vestige1 for        
example1 of the caves of ,engis1        
,chokier1 and ,goffontaine remained4    
,the calcareous stone1 in the heart of  
which the cavities once existed1 had    
been quarried away1 and removed bodily  
for building and lime-making4           
,fortunately1 a great part of the       
,engihoul cavern1 situated on the right 
bank of the ,meuse1 was still in the    
same state as when ,schmerling delved   
into it in #ahca1 and drew from it the  
bones of three human skeletons4 ,i      
determined1 therefore1 to examine it1   
and was so fortunate as to obtain the   
assistance of a zealous naturalist of   
,liege1 ,professor ,malaise1 who        
accompanied me to the cavern1 where we  
engaged some workmen to break through   
the crust of stalagmite1 so that we     
could search for bones in the           

undisturbed earth beneath4 ,bones and   
teeth of the cave-bear were soon found1 
and several other extinct quadrupeds    
which ,schmerling has enumerated4 ,my   
companion1 continuing the work          
perseveringly for weeks after my        
departure1 succeeded at length in       
extracting from the same deposit1 at the
 depth of #b feet below the crust of    
stalagmite1 three fragments of a human  
skull1 and two perfect lower jaws with  
teeth1 all associated in such a manner  
with the bones of bears1 large          
pachyderms1 and ruminants1 and so       
precisely resembling these in colour and
 state of preservation1 as to leave no  
doubt in his mind that ,man was         
contemporary with the extinct animals4  
,professor ,malaise has given figures of
 the human remains in the ,bulletin of  
the ,royal ,academy of ,belgium for     
#ahfj499       799 ,volume #aj page     
#edf47  ,the rock in which the ,liege   
caverns occur belongs generally to the  
,carboniferous or ,mountain ,limestone1 

in some few cases only to the older     
,devonian formation4 ,whenever the work 
of destruction has not gone too far1    
magnificent sections1 sometimes #bjj and
 #cjj feet in height1 are exposed to    
view4 ,they confirm ,schmerling's       
doctrine1 that most of the materials1   
organic and inorganic1 now filling the  
caverns1 have been washed into them     
through narrow vertical or oblique      
fissures1 the upper extremities of which
 are choked up with soil and gravel1 and
 would scarcely ever be discoverable at 
the surface1 especially in so wooded a  
country4 ,among the sections obtained by
 quarrying1 one of the finest which ,i  
saw was in the beautiful valley of ,fond
 du ,foret1 above ,chaudefontaine1 not  
far from the village of ,magnee1 where  
one of the rents communicating with the 
surface has been filled up to the brim  
with rounded and half-rounded stones1   
angular pieces of limestone and shale1  
besides sand and mud1 together with     
bones1 chiefly of the cave-bear4        

,connected with this main duct1 which is
 from #a to #b feet in width1 are       
several minor ones1 each from #a to #c  
inches wide1 also extending to the upper
 country or table-land1 and choked up   
with similar materials4 ,they are       
inclined at angles of #cj and #dj       
degrees1 their walls being generally    
coated with stalactite1 pieces of which 
have here and there been broken off and 
mingled with the contents of the rents1 
thus helping to explain why we so often 
meet with detached pieces of that       
substance in the mud and breccia of the 
,belgian caves4 ,it is not easy to      
conceive that a solid horizontal floor  
of hard stalagmite should1 after its    
formation1 be broken up by running      
water2 but when the walls of steep and  
tortuous rents1 serving as feeders to   
the principal fissures and to inferior  
vaults and galleries are encrusted with 
stalagmite1 some of the incrustation may
 readily be torn up when heavy fragments
 of rock are hurried by a flood through 

passages inclined at angles of #cj or   
#dj degrees4  ,the decay and            
decomposition of the fossil bones seem  
to have been arrested in most of the    
caves by a constant supply of water     
charged with carbonate of lime1 which   
dripped from the roofs while the caves  
were becoming gradually filled up4 ,by  
similar agency the mud1 sand1 and       
pebbles were usually consolidated4  ,the
 following explanation of this          
phenomenon has been suggested by the    
eminent chemist ,liebig4 ,on the surface
 of ,franconia1 where the limestone     
abounds in caverns1 is a fertile soil in
 which vegetable matter is continually  
decaying4 ,this mould or humus1 being   
acted on by moisture and air1 evolves   
carbonic acid1 which is dissolved by    
rain4 ,the rain water1 thus impregnated1
 permeates the porous limestone1        
dissolves a portion of it1 and          
afterwards1 when the excess of carbonic 
acid evaporates in the caverns1 parts   
with the calcareous matter and forms    

stalactite4 ,so long as water flows1    
even occasionally1 through a suite of   
caverns1 no layer of pure stalagmite can
 be produced2 hence the formation of    
such a layer is generally an event      
posterior in date to the cessation of   
the old system of drainage1 an event    
which might be brought about by an      
earthquake causing new fissures1 or by  
the river wearing its way down to a     
lower level1 and thenceforth running in 
a new channel4  ,in all the subterranean
 cavities1 more than forty in number1   
explored by ,schmerling1 he only        
observed one cave1 namely that of       
,chokier1 where there were two regular  
layers of stalagmite1 divided by        
fossiliferous cave-mud4 ,in this        
instance1 we may suppose that the       
stream1 after flowing for a long period 
at one level1 cut its way down to an    
inferior suite of caverns1 and1 flowing 
through them for centuries1 choked them 
up with debris2 after which it rose once
 more to its original higher level3 just

 as in the ,mountain ,limestone district
 of ,yorkshire some rivers1 habitually  
absorbed by a swallow hole1 are         
occasionally unable to discharge all    
their water through it2 in which case   
they rise and rush through a higher     
subterranean passage1 which was at some 
former period in the regular line of    
drainage1 as is often attested by the   
fluviatile gravel still contained in it4
  ,there are now in the basin of the    
,meuse1 not far from ,liege1 several    
examples of engulfed brooks and rivers3 
some of them1 like that of ,st4         
,hadelin1 east of ,chaudefontaine1 which
 reappears after an underground course  
of a mile or two2 others1 like the      
,vesdre1 which is lost near             
,goffontaine1 and after a time          
re-emerges2 some1 again1 like the       
torrent near ,magnee1 which1 after      
entering a cave1 never again comes to   
the day4 ,in the season of floods such  
streams are turbid at their entrance1   
but clear as a mountain-spring where    

they issue again2 so that they must be  
slowly filling up cavities in the       
interior with mud1 sand1 pebbles1       
snail-shells1 and the bones of animals  
which may be carried away during floods4
  ,the manner in which some of the large
 thigh and shank bones of the rhinoceros
 and other pachyderms are rounded1 while
 some of the smaller bones of the same  
creatures1 and of the hyaena1 bear1 and 
horse1 are reduced to pebbles1 shows    
that they were often transported for    
some distance in the channels of        
torrents1 before they found a           
resting-place4  ,when we desire to      
reason or speculate on the probable     
antiquity of human bones found fossil in
 such situations as the caverns near    
,liege1 there are two classes of        
evidence to which we may appeal for our 
guidance4 ,first1 considerations of the 
time required to allow of many species  
of carnivorous and herbivorous animals1 
which flourished in the cave period1    
becoming first scarce1 and then so      

entirely extinct as we have seen that   
they had become before the era of the   
,danish peat and ,swiss lake dwellings2 
secondly1 the great number of centuries 
necessary for the conversion of the     
physical geography of the ,liege        
district from its ancient to its present
 configuration2 so many old underground 
channels1 through which brooks and      
rivers flowed in the cave period1 being 
now laid dry and choked up4  ,the great 
alterations which have taken place in   
the shape of the valley of the ,meuse   
and some of its tributaries are often   
demonstrated by the abrupt manner in    
which the mouths of fossiliferous       
caverns open in the face of             
perpendicular precipices #bjj feet or   
more in height above the present        
streams4 ,there appears also1 in many   
cases1 to be such a correspondence in   
the openings of caverns on opposite     
sides of some of the valleys1 both large
 and small1 as to incline one to suspect
 that they originally belonged to a     

series of tunnels and galleries which   
were continuous before the present      
system of drainage came into play1 or   
before the existing valleys were scooped
 out4 ,other signs of subsequent        
fluctuations are afforded by gravel     
containing elephant's bones at slight   
elevations above the ,meuse and several 
of its tributaries4 ,it may be objected 
that1 according to the present rate of  
change1 no lapse of ages would suffice  
to bring about such revolutions in      
physical geography as we are here       
contemplating4 ,this may be true4 ,it is
 more than probable that the rate of    
change was once far more active than it 
is now in the basin of the ,meuse4 ,some
 of the nearest volcanoes1 namely1 those
 of the ,lower ,eifel about #fj miles to
 the eastward1 seem to have been in     
eruption in ,pleistocene times1 and may 
perhaps have been connected and coeval  
with repeated risings or sinkings of the
 land in the ,liege district4 ,it might 
be said1 with equal truth1 that         

according to the present course of      
events1 no series of ages would suffice 
to reproduce such an assemblage of cones
 and craters as those of the ,eifel     
7near ,andernach1 for example72 and yet 
some of them may be of sufficiently     
modern date to belong to the era when   
,man was contemporary with the mammoth  
and rhinoceros in the basin of the      
,meuse4  ,but1 although we may be unable
 to estimate the minimum of time        
required for the changes in physical    
geography above alluded to1 we cannot   
fail to perceive that the duration of   
the period must have been very          
protracted1 and that other ages of      
comparative inaction may have followed1 
separating the ,pleistocene from the    
historical periods1 and constituting an 
interval no less indefinite in its      
duration4    ,,chapter #e4 --           
,,pleistocene ,,period--,,fossil ,,human
 ,,skulls ,,of ,,the ,,neanderthal ,,and
 ,,engis ,,caves4       ,human ,skeleton
 found in ,cave near ,dusseldorf4       

,its geological ,position and probable  
,age4      ,its abnormal and ape-like   
,characters4      ,fossil ,human ,skull 
of the ,engis ,cave near ,liege4        
,professor ,huxley's ,description of    
these ,skulls4      ,comparison of each1
 with extreme ,varieties of the native  
,australian ,race4      ,range of       
,capacity in the ,human and ,simian     
,brains4      ,skull from ,borreby in   
,denmark4      ,conclusions of          
,professor ,huxley4      ,bearing of the
 peculiar ,characters of the            
,neanderthal ,skull         on the      
,hypothesis of ,transmutation4          
,,fossil ,,human ,,skeleton ,,of ,,the  
,,neanderthal ,,cave ,,near             
,,dusseldorf4  ,before ,i speak more    
particularly of the opinions which      
anatomists have expressed respecting the
 osteological characters of the human   
skull from ,engis1 near ,liege1         
mentioned in the last chapter and       
described by ,dr4 ,schmerling1 it will  
be desirable to say something of the    

geological position of another skull1 or
 rather skeleton1 which1 on account of  
its peculiar conformation1 has excited  
no small sensation in the last few      
years4 ,i allude to the skull found in  
#aheg in a cave situated in that part of
 the valley of the ,dussel1 near        
,dusseldorf1 which is called the        
,neanderthal4 ,the spot is a deep and   
narrow ravine about #gj ,english miles  
north-east of the region of the ,liege  
caverns treated of in the last chapter1 
and close to the village and railway    
station of ,hochdal between ,dusseldorf 
and ,elberfeld4 ,the cave occurs in the 
precipitous southern or left side of the
 winding ravine1 about sixty feet above 
the stream1 and a hundred feet below the
 top of the cliff4 ,the accompanying    
section 7,figure #a47 will give the     
reader an idea of its position4         
,illustration3 ,figure #a  ,when ,dr4   
,fuhlrott of ,elberfeld first examined  
the cave1 he found it to be high enough 
to allow a man to enter4 ,the width was 

#g or #h feet1 and the length or depth  
#ae4 ,i visited the spot in #ahfj1 in   
company with ,dr4 ,fuhlrott1 who had the
 kindness to come expressly from        
,elberfeld to be my guide1 and who      
brought with him the original fossil    
skull1 and a cast of the same1 which he 
presented to me4 ,in the interval of    
three years1 between #aheg and #ahfj1   
the ledge of rock1 f1 on which the cave 
opened1 and which was originally #bj    
feet wide1 had been almost entirely     
quarried away1 and1 at the rate at which
 the work of dilapidation was           
proceeding1 its complete destruction    
seemed near at hand4    7,,figure #a4   
,,section ,,of ,,the ,,neanderthal      
,,cave ,,near ,,dusseldorf4    a4       
,cavern #fj feet above the ,dussel1 and 
#ajj feet below the      surface of the 
country at c4   b4 ,loam covering the   
floor of the cave near the bottom of    
which      the human skeleton was found4
   b1 c4 ,rent connecting the cave with 
the upper surface of the      country4  

d4 ,superficial sandy loam4   e4        
,devonian limestone4   f4 ,terrace1 or  
ledge of rock47  ,in the limestone are  
many fissures1 one of which1 still      
partially filled with mud and stones1 is
 represented in the section at a c as   
continuous from the cave to the upper   
surface of the country4 ,through this   
passage the loam1 and possibly the human
 body to which the bones belonged1 may  
have been washed into the cave below4   
,the loam1 which covered the uneven     
bottom of the cave1 was sparingly mixed 
with rounded fragments of chert1 and was
 very similar in composition to that    
covering the general surface of that    
region4  ,there was no crust of         
stalagmite overlying the mud in which   
the human skeleton was found1 and no    
bones of other animals in the mud with  
the skeleton2 but just before our visit 
in #ahfj the tusk of a bear had been met
 with in some mud in a lateral          
embranchment of the cave1 in a situation
 precisely similar to b1 ,figure #a1 and

 on a level corresponding with that of  
the human skeleton4 ,this tusk1 shown us
 by the proprietor of the cave1 was #b  
#a_/b inches long and quite perfect2 but
 whether it was referable to a recent or
 extinct species of bear1 ,i could not  
determine4  ,from a printed letter of   
,dr4 ,fuhlrott we learn that on removing
 the loam1 which was five feet thick1   
from the cave1 the human skull was first
 noticed near the entrance1 and1 further
 in1 the other bones lying in the same  
horizontal plane4 ,it is supposed that  
the skeleton was complete1 but the      
workmen1 ignorant of its value1         
scattered and lost most of the bones1   
preserving only the larger ones499      
799 ,fuhlrott1 ,letter to ,professor    
,schaaffhausen1 cited      ,natural     
,history ,review ,number #b page #aef4  
,see also      ,naturhistorischer       
,verein ,bonn #ahei47  ,the cranium1    
which ,dr4 ,fuhlrott showed me1 was     
covered both on its outer and inner     
surface1 and especially on the latter1  

with a profusion of dendritical         
crystallisations1 and some other bones  
of the skeleton were ornamented in the  
same way4 ,these markings1 as ,dr4      
,hermann von ,meyer observes1 afford no 
sure criterion of antiquity1 for they   
have been observed on ,roman bones4     
,nevertheless1 they are more common in  
bones that have been long embedded in   
the earth4 ,the skull and bones1        
moreover1 of the ,neanderthal skeleton  
had lost so much of their animal matter 
as to adhere strongly to the tongue1    
agreeing in this respect with the       
ordinary condition of fossil remains of 
the ,pleistocene period4 ,on the whole1 
,i think it probable that this fossil   
may be of about the same age as those   
found by ,schmerling in the ,liege      
caverns2 but1 as no other animal remains
 were found with it1 there is no proof  
that it may not be newer4 ,its position 
lends no countenance whatever to the    
supposition of its being more ancient4  
,when the skull and other parts of the  

skeleton were first exhibited at a      
,german scientific meeting at ,bonn1 in 
#aheg1 some doubts were expressed by    
several naturalists1 whether it was     
truly human4 ,professor ,schaaffhausen1 
who1 with the other experienced         
zoologists1 did not share these doubts1 
observed that the cranium1 which        
included the frontal bone1 both         
parietals1 part of the squamous1 and the
 upper third of the occipital1 was of   
unusual size and thickness1 the forehead
 narrow and very low1 and the projection
 of the supra-orbital ridges enormously 
great4 ,he also stated that the absolute
 and relative length of the thigh bone1 
humerus1 radius1 and ulna1 agreed well  
with the dimensions of a ,european      
individual of like stature at the       
present day2 but that the thickness of  
the bones was very extraordinary1 and   
the elevations and depressions for the  
attachment of muscles were developed in 
an unusual degree4 ,some of the ribs1   
also1 were of a singularly rounded shape

 and abrupt curvature1 which was        
supposed to indicate great power in the 
thoracic muscles499       799 ,professor
 ,schaaffhausen's ,memoir translated    
,natural      ,history ,review ,april   
#ahfa47  ,in the same memoir1 the       
,prussian anatomist remarks that the    
depression of the forehead 7,see ,figure
 #c471 is not due to any artificial     
flattening1 such as is practised in     
various modes by barbarous nations in   
the ,old and ,new ,world1 the skull     
being quite symmetrical1 and showing no 
indication of counter-pressure at the   
occiput2 whereas1 according to ,morton1 
in the ,flat-heads of the ,columbia1 the
 frontal and parietal bones are always  
unsymmetrical499       799 ,natural     
,history ,review ,number #b page #afj47 
,on the whole1 ,professor ,schaaffhausen
 concluded that the individual to whom  
the ,neanderthal skull belonged must    
have been distinguished by small        
cerebral development1 and uncommon      
strength of corporeal frame4  ,when on  

my return to ,england ,i showed the cast
 of the cranium to ,professor ,huxley1  
he remarked at once that it was the most
 ape-like skull he had ever beheld4 ,mr4
 ,busk1 after giving a translation of   
,professor ,schaaffhausen's memoir in   
the ,natural ,history ,review1 added    
some valuable comments of his own on the
 characters in which this skull         
approached that of the gorilla and      
chimpanzee4  ,professor ,huxley         
afterwards studied the cast with the    
object of assisting me to give          
illustrations of it in this work1 and in
 doing so discovered what had not       
previously been observed1 that it was   
quite as abnormal in the shape of its   
occipital as in that of its frontal or  
superciliary region4 ,before citing his 
words on the subject1 ,i will offer a   
few remarks on the ,engis skull which   
the same anatomist has compared with    
that of the ,neanderthal4 #aj   ,,fossil
 ,,skull ,,of ,,the ,,engis ,,cave      
,,near ,,liege4  ,among six or seven    

human skeletons1 portions of which were 
collected by ,dr4 ,schmerling from three
 or four caverns near ,liege1 embedded  
in the same matrix with the remains of  
the elephant1 rhinoceros1 bear1 hyaena1 
and other extinct quadrupeds1 the most  
perfect skull1 as ,i have before stated1
 was that of an adult individual found  
in the cavern of ,engis4 ,this skull1   
,dr4 ,schmerling figured in his work1   
observing that it was too imperfect to  
enable the anatomist to determine the   
facial angle1 but that one might infer1 
from the narrowness of the frontal      
portion1 that it belonged to an         
individual of small intellectual        
development4 ,he speculated on its      
,ethiopian affinities1 but not          
confidently1 observing truly that it    
would require many more specimens to    
enable an anatomist to arrive at sound  
conclusions on such a point4 ,m4        
,geoffroy ,st4 ,hilaire and other       
osteologists1 who examined the specimen1
 denied that it resembled a negro's     

skull4 ,when ,i saw the original in the 
museum at ,liege1 ,i invited ,dr4       
,spring1 one of the professors of the   
university1 to whom we are indebted for 
a valuable memoir on the human bones    
found in the cavern of ,chauvaux1 near  
,namur1 to have a cast made of this     
,engis skull4 ,he not only had the      
kindness to comply with my request1 but 
rendered a service to the scientific    
world by adding to the original cranium 
several detached fragments which ,dr4   
,schmerling had obtained from ,engis1   
and which were found to fit in exactly1 
so that the cast represented at ,figure 
#b is more complete than that given in  
the first plate of ,schmerling's work4  
,it exhibits on the right side the      
position of the auditory foramen 7see   
,figure #f71 which was not included in  
,schmerling's figure4 ,mr4 ,busk1 when  
he saw this cast1 remarked to me that1  
although the forehead was1 as           
,schmerling had truly stated1 somewhat  
narrow1 it might nevertheless be matched

 by the skulls of individuals of        
,european race1 an observation since    
fully borne out by measurements1 as will
 be seen in the sequel4   ,,observations
 ,,by ,,professor ,,huxley ,,on ,,the   
,,human ,,skulls ,,of ,,engis ,,and     
,,the ,,neanderthal4  ,illustration3    
,figure #b  ,the ,engis skull1 as       
originally figured by ,professor        
,schmerling1 was in a very imperfect    
state2 but other fragments have since   
been added to it by the care of ,dr4    
,spring1 and the cast upon which my     
observations are based 7,figure #b7     
exhibits the frontal1 parietal1 and     
occipital regions1 as far as the middle 
of the occipital foramen1 with the      
squamous and mastoid portions of the    
right temporal bone entire1 or nearly   
so1 while the left temporal bone is     
wanting4 ,from the middle of the        
occipital foramen to the middle of the  
roof of each orbit1 the base of the     
skull is destroyed1 and the facial bones
 are entirely absent4  ,the extreme     

length of the skull is #g4g inches1 and 
as its extreme breadth is not more than 
#e4be1 its form is decidedly            
dolichocephalic4 ,at the same time its  
height 7#d #c_/d inches from the plane  
of the glabello-occipital line 7a d7 to 
the vertex7 is good1 and the forehead is
 well arched2 so that while the         
horizontal circumference of the skull is
 about #bj #a_/b inches1 the            
longitudinal arc from the nasal spine of
 the frontal bone to the occipital      
protuberance 7d7 measures about #ac     
#c_/d inches4 ,the transverse arc from  
one auditory foramen to the other across
 the middle of the sagittal suture      
measures about #ac inches4 ,the sagittal
 suture 7b c7 is #e #a_/b inches in     
length4 ,the superciliary prominences   
are well1 but not excessively1          
developed1 and are separated by a median
 depression in the region of the        
glabella4 ,they indicate large frontal  
sinuses4 ,if a line joining the glabella
 and the occipital protuberance 7a d7 be

 made horizontal1 no part of the occiput
 projects more than #a_/ajth of an inch 
behind the posterior extremity of that  
line2 and the upper edge of the auditory
 foramen is almost in contact with the  
same line1 or rather with one drawn     
parallel to it on the outer surface of  
the skull4    7,,figure #b4 ,,side      
,,view ,,of ,,the ,,cast ,,of ,,part    
,,of ,a ,,human ,,skull   ,,found ,,by  
,,dr4 ,,schmerling ,,embedded ,,amongst 
,,the ,,remains ,,of   ,,extinct        
,,mammalia ,,in ,,the ,,cave ,,of       
,,engis1 ,,near ,,liege4    a4          
,superciliary ridge and glabella4   b4  
,coronal suture4   c4 ,the apex of the  
lamboidal suture4   d4 ,the occipital   
protuberance47  ,the ,neanderthal skull1
 with which also ,i am acquainted only  
by means of ,professor ,schaaffhausen's 
drawings of an excellent cast and of    
photographs1 is so extremely different  
in appearance from the ,engis cranium1  
that it might well be supposed to belong
 to a distinct race of mankind4 ,it is  

#h inches in extreme length and #e4ge   
inches in extreme breadth1 but only     
measures #c4d inches from the           
glabello-occipital line to the vertex4  
,the longitudinal arc1 measured as      
above1 is #ab inches2 the transverse arc
 cannot be exactly ascertained1 in      
consequence of the absence of the       
temporal bones1 but was probably about  
the same1 and certainly exceeded #aj    
#a_/d inches4 ,the horizontal           
circumference is #bc inches4 ,this great
 circumference arises largely from the  
vast development of the superciliary    
ridges1 which are occupied by great     
frontal sinuses whose inferior apertures
 are displayed exceedingly well in one  
of ,dr4 ,fuhlrott's photographs1 and    
form a continuous transverse prominence1
 somewhat excavated in the middle line1 
across the lower part of the brows4 ,in 
consequence of this structure1 the      
forehead appears still lower and more   
retreating than it really is4 ,to an    
anatomical eye the posterior part of the

 skull is even more striking than the   
anterior4 ,the occipital protuberance   
occupies the extreme posterior end of   
the skull when the glabello-occipital   
line is made horizontal1 and so far from
 any part of the occipital region       
extending beyond it1 this region of the 
skull slopes obliquely upward and       
forward1 so that the lambdoidal suture  
is situated well upon the upper surface 
of the cranium4 ,at the same time1      
notwithstanding the great length of the 
skull1 the sagittal suture is remarkably
 short 7#d #a_/b inches71 and the       
squamosal suture is very straight4      
,illustration3 ,figure #c4 ,cast of     
,human ,skull    7,,figure #c4 ,,side   
,,view ,,of ,,the ,,cast ,,of ,a ,,part 
,,of ,a ,,human ,,skull   ,,from ,a     
,,cave ,,in ,,the ,,neanderthal1 ,,near 
,,dusseldorf4    a4 ,superciliary ridge 
and glabella4   b4 ,the coronal suture4 
c4 ,the apex of the lamboidal suture4   
d4 ,the occipital protuberance47  ,in   
human skulls1 the superior curved ridge 

of the occipital bone and the occipital 
protuberance correspond1                
approximatively1 with the level of the  
tentorium and with the lateral sinuses1 
and consequently with the inferior limit
 of the posterior lobes of the brain4   
,at first1 ,i found some difficulty in  
believing that a human brain could have 
its posterior lobes so flattened and    
diminished as must have been the case in
 the ,neanderthal man1 supposing the    
ordinary relation to obtain between the 
superior occipital ridges and the       
tentorium2 but on my application1       
through ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 ,dr4      
,fuhlrott1 the possessor of the skull1  
was good enough not only to ascertain   
the existence of the lateral sinuses in 
their ordinary position1 but to send    
convincing proofs of the fact1 in       
excellent photographic views of the     
interior of the skull1 exhibiting clear 
indications of these sinuses4  ,there   
can be no doubt that1 as ,professor     
,schaaffhausen and ,mr4 ,busk have      

stated1 this skull is the most brutal of
 all known human skulls1 resembling     
those of the apes not only in the       
prodigious development of the           
superciliary prominences and the forward
 extension of the orbits1 but still more
 in the depressed form of the           
brain-case1 in the straightness of the  
squamosal suture1 and in the complete   
retreat of the occiput forwards and     
upward1 from the superior occipital     
ridges4  ,illustration3 ,figure #d4     
,skull of ,chimpanzee     7,,figure #d4 
,,outline ,,of ,,the ,,skull ,,of ,,an  
,,adult ,,chimpanzee1 ,,of ,,that       
,,from ,,the ,,neanderthal1 ,,and ,,of  
,,that ,,of ,a ,,european1 ,,drawn ,,to 
,,the ,,same    ,,absolute ,,size1 ,,in 
,,order ,,better ,,to ,,exhibit ,,their 
,,relative    ,,differences4    ,the    
superciliary region of the ,neanderthal 
skull   appears less prominent than in  
,figure #c1 as the contours are all     
taken along the middle line where the   
superciliary projection of   the        

,neanderthal skull is least marked4 a4  
,the glabella4 b4 ,the   occipital      
protuberance1 or the point on the       
exterior of each skull   which          
corresponds roughly with the attachment 
of the tentorium1 or   with the inferior
 boundary of the posterior cerebral     
lobes47  ,but the cranium1 in its       
present condition1 is stated by         
,professor ,schaaffhausen to contain    
#ajcc4bd cubic centimetres of water1 or1
 in other words1 about #fc ,english     
cubic inches4 ,as the entire skull could
 hardly have held less than #ab cubic   
inches more1 its minimum capacity may be
 estimated at #ge cubic inches4 ,the    
most capacious healthy ,european skull  
yet measured had a capacity of #aad     
cubic inches1 the smallest 7as estimated
 by weight of brain7 about #ee cubic    
inches1 while1 according to ,professor  
,schaaffhausen1 some ,hindoo skulls have
 as small a capacity as about #df cubic 
inches 7#bg ounces of water74 ,the      
largest cranium of any ,gorilla yet     

measured contained #cd4e cubic inches4  
,the ,neanderthal cranium stands1       
therefore1 in capacity1 very nearly on a
 level with the mean of the two human   
extremes1 and very far above the        
pithecoid maximum4  ,illustration3      
,figure #e4 ,skull    7,,figure #e4     
,,skull ,,associated ,,with ,,ground    
,,flint ,,implements1    ,,from ,a      
,,tumulus ,,at ,,borreby ,,in ,,denmark1
 ,,after ,a ,,camera ,,lucida           
,,drawing ,,by ,,mr4 ,g4 ,,busk1        
,f4,r4,s4        ,the thick dark line   
indicates so much of the skull as       
corresponds with the fragment from the  
,neanderthal4    a4 ,superciliary ridge4
   b4 ,coronal suture4   c4 ,the apex of
 the lamboidal suture4   d4 ,the        
occipital protuberance4   e4 ,the       
auditory foramen47  ,hence1 even in the 
absence of the bones of the arm and     
thigh1 which1 according to ,professor   
,schaaffhausen1 had the precise         
proportions found in ,man1 although they
 were stouter than ordinary human bones1

 there could be no reason for ascribing 
this cranium to anything but a man2     
while the strength and development of   
the muscular ridges of the limb-bones   
are characters in perfect accordance    
with those exhibited1 in a minor degree1
 by the bones of such hardy savages1    
exposed to a rigorous climate1 as the   
,patagonians4  ,the ,neanderthal cranium
 has certainly not undergone            
compression1 and1 in reply to the       
suggestion that the skull is that of an 
idiot1 it may be urged that the onus    
probandi lies with those who adopt the  
hypothesis4 ,idiotcy is compatible with 
very various forms and capacities of the
 cranium1 but ,i know of none which     
present the least resemblance to the    
,neanderthal skull2 and1 furthermore1 ,i
 shall proceed to show that the latter  
manifests but an extreme degree of a    
stage of degradation exhibited1 as a    
natural condition1 by the crania of     
certain races of mankind4  ,mr4 ,busk   
drew my attention1 some time ago1 to the

 resemblance between some of the skulls 
taken from tumuli of the stone period at
 ,borreby in ,denmark1 of which ,mr4    
,busk possesses numerous accurate       
figures1 and the ,neanderthal cranium4  
,one of the ,borreby skulls in          
particular 7,figure #e7 has remarkably  
projecting superciliary ridges1 a       
retreating forehead1 a low flattened    
vertex1 and an occiput which shelves    
upward and forward4 ,but the skull is   
relatively higher and broader1 or more  
brachycephalic1 the sagittal suture     
longer1 and the superciliary ridges less
 projecting1 than in the ,neanderthal   
skull4 ,nevertheless1 there is1 without 
doubt1 much resemblance in character    
between the two skulls--a circumstance  
which is the more interesting1 since the
 other ,borreby skulls have better      
foreheads and less prominent            
superciliary ridges1 and exhibit        
altogether a higher conformation4  ,the 
,borreby skulls belong to the stone     
period of ,denmark1 and the people to   

whom they appertained were probably     
either contemporaneous with1 or later   
than1 the makers of the 'refuse-heaps'  
of that country4 ,in other words1 they  
were subsequent to the last great       
physical changes of ,europe1 and were   
contemporaries of the urus and bison1   
not of the ,elephas primigenius1        
,rhinoceros tichorhinus1 and ,hyaena    
spelaea4  ,supposing for a moment1 what 
is not proven1 that the ,neanderthal    
skull belonged to a race allied to the  
,borreby people and was as modern as    
they1 it would be separated by as great 
a distance of time as of anatomical     
character from the ,engis skull1 and the
 possibility of its belonging to a      
distinct race from the latter might     
reasonably appear to be greatly         
heightened4  ,to prevent the possibility
 of reasoning in a vicious circle1      
however1 ,i thought it would be well to 
endeavour to ascertain what amount of   
cranial variation is to be found in a   
pure race at the present day2 and as the

 natives of ,southern and ,western      
,australia are probably as pure and     
homogeneous in blood1 customs1 and      
language1 as any race of savages in     
existence1 ,i turned to them1 the more  
readily as the ,hunterian museum        
contains a very fine collection of such 
skulls4  ,i soon found it possible to   
select from among these crania two      
7connected by all sorts of intermediate 
gradations71 the one of which should    
very nearly resemble the ,engis skull1  
while the other should somewhat less    
closely approximate the ,neanderthal    
cranium in form1 size1 and proportions4 
,and at the same time others of these   
skulls presented no less remarkable     
affinities with the low type of ,borreby
 skull4  ,that the resemblances to which
 ,i allude are by no means of a merely  
superficial character1 is shown by the  
accompanying diagram 7,figure #f71 which
 gives the contours of the two ancient  
and of one of the ,australian skulls1   
and by the following table of           

measurements4  ,,table #e_/a4  ,,column 
#a3 ,,type ,,of ,,skull4  ,,column #b   
7,a73 ,the horizontal circumference in  
the plane of a line joining the glabella
 with the occipital protuberance4       
,,column #c 7,b73 ,the longitudinal arc 
from the nasal depression along the     
middle line of the skull to the         
occipital tuberosity4  ,,column #d 7,c73
 ,from the level of the                 
glabello-occipital line on each side1   
across the middle of the sagittal suture
 to the same point on the opposite side4
  ,,column #e 7,d73 ,the vertical height
 from the glabello-occipital line4      
,,column #f 7,e73 ,the extreme          
longitudinal measurement4  ,,column #g  
7,f73 ,the extreme transverse           
measurement499       799 ,i have taken  
the glabello-occipital line as a base in
      these measurements1 simply because
 it enables me to compare      all the  
skulls1 whether fragments or entire1    
together4 ,the      greatest            
circumference of the ,english skull lies

 in a plane      considerably above that
 of the glabello-occipital line1 and    
amounts to #bb inches47    ,engis    3  
#bj #a_/b3 #ac #c_/d3 #ab #a_/b3 #d     
#c_/d3 #g #c_/d3 #e #a_/d4              
,australian1      ,number #a3 #bj #a_/b3
 #ac  3 #ab  3 #d #c_/d3 #g #a_/b3 #e   
#d_/aj4   ,australian1      ,number #b3 
#bb  3 #ab #a_/b3 #aj #c_/d3 #c #h_/aj3 
#g4i3 #e #c_/d4   ,neanderthal3 #bc  3  
#ab  3 #aj  3 #c #c_/d3 #h  3 #e #c_/d4 
,the question whether the ,engis skull  
has rather the character of one of the  
high races or of one of the lower has   
been much disputed1 but the following   
measurements of an ,english skull1 noted
 in the catalogue of the ,hunterian     
museum as typically ,caucasian 7see     
,figure #d7 will serve to show that both
 sides may be right1 and that cranial   
measurements alone afford no safe       
indication of race4    ,english  3 #ba  
3 #ac #c_/d3 #ab #a_/b3 #d #d_/aj3 #g   
#g_/h3 #e #a_/c4  ,in making the        
preceding statement1 it must be clearly 

understood that ,i neither desire to    
affirm that the ,engis and ,neanderthal 
skulls belong to the ,australian race1  
nor to assert even that the ancient     
skulls belong to one and the same race1 
so far as race is measured by language1 
colour of skin1 or character of hair4   
,against the conclusion that they are of
 the same race as the ,australians      
various minor anatomical differences of 
the ancient skulls1 such as the great   
development of the frontal sinuses1     
might be urged2 while against the       
supposition of either the identity1 or  
the diversity1 of race of the two arises
 the known independence of the variation
 of cranium on the one hand1 and of     
hair1 colour1 and language on the other4
  ,but the amount of variation of the   
,borreby skulls1 and the fact that the  
skulls of one of the purest and most    
homogeneous of existing races of men can
 be proved to differ from one another in
 the same characters1 though perhaps not
 quite to the same extent1 as the ,engis

 and ,neanderthal skulls1 seem to me to 
prohibit any cautious reasoner from     
affirming the latter to have been       
necessarily of distinct races4          
,illustration3 ,figure #f4 ,outlines of 
,skulls    7,,figure #f4 ,,outlines ,,of
 ,,the ,,skull ,,from ,,the             
,,neanderthal1    ,,of ,,an ,,australian
 ,,skull ,,from ,,port ,,adelaide1 ,,and
 ,,of ,,the    ,,skull ,,from ,,the     
,,cave ,,of ,,engis1 ,,drawn ,,to ,,the 
,,same ,,absolute    ,,length1 ,,in     
,,order ,,the ,,better ,,to ,,contrast  
,,their ,,proportions4    a4 ,the       
glabella4   b4 ,the occipital           
protuberance1 or the point on the       
exterior      of each skull which       
corresponds roughly with the attachment 
of the tentorium1 or with the inferior  
boundary of the      posterior cerebral 
lobes4    e4 ,the position of the       
auditory foramen of the ,engis skull47  
,the marked resemblances between the    
ancient skulls and their modern         
,australian analogues1 however1 have a  

profound interest1 when it is           
recollected that the stone axe is as    
much the weapon and the implement of the
 modern as of the ancient savage2 that  
the former turns the bones of the       
kangaroo and of the emu to the same     
account as the latter did the bones of  
the deer and the urus2 that the         
,australian heaps up the shells of      
devoured shellfish in mounds which      
represent the refuse-heaps or           
,kjokkenmodding1 of ,denmark2 and1      
finally1 that1 on the other side of     
,torres ,straits1 a race akin to the    
,australians are among the few people   
who now build their houses on           
pile-works1 like those of the ancient   
,swiss lakes4  ,that this amount of     
resemblance in habit and in the         
conditions of existence is accompanied  
by as close a resemblance in cranial    
configuration1 illustrates on a great   
scale that what ,cuvier demonstrated of 
the animals of the ,nile valley is no   
less true of men2 circumstances         

remaining similar1 the savage varies    
little more1 it would seem1 than the    
ibis or the crocodile1 especially if we 
take into account the enormous extent of
 the time over which our knowledge of   
man now extends1 as compared with that  
measured by the duration of the         
sepulchres of ,egypt4  ,finally1 the    
comparatively large cranial capacity of 
the ,neanderthal skull1 overlaid though 
it may be by pithecoid bony walls1 and  
the completely human proportions of the 
accompanying limb-bones1 together with  
the very fair development of the ,engis 
skull1 clearly indicate that the first  
traces of the primordial stock whence   
,man has proceeded need no longer be    
sought1 by those who entertain any form 
of the doctrine of progressive          
development1 in the newest ,tertiaries2 
but that they may be looked for in an   
epoch more distant from the age of the  
,elephas primigenius than that is from  
us4  ,the two skulls which form the     
subject of the preceding comments and   

illustrations have given rise to nearly 
an equal amount of surprise for opposite
 reasons2 that of ,engis because being  
so unequivocally ancient1 it approached 
so near to the highest or ,caucasian    
type2 that of the ,neanderthal1 because1
 having no such decided claims to       
antiquity1 it departs so widely from the
 normal standard of humanity4 ,professor
 ,huxley's observation regarding the    
wide range of variation1 both as to     
shape and capacity1 in the skulls of so 
pure a race as the native ,australian1  
removes to no small extent this supposed
 anomaly1 assuming what though not      
proved is very probable1 that both      
varieties co-existed in the ,pleistocene
 period in ,western ,europe4  ,as to the
 ,engis skull1 we must remember that    
although associated with the elephant1  
rhinoceros1 bear1 tiger1 and hyaena1 all
 of extinct species1 it nevertheless is 
also accompanied by a bear1 stag1 wolf1 
fox1 beaver1 and many other quadrupeds  
of species still living4 ,indeed many   

eminent palaeontologists1 and among them
 ,professor ,pictet1 think that1        
numerically considered1 the larger      
portion of the mammalian fauna agrees   
specifically with that of our own       
period1 so that we are scarcely entitled
 to feel surprised if we find human     
races of the ,pleistocene epoch         
undistinguishable from some living ones4
 ,it would merely tend to show that ,man
 has been as constant in his            
osteological characters as many other   
mammalia now his contemporaries4 ,the   
expectation of always meeting with a    
lower type of human skull1 the older the
 formation in which it occurs1 is based 
on the theory of progressive            
development1 and it may prove to be     
sound2 nevertheless we must remember    
that as yet we have no distinct         
geological evidence that the appearance 
of what are called the inferior races of
 mankind has always preceded in         
chronological order that of the higher  
races4  ,it is now admitted that the    

differences between the brain of the    
highest races of ,man and that of the   
lowest199 though less in degree1 are of 
the same order as those which separate  
the human from the simian brain2 and the
 same rule holds good in regard to the  
shape of the skull4       799 ,natural  
,history ,review #ahfa page #h47  ,the  
average ,negro skull differs from that  
of the ,european in having a more       
receding forehead1 more prominent       
superciliary ridges1 and more largely   
developed prominences and furrows for   
the attachment of muscles2 the face     
also1 and its lines1 are larger         
proportionally4 ,the brain is somewhat  
less voluminous on the average in the   
lower races of mankind1 its convolutions
 rather less complicated1 and those of  
the two hemispheres more symmetrical1 in
 all which points an approach is made to
 the simian type4 ,it will also be seen1
 by reference to the late ,dr4 ,morton's
 works1 and by the foregoing statements 
of ,professor ,huxley1 that the range of

 size or capacity between the highest   
and lowest human brain is greater than  
that between the highest simian and     
lowest human brain2 but the ,neanderthal
 skull1 although in several respects it 
is more ape-like than any human skull   
previously discovered1 is1 in regard to 
volume1 by no means contemptible4       
,eminent anatomists have shown that in  
the average proportions of some of the  
bones the ,negro differs from the       
,european1 and that in most of these    
characters1 he makes a slightly nearer  
approach to the anthropoid quadrumana299
 but ,professor ,schaaffhausen has      
pointed out that in these proportions   
the ,neanderthal skeleton does not      
differ from the ordinary standard1 so   
that the skeleton by no means indicates 
a transition between ,homo and          
,pithecus4 799 ,the inferior races of   
mankind exhibit proportions which are in
 many respects intermediate between the 
higher1 or ,european1 orders1 and the   
monkeys4 ,in the ,negro1 for instance1  

the stature is less than in the         
,european4 ,the cranium1 as is well     
known1 bears a small proportion to the  
face4 ,of the extremities the upper are 
proportionately longer1 and there is1 in
 both upper and lower1 a less marked    
preponderance of the proximal over the  
distal segments4 ,for instance1 in the  
,negro1 the thigh and arm are rather    
shorter than in the ,european2 the leg  
is actually of equal length in both     
races1 and is therefore1 relatively1 a  
little longer in the ,negro2 the        
fore-arm in the latter is actually1 as  
well as relatively1 a little longer2 the
 foot is an eighth1 and the hand a      
twelfth longer than in the ,european4   
,it is well known that the foot is less 
well formed in the ,negro than in the   
,european4 ,the arch of the instep1 the 
perfect conformation of which is        
essential to steadiness and ease of     
gait1 is less elevated in the former    
than in the latter4 ,the foot is thereby
 rendered flatter as well as longer1    

more nearly resembling the monkey's1    
between which and the ,european there is
 a marked difference in this            
particular4--,from ,a ,treatise on the  
,human ,skeleton by ,dr4 ,humphry1      
,lecturer on ,surgery and ,anatomy in   
the ,cambridge ,university ,medical     
,school1 page #ia47  ,there is          
doubtless1 as shown in the diagram      
,figure #d1 a nearer resemblance in the 
outline of the ,neanderthal skull to    
that of a chimpanzee than had ever been 
observed before in any human cranium2   
and ,professor ,huxley's description of 
the occipital region shows that the     
resemblance is not confined to the mere 
excessive prominence of the superciliary
 ridges4  ,the direct bearing of the    
ape-like character of the ,neanderthal  
skull on ,lamarck's doctrine of         
progressive development and             
transmutation1 or on that modification  
of it which has of late been so ably    
advocated by ,mr4 ,darwin1 consists in  
this1 that the newly observed deviation 

from a normal standard of human         
structure is not in a casual or random  
direction1 but just what might have been
 anticipated if the laws of variation   
were such as the transmutationists      
require4 ,for if we conceive the cranium
 to be very ancient1 it exemplifies a   
less advanced stage of progressive      
development and improvement4 ,if it be a
 comparatively modern race1 owing its   
peculiarities of conformation to        
degeneracy1 it is an illustration of    
what botanists call atavism1 or the     
tendency of varieties to revert to an   
ancestral type1 which type1 in          
proportion to its antiquity1 would be of
 lower grade4 ,to this hypothesis1 of a 
genealogical connection between ,man and
 the lower animals1 ,i shall again      
allude in the concluding chapters4 #aa  
,,chapter #f4 -- ,,pleistocene          
,,alluvium ,,and ,,cave ,,deposits      
,,with ,,flint ,,implements4            
,general ,position of ,drift with       
extinct ,mammalia in ,valleys4          

,discoveries of ,m4 ,boucher de ,perthes
 at ,abbeville4    ,flint ,implements   
found also at ,st4 ,acheul1 near        
,amiens4    ,curiosity awakened by the  
systematic ,exploration of the ,brixham 
,cave4    ,flint ,knives in same1 with  
,bones of extinct ,mammalia4            
,superposition of ,deposits in the      
,cave4    ,visits of ,english and       
,french ,geologists to ,abbeville and   
,amiens4   ,,pleistocene ,,alluvium     
,,containing ,,flint ,,implements ,,in  
,,the ,,valley ,,of ,,the ,,somme4      
,throughout a large part of ,europe we  
find at moderate elevations above the   
present river-channels1 usually at a    
height of less than #dj feet1 but       
sometimes much higher1 beds of gravel1  
sand1 and loam containing bones of the  
elephant1 rhinoceros1 horse1 ox1 and    
other quadrupeds1 some of extinct1      
others of living1 species1 belonging for
 the most part to the fauna already     
alluded to in the fourth chapter as     
characteristic of the interior of       

caverns4 ,the greater part of these     
deposits contain fluviatile shells1 and 
have undoubtedly been accumulated in    
ancient river-beds4 ,these old channels 
have long since been dry1 the streams   
which once flowed in them having shifted
 their position1 deepening the valleys1 
and often widening them on one side4    
,it has naturally been asked1 if ,man   
co-existed with the extinct species of  
the caves1 why were his remains and the 
works of his hands never embedded       
outside the caves in ancient            
river-gravel containing the same fossil 
fauna8 ,why should it be necessary for  
the geologist to resort for evidence of 
the antiquity of our race to the dark   
recesses of underground vaults and      
tunnels which may have served as places 
of refuge or sepulture to a succession  
of human beings and wild animals1 and   
where floods may have confounded        
together in one breccia the memorials of
 the fauna of more than one epoch8 ,why 
do we not meet with a similar assemblage

 of the relics of ,man1 and of living   
and extinct quadrupeds1 in places where 
the strata can be thoroughly scrutinised
 in the light of day8  ,recent          
researches have at length demonstrated  
that such memorials1 so long sought for 
in vain1 do in fact exist1 and their    
recognition is the chief cause of the   
more favourable reception now given to  
the conclusions which ,,mm4 ,tournal1   
,christol1 ,schmerling1 and others1     
arrived at thirty years ago respecting  
the fossil contents of caverns4 #ab  ,a 
very important step in this new         
direction was made thirteen years after 
the publication of ,schmerling's        
researches1 by ,m4 ,boucher de ,perthes1
 who found in ancient alluvium at       
,abbeville1 in ,picardy1 some flint     
implements1 the relative antiquity of   
which was attested by their geological  
position4 ,the antiquarian knowledge of 
their discoverer enabled him to         
recognise in their rude and peculiar    
type a character distinct from that of  

the polished stone weapons of a later   
period1 usually called celts4 ,in the   
first volume of his ,antiquites         
,celtiques1 published in #ahdg1 ,m4     
,boucher de ,perthes styled these older 
tools antediluvian1 because they came   
from the lowest beds of a series of     
ancient alluvial strata bordering the   
valley of the ,somme1 which geologists  
had termed diluvium4 ,he had begun to   
collect these implements in #ahda4 ,from
 that time they had been annually dug   
out of the drift or deposits of gravel  
and sand1 of which fine sections were   
laid open from #bj to #ce feet in depth1
 whenever excavations were made in      
repairing the fortifications of         
,abbeville2 or as often as flints were  
wanted for the roads1 or loam for making
 bricks4 ,for years previously bones of 
quadrupeds of the genera elephant1      
rhinoceros1 bear1 hyaena1 stag1 ox1     
horse1 and others1 had been collected   
there1 and sent from time to time to    
,paris to be examined and named by      

,cuvier1 who had described them in his  
,ossements ,fossiles4 ,a correct account
 of the associated flint tools and of   
their position was given in #ahdg by ,m4
 ,boucher de ,perthes in his work above 
cited1 and they were stated to occur at 
various depths1 often #bj or #cj feet   
from the surface1 in sand and gravel1   
especially in those strata which were   
nearly in contact with the subjacent    
white ,chalk4 ,but the scientific world 
had no faith in the statement that works
 of art1 however rude1 had been met with
 in undisturbed beds of such antiquity4 
,few geologists visited ,abbeville in   
winter1 when the sand-pits were open1   
and when they might have opportunities  
of verifying the sections1 and judging  
whether the instruments had really been 
embedded by natural causes in the same  
strata with the bones of the mammoth1   
rhinoceros1 and other extinct mammalia4 
,some of the tools figured in the       
,antiquites ,celtiques were so rudely   
shaped1 that many imagined them to have 

owed their peculiar forms to accidental 
fracture in a river's bed2 others       
suspected frauds on the part of the     
workmen1 who might have fabricated them 
for sale1 or that the gravel had been   
disturbed1 and that the worked flints   
had got mingled with the bones of the   
mammoth long after that animal and its  
associates had disappeared from the     
earth4  ,no one was more sceptical than 
the late eminent physician of ,amiens1  
,dr4 ,rigollot1 who had long before 7in 
the year #ahai7 written a memoir on the 
fossil mammalia of the valley of the    
,somme4 ,he was at length induced to    
visit ,abbeville1 and1 having inspected 
the collection of ,m4 ,boucher de       
,perthes1 returned home resolved to look
 for himself for flint tools in the     
gravel-pits near ,amiens4 ,there1       
accordingly1 at a distance of about #cj 
miles from ,abbeville1 he immediately   
found abundance of similar flint        
implements1 precisely the same in the   
rudeness of their make1 and the same in 

their geological position2 some of them 
in gravel nearly on a level with the    
,somme1 others in similar deposits      
resting on ,chalk at a height of about  
#ij feet above the river4  ,dr4         
,rigollot having in the course of four  
years obtained several hundred specimens
 of these tools1 most of them from ,st4 
,acheul in the south-east suburbs of    
,amiens1 lost no time in communicating  
an account of them to the scientific    
world1 in a memoir illustrated by good  
figures of the worked flints and careful
 sections of the beds4 ,these sections  
were executed by ,m4 ,buteux1 an        
engineer well qualified for the task1   
who had written a good description of   
the geology of ,picardy4 ,dr4 ,rigollot1
 in this memoir1 pointed out most       
clearly that it was not in the vegetable
 soil1 nor in the brick-earth with land 
and freshwater shells next below1 but in
 the lower beds of coarse flint-gravel1 
usually #ab1 #bj1 or #be feet below the 
surface1 that the implements were met   

with1 just as they had been previously  
stated by ,m4 ,boucher de ,perthes to   
occur at ,abbeville4 ,the conclusion1   
therefore1 which was legitimately       
deduced from all the facts1 was that the
 flint tools and their fabricators were 
coeval with the extinct mammalia        
embedded in the same strata4   ,,brixham
 ,,cave1 ,,near ,,torquay1 ,,devonshire4
  ,four years after the appearance of   
,dr4 ,rigollot's paper1 a sudden change 
of opinion was brought about in ,england
 respecting the probable co-existence1  
at a former period1 of ,man and many    
extinct mammalia1 in consequence of the 
results obtained from a careful         
exploration of a cave at ,brixham1 near 
,torquay1 in ,devonshire4 ,as the new   
views very generally adopted by ,english
 geologists had no small influence on   
the subsequent progress of opinion in   
,france1 ,i shall interrupt my account  
of the researches made in the valley of 
the ,somme1 by a brief notice of those  
which were carried on in #aheh in       

,devonshire with more than usual care   
and scientific method4 ,dr4 ,buckland1  
in his celebrated work1 entitled        
,reliquiae ,diluvianae1 published in    
#ahbc1 in which he treated of the       
organic remains contained in caves1     
fissures1 and diluvial gravel in        
,england1 had given a clear statement of
 the results of his own original        
observations1 and had declared that none
 of the human bones or stone implements 
met with by him in any of the caverns   
could be considered to be as old as the 
mammoth and other extinct quadrupeds4   
,opinions in harmony with this          
conclusion continued until very lately  
to be generally in vogue in ,england2   
although about the time that ,schmerling
 was exploring the ,liege caves1 the    
,reverend ,mr4 ,mc,enery1 a ,catholic   
priest1 residing near ,torquay1 had     
found in a cave one mile east of that   
town1 called ,kent's ,hole1 in red loam 
covered with stalagmite1 not only bones 
of the mammoth1 tichorhine rhinoceros1  

hippopotamus1 cave-bear1 and other      
mammalia1 but several remarkable flint  
tools1 some of which he supposed to be  
of great antiquity1 while there were    
also remains of ,man in the same cave of
 a later date499       799 ,the         
manuscript and plates prepared for a    
joint memoir on      ,kent's ,hole1 by  
,mr4 ,mc,enery and ,dr4 ,buckland1 have 
recently      been published by ,mr4    
,vivian of ,torquay1 from which1 as well
      as from some of the unprinted     
manuscript1 ,i infer that ,mr4          
,mc,enery only refrained out of         
deference to ,dr4 ,buckland from        
declaring his belief in the             
contemporaneousness of certain          
flint implements of an antique type and 
the bones of extinct      animals4 ,two 
of these implements from ,kent's ,hole1 
figured      in ,plate #ab of the       
posthumous work above alluded to1       
approach very closely in form and size  
to the common      ,abbeville           
implements47  ,about ten years          

afterwards1 in a ,memoir on the ,geology
 of ,south ,devon1 published in #ahdb by
 the ,geological ,society of ,london199 
an able geologist1 ,mr4 ,godwin-,austen1
 declared that he had obtained in the   
same cave 7,kent's ,hole7 works of ,man 
from undisturbed loam or clay1 under    
stalagmite1 mingled with the remains of 
extinct animals1 and that all these must
 have been introduced before the        
stalagmite flooring had been formed4 ,he
 maintained that such facts could not be
 explained away by the hypothesis of    
sepulture1 as in ,dr4 ,buckland's       
well-known case of the human skeleton of
 ,paviland1 because in the ,devon cave  
the flint implements were widely        
distributed through the loam1 and lay   
beneath the stalagmite4       799       
,transactions of the ,geological        
,society #bnd series      volume #f page
 #ddd47  ,as the osseous and other      
contents of ,kent's ,hole had1 by       
repeated diggings1 been thrown into much
 confusion1 it was thought desirable in 

#aheh1 when a new and intact bone-cave  
was discovered at ,brixham1 about four  
miles south of ,torquay1 to have a      
thorough and systematic examination made
 of it4 ,the ,royal ,society1 chiefly at
 the instance of ,dr4 ,falconer1 made   
two grants towards defraying the        
expenses1 and ,miss ,burdett-,coutts    
contributed liberally towards the same  
object4 ,a committee of geologists was  
charged with the investigations1 among  
whom ,dr4 ,falconer and ,mr4 ,prestwich 
took a prominent part1 visiting ,torquay
 while the excavations were in progress4
 ,mr4 ,pengelly1 another member of the  
committee1 well qualified for the task  
by nearly twenty years' previous        
experience in cave explorations1        
zealously directed and superintended the
 work4 ,by him1 in #ahei1 ,i was        
conducted through the subterranean      
galleries after they had been cleared   
out2 and ,dr4 ,falconer1 who was also at
 ,torquay1 showed me the numerous       
fossils which had been discovered1 and  

which he was then studying1 all numbered
 and labelled1 with reference to a      
journal in which the geological position
 of each specimen was recorded with     
scrupulous care4  ,the discovery of the 
existence of this suite of caverns near 
the sea at ,brixham was made            
accidentally by the roof of one of them 
being broken through in quarrying4 ,none
 of the four external openings now      
exposed to view in steep cliffs or in   
the sloping side of a valley were       
visible before the breccia and earthy   
matter which blocked them up were       
removed during the late exploration4    
,according to a ground-plan drawn up by 
,professor ,ramsay1 it appears that some
 of the passages which run nearly north 
and south are fissures connected with   
the vertical dislocation of the rocks1  
while another set1 running nearly east  
and west1 are tunnels1 which have the   
appearance of having been to a great    
extent hollowed out by the action of    
running water4 ,the central or main     

entrance1 leading to what is called the 
reindeer gallery1 because a perfect     
antler of that animal was found sticking
 in the stalagmitic floor1 is #ie feet  
above the level of the sea1 being also  
#gh above the bottom of the adjoining   
valley4 ,the united length of the       
galleries which were cleared out        
amounted to several hundred feet4 ,their
 width never exceeded #h feet4 ,they    
were sometimes filled up to the roof    
with mud1 but occasionally there was a  
considerable space between the roof and 
floor4 ,the latter1 in the case of the  
fissure-caves1 was covered with         
stalagmite1 but in the tunnels it was   
usually free from any such incrustation4
 ,the following was the general         
succession of the deposits forming the  
contents of the underground passages and
 channels3--  ,first4 ,at the top1 a    
layer of stalagmite varying in thickness
 from #a to #ae inches1 which sometimes 
contained bones1 such as the reindeer's 
horn1 already mentioned1 and an entire  

humerus of the cave-bear4  ,secondly4   
,next below1 loam or bone-earth1 of an  
ochreous red colour1 with angular stones
 and some pebbles1 from #b to #ac feet  
in thickness4  ,thirdly4 ,at the bottom 
of all1 gravel with many rounded pebbles
 in it4 ,this was everywhere removed so 
long as the tunnels which narrowed      
downwards were wide enough to be worked4
 ,it proved to be almost entirely barren
 of fossils4  ,the mammalia obtained    
from the bone-earth consisted of        
,elephas primigenius1 or mammoth2       
,rhinoceros tichorhinus2 ,ursus         
spelaeus2 ,hyaena spelaea2 ,felis       
spelaea1 or the cave-lion2 ,cervus      
tarandus1 or the reindeer2 a species of 
horse1 ox1 and several rodents1 and     
others not yet determined4  ,no human   
bones were obtained anywhere during     
these excavations1 but many flint       
knives1 chiefly from the lowest part of 
the bone-earth2 and one of the most     
perfect lay at the depth of #ac feet    
from the surface1 and was covered with  

bone-earth of that thickness4           
,neglecting the less perfect specimens1 
some of which were met with even in the 
lowest gravel1 about fifteen knives1    
recognised as artificially formed by the
 most experienced antiquaries1 were     
taken from the bone-earth1 and usually  
from near the bottom4 ,such knives1     
considered apart from the associated    
mammalia1 afford in themselves no safe  
criterion of antiquity1 as they might   
belong to any part of the age of stone1 
similar tools being sometimes met with  
in tumuli posterior in date to the era  
of the introduction of bronze4 ,but the 
contemporaneity of those at ,brixham    
with the extinct animals is demonstrated
 not only by the occurrence at one point
 in overlying stalagmite of the bone of 
a cave-bear1 but also by the discovery  
at the same level in the bone-earth1 and
 in close proximity to a very perfect   
flint tool1 of the entire left hind-leg 
of a cave-bear4 ,this specimen1 which   
was shown me by ,dr4 ,falconer and ,mr4 

,pengelly1 was exhumed from the earthy  
deposit in the reindeer gallery1 near   
its junction with the flint-knife       
gallery1 at the distance of about       
sixty-five feet from the main entrance4 
,the mass of earth containing it was    
removed entire1 and the matrix cleared  
away carefully by ,dr4 ,falconer in the 
presence of ,mr4 ,pengelly4 ,every bone 
was in its natural place1 the femur1    
tibia1 fibula1 ankle-bone1 or           
astragalus1 all in juxtaposition4 ,even 
the patella or detached bone of the     
knee-pan was searched for1 and not in   
vain4 ,here1 therefore1 we have evidence
 of an entire limb not having been      
washed in a fossil state out of an older
 alluvium1 and then swept afterwards    
into a cave1 so as to be mingled with   
flint implements1 but having been       
introduced when clothed with its flesh1 
or at least when it had the separate    
bones bound together by their natural   
ligaments1 and in that state buried in  
mud4  ,if they were not all of          

contemporary date1 it is clear from this
 case1 and from the humerus of the      
,ursus spelaeus1 before cited1 as found 
in a floor of stalagmite1 that the bear 
lived after the flint tools were        
manufactured1 or in other words1 that   
,man in this district preceded the      
cave-bear4  ,a glance at the position of
 ,windmill ,hill1 in which the caverns  
are situated1 and a brief survey of the 
valleys which bound it on three sides1  
are enough to satisfy a geologist that  
the drainage and geographical features  
of this region have undergone great     
changes since the gravel and bone-earth 
were carried by streams into the        
subterranean cavities above described4  
,some worn pebbles of haematite1 in     
particular1 can only have come from     
their nearest parent rock1 at a period  
when the valleys immediately adjoining  
the caves were much shallower than they 
now are4 ,the reddish loam in which the 
bones are embedded is such as may be    
seen on the surface of limestone in the 

neighbourhood1 but the currents which   
were formerly charged with such mud must
 have run at a level #gh feet above that
 of the stream now flowing in the same  
valley4 ,it was remarked by ,mr4        
,pengelly that the stones and bones in  
the loam had their longest axes parallel
 to the direction of the tunnels and    
fissures1 showing that they were        
deposited by the action of a stream499  
799 ,pengelly1 ,geologist volume #d     
#ahfa page #aec47  ,it appears that so  
long as the flowing water had force     
enough to propel stony fragments1 no    
layer of fine mud could accumulate1 and 
so long as there was a regular current  
capable of carrying in fine mud and     
bones1 no superficial crust of          
stalagmite4 ,in some passages1 as before
 stated1 stalagmite was wanting1 while  
in one place seven or eight alternations
 of stalagmite and loam were observed1  
seeming to indicate a prevalence of more
 rainy seasons1 succeeded by others1    
when the water was for a time too low to

 flood the area where the calcareous    
incrustation accumulated4  ,if the      
regular sequence of the three deposits  
of pebbles1 mud1 and stalagmite was the 
result of the causes above explained1   
the order of superposition would be     
constant1 yet we could not be sure that 
the gravel in one passage might not     
sometimes be coeval with the bone-earth 
or stalagmite in another4  ,if therefore
 the flint knives had not been very     
widely dispersed1 and if one of them had
 not been at the bottom of the          
bone-earth1 close to the leg of the bear
 above described1 their antiquity       
relatively to the extinct mammalia might
 have been questioned4 ,no coprolites   
were found in the ,brixham excavations1 
and very few gnawed bones4 ,these few   
may have been brought from some distance
 before they reached their place of     
rest4 ,upon the whole1 the same         
conclusion which ,dr4 ,schmerling came  
to1 respecting the filling up of the    
caverns near ,liege1 seems applicable to

 the caves of ,brixham4  ,dr4 ,falconer1
 after aiding in the investigations     
above alluded to near ,torquay1 stopped 
at ,abbeville on his way to ,sicily1 in 
the autumn of #aheh1 and saw there the  
collection of ,m4 ,boucher de ,perthes4 
,being at once satisfied that the flints
 called hatchets had really been        
fashioned by the hand of ,man1 he urged 
,mr4 ,prestwich1 by letter1 thoroughly  
to explore the geology of the valley of 
the ,somme4 ,this he accordingly        
accomplished1 in company with ,mr4 ,john
 ,evans #ac1 of the ,society of         
,antiquaries1 and1 before his return    
that same year1 succeeded in dissipating
 all doubts from the minds of his       
geological friends by extracting1 with  
his own hands1 from a bed of undisturbed
 gravel1 at ,st4 ,acheul1 a well-shaped 
flint hatchet4 ,this implement was      
buried in the gravel at a depth of #ag  
feet from the surface1 and was lying on 
its flat side4 ,there were no signs of  
vertical rents in the enveloping matrix1

 nor in the overlying beds of sand and  
loam1 in which were many land and       
freshwater shells2 so that it was       
impossible to imagine that the tool had 
gradually worked its way downwards1 as  
some had suggested1 through the         
incumbent soil1 into an older           
formation499       799 ,prestwich1      
,proceedings of the ,royal ,society     
#ahei and      ,philosophical           
,transactions #ahfj47  ,there was no one
 in ,england whose authority deserved to
 have so much weight in overcoming      
incredulity in regard to the antiquity  
of the implements in question4 ,for ,mr4
 ,prestwich1 besides having published a 
series of important memoirs on the      
,tertiary formations of ,europe1 had    
devoted many years specially to the     
study of the drift and its organic      
remains4 ,his report1 therefore1 to the 
,royal ,society1 accompanied by a       
photograph showing the position of the  
flint tool in situ before it was removed
 from its matrix1 not only satisfied    

many inquirers1 but induced others to   
visit ,abbeville and ,amiens2 and one of
 these1 ,mr4 ,flower1 who accompanied   
,mr4 ,prestwich on his second excursion 
to ,st4 ,acheul1 in ,june #ahei1        
succeeded1 by digging into the bank of  
gravel1 in disinterring1 at the depth of
 #bb feet from the surface1 a fine1     
symmetrically-shaped weapon of an oval  
form1 lying in and beneath strata which 
were observed by many witnesses to be   
perfectly undisturbed499       799      
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society volume #af      #ahfj page     
#aij47  ,shortly afterwards1 in the year
 #ahei1 ,i visited the same pits1 and   
obtained seventy flint tools1 one of    
which was taken out while ,i was        
present1 though ,i did not see it before
 it had fallen from the matrix4 ,i      
expressed my opinion in favour of the   
antiquity of the flint tools to the     
meeting of the ,british ,association at 
,aberdeen1 in the same year499       799
 ,see ,report of ,british ,association  

for #ahei4 7  ,on my way through ,rouen1
 ,i stated my convictions on this       
subject to ,m4 ,george ,pouchet1 who    
immediately betook himself to ,st4      
,acheul1 commissioned by the            
municipality of ,rouen1 and did not quit
 the pits till he had seen one of the   
hatchets extracted from gravel in its   
natural position499       799 ,actes du 
,musee d',histoire ,naturelle de ,rouen 
#ahfj page      #cc47  ,m4 ,gaudry also 
gave the following account of his       
researches in the same year to the      
,royal ,academy of ,sciences at ,paris4 
,the great point was not to leave the   
workmen for a single instant1 and to    
satisfy oneself by actual inspection    
whether the hatchets were found in situ4
 ,i caused a deep excavation to be made1
 and found nine hatchets1 most          
distinctly in situ in the diluvium1     
associated with teeth of ,equus fossilis
 and a species of ,bos1 different from  
any now living1 and similar to that of  
the diluvium and of caverns499       799

 ,comptes rendus ,september #bf and     
,october #c1 #ahei47  ,in #ahei1 ,m4    
,hebert1 an original observer of the    
highest authority1 declared to the      
,geological ,society of ,france that he 
had1 in #ahed1 or four years before ,mr4
 ,prestwich's visit to ,st4 ,acheul1    
seen the sections at ,abbeville and     
,amiens1 and had come to the opinion    
that the hatchets were imbedded in the  
lower diluvium1 and that their origin   
was as ancient as that of the mammoth   
and the rhinoceros4 ,m4 ,desnoyers also 
made excavations after ,m4 ,gaudry1 at  
,st4 ,acheul1 in #ahei1 with the same   
results499       799 ,bulletin volume   
#ag page #ah47  ,after a lively         
discussion on the subject in ,england   
and ,france1 it was remembered1 not only
 that there were numerous recorded cases
 leading to similar conclusions in      
regard to cavern deposits1 but1 also1   
that ,mr4 ,frere had1 so long ago as    
#agig1 found flint weapons1 of the same 
type as those of ,amiens1 in a          

freshwater formation in ,suffolk1 in    
conjunction with elephant remains2 and  
nearly a hundred years earlier 7#agae71 
another tool of the same kind had been  
exhumed from the gravel of ,london1     
together with bones of an elephant2 to  
all which examples ,i shall allude more 
fully in the sequel4  ,i may conclude   
this chapter by quoting a saying of     
,professor ,agassiz1 that whenever a new
 and startling fact is brought to light 
in science1 people first say1 'it is not
 true1' then that 'it is contrary to    
religion1' and lastly1 'that everybody  
knew it before4'  ,if ,i were           
considering merely the cultivators of   
geology1 ,i should say that the doctrine
 of the former co-existence of ,man with
 many extinct mammalia had already gone 
through these three phases in the       
progress of every scientific truth      
towards acceptance4 ,but the grounds of 
this belief have not yet been fully laid
 before the general public1 so as to    
enable them fairly to weigh and         

appreciate the evidence4 ,i shall       
therefore do my best in the next three  
chapters to accomplish this task4       
,,chapter #g4 -- ,,peat ,,and           
,,pleistocene ,,alluvium ,,of ,,the     
,,valley ,,of ,,the ,,somme4            
,geological ,structure of the ,valley of
 the ,somme and of the                  
surrounding ,country4      ,position of 
,alluvium of different ,ages4      ,peat
 near ,abbeville4      ,its animal and  
vegetable ,contents4      ,works of ,art
 in ,peat4      ,probable ,antiquity of 
the ,peat1 and ,changes of ,level       
since its ,growth began4      ,flint    
,implements of antique ,type in older   
,alluvium4      ,their various ,forms   
and great ,numbers4   ,,geological      
,,structure ,,of ,,the ,,somme ,,valley4
  ,the valley of the ,somme in ,picardy1
 alluded to in the last chapter1 is     
situated geologically in a region of    
white ,chalk with flints1 the strata of 
which are nearly horizontal4 ,the ,chalk
 hills which bound the valley are almost

 everywhere between #bjj and #cjj feet  
in height4 ,on ascending to that        
elevation1 we find ourselves on an      
extensive table-land1 in which there are
 slight elevations and depressions4 ,the
 white ,chalk itself is scarcely ever   
exposed at the surface on this plateau1 
although seen on the slopes of the      
hills1 as at b and c 7,figure #g74 ,the 
general surface of the upland region is 
covered continuously for miles in every 
direction by loam or brick-earth        
7,number #d71 about #e feet thick1      
devoid of fossils4 ,to the wide extent  
of this loam the soil of ,picardy       
chiefly owes its great fertility4 ,here 
and there we also observe1 on the       
,chalk1 outlying patches of ,tertiary   
sand and clay 7,number #e1 ,figure #g71 
with ,eocene fossils1 the remnants of a 
formation once more extensive1 and which
 probably once spread in one continuous 
mass over the ,chalk1 before the present
 system of valleys had begun to be      
shaped out4 ,it is necessary to allude  

to these relics of ,tertiary strata1 of 
which the larger part is missing1       
because their denudation has contributed
 largely to furnish the materials of    
gravels in which the flint implements   
and bones of extinct mammalia are       
entombed4 ,from this source have been   
derived not only the regular-formed     
egg-shaped pebbles1 so common in the old
 fluviatile alluvium at all levels1 but 
those huge masses of hard sandstone1    
several feet in diameter1 to which ,i   
shall allude in the sequel4 ,the upland 
loam also 7,number #d7 has often1 in no 
slight degree1 been formed at the       
expense of the same ,tertiary sands and 
clays1 as is attested by its becoming   
more or less sandy or argillaceous1     
according to the nature of the nearest  
,eocene outlier in the neighbourhood4   
,the average width of the valley of the 
,somme between ,amiens and ,abbeville is
 one mile4 ,the height1 therefore1 of   
the hills1 in relation to the           
river-plain1 could not be correctly     

represented in the annexed diagram      
7,figure #g71 as they would have to be  
reduced in altitude2 or if not1 it would
 be necessary to make the space between 
c and b four times as great4 ,the       
dimensions also of the masses1 of drift 
or alluvium1 #b and #c1 have been       
exaggerated1 in order to render them    
sufficiently conspicuous2 for1 all      
important as we shall find them to be as
 geological monuments of the            
,pleistocene period1 they form a truly  
insignificant feature in the general    
structure of the country1 so much so1   
that they might easily be overlooked in 
a cursory survey of the district1 and   
are usually unnoticed in geological maps
 not specially devoted to the           
superficial formations4  ,illustration3 
,figure #g4 ,valley of the ,somme       
7,,figure #g4 ,,section ,,across ,,the  
,,valley ,,of ,,the ,,somme ,,in        
,,picardy4    #a4 ,peat1 #bj to #cj feet
 thick1 resting on gravel1 a4   #b4     
,lower level gravel with elephants'     

bones and flint tools1      covered with
 fluviatile loam1 #bj to #dj feet thick4
   #c4 ,higher level gravel with similar
 fossils1 and with overlying      loam1 
in all #cj feet thick4   #d4 ,upland    
loam without shells 7,limon des         
plateaux71 #e or #f      feet thick4    
#e4 ,eocene strata1 resting on the      
,chalk in patches47  ,it will be seen by
 the description given of the section   
7,figure #g7 that ,number #b indicates  
the lower level gravels1 and ,number #c 
the higher ones1 or those rising to     
elevations of #hj or #ajj feet above the
 river4 ,newer than these is the peat   
,number #a1 which is from #aj to #cj    
feet in thickness1 and which is not only
 of later date than the alluvium1 #b and
 #c1 but is also posterior to the       
denudation of those gravels1 or to the  
time when the valley was excavated      
through them4 ,underneath the peat is a 
bed of gravel1 a1 from #c to #ad feet   
thick1 which rests on undisturbed       
,chalk4 ,this gravel was probably       

formed1 in part at least1 when the      
valley was scooped out to its present   
depth1 since which time no geological   
change has taken place1 except the      
growth of the peat1 and certain         
oscillations in the general level of the
 country1 to which we shall allude by   
and by4 ,a thin layer of impervious clay
 separates the gravel a from the peat   
,number #a1 and seems to have been a    
necessary preliminary to the growth of  
the peat4   ,,peat ,,of ,,the ,,valley  
,,of ,,the ,,somme4  ,as hitherto1 in   
our retrospective survey1 we have been  
obliged1 for the sake of proceeding from
 the known to the less known1 to reverse
 the natural order of history1 and to   
treat of the newer before the older     
formations1 ,i shall begin my account of
 the geological monuments of the valley 
of the ,somme by saying something of the
 most modern of all of them1 the peat4  
,this substance occupies the lower parts
 of the valley far above ,amiens1 and   
below ,abbeville as far as the sea4 ,it 

has already been stated to be in some   
places #cj feet thick1 and is even      
occasionally more than #cj feet1        
corresponding in that respect to the    
,danish mosses before described         
7,chapter #b74 ,like them1 it belongs to
 the ,recent period2 all the embedded   
mammalia1 as well as the shells1 being  
of the same species as those now        
inhabiting ,europe4 ,the bones of       
quadrupeds are very numerous1 as ,i can 
bear witness1 having seen them brought  
up from a considerable depth near       
,abbeville1 almost as often as the      
dredging instrument was used4 ,besides  
remains of the beaver1 ,i was shown1 in 
the collection of ,m4 ,boucher de       
,perthes1 two perfect lower jaws with   
teeth of the bear1 ,ursus arctos2 and in
 the ,paris ,museum there is another    
specimen1 also from the ,abbeville peat4
  ,the list of mammalia already         
comprises a large proportion of those   
proper to the ,swiss lake-dwellings1 and
 to the shell-mounds and peat of        

,denmark2 but unfortunately as yet no   
special study has been made of the      
,french fauna1 like that by which the   
,danish and ,swiss zoologists and       
botanists have enabled us to compare the
 wild and tame animals and the          
vegetation of the age of stone with that
 of the age of iron4  ,notwithstanding  
the abundance of mammalian bones in the 
peat1 and the frequency of stone        
implements of the ,celtic and           
,gallo-,roman periods1 ,m4 ,boucher de  
,perthes has only met with three or four
 fragments of human skeletons4  ,at some
 depth in certain places in the valley  
near ,abbeville1 the trunks of alders   
have been found standing erect as they  
grew1 with their roots fixed in an      
ancient soil1 afterwards covered with   
peat4 ,stems of the hazel1 and nuts of  
the same1 abound2 trunks1 also1 of the  
oak and walnut4 ,the peat extends to the
 coast1 and is there seen passing under 
the sand-dunes and below the sea-level4 
,at the mouth of the river ,canche1     

which joins the sea near the embouchure 
of the ,somme1 yew trees1 firs1 oaks1   
and hazels have been dug out of peat1   
which is there worked for fuel1 and is  
about three feet thick499       799     
,d',archiac1 ,histoire des ,progres     
volume #b page #aed47  ,during great    
storms1 large masses of compact peat1   
enclosing trunks of flattened trees1    
have been thrown up on the coast at the 
mouth of the ,somme2 seeming to indicate
 that there has been a subsidence of the
 land and a consequent submergence of   
what was once a westward continuation of
 the valley of the ,somme into what is  
now a part of the ,english ,channel4    
,whether the vegetation of the lowest   
layers of peat differed as to the       
geographical distribution of some of the
 trees from the middle1 and this from   
the uppermost peat1 as in ,denmark1 has 
not yet been ascertained2 nor have      
careful observations been made with a   
view of calculating the minimum of time 
which the accumulation of so dense a    

mass of vegetable matter must have      
taken4 ,a foot in thickness of highly   
compressed peat1 such as is sometimes   
reached in the bottom of the bogs1 is   
obviously the equivalent in time of a   
much greater thickness of peat of spongy
 and loose texture1 found near the      
surface4 ,the workmen who cut peat1 or  
dredge it up from the bottom of swamps  
and ponds1 declare that in the course of
 their lives none of the hollows which  
they have found1 or caused by extracting
 peat1 have ever been refilled1 even to 
a small extent4 ,they deny1 therefore1  
that the peat grows4 ,this1 as ,m4      
,boucher de ,perthes observes1 is a     
mistake2 but it implies that the        
increase in one generation is not very  
appreciable by the unscientific4  ,the  
antiquary finds near the surface        
,gallo-,roman remains1 and still deeper 
,celtic weapons of the stone period4 #ad
 ,but the depth at which ,roman works of
 art occur varies in different places1  
and is no sure test of age2 because in  

some parts of the swamps1 especially    
near the river1 the peat is often so    
fluid that heavy substances may sink    
through it1 carried down by their own   
gravity4 ,in one case1 however1 ,m4     
,boucher de ,perthes observed several   
large flat dishes of ,roman pottery1    
lying in a horizontal position in the   
peat1 the shape of which must have      
prevented them from sinking or          
penetrating through the underlying peat4
 ,allowing about fourteen centuries for 
the growth of the superincumbent        
vegetable matter1 he calculated that the
 thickness gained in a hundred years    
would be no more than three             
centimetres499       799 ,antiquites    
,celtiques volume #b page #acd47  ,this 
rate of increase would demand so many   
thousands of years for the formation of 
the entire thickness of #cj feet that we
 must hesitate before adopting it as a  
chronometric scale4 ,yet1 by multiplying
 observations of this kind1 and bringing
 one to bear upon and check another1 we 

may eventually succeed in obtaining data
 for estimating the age of the peaty    
deposit4 #ae  ,the rate of increase in  
,denmark may not be applicable to       
,france2 because differences in the     
humidity of the climate1 or in the      
intensity and duration of summer's heat 
and winter's cold1 as well as diversity 
in the species of plants which most     
abound1 would cause the peat to grow    
more or less rapidly1 not only when we  
compare two distinct countries in       
,europe1 but the same country at two    
successive periods4  ,i have already    
alluded to some facts which favour the  
idea that there has been a change of    
level on the coast since the peat began 
to grow4 ,this conclusion seems         
confirmed by the mere thickness of peat 
at ,abbeville1 and the occurrence of    
alder and hazel-wood near the bottom of 
it4 ,if #cj feet of peat were now       
removed1 the sea would flow up and fill 
the valley for miles above ,abbeville4  
,yet this vegetable matter is all of    

supra-marine origin1 for where shells   
occur in it they are all of terrestrial 
or fluviatile kinds1 so that it must    
have grown above the sea-level when the 
land was more elevated than now4 ,we    
have already seen what changes in the   
relative level of sea and land have     
occurred in ,scotland subsequently to   
the time of the ,romans1 and are        
therefore prepared to meet with proofs  
of similar movements in ,picardy4 ,in   
that country they have probably not been
 confined simply to subsidence1 but have
 comprised oscillations in the level of 
the land1 by which marine shells of the 
,pleistocene period have been raised    
some #aj feet or more above the level of
 the sea4  ,small as is the progress    
hitherto made in interpreting the pages 
of the peaty record1 their importance in
 the valley of the ,somme is enhanced by
 the reflection that1 whatever be the   
number of centuries to which they       
relate1 they belong to times posterior  
to the ancient implement-bearing beds1  

which we are next to consider1 and are  
even separated from them1 as we shall   
see1 by an interval far greater than    
that which divides the earliest strata  
of the peat from the latest4   ,,flint  
,,implements ,,of ,,the ,,pleistocene   
,,period ,,in ,,the ,,valley ,,of ,,the 
,,somme4  ,the alluvium of the valley of
 the ,somme exhibits nothing            
extraordinary or exceptional in its     
position or external appearance1 nor in 
the arrangement or composition of its   
materials1 nor in its organic remains2  
in all these characters it might be     
matched by the drift of a hundred other 
valleys in ,france or ,england4 ,its    
claim to our peculiar attention is      
derived from the wonderful number of    
flint tools1 of a very antique type1    
which1 as stated in the last chapter1   
occur in undisturbed strata1 associated 
with the bones of extinct quadrupeds4   
,as much doubt has been cast on the     
question1 whether the so-called flint   
hatchets have really been shaped by the 

hands of ,man1 it will be desirable to  
begin by satisfying the reader's mind on
 that point1 before inviting him to     
study the details of sections of        
successive beds of mud1 sand1 and       
gravel1 which vary considerably even in 
contiguous localities4  ,since the      
spring of #ahei1 ,i have paid three     
visits to the ,valley of the ,somme1 and
 examined all the principal localities  
of these flint tools4 ,in my excursions 
around ,abbeville1 ,i was accompanied by
 ,m4 ,boucher de ,perthes1 and during   
one of my explorations in the ,amiens   
district1 by ,mr4 ,prestwitch4 ,the     
first time ,i entered the pits at ,st4  
,acheul1 ,i obtained seventy flint      
instruments1 all of them collected from 
the drift in the course of the preceding
 five or six weeks4 ,the two prevailing 
forms of these tools are represented in 
the annexed ,figures #h and #i1 each of 
which are half the size of the          
originals2 the first being the          
spear-headed form1 varying in length    

from six to eight inches2 the second1   
the oval form1 which is not unlike some 
stone implements1 used to this day as   
hatchets and tomahawks by natives of    
,australia1 but with this difference1   
that the edge in the ,australian weapons
 7as in the case of those called celts  
in ,europe7 has been produced by        
friction1 whereas the cutting edge in   
the old tools of the valley of the      
,somme was always gained by the simple  
fracture of the flint1 and by the       
repetition of many dexterous blows4     
,the oval-shaped ,australian weapons1   
however1 differ in being sharpened at   
one end only4 ,the other1 though reduced
 by fracture to the same general form1  
is left rough1 in which state it is     
fixed into a cleft stick1 which serves  
as a handle4 ,to this it is firmly bound
 by thin straps of opossum's hide4 ,one 
of these tools1 now in my possession1   
was given me by ,mr4 ,farquharson of    
,haughton1 who saw a native using it in 
#ahed on the ,auburn river1 in ,burnet  

district1 ,north ,australia4  ,out of   
more than a hundred flint implements    
which ,i obtained at ,st4 ,acheul1 not a
 few had their edges more or less       
fractured or worn1 either by use as     
instruments before they were buried in  
gravel1 or by being rolled in the       
river's bed4  ,some of these tools were 
probably used as weapons1 both of war   
and of the chase1 others to grub up     
roots1 cut down trees1 and scoop out    
canoes4 ,some of them may have served1  
as ,mr4 ,prestwich has suggested1 for   
cutting holes in the ice both for       
fishing and for obtaining water1 as will
 be explained in the eighth chapter when
 we consider the arguments in favour of 
the higher level drift having belonged  
to a period when the rivers were frozen 
over for several months every winter4   
,illustration3 ,figure #h4 ,flint       
,implement    7,,figure #h4 ,,flint     
,,implement ,,from ,,st4 ,,acheul1      
,,near ,,amiens1    ,,of ,,the          
,,spear-,,head ,,shape      7half the   

size of the original1 which is #g #a_/b 
inches long74    a4 ,side view4   b4    
,same seen edgewise4  ,these            
spear-headed implements have been found 
in greater number1 proportionally to the
 oval ones1 in the upper level gravel at
 ,st4 ,acheul1 than in any of the lower 
gravels in the valley of the ,somme4 ,in
 these last the oval form predominates1 
especially at ,abbeville47  ,when the   
natural form of a ,chalk-flint presented
 a suitable handle at one end1 as in the
 specimen1 ,figure #aj1 that part was   
left as found4 ,the portion1 for        
example1 between b and c has probably   
not been altered2 the protuberances     
which are fractured having been broken  
off by river action before the flint was
 chipped artificially4 ,the other       
extremity1 a1 has been worked till it   
acquired a proper shape and cutting     
edge4  ,illustration3 ,figures #i and   
#aj4 ,flint ,implements    7,,figures #i
 ,,and #aj4 ,,flint ,,implements ,,from 
,,the ,,pleistocene ,,drift ,,of        

,,abbeville ,,and ,,amiens4             
,,figure #i4 a4 ,,oval-,,shaped ,,flint 
,,hatchet ,,from ,,mautort1    ,,near   
,,abbeville1    half size of original1  
which is #e #a_/b inches long1 from   a 
bed of gravel underlying the            
fluvio-marine stratum4 b4 ,same seen    
edgewise4 c4 ,shows a recent fracture of
 the edge of the same at the   point a1 
or near the top4 ,this portion of the   
tool1 c1 is drawn of   the natural size1
 the black central part being the       
unaltered flint1   the white outer      
coating1 the layer which has been formed
 by   discoloration or bleaching since  
the tool was first made4 ,the   entire  
surface of ,number #i must have been    
black when first shaped1   and the      
bleaching to such a depth must have been
 the work of time1   whether produced by
 exposure to the sun and air before it  
was   embedded1 or afterwards when it   
lay deep in the soil4     ,,figure #aj4 
,,flint ,,tool ,,from ,,st4 ,,acheul1   
seen edgewise2     original #f #a_/b    

inches long1 and #c inches wide4    b1  
c4 ,portion not artificially shaped4    
a1 b4 ,part chipped into shape1 and     
having a cutting edge at a47  ,many of  
the hatchets are stained of an          
ochreous-yellow colour1 when they have  
been buried in yellow gravel1 others    
have acquired white or brown tints1     
according to the matrix in which they   
have been enclosed4  ,this accordance in
 the colouring of the flint tools with  
the character of the bed from which they
 have come1 indicates1 says ,mr4        
,prestwich1 not only a real derivation  
from such strata1 but also a sojourn    
therein of equal duration to that of the
 naturally broken flints forming part of
 the same beds499       799             
,philosophical ,transactions #ahfa page 
#big47  ,illustration3 ,figures #aa1 #ab
 and #ac4 ,dendrites on ,fling ,hatchets
    7,,figures #aa1 #ab ,,and #ac4      
,,dendrites ,,on ,,surfaces ,,of ,,flint
 ,,hatchets ,,in   ,,the ,,drift ,,of   
,,st4 ,,acheul1 ,,near ,,amiens4        

,,figure #aa4 a4 ,natural size4         
,,figure #ab4 b4 ,natural size4 c4      
,magnified4    ,,figure #ac4 d4 ,natural
 size4      e4 ,magnified47  ,the       
surface of many of the tools is         
encrusted with a film of carbonate of   
lime1 while others are adorned by those 
ramifying crystallisations called       
dendrites 7see ,figures #aa1 #ab and    
#ac71 usually consisting of the mixed   
oxides of iron and manganese1 forming   
extremely delicate blackish brown       
sprigs1 resembling the smaller kinds of 
sea weed4 ,they are a useful test of    
antiquity when suspicions are           
entertained of the workmen having forged
 the hatchets which they offer for sale4
 ,the most general test1 however1 of the
 genuineness of the implements obtained 
by purchase is their superficial        
varnish-like or vitreous gloss1 as      
contrasted with the dull aspect of      
freshly fractured flints4 ,i also       
remarked1 during each of my three visits
 to ,amiens1 that there were some       

extensive gravel-pits1 such as those of 
,montiers and ,st4 ,roch1 agreeing in   
their geological character with those of
 ,st4 ,acheul1 and only a mile or two   
distant1 where the workmen1 although    
familiar with the forms1 and knowing the
 marketable value of the articles above 
described1 assured me that they had     
never been able to find a single        
implement4  ,respecting the authenticity
 of the tools as works of art1          
,professor ,ramsay1 than whom no one    
could be a more competent judge1        
observes3 ,for more than twenty years1  
like others of my craft1 ,i have daily  
handled stones1 whether fashioned by    
nature or art2 and the flint hatchets of
 ,amiens and ,abbeville seem to me as   
clearly works of art as any ,sheffield  
whittle499       799 ,athenaeum ,july   
#af1 #ahei47  ,mr4 ,evans classifies the
 implements under three heads1 two of   
which1 the spear heads and the oval or  
almond-shaped kinds1 have already been  
described4 ,the third form 7,figure #ad7

 consists of flakes1 apparently intended
 for knives or some of the smaller ones 
for arrow heads4  ,illustration3 ,figure
 #ad4 ,flint ,knife or ,flake           
7,,figure #ad4 ,,flint ,,knife ,,or     
,,flake ,,from ,,below ,,the ,,sand     
,,containing   ,,cyrena ,,fluminalis4   
,,menchecourt1 ,,abbeville4    d4       
,transverse section along the line of   
fracture1 b1 c4    ,size1 two-thirds of 
the original47  ,in regard to their     
origin1 ,mr4 ,evans observes that there 
is a uniformity of shape1 a correctness 
of outline1 and a sharpness about the   
cutting edges and points1 which cannot  
be due to anything but design499        
799 ,archaeologia volume #ch47  ,of     
these knives and flakes1 ,i obtained    
several specimens from a pit which ,i   
caused to be dug at ,abbeville1 in sand 
in contact with the ,chalk1 and below   
certain fluvio-marine beds1 which will  
be alluded to in the next chapter4      
,between the spear-head and oval shapes1
 there are various intermediate         

gradations1 and there are also a vast   
variety of very rude implements1 many of
 which may have been rejected as        
failures1 and others struck off as chips
 in the course of manufacturing the more
 perfect ones4 ,some of these chips can 
only be recognised by an experienced eye
 as bearing marks of human workmanship4 
,it has often been asked1 how1 without  
the use of metallic hammers1 so many of 
these oval and spear-headed tools could 
have been wrought into so uniform a     
shape4 ,mr4 ,evans1 in order            
experimentally to illustrate the        
process1 constructed a stone hammer1 by 
mounting a pebble in a wooden handle1   
and with this tool struck off flakes    
from the edge on both sides of a ,chalk 
flint1 till it acquired precisely the   
same shape as the oval tool1 ,figure #i4
  ,if ,i were invited to estimate the   
probable number of the more perfect     
tools found in the valley of the ,somme 
since #ahdb1 rejecting all the knives1  
and all that might be suspected of being

 spurious or forged1 ,i should          
conjecture that they far exceeded a     
thousand4 ,yet it would be a great      
mistake to imagine that an antiquary or 
geologist1 who should devote a few weeks
 to the exploration of such a valley as 
that of the ,somme1 would himself be    
able to detect a single specimen4 ,but  
few tools were lying on the surface4    
,the rest have been exposed to view by  
the removal of such a volume of sand1   
clay1 and gravel1 that the price of the 
discovery of one of them could only be  
estimated by knowing how many hundred   
labourers have toiled at the            
fortifications of ,abbeville1 or in the 
sand and gravel pits near that city1 and
 around ,amiens1 for road materials and 
other economic purposes1 during the last
 twenty years4  ,illustration3 ,figure  
#ae4 ,fossils of the ,white ,chalk      
7,,figure #ae4 ,,fossils ,,of ,,the     
,,white ,,chalk4    a1 b4 ,coscinopora  
globularis1 ,d',orbigny4 ,orbitolina    
concava1   ,parker and ,jones4 c4 ,part 

of same magnified47  ,in the gravel pits
 of ,st4 ,acheul1 and in some others    
near ,amiens1 small round bodies1 having
 a tubular cavity in the centre1 occur4 
,they are well known as fossils of the  
,white ,chalk4 ,dr4 ,rigollot suggested 
that they might have been strung        
together as beads1 and he supposed the  
hole in the middle to have been         
artificial4 ,some of these round bodies 
are found entire in the ,chalk and in   
the gravel1 others have naturally a hole
 passing through them1 and sometimes one
 or two holes penetrating some way in   
from the surface1 but not extending to  
the other side4 ,others1 like b1 ,figure
 #ae1 have a large cavity1 which has a  
very artificial aspect4 ,it is          
impossible to decide whether they have  
or have not served as personal          
ornaments1 recommended by their globular
 form1 lightness1 and by being less     
destructible than ordinary ,chalk4      
,granting that there were natural       
cavities in the axis of some of them1 it

 does not follow that these may not have
 been taken advantage of for stringing  
them as beads1 while others may have    
been artificially bored through4 ,dr4   
,rigollot's argument in favour of their 
having been used as necklaces or        
bracelets1 appears to me a sound one4   
,he says he often found small heaps or  
groups of them in one place1 all        
perforated1 just as if1 when swept into 
the river's bed by a flood1 the bond    
which had united them together remained 
unbroken499       799 ,rigollot1        
,memoire sur des ,instruments en ,silex 
etc41      ,amiens #ahed page #af47     
,,chapter #h4 -- ,,pleistocene          
,,alluvium ,,with ,,flint ,,implements  
,,of ,,the ,,valley ,,of ,,the          
,,somme--,,concluded4     ,fluvio-marine
 ,strata1 with ,flint ,implements1 near 
,abbeville4    ,marine ,shells in same4 
,cyrena fluminalis4    ,mammalia4       
,entire ,skeleton of ,rhinoceros4       
,flint ,implements1 why found low down  
in ,fluviatile ,deposits4    ,rivers    

shifting their ,channels4    ,relative  
,ages of higher and lower-level         
,gravels4    ,section of ,alluvium of   
,st4 ,acheul4    ,two ,species of       
,elephant and ,hippopotamus coexisting  
with ,man       in ,france4    ,volume  
of ,drift1 proving ,antiquity of ,flint 
,implements4    ,absence of ,human      
,bones in tool-bearing ,alluvium1 how   
explained4    ,value of certain ,kinds  
of negative ,evidence tested thereby4   
,human ,bones not found in drained ,lake
 of ,haarlem4  ,in the section of the   
valley of the ,somme given in ,figure   
#g1 the successive formations newer than
 the ,chalk are numbered in             
chronological order1 beginning with the 
most modern1 or the peat1 which is      
marked ,number #a1 and which has been   
treated of in the last chapter4 ,next in
 the order of antiquity are the         
lower-level gravels1 ,number #b1 which  
we have now to describe2 after which the
 alluvium1 ,number #c1 found at higher  
levels1 or about #hj and #ajj feet above

 the river-plain1 will remain to be     
considered4  ,i have selected1 as       
illustrating the old alluvium of the    
,somme occurring at levels slightly     
elevated above the present river1 the   
sand and gravel-pits of ,menchecourt1 in
 the northwest suburbs of ,abbeville1 to
 which1 as before stated1 attention was 
first drawn by ,m4 ,boucher de ,perthes1
 in his work on ,celtic antiquities4    
,here1 although in every adjoining pit  
some minor variations in the nature and 
thickness of the superimposed deposits  
may be seen1 there is yet a general     
approach to uniformity in the series4   
,the only stratum of which the relative 
age is somewhat doubtful1 is the gravel 
marked a1 underlying the peat1 and      
resting on the ,chalk4 ,it is only known
 by borings1 and some of it may be of   
the same age as ,number #c2 but ,i      
believe it to be for the most part of   
more modern origin1 consisting of the   
wreck of all the older gravel1 including
 ,number #c1 and formed during the last 

hollowing out and deepening of the      
valley immediately before the           
commencement of the growth of peat4     
,the greater number of flint implements 
have been dug out of ,number #c1 often  
near the bottom1 and twenty-five1       
thirty1 or even more than thirty feet   
below the surface of ,number #a4  ,a    
geologist will perceive by a glance at  
the section that the valley of the      
,somme must have been excavated nearly  
to its present depth and width when the 
strata of ,number #c were thrown down1  
and that after the deposits ,numbers #c1
 #b1 and #a had been formed in          
succession1 the present valley was      
scooped out1 patches only of ,numbers #c
 and #b being left4 ,for these deposits 
cannot originally have ended abruptly as
 they now do1 but must have once been   
continuous farther towards the centre of
 the valley4  ,illustration3 ,figure    
#af4 ,fluvio-,marine ,strata            
7,,figure #af4 ,,section ,,of           
,,fluvio-,,marine ,,strata1 ,,containing

 ,,flint    ,,implements ,,and ,,bones  
,,of ,,extinct ,,mammalia1 ,,at         
,,menchecourt1    ,,abbeville499        
799 ,for detailed sections and maps of  
this district1 see         ,prestwich1  
,philosophical ,transactions #ahfj page 
#bgg47    #a4 ,brown clay with angular  
flints1 and occasionally ,chalk rubble1 
unstratified1 following the slope of the
 hill1 probably of      subaerial       
origin1 of very varying thickness1 from 
#b to #e feet      and upwards4   #b4   
,calcareous loam1 buff-coloured1        
resembling loess1 for the most      part
 unstratified1 in some places with      
slight traces of      stratification1   
containing freshwater and land shells1  
with      bones of elephants1 etc42     
thickness about #ae feet4   #c4         
,alternations of beds of gravel1 marl1  
and sand1 with      freshwater and land 
shells1 and1 in some of the lower sands1
      a mixture of marine shells2 also  
bones of elephant1 rhinoceros1          
etc41 and flint implements2 thickness   

about #ab feet4   a4 ,gravel underlying 
peat1 age undetermined4   b4 ,layer of  
impervious clay1 separating the gravel  
from the peat47  ,to begin with the     
oldest1 ,number #c1 it is made up of a  
succession of beds1 chiefly of          
freshwater origin1 but occasionally a   
mixture of marine and fluviatile shells 
is observed in it1 proving that the sea 
sometimes gained upon the river1 whether
 at high tides or when the fresh water  
was less in quantity during the dry     
season1 and sometimes perhaps when the  
land was slightly depressed in level4   
,all these accidents might occur again  
and again at the mouth of any river1 and
 give rise to alternations of fluviatile
 and marine strata1 such as are seen at 
,menchecourt4  ,in the lowest beds of   
gravel and sand in contact with the     
,chalk1 flint hatchets1 some perfect1   
others much rolled1 have been found2 and
 in a sandy bed in this position some   
workmen1 whom ,i employed to sink a pit1
 found four flint knives4 ,above this   

sand and gravel occur beds of white and 
siliceous sand1 containing shells of the
 genera ,planorbis1 ,limnea1 ,paludina1 
,valvata1 ,cyclas1 ,cyrena1 ,helix1 and 
others1 all now natives of the same part
 of ,france1 except ,cyrena fluminalis  
7,figure #ag71 which no longer lives in 
,europe1 but inhabits the ,nile1 and    
many parts of ,asia1 including          
,cashmere1 where it abounds4 ,no species
 of ,cyrena is now met with in a living 
state in ,europe4 ,mr4 ,prestwich first 
observed it fossil at ,menchecourt1 and 
it has since been found in two or three 
contiguous sand-pits1 always in the     
fluvio-marine bed4 #af  ,illustration3  
,figure #ag4 ,cyrena fluminalis         
7,,figure #ag4 ,cyrena fluminalis1      
,o4,f4 ,muller1 sp499      799 ,for     
synonyms1 see ,s4 ,woodward ,tibet      
,shells ,proceedings     of the         
,zoological ,society ,july #h1 #ahef47  
a4 ,interior of left valve1 from ,gray's
 ,thurrock1 ,essex4   b4 ,hinge of the  
same magnified4   c4 ,interior of right 

valve of a small specimen1 from         
,shacklewell1      ,london4   d4 ,outer 
surface of right valve1 from ,erith1    
,kent47   ,,table #h_/a4 ,,dates ,,of   
,,specific ,,names4       ,,column #a3  
,,species4       ,,column #b3 ,,date4   
,,living3       ,tellina fluminalis1    
,o4,f4 ,muller3 #aggd4      ,venus      
fluminalis ,euphratis1 ,chemnitz3 #aghb4
      ,cyclas ,euphratica1 ,lam43 #ahjf4
      ,cyrena cor1 ,lam4 7,nile73 #ahah4
      ,cyrena consobrina1 ,caillaud     
7,nile73 #ahbc4      ,cyrena            
,cashmiriensis1 ,desh43      ,corbicuia 
fluminalis1 ,muhlfeldt43 #ahaa4         
,,fossil3       ,cyrena trigonula1 ,s4  
,woodward3 #ahcd4      ,cyrena          
,gemmellarii1 ,philippi3 #ahcf4         
,cyrena ,duchastelii1 ,nyst3 #ahch4     
,the following marine shells occur mixed
 with the freshwater species above      
enumerated3--,buccinum undatum1         
,littorina littorea1 ,nassa reticulata1 
,purpura lapillus1 ,tellina solidula1   
,cardium edule1 and fragments of some   

others4 ,several of these ,i have myself
 collected entire1 though in a state of 
great decomposition1 lying in the white 
sand called sable aigre by the workmen4 
,they are all littoral species now      
proper to the contiguous coast of       
,france4 ,their occurrence in a fossil  
state associated with freshwater shells 
at ,menchecourt had been noticed as long
 ago as #ahcf by ,,mm4 ,ravin and       
,baillon1 before ,m4 ,boucher de        
,perthes commenced the researches which 
have since made the locality so         
celebrated499       799 ,d',archiac1    
,histoire des ,progres etc4 volume #b   
page      #aed47  ,the numbers since    
collected preclude all idea of their    
having been brought inland as eatable   
shells by the fabricators of the flint  
hatchets found at the bottom of the     
fluvio-marine sands4 ,from the same     
beds1 and in marls alternating with the 
sands1 remains of the elephant1         
rhinoceros1 and other mammalia have been
 exhumed4  ,above the fluvio-marine     

strata are those designated ,number #b  
in the section 7,figure #af71 which are 
almost devoid of stratification1 and    
probably formed of mud or sediment      
thrown down by the waters of the river  
when they overflowed the ancient        
alluvial plain of that day4 ,some land  
shells1 a few river shells1 and bones of
 mammalia1 some of them extinct1 occur  
in ,number #b4 ,its upper surface has   
been deeply furrowed and cut into by the
 action of water1 at the time when the  
earthy matter of ,number #a was         
superimposed4 ,the materials of this    
uppermost deposit are arranged as if    
they had been the result of land floods1
 taking place after the formations #b   
and #c had been raised1 or had become   
exposed to denudation4  ,the            
fluvio-marine strata and overlying loam 
of ,menchecourt recur on the opposite or
 left bank of the alluvial plain of the 
,somme1 at a distance of #b or #c miles4
 ,they are found at ,mautort1 among     
other places1 and ,i obtained there the 

flint hatchet shown in ,figure #i1 of an
 oval form4 ,it was extracted from      
gravel1 above which were strata         
containing a mixture of marine and      
freshwater shells1 precisely like those 
of ,menchecourt4 ,in the alluvium of all
 parts of the valley1 both at high and  
low levels1 rolled bones are sometimes  
met with in the gravel4 ,some of the    
flint tools in the gravel of ,abbeville 
have their angles very perfect1 others  
have been much triturated1 as if in the 
bed of the main river or some of its    
tributaries4  ,the mammalia most        
frequently cited as having been found in
 the deposits ,numbers #b and #c at     
,menchecourt1 are the following3--      
,elephas primigenius4      ,rhinoceros  
tichorhinus4      ,equus fossilis1      
,owen4      ,bos primigenius4           
,cervus somonensis1 ,cuvier4      ,c4   
tarandus priscus1 ,cuvier4      ,felis  
spelaea4      ,hyaena spelaea4  ,the    
,ursus spelaeus has also been mentioned 
by some writers2 but ,m4 ,lartet says he

 has sought in vain for it among the    
osteological treasures sent from        
,abbeville to ,cuvier at ,paris1 and in 
other collections4 ,the same            
palaeontologist1 after a close scrutiny 
of the bones sent formerly to the ,paris
 ,museum from the valley of the ,somme1 
observed that some of them bore the     
evident marks of an instrument1 agreeing
 well with incisions such as a rude     
flint-saw would produce4 ,among other   
bones mentioned as having been thus     
artificially cut1 are those of a        
,rhinoceros tichorhinus1 and the antlers
 of ,cervus somonensis499       799     
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society volume #af      #ahfj page     
#dga47  ,the evidence obtained by       
naturalists that some of the extinct    
mammalia of ,menchecourt really lived   
and died in this part of ,france1 at the
 time of the embedding of the flint     
tools in fluviatile strata1 is most     
satisfactory2 and not the less so for   
having been put on record long before   

any suspicion was entertained that works
 of art would ever be detected in the   
same beds4 ,thus ,m4 ,baillon1 writing  
in #ahcd to ,m4 ,ravin1 says3 ,they     
begin to meet with fossil bones at the  
depth of #aj or #ab feet in the         
,menchecourt sand-pits1 but they find a 
much greater quantity at the depth of   
#ah and #bj feet4 ,some of them were    
evidently broken before they were       
embedded1 others are rounded1 having1   
without doubt1 been rolled by running   
water4 ,it is at the bottom of the      
sand-pits that the most entire bones    
occur4 ,here they lie without having    
undergone fracture or friction1 and seem
 to have been articulated together at   
the time when they were covered up4 ,i  
found in one place a whole hind limb of 
a rhinoceros1 the bones of which were   
still in their true relative position4  
,they must have been joined together by 
ligaments1 and even surrounded by       
muscles at the time of their interment4 
,the entire skeleton of the same species

 was lying at a short distance from the 
spot499       799 ,societe ,roy4        
d',emulation d',abbeville #ahcd page    
#aig47  ,if we suppose that the greater 
number of the flint implements occurring
 in the neighbourhood of ,abbeville and 
,amiens were brought by river action    
into their present position1 we can at  
once explain why so large a proportion  
of them are found at considerable depths
 from the surface1 for they would       
naturally be buried in gravel and not in
 fine sediment1 or what may be termed   
inundation mud1 such as ,number #b      
7,figure #af71 a deposit from tranquil  
water1 or where the stream had not      
sufficient force or velocity to sweep   
along ,chalk flints1 whether wrought or 
unwrought4 ,hence we have almost always 
to pass down through a mass of incumbent
 loam with land shells1 or through fine 
sand with freshwater molluscs1 before we
 get into the beds of gravel containing 
hatchets4 ,occasionally a weapon used as
 a projectile may have fallen into quiet

 water1 or may have dropped from a canoe
 to the bottom of the river1 or may have
 been floated by ice1 as are some stones
 occasionally by the ,thames in severe  
winters1 and carried over the meadows   
bordering its banks2 but such cases are 
exceptional1 though helping to explain  
how isolated flint tools or pebbles and 
angular stones are now and then to be   
seen in the midst of the finest loams4  
,the endless variety in the sections of 
the alluvium of the valley of the       
,somme1 may be ascribed to the frequent 
silting up of the main stream and its   
tributaries during different stages of  
the excavation of the valley1 probably  
also during changes in the level of the 
land4 ,as a rule1 when a river attacks  
and undermines one bank1 it throws down 
gravel and sand on the opposite side of 
its channel1 which is growing somewhere 
shallower1 and is soon destined to be   
raised so high as to form an addition to
 the alluvial plain1 and to be only     
occasionally inundated4 ,in this way1   

after much encroachment on cliff or     
meadow at certain points1 we find at the
 end of centuries that the width of the 
channel has not been enlarged1 for the  
new made ground is raised after a time  
to the average height of the older      
alluvial tract4 ,sometimes an island is 
formed in midstream1 the current flowing
 for a while on both sides of it1 and at
 length scooping out a deeper channel on
 one side so as to leave the other to be
 gradually filled up during freshets and
 afterwards elevated by inundation mud1 
or brick-earth4 ,during the levelling up
 of these old channels1 a flood         
sometimes cuts into and partially       
removes portions of the previously      
stratified matter1 causing those        
repeated signs of furrowing and filling 
up of cavities1 those memorials of doing
 and undoing1 of which the tool-bearing 
sands and gravels of ,abbeville and     
,amiens afford such reiterated          
illustrations1 and of which a parallel  
is furnished by the ancient alluvium of 

the ,thames valley1 where similar bones 
of extinct mammalia and shells1         
including ,cyrena fluminalis1 are found4
  ,professor ,noeggerath1 of ,bonn1     
informs me that1 about the year #ahde1  
when the bed of the ,rhine was deepened 
artificially by the blasting and removal
 of rock in the narrows at ,bingerloch1 
not far from ,bingen1 several flint     
hatchets and an extraordinary number of 
iron weapons of the ,roman period were  
brought up by the dredge from the bed of
 the great river4 ,the decomposition of 
the iron had caused much of the gravel  
to be cemented together into a          
conglomerate4 ,in such a case we have   
only to suppose the ,rhine to deviate   
slightly from its course1 changing its  
position1 as it has often done in       
various parts of its plain in historical
 times1 and then tools of the stone and 
iron periods would be found in gravel at
 the bottom with a great thickness of   
sand and overlying loam deposited above 
them4  ,changes in a river plain1 such  

as those above alluded to1 give rise    
frequently to ponds1 swamps1 and        
marshes1 marking the course of old beds 
or branches of the river not yet filled 
up1 and in these depressions shells     
proper both to running and stagnant     
water may be preserved1 and quadrupeds  
may be mired4 ,the latest and uppermost 
deposit of the series will be loam or   
brick-earth1 with land and amphibious   
shells 7,helix and ,succinea71 while    
below will follow strata containing     
freshwater shells1 implying continuous  
submergence2 and lowest of all in most  
sections will be the coarse gravel      
accumulated by a current of considerable
 strength and velocity4  ,when the ,st4 
,katharine docks were excavated at      
,london1 and similar works executed on  
the banks of the ,mersey1 old ships were
 dug out1 as ,i have elsewhere          
noticed199 showing how the ,thames and  
,mersey have in modern times been       
shifting their channels4       799      
,principles of ,geology #ajth edition   

volume #b page #edg47  ,recently1 an old
 silted-up bed of the ,thames has been  
discovered by boring at ,shoeburyness at
 the mouth of the river opposite        
,sheerness1 as ,i learn from ,mr4       
,mylne4 ,the old deserted branch is     
separated from the new or present       
channel of the ,thames1 by a mass of    
,london ,clay which has escaped         
denudation4 ,the depth of the old       
branch1 or the thickness of fluviatile  
strata with which it has been filled up1
 is #ge feet4 ,the actual channel in the
 neighbourhood is now #fj feet deep1 but
 there is probably #aj or #ae feet of   
stratified sand and gravel at the       
bottom2 so that1 should the river       
deviate again from its course1 its      
present bed might be the receptacle of a
 fluvio-marine formation #ge feet thick1
 equal to the former one of             
,shoeburyness1 and more considerable    
than that of ,abbeville4 ,it would      
consist both of freshwater and marine   
strata1 as the salt water is carried by 

the tide far up above ,sheerness2 but in
 order that such deposits should        
resemble1 in geological position1 the   
,menchecourt beds1 they must be raised  
#aj or #ae feet above their present     
level1 and be partially eroded4 ,such   
erosion they would not fail to suffer   
during the process of upheaval1 because 
the ,thames would scour out its bed1 and
 not alter its position relatively to   
the sea1 while the land was gradually   
rising4  ,before the canal was made at  
,abbeville1 the tide was perceptible in 
the ,somme for some distance above that 
city4 ,it would only require1 therefore1
 a slight subsidence to allow the salt  
water to reach ,menchecourt1 as it did  
in the ,pleistocene period4 ,as a       
stratum containing exclusively land and 
freshwater shells usually underlies the 
fluvio-marine sands at ,menchecourt1 it 
seems that the river first prevailed    
there1 after which the land subsided2   
and then there was an upheaval which    
raised the country to a greater height  

than that at which it now stands1 after 
which there was a second sinking1       
indicated by the position of the peat1  
as already explained4 ,all these changes
 happened since ,man first inhabited    
this region4  ,at several places in the 
environs of ,abbeville there are        
fluviatile deposits at a higher level by
 #ej feet than the uppermost beds at    
,menchecourt1 resting in like manner on 
the ,chalk4 ,one of these occurs in the 
suburbs of the city at ,moulin ,quignon1
 #ajj feet above the ,somme and on the  
same side of the valley as ,menchecourt1
 and containing flint implements of the 
same antique type and the bones of      
elephants2 but no marine shells have    
been found there1 nor in any gravel or  
sand at higher elevations than the      
,menchecourt marine shells4  ,it has    
been a matter of discussion among       
geologists whether the higher or the    
lower sands and gravels of the ,somme   
valley are the more ancient4 ,as a      
general rule1 when there are alluvial   

formations of different ages in the same
 valley1 those which occupy a more      
elevated position above the river plain 
are the oldest4 ,in ,auvergne and       
,velay1 in ,central ,france1 where the  
bones of fossil quadrupeds occur at all 
heights above the present rivers from   
#aj to #ajjj feet1 we observe the       
terrestrial fauna to depart in character
 from that now living in proportion as  
we ascend to higher terraces and        
platforms4 ,we pass from the lower      
alluvium1 containing the mammoth1       
tichorhine rhinoceros1 and reindeer1 to 
various older groups of fossils1 till1  
on a tableland #ajjj feet high 7near ,le
 ,puy1 for example71 the abrupt         
termination of which overlooks the      
present valley1 we discover an old      
extinct river-bed covered by a current  
of ancient lava1 showing where the      
lowest level was once situated4 ,in that
 elevated alluvium the remains of a     
,tertiary mastodon and other quadrupeds 
of like antiquity are embedded4  ,if the

 ,menchecourt beds had been first       
formed1 and the valley1 after being     
nearly as deep and wide as it is now1   
had subsided1 the sea must have advanced
 inland1 causing small delta-like       
accumulations at successive heights1    
wherever the main river and its         
tributaries met the sea4 ,such a        
movement1 especially if it were         
intermittent1 and interrupted           
occasionally by long pauses1 would very 
well account for the accumulation of    
stratified debris which we encounter at 
certain points in the valley1 especially
 around ,abbeville and ,amiens4 ,but we 
are precluded from adopting this theory 
by the entire absence of marine shells1 
and the presence of freshwater and land 
species1 and mammalian bones1 in        
considerable abundance1 in the drift    
both of higher and lower levels above   
,abbeville4 ,had there been a total     
absence of all organic remains1 we might
 have imagined the former presence of   
the sea1 and the destruction of such    

remains might have been ascribed to     
carbonic acid or other decomposing      
causes2 but the ,pleistocene and        
implement-bearing strata can be shown by
 their fossils to be of fluviatile      
origin4   ,,flint ,,implements ,,in     
,,gravel ,,near ,,amiens4 ,,gravel ,,of 
,,st4 ,,acheul4  ,when we ascend the    
valley of the ,somme1 from ,abbeville to
 ,amiens1 a distance of about #be miles1
 we observe a repetition of all the same
 alluvial phenomena which we have seen  
exhibited at ,menchecourt and its       
neighbourhood1 with the single exception
 of the absence of marine shells and of 
,cyrena fluminalis4 ,we find lower-level
 gravel1 such as ,number #b1 ,figure #g1
 and higher-level alluvium1 such as     
,number #c1 the latter rising to #ajj   
feet above the plain1 which at ,amiens  
is about #ej feet above the level of the
 river at ,abbeville4 ,in both the upper
 and lower gravels1 as ,dr4 ,rigollot   
stated in #ahed1 flint tools and the    
bones of extinct animals1 together with 

river shells and land shells of living  
species1 abound4  ,illustration3        
,figures #ah1 #ai and #bj4 ,elephas     
7,,figure #ah499 ,elephas primigenius4  
,penultimate molar1 lower jaw1 right    
side1 one-third of      natural size1   
,pleistocene4 ,co-existed with ,man47   
7,,figure #ai499 ,elephas antiquus1     
,falconer4      ,penultimate molar1     
lower jaw1 right side1 one-third of     
natural      size1 ,pleistocene and     
,newer ,pliocene4 ,co-existed with      
,man47    7,,figure #bj499 ,elephas     
meridionalis1 ,nesti4      ,penultimate 
molar1 lower jaw1 right side1 one-third 
of natural      size1 ,newer ,pliocene1 
,saint ,prest1 near ,chartres1 and      
,norwich ,crag4 ,not yet proved to have 
coexisted with ,man47       799 ,for    
,figure #bj ,i am indebted to ,m4       
,lartet1 and ,figure #ah      will be   
found in his paper in ,bulletin de la   
,societe      ,geologique de ,france    
,march #ahei4 ,figure #ai is from       
,falconer      and ,cautley ,fauna      

,sivalensis47  ,immediately below       
,amiens1 a great mass of stratified     
gravel1 slightly elevated above the     
alluvial plain of the ,somme1 is seen at
 ,st4 ,roch1 and half a mile farther    
down the valley at ,montiers4 ,between  
these two places a small tributary      
stream1 called the ,celle1 joins the    
,somme4 ,in the gravel at ,montiers1    
,mr4 ,prestwich and ,i found some flint 
knives1 one of them flat on one side1   
but the other carefully worked1 and     
exhibiting many fractures1 clearly      
produced by blows skilfully applied4    
,some of these knives were taken from so
 low a level as to satisfy us that this 
great bed of gravel at ,montiers1 as    
well as that of the contiguous quarries 
of ,st4 ,roch1 which seems to be a      
continuation of the same deposit1 may be
 referred to the human period4 ,dr4     
,rigollot had already mentioned flint   
hatchets as obtained by him from ,st4   
,roch1 but as none have been found there
 of late years1 his statement was       

thought to require confirmation4 ,the   
discovery1 therefore1 of these flint    
knives in gravel of the same age was    
interesting1 especially as many tusks of
 a hippopotamus have been obtained from 
the gravel of ,st4 ,roch--some of these 
recently by ,mr4 ,prestwich2 while ,m4  
,garnier of ,amiens has procured a fine 
elephant's molar from the same pits1    
which ,dr4 ,falconer refers to ,elephas 
antiquus1 see ,figure #ai4 ,hence ,i    
infer that both these animals co-existed
 with ,man4  ,the alluvial formations of
 ,montiers are very instructive in      
another point of view4 ,if1 leaving the 
lower gravel of that place1 which is    
topped with loam or brick-earth 7of     
which the upper portion is about #cj    
feet above the level of the ,somme71 we 
ascend the ,chalk slope to the height of
 about #hj feet1 another deposit of     
gravel and sand1 with fluviatile shells 
in a perfect condition1 occurs1         
indicating most clearly an ancient      
river-bed1 the waters of which ran      

habitually at that higher level before  
the valley had been scooped out to its  
present depth4 ,this superior deposit is
 on the same side of the ,somme1 and    
about as high1 as the lowest part of the
 celebrated formation of ,st4 ,acheul1  
#b or #c miles distant1 to which ,i     
shall now allude4  ,the terrace of ,st4 
,acheul may be described as a gently    
sloping ledge of ,chalk1 covered with   
gravel1 topped as usual with loam or    
fine sediment1 the surface of the loam  
being #ajj feet above the ,somme1 and   
about #aej above the sea4  ,many stone  
coffins of the ,gallo-,roman period have
 been dug out of the upper portion of   
this alluvial mass4 ,the trenches made  
for burying them sometimes penetrate to 
the depth of #h or #i feet from the     
surface1 entering the upper part of     
,number #c of the sections ,figures #ba 
and #bb4 ,they prove that when the      
,romans were in ,gaul they found this   
terrace in the same condition as it is  
now1 or rather as it was before the     

removal of so much gravel1 sand1 clay1  
and loam1 for repairing roads1 and for  
making bricks and pottery4              
,illustration3 ,figure #ba4 ,section of 
,gravel ,pit    7,,figure #ba4 ,,section
 ,,of ,,gravel ,,pit ,,containing       
,,flint ,,implements    ,,at ,,st4      
,,acheul1 ,,near ,,amiens1 ,,observed   
,,in ,,july #ahfj4    #a4 ,vegetable    
soil and made ground1 #b to #c feet     
thick4   #b4 ,brown loam with some      
angular flints1 in parts passing into   
ochreous gravel1 filling up indentations
 on the surface      of ,number #c1 #c  
feet thick4   #c4 ,white siliceous sand 
with layers of chalky marl1 and included
      fragments of ,chalk1 for the most 
part unstratified1 #i feet4   #d4       
,flint-gravel1 and whitish chalky sand1 
flints subangular1      average size of 
fragments1 #c inches diameter1 but with 
some      large unbroken ,chalk flints  
intermixed1 cross stratification      in
 parts4 ,bones of mammalia1 grinder of  
elephant at b1 and      flint implement 

at c1 #aj to #ad feet4   #e4 ,chalk with
 flints4   a4 ,part of elephant's molar1
 #aa feet from the surface4   b4 ,entire
 molar of ,elephas primigenius1 #ag feet
 from the surface4   c4 ,position of    
flint hatchet1 #ah feet from the        
surface47  ,in the annexed section      
7,figure #ba71 which ,i observed during 
my last visit in #ahfj1 it will be seen 
that a fragment of an elephant's tooth  
is noticed as having been dug out of    
unstratified sandy loam at the point a1 
#aa feet from the surface4 ,this was    
found at the time of my visit2 and at a 
lower point1 at b1 #ah feet from the    
surface1 a large nearly entire and      
unrolled molar of the same species was  
obtained1 which is now in my possession4
 ,it has been pronounced by ,dr4        
,falconer to belong to ,elephas         
primigenius4  ,a stone hatchet of an    
oval form1 like that represented at     
,figure #i1 was discovered at the same  
time1 about one foot lower down1 at c1  
in densely compressed gravel4 ,the      

surface of the fundamental ,chalk is    
uneven in this pit1 and slopes towards  
the valley-plain of the ,somme4 ,in a   
horizontal distance of #bj feet1 ,i     
found a difference in vertical height of
 #g feet4 ,in the chalky sand1 sometimes
 occurring in interstices between the   
separate fragments of flint1            
constituting the coarse gravel ,number  
#d1 entire as well as broken freshwater 
shells are often met with4 ,to some it  
may appear enigmatical how such fragile 
objects could have escaped annihilation 
in a river-bed1 when flint tools and    
much gravel were shoved along the       
bottom2 but ,i have seen the dredging   
instrument employed in the ,thames1     
above and below ,london ,bridge1 to     
deepen the river1 and worked by steam   
power1 scoop up gravel and sand from the
 bottom1 and then pour the contents     
pell-mell into the boat1 and still many 
specimens of ,limnaea1 ,planorbis1      
,paludina1 ,cyclas1 and other shells    
might be taken out uninjured from the   

gravel4  ,it will be observed that the  
gravel ,number #d is obliquely          
stratified1 and that its surface had    
undergone denudation before the white   
sandy loam ,number #c was superimposed4 
,the materials of the gravel at d must  
have been cemented or frozen together   
into a somewhat coherent mass to allow  
the projecting ridge1 d1 to stand up #e 
feet above the general surface1 the     
sides being in some places              
perpendicular4 ,in ,number #c we        
probably behold an example of a passage 
from river-silt to inundation mud4 ,in  
some parts of it1 land shells occur4    
,it has been ascertained by ,,mm4       
,buteux1 ,ravin1 and other observers    
conversant with the geology of this part
 of ,france1 that in none of the        
alluvial deposits1 ancient or modern1   
are there any fragments of rocks foreign
 to the basin of the ,somme--no erratics
 which could only be explained by       
supposing them to have been brought by  
ice1 during a general submergence of the

 country1 from some other hydrographical
 basin4  ,but in some of the pits at    
,st4 ,acheul there are seen in the beds 
,number #d1 ,figure #ba1 not only       
well-rounded ,tertiary pebbles1 but     
great blocks of hard sandstone1 of the  
kind called in the south of ,england    
greywethers1 some of which are #c or #d 
feet and upwards in diameter4 ,they are 
usually angular1 and when spherical owe 
their shape generally to an original    
concretionary structure1 and not to     
trituration in a river's bed4 ,these    
large fragments of stone abound both in 
the higher and lower level gravels round
 ,amiens and at the higher level at     
,abbeville4 ,they have also been traced 
far up the valley above ,amiens1        
wherever patches of the old alluvium    
occur4 ,they have all been derived from 
the ,tertiary strata which once covered 
the ,chalk4 ,their dimensions are such  
that it is impossible to imagine a river
 like the present ,somme1 flowing       
through a flat country1 with a gentle   

fall towards the sea1 to have carried   
them for miles down its channel unless  
ice co-operated as a transporting power4
 ,their angularity also favours the     
supposition of their having been floated
 by ice1 or rendered so buoyant by it as
 to have escaped much of the wear and   
tear which blocks propelled along the   
bottom of a river channel would         
otherwise suffer4 ,we must remember that
 the present mildness of the winters in 
,picardy and the northwest of ,europe   
generally is exceptional in the northern
 hemisphere1 and that large fragments of
 granite1 sandstone1 and limestone are  
now carried annually by ice down the    
,canadian rivers in latitudes farther   
south than ,paris499       799          
,principles of ,geology #ith edition    
page #bbj47  ,illustration3 ,figure #bb4
 ,contorted ,strata    7,,figure #bb4   
,,contorted ,,fluviatile ,,strata ,,at  
,,st4 ,,acheul    7,prestwich1          
,philosophical ,transactions #ahfa1 page
 #bii74    #a4 ,surface soil4   #b4     

,brown loam as in ,figure #ba1          
thickness1 #f feet4   #c4 ,white sand   
with bent and folded layers of marl1    
thickness1      #f feet4   #d4 ,gravel1 
as in ,figure #ba1 with bones of        
mammalia and flint       implements4    
,a4 ,graves filled with made ground and 
human bones4   b and c4 ,seams of       
laminated marl often bent round upon    
themselves4   d4 ,beds of gravel with   
sharp curves47  ,another sign of ice    
agency1 of which ,mr4 ,prestwich has    
given a good illustration in one of his 
published sections1 and which ,i myself 
observed in several pits at ,st4        
,acheul1 deserves notice4 ,it consists  
in flexures and contortions of the      
strata of sand1 marl1 and gravel 7as    
seen at b1 c1 and d1 ,figure #bb71 which
 they have evidently undergone since    
their original deposition1 and from     
which both the underlying ,chalk and    
part of the overlying beds of sand      
,number #c are usually exempt4  ,in my  
former writings ,i have attributed this 

kind of derangement to two causes2      
first1 the pressure of ice running      
aground on yielding banks of mud and    
sand2 and1 secondly1 the melting of     
masses of ice and snow of unequal       
thickness1 on which horizontal layers of
 mud1 sand1 and other fine and coarse   
materials had accumulated4 ,the late    
,mr4 ,trimmer first pointed out in what 
manner the unequal failure of support   
caused by the liquefaction of underlying
 or intercalated snow and ice might give
 rise to such complicated foldings499   
799 ,see chapter #ab47  ,when ice-jams  
occur on the ,st4 ,lawrence and other   
,canadian rivers 7latitude #df degrees  
north71 the sheets of ice1 which become 
packed or forced under or over one      
another1 assume in most cases a highly  
inclined and sometimes even a vertical  
position4 ,they are often observed to be
 coated on one side with mud1 sand1 or  
gravel frozen on to them1 derived from  
shallows in the river on which they     
rested when congelation first reached   

the bottom4  ,as often as portions of   
these packs melt near the margin of the 
river1 the layers of mud1 sand1 and     
gravel1 which result from their         
liquefaction1 cannot fail to assume a   
very abnormal arrangement--very         
perplexing to a geologist who should    
undertake to interpret them without     
having the ice-clue in his mind4  ,mr4  
,prestwich has suggested that ground-ice
 may have had its influence in modifying
 the ancient alluvium of the ,somme499  
799 ,prestwich1 ,memoir read to ,royal  
,society1 ,april #ahfb47  ,it is certain
 that ice in this form plays an active  
part every winter in giving motion to   
stones and gravel in the beds of rivers 
in ,european ,russia and ,siberia4 ,it  
appears that when in those countries the
 streams are reduced nearly to the      
freezing point1 congelation begins      
frequently at the bottom2 the reason    
being1 according to ,arago1 that the    
current is slowest there1 and the gravel
 and large stones1 having parted with   

much of their heat by radiation1 acquire
 a temperature below the average of the 
main body of the river4 ,it is1         
therefore1 when the water is clear1 and 
the sky free from clouds1 that ground   
ice forms most readily1 and oftener on  
pebbly than on muddy bottoms4 ,fragments
 of such ice1 rising occasionally to the
 surface1 bring up with them gravel1 and
 even large stones4  ,without dwelling  
longer on the various ways in which ice 
may affect the forms of stratification  
in drift1 so as to cause bendings and   
foldings in which the underlying or     
over-lying strata do not participate1 a 
subject to which ,i shall have occasion 
again to allude in the sequel1 ,i will  
state in this place that such           
contortions1 whether explicable or not1 
are very characteristic of glacial      
formations4 ,they have also no necessary
 connection with the transportation of  
large blocks of stone1 and they         
therefore afford1 as ,mr4 ,prestwich    
remarks1 independent proof of ice-action

 in the ,pleistocene gravel of the      
,somme4  ,let us1 then1 suppose that1 at
 the time when flint hatchets were      
embedded in great numbers in the ancient
 gravel which now forms the terrace of  
,st4 ,acheul1 the main river and its    
tributaries were annually frozen over   
for several months in winter4 ,in that  
case1 the primitive people may1 as ,mr4 
,prestwich hints1 have resembled in     
their mode of life those ,american      
,indians who now inhabit the country    
between ,hudson's ,bay and the ,polar   
,sea4 ,the habits of those ,indians have
 been well described by ,hearne1 who    
spent some years among them4 ,as often  
as deer and other game become scarce on 
the land1 they betake themselves to     
fishing in the rivers2 and for this     
purpose1 and also to obtain water for   
drinking1 they are in the constant      
practice of cutting round holes in the  
ice1 a foot or more in diameter1 through
 which they throw baited hooks or nets4 
,often they pitch their tent on the ice1

 and then cut such holes through it1    
using ice-chisels of metal when they can
 get copper or iron1 but when not1      
employing tools of flint or hornstone4  
,the great accumulation of gravel at    
,st4 ,acheul has taken place in part of 
the valley where the tributary streams1 
the ,noye and the ,arve1 now join the   
,somme4 ,these tributaries1 as well as  
the main river1 must have been running  
at the height first of #ajj feet1 and   
afterwards at various lower levels above
 the present valley-plain1 in those     
earlier times when the flint tools of   
the antique type were buried in         
successive river beds4 ,i have said at  
various levels1 because there are1 here 
and there1 patches of drift at heights  
intermediate between the higher and     
lower gravel1 and also some deposits1   
showing that the river once flowed at   
elevations above as well as below the   
level of the platform of ,st4 ,acheul4  
,as yet1 however1 no patch of gravel    
skirting the valley at heights exceeding

 #ajj feet above the ,somme has yielded 
flint tools or other signs of the former
 sojourn of ,man in this region4        
,possibly1 in the earlier geographical  
condition of this country1 the          
confluence of tributaries with the      
,somme afforded inducements to a hunting
 and fishing tribe to settle there1 and 
some of the same natural advantages may 
have caused the first inhabitants of    
,amiens and ,abbeville to fix on the    
same sites for their dwellings4 ,if the 
early hunting and fishing tribes        
frequented the same spots for hundreds  
or thousands of years in succession1 the
 number of the stone implements lost in 
the bed of the river need not surprise  
us4 ,ice-chisels1 flint hatchets1 and   
spear-heads may have slipped            
accidentally through holes kept         
constantly open1 and the recovery of a  
lost treasure once sunk in the bed of   
the ice-bound stream1 inevitably swept  
away with gravel on the breaking up of  
the ice in the spring1 would be         

hopeless4 ,during a long winter1 in a   
country affording abundance of flint1   
the manufacture of tools would be       
continually in progress2 and1 if so1    
thousands of chips and flakes would be  
purposely thrown into the ice-hole1     
besides a great number of implements    
having flaws1 or rejected as too        
unskilfully made to be worth preserving4
  ,as to the fossil fauna of the drift1 
considered in relation to the climate1  
when1 in #ahei1 ,i took a collection    
which ,i had made of all the more common
 species of land and freshwater shells  
from the ,amiens and ,abbeville drift1  
to my friend ,m4 ,deshayes at ,paris1 he
 declared them to be1 without exception1
 the same as those now living in the    
basin of the ,seine4 ,this fact may seem
 at first sight to imply that the       
climate had not altered since the flint 
tools were fabricated2 but it appears   
that all these species of molluscs now  
range as far north as ,norway and       
,finland1 and may therefore have        

flourished in the valley of the ,somme  
when the river was frozen over annually 
in winter499       799 ,see ,prestwich1 
,paper read to the ,royal ,society in   
#ahfb47  ,in regard to the accompanying 
mammalia1 some of them1 like the mammoth
 and tichorhine rhinoceros1 may have    
been able to endure the rigours of a    
northern winter as well as the reindeer1
 which we find fossil in the same       
gravel4 ,it is a more difficult point to
 determine whether the climate of the   
lower gravels 7those of ,menchecourt1   
for example7 was more genial than that  
of the higher ones4 ,mr4 ,prestwich     
inclines to this opinion4 ,none of those
 contortions of the strata above        
described have as yet been observed in  
the lower drift4 ,it contains large     
blocks of ,tertiary sandstone and grit1 
which may have required the aid of ice  
to convey them to their present sites2  
but as such blocks already abounded in  
the older and higher alluvium1 they may 
simply be monuments of its destruction1 

having been let down successively to    
lower and lower levels without making   
much seaward progress4  ,the ,cyrena    
fluminalis of ,menchecourt and the      
hippopotamus of ,st4 ,roch seem to be in
 favour of a less severe temperature in 
winter2 but so many of the species of   
mammalia1 as well as of the land and    
freshwater shells1 are common to both   
formations1 and our information         
respecting the entire fauna is still so 
imperfect1 that it would be premature to
 pretend to settle this question in the 
present state of our knowledge4 ,we must
 be content with the conclusion 7and it 
is one of no small interest71 that when 
,man first inhabited this part of       
,europe1 at the time that the ,st4      
,acheul drift was formed1 the climate as
 well as the physical geography of the  
country differed considerably from the  
state of things now established there4  
,among the elephant remains from ,st4   
,acheul1 in ,m4 ,garnier's collection1  
,dr4 ,falconer recognised a molar of the

 ,elephas antiquus1 ,figure #ai1 the    
same species which has been already     
mentioned as having been found in the   
lower-level gravels of ,st4 ,roch4 ,this
 species1 therefore1 endured while      
important changes took place in the     
geographical condition of the valley of 
the ,somme4 ,assuming the lower-level   
gravel to be the newer1 it follows that 
the ,elephas antiquus and the           
hippopotamus of ,st4 ,roch continued to 
flourish long after the introduction of 
the mammoth1 a well characterised tooth 
of which1 as ,i before stated1 was found
 at ,st4 ,acheul at the time of my visit
 in #ahfj4  ,as flint hatchets and      
knives have been discovered in the      
alluvial deposits both at high and low  
levels1 we may safely affirm that ,man  
was as old an inhabitant of this region 
as were any of the fossil quadrupeds    
above enumerated1 a conclusion which is 
independent of any difference of opinion
 as to the relative age of the higher   
and lower gravels4  ,the disappearance  

of many large pachyderms and beasts of  
prey from ,europe has often been        
attributed to the intervention of ,man1 
and no doubt he played his part in      
hastening the era of their extinction2  
but there is good reason for suspecting 
that other causes co-operated to the    
same end4 ,no naturalist would for a    
moment suppose that the extermination of
 the ,cyrena fluminalis throughout the  
whole of ,europe--a species which       
co-existed with our race in the valley  
of the ,somme1 and which was very       
abundant in the waters of the ,thames at
 the time when the elephant1 rhinoceros1
 and hippopotamus flourished on its     
banks--was accelerated by human agency4 
,the great modification in climate and  
in other conditions of existence which  
affected this aquatic mollusc1 may have 
mainly contributed to the gradual dying 
out of many of the large mammalia4  ,we 
have already seen that the peat of the  
valley of the ,somme is a formation     
which1 in all likelihood1 took thousands

 of years for its growth4 ,but no change
 of a marked character has occurred in  
the mammalian fauna since it began to   
accumulate4 ,the contrast of the fauna  
of the ancient alluvium1 whether at high
 or low levels1 with the fauna of the   
oldest peat is almost as great as its   
contrast with the existing fauna1 the   
memorials of ,man being common to the   
whole series2 hence we may infer that   
the interval of time which separated the
 era of the large extinct mammalia from 
that of the earliest peat1 was of far   
longer duration than that of the entire 
growth of the peat4 ,yet we by no means 
need the evidence of the ancient fossil 
fauna to establish the antiquity of ,man
 in this part of ,france4 ,the mere     
volume of the drift at various heights  
would alone suffice to demonstrate a    
vast lapse of time during which such    
heaps of shingle1 derived both from the 
,eocene and the ,cretaceous rocks1 were 
thrown down in a succession of          
river-channels4 ,we observe thousands of

 rounded and half-rounded flints1 and a 
vast number of angular ones1 with       
rounded pieces of white ,chalk of       
various sizes1 testifying to a          
prodigious amount of mechanical action1 
accompanying the repeated widening and  
deepening of the valley1 before it      
became the receptacle of peat2 and the  
position of many of the flint tools     
leaves no doubt in the mind of the      
geologist that their fabrication        
preceded all this reiterated denudation4
   ,,on ,,the ,,absence ,,of ,,human    
,,bones ,,in ,,the ,,alluvium ,,of ,,the
 ,,somme4  ,it is naturally a matter of 
no small surprise that1 after we have   
collected many hundred flint implements 
7including knives1 many thousands71 not 
a single human bone has yet been met    
with in the old alluvial sand and gravel
 of the ,somme4 ,this dearth of the     
mortal remains of our species holds true
 equally1 as yet1 in all other parts of 
,europe where the tool-bearing drift of 
the ,pleistocene period has been        

investigated in valley deposits4 ,yet in
 these same formations there is no want 
of bones of mammalia belonging to       
extinct and living species4 ,in the     
course of the last quarter of a century1
 thousands of them have been submitted  
to the examination of skilful           
osteologists1 and they have been unable 
to detect among them one fragment of a  
human skeleton1 not even a tooth4 ,yet  
,cuvier pointed out long ago1 that the  
bones of ,man found buried in ancient   
battle-fields were not more decayed than
 those of horses interred in the same   
graves4 ,we have seen that in the ,liege
 caverns1 the skulls1 jaws1 and teeth1  
with other bones of the human race1 were
 preserved in the same condition as     
those of the cave-bear1 tiger1 and      
mammoth4  ,that ere long1 now that      
curiosity has been so much excited on   
this subject1 some human remains will be
 detected in the older alluvium of      
,european valleys1 ,i confidently       
expect4 ,in the meantime1 the absence of

 all vestige of the bones which belonged
 to that population by which so many    
weapons were designed and executed1     
affords a most striking and instructive 
lesson in regard to the value of        
negative evidence1 when adduced in proof
 of the non-existence of certain classes
 of terrestrial animals at given periods
 of the past4 ,it is a new and emphatic 
illustration of the extreme imperfection
 of the geological record1 of which even
 they who are constantly working in the 
field cannot easily form a just         
conception4  ,we must not forget that   
,dr4 ,schmerling1 after finding extinct 
mammalia and ,,flint ,,tools in         
forty-two ,belgian caverns1 was only    
rewarded by the discovery of human bones
 in three or four of those rich         
repositories of osseous remains4 ,in    
like manner1 it was not till the year   
#ahee that the first skull of the musk  
ox 7,bubalus moschatus7 was detected in 
the fossiliferous gravel of the ,thames1
 and not till #ahfj1 as will be seen in 

the next chapter1 that the same         
quadruped was proved to have co-existed 
in ,france with the mammoth4 ,the same  
theory which will explain the           
comparative rarity of such species would
 no doubt account for the still greater 
scarcity of human bones1 as well as for 
our general ignorance of the            
,pleistocene terrestrial fauna1 with the
 exception of that part of it which is  
revealed to us by cavern researches4    
,in valley drift we meet commonly with  
the bones of quadrupeds which graze on  
plains bordering rivers4 ,carnivorous   
beasts1 attracted to the same ground in 
search of their prey1 sometimes leave   
their remains in the same deposits1 but 
more rarely4 ,the whole assemblage of   
fossil quadrupeds at present obtained   
from the alluvium of ,picardy is        
obviously a mere fraction of the entire 
fauna which flourished contemporaneously
 with the primitive people by whom the  
flint hatchets were made4  ,instead of  
its being part of the plan of nature to 

store up enduring records of a large    
number of the individual plants and     
animals which have lived on the surface1
 it seems to be her chief care to       
provide the means of disencumbering the 
habitable areas lying above and below   
the waters of those myriads of solid    
skeletons of animals1 and those massive 
trunks of trees1 which would otherwise  
soon choke up every river1 and fill     
every valley4 ,to prevent this          
inconvenience she employs the heat and  
moisture of the sun and atmosphere1 the 
dissolving power of carbonic and other  
acids1 the grinding teeth and gastric   
juices of quadrupeds1 birds1 reptiles1  
and fish1 and the agency of many of the 
invertebrata4 ,we are all familiar with 
the efficacy of these and other causes  
on the land2 and as to the bottoms of   
seas1 we have only to read the published
 reports of ,mr4 ,mac,andrew1 the late  
,edward ,forbes1 and other experienced  
dredgers1 who1 while they failed utterly
 in drawing up from the deep a single   

human bone1 declared that they scarcely 
ever met with a work of art even after  
counting tens of thousands of shells and
 zoophytes1 collected on a coast line of
 several hundred miles in extent1 where 
they often approached within less than  
half a mile of a land peopled by        
millions of human beings4   ,,lake ,,of 
,,haarlem4  ,it is not many years since 
the ,government of ,holland resolved to 
lay dry that great sheet of water       
formerly called the ,lake of ,haarlem1  
extending over #de1jjj acres4 ,they     
succeeded1 in #ahec1 in turning it into 
dry land1 by means of powerful pumps    
constantly worked by steam1 which raised
 the water and discharged it into a     
canal running for #bj or #cj miles round
 the newly-gained land4 ,this land was  
depressed #ac feet beneath the mean     
level of the ocean4 ,i travelled1 in    
#ahei1 over part of the bed of this old 
lake1 and found it already converted    
into arable land1 and peopled by an     
agricultural population of #ejjj souls4 

,mr4 ,staring1 who had been for some    
years employed by the ,dutch ,government
 in constructing a geological map of    
,holland1 was my companion and guide4   
,he informed me that he and his         
associates had searched in vain for     
human bones in the deposits which had   
constituted for three centuries the bed 
of the great lake4  ,there had been many
 a shipwreck1 and many a naval fight in 
those waters1 and hundreds of ,dutch and
 ,spanish soldiers and sailors had met  
there with a watery grave4 ,the         
population which lived on the borders of
 this ancient sheet of water numbered   
between thirty and forty thousand souls4
 ,in digging the great canal1 a fine    
section had been laid open1 about #cj   
miles long1 of the deposits which formed
 the ancient bottom of the lake4        
,trenches1 also1 innumerable1 several   
feet deep1 had been freshly dug on all  
the farms1 and their united length must 
have amounted to thousands of miles4 ,in
 some of the sandy soil recently thrown 

out of the trenches1 ,i observed        
specimens of freshwater and             
brackish-water shells1 such as ,unio and
 ,dreissena1 of living species2 and in  
clay brought up from below the sand1    
shells of ,tellina1 ,lutraria1 and      
,cardium1 all of species now inhabiting 
the adjoining sea4  ,as the ,dreissena  
is believed by conchologists to have    
been introduced into ,western ,europe in
 very modern times1 brought with foreign
 timber in the holds of vessels from the
 rivers flowing into the ,black ,sea1   
the layer of sand containing it in the  
,haarlem lake is probably not more than 
a hundred years old4  ,one or two       
wrecked ,spanish vessels1 and arms of   
the same period1 have rewarded the      
antiquaries who had been watching the   
draining operations in the hope of a    
richer harvest1 and who were not a      
little disappointed at the result4 ,in a
 peaty tract on the margin of one part  
of the lake a few coins were dug up2 but
 if history had been silent1 and if     

there had been a controversy whether    
,man was already a denizen of this      
planet at the time when the area of the 
,haarlem lake was under water1 the      
archaeologist1 in order to answer this  
question1 must have appealed1 as in the 
case of the valley of the ,somme1 not to
 fossil bones1 but to works of art      
embedded in the superficial strata4     
,mr4 ,staring1 in his valuable memoir on
 the ,geological ,map of ,holland1 has  
attributed the general scarcity of human
 bones in ,dutch peat1 notwithstanding  
the many works of art preserved in it1  
to the power of the humic and sulphuric 
acids to dissolve bones1 the peat in    
question being plentifully impregnated  
with such acids4 ,his theory may be     
correct1 but it is not applicable to the
 gravel of the valley of the ,somme1 in 
which the bones of fossil mammalia are  
frequent1 nor to the uppermost          
freshwater strata forming the bottom of 
a large part of the ,haarlem ,lake1 in  
which it is not pretended that such     

acids occur4  ,the primitive inhabitants
 of the valley of the ,somme may have   
been too wary and sagacious to be often 
surprised and drowned by floods1 which  
swept away many an incautious elephant  
or rhinoceros1 horse and ox4 ,but even  
if those rude hunters had cherished a   
superstitious veneration for the ,somme1
 and had regarded it as a sacred river  
7as the modern ,hindoos revere the      
,ganges71 and had been in the habit of  
committing the bodies of their dead or  
dying to its waters--even had such      
funeral rites prevailed1 it by no means 
follows that the bones of many          
individuals would have been preserved to
 our time4  ,a corpse cast into the     
stream first sinks1 and must then be    
almost immediately overspread with      
sediment of a certain weight1 or it will
 rise again when distended with gases1  
and float perhaps to the sea before it  
sinks again4 ,it may then be attacked by
 fish of marine species1 some of which  
are capable of digesting bones4 ,if1    

before being carried into the sea and   
devoured1 it is enveloped with          
fluviatile mud and sand1 the next flood1
 if it lie in mid-channel1 may tear it  
out again1 scatter all the bones1 roll  
some of them into pebbles1 and leave    
others exposed to destroying agencies2  
and this may be repeated annually1 till 
all vestiges of the skeleton may        
disappear4 ,on the other hand1 a bone   
washed through a rent into a            
subterranean cavity1 even though a rarer
 contingency1 may have a greater chance 
of escaping destruction1 especially if  
there be stalactite dropping from the   
roof of the cave or walls of a rent1 and
 if the cave be not constantly traversed
 by too strong a current of engulfed    
water4    ,,chapter #i4 -- ,,works ,,of 
,,art ,,in ,,pleistocene ,,alluvium ,,of
 ,,france ,,and ,,england4       ,flint 
,implements in ancient ,alluvium of the 
,basin of the ,seine4      ,bones of    
,man and of extinct ,mammalia in the    
,cave of ,arcy4      ,extinct ,mammalia 

in the ,valley of the ,oise4      ,flint
 ,implement in ,gravel of same ,valley4 
,works of ,art in ,pleistocene ,drift in
 ,valley of the ,thames4      ,musk ,ox4
      ,meeting of northern and southern 
,fauna4      ,migrations of ,quadrupeds4
      ,mammals of ,mongolia4            
,chronological ,relation of the older   
,alluvium of the ,thames to the         
,glacial ,drift4      ,flint ,implements
 of ,pleistocene ,period in ,surrey1    
,middlesex1 ,kent1                      
,bedfordshire1 and ,suffolk4   ,,flint  
,,implements ,,in ,,pleistocene         
,,alluvium ,,in ,,the ,,basin ,,of ,,the
 ,,seine4  ,in the ancient alluvium of  
the valleys of the ,seine and its       
principal tributaries1 the same         
assemblage of fossil animals1 which has 
been alluded to in the last chapter as  
characterising the gravel of ,picardy1  
has long been known2 but it was not till
 the year #ahfj1 and when diligent      
search had been expressly made for them1
 that flint implements of the ,amiens   

type were discovered in this part of    
,france4  ,in the neighbourhood of      
,paris deposits of drift occur answering
 both to those of the higher and lower  
levels of the basin of the ,somme before
 described499       799 ,prestwich1     
,proceedings of the ,royal ,society     
#ahfb47  ,in both are found1 mingled    
with the wreck of the ,tertiary and     
,cretaceous rocks of the vicinity1 a    
large quantity of granitic sand and     
pebbles1 and occasionally large blocks  
of granite1 from a few inches to a foot 
or more in diameter4 ,these blocks are  
peculiarly abundant in the lower drift  
commonly called the diluvium gris4 ,the 
granitic materials are traceable to a   
chain of hills called the ,morvan1 where
 the head waters of the ,yonne take     
their rise1 #aej miles to the           
south-south-east of ,paris4  ,it was in 
this lowest gravel that ,m4 ,h4,t4      
,gosse1 of ,geneva1 found1 in ,april    
#ahfj1 in the suburbs of ,paris1 at ,la 
,motte ,piquet1 on the left bank of the 

,seine1 one or two well-formed flint    
implements of the ,amiens type1         
accompanied by a great number of ruder  
tools or attempts at tools4 ,i visited  
the spot in #ahfa with ,m4 ,hebert1 and 
saw the stratum from which the worked   
flints had been extracted1 #bj feet     
below the surface1 and near the bottom  
of the grey diluvium1 a bed of gravel   
from which ,i have myself1 in and near  
,paris1 frequently collected the bones  
of the elephant1 horse1 and other       
mammalia4  ,more recently1 ,m4 ,lartet  
has discovered at ,clichy1 in the       
environs of ,paris1 in the same lower   
gravel1 a well-shaped flint implement of
 the ,amiens type1 together with remains
 both of ,elephas primigenius and ,e4   
antiquus4 ,no tools have yet been met   
with in any of the gravels occurring at 
the higher levels of the valley of the  
,seine2 but no importance can be        
attached to this negative fact1 as so   
little search has yet been made for     
them4  ,mr4 ,prestwich has observed     

contortions indicative of ice-action1 of
 the same kind as those near ,amiens1 in
 the higher-level drift of ,charonne1   
near ,paris2 but as yet no similar      
derangement has been seen in the lower  
gravels--a fact1 so far as it goes1 in  
unison with the phenomena observed in   
,picardy4  ,in the cavern of            
,arcy-sur-,yonne a series of deposits   
have lately been investigated by the    
,marquis de ,vibraye1 who discovered    
human bones in the lowest of them1 mixed
 with remains of quadrupeds of extinct  
and recent species4 ,this cavern occurs 
in ,jurassic limestone1 at a slight     
elevation above the ,cure1 a small      
tributary of the ,yonne1 which last     
joins the ,seine near ,fontainebleau    
about #dj miles south of ,paris4 ,the   
lowest formation in the cavern resembles
 the diluvium gris of ,paris1 being     
composed of granitic materials1 and like
 it derived chiefly from the waste of   
the crystalline rocks of the ,morvan4   
,in it have been found the two branches 

of a human lower jaw with teeth         
well-preserved1 and the bones of the    
,elephas primigenius1 ,rhinoceros       
tichorhinus1 ,ursus spelaeus1 ,hyaena   
spelaea1 and ,cervus tarandus1 all      
specifically determined by ,m4 ,lartet4 
,i have been shown this collection of   
fossils by ,m4 de ,vibraye1 and remarked
 that the human and other remains were  
in the same condition and of the same   
colour4  ,above the grey gravel is a bed
 of red alluvium1 made up of fragments  
of ,jurassic limestone1 in a red        
argillaceous matrix1 in which were      
embedded several flint knives1 with     
bones of the reindeer and horse1 but no 
extinct mammalia4 ,over this1 in a      
higher bed of alluvium1 were several    
polished hatchets of the more modern    
type called celts1 and above all loam or
 cave-mud1 in which were ,gallo-,roman  
antiquities499       799 ,bulletin de la
 ,societe ,geologique de ,france #ahfj47
  ,the ,french geologists have made as  
yet too little progress in identifying  

the age of the successive deposits of   
ancient alluvium of various parts of the
 basin of the ,seine1 to enable us to   
speculate with confidence as to the     
coincidence in date of the granitic     
gravel with human bones of the ,grotte  
d',arcy and the stone-hatchets buried in
 grey diluvium of ,la ,motte ,piquet1   
before mentioned2 but as the associated 
extinct mammalia are of the same species
 in both localities1 ,i feel strongly   
inclined to believe that the stone      
hatchets found by ,m4 ,gosse at ,paris1 
and the human bones discovered by ,m4 de
 ,vibraye1 may be referable to the same 
period4   ,,valley ,,of ,,the ,,oise4   
,a flint hatchet1 of the old ,abbeville 
and ,amiens type1 was found lately by   
,m4 ,peigne ,delacourt at ,precy1 near  
,creil1 on the ,oise1 in gravel1        
resembling1 in its geological position1 
the lower-level gravels of ,montiers1   
near ,amiens1 already described4 ,i     
visited these extensive gravel-pits in  
#ahfa1 in company with ,mr4 ,prestwich2 

but we remained there too short a time  
to entitle us to expect to find a flint 
implement1 even if they had been as     
abundant as at ,st4 ,acheul4  ,in #ahei1
 ,i examined1 in a higher part of the   
same valley of the ,oise1 near ,chauny  
and ,noyon1 some fine railway cuttings1 
which passed continuously through       
alluvium of the ,pleistocene period for 
half a mile4 ,all this alluvium was     
evidently of fluviatile origin1 for1 in 
the interstices between the pebbles1 the
 ,ancylus fluviatilis and other         
freshwater shells were abundant4 ,my    
companion1 the ,abbe ,e4 ,lambert1 had  
collected from the gravel a great many  
fossil bones1 among which ,m4 ,lartet   
has recognised both ,elephas primigenius
 and ,e4 antiquus1 besides a species of 
hippopotamus 7,h4 major871 also the     
reindeer1 horse1 and the musk ox        
7,bubalus moschatus74 ,the latter seems 
never to have been seen before in the   
old alluvium of ,france499       799    
,lartet1 ,annales des ,sciences         

,naturelles ,zoologiques      tome #ae  
page #bbd47  ,over the gravel above     
mentioned1 near ,chauny1 are seen dense 
masses of loam like the loess of the    
,rhine1 containing shells of the genera 
,helix and ,succinea4 ,we may suppose   
that the gravel containing the flint    
hatchet at ,precy is of the same age as 
that of ,chauny1 with which it is       
continuous1 and that both of them are   
coeval with the tool-bearing beds of    
,amiens1 for the basins of the ,oise and
 the ,somme are only separated by a     
narrow water-shed1 and the same fossil  
quadrupeds occur in both4  ,the alluvium
 of the ,seine and its tributaries1 like
 that of the ,somme1 contains no        
fragments of rocks brought from any     
other hydrographical basin2 yet the     
shape of the land1 or fall of the river1
 or the climate1 or all these           
conditions1 must have been very         
different when the grey alluvium in     
which the flint tools occur at ,paris   
was formed4 ,the great size of some of  

the blocks of granite1 and the distance 
which they have travelled1 imply a power
 in the river which it no longer        
possesses4 ,we can hardly doubt that    
river-ice once played a much more active
 part than now in the transportation of 
such blocks1 one of which may be seen in
 the ,museum of the ,ecole des ,mines at
 ,paris1 #c or #d feet in diameter4     
,,pleistocene ,,alluvium ,,of ,,england1
 ,,containing ,,works ,,of ,,art4  ,in  
the ancient alluvium of the basin of the
 ,thames1 at moderate heights above the 
main river and its tributaries1 we find 
fossil bones of the same species of     
extinct and living mammalia1 accompanied
 by recent species of land and          
freshwater shells1 as we have shown to  
be characteristic of the basins of the  
,somme and the ,seine4 ,we can scarcely 
therefore doubt that these quadrupeds1  
during some part of the ,pleistocene    
period1 ranged freely from the continent
 of ,europe to ,england1 at a time when 
there was an uninterrupted communication

 by land between the two countries4 ,the
 reader will not therefore be surprised 
to learn that flint implements of the   
same antique type as those of the valley
 of the ,somme have been detected in    
,british alluvium4  ,the most marked    
feature of this alluvium in the ,thames 
valley is that great bed of ochreous    
gravel1 composed chiefly of broken and  
slightly worn ,chalk flints1 on which a 
great part of ,london is built4 ,it     
extends from above ,maidenhead through  
the metropolis to the sea1 a distance   
from west to east of #ej miles1 having a
 width varying from #b to #i miles4 ,its
 thickness ranges commonly from #e to   
#ae feet499       799 ,prestwich1       
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society      volume #ab #ahef page     
#aca47  ,interstratified with this      
gravel1 in many places1 are beds of     
sand1 loam1 and clay1 the whole         
containing occasionally remains of the  
mammoth and other extinct quadrupeds4   
,fine sections have been exposed to     

view1 at different periods1 at          
,brentford and ,kew ,bridge1 others in  
,london itself1 and below it at ,erith  
in ,kent1 on the right bank of the      
,thames1 and at ,ilford and ,gray's     
,thurrock in ,essex1 on the left bank4  
,the united thickness of the beds of    
sand1 gravel1 and loam amounts sometimes
 to #dj or even #fj feet4 ,they are for 
the most part elevated above1 but in    
some cases they descend below1 the      
present level of the overflowed plain of
 the ,thames4  ,if the reader will refer
 to the section of the ,pleistocene     
sands and gravels of ,menchecourt1 near 
,abbeville1 given at page #if1 he will  
perfectly understand the relations of   
the ancient ,thames alluvium to the     
modern channel and plain of the river1  
and their relation1 on the other hand1  
to the boundary formations of older     
date1 whether ,tertiary or ,cretaceous4 
,so far as they are known1 the fossil   
mollusca and mammalia of the two        
districts also agree very closely1 the  

,cyrena fluminalis being common to both1
 and being the only extra-,european     
shell1 this and all the species of      
testacea being ,recent4 ,of this        
agreement with the living fauna there is
 a fine illustration in ,essex2 for the 
determination of which we are indebted  
to the late ,mr4 ,john ,brown1          
,f4,g4,s41 who collected at ,copford1 in
 ,essex1 from a deposit containing bones
 of the mammoth1 a large bear 7probably 
,ursus spelaeus71 a beaver1 stag1 and   
aurochs1 no less than sixty-nine species
 of land and freshwater shells4         
,forty-eight of these were terrestrial1 
and two of them1 ,helix incarnata and   
,h4 ruderata1 no longer inhabit the     
,british ,isles1 but are still living on
 the continent1 ruderata in high        
northern latitudes499       799         
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society volume #h      #aheb page #aij4
 ,mr4 ,brown calls them extinct species1
 which      may mislead some readers1   
but he merely meant extinct in          

,england4 ,see also ,jeffreys1 ,brit4   
,conch4 page #agd47  ,the ,cyrena       
fluminalis and the ,unio littoralis1 to 
which last ,i shall presently allude1   
were not among the number4  ,i long ago 
suggested the hypothesis1 that in the   
basin of the ,thames there are          
indications of a meeting in the         
,pleistocene period of a northern and   
southern fauna4 ,to the northern group  
may have belonged the mammoth 7,elephas 
primigenius7 and the ,rhinoceros        
tichorhinus1 both of which ,pallas found
 in ,siberia1 preserved with their flesh
 in the ice4 ,with these are            
occasionally associated the reindeer4   
,in #ahee the skull of the musk ox      
7,bubalus moschatus7 was also found in  
the ochreous gravel of ,maidenhead1 by  
the ,reverend ,c4 ,kingsley and ,mr4    
,lubbock2 the identification of this    
fossil with the living species being    
made by ,professor ,owen4 ,a second     
fossil skull of the same arctic animal  
was afterwards found by ,mr4 ,lubbock   

near ,bromley1 in the valley of a small 
tributary of the ,thames2 and two other 
skulls1 those of a bull and a cow were  
dug up near ,bath ,easton from the      
gravel of the valley of the ,avon by    
,mr4 ,charles ,moore4 ,professor ,owen  
has truly said1 that as this quadruped  
has a constitution fitting it at present
 to inhabit the high northern regions of
 ,america1 we can hardly doubt that its 
former companions1 the warmly-clad      
mammoth and the two-horned woolly       
rhinoceros 7,r4 tichorhinus71 were in   
like manner capable of supporting life  
in a cold climate499       799          
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society volume #ab      #ahef page     
#abd47  ,i have already alluded to the  
recent discovery of this same ox near   
,chauny1 in the valley of the ,oise1 in 
,france2 and in #ahef ,i found a skull  
of it preserved in the museum at        
,berlin1 which ,professor ,quenstedt1   
the curator1 had correctly named so long
 ago as #ahcf1 when the fossil was dug  

out of drift1 in the hill called the    
,kreuzberg1 in the southern suburbs of  
that city4 ,by an account published at  
the time1 we find that the mammalia     
which accompanied the musk ox were the  
mammoth and tichorhine rhinoceros1 with 
the horse and ox299 but ,i can find no  
record of the occurrence of a           
hippopotamus1 nor of ,elephas antiquus  
or ,rhinoceros leptorhinus1 in the drift
 of the north of ,germany1 bordering the
 ,baltic4       799 ,leonhard and       
,bronn's ,jahrbuch #ahcf page #bae47    
,on the other hand1 in another locality 
in the same drift of ,north ,germany1   
,dr4 ,hensel1 of ,berlin1 detected1 near
 ,quedlinburg1 the ,norwegian ,lemming  
7,myodes lemmus71 and another species of
 the same family called by ,pallas      
,myodes torquatus 7by ,hensel1          
,misothermus torquatus7--a still more   
arctic quadruped1 found by ,parry in    
latitude #hb degrees1 and which never   
strays farther south than the northern  
borders of the woody region4 ,professor 

,beyrich also informs me that the       
remains of the ,rhinoceros tichorhinus  
were obtained at the same place499      
799 ,zeitschrift der ,deutschen         
,geologischen ,gesellschaft      volume 
#g #ahee page #dig etc47  ,as an example
 of what may possibly have constituted a
 more southern fauna in the valley of   
the ,thames1 ,i may allude to the fossil
 remains found in the fluviatile        
alluvium of ,gray's ,thurrock1 in       
,essex1 situated on the left bank of the
 river1 #ba miles below ,london4 ,the   
strata of brick-earth1 loam1 and gravel 
exposed to view in artificial           
excavations in that spot1 are precisely 
such as would be formed by the silting  
up of an old river channel4 ,among the  
mammalia are ,elephas antiquus1         
,rhinoceros leptorhinus 7,r4 megarhinus1
 ,christol71 ,hippopotamus major1       
species of horse1 bear1 ox1 stag1 etc41 
and1 among the accompanying shells1     
,cyrena fluminalis1 which is extremely  
abundant1 instead of being scarce1 as at

 ,abbeville4 ,it is associated with     
,unio littoralis also in great numbers  
and with both valves united4 ,this      
conspicuous freshwater mussel is no     
longer an inhabitant of the ,british    
,isles1 but still lives in the ,seine1  
and is still more abundant in the       
,loire4 ,another freshwater univalve    
7,paludina marginata1 ,michaud71 not    
,british1 but common in the south of    
,france1 likewise occurs1 and a peculiar
 variety of ,cyclas amnica1 which by    
some naturalists has been regarded as a 
distinct species4 ,with these1 moreover1
 is found a peculiar variety of ,valvata
 piscinalis4  ,if we consult ,dr4 ,von  
,schrenck's account of the living       
mammalia of ,mongolia1 lying between    
latitude #de and #ee degrees north1 we  
learn that1 in that part of             
,north-,eastern ,asia recently annexed  
to the ,russian empire1 no less than    
thirty-four out of fifty-eight living   
quadrupeds are identical with ,european 
species1 while some of those which do   

not extend their range to ,europe are   
arctic1 others tropical forms4 ,the     
,bengal tiger ranges northwards         
occasionally to latitude #eb degrees    
north1 where he chiefly subsists on the 
flesh of the reindeer1 and the same     
tiger abounds in latitude #dh degrees1  
to which the small tailless hare or     
pika1 a polar resident1 sometimes       
wanders southwards499       799         
,mammalia of ,amoorland1 ,natural       
,history ,review volume #a      #ahfa   
page #ab47  ,we may readily conceive    
that the countries now drained by the   
,thames1 the ,somme1 and the ,seine1    
were1 in the ,pleistocene period1 on the
 borders of two distinct zoological     
provinces1 one lying to the north1 the  
other to the south1 in which case many  
species belonging to each fauna endowed 
with migratory habits1 like the living  
musk-ox or the ,bengal tiger1 may have  
been ready to take advantage of any1    
even the slightest1 change in their     
favour to invade the neighbouring       

province1 whether in the summer or      
winter months1 or permanently for a     
series of years1 or centuries4 ,the     
,elephas antiquus and its associated    
,rhinoceros leptorhinus may have        
preceded the mammoth and tichorhine     
rhinoceros in the valley of the ,thames1
 or both may have alternately prevailed 
in the same area in the ,pleistocene    
period4  ,in attempting to settle the   
chronology of fluviatile deposits1 it is
 almost equally difficult to avail      
ourselves of the evidence of organic    
remains and of the superposition of the 
strata1 for we may find two old         
river-beds on the same level in         
juxtaposition1 one of them perhaps many 
thousands of years posterior in date to 
the other4 ,i have seen an example of   
this at ,ilford1 where the ,thames1 or a
 tributary stream1 has at some former   
period cut through sands containing     
,cyrena fluminalis1 and again filled up 
the channel with argillaceous matter1   
evidently derived from the waste of the 

,tertiary ,london ,clay4 ,such shiftings
 of the site of the main channel of the 
river1 the frequent removal of gravel   
and sand previously deposited1 and the  
throwing down of new alluvium1 the      
flooding of tributaries1 the rising and 
sinking of the land1 fluctuations in the
 cold and heat of the climate--all these
 changes seem to have given rise to that
 complexity in the fluviatile deposits  
of the ,thames1 which accounts for the  
small progress we have hitherto made in 
determining their order of succession1  
and that of the imbedded groups of      
quadrupeds4 ,it may happen1 as at       
,brentford and ,ilford1 that sand-pits  
in two adjoining fields may each contain
 distinct species of elephant and       
rhinoceros2 and the fossil remains in   
both cases may occur at the same depth  
from the surface1 yet may be severally  
referable to different parts of the     
,pleistocene epoch1 separated by        
thousands of years4  ,the relation of   
the glacial period to alluvial deposits1

 such as that of ,gray's ,thurrock1     
where the ,cyrena fluminalis1 ,unio     
littoralis1 and the hippopotamus seem   
rather to imply a warmer climate1 has   
been a matter of long and animated      
discussion4 ,patches of the northern    
drift1 at elevations of about #bjj feet 
above the ,thames1 occur in the         
neighbourhood of ,london1 as at ,muswell
 ,hill1 near ,highgate4 ,in this drift1 
blocks of granite1 syenite1 greenstone1 
,coal-measure sandstone with its        
fossils1 and other ,palaeozoic rocks1   
and the wreck of ,chalk and ,oolite1    
occur confusedly mixed together4 ,the   
same glacial formation is also found    
capping some of the ,essex hills farther
 to the east1 and extending some way    
down their southern slopes towards the  
valley of the ,thames4 ,although no     
fragments washed out of these older and 
upland drifts have been found in the    
gravel of the ,thames containing        
elephants' bones1 it is fair to presume1
 as ,mr4 ,prestwich has contended199    

that the glacial formation is the older 
of the two4       799 ,prestwich1       
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society      volume #aa #ahee page     
#aaj2 ibid4 volume #ab #ahef page #acc2 
ibid4 volume #ag #ahfa page #ddf47  ,in 
short1 we must suppose that the basin of
 the ,thames and all its fluviatile     
deposits are post-glacial1 in the       
modified sense of that term2 i4e4 that  
they were subsequent to the drift of the
 central and northern counties4  ,having
 offered these general remarks on the   
alluvium of the ,thames1 ,i may now say 
something of the implements hitherto    
discovered in it4 ,in the ,british      
,museum there is a flint weapon of the  
spear-headed form1 such as is           
represented in ,figure #h1 which we are 
told was found with an elephant's tooth 
at ,black ,mary's1 near ,gray's ,inn    
,lane1 ,london4 ,in a letter dated      
#agae1 printed in ,herne's edition of   
,leland's ,collectanea1 volume #a page  
#gc1 it is stated to have been found in 

the presence of ,mr4 ,conyers1 with the 
skeleton of an elephant499       799    
,evans1 ,archaeologia #ahfj47  ,so many 
bones of the elephant1 rhinoceros1 and  
hippopotamus have been found in the     
gravel on which ,london stands1 that    
there is no reason to doubt the         
statement as handed down to us4 ,fossil 
remains of all these three genera have  
been dug up on the site of ,waterloo    
,place1 ,st4 ,james's ,square1 ,charing 
,cross1 the ,london ,docks1 ,limehouse1 
,bethnal ,green1 and other places within
 the memory of persons now living4 ,in  
the gravel and sand of ,shacklewell1 in 
the north-east district of ,london1 ,i  
have myself collected specimens of the  
,cyrena fluminalis in great numbers 7see
 ,figure #ag c71 with the bones of deer 
and other mammalia4  ,in the alluvium   
also of the ,wey1 near ,guildford1 in a 
place called ,pease ,marsh1 a           
wedge-shaped flint implement1 resembling
 one brought from ,st4 ,acheul by ,mr4  
,prestwich1 and compared by some        

antiquaries to a sling-stone1 was       
obtained in #ahcf by ,mr4 ,whitburn1 #d 
feet deep in sand and gravel1 in which  
the teeth and tusks of elephants had    
been found4 ,the ,wey flows through the 
gorge of the ,north ,downs at ,guildford
 to join the ,thames4 ,mr4 ,austen has  
shown that this drift is so ancient that
 one part of it had been disturbed and  
tilted before another part was thrown   
down499       799 ,quarterly ,journal of
 the ,geological ,society volume #g     
#ahea page #bgh47  ,among other places  
where flint tools of the antique type   
have been met with in the course of the 
last three years1 ,i may mention one of 
an oval form found by ,mr4 ,whitaker in 
the valley of the ,darent1 in ,kent1 and
 another which ,mr4 ,evans found lying  
on the shore at ,swalecliff1 near       
,whitstable1 in the same county1 where  
,mr4 ,prestwich had previously described
 a freshwater deposit1 resting on the   
,london ,clay1 and consisting chiefly of
 gravel1 in which an elephant's tooth   

and the bones of a bear were embedded4  
,the flint implement was deeply         
discoloured and of a peculiar bright    
light-brown colour1 similar to that of  
the old fluviatile gravel in the cliff4 
,another flint implement was found in   
#ahfj by ,mr4 ,t4 ,leech1 at the foot of
 the cliff between ,herne ,bay and the  
,reculvers1 and on further search five  
other specimens of the spear-head       
pattern so common at ,amiens4 ,messrs4  
,prestwich and ,evans have since found  
three other similar tools on the beach1 
at the base of the same wasting cliff1  
which consists of sandy ,eocene strata1 
covered by a gravelly deposit of        
freshwater origin1 about #ej feet above 
the sea-level1 from which the flint     
weapons must have been derived4 ,such   
old alluvial deposits now capping the   
cliffs of ,kent seem to have been the   
river-beds of tributaries of the ,thames
 before the sea encroached to its       
present position and widened its        
estuary4 ,on following up one of these  

freshwater deposits westward of the     
,reculvers1 ,mr4 ,prestwich found in it1
 at ,chislet1 near ,grove ,ferry1 the   
,cyrena fluminalis among other shells4  
,the changes which have taken place in  
the physical geography of this part of  
,england during1 or since1 the          
,pleistocene period1 have consisted     
partly of such encroachments of the sea 
on the coast as are now going on1 and   
partly of a general subsidence of the   
land4 ,among the signs of the latter    
movement may be mentioned a freshwater  
formation at ,faversham1 below the level
 of the sea4 ,the gravel there contains 
exclusively land and fluviatile shells  
of the same species as those of other   
localities of the ,pleistocene alluvium 
before mentioned1 and must have been    
formed when the river was at a higher   
level and when it extended farther east4
 ,at that era it was probably a         
tributary of the ,rhine1 as represented 
by ,mr4 ,trimmer in his ideal           
restoration of the geography of the     

olden time499       799 ,quarterly      
,journal of the ,geological ,society    
volume #i      #ahec ,plate #h ,number  
#d47  ,for ,england was then united to  
the continent1 and what is now the      
,north ,sea was land4 ,it is well known 
that in many places1 especially near the
 coast of ,holland1 elephants' tusks and
 other bones are often dredged up from  
the bed of that shallow sea1 and the    
reader will see in the map given in     
,chapter #ac how vast would be the      
conversion of sea into land by an       
upheaval of #fjj feet4 ,vertical        
movements of much less than half that   
amount would account for the annexation 
of ,england to the continent1 and the   
extension of the ,thames and its valley 
far to the north-east1 and the flowing  
of rivers from the easternmost parts of 
,kent and ,essex into the ,thames1      
instead of emptying themselves into its 
estuary4  ,more than a dozen flint      
weapons of the ,amiens type have already
 been found in the basin of the ,thames2

 but the geological position of no one  
of them has as yet been ascertained with
 the same accuracy as that of many of   
the tools dug up in the valley of the   
,somme4   ,,flint ,,implements ,,of     
,,the ,,valley ,,of ,,the ,,ouse1 ,,near
 ,,bedford4  ,the ancient fluviatile    
gravel of the valley of the ,ouse1      
around ,bedford1 has been noted for the 
last thirty years for yielding to       
collectors a rich harvest of the bones  
of extinct mammalia4 ,by observations   
made in #ahed and #aheh1 ,mr4 ,prestwich
 had ascertained that the valley was    
bounded on both sides by ,oolitic       
strata1 capped by boulder clay1 and that
 the gravel ,number #c1 ,figure #bc1    
contained bones of the elephant1        
rhinoceros1 hippopotamus1 ox1 horse1 and
 deer1 which animals he therefore       
inferred must have been posterior in    
date to the boulder clay1 through which1
 as well as the subjacent ,oolite1 the  
valley had been excavated4 ,mr4 ,evans  
had found in the same gravel many land  

and freshwater shells1 and these        
discoveries induced ,mr4 ,james ,wyatt1 
of ,bedford1 to pay two visits to ,st4  
,acheul in order to compare the         
implement-bearing gravels of the ,somme 
with the drift of the valley of the     
,ouse4 ,after his return he resolved to 
watch carefully the excavation of the   
gravel-pits at ,biddenham1 #b miles     
west-north-west of ,bedford1 in the hope
 of finding there similar works of art4 
,with this view he paid almost daily    
visits for months in succession to those
 pits1 and was at last rewarded by the  
discovery of two well-formed implements1
 one of the spear-head and the other of 
the oval shape1 perfect counterparts of 
the two prevailing ,french types4 ,both 
specimens were thrown out by the workmen
 on the same day from the lowest bed of 
stratified gravel and sand1 #ac feet    
thick1 containing bones of the elephant1
 deer1 and ox1 and many freshwater      
shells4 ,the two implements occurred at 
the depth of #ac feet from the surface  

of the soil1 and rested immediately on  
solid beds of ,oolitic limestone1 as    
represented in the accompanying section 
7,figure #bc74  ,having been invited by 
,mr4 ,wyatt to verify these facts1 ,i   
went to ,biddenham within a fortnight of
 the date of his discovery 7,april      
#ahfa71 and1 for the first time1 saw    
evidence which satisfied me of the      
chronological relations of those three  
phenomena1 the antique tools1 the       
extinct mammalia1 and the glacial       
formation4 ,on that occasion ,i examined
 the pits in company with ,messrs4      
,prestwich1 ,evans1 and ,wyatt1 and we  
collected ten species of shells from the
 stratified drift ,number #c1 or the    
beds overlying the lowest gravel from   
which the flint implements had been     
exhumed4 ,they were all of common       
fluviatile and land species now living  
in the same part of ,england4 ,since our
 visit1 ,mr4 ,wyatt has added to them   
,paludina marginata1 ,michaud 7,hydrobia
 of some authors71 a species of the     

,south of ,france no longer inhabiting  
the ,british ,isles4 ,the same geologist
 has also found1 since we were at       
,biddenham1 several other flint tools of
 corresponding type1 both there and at  
other localities in the valley of the   
,ouse1 near ,bedford4  ,figure #bc4     
,valley of the ,ouse    7,,figure #bc4  
,,section ,,across ,,the ,,valley ,,of  
,,the ,,ouse1 ,,two ,,miles             
,,west-,,north-,,west ,,of ,,bedford499 
799 ,prestwich1 ,quarterly ,journal of  
the ,geological ,society     volume #ag 
#ahfa page #cfd2 and ,wyatt1 ,geologist 
#ahfa page #bdb47    #a4 ,oolitic       
strata4   #b4 ,boulder clay1 or marine  
northern drift1 rising to about         
ninety feet above the ,ouse4   #c4      
,ancient gravel1 with elephant bones1   
freshwater shells1      and flint       
implements4   #d4 ,modern alluvium of   
the ,ouse4   a4 ,biddenham gravel pits1 
at the bottom of which flint tools      
were found47  ,the boulder clay ,number 
#b extends for miles in all directions1 

and was evidently once continuous from b
 to c before the valley was scooped out4
 ,it is a portion of the great marine   
glacial drift of the midland counties of
 ,england1 and contains blocks1 some of 
large size1 not only of the ,oolite of  
the neighbourhood1 but of ,chalk and    
other rocks transported from still      
greater distances1 such as syenite1     
basalt1 quartz1 and ,new ,red           
,sandstone4 ,these erratic blocks of    
foreign origin are often polished and   
striated1 having undergone what is      
called glaciation1 of which more will be
 said by and by4 ,blocks of the same    
mineral character1 embedded at          
,biddenham in the gravel ,number #c1    
have lost all signs of this striation by
 the friction to which they were        
subjected in the old river bed4  ,the   
great width of the valley of the ,ouse1 
which is sometimes #b miles1 has not    
been expressed in the diagram4 ,it may  
have been shaped out by the joint action
 of the river and the tides when this   

part of ,england was emerging from the  
waters of the glacial sea1 the boulder  
clay being first cut through1 and then  
an equal thickness of underlying        
,oolite4 ,after this denudation1 which  
may have accompanied the emergence of   
the land1 the country was inhabited by  
the primitive people who fashioned the  
flint tools4 ,the old river1 aided      
perhaps by the continued upheaval of the
 whole country1 or by oscillations in   
its level1 went on widening and         
deepening the valley1 often shifting its
 channel1 until at length a broad area  
was covered by a succession of the      
earliest and latest deposits1 which may 
have corresponded in age to the higher  
and lower gravels of the valley of the  
,somme1 already described4  ,at         
,biddenham1 and elsewhere in the same   
gravel1 remains of ,elephas antiquus    
have been discovered1 and ,mr4 ,wyatt   
obtained1 ,january #ahfc1 a flint       
implement associated with bones and     
teeth of hippopotamus from gravel at    

,summerhouse hill1 which lies east of   
,bedford1 lower down the valley of the  
,ouse1 and #d miles from ,biddenham4    
,one step at least we gain by the       
,bedford sections1 which those of       
,amiens and ,abbeville had not enabled  
us to make4 ,they teach us that the     
fabricators of the antique tools1 and   
the extinct mammalia coeval with them1  
were all post-glacial4   ,,flint        
,,implements ,,in ,a ,,freshwater       
,,deposit ,,at ,,hoxne ,,in ,,suffolk   
#ag4  ,so early as the first year of the
 nineteenth century1 a remarkable paper 
was communicated to the ,society of     
,antiquaries by ,mr4 ,john ,frere1 in   
which he gave a clear description of the
 discovery at ,hoxne1 near ,diss1 in    
,suffolk1 of flint tools of the type    
since found at ,amiens1 adding at the   
same time good geological reasons for   
presuming that their antiquity was very 
great1 or1 as he expressed it1 beyond   
that of the present world1 meaning the  
actual state of the physical geography  

of that region4 ,the flints1 he said1   
were evidently weapons of war1          
fabricated and used by a people who had 
not the use of metals4 ,they lay in     
great numbers at the depth of about #ab 
feet in a stratified soil which was dug 
into for the purpose of raising clay for
 bricks4 ,under a foot and a half of    
vegetable earth was clay #g #a_/b feet  
thick1 and beneath this one foot of sand
 with shells1 and under this #b feet of 
gravel1 in which the shaped flints were 
found generally at the rate of #e or #f 
in a square yard4 ,in the sandy beds    
with shells were found the jawbone and  
teeth of an enormous unknown animal4    
,the manner in which the flint weapons  
lay would lead to the persuasion that it
 was a place of their manufacture1 and  
not of their accidental deposit4 ,their 
numbers were so great that the man who  
carried on the brick-work told me that  
before he was aware of their being      
objects of curiosity1 he had emptied    
baskets full of them into the ruts of   

the adjoining road4  ,mr4 ,frere then   
goes on to explain that the strata in   
which the flints occur are disposed     
horizontally1 and do not lie at the foot
 of any higher ground1 so that portions 
of them must have been removed when the 
adjoining valley was hollowed out4 ,if  
the author had not mistaken the         
freshwater shells associated with the   
tools for marine species1 there would   
have been nothing to correct in his     
account of the geology of the district1 
for he distinctly perceived that the    
strata in which the implements were     
embedded had1 since that time1 undergone
 very extensive denudation499       799 
,frere1 ,archaeologia volume #ac #ahjj  
page #bjf47  ,specimens of the flint    
spear-heads1 sent to ,london by ,mr4    
,frere1 are still preserved in the      
,british ,museum1 and others are in the 
collection of the ,society of           
,antiquaries4  ,illustration3 ,figure   
#bd4 ,position of ,flint ,weapons       
7,,figure #bd4 ,,section ,,showing ,,the

 ,,position ,,of ,,the ,,flint ,,weapons
    ,,at ,,hoxne1 ,,near ,,diss1        
,,suffolk4      ,see ,prestwich         
,philosophical ,transactions ,plate #aa 
#ahfj47    #a4 ,gravel of ,gold ,brook1 
a tributary of the ,waveney4   #b4      
,higher-level gravel overlying the      
freshwater deposit4   #c and #d4 ,sand  
and gravel1 with freshwater shells1 and 
flint implements1 and bones of mammalia4
   #e4 ,peaty and clayey beds1 with same
 fossils4   #f4 ,boulder clay or glacial
 drift4   #g4 ,sand and gravel below    
boulder clay4   #h4 ,chalk with flints47
  ,mr4 ,prestwich's attention was called
 by ,mr4 ,evans to these weapons1 as    
well as to ,mr4 ,frere's memoir after   
his return from ,amiens in #ahei1 and he
 lost no time in visiting ,hoxne1 a     
village five miles eastward of ,diss4   
,it is not a little remarkable that he  
should have found1 after a lapse of     
sixty years1 that the extraction of clay
 was still going on in the same         
brick-pit4 ,only a few months before his

 arrival1 two flint instruments had been
 dug out of the clay1 one from a depth  
of #g and the other of #aj feet from the
 surface4 ,others have since been       
disinterred from undisturbed beds of    
gravel in the same pit4 ,mr4 ,amyot of  
,diss has also obtained from the        
underlying freshwater strata the        
astragalus of an elephant1 and bones of 
the deer and horse2 but although many of
 the old implements have recently been  
discovered in situ in regular strata and
 preserved by ,sir ,edward ,kerrison1 no
 bones of extinct mammalia seem as yet  
to have been actually seen in the same  
stratum with one of the tools4  ,by     
reference to the annexed section1 the   
geologist will see that the basin-shaped
 hollow a1 b1 c has been filled up      
gradually with the freshwater strata #c1
 #d1 #e1 after the same cavity a1 b1 c  
had been previously excavated out of the
 more ancient boulder clay ,number #f4  
,the relative position of these         
formations will be better understood    

when ,i have described in the twelfth   
chapter the structure of ,norfolk and   
,suffolk as laid open in the sea-cliffs 
at ,mundesley1 about #cj miles distant  
from ,hoxne1 in a north-north-east      
direction4  ,i examined the deposits at 
,hoxne in #ahfj1 when ,i had the        
advantage of being accompanied by the   
,reverend ,j4 ,gunn and the ,reverend   
,s4,w4 ,king4 ,in the loamy beds #c and 
#d1 ,figure #bd1 we observed the common 
river shell ,valvata piscinalis in great
 numbers4 ,with it1 but much more rare1 
were ,limnaea palustris1 ,planorbis     
albus1 ,p4 ,spirorbis1 ,succinea putris1
 ,bithynia tentaculata1 ,cyclas cornea2 
and ,mr4 ,prestwich mentions ,cyclas    
amnica and fragments of a ,unio1 besides
 several land shells4 ,in the black     
peaty mass ,number #e1 fragments of wood
 of the oak1 yew1 and fir have been     
recognised4 ,the flint weapons which ,i 
have seen from ,hoxne are so much more  
perfect1 and have their cutting edge so 
much sharper than those from the valley 

of the ,somme1 that they seem neither to
 have been used by ,man1 nor to have    
been rolled in the bed of a river4 ,the 
opinion of ,mr4 ,frere1 therefore1 that 
there may have been a manufactory of    
weapons on the spot1 appears probable4  
,,flint ,,implements ,,at ,,icklingham  
,,in ,,suffolk4  ,in another part of    
,suffolk1 at ,icklingham1 in the valley 
of the ,lark1 below ,bury ,st4          
,edmund's1 there is a bed of gravel1 in 
which teeth of ,elephas primigenius and 
several flint tools1 chiefly of a       
lance-head form1 have been found4 ,i    
have twice visited the spot1 which has  
been correctly described by ,mr4        
,prestwich499       799 ,quarterly      
,journal of the ,geological ,society    
volume #ag      #ahfa1 page #cfd47  ,the
 section of the ,bedford tool-bearing   
alluvium1 given in ,figure #bc1 may     
serve to illustrate that of ,icklingham1
 if we substitute ,chalk for ,oolite1   
and the river ,lark for the ,ouse4 ,in  
both cases1 the present bed of the river

 is about #cj feet below the level of   
the old gravel1 and the ,chalk hill1    
which bounds the valley of the ,lark on 
the right side1 is capped like the      
,oolite of ,biddenham by boulder clay1  
which rises to the height of #ajj feet  
above the ,lark4 ,about twelve years    
ago1 a large erratic block1 above #d    
feet in diameter1 was dug out of the    
boulder clay at ,icklingham1 which ,i   
found to consist of a hard siliceous    
schist1 which must have come from a     
remote region4 ,the tool-bearing gravel 
here1 as in the case to which it has    
been compared near ,bedford1 is proved  
to be newer than the glacial drift1 by  
containing pebbles of basalt and other  
rocks derived from that formation4      
,,chapter #aj4 -- ,,cavern ,,deposits1  
,,and ,,places ,,of ,,sepulture ,,of    
,,the ,,pleistocene ,,period4     ,flint
 ,implements in ,cave containing ,hyaena
 and other extinct       ,mammalia in   
,somersetshire4    ,caves of the ,gower 
,peninsula in ,south ,wales4            

,rhinoceros hemitoechus4    ,ossiferous 
,caves near ,palermo4    ,sicily once   
part of ,africa4    ,rise of ,bed of the
 ,mediterranean to the ,height of three 
hundred       ,feet in the ,human       
,period in ,sardinia4    ,burial-place  
of ,pleistocene ,date of ,aurignac in   
the ,south of ,france4    ,rhinoceros   
tichorhinus eaten by ,man4    ,m4       
,lartet on extinct ,mammalia and ,works 
of ,art found in the       ,aurignac    
,cave4    ,relative ,antiquity of the   
same considered4   ,,works ,,of ,,art   
,,associated ,,with ,,extinct ,,mammalia
 ,,in ,a ,,cavern ,,in ,,somersetshire4 
,the only ,british cave from which      
implements resembling those of ,amiens  
have been obtained1 since the attention 
of geologists has been awakened to the  
importance of minutely observing the    
position of such relics relatively to   
the associated fossil mammalia1 is that 
recently opened near ,wells in          
,somersetshire4 ,it occurs near the cave
 of ,wookey ,hole1 from the mouth of    

which the river ,axe issues on the      
southern flanks of the ,mendips4 ,no one
 had suspected that on the left side of 
the ravine1 through which the river     
flows after escaping from its           
subterranean channel1 there were other  
caves and fissures concealed beneath the
 green sward of the steep sloping bank4 
,about ten years ago1 a canal was made1 
several hundred yards in length1 for the
 purpose of leading the waters of the   
,axe to a paper-mill1 now occupying the 
middle of the ravine4 ,in carrying out  
this work1 about #ab feet of the left   
bank was cut away1 and a cavernous      
fissure1 choked up to the roof with     
ossiferous loam1 was then1 for the first
 time1 exposed to view4 ,this great     
cavity1 originally #i feet high and #cf 
wide1 traversed the ,dolomitic          
,conglomerate2 and fragments of that    
rock1 some angular and others           
water-worn1 were scattered through the  
red mud of the cave1 in which fossil    
remains were abundant4 ,for an account  

of them and the position they occupied  
we are indebted to ,mr4 ,dawkins1       
,f4,g4,s41 who1 in company with ,mr4    
,williamson1 explored the cavern in     
#ahei1 and obtained from it the bones of
 the ,hyaena spelaea in such numbers as 
to lead him to conclude that the cavern 
had for a long time been a hyaena's den4
 ,among the accompanying animals found  
fossil in the same bone-earth1 were     
observed ,elephas primigenius1          
,rhinoceros tichorhinus1 ,ursus         
spelaeus1 ,bos primigenius1 ,megaceros  
hibernicus1 ,cervus tarandus 7and other 
species of ,cervus71 ,felis spelaea1    
,canis lupus1 ,canis vulpes1 and teeth  
and bones of the genus ,equus in great  
numbers4  ,intermixed with the above    
fossil bones were some arrowheads1 made 
of bone1 and many chipped flints1 and   
chipped pieces of chert1 a white or     
bleached flint weapon of the spearhead  
,amiens type1 which was taken out of the
 undisturbed matrix by ,mr4 ,williamson 
himself1 together with a hyaena's tooth1

 showing that ,man had either been      
contemporaneous with or had preceded the
 extinct fauna4 ,after penetrating #cd  
feet from the entrance1 ,mr4 ,dawkins   
found the cave bifurcating into two     
branches1 one of which was vertical4 ,by
 this rent1 perhaps1 some part of the   
contents of the cave may have been      
introduced499       799 ,boyd ,dawkins1 
,proceedings of the ,geological ,society
      ,january #ahfb47  ,when ,i        
examined the spot in #ahfj1 after ,i had
 been shown some remains of the hyaena  
collected there1 ,i felt convinced that 
a complete revolution must have taken   
place in the topography of the district 
since the time of the extinct           
quadrupeds4 ,i was not aware at the time
 that flint tools had been met with in  
the same bone-deposit4   ,,caves ,,of   
,,gower ,,in ,,glamorganshire1 ,,south  
,,wales4  ,the ossiferous caves of the  
peninsula of ,gower in ,glamorganshire  
have been diligently explored of late   
years by ,dr4 ,falconer and             

,lieutenant-,colonel ,e4,r4 ,wood1 who  
have thoroughly investigated the        
contents of many which were previously  
unknown4 ,among these ,dr4 ,falconer's  
skilled eye has recognised the remains  
of almost every quadruped which he had  
elsewhere found fossil in ,british      
caves3 in some places the ,elephas      
primigenius1 accompanied by its usual   
companion1 the ,rhinoceros tichorhinus1 
in others ,elephas antiquus1 associated 
with ,rhinoceros hemitoechus1 ,falconer2
 the extinct animals being often        
embedded1 as in the ,belgian caves1 in  
the same matrix with species now living 
in ,europe1 such as the common badger   
7,meles taxus71 the common wolf1 and the
 fox4  ,in a cavernous fissure called   
the ,raven's ,cliff1 teeth of several   
individuals of ,hippopotamus major1 both
 young and old1 were found2 and this in 
a district where there is now scarce a  
rill of running water1 much less a river
 in which such quadrupeds could swim4   
,in one of the caves1 called ,spritsail 

,tor1 bones of the elephants above named
 were observed1 with a great many other 
quadrupeds of ,recent and extinct       
species4  ,from one fissure1 called     
,bosco's ,den1 no less than one thousand
 antlers of the reindeer1 chiefly of the
 variety called ,cervus ,guettardi1 were
 extracted by the persevering exertions 
of ,colonel ,wood1 who estimated that   
several hundred more still remained in  
the bone-earth of the same rent4  ,they 
were mostly shed horns1 and of young    
animals2 and had been washed into the   
rent with other bones1 and with angular 
fragments of limestone1 and all         
enveloped in the same ochreous mud4     
,among the other bones1 which were not  
numerous1 were those of the cave-bear1  
wolf1 fox1 ox1 stag1 and field-mouse4   
,but the discovery of most importance1  
as bearing on the subject of the present
 work1 is the occurrence in a           
newly-discovered cave1 called ,long     
,hole1 by ,colonel ,wood1 in #ahfa1 of  
the remains of two species of           

rhinoceros1 ,r4 tichorhinus and ,r4     
hemitoechus1 ,falconer1 in an           
undisturbed deposit1 in the lower part  
of which were some well-shaped flint    
knives1 evidently of human workmanship4 
,it is clear from their position that   
,man was coeval with these two species4 
,we have elsewhere independent proofs of
 his co-existence with every other      
species of the cave-fauna of            
,glamorganshire2 but this is the first  
well-authenticated example of the       
occurrence of ,r4 hemitoechus in        
connection with human implements4  ,in  
the fossil fauna of the valley of the   
,thames1 ,rhinoceros leptorhinus was    
mentioned as occurring at ,gray's       
,thurrock with ,elephas antiquus4 ,dr4  
,falconer1 in a memoir which he is now  
preparing for the press on the ,european
 ,pliocene and ,pleistocene species of  
the genus ,rhinoceros1 has shown that1  
under the above name of ,r4 leptorhinus1
 three distinct species have been       
confounded by ,cuvier1 ,owen1 and other 

palaeontologists3--  #a4 ,r4 megarhinus1
 ,christol1 being the original and      
typical ,r4 leptorhinus of ,cuvier1     
founded on ,cortesi's ,monte ,zago      
cranium1 and the ,,only ,pliocene1 or   
,pleistocene ,european species1 that had
 not a nasal septum4--,gray's ,thurrock1
 etc4  #b4 ,r4 hemitoechus1 ,falconer1  
in which the ossification of the septum 
dividing the nostrils is incomplete in  
the middle1 besides other cranial and   
dental characters distinguishing it from
 ,r4 tichorhinus1 accompanies ,elephas  
antiquus in most of the oldest ,british 
bone-caves1 such as ,kirkdale1 ,cefn1   
,durdham ,down1 ,minchin ,hole1 and     
other ,gower caverns--also found at     
,clacton1 in ,essex1 and in             
,northamptonshire4  #c4 ,r4 etruscus1   
,falconer1 a comparatively slight and   
slender form1 also with an incomplete   
bony septum199 occurs deep in the ,val  
d',arno deposits1 and in the ,forest    
bed1 and superimposed blue clays1 with  
lignite1 of the ,norfolk coast1 but     

nowhere as yet found in the ossiferous  
caves in ,britain4       799 ,falconer1 
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society      volume #ae #ahei page     
#fjb47  ,dr4 ,falconer announced in     
#ahfj his opinion that the filling up of
 the ,gower caves in ,south ,wales took 
place after the deposition of the marine
 boulder clay199 an opinion in harmony  
with what we have since learnt from the 
section of the gravels near ,bedford1   
given above 7,figure #bc71 where a fauna
 corresponding to that of the ,welsh    
caves characterises the ancient         
alluvium1 and is shown to be clearly    
post-glacial1 in the sense of being     
posterior in date to the boulder-clay of
 the midland counties4       799 ,ibid4 
volume #af #ahfj page #dia47  ,in the   
same sense the late ,edward ,forbes     
declared1 in #ahdf1 his conviction that 
not only the ,cervus megaceros1 but also
 the mammoth and other extinct          
pachyderms and carnivora1 had lived in  
,britain in post-glacial times499       

799 ,memoir of the ,geological ,survey  
pages #cid to #cig47  ,the ,gower caves 
in general have their floors strewed    
over with sand1 containing marine       
shells1 all of living species2 and there
 are raised beaches on the adjoining    
coast1 and other geological signs of    
great alteration in the relative level  
of land and sea1 since that country was 
inhabited by the extinct mammalia1 some 
of which1 as we have seen1 were         
certainly coeval with ,man4             
,,ossiferous ,,caves ,,in ,,the ,,north 
,,of ,,sicily4  ,geologists have long   
been familiar with the fact that on the 
northern coast of ,sicily1 between      
,termini on the east1 and ,trapani on   
the west1 there are several caves       
containing the bones of extinct animals4
 ,these caves are situated in rocks of  
,hippurite limestone1 a member of the   
,cretaceous series1 and some of them may
 be seen on both sides of the ,bay of   
,palermo4 ,if in the neighbourhood of   
that city we proceed from the sea       

inland1 ascending a sloping terrace1    
composed of the marine ,newer ,pliocene 
strata1 we reach about a mile from the  
shore1 and at the height of about #ahj  
feet above it a precipice of limestone1 
at the base of which appear the         
entrances of several caves4 ,in that of 
,san ,ciro1 on the east side of the bay1
 we find at the bottom sand with marine 
shells1 forty species of which have been
 examined1 and found almost all to agree
 specifically with mollusca now         
inhabiting the ,mediterranean4 ,higher  
in position1 and resting on the sand1 is
 a breccia1 composed of pieces of       
limestone1 quartz1 and schist in a      
matrix of brown marl1 through which land
 shells are dispersed1 together with    
bones of two species of hippopotamus1 as
 determined by ,dr4 ,falconer4 ,certain 
bones of the skeleton were counted in   
such numbers as to prove that they must 
have belonged to several hundred        
individuals4 ,with these were associated
 the remains of ,elephas antiquus1 and  

bones of the genera ,bos1 ,cervus1 ,sus1
 ,ursus1 ,canis1 and a large ,felis4    
,some of these bones have been rolled as
 if partially subjected to the action of
 water1 and may have been introduced by 
streams through rents in the ,hippurite 
limestone2 but there is now no running  
water in the neighbourhood1 no river    
such as the hippopotamus might frequent1
 not even a small brook1 so that the    
physical geography of the district must 
have been altogether changed since the  
time when such remains were swept into  
fissures1 or into the channels of       
engulfed rivers4  ,no proofs seem yet to
 have been found of the existence of    
,man at the period when the hippopotamus
 and ,elephas antiquus flourished at    
,san ,ciro4 ,but there is another cave  
called the ,grotto di ,maccagnone1 which
 much resembles it in geological        
position1 on the opposite or west side  
of the ,bay of ,palermo1 near ,carini4  
,in the bottom of this cave a bone      
deposit like that of ,san ,ciro occurs1 

and above it other materials reaching to
 the roof1 and evidently washed in from 
above1 through crevices in the          
limestone4 ,in this upper and newer     
breccia ,dr4 ,falconer discovered flint 
knives1 bone splinters1 bits of         
charcoal1 burnt clay1 and other objects 
indicating human intervention1 mingled  
with entire land shells1 teeth of       
horses1 coprolites of hyaenas1 and other
 bones1 the whole agglutinated to one   
another and to the roof by the          
infiltration of water holding lime in   
solution4 ,the perfect condition of the 
large fragile helices 7,helix           
vermiculata7 afforded satisfactory      
evidence1 says ,dr4 ,falconer1 that the 
various articles were carried into the  
cave by the tranquil agency of water1   
and not by any tumultuous action4 ,at a 
subsequent period other geographical    
changes took place1 so that the cave1   
after it had been filled1 was washed out
 again1 or emptied of its contents with 
the exception of those patches of       

breccia which1 being cemented together  
by stalactite1 still adhere to the      
roof499       799 ,quarterly ,journal of
 the ,geological ,society volume #af    
#ahfj page #aje47  ,baron ,anca1        
following up these investigations1      
explored1 in #ahei1 another cave at     
,mondello1 west of ,palermo1 and north  
of ,mount ,gallo1 where he discovered   
molars of the living ,african elephant1 
and afterwards additional specimens of  
the same species in the neighbouring    
grotto of ,olivella4 ,in reference to   
this elephant1 ,dr4 ,falconer has       
reminded us that the distance between   
the nearest part of ,sicily and the     
coast of ,africa1 between ,marsala and  
,cape ,bon1 is not more than #hj miles1 
and ,admiral ,smyth1 in his ,memoir on  
the ,mediterranean1 states 7page #dii7  
that there is a subaqueous plateau1     
named by him ,adventure ,bank1 uniting  
,sicily to ,africa by a succession of   
ridges which are not more than from #dj 
to #ej fathoms under water499       799 

,cited by ,horner1 ,presidential        
,address to the ,geological             
,society #ahfa page #db47  ,sicily      
therefore might be re-united to ,africa 
by movements of upheaval not greater    
than those which are already known to   
have taken place within the human period
 on the borders of the ,mediterranean1  
of which ,i shall now proceed to cite a 
well-authenticated example1 observed in 
,sardinia4   ,,rise ,,of ,,the ,,bed    
,,of ,,the ,,sea ,,to ,,the ,,height    
,,of #cjj ,,feet1 ,,in ,,the ,,human    
,,period1 ,,in ,,sardinia4  ,count      
,albert de la ,marmora1 in his          
description of the geology of           
,sardinia199 has shown that on the      
southern coast of that island1 at       
,cagliari and in the neighbourhood1 an  
ancient bed of the sea1 containing      
marine shells of living species1 and    
numerous fragments of antique pottery1  
has been elevated to the height of from 
#bcj to #cbd feet above the present     
level of the ,mediterranean4       799  

,partie ,geologique volume #a pages #chb
 and #chg47  ,oysters and other shells1 
of which a careful list has been        
published1 including the common mussel  
7,mytilus edulis71 many of them having  
both valves united1 occur1 embedded in a
 breccia in which fragments of limestone
 abound4 ,the mussels are often in such 
numbers as to impart1 when they have    
decomposed1 a violet colour to the      
marine stratum4 ,besides pieces of      
coarse pottery1 a flattened ball of     
baked earthenware1 with a hole through  
its axis1 was found in the midst of the 
marine shells4 ,it is supposed to have  
been used for weighting a fishing net4  
,of this and of one of the fragments of 
ancient pottery ,count de la ,marmora   
has given figures4  ,the upraised bed of
 the sea probably belongs in this       
instance to the ,pleistocene period1 for
 in a bone breccia1 filling fissures in 
the rocks around ,cagliari1 the remains 
of extinct mammalia have been detected2 
among which is a new genus of           

carnivorous quadruped1 named            
,cynotherium by ,m4 ,studiati1 and      
figured by ,count de la ,marmora in his 
,atlas 7,plate #g71 also an extinct     
species of ,lagomys1 determined by      
,cuvier in #ahbe4 ,embedded in the same 
bone-breccia1 and enveloped with red    
earth like the mammalian remains1 were  
detected shells of the ,mytilus edulis  
before mentioned1 implying that the     
marine formation containing shells and  
pottery had been already upheaved and   
exposed to denudation before the remains
 of quadrupeds were washed into these   
rents and included in the red earth4 ,in
 the vegetable soil covering the        
upraised marine stratum1 fragments of   
,roman pottery occur4  ,if we assume the
 average rate of upheaval to have been1 
as before hinted1 #b #a_/b feet in a    
century1 #cjj feet would give an        
antiquity of #ab1jjj years to the       
,cagliari pottery1 even if we simply    
confine our estimate to the upheaval    
above the sea-level1 without allowing   

for the original depth of water in which
 the mollusca lived4 ,even then our     
calculation would merely embrace the    
period during which the upward movement 
was going on2 and we can form at present
 no conjecture as to the probable era of
 its commencement or termination4  ,i   
learn from ,captain ,spratt1 ,r4,n41    
that the island of ,crete or ,candia1   
about #ace miles in length1 has been    
raised at its western extremity about   
#be feet2 so that ancient ports are now 
high and dry above the sea1 while at its
 eastern end it has sunk so much that   
the ruins of old towns are seen under   
water4 ,revolutions like these in the   
physical geography of the countries     
bordering the ,mediterranean1 may well  
help us to understand the phenomena of  
the ,palermo caves1 and the presence in 
,sicily of ,african species of mammalia4
   ,,climate ,,and ,,habits ,,of ,,the  
,,hippopotamus4  ,as ,i have alluded    
more than once in this chapter to the   
occurrence of the remains of the        

hippopotamus in places where there are  
now no rivers1 not even a rill of water1
 and as other bones of the same genus   
have been met with in the lower-level   
gravels of the ,somme where large blocks
 of sandstone seem to imply that ice    
once played a part in their             
transportation1 it may be well to       
consider1 before proceeding farther1    
what geographical and climatal          
conditions are indicated by the presence
 of these fossil pachyderms4  ,it is now
 very generally conceded that the       
mammoth and tichorhine rhinoceros were  
fitted to inhabit northern regions1 and 
it is therefore natural to begin by     
asking whether the extinct hippopotamus 
may not in like manner have flourished  
in a cold climate4 ,in answer to this   
inquiry1 it has been remarked that the  
living hippopotami1 anatomically        
speaking so closely allied to the       
extinct species1 are so aquatic and     
fluviatile in their habits as to make it
 difficult to conceive that their       

congeners could have thriven all the    
year round in regions where1 during     
winter1 the rivers were frozen over for 
months4 ,moreover1 ,i have been unable  
to learn that1 in any instance1 bones of
 the hippopotamus have been found in the
 drift of northern ,germany associated  
with the remains of the mammoth1        
tichorhine rhinoceros1 musk-ox1         
reindeer1 lemming1 and other arctic     
quadrupeds before alluded to2 yet1      
though not proved to have ever made a   
part of such a fauna1 the presence of   
the fossil hippopotamus north of the    
fiftieth parallel of latitude naturally 
tempts us to speculate on the migratory 
powers and instincts of some of the     
extinct species of the genus4 ,they may 
have resembled1 in this respect1 the    
living musk-ox1 herds of which pass for 
hundreds of miles over the ice to the   
rich pastures of ,melville ,island1 and 
then return again to southern latitudes 
before the ice breaks up4  ,we are      
indebted to ,sir ,andrew ,smith199 an   

experienced zoologist1 for having given 
us an account of the migratory habits of
 the living hippopotamus of ,southern   
,africa 7,h4 amphibius1 ,linn474        
799 ,illustrations of the ,zoology of   
,south ,africa3 article                 
,hippopotamus47  ,he states that1 when  
the ,dutch first colonised the ,cape of 
,good ,hope1 this animal abounded in all
 the great rivers1 as far south as the  
land extends2 whereas1 in #ahdi1 they   
had all disappeared1 scarcely one       
remaining even within a moderate        
distance of the colony4 ,he also tells  
us that this species evinces great      
sagacity in changing its quarters       
whenever danger threatens1 quitting     
every district invaded by settlers      
bearing fire-arms4 ,bulky as they are1  
they can travel speedily for miles over 
land from one pool of a dried-up river  
to another2 but it is by water that     
their powers of locomotion are          
surpassingly great1 not only in rivers1 
but in the sea1 for they are far from   

confining themselves to fresh water4    
,indeed1 ,sir ,a4 ,smith finds it       
difficult to decide whether1 during the 
daytime and when not feeding1 they      
prefer the pools of rivers or the waters
 of the ocean for their abode4 ,in      
districts where they have been disturbed
 by ,man1 they feed almost entirely in  
the night1 chiefly on certain kinds of  
grass1 but also on brushwood4 ,sir ,a4  
,smith relates that1 in an expedition   
which he made north of ,port ,natal1 he 
found them swarming in all the rivers   
about the tropic of ,capricorn4 ,here   
they were often seen to have left their 
footprints on the sands1 entering or    
coming out of the salt water2 and on one
 occasion ,smith's party tried in vain  
to intercept a female with her young as 
she was making her way to the sea4      
,another female1 which they had wounded 
on her precipitate retreat to the sea1  
was afterwards shot in that element4    
,the geologist1 therefore1 may freely   
speculate on the time when herds of     

hippopotami issued from ,north ,african 
rivers1 such as the ,nile1 and swam     
northwards in summer along the coasts of
 the ,mediterranean1 or even            
occasionally visited islands near the   
shore4 ,here and there they may have    
landed to graze or browse1 tarrying     
awhile and afterwards continuing their  
course northwards4 ,others may have swum
 in a few summer days from rivers in the
 south of ,spain or ,france to the      
,somme1 ,thames1 or ,severn1 making     
timely retreat to the south before the  
snow and ice set in4   ,,burial-,,place 
,,at ,,aurignac1 ,,in ,,the ,,south ,,of
 ,,france1 ,,of ,,pleistocene ,,date4   
,i have alluded in the beginning of the 
fourth chapter to a custom prevalent    
among rude nations of consigning to the 
tomb works of art1 once the property of 
the dead1 or objects of their affection1
 and even of storing up1 in many cases1 
animal food destined for the manes of   
the defunct in a future life4 ,i also   
cited ,m4 ,desnoyers' comments on the   

absence among the bones of wild and     
domestic animals found in old ,gaulish  
tombs of all intermixture of extinct    
species of quadrupeds1 as proving that  
the oldest sepulchral monuments then    
known in ,france 7#ahde7 had no claims  
to high antiquity founded on            
palaeontological data4  ,m4 ,lartet1    
however1 has recently published a       
circumstantial account of what seems    
clearly to have been a sepulchral vault 
of the ,pleistocene period1 near        
,aurignac1 not far from the foot of the 
,pyrenees4 ,i have had the advantage of 
inspecting the fossil bones and works of
 art obtained by him from that grotto1  
and of conversing and corresponding with
 him on the subject1 and can see no     
grounds for doubting the soundness of   
his conclusions499       799 ,see       
,lartet1 ,annales des ,sci4 ,nat4 #dmo4 
,ser4 ,zoologie      volume #ae page    
#agg translated in ,natural ,history    
,review      ,london ,january #ahfb47   
,illustration3 ,figure #be4 ,hill of    

,fajoles    7,,figure #be4 ,,section    
,,of ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,hill ,,of      
,,fajoles ,,passing ,,through    ,,the  
,,sepulchral ,,grotto ,,of ,,aurignac   
7,e4 ,lartet74    a4 ,part of the vault 
in which the remains of seventeen human 
skeletons were found4   b4 ,layer of    
made ground1 two feet thick1 inside the 
grotto in     which a few human bones1  
with entire bones of extinct and        
living species of animals1 and many     
works of art were embedded4   c4 ,layers
 of ashes and charcoal1 six inches      
thick1 with broken1     burnt1 and      
gnawed bones of extinct and ,recent     
mammalia2 also     hearth-stones and    
works of art2 no human bones4   d4      
,deposit with similar contents and a few
 scattered cinders4   e4 ,talus of      
rubbish washed down from the hill above4
   f1 g4 ,slab of rock which closed the 
vault1 not ascertained     whether it   
extended to h4   f i4 ,rabbit burrow    
which led to the discovery of the       
grotto4   h1 k4 ,original terrace on    

which the grotto opened4   ,n4          
,nummulitic limestone of hill of        
,fajoles47  ,the town of ,aurignac is   
situated in the department of the       
,haute-,garonne1 near a spur of the     
,pyrenees2 adjoining it is the small    
flat-topped hill of ,fajoles1 about #fj 
feet above the brook called ,rodes1     
which flows at its foot on one side4 ,it
 consists of ,nummulitic limestone1     
presenting a steep escarpment towards   
the north-west1 on which side in the    
face of the rock1 about #de feet above  
the brook1 is now visible the entrance  
of a grotto a1 ,figure #be1 which opened
 originally on the terrace h1 c1 k1     
which slopes gently towards the valley4 
,until the year #aheb1 the opening into 
this grotto was masked by a talus of    
small fragments of limestone and earthy 
matter e1 such as the rain may have     
washed down the slope of the hill4 ,in  
that year a labourer named ,bonnemaison1
 employed in repairing the roads1       
observed that rabbits1 when hotly       

pursued by the sportsman1 ran into a    
hole which they had burrowed in the     
talus1 at i f1 ,figure #be4 ,on reaching
 as far into the opening as the length  
of his arm1 he drew out1 to his         
surprise1 one of the long bones of the  
human skeleton2 and his curiosity being 
excited1 and having a suspicion that the
 hole communicated with a subterranean  
cavity1 he commenced digging a trench   
through the middle of the talus1 and in 
a few hours found himself opposite a    
large heavy slab of rock f h1 placed    
vertically against the entrance4 ,having
 removed this1 he discovered on the     
other side of it an arched cavity a1 #g 
or #h feet in its greatest height1 #aj  
in width1 and #g in horizontal depth4   
,it was almost filled with bones1 among 
which were two entire skulls1 which he  
recognised at once as human4 ,the people
 of ,aurignac1 astonished to hear of the
 occurrence of so many human relics in  
so lonely a spot1 flocked to the cave1  
and ,dr4 ,amiel1 the ,mayor1 ordered all

 the bones to be taken out and          
reinterred in the parish cemetery4 ,but 
before this was done1 having as a       
medical man a knowledge of anatomy1 he  
ascertained by counting the homologous  
bones that they must have formed parts  
of no less than seventeen skeletons of  
both sexes1 and all ages2 some so young 
that the ossification of some of the    
bones was incomplete4 ,unfortunately the
 skulls were injured in the transfer2   
and what is worse1 after the lapse of   
eight years1 when ,m4 ,lartet visited   
,aurignac1 the village sexton was unable
 to tell him in what exact place the    
trench was dug1 into which the skeletons
 had been thrown1 so that this rich     
harvest of ethnological knowledge seems 
for ever lost to the antiquary and      
geologist4  ,m4 ,lartet having been     
shown1 in #ahfj1 the remains of some    
extinct animals and works of art1 found 
in digging the original trench made by  
,bonnemaison through the bed d under the
 talus1 and some others brought out from

 the interior of the grotto1 determined 
to investigate systematically what      
remained intact of the deposits outside 
and inside the vault1 those inside1     
underlying the human skeletons1 being   
supposed to consist entirely of made    
ground4 ,having obtained the assistance 
of some intelligent workmen1 he         
personally superintended their labours1 
and found outside the grotto1 resting on
 the sloping terrace h k1 the layer of  
ashes and charcoal c1 about #f inches   
thick1 extending over an area of #f or  
#g square yards1 and going as far as the
 entrance of the grotto and no farther1 
there being no cinders or charcoal in   
the interior4 ,among the cinders outside
 the vault were fragments of fissile    
sandstone1 reddened by heat1 which were 
observed to rest on a levelled surface  
of ,nummulitic limestone and to have    
formed a hearth4 ,the nearest place from
 whence such slabs of sandstone could   
have been brought was the opposite side 
of the valley4  ,among the ashes1 and in

 some overlying earthy layers1 d1       
separating the ashes from the talus e1  
were a great variety of bones and       
implements2 amongst the latter not fewer
 than a hundred flint articles--knives1 
projectiles1 sling stones1 and chips1   
and among them one of those siliceous   
cores or nuclei with numerous facets1   
from which flint flakes or knives had   
been struck off1 seeming to prove that  
some instruments were occasionally      
manufactured on the very spot4  ,among  
other articles outside the entrance was 
found a stone of a circular form1 and   
flattened on two sides1 with a central  
depression1 composed of a tough rock    
which does not belong to that region of 
the ,pyrenees4 ,this instrument is      
supposed by the ,danish antiquaries to  
have been used for removing by skilful  
blows the edges of flint knives1 the    
fingers and thumb being placed in the   
two opposite depressions during the     
operation4 ,among the bone instruments  
were arrows without barbs1 and other    

tools made of reindeer horn1 and a      
bodkin formed out of the more compact   
horn of the roedeer4 ,this instrument   
was well shaped1 and sharply pointed1   
and in so good a state of preservation  
that it might still be used for piercing
 the tough skins of animals4  ,scattered
 through the same ashes and earth were  
the bones of the various species of     
animals enumerated in the subjoined     
lists1 with the exception of two1 marked
 with an asterisk1 which only occurred  
in the interior of the grotto3--        
,,table #aj_/a4 ,,numbers ,,of          
,,individuals1 ,,bones ,,of ,,which     
,,were ,,found ,,in ,,the ,,aurignac    
,,cave4     ,,column #a3 ,,name ,,of    
,,species4     ,,column #b3 ,,number    
,,of ,,individuals4     #a4 ,,carnivora 
#a4 ,ursus spelaeus 7cave-bear73 #e to  
#f4    #b4 ,ursus arctos8 7brown bear73 
#a4    #c4 ,meles taxus 7badger73 #a to 
#b4    #d4 ,putorius vulgaris 7polecat73
 #a4    #e4 99,felis spelaea            
7cave-lion73 #a4    #f4 ,felis catus    

ferus 7wild cat73 #a4    #g4 ,hyaena    
spelaea 7cave-hyaena73 #e to #f4    #h4 
,canis lupus 7wolf73 #c4    #i4 ,canis  
vulpes 7fox73 #ah to #bj4     #b4       
,,herbivora4     #a4 ,elephas           
primigenius 7mammoth1 two molars74      
#b4 ,rhinoceros tichorhinus 7,siberian  
rhinoceros73 #a4    #c4 ,equus caballus 
7horse73 #ab to #ae4    #d4 ,equus      
asinus 787 7ass73 #a4    #e4 99,sus     
scrofa 7pig1 two incisors74    #f4      
,cervus elaphus 7stag73 #a4    #g4      
,megaceros hibernicus 7gigantic ,irish  
deer73 #a4    #h4 ,c4 capreolus         
7roebuck73 #c to #d4    #i4 ,c4 tarandus
 7reindeer73 #aj to #ab4    #aj4 ,bison 
europaeus 7aurochs73 #ab to #ae4  ,the  
bones of the herbivora were the most    
numerous1 and all those on the outside  
of the grotto which had contained marrow
 were invariably split open1 as if for  
its extraction1 many of them being also 
burnt4 ,the spongy parts1 moreover1 were
 wanting1 having been eaten off and     
gnawed after they were broken1 the work1

 according to ,m4 ,lartet1 of hyaenas1  
the bones and coprolites of which were  
mixed with the cinders1 and dispersed   
through the overlying soil d4 ,these    
beasts of prey are supposed to have     
prowled about the spot and fed on such  
relics of the funeral feasts as remained
 after the retreat of the human         
visitors1 or during the intervals       
between successive funeral ceremonies   
which accompanied the interment of the  
corpses within the sepulchre4 ,many of  
the bones were also streaked1 as if the 
flesh had been scraped off by a flint   
instrument4  ,among the various proofs  
that the bones were fresh when brought  
to the spot1 it is remarked that those  
of the herbivora not only bore the marks
 of having had the marrow extracted and 
having afterwards been gnawed and in    
part devoured as if by carnivorous      
beasts1 but that they had also been     
acted upon by fire 7and this was        
especially noticed in one case of a     
cave-bear's bone71 in such a manner as  

to show that they retained in them at   
the time all their animal matter4       
,among other quadrupeds which appear to 
have been eaten at the funeral feasts1  
and of which the bones occurred among   
the ashes1 were those of a young        
,rhinoceros tichorhinus1 the bones of   
which had been1 like those of the       
accompanying herbivora1 broken and      
gnawed by a beast of prey at both       
extremities4  ,outside of the great slab
 of stone forming the door1 not one     
human bone occurred2 inside of it there 
were found1 mixed with loose soil1 the  
remains of as many as seventeen human   
individuals1 besides some works of art  
and bones of animals4 ,we know nothing  
of the arrangement of these bones when  
they were first broken into4 ,m4 ,lartet
 inferred at first that the bodies were 
bent down upon themselves in a squatting
 attitude1 a posture known to have been 
adopted in most of the sepulchres of    
primitive times2 and he has so          
represented them in his restoration of  

the cave3 but this opinion he has since 
retracted4 ,his artist also has         
inadvertently1 in the same drawing1     
delineated the arched grotto as if it   
were shaped very regularly and smoothly1
 like a finished piece of masonry1      
whereas the surface was in truth as     
uneven and irregular as are the roofs of
 all natural grottos4  ,there was no    
stalagmite in the grotto1 and ,m4       
,lartet1 an experienced investigator of 
ossiferous caverns in the south of      
,france1 came to the conclusion that all
 the bones and soil found in the inside 
were artificially introduced4 ,the      
substratum b1 ,figure #be1 which        
remained after the skeletons had been   
removed1 was about #b feet thick4 ,in it
 were found about ten detached human    
bones1 including a molar tooth2 and ,m4 
,delesse ascertained by careful analysis
 of one of these1 as well as of the     
bones of a rhinoceros1 bear1 and some   
other extinct animals1 that they all    
contained precisely the same proportion 

of nitrogen1 or had lost an equal amount
 of their animal matter4 ,my friend ,mr4
 ,evans1 before cited1 has suggested to 
me that such a fact1 taken alone1 may   
not be conclusive in favour of the equal
 antiquity of the human and other       
remains4 ,no doubt1 had the human       
skeletons been found to contain more    
gelatine than those of the extinct      
mammalia1 it would have shown that they 
were the more modern of the two2 but it 
is possible that after a bone has gone  
on losing its animal matter up to a     
certain point1 it may then part with no 
more so long as it continues enveloped  
in the same matrix4 ,if this be so1 it  
follows that bones of very different    
degrees of antiquity1 after they have   
lain for many thousands of years in a   
particular soil1 may all have reached   
long ago the maximum of decomposition   
attainable in such a matrix4 ,in the    
present case1 however1 the proof of the 
contemporaneousness of ,man and the     
extinct animals does not depend simply  

on the identity of their mineral        
condition4 ,the chemical analysis of ,m4
 ,delesse is only a fact in             
corroboration of a great mass of other  
evidence4  ,mixed with the human bones  
inside the grotto first removed by      
,bonnemaison1 were eighteen small1      
round1 and flat plates of a white shelly
 substance1 made of some species of     
cockle 7,cardium71 pierced through the  
middle as if for being strung into a    
bracelet4 ,in the substratum also in the
 interior examined by ,m4 ,lartet was   
found the tusk of a young ,ursus        
spelaeus1 the crown of which had been   
stripped of its enamel1 and which had   
been carved perhaps in imitation of the 
head of a bird4 ,it was perforated      
lengthwise as if for suspension as an   
ornament or amulet4 ,a flint knife also 
was found in the interior which had     
evidently never been used2 in this      
respect1 unlike the numerous worn       
specimens found outside1 so that it is  
conjectured that it may1 like other     

associated works of art1 have been      
placed there as part of the funeral     
ceremonies4  ,a few teeth of the        
cave-lion1 ,felis spelaea1 and two tusks
 of the wild boar1 also found in the    
interior1 were memorials perhaps of the 
chase4 ,no remains of the same animals  
were met with among the external relics4
  ,on the whole1 the bones of animals   
inside the vault offer a remarkable     
contrast to those of the exterior1 being
 all entire and uninjured1 none of them 
broken1 gnawed1 half-eaten1 scraped1 or 
burnt like those lying among the ashes  
on the other side of the great slab     
which formed the portal4 ,the bones of  
the interior seem to have been clothed  
with their flesh when buried in the     
layer of loose soil strewed over the    
floor4 ,in confirmation of this idea1   
many bones of the skeleton were often   
observed to be in juxtaposition1 and in 
one spot all the bones of the leg of an 
,ursus spelaeus were lying together     
uninjured4 ,add to this1 the entire     

absence in the interior of cinders and  
charcoal1 and we can scarcely doubt that
 we have here an example of an ancient  
place of sepulture1 closed at the       
opening so effectually against the      
hyaenas or other carnivora that no marks
 of their teeth appear on any of the    
bones1 whether human or brute4  ,john   
,carver1 in his travels in the interior 
of ,north ,america in a #agff-fh        
7chapter #ae471 gave a minute account of
 the funeral rites of an ,indian tribe  
which inhabited the country now called  
,iowa1 at the junction of the ,st4      
,peter's ,river with the ,mississippi2  
and ,schiller1 in his famous            
,nadowessische ,todtenklage1 has        
faithfully embodied in a poetic dirge   
all the characteristic features of the  
ceremonies so graphically described by  
the ,english traveller1 not omitting the
 many funeral gifts which1 we are told1 
were placed in a cave with the bodies of
 the dead4 ,the lines beginning1        
,bringet her die letzten ,gaben1 have   

been thus translated1 truthfully1 and   
with all the spirit of the original1 by 
,sir ,e4 ,l4 ,bulwer993--       ,here   
bring the last gifts6--and with these   
,the last lament be said2      ,let all 
that pleased1 and yet may please1       
,be buried with the dead4       ,beneath
 his head the hatchet hide1      ,that  
he so stoutly swung2      ,and place the
 bear's fat haunch beside--      ,the   
journey hence is long6       ,and let   
the knife new sharpened be      ,that on
 the battle-day      ,shore with quick  
strokes--he took but three--      ,the  
foeman's scalp away6       ,the paints  
that warriors love to use1      ,place  
here within his hand1      ,that he may 
shine with ruddy hues      ,amidst the  
spirit-land4       799 ,poems and       
,ballads of ,schiller47  ,if we accept  
,m4 ,lartet's interpretation of the     
ossiferous deposits of ,aurignac1 both  
inside and outside the grotto1 they add 
nothing to the palaeontological evidence
 in favour of ,man's antiquity1 for we  

have seen all the same mammalia         
associated elsewhere with flint         
implements1 and some species1 such as   
the ,elephas antiquus1 ,rhinoceros      
hemitoechus1 and ,hippopotamus major1   
missing here1 have been met with in     
other places4 ,an argument1 however1    
having an opposite leaning may perhaps  
be founded on the phenomena of          
,aurignac4 ,it may--indeed it has been  
said1 that they imply that some of the  
extinct mammalia survived nearly to our 
times3  ,first--,because of the modern  
style of the works of art at ,aurignac4 
,secondly--,because of the absence of   
any signs of change in the physical     
geography of the country since the cave 
was used for a place of sepulture4  ,in 
reference to the first of these         
propositions1 the utensils1 it is said1 
of bone and stone indicate a more       
advanced state of the arts than the     
flint implements of ,abbeville and      
,amiens4 ,m4 ,lartet1 however1 is of    
opinion that they do not1 and thinks    

that we have no right to assume that the
 fabricators of the various spear-headed
 and other tools of the ,valley of the  
,somme possessed no bone instruments or 
ornaments resembling those discovered at
 ,aurignac4 ,these last1 moreover1 he   
regards as extremely rude in comparison 
with others of the stone period in      
,france1 which can be proved            
palaeontologically1 at least by strong  
negative evidence1 to be of subsequent  
date4 ,thus1 for example1 at ,savigne1  
near ,civray1 in the department of      
,vienne1 there is a cave in which there 
are no extinct mammalia1 but where      
remains of the reindeer abound4 ,the    
works of art of the stone period found  
there indicate considerable progress in 
skill beyond that attested by the       
objects found in the ,aurignac grotto4  
,among the ,savigne articles1 there is  
the bone of a stag1 on which figures of 
two animals1 apparently meant for deer1 
are engraved in outline1 as if by a     
sharp-pointed flint4 ,in another cave1  

that of ,massat1 in the department of   
,ariege1 which ,m4 ,lartet ascribes to  
the period of the aurochs1 a quadruped  
which survived the reindeer in the south
 of ,france1 there are bone instruments 
of a still more advanced state of the   
arts1 as1 for example1 barbed arrows    
with a small canal in each1 believed to 
have served for the insertion of poison2
 also a needle of bird's bone1 finely   
shaped1 with an eye or perforation at   
one end1 and a stag's horn1 on which is 
carved a representation of a bear's     
head1 and a hole at one end as if for   
suspending it4 ,in this figure we see1  
says ,m4 ,lartet1 what may perhaps be   
the earliest known example of lines used
 to express shading4  ,the fauna of the 
aurochs 7,bison europaeus7 agrees with  
that of the earlier lake dwellings in   
,switzerland1 in which hitherto the     
reindeer is wanting2 whereas the        
reindeer has been found in a ,swiss     
cave1 in ,mont ,saleve1 supposed by     
,lartet to be more ancient than the lake

 dwellings4  ,according to this view1   
the mammalian fauna has undergone at    
least two fluctuations since the remains
 of some extinct quadrupeds were eaten1 
and others buried as funeral gifts in   
the sepulchral vault of ,aurignac4  ,as 
to the absence of any marked changes in 
the physical configuration of the       
district since the same grotto was a    
place of sepulture1 we must remember    
that it is the normal state of the      
earth's surface to be undergoing great  
alterations in one place1 while other   
areas1 often in close proximity1 remain 
for ages without any modification4 ,in  
one region1 rivers are deepening and    
widening their channels1 or the waves of
 the sea are undermining cliffs1 or the 
land is sinking beneath or rising above 
the waters1 century after century1 or   
the volcano is pouring forth torrents of
 lava or showers of ashes2 while1 in    
tracts hard by1 the ancient forest1 or  
extensive heath1 or the splendid city   
continue scatheless and motionless4 ,had

 the talus which concealed from view the
 ancient hearth with its cinders and the
 massive stone portal of the ,aurignac  
grotto escaped all human interference   
for thousands of years to come1 there is
 no reason to suppose that the small    
stream at the foot of the hill of       
,fajoles would have undermined it4 ,at  
the end of a long period the only       
alteration might have been the          
thickening of the talus which protected 
the loose cinders and bones from waste4 
,we behold in many a valley of          
,auvergne1 within #ej feet of the       
present river channel1 a volcanic cone  
of loose ashes1 with a crater at its    
summit1 from which powerful currents of 
basaltic lava have poured1 usurping the 
ancient bed of the torrent4 ,by the     
action of the stream1 in the course of  
ages1 vast masses of the hard columnar  
basalt have been removed1 pillar after  
pillar1 and much vesicular lava1 as in  
the case1 for example1 of the ,puy      
,rouge1 near ,chalucet1 and of the ,puy 

de ,tartaret1 near ,nechers499       799
 ,scrope's ,volcanoes of ,central       
,france #aheh page #ig47  ,the rivers   
have even in some cases1 as the ,sioule1
 near ,chalucet1 cut through not only   
the basalt which dispossessed them of   
their ancient channels1 but have        
actually eaten #ej feet into the        
subjacent gneiss2 yet the cone1 an      
incoherent heap of scoriae and spongy   
ejectamenta1 stands unmolested4 ,had the
 waters once risen1 even for a day1 so  
high as to reach the level of the base  
of one of these cones--had there been a 
single flood #ej or #fj feet in height  
since the last eruption occurred1 a     
great part of these volcanoes must      
inevitably have been swept away as      
readily as all traces of the layer of   
cinders2 and the accompanying bones     
would have been obliterated by the      
,rodes near ,aurignac1 had it risen1    
since the days of the mammoth1          
rhinoceros1 and cave-bear1 #ej feet     
above its present level4  ,the ,aurignac

 cave adds no new species to the list of
 extinct quadrupeds1 which we have      
elsewhere1 and by independent evidence1 
ascertained to have once flourished     
contemporaneously with ,man4 ,but if the
 fossil memorials have been correctly   
interpreted--if we have here before us  
at the northern base of the ,pyrenees a 
sepulchral vault with skeletons of human
 beings1 consigned by friends and       
relatives to their last                 
resting-place--if we have also at the   
portal of the tomb the relics of funeral
 feasts1 and within it indications of   
viands destined for the use of the      
departed on their way to a land of      
spirits2 while among the funeral gifts  
are weapons wherewith in other fields to
 chase the gigantic deer1 the cave-lion1
 the cave-bear1 and woolly              
rhinoceros--we have at last succeeded in
 tracing back the sacred rites of       
burial1 and1 more interesting still1 a  
belief in a future state1 to times long 
anterior to those of history and        

tradition4 ,rude and superstitious as   
may have been the savage of that remote 
era1 he still deserved1 by cherishing   
hopes of a hereafter1 the epithet of    
noble1 which ,dryden gave to what he    
seems to have pictured to himself as the
 primitive condition of our race1       
as ,nature first made ,man      ,when   
wild in woods the noble savage ran499   
799 ,siege of ,granada ,part #a ,act #a 
,scene #a47    ,,chapter #aa4 -- ,,age  
,,of ,,human ,,fossils ,,of ,,le ,,puy  
,,in ,,central ,,france ,,and ,,of      
,,natchez ,,on ,,the ,,mississippi      
,,discussed4       ,question as to the  
,authenticity of the ,fossil ,man of    
,denise1         near ,le               
,puy-en-,velay1 considered4             
,antiquity of the ,human ,race implied  
by that ,fossil4      ,successive       
,periods of ,volcanic ,action in        
,central ,france4      ,with what       
,changes in the ,mammalian ,fauna they  
correspond4      ,the ,elephas          
meridionalis anterior in ,time to the   

,implement-bearing         ,gravel of   
,st4 ,acheul4      ,authenticity of the 
,human ,fossil of ,natchez on the       
,mississippi         discussed4         
,the ,natchez ,deposit1 containing      
,bones of ,mastodon and ,megalonyx1     
probably not older than the ,flint      
,implements of ,st4 ,acheul4  ,among the
 fossil remains of the human species    
supposed to have claims to high         
antiquity1 and which have for many years
 attracted attention1 two of the most   
prominent examples are3--  ,first--,the 
fossil man of ,denise1 comprising the   
remains of more than one skeleton1 found
 in a volcanic breccia near the town of 
,le ,puy-en-,velay1 in ,central ,france4
  ,secondly--,the fossil human bone of  
,natchez1 on the ,mississippi1 supposed 
to have been derived from a deposit     
containing remains of ,mastodon and     
,megalonyx4 ,having carefully examined  
the sites of both of these celebrated   
fossils1 ,i shall consider in this      
chapter the nature of the evidence on   

which the remote date of their          
entombment is inferred4   ,,fossil ,,man
 ,,of ,,denise4  ,an account of the     
fossil remains1 so called1 was first    
published in #ahdd by ,m4 ,aymard of ,le
 ,puy1 a writer of deservedly high      
authority both as a palaeontologist and 
archaeologist499       799 ,bulletin de 
la ,societe ,geologique de ,france      
#ahdd1 #ahde1      #ahdg47  ,m4 ,pictet1
 after visiting ,le ,puy and            
investigating the site of the alleged   
discovery1 was satisfied that the fossil
 bones belonged to the period of the    
last volcanic eruptions of ,velay2 but  
expressly stated in his important       
treatise on palaeontology that this     
conclusion1 though it might imply that  
,man had co-existed with the extinct    
elephant1 did not draw with it the      
admission that the human race was       
anterior in date to the filling of the  
caverns of ,france and ,belgium with the
 bones of extinct mammalia499       799 
,traite de ,paleontologie volume #a     

#ahec page #aeb47  ,at a meeting of the 
,scientific ,congress of ,france1 held  
at ,le ,puy in #ahef1 the question of   
the age of the ,denise fossil bones was 
fully gone into1 and in the report of   
their proceedings published in that     
year1 the opinions of some of the most  
skilful osteologists respecting the     
point in controversy are recorded4 ,the 
late ,abbe ,croizet1 a most experienced 
collector of fossil bones in the        
volcanic regions of ,central ,france1   
and an able naturalist1 and the late ,m4
 ,laurillard1 of ,paris1 who assisted   
,cuvier in modelling many fossil bones1 
and in the arrangement of the museum of 
the ,jardin1 declared their opinion that
 the specimen preserved in the museum of
 ,le ,puy is no counterfeit4 ,they      
believed the human bones to have been   
enveloped by natural causes in the      
tufaceous matrix in which we now see    
them4  ,in the year #ahei1 ,professor   
,hebert and ,m4 ,lartet visited ,le     
,puy1 expressly to investigate the same 

specimen1 and to inquire into the       
authenticity of the bones and their     
geological age4 ,later in the same year1
 ,i went myself to ,le ,puy1 having the 
same object in view1 and had the good   
fortune to meet there my friend ,mr4    
,poulett ,scrope1 with whom ,i examined 
the ,montagne de ,denise1 where a       
peasant related to us how he had dug out
 the specimen with his own hands and in 
his own vineyard1 not far from the      
summit of the volcano4 ,i employed a    
labourer to make under his directions   
some fresh excavations1 following up    
those which had been made a month       
earlier by ,,mm4 ,hebert and ,lartet1 in
 the hope of verifying the true position
 of the fossils1 but all of us without  
success4 ,we failed even to find in situ
 any exact counterpart of the stone of  
the ,le ,puy ,museum4  ,the osseous     
remains of that specimen consist of a   
frontal and some other parts of the     
skull1 including the upper jaw with     
teeth1 both of an adult and young       

individual2 also a radius1 some lumbar  
vertebrae1 and some metatarsal bones4   
,they are all embedded in a light porous
 tuff1 resembling in colour and mineral 
composition the ejectamenta of several  
of the latest eruptions of ,denise4 ,but
 none of the bones penetrate into       
another part of the same specimen1 which
 consists of a more compact rock thickly
 laminated4 ,nevertheless1 ,i agree with
 the ,abbe ,croizet and ,m4 ,aymard1    
that it is not conceivable even that the
 less coherent part of the museum       
,specimen which envelopes the human     
bones should have been artificially put 
together1 whatever may have been the    
origin of certain other slabs of tuff   
which were afterwards sold as coming    
from the same place1 and which also     
contained human remains4 ,whether some  
of these were spurious or not is a      
question more difficult to decide4 ,one 
of them1 now in the possession of ,m4   
,pichot-,dumazel1 an advocate of ,le    
,puy1 is suspected of having had some   

plaster of ,paris introduced into it to 
bind the bones more firmly together in  
the loose volcanic tuff4 ,i was assured 
that a dealer in objects of natural     
history at ,le ,puy had been in the     
habit of occasionally securing the      
cohesion in that manner of fragments of 
broken bones1 and the juxtaposition of  
uninjured ones found free and detachable
 in loose volcanic tuffs4 ,from this to 
the fabrication of a factitious human   
fossil was1 it is suggested1 but a short
 step4 ,but in reference to ,m4         
,pichot's specimen1 an expert anatomist 
remarked to me that it would far exceed 
the skill1 whether of the peasant who   
owned the vineyard or of the dealer     
above mentioned1 to put together in     
their true position all the thirty-eight
 bones of the hand and fingers1 or the  
sixteen of the wrist1 without making any
 mistake1 and especially without mixing 
those of the right with the homologous  
bones of the left hand1 assuming that   
they had brought bones1 from some other 

spot1 and then artificially introduced  
them into a mixture of volcanic tuff and
 plaster of ,paris4  ,granting1 however1
 that the high prices given for human   
fossils at ,le ,puy may have led to the 
perpetration of some frauds1 it is still
 an interesting question to consider    
whether the admission of the genuineness
 of a single fossil1 such as that now in
 the museum at ,le ,puy1 would lead us  
to assign a higher antiquity to the     
existence of ,man in ,france than is    
deducible from many other facts         
explained in the last seven chapters4   
,in reference to this point1 ,i may     
observe that although ,i was not able to
 fix with precision the exact bed in the
 volcanic mountain from which the rock  
containing the human bones was taken1   
,m4 ,felix ,robert has1 nevertheless1   
after studying the volcanic alluviums of
 ,denise1 ascertained that1 on the side 
of ,cheyrac and the village of          
,malouteyre1 blocks of tuff frequently  
occur exactly like the one in the       

museum4 ,that tuff he considers a       
product of the latest eruption of the   
volcano4 ,in it have been found the     
remains of ,hyaena spelaea and          
,hippopotamus major4 ,the eruptions of  
steam and gaseous matter which burst    
forth from the crater of ,denise broke  
through laminated ,tertiary clays1 small
 pieces of which1 some of them scarcely 
altered1 others half converted into     
scoriae1 were cast out in abundance1    
while other portions must have been in a
 state of argillaceous mud4 ,showers of 
such materials would be styled by the   
,neapolitans aqueous lava or lava       
d'aqua1 and we may well suppose that    
some human individuals1 if any existed1 
would1 together with wild animals1 be   
occasionally overwhelmed in these tuffs4
 ,from near the place on the mountain   
whence the block with human bones now in
 the museum is said to have come1 a     
stream of lava1 well marked by its      
tabular structure1 flowed down the      
flanks of the hill1 within a few feet of

 the alluvial plain of the ,borne1 a    
small tributary of the ,loire1 on the   
opposite bank of which stands the town  
of ,le ,puy4 ,its continuous extension  
to so low a level clearly shows that the
 valley had already been deepened to    
within a few feet of its present depth  
at the time of the flowing of the lava4 
,we know that the alluvium of the same  
district1 having a similar relation to  
the present geographical outline of the 
valleys1 is of ,pleistocene date1 for it
 contains around ,le ,puy the bones of  
,elephas primigenius and ,rhinoceros    
tichorhinus2 and this affords us a      
palaeontological test of the age of the 
human skeleton of ,denise1 if the latter
 be assumed to be coeval with the lava  
stream above referred to4  ,it is       
important to dwell on this point1       
because some geologists have felt       
disinclined to believe in the           
genuineness of the fossil man of        
,denise1 on the ground that1 if         
conceded1 it would imply that the human 

race was contemporary with an older     
fauna1 or that of the ,elephas          
meridionalis4 ,such a fauna is found    
fossil in another layer of tuff covering
 the slope of ,denise1 opposite to that 
where the museum specimen was exhumed4  
,the quadrupeds obtained from that more 
ancient tuff comprise ,elephas          
meridionalis1 ,hippopotamus major1      
,rhinoceros megarhinus1 ,antilope       
torticornis1 ,hyaena brevirostris1 and  
twelve others of the genera horse1 ox1  
stag1 goat1 tiger1 etc41 all supposed to
 be of extinct species4 ,this tuff1     
found between ,malouteyre and ,polignac1
 ,m4 ,robert regards as the product of a
 much older eruption1 and referable to  
the neighbouring ,montagne de ,st4      
,anne1 a volcano in a much more wasted  
and denuded state than ,denise1 and     
classed by ,m4 ,bertrand de ,doue as of 
intermediate age between the ancient and
 modern cones of ,velay4  ,the fauna to 
which ,elephas meridionalis and its     
associates belong1 can be shown to be of

 anterior date1 in the north of ,france1
 to the flint implements of ,st4        
,acheul1 by the following train of      
reasoning4 ,the valley of the ,seine is 
not only geographically contiguous to   
the valley of the ,somme1 but its       
ancient alluvium contains the same      
mammoth and other fossil species4 ,the  
,eure1 one of the tributaries of the    
,seine1 in its way to join that river1  
flows in a valley which follows a line  
of fault in the ,chalk2 and this valley 
is seen to be comparatively modern1     
because it intersects at ,st4 ,prest1 #d
 miles below ,chartres1 an older valley 
belonging to an anterior system of      
drainage1 which has been filled by a    
more ancient fluviatile alluvium1       
consisting of sand and gravel1 #ij feet 
thick4 ,i have examined the site of this
 older drift1 and the fossils have been 
determined by ,dr4 ,falconer4 ,they     
comprise ,elephas meridionalis1 a       
species of rhinoceros 7not ,r4          
tichorhinus71 and other mammalia        

differing from those of the             
implement-bearing gravels of the ,seine 
and ,somme4 ,the latter1 belonging to   
the period of the mammoth1 might very   
well have been contemporary with the    
modern volcanic eruptions of ,central   
,france2 and we may presume1 even       
without the aid of the ,denise fossil1  
that ,man may have witnessed these4 ,but
 the tuffs and gravels in which the     
,elephas meridionalis are embedded were 
synchronous with an older epoch of      
volcanic action1 to which the cone of   
,st4 ,anne1 near ,le ,puy1 and many     
other mountains of ,m4 ,bertrand de     
,doue's middle period belong1 having    
cones and craters1 which have undergone 
much waste by aqueous erosion4 ,we have 
as yet no proof that ,man witnessed the 
origin of these hills of lava and       
scoriae of the middle phase of volcanic 
action4  ,some surprise was expressed in
 #ahef1 by several of the assembled     
naturalists at ,le ,puy1 that the skull 
of the fossil man of ,denise1 although  

contemporary with the mammoth1 and      
coeval with the last eruptions of the   
,le ,puy volcanoes #ah1 should be of the
 ordinary ,caucasian or ,european type2 
but the observations of ,professor      
,huxley on the ,engis skull1 cited in   
the fifth chapter1 showing the near     
approach of that ancient cranium to the 
,european standard1 will help to remove 
this source of perplexity4   ,,human    
,,fossil ,,of ,,natchez ,,on ,,the      
,,mississippi4  ,i have already alluded 
to ,dr4 ,dowler's attempt to calculate1 
in years1 the antiquity of the human    
skeleton said to have been buried under 
four cypress forests in the delta of the
 ,mississippi1 near ,new ,orleans 7see  
above1 ,chapter #c74 ,in that case no   
remains of extinct animals were found   
associated with those of ,man3 but in   
another part of the basin of the        
,mississippi1 a human bone1 accompanied 
by bones of ,mastodon and ,megalonyx1 is
 supposed to have been washed out of a  
more ancient alluvial deposit4  ,after  

visiting the spot in #ahdf1 ,i described
 the geological position of the bones1  
and discussed their probable age1 with a
 stronger bias1 ,i must confess1 as to  
the antecedent improbability of the     
contemporaneous entombment of ,man and  
the mastodon than any geologist would   
now be justified in entertaining4       
,illustration3 ,figure #bf4 ,alluvial   
,plain of the ,mississippi    7,,figure 
#bf4 ,,section ,,through ,,the          
,,alluvial ,,plain ,,of ,,the           
,,mississippi4    #a4 ,modern alluvium  
of the ,mississippi4   #b4 ,loam or     
loess4   #c4 f4 ,eocene4   #d4          
,cretaceous47  ,in the latitude of      
,vicksburg1 #cb degrees #ej minutes     
north1 the broad1 flat1 alluvial plain  
of the ,mississippi1 a b1 ,figure #bf1  
is bounded on its eastern side by a     
table-land d e1 about #bjj feet higher  
than the river1 and extending #ab miles 
eastward with a gentle upward slope4    
,this elevated platform ends abruptly at
 d1 in a line of perpendicular cliffs or

 bluffs1 the base of which is           
continually undermined by the great     
river4  ,the table-land d-e consists at 
,vicksburg1 through which the annexed   
section1 ,figure #bf1 passes1 of loam1  
overlying the ,tertiary strata f-f4     
,between the loam and the ,tertiary     
formation there is usually a deposit of 
stratified sand and gravel1 containing  
large fragments of silicified corals and
 the wreck of older ,palaeozoic rocks4  
,the age of this underlying drift1 which
 is #adj feet thick at ,natchez1 has not
 yet been determined2 but it may        
possibly belong to the glacial period4  
,natchez is about #hj miles in a        
straight line south of ,vicksburg1 on   
the same left bank of the ,mississippi4 
,here there is a bluff1 the upper #fj   
feet of which consists of a continuous  
portion of the same calcareous loam as  
at ,vicksburg1 equally resembling the   
,rhenish loess in mineral character and 
in being sometimes barren of fossils1   
sometimes so full of them that bleached 

land-shells stand out conspicuously in  
relief in the vertical and weathered    
face of cliffs which form the banks of  
streams1 everywhere intersecting the    
loam4  ,so numerous are the shells that 
,i was able to collect at ,natchez1 in a
 few hours1 in #ahdf1 no less than      
twenty species of the genera ,helix1    
,helicina1 ,pupa1 ,cyclostoma1          
,achatina1 and ,succinea1 all identical 
with shells now living in the same      
country2 and in one place ,i observed   
7as happens also occasionally in the    
valley of the ,rhine7 a passage of the  
loam with land-shells into an underlying
 marly deposit of subaqueous origin1 in 
which shells of the genera ,limnaea1    
,planorbis1 ,paludina1 ,physa1 and      
,cyclas were embedded1 also consisting  
of recent ,american species4 ,such      
deposits1 more distinctly stratified    
than the loam containing land-shells1   
are produced1 as before stated1 in all  
great alluvial plains1 where the river  
shifts its position1 and where marshes1 

ponds1 and lakes are formed in its old  
deserted channels4 ,in this part of     
,america1 however1 it may have happened 
that some of these lakes were caused by 
partial subsidences1 such as were       
witnessed1 during the earthquakes of    
#ahaa-ab1 around ,new ,madrid1 in the   
valley of the ,mississippi4  ,owing to  
the destructible nature of the yellow   
loam1 d e1 ,figure #bf1 every streamlet 
flowing over the platform has cut for   
itself1 in its way to the ,mississippi1 
a deep gully or ravine2 and this erosion
 has of late years1 especially since    
#ahab1 proceeded with accelerated speed1
 ascribable in some degree to the       
partial clearing of the native forest1  
but partly also to the effects of the   
earthquake of #ahaa-ab4 ,by that        
convulsion the region around ,natchez   
was rudely shaken and much fissured4    
,one of the narrow valleys near         
,natchez1 due to this fissuring1 is now 
called the ,mammoth ,ravine4 ,though no 
less than #g miles long1 and in some    

parts #fj feet deep1 ,i was assured by a
 resident proprietor1 ,colonel ,wiley1  
that it had no existence before #ahab4  
,with its numerous ramifications1 it is 
said to have been entirely formed since 
the earthquake at ,new ,madrid4 ,before 
that event1 ,colonel ,wiley had ploughed
 some of the land exactly over a spot   
now traversed by part of this           
water-course4  ,i satisfied myself that 
the ravine had been considerably        
enlarged and lengthened a short time    
before my visit1 and it was then freshly
 undermined and undergoing constant     
waste4 ,from a clayey deposit           
immediately below the yellow loam1 bones
 of the ,mastodon ohioticus1 a species  
of ,megalonyx1 bones of the genera      
,equus1 ,bos1 and others1 some of       
extinct and others presumed to be of    
living species1 had been detached1 and  
had fallen to the base of the cliffs4   
,mingled with the rest1 the pelvic bone 
of a man1 os innominatum1 was obtained  
by ,dr4 ,dickeson of ,natchez1 in whose 

collection ,i saw it4 ,it appeared to be
 quite in the same state of             
preservation1 and was of the same black 
colour as the other fossils1 and was    
believed to have come like them from a  
depth of about #cj feet from the        
surface4 ,in my ,second ,visit to       
,america1 in #ahdf1 ,i suggested1 as a  
possible explanation of this association
 of a human bone with remains of        
,mastodon and ,megalonyx1 that the      
former may possibly have been derived   
from the vegetable soil at the top of   
the cliff1 whereas the remains of       
extinct mammalia were dislodged from a  
lower position1 and both may have fallen
 into the same heap or talus at the     
bottom of the ravine4 ,the pelvic bone  
might1 ,i conceived1 have acquired its  
black colour by having lain for years or
 centuries in a dark superficial peaty  
soil1 common in that region4 ,i was     
informed that there were many human     
bones1 in old ,indian graves in the same
 district1 stained of as black a dye4   

,on suggesting this hypothesis to       
,colonel ,wiley of ,natchez1 ,i found   
that the same idea had already occurred 
to his mind4 ,no doubt1 had the pelvic  
bone belonged to any recent mammifer    
other than ,man1 such a theory would    
never have been resorted to2 but so long
 as we have only one isolated case1 and 
are without the testimony of a geologist
 who was present to behold the bone when
 still engaged in the matrix1 and to    
extract it with his own hands1 it is    
allowable to suspend our judgment as to 
the high antiquity of the fossil4  ,if1 
however1 ,i am asked whether ,i consider
 the ,natchez loam1 with land-shells and
 the bones of ,mastodon and ,megalonyx1 
to be more ancient than the alluvium of 
the ,somme containing flint implements  
and the remains of the mammoth and      
hyaena1 ,i must declare that ,i do not4 
,both in ,europe and ,america the land  
and freshwater shells accompanying the  
extinct pachyderms are of living        
species1 and ,i could detect no shell in

 the ,natchez loam so foreign to the    
basin of the ,mississippi as is the     
,cyrena fluminalis to the rivers of     
modern ,europe4 ,if1 therefore1 the     
relative ages of the ,picardy and       
,natchez alluvium were to be decided on 
conchological data alone1 the           
fluvio-marine beds of ,abbeville might  
rank as a shade older than the loess of 
,natchez4 ,my reluctance in #ahdf to    
regard the fossil human bone as of      
,pleistocene date arose in part from the
 reflection that the ancient loess of   
,natchez is anterior in time to the     
whole modern delta of the ,mississippi4 
,the table-land1 d e1 ,figure #bf1 was1 
,i believe1 once a part of the original 
alluvial plain or delta of the great    
river before it was upraised4 ,it has   
now risen more than #bjj feet above its 
pristine level4 ,after the upheaval1 or 
during it1 the ,mississippi cut through 
the old fluviatile formation of which   
its bluffs are now formed1 just as the  
,rhine has in many parts of its valley  

excavated a passage through the ancient 
loess4 ,if ,i was right in calculating  
that the present delta of the           
,mississippi must have required many    
tens of thousands of years for its      
growth1 and if the claims of the        
,natchez man to have co-existed with the
 mastodon are admitted1 it would follow 
that ,north ,america was peopled by the 
human race many tens of thousands of    
years before our time4 ,but even were   
that true1 we could not presume1        
reasoning from ascertained geological   
data1 that the ,natchez bone was        
anterior in date to the antique flint   
hatchets of ,st4 ,acheul4 ,when we      
ascend the ,mississippi from ,natchez to
 ,vicksburg1 and then enter the ,ohio1  
we are accompanied everywhere by a      
continuous fringe of terraces of sand   
and gravel at a certain height above the
 alluvial plain1 first of the great     
river1 and then of its tributary4 ,we   
also find that the older alluvium       
contains the remains of ,mastodon       

everywhere1 and in some places1 as at   
,evansville1 those of the ,megalonyx4   
,as in the valley of the ,somme in      
,europe1 those old ,pleistocene gravels 
often occur at more than one level1 and 
the ancient mounds of the ,ohio1 with   
their works of art1 are newer than the  
old terraces of the mastodon period1    
just as the ,gallo-,roman tombs of ,st4 
,acheul or the ,celtic weapons of the   
,abbeville peat are more modern than the
 tools of the mammoth-bearing alluvium4 
,in the first place1 ,i may remind the  
reader that the vertical movement of    
#bej feet1 required to elevate the loess
 of ,natchez to its present height1 is  
exceeded by the upheaval which the      
marine stratum of ,cagliari1 containing 
pottery1 has been ascertained by ,count 
de la ,marmora to have experienced4     
,such changes of level1 therefore1 have 
actually occurred in ,europe in the     
human epoch1 and may therefore have     
happened in ,america4 ,in the second    
place1 ,i may observe that if1 since the

 ,natchez mastodon was embedded in clay1
 the delta of the ,mississippi has been 
formed1 so1 since the mammoth and       
rhinoceros of ,abbeville and ,amiens    
were enveloped in fluviatile mud and    
gravel1 together with flint tools1 a    
great thickness of peat has accumulated 
in the valley of the ,somme2 and        
antecedently to the first growth of     
peat1 there had been time for the       
extinction of a great many mammalia1    
requiring1 perhaps1 a lapse of ages many
 times greater than that demanded for   
the formation of #cj feet of peat1 for  
since the earliest growth of the latter 
there has been no change in the species 
of mammalia in ,europe4  ,should future 
researches1 therefore1 confirm the      
opinion that the ,natchez man co-existed
 with the mastodon1 it would not enhance
 the value of the geological evidence in
 favour of ,man's antiquity1 but merely 
render the delta of the ,mississippi    
available as a chronometer1 by which the
 lapse of ,pleistocene time could be    

measured somewhat less vaguely than by  
any means of measuring which have as yet
 been discovered or rendered available  
in ,europe4    ,,chapter #ab4 --        
,,antiquity ,,of ,,man ,,relatively ,,to
 ,,the ,,glacial ,,period ,,and ,,to    
,,the ,,existing ,,fauna ,,and ,,flora4 
,chronological ,relation of the ,glacial
 ,period1 and the earliest      known   
,signs of ,man's ,appearance in ,europe4
   ,series of ,tertiary ,deposits in    
,norfolk and ,suffolk immediately       
antecedent to the ,glacial ,period4     
,gradual ,refrigeration of ,climate     
proved by the ,marine ,shells      of   
successive ,groups4   ,marine ,newer    
,pliocene ,shells of ,northern          
,character near ,woodbridge4   ,section 
of the ,norfolk ,cliffs4   ,norwich     
,crag4   ,forest ,bed and ,fluvio-marine
 ,strata4   ,fossil ,plants and         
,mammalia of the same4   ,overlying     
,boulder ,clay and ,contorted ,drift4   
,newer freshwater ,formation of         
,mundesley compared to that of ,hoxne4  

,great ,oscillations of ,level implied  
by the ,series of ,strata in the        
,norfolk ,cliffs4   ,earliest known     
,date of ,man long subsequent to the    
existing ,fauna      and ,flora4        
,frequent allusions have been made in   
the preceding pages to a period called  
the glacial1 to which no reference is   
made in the ,chronological ,table of    
,formations given above 7,chapter #a74  
,it comprises a long series of ages1    
during which the power of cold1 whether 
exerted by glaciers on the land1 or by  
floating ice on the sea1 was greater in 
the northern hemisphere1 and extended to
 more southern latitudes than now4 #ai  
,it often happens that when in any given
 region we have pushed back our         
geological investigations as far as we  
can in search of evidence of the first  
appearance of ,man in ,europe1 we are   
stopped by arriving at what is called   
the boulder clay or northern drift4     
,this formation is usually quite        
destitute of organic remains1 so that   

the thread of our inquiry into the      
history of the animate creation1 as well
 as of man1 is abruptly cut short4 ,the 
interruption1 however1 is by no means   
encountered at the same point of time in
 every district4 ,in the case of the    
,danish peat1 for example1 we get no    
farther back than the ,recent period of 
our ,chronologic ,table1 and then meet  
with the boulder clay2 and it is the    
same in the valley of the ,clyde1 where 
the marine strata contain the ancient   
canoes before described 7,chapter #c71  
and where nothing intervenes between    
that ,recent formation and the glacial  
drift4 ,but we have seen that1 in the   
neighbourhood of ,bedford the memorials 
of ,man can be traced much farther back 
into the past1 namely1 into the         
,pleistocene epoch1 when the human race 
was contemporary with the mammoth and   
many other species of mammalia now      
extinct4 ,nevertheless1 in ,bedfordshire
 as in ,denmark1 the formation next     
antecedent in date to that containing   

the human implements is still a member  
of the glacial drift1 with its erratic  
blocks4  ,if the reader remembers what  
was stated in the eighth chapter as to  
the absence or extreme scarcity of human
 bones and works of art in all strata1  
whether marine or freshwater1 even in   
those formed in the immediate proximity 
of land inhabited by millions of human  
beings1 he will be prepared for the     
general dearth of human memorials in    
glacial formations1 whether ,recent1    
,pleistocene1 or of more ancient date4  
,if there were a few wanderers over     
lands covered with glaciers1 or over    
seas infested with ice-bergs1 and if a  
few of them left their bones or weapons 
in moraines or in marine drift1 the     
chances1 after the lapse of thousands of
 years1 of a geologist meeting with one 
of them must be infinitesimally small4  
,it is natural1 therefore1 to encounter 
a gap in the regular sequence of        
geological monuments bearing on the past
 history of ,man1 wherever we have      

proofs of glacial action having         
prevailed with intensity1 as it has done
 over large parts of ,europe and ,north 
,america1 in the ,pleistocene period4   
,as we advance into more southern       
latitudes approaching the #ejth parallel
 of latitude in ,europe1 and the #djth  
in ,north ,america1 this disturbing     
cause ceases to oppose a bar to our     
inquiries2 but even then1 in consequence
 of the fragmentary nature of all       
geological annals1 our progress is      
inevitably slow in constructing anything
 like a connected chain of history1     
which can only be effected by bringing  
the links of the chain found in one area
 to supply the information which is     
wanting in another4  ,the least         
interrupted series of consecutive       
documents to which we can refer in the  
,british ,islands1 when we desire to    
connect the ,pliocene with the          
,pleistocene periods1 are found in the  
counties of ,norfolk1 ,suffolk1 and     
,essex2 and ,i shall speak of them in   

this chapter1 as they have a direct     
bearing on the relations of the human   
and glacial periods1 which will be the  
subject of several of the following     
chapters4 ,the fossil shells of the     
deposits in question clearly point to a 
gradual refrigeration of climate1 from a
 temperature somewhat warmer than that  
now prevailing in our latitudes to one  
of intense cold2 and the successive     
steps which have marked the coming on of
 the increasing cold are matters of no  
small geological interest4 #bj  ,it will
 be seen in the ,chronological ,table1  
that next before the ,pleistocene period
 stands the ,pliocene4 ,the shelly and  
sandy beds representing these periods in
 ,norfolk and ,suffolk are termed       
provincially ,crag1 having under the    
name been long used in agriculture to   
fertilise soils deficient in calcareous 
matter1 or to render them less stiff and
 impervious4 ,in ,suffolk1 the older    
,pliocene strata called ,crag are       
divisible into the ,coralline and the   

,red ,crags1 the former being the older 
of the two4 ,in ,norfolk1 a more modern 
formation1 commonly termed the ,norwich1
 or sometimes the mammaliferous ,crag1  
which is referable to the newer         
,pliocene period1 occupies large areas4 
,we are indebted to ,mr4 ,searles ,wood1
 ,f4,g4,s41 for an admirable monograph  
on the fossil shells of these ,british  
,pliocene formations4 ,he has not       
himself given us an analysis of the     
results of his treatise1 but the        
following tables have been drawn up for 
me by ,mr4 ,s4,p4 ,woodward1 the        
well-known author of the ,manual of     
,mollusca1 ,recent and ,fossil 7,london 
#ahea-ef71 in order to illustrate some  
of the general conclusions to which ,mr4
 ,wood's careful examination of #ddb    
species of mollusca has led4  ,,table   
#ab_/a4 ,,number ,,of ,,known ,,species 
,,of ,,marine ,,testacea ,,in ,,the     
,,three ,,english ,,pliocene ,,deposits1
 ,,called ,,the ,,norwich1 ,,the ,,red1 
,,and ,,the ,,coralline ,,crags4        

,,column #a3 ,,name4       ,,column #b3 
,,number4       ,brachiopoda3 #f4       
,lamellibranchia3 #bjf4                 
,gasteropoda3 #bcj4       ,,total3 #ddb4
       ,,table #ab_/b4 ,,distribution   
,,of ,,the ,,above ,,marine ,,testacea4 
,,column #a3 ,,name4       ,,column #b3 
,,number4       ,norwich ,crag3 #ha4    
,red ,crag3 #bbe4      ,coralline ,crag3
 #cbg4       ,species common to the     
,norwich and ,red ,crag 7not in         
,coralline73 #cc4      ,species common  
to the ,norwich and ,coralline 7not in  
,red73 #d4      ,species common to the  
,red and ,coralline 7not in ,norwich73  
#aaf4      ,species common to the       
,norwich1 ,red1 and ,coralline3 #ai499  
799 ,these #ai species must be added to 
the numbers #cc1 #d1 and         #aaf   
respectively1 in order to obtain the    
full amount of common         species in
 each of those cases47   ,,table #ab_/c4
 ,,proportion ,,of ,,recent ,,to        
,,extinct ,,species4       ,,column #a3 
,,name4       ,,column #b3 ,,number ,,of

 ,,recent4       ,,column #c3 ,,number  
,,of ,,extinct4       ,,column #d3      
,,percentage ,,of ,,recent4             
,norwich ,crag3 #fi3 #ab3 #he4      ,red
 ,crag3 #acj3 #ie3 #eg4      ,coralline 
,crag3 #afh3 #aei3 #ea4       ,,table   
#ab_/d4 ,,recent ,,species ,,not        
,,living ,,now ,,in ,,british ,,seas4   
,,column #a3 ,,name4       ,,column #b3 
,,number ,,of ,,northern4       ,,column
 #c3 ,,number ,,of ,,southern4          
,norwich ,crag3 #ab3 #j4       ,red     
,crag3 #h3 #af4       ,coralline ,crag3 
#b3 #bg4  ,in the above list ,i have not
 included the shells of the glacial beds
 of the ,clyde and of several other     
,british deposits of newer origin than  
the ,norwich ,crag1 in which nearly     
all--perhaps all--the species are       
,recent4 ,the land and freshwater       
shells1 thirty-two in number1 have also 
been purposely omitted1 as well as three
 species of ,london ,clay shells1       
suspected by ,mr4 ,wood himself to be   
spurious4  ,by far the greater number of

 the living marine species included in  
these tables are still inhabitants of   
the ,british seas2 but even these differ
 considerably in their relative         
abundance1 some of the commonest of the 
,crag shells being now extremely scarce2
 as1 for example1 ,buccinopsis ,dalei2  
and others1 rarely met with in a fossil 
state1 being now very common1 as ,murex 
erinaceus and ,cardium echinatum4  ,the 
last table throws light on a marked     
alteration in the climate of the three  
successive periods4 ,it will be seen    
that in the ,coralline ,crag there are  
twenty-seven southern shells1 including 
twenty-six ,mediterranean1 and one ,west
 ,indian species 7,erato ,maugeriae74   
,of these only thirteen occur in the    
,red ,crag1 associated with three new   
southern species1 while the whole of    
them disappear from the ,norwich beds4  
,on the other hand1 the ,coralline ,crag
 contains only two shells closely       
related to arctic forms of the genera   
,admete and ,limopsis4 ,the ,red ,crag  

contains1 as stated in the table1 eight 
northern species1 all of which recur in 
the ,norwich ,crag1 with the addition of
 four others1 also inhabitants of the   
arctic regions2 so that there is good   
evidence of a continual refrigeration of
 climate during the ,pliocene period in 
,britain4 ,the presence of these        
northern shells cannot be explained away
 by supposing that they were inhabitants
 of the deep parts of the sea2 for some 
of them1 such as ,tellina calcarea and  
,astarte borealis1 occur plentifully1   
and sometimes1 with the valves united by
 their ligament1 in company with other  
littoral shells1 such as ,mya arenaria  
and ,littorina rudis1 and evidently not 
thrown up from deep water4 ,yet the     
northern character of the ,norwich ,crag
 is not fully shown by simply saying    
that it contains twelve northern        
species4 ,it is the predominance of     
certain genera and species1 such as     
,tellina calcarea1 ,astarte borealis1   
,scalaria groenlandica1 and ,fusus      

carinatus1 which satisfies the mind of a
 conchologist as to the arctic character
 of the ,norwich ,crag4 ,in like manner1
 it is the presence of such genera as   
,pyrula1 ,columbella1 ,terebra1         
,cassidaria1 ,pholadomya1 ,lingula1     
,discina1 and others which give a       
southern aspect to the ,coralline ,crag 
shells4  ,the cold1 which had gone on   
increasing from the time of the         
,coralline to that of the ,norwich      
,crag1 continued1 though not perhaps    
without some oscillations of            
temperature1 to become more and more    
severe after the accumulation of the    
,norwich ,crag1 until it reached its    
maximum in what has been called the     
glacial epoch4 ,the marine fauna of this
 last period contains1 both in ,ireland 
and ,scotland1 ,recent species of       
mollusca now living in ,greenland and   
other seas far north of the areas where 
we find their remains in a fossil state4
  ,the refrigeration of climate from the
 time of the older to that of the newer 

,pliocene strata is not now announced   
for the first time1 as it was inferred  
from a study of the ,crag shells in     
#ahdf by the late ,edward ,forbes499    
799 ,memoirs of the ,geological ,survey 
,london #ahdf page #cia47  ,the most    
southern point to which the marine beds 
of the ,norwich ,crag have yet been     
traced is at ,chillesford1 near         
,woodbridge1 in ,suffolk1 about #hj     
miles north-east of ,london1 where1 as  
,messrs4 ,prestwich and ,searles ,wood  
have pointed out199 they exhibit decided
 marks of having been deposited in a sea
 of a much lower temperature than that  
now prevailing in the same latitude4 799
 ,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological 
,society volume #e #ahdi page #cde47    
,out of twenty-three shells obtained in 
that locality from argillaceous strata  
#bj feet thick1 two only1 namely1       
,nucula ,cobboldiae and ,tellina        
obliqua1 are extinct1 and not a few of  
the other species1 such as ,leda        
lanceolata1 ,cardium groenlandicum1     

,lucina borealis1 ,cyprina islandica1   
,panopaea norvegica1 and ,mya truncata1 
betray a northern1 and some of them an  
arctic character4  ,these ,chillesford  
beds are supposed to be somewhat more   
modern than any of the purely marine    
strata of the ,norwich ,crag exhibited  
by the sections of the ,norfolk cliffs  
north-west of ,cromer1 which ,i am about
 to describe4 ,yet they probably        
preceded in date the ,forest ,bed and   
fluvio-marine deposits of those same    
cliffs4 ,they are1 therefore1 of no     
small importance in reference to the    
chronology of the glacial period1 since 
they afford evidence of an assemblage of
 fossil shells with a proportion of     
between eight and nine in a hundred of  
extinct species occurring so far south  
as latitude #ec degrees north1 and      
indicating so cold a climate as to imply
 that the glacial period commenced      
before the close of the ,pliocene era4  
,illustration3 ,figure #bg4 ,succession 
of ,strata    7,,figure #bg4 ,,diagram  

,,to ,,illustrate ,,the ,,general       
,,succession    ,,of ,,the ,,strata ,,in
 ,,the ,,norfolk ,,cliffs1 ,,extending  
,,several ,,miles    ,,north-,,west     
,,and ,,south-,,east ,,of ,,cromer4     
,a4 ,site of ,cromer ,jetty4   #a4      
,upper ,chalk with flints in regular    
stratification4   #b4 ,norwich ,crag1   
rising from low water at ,cromer to the 
top      of the cliffs at ,weybourn1    
seven miles distant4   #c4 ,forest ,bed1
 with stumps of trees in situ and       
remains of      ,elephas meridionalis1  
,e4 primigenius1 ,e4 antiquus1          
,rhinoceros      etruscus1 etc4 ,this   
bed increases in depth and thickness    
eastward4 ,no ,crag 7,number #b7 known  
east of ,cromer ,jetty4   #c prime4     
,fluvio-marine series4 ,at ,cromer and  
eastward1 with      abundant lignite    
beds and mammalian remains1 and with    
cones      of the ,scotch and spruce    
firs and wood4 ,at ,runton1 north-west  
of ,cromer1 expanding into a thick      
freshwater deposit1 with      overlying 

marine strata1 elsewhere consisting of  
alternating      sands and clays1       
tranquilly deposited1 some with marine1 
others with freshwater shells4   #d4    
,boulder clay of glacial period1 with   
far transported erratics1      some of  
them polished and scratched1 #bj to #hj 
feet in thickness4   #e4 ,contorted     
drift4   #f4 ,superficial gravel and    
sand with covering of vegetable soil47  
,the annexed section 7,figure #bg7 will 
give a general idea of the ordinary     
succession of the ,pliocene and         
,pleistocene strata which rest upon the 
,chalk in the ,norfolk and ,suffolk     
cliffs4 ,these cliffs vary in height    
from fifty to above three hundred feet4 
,at the north-western extremity of the  
section at ,weybourn 7beyond the limits 
of the annexed diagram71 and from thence
 to ,cromer1 a distance of #g miles1 the
 ,norwich ,crag1 a marine deposit1      
reposes immediately upon the ,chalk4 ,a 
vast majority of its shells are of      
living species such as ,cardium edule1  

,cyprina islandica1 ,scalaria           
groenlandica1 and ,fusus antiquus1 and  
some few extinct1 as ,tellina obliqua1  
and ,nucula ,cobboldiae4 ,at ,cromer    
jetty this formation thins out1 as      
expressed in the diagram at ,a2 and to  
the south we find ,number #c1 or what is
 commonly called the ,forest ,bed1      
reposing immediately upon the ,chalk1   
and occupying1 as it were1 the place    
previously held by the marine ,crag     
,number #b4 ,this buried forest has been
 traced for more than #dj miles1 being  
exposed at certain seasons and states of
 the beach between high and low water   
mark4 ,it extends from ,cromer to near  
,kessingland1 and consists of the stumps
 of numerous trees standing erect1 with 
their roots attached to them1 and       
penetrating in all directions into the  
loam or ancient vegetable soil on which 
they grew4 ,they mark the site of a     
forest which existed there for a long   
time1 since1 besides the erect trunks of
 trees1 some of them #b and #c feet in  

diameter1 there is a vast accumulation  
of vegetable matter in the immediately  
overlying clays4 ,thirty years ago1 when
 ,i first examined this bed1 ,i saw many
 trees1 with their roots in the old     
soil1 laid open at the base of the cliff
 near ,happisburgh2 and long before my  
visit1 other observers1 and among them  
the late ,mr4 ,j4,c4 ,taylor1 had       
noticed the buried forest4 ,of late     
years it has been repeatedly seen at    
many points by ,mr4 ,gunn1 and1 after   
the great storms of the autumn of #ahfa1
 by ,mr4 ,king4 ,in order to expose the 
stumps to view1 a vast body of sand and 
shingle must be cleared away by the     
force of the waves4 #ba  ,as the sea is 
always gaining on the land1 new sets of 
trees are brought to light from time to 
time1 so that the breadth as well as    
length of the area of ancient forest    
land seems to have been considerable4   
,next above ,number #c1 we find a series
 of sands and clays with lignite        
7,number #c prime71 sometimes #aj feet  

thick1 and containing alternations of   
fluviatile and marine strata1 implying  
that the old forest land1 which may at  
first have been considerably elevated   
above the level of the sea1 had sunk    
down so as to be occasionally overflowed
 by a river1 and at other times by the  
salt waters of an estuary4 ,there were  
probably several oscillations of level  
which assisted in bringing about these  
changes1 during which trees were often  
uprooted and laid prostrate1 giving rise
 to layers of lignite4 ,occasionally    
marshes were formed and peaty matter    
accumulated1 after which salt water     
again predominated1 so that species of  
,mytilus1 ,mya1 ,leda1 and other marine 
genera1 lived in the same area where the
 ,unio1 ,cyclas1 and ,paludina had      
flourished for a time4 ,that the marine 
shells lived and died on the spot1 and  
were not thrown up by the waves during a
 storm1 is proved1 as ,mr4 ,king has    
remarked1 by the fact that at ,west     
,runton1 north-west of ,cromer1 the ,mya

 truncata and ,leda myalis are found    
with both valves united and erect in the
 loam1 all with their posterior or      
siphuncular extremities uppermost4 ,this
 attitude affords as good evidence to   
the conchologist that those mollusca    
lived and died on the spot as the       
upright position of the trees proves to 
the botanist that there was a forest    
over the ,chalk east of ,cromer4        
,between the stumps of the buried       
forest1 and in the lignite above them1  
are many well-preserved cones of the    
,scotch and spruce firs1 ,pinus         
sylvestris1 and ,pinus abies4 ,the      
specific names of these fossils were    
determined for me in #ahdj1 by a        
botanist of no less authority than the  
late ,robert ,brown2 and ,professor     
,heer has lately examined a large       
collection from the same stratum1 and   
recognised among the cones of the spruce
 some which had only the central part or
 axis remaining1 the rest having been   
bitten off1 precisely in the same manner

 as when in our woods the squirrel has  
been feeding on the seeds4 ,there is    
also in the forest-bed a great quantity 
of resin in lumps1 resembling that      
gathered for use1 according to          
,professor ,heer1 in ,switzerland1 from 
beneath spruce firs4  ,the following is 
a list of some of the plants and seeds  
which were collected by the ,reverend   
,s4,w4 ,king1 in #ahfa1 from the forest 
bed at ,happisburgh1 and named by       
,professor ,heer3--   ,,plants ,,and    
,,seeds ,,of ,,the ,,forest ,,and       
,,lignite ,,beds ,,below ,,the ,,glacial
 ,,drift ,,of ,,the ,,norfolk ,,cliffs4 
,pinus sylvestris1 ,scotch fir4         
,pinus abies1 spruce fir4      ,taxus   
baccata1 yew4      ,nuphar luteum1      
yellow water-lily4      ,ceratophyllum  
demersum1 hornwort4      ,potamogeton1  
pondweed4      ,prunus spinosus1 common 
sloe4      ,menyanthes trifoliata1      
buckbean4      ,nymphaea alba1 white    
water-lily4      ,alnus1 alder4         
,quercus1 oak4      ,betula1 birch4     

,the insects1 so far as they are known1 
including several species of ,donacia1  
are1 like the plants and freshwater     
shells1 of living species4 ,it may be   
remarked1 however1 that the ,scotch fir 
has been confined in historical times to
 the northern parts of the ,british     
,isles1 and the spruce fir is nowhere   
indigenous in ,great ,britain4 ,the     
other plants are such as might now be   
found in ,norfolk1 and many of them     
indicate fenny or marshy ground499      
799 ,mr4 ,king discovered in #ahfc1 in  
the forest bed1 several      rhizomes of
 the large ,british fern ,osmunda       
regalis1 of such      dimensions as they
 are known to attain in marshy places4  
,they are distinguishable from those of 
other ,british ferns      by the        
peculiar arrangement of the vessels1 as 
seen under      the microscope in a     
cross section47  ,when we consider the  
familiar aspect of the flora1 the       
accompanying mammalia are certainly most
 extraordinary4 ,there are no less than 

three elephants1 a rhinoceros and       
hippopotamus1 a large extinct beaver1   
and several large estuarine and marine  
mammalia1 such as the walrus1 the       
narwhal1 and the whale4  ,the following 
is a list of some of the species of     
which the bones have been collected by  
,messrs4 ,gunn and ,king4  ,those marked
 7asterisk7 have been recorded by       
,professor ,owen in his ,british ,fossil
 ,mammalia4 ,those marked 7dagger7 have 
been recognised by the same authority in
 the cabinets of ,messrs4 ,gunn and     
,king1 or in the ,norwich ,museum2 the  
other three are given on the authority  
of ,dr4 ,falconer4   ,,mammalia ,,of    
,,the ,,forest ,,and ,,lignite ,,beds   
,,below ,,the ,,glacial ,,drift ,,of    
,,the ,,norfolk ,,cliffs4       ,elephas
 meridionalis4      7asterisk7 ,elephas 
primigenius4      ,elephas antiquus4    
,rhinoceros etruscus4      7asterisk7   
,hippopotamus 7major874      7asterisk7 
,sus scrofa4      7asterisk7 ,equus     
7fossilis874      7asterisk7 ,ursus     

7sp4874      7dagger7 ,canis lupus4     
7dagger7 ,bison priscus4      7dagger7  
,megaceros hibernicus4      7asterisk7  
,cervus capreolus4      7dagger7 ,cervus
 tarandus4      7dagger7 ,cervus        
,sedgwickii4      7asterisk7 ,arvicola  
amphibia4      7asterisk7 ,castor       
7,trogontherium7 ,cuvieri4              
7asterisk7 ,castor europaeus4           
7asterisk7 ,palaeospalax magnus4        
7dagger7 ,trichecus rosmarus1 ,walrus4  
7dagger7 ,monodon monoceros1 ,narwhal4  
7dagger7 ,balaenoptera4  ,mr4 ,gunn     
informs me that the vertebrae of two    
distinct whales were found in the       
fluvio-marine beds at ,bacton1 and that 
one of them1 shown to ,professor ,owen1 
is said by him to imply that the animal 
was #fj feet long4 ,a narwhal's tusk was
 discovered by ,mr4 ,king near ,cromer1 
and the remains of a walrus4 ,no less   
than three species of elephant1 as      
determined by ,dr4 ,falconer1 have been 
obtained from the strata #c and #c      
prime1 of which1 according to ,mr4      

,king1 ,e4 meridionalis is the most     
common1 the mammoth next in abundance1  
and the third1 ,e4 antiquus1            
comparatively rare4  ,the freshwater    
shells accompanying the fossil          
quadrupeds1 above enumerated1 are such  
as now inhabit rivers and ponds in      
,england2 but among them1 as at ,runton1
 between the forest bed and the glacial 
deposits1 a remarkable variety of the   
,cyclas amnica occurs 7,figure #bh71    
identical with that which accompanies   
the ,elephas antiquus at ,ilford and    
,grays in the valley of the ,thames4    
,all the freshwater shells of the beds  
intervening between the ,forest-bed     
,number #c1 and the glacial formation   
#d1 ,figure #bg1 are of ,recent species4
 ,as to the small number of marine      
shells occurring in the same            
fluvio-marine series1 ,i have seen none 
which belonged to extinct species1      
although one or two have been cited by  
authors4 ,i am in doubt1 therefore1     
whether to class the forest bed and     

overlying strata as ,pleistocene1 or to 
consider them as beds of passage between
 the ,pliocene and ,pleistocene periods4
 ,the fluvio-marine series usually      
terminates upwards in finely laminated  
sands and clays without fossils1 on     
which reposes the boulder clay4         
,illustration3 ,figure #bh4 ,cyclas     
7,,figure #bh4 ,cyclas 7,pisidium7      
amnica var48    ,the two middle figures 
are of the natural size47  ,this        
formation1 ,number #d1 is of very       
varying thickness4 ,its glacial         
character is shown1 not only by the     
absence of stratification1 and the great
 size and angularity of some of the     
included blocks of distant origin1 but  
also by the polished and scratched      
surfaces of such of them as are hard    
enough to retain any markings4  ,near   
,cromer1 blocks of granite from #f to #h
 feet in diameter have been met with1   
and smaller ones of syenite1 porphyry1  
and trap1 besides the wreck of the      
,london ,clay1 ,chalk1 ,oolite1 and     

,lias1 mixed with more ancient          
fossiliferous rocks4 ,erratics of       
,scandinavian origin occur chiefly in   
the lower portions of the till4 ,i came 
to the conclusion in #ahcd1 that they   
had really come from ,norway and        
,sweden1 after having in that year      
traced the course of a continuous stream
 of such blocks from those countries to 
,denmark1 and across the ,elbe1 through 
,westphalia1 to the borders of ,holland4
 ,it is not surprising that they should 
then reappear on our eastern coast      
between the ,tweed and the ,thames1     
regions not half so remote from parts of
 ,norway as are many ,russian erratics  
from the sources whence they came4 #bb  
,illustration3 ,figure #bi4 ,cliff      
7,,figure #bi4 ,,cliff #ej ,,feet ,,high
 ,,between ,,bacton ,,gap ,,and         
,,mundesley4    ,section through ,gravel
 7top71 ,sand1 ,loam and ,till          
7bottom747  ,according to the           
observations of the ,reverend ,j4 ,gunn 
and the late ,mr4 ,trimmer1 the glacial 

drift in the cliffs at ,lowestoft       
consists of two divisions1 the lower of 
which abounds in the ,scandinavian      
blocks1 supposed to have come from the  
north-east2 while the upper1 probably   
brought by a current from the           
north-west1 contains chiefly fragments  
of ,oolitic rocks1 more rolled than     
those of the lower deposit4 ,the united 
thickness of the two divisions1 without 
reckoning some interposed laminated     
beds1 is #hj feet1 but it probably      
exceeds #ajj feet near ,happisburgh499  
799 ,quarterly ,journal of the          
,geological ,society volume #g          
#ahea page #ba47  ,although these       
subdivisions of the drift may be only of
 local importance1 they help to show the
 changes of currents and other          
conditions1 and the great lapse of time 
which the accumulation of so varied a   
series of deposits must have required4  
,the lowest part of the glacial till1   
resting on the laminated clays before   
mentioned1 is very even and regular1    

while its upper surface is remarkable   
for the unevenness of its outline1 owing
 partly1 in all likelihood1 to          
denudation1 but still more to other     
causes presently to be discussed4  ,the 
overlying strata of sand and gravel1    
,number #e1 ,figure #bg1 often display a
 most singular derangement in their     
stratification1 which in many places    
seems to have a very intimate relation  
to the irregularities of outline in the 
subjacent till4 ,there are some cases1  
however1 where the upper strata are much
 bent1 while the lower beds of the same 
series have continued horizontal4 ,thus 
the annexed section 7,figure #bi7       
represents a cliff about #ej feet high1 
at the bottom of which is till1 or      
unstratified clay1 containing boulders1 
having an even horizontal surface1 on   
which repose conformably beds of        
laminated clay and sand about #e feet   
thick1 which1 in their turn1 are        
succeeded by vertical1 bent1 and        
contorted layers of sand and loam #bj   

feet thick1 the whole being covered by  
flint gravel4 ,the curves of the        
variously coloured beds of loose sand1  
loam1 and pebbles1 are so complicated   
that not only may we sometimes find     
portions of them which maintain their   
verticality to a height of #aj or #ae   
feet1 but they have also been folded    
upon themselves in such a manner that   
continuous layers might be thrice       
pierced in one perpendicular boring4    
,illustration3 ,figures #cj and #ca4    
,strata    7,,figure #cj4 ,,folding ,,of
 ,,the ,,strata ,,between ,,east ,,and  
,,west ,,runton47    7,,figure #ca4     
,,section ,,of ,,concentric ,,beds      
,,west ,,of ,,cromer4    #a4 ,blue clay4
   #b4 ,white sand4   #c4 ,yellow ,sand4
   #d4 ,striped loam and clay4   #e4    
,laminated blue clay47  ,at some points 
there is an apparent folding of the beds
 round a central nucleus1 as at a1      
,figure #cj1 where the strata seem bent 
round a small mass of ,chalk1 or1 as in 
,figure #ca1 where the blue clay ,number

 #a is in the centre2 and where the     
other strata #b1 #c1 #d1 #e are coiled  
round it2 the entire mass being #bj feet
 in perpendicular height4 ,this         
appearance of concentric arrangement    
around a nucleus is1 nevertheless1      
delusive1 being produced by the         
intersection of beds bent into a convex 
shape2 and that which seems the nucleus 
being1 in fact1 the innermost bed of the
 series1 which has become partially     
visible by the removal of the           
protuberant portions of the outer       
layers4  ,to the north of ,cromer are   
other fine illustrations of contorted   
drift reposing on a floor of ,chalk     
horizontally stratified and having a    
level surface4 ,these phenomena1 in     
themselves sufficiently difficult of    
explanation1 are rendered still more    
anomalous by the occasional enclosure in
 the drift of huge fragments of ,chalk  
many yards in diameter4 ,one striking   
instance occurs west of ,sheringham1    
where an enormous pinnacle of ,chalk1   

between #gj and #hj feet in height1 is  
flanked on both sides by vertical layers
 of loam1 clay1 and gravel 7,figure     
#cb74  ,illustration3 ,figure #cb4      
,pinnacle of ,chalk    7,,figure #cb4   
,,included ,,pinnacle ,,of ,,chalk ,,at 
,,old ,,hythe ,,point1    ,,west ,,of   
,,sheringham4    d4 ,chalk with regular 
layers of flints4   c4 ,layer called the
 pan1 of ,chalk1 flints1 and marine     
shells      of ,recent species1 cemented
 by oxide of iron47  ,this chalky       
fragment is only one of many detached   
masses which have been included in the  
drift1 and forced along with it into    
their present position4 ,the level      
surface of the ,chalk in situ 7d7 may be
 traced for miles along the coast1 where
 it has escaped the violent movements to
 which the incumbent drift has been     
exposed499       799 ,for a full account
 of the drift of ,east ,norfolk1 see a  
paper by the author1 ,philosophical     
,magazine ,number #ajd ,may      #ahdj47
  ,we are called upon1 then1 to explain 

how any force can have been exerted     
against the upper masses1 so as to      
produce movements in which the subjacent
 strata have not participated4 ,it may  
be answered that1 if we conceive the    
till and its boulders to have been      
drifted to their present place by ice1  
the lateral pressure may have been      
supplied by the stranding of            
ice-islands4 ,we learn1 from the        
observations of ,messrs4 ,dease and     
,simpson in the polar regions1 that such
 islands1 when they run aground1 push   
before them large mounds of shingle and 
sand4 ,it is therefore probable that    
they often cause great alterations in   
the arrangement of pliant and incoherent
 strata forming the upper part of shoals
 or submerged banks1 the inferior       
portions of the same remaining unmoved4 
,or many of the complicated curvatures  
of these layers of loose sand and gravel
 may have been due to another cause1 the
 melting on the spot of ice-bergs and   
coast ice in which successive deposits  

of pebbles1 sand1 ice1 snow1 and mud1   
together with huge masses of rock fallen
 from cliffs1 may have become           
interstratified4 ,ice-islands so        
constituted often capsize when afloat1  
and gravel once horizontal may have     
assumed1 before the associated ice was  
melted1 an inclined or vertical         
position4 ,the packing of ice forced up 
on a coast may lead to a similar        
derangement in a frozen conglomerate of 
sand or shingle1 and1 as ,mr4 ,trimmer  
has suggested199 alternate layers of    
earthy matter may have sunk down slowly 
during the liquefaction of the          
intercalated ice so as to assume the    
most fantastic and anomalous positions1 
while the strata below1 and those       
afterwards thrown down above1 may be    
perfectly horizontal 7see above74       
799 ,quarterly ,journal of the          
,geological ,society volume #g          
#ahea pages #bb1 #cj47  ,in most cases  
where the principal contortions of the  
layers of gravel and sand have a decided

 correspondence with deep indentations  
in the underlying till1 the hypothesis  
of the melting of large lumps and masses
 of ice once mixed up with the till     
affords the most natural explanation of 
the phenomena4 ,the quantity of ice now 
seen in the cliffs near ,behring's      
,straits1 in which the remains of fossil
 elephants are common1 and the huge     
fragments of solid ice which ,meyendorf 
discovered in ,siberia1 after piercing  
through a considerable thickness of     
incumbent soil1 free from ice1 is in    
favour of such an hypothesis1 the       
partial failure of support necessarily  
giving rise to foldings in the overlying
 and previously horizontal layers1 as in
 the case of creeps in coal mines499    
799 ,see ,manual of ,geology by the     
author1 page #ea47  ,in the diagram of  
the cliffs at page #afg1 the bent and   
contorted beds ,number #e1 last alluded 
to1 are represented as covered by       
undisturbed beds of gravel and sand     
,number #f4 ,these are usually destitute

 of organic remains2 but at some points 
marine shells of ,recent species are    
said to have been found in them4 ,they  
afford evidence at many points of       
repeated denudation and redeposition1   
and may be the monuments of a long      
series of ages4   ,,mundesley           
,,post-,,glacial ,,freshwater           
,,formation4  ,in the range of cliffs   
above described at ,mundesley1 about #h 
miles south-east of ,cromer1 a fine     
example is seen of a freshwater         
formation1 newer than all those already 
mentioned1 a deposit which has filled up
 a depression hollowed out of all the   
older beds #c1 #d1 and #e of the section
 ,figure #bg4  ,illustration3 ,figure   
#cc4 ,newer ,freshwater ,formation      
7,,figure #cc4 ,,section ,,of ,,the     
,,newer ,,freshwater ,,formation ,i     
,n ,,the ,,cliffs ,,at ,,mundesley1     
,,eight ,,miles ,,south-,,east ,,of     
,,cromer1    ,,drawn ,,up ,,by ,,the    
,,reverend ,s4,w4 ,,king4       ,height 
of cliff where lowest1 #ce feet above   

high water4    ,,older ,,series4    #a4 
,fundamental ,chalk1 below the beach    
line4    #c4 ,forest bed1 with elephant1
 rhinoceros1 stag1 etc41 and with       
tree roots and stumps1 also below the   
beach line4    #c prime4 ,finely        
laminated sands and clays1 with thin    
layer of       lignite1 and shells of   
,cyclas and ,valvata1 and with ,mytilus 
in some beds4    #d4 ,glacial boulder   
till4    #e4 ,contorted drift4    #f4   
,gravel overlying contorted drift4      
,n4,b4--,number #b of the section1      
,figure #bg1 is wanting here4    ,,newer
 ,,freshwater ,,beds4    ,a4 ,coarse    
river gravel1 with shells of ,anodon1   
,valvata1 ,cyclas1       ,succinea1     
,limnaea1 ,paludina1 etc41 seeds of     
,ceratophyllum       demersum1 ,nuphar  
lutea1 scales and bones of pike1 perch1 
salmon1 etc41 elytra of ,donacia1       
,copris1 ,harpalus1       and other     
beetles4    ,c4 ,yellow sands4    ,d4   
,drift gravel47  ,when ,i examined this 
line of coast in #ahci1 the section     

alluded to was not so clearly laid open 
to view as it has been of late years1   
and finding at that period not a few of 
the fossils in the lignite beds ,number 
#c prime above the forest bed1 identical
 in species with those from the         
post-glacial deposits ,b ,c1 ,i supposed
 the whole to have been of              
contemporaneous origin1 and so described
 them in my paper on the ,norfolk       
cliffs499       799 ,philosophical      
,magazine volume #af #ahdj page #cde47  
,mr4 ,gunn was the first to perceive    
this mistake1 which he explained to me  
on the spot when ,i revisited ,mundesley
 in the autumn of #ahei in company with 
,dr4 ,hooker and ,mr4 ,king4 ,the       
last-named geologist has had the        
kindness to draw up for me the annexed  
diagram 7,figure #cc7 of the various    
beds which he has recently studied in   
detail499       799 ,mr4 ,prestwich has 
given a correct account of this section 
in a paper read to the ,british         
,association1 ,oxford1 #ahfj4      ,see 

,the ,geologist volume #d #ahfa47  ,the 
formations #c1 #d1 and #e already       
described1 ,figure #bg1 were evidently  
once continuous1 for they may be        
followed for miles north-west and       
south-east without a break1 and always  
in the same order4 ,a valley or river   
channel was cut through them1 probably  
during the gradual upheaval of the      
country1 and the hollow became          
afterwards the receptacle of the        
comparatively modern freshwater beds ,a1
 ,b1 ,c1 and ,d4 ,they may well         
represent a silted up river-channel1    
which remained for a time in the state  
of a lake or mere1 and in which the     
black peaty mass ,b accumulated by a    
very slow growth over the gravel of the 
river-bed ,a4 ,in ,b we find remains of 
some of the same plants which were      
enumerated as common in the ancient     
lignite in #c prime1 such as the yellow 
water-lily and hornwort1 together with  
some freshwater shells which occur in   
the same fluvio-marine series #c prime4 

,illustration3 ,figure #cd4 ,paludina   
marginata    7,,figure #cd4 ,paludina   
marginata1 ,michaud 7,p4 minuta1        
,strickland74    ,hydrobia marginata499 
799 ,this shell is said to have a       
sub-spiral operculum 7not a             
concentric one1 as in ,paludina71 and   
therefore to be       referable to the  
,hydrobia1 a sub-genus of ,rissoa4 ,but 
this species is always associated with  
freshwater shells1       while the      
,rissoae frequent marine and brackish   
waters47     ,the middle figure is of   
the natural size47  ,the only shell     
which ,i found not referable to a       
,british species is the minute          
,paludina1 ,figure #cd1 already alluded 
to4  ,when ,i showed the scales and     
teeth of the pike1 perch1 roach1 and    
salmon1 which ,i obtained from this     
formation1 to ,m4 ,agassiz1 he thought  
they varied so much from their nearest  
living representatives that they might  
rank as distinct species2 but ,mr4      
,yarrell doubted the propriety of so    

distinguishing them4 ,the insects1 like 
the shells and plants1 are identical1 so
 far as they are known1 with living     
,british species4 ,no progress has yet  
been made at ,mundesley in discovering  
the contemporary mammalia4  ,by         
referring to the description and section
 before given of the freshwater deposit 
at ,hoxne1 the reader will at once      
perceive the striking analogy of the    
,mundesley and ,hoxne deposits1 the     
latter so productive of flint implements
 of the ,amiens type4 ,both of them1    
like the ,bedford gravel with flint     
tools and the bones of extinct mammalia1
 are post-glacial4 ,it will also be seen
 that a long series of events1          
accompanied by changes in physical      
geography1 intervened between the forest
 bed1 ,number #c1 ,figure #bg1 when the 
,elephas meridionalis flourished1 and   
the period of the ,mundesley fluviatile 
beds ,a1 ,b1 ,c2 just as in ,france ,i  
have shown that the same ,e4            
meridionalis belonged to a system of    

drainage different from and anterior to 
that with which the flint implements of 
the old alluvium of the ,somme and the  
,seine were connected4  ,before the     
growth of the ancient forest1 ,number   
#c1 ,figure #cc1 the ,mastodon          
arvernensis1 a large proboscidian1      
characteristic of the ,norwich ,crag1   
appears to have died out1 or to have    
become scarce1 as no remains of it have 
yet been found in the ,norfolk cliffs4  
,there was1 no doubt1 time for other    
modifications in the mammalian fauna    
between the era of the marine beds1     
,number #b1 ,figure #bg 7the shells of  
which imply permanent submergence       
beneath the sea71 and the accumulation  
of the uppermost of the fluvio-marine1  
and lignite beds1 ,number #c prime1     
which overlie both ,numbers #c and #b1  
or the buried forest and the ,crag4 ,in 
the interval we must suppose repeated   
oscillations of level1 during which land
 covered with trees1 an estuary with its
 freshwater shells1 and the sea with its

 ,mya truncata and other mollusca still 
retaining their erect position1 gained  
by turns the ascendency4 ,these changes 
were accompanied by some denudation     
followed by a grand submergence of      
several hundred feet1 probably brought  
about slowly1 and when floating ice     
aided in transporting erratic blocks    
from great distances4 ,the glacial till 
,number #d then originated1 and the     
gravel and sands ,number #e were        
afterwards superimposed on the boulder  
clay1 first in horizontal beds1 which   
became subsequently contorted4 ,these   
were covered in their turn by other     
layers of gravel and sand1 ,number #f1  
,figures #bg and #cc1 the downward      
movement still continuing4  ,the entire 
thickness of the beds above the ,chalk  
at some points near the coast1 and the  
height at which they now are raised1 are
 such as to show that the subsidence of 
the country after the growth of the     
forest bed exceeded #djj feet4 ,the     
re-elevation must have amounted to      

nearly as many feet1 as the site of the 
ancient forest1 originally sub-aerial1  
has been brought up again to within a   
few feet of high-water mark4 ,lastly1   
after all these events1 and probably    
during the final process of emergence1  
the valley was scooped out in which the 
newer freshwater strata of ,mundesley1  
,figure #cc1 were gradually deposited4  
,throughout the whole of this succession
 of geographical changes1 the flora and 
invertebrate fauna of ,europe appear to 
have undergone no important revolution  
in their specific characters4 ,the      
plants of the forest bed belonged       
already to what has been called the     
,germanic flora4 ,the mollusca1 the     
insects1 and even some of the mammalia1 
such as the ,european beaver and        
roebuck1 were the same as those now     
co-existing with ,man4 ,yet the oldest  
memorials of our species at present     
discovered in ,great ,britain are       
post-glacial1 or posterior in date to   
the boulder clay1 ,number #d1 ,figures  

#bg and #cc4 ,the position of the ,hoxne
 flint implements corresponds with that 
of the ,mundesley beds1 from ,a to ,d1  
,figure #cc1 and the most likely stratum
 in which to find hereafter flint tools 
is no doubt the gravel ,a of that       
section1 which has all the appearance of
 an old river-bed4 ,no flint tools have 
yet been observed there1 but had the old
 alluvium of ,amiens or ,abbeville      
occurred in the ,norfolk cliffs instead 
of the valley of the ,somme1 and had we 
depended on the waves of the sea instead
 of the labour of many hundred workmen  
continued for twenty years1 for exposing
 the flint implements to view1 we might 
have remained ignorant to this day of   
the fossil relics brought to light by   
,m4 ,boucher de ,perthes and those who  
have followed up his researches4        
,neither need we despair of one day     
meeting with the signs of ,man's        
existence in the forest bed ,number #c1 
or in the overlying strata #c prime1 on 
the ground of any uncongeniality in the 

climate or incongruity in the state of  
the animate creation with the well-being
 of our species4 ,for the present we    
must be content to wait and consider    
that we have made no investigations     
which entitle us to wonder that the     
bones or stone weapons of the era of the
 ,elephas meridionalis have failed to   
come to light4 ,if any such lie hid in  
those strata1 and should hereafter be   
revealed to us1 they would carry back   
the antiquity of ,man to a distance of  
time probably more than twice as great  
as that which separates our era from    
that of the most ancient of the         
tool-bearing gravels yet discovered in  
,picardy1 or elsewhere4 ,but even then  
the reader will perceive that the age of
 ,man1 though pre-glacial1 would be so  
modern in the great geological calendar1
 as given in ,chapter #a1 that he would 
scarcely date so far back as the        
commencement of the ,pleistocene period4
    ,,chapter #ac4 -- ,,chronological   
,,relations ,,of ,,the ,,glacial        

,,period ,,and ,,the ,,earliest ,,signs 
,,of ,,man',s ,,appearance ,,in         
,,europe4    ,chronological ,relations  
of the ,close of the ,glacial ,period   
and      the earliest geological ,signs 
of the ,appearance of ,man4   ,effects  
of ,glaciers and ,icebergs in polishing 
and scoring ,rocks4   ,scandinavia once 
encrusted with ,ice like ,greenland4    
,outward ,movement of ,continental ,ice 
in ,greenland4   ,mild ,climate of      
,greenland in the ,miocene ,period4     
,erratics of ,recent ,period in ,sweden4
   ,glacial ,state of ,sweden in the    
,pleistocene ,period4   ,scotland       
formerly encrusted with ,ice4   ,its    
subsequent ,submergence and             
,re-elevation4   ,latest ,changes       
produced by ,glaciers in ,scotland4     
,remains of the ,mammoth and ,reindeer  
in ,scotch ,boulder ,clay4   ,parallel  
,roads of ,glen ,roy formed in ,glacier 
,lakes4   ,comparatively modern ,date of
 these ,shelves4  ,the chronological    
relations of the human and glacial      

periods were frequently alluded to in   
the last chapter1 and the sections      
obtained near ,bedford1 and at ,hoxne1  
in ,suffolk1 and a general view of the  
,norfolk cliffs1 have taught us that the
 earliest signs of ,man's appearance in 
the ,british isles1 hitherto detected1  
are of post-glacial date4 ,we may now   
therefore inquire whether the peopling  
of ,europe by the human race and by the 
mammoth and other mammalia now extinct1 
was brought about during the concluding 
phases of the glacial epoch4  ,although 
it may be impossible in the present     
state of our knowledge to come to a     
positive conclusion on this head1 ,i    
know of no inquiry better fitted to     
clear up our views respecting the       
geological state of the northern        
hemisphere at the time when the         
fabricators of the flint implements of  
the ,amiens type flourished4 ,i shall   
therefore now proceed to consider the   
chronological relations of that ancient 
people with the final retreat of the    

glaciers from the mountains of          
,scandinavia1 ,scotland1 ,wales1 and    
,switzerland4   ,,superficial ,,markings
 ,,and ,,deposits ,,left ,,by ,,glaciers
 ,,and ,,icebergs4  ,in order fully to  
discuss this question1 ,i must begin by 
referring to some of the newest         
theoretical opinions entertained on the 
glacial question4 ,when treating of this
 subject in the ,principles of ,geology1
 chapter #ae1 and in the ,manual 7or    
,elements7 of ,geology1 chapter #aa1 ,i 
have stated that the whole mass of the  
ice in a glacier is in constant motion1 
and that the blocks of stone detached   
from boundary precipices1 and the mud   
and sand swept down by avalanches of    
snow1 or by rain from the surrounding   
heights1 are lodged upon the surface and
 slowly borne along in lengthened       
mounds1 called in ,switzerland moraines4
 ,these accumulations of rocky fragments
 and detrital matter are left at the    
termination of the glacier1 where it    
melts in a confused heap called the     

terminal moraine1 which is unstratified1
 because all the blocks1 large and      
small1 as well as the sand and the      
finest mud1 are carried to equal        
distances and quietly deposited in a    
confused mass without being subjected to
 the sorting power of running water1    
which would convey the finer materials  
farther than the coarser ones1 and would
 produce1 as the strength of the current
 varied from time to time in the same   
place1 a stratified arrangement4  ,in   
those regions where glaciers reach the  
sea1 and where large masses of ice break
 off and float away1 moraines1 such as  
,i have just alluded to1 may be         
transported to indefinite distances1 and
 may be deposited on the bottom of the  
sea wherever the ice happens to melt4   
,if the liquefaction take place when the
 berg has run aground and is stationary1
 and if there be no current1 the heap of
 angular and rounded stones1 mixed with 
sand and mud1 may fall to the bottom in 
an unstratified form called till in     

,scotland1 and which has been shown in  
the last chapter to abound in the       
,norfolk cliffs2 but should the action  
of a current intervene at certain points
 or at certain seasons1 then the        
materials will be sorted as they fall1  
and arranged in layers according to     
their relative weight and size4 ,hence  
there will be passages from till to     
stratified clay1 gravel1 and sand4      
,some of the blocks of stone with which 
the surfaces of glaciers are loaded1    
falling occasionally through fissures in
 the ice1 get fixed and frozen into the 
bottom of the moving mass1 and are      
pushed along under it4 ,in this         
position1 being subjected to great      
pressure1 they scoop out long           
rectilinear furrows or grooves parallel 
to each other on the subjacent solid    
rock4 ,smaller scratches and striae are 
made on the polished surface by crystals
 or projecting edges of the hardest     
minerals1 just as a diamond cuts glass4 
,in all countries the fundamental rock  

on which the boulder formation reposes1 
if it consists of granite1 gneiss1      
marble1 or other hard stone capable of  
permanently retaining any superficial   
markings which may have been imprinted  
upon it1 is smoothed or polished1 and   
exhibits parallel striae and furrows    
having a determinate direction4 ,this   
prevailing direction1 both in ,europe   
and ,north ,america1 is evidently       
connected with the course taken by the  
erratic blocks in the same district1 and
 is very commonly from north to south1  
or if it be twenty or thirty or more    
degrees to the east or west of north1   
still always corresponds to the         
direction in which the large angular and
 rounded stones have travelled4 ,these  
stones themselves also are often        
furrowed and scratched on more than one 
side1 like those already spoken of as   
occurring in the glacial drift of       
,bedford1 and in that of ,norfolk4      
,when we contemplate the area which is  
now exposed to the abrading action of   

ice1 or which is the receptacle of      
moraine matter thrown down from melting 
glaciers or bergs1 we at once perceive  
that the submarine area is the most     
extensive of the two4 ,the number of    
large icebergs which float annually to  
great distances in the northern and     
southern hemispheres is extremely great1
 and the quantity of stone and mud which
 they carry about with them enormous4   
,some floating islands of ice have been 
met with from #b to #e miles in length1 
and from #ajj to #bbe feet in height    
above water1 the submerged portion1     
according to the weight of ice          
relatively to sea water1 being from six 
to eight times more considerable than   
the part which is visible4 ,such masses1
 when they run aground on the bottom of 
the sea1 must exert a prodigious        
mechanical power1 and may polish and    
groove the subjacent rocks after the    
manner of glaciers on the land4 ,hence  
there will often be no small difficulty 
in distinguishing between the effects of

 the submarine and supramarine agency of
 ice4   ,,scandinavia ,,once ,,covered  
,,with ,,ice1 ,,and ,a ,,centre ,,of    
,,dispersion ,,of ,,erratics4  ,in the  
north of ,europe1 along the borders of  
the ,baltic1 where the boulder formation
 is continuous for hundreds of miles    
east and west1 it has been long known   
that the erratic blocks1 often of very  
large size1 are of northern origin4     
,some of them have come from ,norway and
 ,sweden1 others from ,finland1 and     
their present distribution implies that 
they were carried southwards1 for a part
 at least of their way1 by floating ice1
 at a time when much of the area over   
which they are scattered was under      
water4 ,but it appears from the         
observations of ,boetlingk1 in #ahdj1   
and those of more recent inquirers1 that
 while many blocks have travelled to the
 south1 others have been carried        
northwards1 or to the shores of the     
,polar ,sea1 and others north-eastward1 
or to those of the ,white ,sea4 ,in     

fact1 they have wandered towards all    
points of the compass1 from the         
mountains of ,scandinavia as a centre1  
and the rectilinear furrows imprinted by
 them on the polished surfaces of the   
mountains where the rocks are hard      
enough to retain such markings1 radiate 
in all directions1 or point outwards    
from the highest land1 in a manner      
corresponding to the course of the      
erratics above mentioned499       799   
,sir ,r4,i4 ,murchison1 in his ,russia  
and the ,ural      ,mountains 7#ahde7   
has indicated on a map not only the     
southern limits of the ,scandinavian    
drift1 but by arrows the      direction 
in which it proceeded eccentrically from
 a common      central region47  ,before
 the glacial theory was adopted1 the    
,swedish and ,norwegian geologists      
speculated on a great flood1 or the     
sudden rush of an enormous body of water
 charged with mud and stones1 descending
 from the central heights or watershed  
into the adjoining lower lands4 ,the    

erratic blocks were supposed in their   
downward passage to have smoothed and   
striated the rock surfaces over which   
they were forced along4  ,it would be a 
waste of time1 in the present state of  
science1 to controvert this hypothesis1 
as it is now admitted that even if the  
rush of a diluvial current1 invented for
 the occasion and wholly without analogy
 in the known course of nature1 be      
granted1 it would be inadequate to      
explain the uniformity1 parallelism1    
persistency1 and rectilinearity of the  
so-called glacial furrows4 ,it is       
moreover ascertained that heavy masses  
of rock1 not fixed in ice1 and moving as
 freely as they do when simply swept    
along by a muddy current1 do not give   
rise to such scratches and furrows4  ,m4
 ,kjerulf of ,christiania1 in a paper   
lately communicated to the ,geological  
,society of ,berlin199 has objected1 and
 perhaps with reason1 to what he        
considers the undue extent to which ,i  
have1 in some of my writings1 supposed  

the mountains of northern ,europe1 to   
have been submerged during the glacial  
period4       799 ,zeitschrift der      
,deutschen ,geologischen ,gesellschaft  
,berlin #ahfj47  ,he remarks that the   
signs of glacial action on the          
,scandinavian mountains ascend as high  
as #fjjj feet1 whereas fossil marine    
shells of the same period never reach   
elevations exceeding #fjj feet4 ,the    
land1 he says1 may have been much higher
 than it now is1 but it has evidently   
not been much lower since the           
commencement of the glacial period1 or  
marine shells would be traceable to more
 elevated points4 ,in regard to the     
absence of marine shells1 ,i shall point
 out in the sequel how small is the     
dependence we can place on this kind of 
negative evidence1 if we desire to test 
by it the extent to which the land has  
been submerged4 ,i cannot therefore     
consent to limit the probable depression
 and re-elevation of ,scandinavia to    
#fjj feet4 ,but that the larger part of 

the glaciation of that country has been 
supramarine1 ,i am willing to concede4  
,in support of this view ,m4 ,kjerulf   
observes that the direction of the      
furrows and striae1 produced by glacial 
abrasion1 neither conforms to a general 
movement of floating ice from the ,polar
 regions1 nor to the shape of the       
existing valleys1 as it would do if it  
had been caused by independent glaciers 
generated in the higher valleys after   
the land had acquired its actual shape4 
,their general arrangement and apparent 
irregularities are1 he contends1 much   
more in accordance with the hypothesis  
of there having been at one time a      
universal covering of ice over the whole
 of ,norway and ,sweden1 like that now  
existing in ,greenland1 which1 being    
annually recruited by fresh falls of    
snow1 was continually pressing outwards 
and downwards to the coast and lower    
regions1 after crossing many of the     
lower ridges1 and having no relation to 
the minor depressions1 which were all   

choked up with ice and reduced to one   
uniform level4   ,,continental ,,ice    
,,of ,,greenland4  ,in support of this  
view1 he appeals to the admirable       
description of the continental ice of   
,greenland1 lately published by ,dr4 ,h4
 ,rink of ,copenhagen199 who resided    
three or four years in the ,danish      
settlements in ,baffin's ,bay1 on the   
west coast of ,greenland1 between       
latitudes #fi and #gc degrees north4    
799 ,journal of ,royal ,geographical    
,society volume #bc #ahec      page     
#ade47  ,in that country1 the land1 says
 ,dr4 ,rink1 may be divided into two    
regions1 the 'inland' and the           
'outskirts4' ,the 'inland1' which is    
#hjj miles from west to east1 and of    
much greater length from north to south1
 is a vast unknown continent1 buried    
under one continuous and colossal mass  
of permanent ice1 which is always moving
 seaward1 but a small proportion only of
 it in an easterly direction1 since     
nearly the whole descends towards       

,baffin's ,bay4 ,at the heads of the    
fjords which intersect the coast1 the   
ice is seen to rise somewhat abruptly   
from the level of the sea to the height 
of #bjjj feet1 beyond which the ice of  
the interior rises continuously as far  
as the eye can reach1 and to an unknown 
altitude4 ,all minor ridges and valleys 
are levelled and concealed1 but here and
 there steep mountains protrude abruptly
 from the icy slope1 and a few          
superficial lines of stones or moraines 
are visible at seasons when no recent   
snow has fallen4 #bc  ,although all the 
ice is moving seaward1 the greatest     
quantity is discharged at the heads of  
certain large fjords1 usually about #d  
miles wide1 which1 if the climate were  
milder1 would be the outlet of as many  
great rivers4 ,through these the ice is 
now protruded in huge blocks1 several   
miles wide1 and from #ajjj to #aejj feet
 in height or thickness4 ,when these    
masses reach the fjords1 they do not    
melt or break up into fragments1 but    

continue their course in a solid form in
 the salt water1 grating along the rocky
 bottom1 which they must polish and     
score at depths of hundreds and even of 
more than #ajjj feet4 ,at length1 when  
there is water enough to float them1    
huge portions1 having broken off1 fill  
,baffin's ,bay with icebergs of a size  
exceeding any which could be produced by
 ordinary valley glaciers4 ,stones1     
sand1 and mud are sometimes included in 
these bergs which float down ,baffin's  
,bay4 ,at some points1 where the ice of 
the interior of ,greenland reaches the  
coast1 ,dr4 ,rink saw mighty springs of 
clayey water issuing from under the edge
 of the ice even in winter1 showing the 
grinding action of the glacial mass     
mixed with sand on the subjacent surface
 of the rocks4  ,the outskirts1 where   
the ,danish colonies are stationed1     
consist of numerous islands1 of which   
,disco island is the largest in latitude
 #gj degrees north1 and of many         
peninsulas1 with fjords from #ej to #ajj

 miles long1 running into the land1 and 
through which the ice above alluded to  
passes on its way to the bay4 ,this area
 is #cj1 #jjj square miles in extent1   
and contains in it some mountains #djjj 
feet to #ejjj feet high4 ,the perpetual 
snow usually begins at the height of    
#bjjj feet1 below which level the land  
is for the most part free from snow     
between ,june and ,august1 and supports 
a vegetation of several hundred species 
of flowering plants1 which ripen their  
seeds before the winter4 ,there are even
 some places where phanerogamous plants 
have been found at an elevation of #dejj
 feet2 a fact which1 when we reflect on 
the immediate vicinity of so large and  
lofty a region of continental ice in the
 same latitude1 well deserves the       
attention of the geologist1 who should  
also bear in mind1 that while the ,danes
 are settled to the west in the         
outskirts1 there exists1 due east of the
 most southern portion of this          
ice-covered continent1 at the distance  

of about #abjj miles1 the home of the   
,laplanders with their reindeer1 bears1 
wolves1 seals1 walruses1 and whales4    
,if1 therefore1 there are geological    
grounds for suspecting that ,scandinavia
 or ,scotland or ,wales was ever in the 
same glacial condition as ,greenland now
 is1 we must not imagine that the       
contemporaneous fauna and flora were    
everywhere poor and stunted1 or that    
they may not1 especially at the distance
 of a few hundred miles in a ,,southward
 direction1 have been very luxuriant4   
#bd  ,another series of observations    
made by ,captain ,graah1 during a survey
 of ,greenland between #ahbc and #ahbi1 
and by ,dr4 ,pingel in #ahcj-cb1 adds   
not a little to the geological interest 
of the outskirts1 in their bearing on   
glacial phenomena of ancient date4      
,those ,danish investigators1 with one  
of whom1 ,dr4 ,pingel1 ,i conversed at  
,copenhagen in #ahcd1 ascertained that  
the whole coast from latitude #fj to    
about #gj degrees north has been        

subsiding for the last four centuries1  
so that some ancient piles driven into  
the beach to support the boats of the   
settlers have been gradually submerged1 
and wooden buildings have had to be     
repeatedly shifted farther inland499    
799 ,principles of ,geology chapter     
#cj47  ,in ,norway and ,sweden1 instead 
of such a subsiding movement1 the land  
is slowly rising2 but we have only to   
suppose that formerly1 when it was      
covered like ,greenland with continental
 ice1 it sank at the rate of several    
feet in a century1 and we shall be able 
to explain why marine deposits are found
 above the level of the sea1 and why    
these generally overlie polished and    
striated surfaces of rock4  ,we know    
that ,greenland was not always covered  
with snow and ice1 for when we examine  
the ,tertiary strata of ,disco ,island  
7of the ,upper ,miocene period7 we      
discover there a multitude of fossil    
plants1 which demonstrate that1 like    
many other parts of the arctic regions1 

it formerly enjoyed a mild and genial   
climate4 ,among the fossils brought from
 that island1 latitude #gj degrees      
north1 ,professor ,heer has recognised  
,sequoia ,langsdorfii1 a coniferous     
species which flourished throughout a   
great part of ,europe in the ,miocene   
period1 and is very closely allied to   
the living ,sequoia sempervirens of     
,california4 ,the same plant has been   
found fossil by ,sir ,john ,richardson  
within the arctic circle1 far to the    
west on the ,mackenzie ,river1 near the 
entrance of ,bear ,river1 also by some  
,danish naturalists in ,iceland to the  
east4 ,the ,icelandic surturbrand1 or   
lignite1 of this age has also yielded a 
rich harvest of plants1 more than       
thirty-one of them1 according to        
,steenstrup and ,heer1 in a good state  
of preservation1 and no less than       
fifteen specifically identical with     
,miocene plants of ,europe4 ,thirteen of
 the number are arborescent2 and amongst
 others is a tulip-tree 7,liriodendron71

 with its fruit and characteristic      
leaves1 a plane 7,platanus71 a walnut1  
and a vine1 affording unmistakable      
evidence of a climate in the parallel of
 the arctic circle which precludes the  
supposition of glaciers then existing in
 the neighbourhood1 still less any      
general crust of continental ice1 like  
that of ,greenland499       799 ,heer1  
,recherches sur la ,vegetation du ,pays 
tertiaire      etc4 #ahfa page #agh47   
,as the older ,pliocene flora of the    
,tertiary strata of ,italy1 like the    
shells of the ,coralline ,crag1 before  
adverted to1 ,chapter #ab1 indicate a   
temperature milder than that now        
prevailing in ,europe1 though not so    
warm as that of the ,upper ,miocene     
period1 it is probable that the         
accumulation of snow and glaciers on the
 mountains and valleys of ,greenland did
 not begin till after the commencement  
of the ,pliocene period1 and may not    
have reached its maximum until the close
 of that period4  ,norway and ,sweden   

appear to have passed through all the   
successive phases of glaciation which   
,greenland has experienced1 and others  
which that country will one day undergo1
 if the climate which it formerly       
enjoyed should ever be restored to it4  
,there must have been first a period of 
separate glaciers in ,scandinavia1 then 
a ,greenlandic state of continental ice1
 and thirdly1 when that diminished1 a   
second period of enormous separate      
glaciers filling many a valley now      
wooded with fir and birch4 ,lastly1     
under the influence of the ,gulf        
,stream1 and various changes in the     
height and extent of land in the arctic 
circle1 a melting of nearly all the     
permanent ice between latitudes #fj and 
#gj north1 corresponding to the         
parallels of the continental ice of     
,greenland1 has occurred1 so that we    
have now to go farther north than       
latitude #gj degrees before we encounter
 any glacier coming down to the sea     
coast4 ,among other signs of the last   

retreat of the extinct glaciers1        
,kjerulf and other authors describe     
large transverse moraines left in many  
of the ,norwegian and ,swedish glens4   
,,chronological ,,relations ,,of ,,the  
,,human ,,and ,,glacial ,,periods ,,in  
,,sweden4  ,we may now consider whether 
any1 and what part1 of these changes in 
,scandinavia may have been witnessed by 
,man4 ,in ,sweden1 in the immediate     
neighbourhood of ,upsala1 ,i observed1  
in #ahcd1 a ridge of stratified sand and
 gravel1 in the midst of which occurs a 
layer of marl1 evidently formed         
originally at the bottom of the ,baltic1
 by the slow growth of the mussel1      
cockle1 and other marine shells of      
living species intermixed with some     
proper to fresh water4 ,the marine      
shells are all of dwarfish size1 like   
those now inhabiting the brackish waters
 of the ,baltic2 and the marl1 in which 
myriads of them are embedded1 is now    
raised more than #ajj feet above the    
level of the ,gulf of ,bothnia4 ,upon   

the top of this ridge 7one of those     
called osars in ,sweden7 repose several 
huge erratics consisting of gneiss1 for 
the most part unrounded1 from #i to #af 
feet in diameter1 and which must have   
been brought into their present position
 since the time when the neighbouring   
gulf was already characterised by its   
peculiar fauna4 ,here1 therefore1 we    
have proof that the transport of        
erratics continued to take place1 not   
merely when the sea was inhabited by the
 existing ,testacea1 but when the north 
of ,europe had already assumed that     
remarkable feature of its physical      
geography1 which separates the ,baltic  
from the ,north ,sea1 and causes the    
,gulf of ,bothnia to have only          
one-fourth of the saltness belonging to 
the ocean4  ,i cannot doubt that these  
large erratics of ,upsala were brought  
into their present position during the  
,recent period1 not only because of     
their moderate elevation above the      
sea-level in a country where the land is

 now rising every century1 but because  
,i observed signs of a great oscillation
 of level which had taken place at      
,sodertelje1 south of ,stockholm 7about 
#de miles distant from ,upsala71 after  
the country had been inhabited by ,man4 
,i described1 in the ,philosophical     
,transactions for #ahce1 the section    
there laid open in digging a level in   
#ahai1 which showed that a subsidence   
followed by a re-elevation of land1 each
 movement amounting to more than #fj    
feet1 had occurred since the time when a
 rude hut had been built on the ancient 
shore4 ,the wooden frame of the hut1    
with a ring of hearthstones on the      
floor1 and much charcoal1 were found1   
and over them marine strata1 more than  
#fj feet thick1 containing the dwarf    
variety of ,mytilus edulis1 and other   
brackish-water shells of the ,bothnian  
,gulf4 ,some vessels put together with  
wooden pegs1 of anterior date to the use
 of metals1 were also embedded in parts 
of the same marine formation1 which has 

since been raised1 so that the upper    
beds are more than #fj feet above the   
sea-level1 the hut being thus restored  
to about its original position          
relatively to the sea4  ,we have seen in
 the account of the ,danish             
kitchen-middens of the ,recent period   
that even at the comparatively late     
period of their origin the waters of the
 ,baltic had been rendered more salt    
than they are now4 ,the ,upsala erratics
 may belong to nearly the same era as   
these4 ,but were we to go back to a long
 antecedent epoch1 or to that of the    
,belgian and ,british caves with their  
extinct animals1 and the signs they     
afford of a state of physical geography 
departing widely from the present1 or to
 the era of the implement-bearing       
alluvium of ,st4 ,acheul1 we might      
expect to find ,scandinavia overwhelmed 
with glaciers1 and the country          
uninhabitable by ,man4 ,at a much       
remoter period the same country was in  
the state in which ,greenland now is1   

overspread with one uninterrupted       
coating of continental ice1 which has   
left its peculiar markings on the       
highest mountains4 ,this period1        
probably anterior to the earliest traces
 yet brought to light of the human race1
 may have coincided with the submergence
 of ,england1 and the accumulation of   
the boulder-clay of ,norfolk1 ,suffolk1 
and ,bedfordshire1 before mentioned4 ,it
 has already been stated that the       
syenite and some other rocks of the     
,norfolk till seem to have come from    
,scandinavia1 and there is no era when  
icebergs are so likely to have floated  
them so far south as when the whole of  
,sweden and ,norway were enveloped in a 
massive crust of ice2 a state of things 
the existence of which is deduced from  
the direction of the glacial furrows1   
and their frequent unconformity to the  
shape of the minor valleys4   ,,glacial 
,,period ,,in ,,scotland #be4           
,professor ,agassiz1 after his tour in  
,scotland in #ahdj1 announced the       

opinion that erratic blocks had been    
dispersed from the ,scottish mountains  
as from an independent centre1 and that 
the capping of ice had been of          
extraordinary thickness499       799    
,agassiz1 ,proceedings of the           
,geological ,society #ahdj and          
,edinburgh ,philosophical ,journal #di  
page #gi47  ,mr4 ,robert ,chambers1     
after visiting ,norway and ,sweden1 and 
comparing the signs of glacial action   
observed there with similar appearances 
in the ,grampians1 came to the          
conclusion that the ,highlands both of  
,scandinavia and ,scotland had once been
 moulded in ice1 and that the outward   
and downward movement and pressure of   
the frozen mass had not only smoothed1  
polished1 and scratched the rocks1 but  
had1 in the course of ages1 deepened and
 widened the valleys1 and produced much 
of that denudation which has commonly   
been ascribed exclusively to aqueous    
action4 ,the glaciation of the ,scotch  
mountains was traced by him to the      

height of at least #cjjj feet499        
799 ,ancient ,sea ,margins ,edinburgh   
#ahdh4 ,glacial ,phenomena              
,edinburgh ,new ,philosophical ,journal 
,april #ahec and ,january      #ahee47  
,mr4 ,t4,f4 ,jamieson1 of ,ellon1 in    
,aberdeenshire1 has recently brought    
forward an additional body of facts in  
support of this theory4 ,according to   
him the ,grampians were at the period of
 extreme cold enveloped in one great    
winding sheet of snow and ice1 which    
reached everywhere to the coast-line1   
the land being then more elevated than  
it is now4 ,he describes the glacial    
furrows sculptured on the solid rocks as
 pointing in ,aberdeenshire to the      
south-east1 those of the valley of the  
,forth at ,edinburgh1 from west to east1
 and higher up the same valley at       
,stirling1 from north-west to           
south-east1 as they should do if the ice
 had followed the lines of what is now  
the principal drainage4 ,the            
observations of ,sir ,james ,hall1 ,mr4 

,maclaren1 ,mr4 ,chambers1 and ,dr4     
,fleming1 are cited by him in           
confirmation of this arrangement of the 
glacial markings1 while in ,sutherland  
and ,ross-shire he shows that the       
glacial furrows along the north coast   
point northwards1 and in ,argyleshire   
westwards1 always in accordance with the
 direction of the principal glens and   
fjords4  ,another argument is also      
adduced by him in proof of the ice      
having exerted its mechanical force in a
 direction from the higher and more     
inland country to the lower region and  
sea-coast4 ,isolated hills and minor    
prominences of rock are often polished  
and striated on the land side1 while    
they remain rough and jagged on the side
 fronting the sea4 ,this may be seen    
both on the east and west coast4        
,mention is also made of blocks of      
granite which have travelled from south 
to north in ,aberdeenshire1 of which    
there would have been no examples had   
the erratics been all brought by        

floating ice from the arctic regions    
when ,scotland was submerged4 ,it is    
also urged against the doctrine of      
attributing the general glaciation to   
submergence1 that the glacial grooves1  
instead of radiating as they do from a  
centre1 would1 if they had been due to  
ice coming from the north1 have been    
parallel to the coast-line1 to which    
they are now often almost at right      
angles4 ,the argument1 moreover1 which  
formerly had most weight in favour of   
floating ice1 namely1 that it explained 
why so many of the stones did not       
conform to the contour and direction of 
the minor hills and valleys1 is now     
brought forward1 and with no small      
effect1 in favour of the doctrine of    
continental ice on the ,greenlandic     
scale1 which1 after levelling up the    
lesser inequalities1 would occasionally 
flow in mighty ice-currents1 in         
directions often at a high angle to the 
smaller ridges and glens4  ,the         
application to ,scandinavia and         

,scotland of this theory makes it       
necessary to reconsider the validity of 
the proofs formerly relied on as        
establishing the submergence of a great 
part of ,scotland beneath the sea1 at   
some period subsequent to the           
commencement of the glacial period4 ,in 
all cases where marine shells overlie   
till1 or rest on polished and striated  
surfaces of rock1 the evidence of the   
land having been under water1 and having
 been since upheaved1 remains unshaken2 
but this special proof rarely extends to
 heights exceeding #ejj feet4 ,in the   
basin of the ,clyde we have already seen
 that ,recent strata occur #be feet     
above the sea-level1 with existing      
species of marine testacea1 and with    
buried canoes1 and other works of art4  
,at the higher level of #ej feet occurs 
the well-known raised beach of the      
western coast1 which1 according to ,mr4 
,jamieson1 contains1 near ,fort ,william
 and on ,loch ,fyne and elsewhere1 an   
assemblage of shells implying a colder  

climate than that of the #be-;foot      
terrace1 or that of the present sea2    
just as1 in the valley of the ,somme1   
the higher-level gravels are supposed to
 belong to a colder period than the     
lower ones1 and still more decidedly    
than that of the present era4 ,at still 
greater elevations1 older beds          
containing a still more arctic group of 
shells have been observed at ,airdrie1  
#ad miles south-east of ,glasgow1 #ebd  
feet above the level of the sea4 ,they  
were embedded in stratified clays1 with 
the unstratified boulder till both above
 and below them1 and in the overlying   
unstratified drift were some boulders of
 granite which must have come from      
distances of #fj miles at the least499  
799 ,smith of ,jordanhill1 ,quarterly   
,journal of the ,geological             
,society volume #f #ahej page #chg47    
,the presence of ,tellina calcarea1 and 
several other northern shells1 implies a
 climate colder than that of the present
 ,scottish seas4 ,in the north of       

,scotland1 marine shells have been found
 in deposits of the same age in         
,caithness and in ,aberdeenshire at     
heights of #bej feet1 and on the shores 
of the ,moray ,firth1 as at ,gamrie in  
,banff1 at an elevation of #cej feet2   
and the stratified sands and beds of    
pebbles which belong to the same        
formation ascend still higher--to       
heights of #ejj feet at least499        
799 ,prestwich1 ,proceedings of the     
,geological ,society volume      #b page
 #ede2 ,jamieson1 ,quarterly ,journal of
 the ,geological      ,society volume   
#af #ahfj47  ,at much greater heights1  
stratified masses of drift occur in     
which hitherto no organic remains1      
whether of marine or freshwater animals1
 have ever been found4 ,it is still an  
undecided question whether the origin of
 all such deposits in the ,grampians can
 be explained without the intervention  
of the sea4 ,one of the most conspicuous
 examples has been described by ,mr4    
,jamieson as resting on the flank of a  

hill called ,meal ,uaine1 in            
,perthshire1 on the east side of the    
valley of the ,tummel1 just below       
,killiecrankie4 ,it consists of         
perfectly horizontal strata1 the lowest 
portion of them #cjj feet above the     
river and #fjj feet above the sea4 ,from
 this elevation to an altitude of nearly
 #abjj feet the same series of strata is
 traceable1 continuously1 up the slope  
of the mountain1 and some patches are   
seen here and there even as high as     
#aeej feet above the sea4 ,they are made
 up in great part of finely laminated   
silt1 alternating with coarser          
materials1 through which stones from #d 
to #e feet in length are scattered4     
,these large boulders1 and some smaller 
ones1 are polished on one or more sides1
 and marked with glacial striae4 ,the   
subjacent rocks1 also1 of gneiss1 mica  
slate1 and quartz1 are everywhere       
grooved and polished as if by the       
passage of a glacier499       799       
,jamieson1 ,quarterly ,journal of the   

,geological ,society      volume #af    
#ahfj page #cfj47  ,at one spot a       
vertical thickness of #acj feet of this 
series of strata is exposed to view by a
 mountain torrent1 and in all more than 
#bjjj layers of clay1 sand1 and gravel  
were counted1 the whole evidently       
accumulated under water4 ,some beds     
consist of an impalpable mud1 like      
putty1 apparently derived from the      
grinding down of felspar1 and resembling
 the mud produced by the grinding action
 of modern glaciers4  ,mr4 ,jamieson1   
when he first gave an account of this   
drift1 inferred1 in spite of the absence
 of marine shells1 that it implied the  
submergence of ,scotland beneath the    
ocean after the commencement of the     
glacial period1 or after the era of     
continental ice indicated by the        
subjacent floor of polished and grooved 
rock4 ,this conclusion would require a  
submergence of the land as far up as    
#aeej feet above the present sea-level1 
after which a great re-upheaval must    

have occurred4 ,but the same author1    
having lately revisited the valley of   
the ,tummel1 suggests another possible1 
and ,i think probable1 explanation of   
the same phenomena4 ,the stratified     
drift in question is situated in a deep 
depression between two buttresses of    
rock1 and if an enormous glacier be     
supposed to have once filled the valley 
of the ,tummel to the height of the     
stratified drift1 it may have dammed up 
the mouth of a mountain torrent by a    
transverse barrier1 giving rise to a    
deep pond1 in which beds of clay and    
sand brought down by the waters of the  
torrent were deposited4 ,charpentier in 
his work on the ,swiss glaciers has     
described many such receptacles of      
stratified matter now in progress1 and  
due to such blockages1 and he has       
pointed out the remnants of ancient and 
similar formations left by extinct      
glaciers of an earlier epoch4 ,he       
specially notices that angular stones of
 various dimensions1 often polished and 

striated1 which rest on the glacier and 
are let fall when the torrent undermines
 the side of the moving ice1 descend    
into the small lake and become          
interstratified with the gravel and fine
 sediment brought down by the torrent   
into the same499       799 ,charpentier1
 ,essai sur les ,glaciers page #fc      
#ahda47  ,the evidence of the former    
sojourn of the sea upon the land after  
the commencement of the glacial period  
was formerly inferred from the height to
 which erratic blocks derived from      
distant regions could be traced1 besides
 the want of conformity in the glacial  
furrows to the present contours of many 
of the valleys4 ,some of these phenomena
 may now1 as we have seen1 be accounted 
for by assuming that there was once a   
crust of ice resembling that now        
covering ,greenland4  ,the ,grampians in
 ,forfarshire and in ,perthshire are    
from #cjjj to #djjj feet high4 ,to the  
southward lies the broad and deep valley
 of ,strathmore1 and to the south of    

this again rise the ,sidlaw ,hills to   
the height of #aejj feet and upwards4   
,on the highest summits of this chain1  
formed of sandstone and shale1 and at   
various elevations1 ,i have observed    
huge angular fragments of mica-schist1  
some #c and others #ae feet in diameter1
 which have been conveyed for a distance
 of at least #ae miles from the nearest 
,grampian rocks from which they could   
have been detached4 ,others have been   
left strewed over the bottom of the     
large intervening vale of ,strathmore499
       799 ,proceedings of the          
,geological ,society volume #c page     
#cdd47  ,it may be argued that the      
transportation of such blocks may have  
been due not to floating ice1 but to a  
period when ,strathmore was filled up   
with land ice1 a current of which       
extended from the ,perthshire ,highlands
 to the summit of the ,sidlaw ,hills1   
and the total absence of marine or      
freshwater shells from all deposits1    
stratified or unstratified1 which have  

any connection with these erratics in   
,forfarshire and ,perthshire may be     
thought to favour such a theory4  ,but  
the same mode of transport can scarcely 
be imagined for those fragments of      
mica-schist1 one of them weighing from  
#h to #aj tons1 which were observed much
 farther south by ,mr4 ,maclaren on the 
,pentland ,hills1 near ,edinburgh1 at   
the height of #aajj feet above the sea1 
the nearest mountain composed of this   
formation being #ej miles distant499    
799 ,maclaren1 ,geology of ,fife etc4   
page #bbj47  ,on the same hills1 also1  
at all elevations1 stratified gravels   
occur which1 although devoid of shells1 
it seems hardly possible to refer to any
 but a marine origin4  ,although ,i am  
willing1 therefore1 to concede that the 
glaciation of the ,scotch mountains1 at 
elevations exceeding #bjjj feet1 may be 
explained by land ice1 it seems         
difficult not to embrace the conclusion 
that a subsidence took place not merely 
of #ejj or #fjj feet1 as demonstrated by

 the marine shells1 but to a much       
greater amount1 as shown by the present 
position of erratics and some patches of
 stratified drift4 ,the absence of      
marine shells at greater heights than   
#ebe feet above the sea1 will be treated
 of in a future chapter4 ,it may in     
part1 perhaps1 be ascribed to the action
 of glaciers1 which swept out marine    
strata from all the higher valleys1     
after the re-emergence of the land4     
,,latest ,,changes ,,produced ,,by      
,,glaciers ,,in ,,scotland4  ,we may    
next consider the state of ,scotland    
after its emergence from the glacial    
sea1 when we cannot fail to be          
approaching the time when ,man          
co-existed with the mammoth and other   
mammalia now extinct4 ,in a paper which 
,i published in #ahdj1 on the ancient   
glaciers of ,forfarshire1 ,i endeavoured
 to show that some of these existed     
after the mountains and glens had       
acquired precisely their present        
shape199 and had left moraines even in  

the minor valleys1 just where they would
 now leave them were the snow and ice   
again to gain ground4       799         
,proceedings of the ,geological ,society
 volume #c page      #ccg47  ,i         
described also one remarkable transverse
 mound1 evidently the terminal moraine  
of a retreating glacier1 which crosses  
the valley of the ,south ,esk1 a few    
miles above the point where it issues   
from the ,grampians1 and about #f miles 
below the ,kirktown of ,clova4 ,its     
central part1 at a place called         
,glenarm1 is #hjj feet above the level  
of the sea4 ,the valley is about half a 
mile broad1 and is bounded by steep and 
lofty mountains1 but immediately above  
the transverse barrier it expands into a
 wide alluvial plain1 several miles     
broad1 which has evidently once been a  
lake4 ,the barrier itself1 about #aej   
feet high1 consists in its lower part of
 till with boulders1 #ej feet thick1    
precisely resembling the moraine of a   
,swiss glacier1 above which there is a  

mass of stratified sand1 varying in     
thickness from #ej to #ajj feet1 which  
has the appearance of consisting of the 
materials of the moraine rearranged in a
 stratified form1 possibly by the waters
 of a glacier lake4 ,the structure of   
the barrier has been laid open by the   
,esk1 which has cut through it a deep   
passage about #djj yards wide4  ,i have 
also given an account of another        
striking feature in the physical        
geography of ,perthshire and            
,forfarshire1 which ,i consider to      
belong to the same period2 namely1 a    
continuous zone of boulder clay1 forming
 ridges and mounds from #ej to #gj feet 
high 7the upper part of the mounds      
usually stratified71 enclosing numerous 
lakes1 some of them several miles long1 
and many ponds and swamps filled with   
shell-marl and peat4 ,this band of till1
 with ,grampian boulders and associated 
river-gravel1 may be traced continuously
 for a distance of #cd miles1 with a    
width of #c #a_/b miles1 from near      

,dunkeld1 by ,coupar1 to the south of   
,blairgowrie1 then through the lowest   
part of ,strathmore1 and afterwards in a
 straight line through the greatest     
depression in the ,sidlaw ,hills1 from  
,forfar to ,lunan ,bay4  ,although no   
great river now takes its course through
 this line of ancient lakes1 moraines1  
and river gravel1 yet it evidently marks
 an ancient line by which1 first1 a     
great glacier descended from the        
mountains to the sea1 and by which1     
secondly1 at a later period1 the        
principal water drainage of this country
 was effected4 ,the subsequent          
modification in geography is comparable 
in amount to that which has taken place 
since the higher level gravels of the   
valley of the ,somme were formed1 or    
since the ,belgian caves were filled    
with mud and bone-breccia4              
,illustration3 ,figure #ce4 ,oval ,and  
,flattish ,pebbles ,in ,deserted        
,channels    7,,figure #ce4 ,,oval ,,and
 ,,flattish ,,pebbles ,,in ,,deserted   

,,channels47  ,mr4 ,jamieson has        
remarked1 in reference to this and some 
other extinct river-channels of         
corresponding date1 that we have the    
means of ascertaining the direction in  
which the waters flowed by observing the
 arrangement of the oval and flattish   
pebbles in their deserted channels2 for 
in the bed of a fast-flowing river such 
pebbles are seen to dip towards the     
current1 as represented in ,figure #ce1 
such being the position of greatest     
resistance to the stream499       799   
,jamieson1 ,quarterly ,journal of the   
,geological ,society      volume #af    
#ahfj page #cdi47  ,if this be admitted1
 it follows that the higher or          
mountainous country bore the same       
relation to the lower lands1 at the time
 when a great river passed through this 
chain of lakes1 as it does at present4  
,we also seem to have a test of the     
comparatively modern origin of the      
mounds of till which surround the       
above-mentioned chain of lakes 7of which

 that of ,forfar is one71 in the species
 of organic remains contained in the    
shell-marl deposited at their bottom4   
,all the mammalia as well as shells are 
of recent species4 ,unfortunately1 we   
have no information as to the fauna     
which inhabited the country at the time 
when the till itself was formed4 ,there 
seem to be only three or four instances 
as yet known in all ,scotland of        
mammalia having been discovered in      
boulder clay4  ,mr4 ,r4 ,bald has       
recorded the circumstances under which a
 single elephant's tusk was found in the
 unstratified drift of the valley of the
 ,forth1 with the minuteness which such 
a discovery from its rarity well        
deserved4 ,he distinguishes the boulder 
clay1 under the name of the old alluvial
 cover1 from that more modern alluvium1 
in which the whales of ,airthrie1       
described in ,chapter #c1 were found4   
,this cover he says is sometimes #afj   
feet thick4 ,having never observed any  
organic remains in it1 he watched with  

curiosity and care the digging of the   
,union ,canal between ,edinburgh and    
,falkirk1 which passed for no less than 
#bh miles almost continuously through   
it4 ,mr4 ,baird1 the engineer who       
superintended the works1 assisted in the
 inquiry1 and at one place only in this 
long section did they meet with a       
fossil1 namely1 at ,cliftonhall1 in the 
valley of the ,almond4 ,it lay at a     
depth of between #ae and #bj feet from  
the surface1 in very stiff clay1 and    
consisted of an elephant's tusk1 #ci    
inches long and #ac in circumference1 in
 so fresh a state that an ivory turner  
purchased it and turned part of it into 
chessmen before it was rescued from     
destruction4 ,the remainder is still    
preserved in the museum at ,edinburgh1  
but by exposure to the air it has shrunk
 considerably499       799 ,memoirs of  
the ,wernerian ,society ,edinburgh      
volume #d      page #eh47  ,in #ahag1   
two other tusks and some bones of the   
elephant1 as we learn from the same     

authority 7,mr4 ,bald71 were met with1  
#c #a_/b feet long and #ac inches in    
circumference1 lying in an horizontal   
position1 #ag feet deep in clay1 with   
marine shells1 at ,kilmaurs1 in         
,ayrshire4 ,the species of shells are   
not given499      799 ,ibid4 volume #d  
page #fc47  ,in another excavation      
through the ,scotch boulder clay1 made  
in digging the ,clyde and ,forth        
,junction ,railway1 the antlers of a    
reindeer were found at ,croftamie1 in   
,dumbartonshire1 in the basin of the    
river ,endrick1 which flows into ,loch  
,lomond4 ,they had cut through #ab feet 
of till with angular and rounded stones1
 some of large size1 and then through #f
 feet of underlying clay1 when they came
 upon the deer's horns1 #ah feet from   
the surface1 and within a foot of the   
sandstone on which the till rested4 ,at 
the distance of a few yards1 and in the 
same position1 but a foot or two deeper1
 were observed marine shells1 ,cyprina  
islandica1 ,astarte elliptica1 ,a4      

compressa1 ,fusus antiquus1 ,littorina  
littorea1 and a ,balanus4 ,the height   
above the level of the sea was between  
#ajj and #ajc feet4 ,the reindeer's horn
 was seen by ,professor ,owen1 who      
considered it to be that of a young     
female of the large variety1 called by  
the ,hudson's ,bay trappers the caribou4
  ,the remains of elephants1 now in the 
museums of ,glasgow and ,edinburgh1     
purporting to come from the superficial 
deposits of ,scotland have been referred
 to ,elephas primigenius4 ,in cases     
where tusks alone have been found       
unaccompanied by molar teeth1 such      
specific determinations may be          
uncertain2 but if any one specimen be   
correctly named1 the occurrence of the  
mammoth and reindeer in the ,scotch     
boulder-clay1 as both these quadrupeds  
are known to have been contemporary with
 ,man1 favours the idea which ,i have   
already expressed1 that the close of the
 glacial period in the ,grampians may   
have coincided in time with the         

existence of ,man in those parts of     
,europe where the climate was less      
severe1 as1 for example1 in the basins  
of the ,thames1 ,somme1 and ,seine1 in  
which the bones of many extinct mammalia
 are associated with flint implements of
 the antique type4   ,,parallel ,,roads 
,,of ,,glen ,,roy ,,in ,,scotland4      
,illustration3 ,plate #b4 ,glen ,roy and
 ,glen ,spean    7,,plate #b4 ,,view    
,,of ,,the ,,mouths ,,of ,,glen ,,roy   
,,and ,,glen ,,spean1     ,,by ,,sir ,t4
 ,,dick ,,lauder4    ,,vv4 ,hill of     
,bohuntine4    ,,vvv4 ,glen ,roy4       
,v7inverted7,v4 ,mealderry4    ,v4      
,entrance of ,glen ,spean               
,,vv7superscript7,v4 ,point of division 
between ,glens ,roy      and ,spean47   
,perhaps no portion of the superficial  
drift of ,scotland can lay claim to so  
modern an origin on the score of the    
freshness of its aspect1 as that which  
forms what are called the ,parallel     
,roads of ,glen ,roy4 ,if they do not   
belong to the ,recent epoch1 they are at

 least posterior in date to the present 
outline of mountain and glen1 and to the
 time when every one of the smaller     
burns ran in their present channels1    
though some of them have since been     
slightly deepened4 ,the almost perfect  
horizontality1 moreover1 of the roads1  
one of which is continuous for about #bj
 miles from east to west1 and #ab miles 
from north to south1 shows that since   
the era of their formation no change has
 taken place in the relative levels of  
different parts of the district4        
,illustration3 ,figure #cf4 ,map of     
,glen ,roy    7,,figure #cf4 ,,map ,,of 
,,the ,,parallel ,,roads ,,of ,,glen    
,,roy ,,or ,,lochaber4     ,a4 five     
miles distant south-west from this point
 is      ,fort ,william1 where the      
,lochy joins an arm of the sea1         
called ,loch ,eil4    ,vertical lines4  
,cols or watersheds at the heads of the 
glens--once the westward outlet of the  
lakes4    ,dots4 ,conspicuous delta     
deposits as laid down by      ,mr4      

,t4,f4 ,jamieson47  ,glen ,roy is       
situated in the ,western ,highlands1    
about #aj miles east-north-east of ,fort
 ,william1 near the western end of the  
great glen of ,scotland1 or ,caledonian 
,canal1 and near the foot of the highest
 of the ,grampians1 ,ben ,nevis4 7,see  
map1 ,figure #cf47 ,throughout nearly   
its whole length1 a distance of more    
than #aj miles1 three parallel roads or 
shelves are traced along the steep sides
 of the mountains1 as represented in the
 annexed view1 ,plate #b1 by the late   
,sir ,t4 ,dick ,lauder1 each maintaining
 a perfect horizontality1 and continuing
 at exactly the same level on the       
opposite sides of the glen4 ,seen at a  
distance1 they appear like ledges1 or   
roads1 cut artificially out of the sides
 of the hills2 but when we are upon     
them1 we can scarcely recognise their   
existence1 so uneven is their surface1  
and so covered with boulders4 ,they are 
from #aj to #fj feet broad1 and merely  
differ from the side of the mountain by 

being somewhat less steep4  ,on closer  
inspection1 we find that these terraces 
are stratified in the ordinary manner of
 alluvial or littoral deposits1 as may  
be seen at those points where ravines   
have been excavated by torrents4 ,the   
parallel shelves1 therefore1 have not   
been caused by denudation1 but by the   
deposition of detritus1 precisely       
similar to that which is dispersed in   
smaller quantities over the declivities 
of the hills above4 ,these hills consist
 of clay-slate1 mica schist1 and        
granite1 which rocks have been worn away
 and laid bare at a few points          
immediately above the parallel roads4   
,the lowest of these roads is about #hej
 feet above the level of the sea1 the   
next about #bab feet higher1 and the    
third #hb feet above the second4 ,there 
is a fourth shelf1 which occurs only in 
a contiguous valley called ,glen ,gluoy1
 which is #ab feet above the highest of 
all the ,glen ,roy roads1 and           
consequently about #aaef feet above the 

level of the sea499       799 ,another  
detached shelf also occurs at           
,kilfinnan4 7,see      ,map1 ,figure    
#cf477  ,one only1 the lowest of the    
three roads of ,glen ,roy1 is continued 
throughout ,glen ,spean1 a large valley 
with which ,glen ,roy unites4 7,see     
,plate #b and map1 ,figure #cf47 ,as the
 shelves1 having no slope towards the   
sea like ordinary river terraces1 are   
always at the same absolute height1 they
 become continually more elevated above 
the river in proportion as we descend   
each valley2 and they at length         
terminate very abruptly1 without any    
obvious cause1 or any change either in  
the shape of the ground or in the       
composition or hardness of the rocks4   
,i should exceed the limits of this     
work1 were ,i to attempt to give a full 
description of all the geographical     
circumstances attending these singular  
terraces1 or to discuss the ingenious   
theories which have been severally      
proposed to account for them by ,dr4    

,macculloch1 ,sir ,t4 ,lauder1 and      
,messrs4 ,darwin1 ,agassiz1 ,milne1 and 
,chambers4 ,there is one point1 however1
 on which all are agreed1 namely1 that  
these shelves are ancient beaches1 or   
littoral formations1 accumulated round  
the edges of one or more sheets of water
 which once stood for a long time       
successively at the level of the several
 shelves4  ,illustration3 ,figure #cg4  
,section ,through ,side of ,loch        
7,,figure #cg4 ,,section ,,through      
,,side ,,of ,,loch4     ,,ab4 ,supposed 
original surface of rock4    ,,cd4      
,roads or shelves in the outer alluvial 
covering of the hill47  ,it is well     
known1 that wherever a lake or marine   
fjord exists surrounded by steep        
mountains subject to disintegration by  
frost or the action of torrents1 some   
loose matter is washed down annually1   
especially during the melting of snow1  
and a check is given to the descent of  
this detritus at the point where it     
reaches the waters of the lake4 ,the    

waves then spread out the materials     
along the shore1 and throw some of them 
upon the beach2 their dispersing power  
being aided by the ice1 which often     
adheres to pebbles during the winter    
months1 and gives buoyancy to them4 ,the
 annexed diagram 7,figure #cg7          
illustrates the manner in which ,dr4    
,mac,culloch and ,mr4 ,darwin suppose   
the roads to constitute mere            
excrescences of the superficial alluvial
 coating which rests upon the hillside1 
and consists chiefly of clay and sharp  
unrounded stones4  ,among other proofs  
that the parallel roads have really been
 formed along the margin of a sheet of  
water1 it may be mentioned1 that        
wherever an isolated hill rises in the  
middle of the glen above the level of   
any particular shelf1 as in ,mealderry1 
,plate #b1 a corresponding shelf is seen
 at the same level passing round the    
hill1 as would have happened if it had  
once formed an island in a lake or      
fjord4 ,another very remarkable         

peculiarity in these terraces is this2  
each of them comes in some portion of   
its course to a col1 or parting ridge1  
between the heads of glens1 the         
explanation of which will be considered 
in the sequel4  ,those writers who first
 advocated the doctrine that the roads  
were the ancient beaches of freshwater  
lakes1 were unable to offer any probable
 hypothesis respecting the formation and
 subsequent removal of barriers of      
sufficient height and solidity to dam up
 the water4 ,to introduce any violent   
convulsion for their removal was        
inconsistent with the uninterrupted     
horizontality of the roads1 and with the
 undisturbed aspect of those parts of   
the glens where the shelves come        
suddenly to an end4  ,mr4 ,agassiz and  
,dr4 ,buckland1 desirous1 like the      
defenders of the lake theory1 to account
 for the limitation of the shelves to   
certain glens1 and their absence in     
contiguous glens1 where the rocks are of
 the same composition1 and the slope and

 inclination of the ground very similar1
 first started the theory that these    
valleys were once blocked up by enormous
 glaciers descending from ,ben ,nevis1  
giving rise to what are called1 in      
,switzerland and in the ,tyrol1         
glacier-lakes4 ,in corroboration of this
 view1 they contended that the alluvium 
of ,glen ,roy1 as well as of other parts
 of ,scotland1 agrees in character with 
the moraines of glaciers seen in the    
,alpine valleys of ,switzerland4 ,it    
will readily be conceded that this      
hypothesis was preferable to any        
previous lacustrine theory1 by          
accounting more easily for the temporary
 existence and entire disappearance of  
lofty transverse barriers1 although the 
height required for the supposed dams of
 ice appeared very enormous4  ,before   
the idea of glacier-lakes had been      
suggested by ,agassiz1 ,mr4 ,darwin     
examined ,glen ,roy1 and came to the    
opinion that the shelves were formed    
when the glens were still arms of the   

sea1 and1 consequently1 that there never
 were any seaward barriers4 ,according  
to him1 the land emerged during a slow  
and uniform upward movement1 like that  
now experienced throughout a large part 
of ,sweden and ,finland2 but there were 
certain pauses in the upheaving process1
 at which times the waters of the sea   
remained stationary for so many         
centuries as to allow of the            
accumulation of an extraordinary        
quantity of detrital matter1 and the    
excavation1 at many points immediately  
above the sea-level1 of deep notches and
 bare cliffs in the hard and solid rock4
  ,this theory ,i adopted in #ahda      
7,elements1 #bnd edition71 as appearing 
to me less objectionable than any other 
then proposed4 ,the phenomena most      
difficult to reconcile with it are1     
first1 the abrupt cessation of the roads
 at certain points in the different     
glens2 secondly1 their unequal number in
 different valleys connecting with each 
other1 there being three1 for example1  

in ,glen ,roy1 and only one in ,glen    
,spean2 thirdly1 the precise            
horizontality of level maintained by the
 same shelf over a space many leagues in
 length1 requiring us to assume1 that   
during a rise of #aaef feet no one      
portion of the land was raised even a   
few yards above another2 fourthly1 the  
coincidence of level already alluded to 
of each shelf with a col1 or the point  
forming the head of two glens1 from     
which the rain-waters flow in opposite  
directions4 ,this last-mentioned feature
 in the physical geography of ,lochaber 
,mr4 ,darwin endeavoured to explain in  
the following manner4 ,he called these  
cols land-straits1 and regarding them as
 having been anciently sounds or        
channels between islands1 he pointed out
 that there is a tendency in such sounds
 to be silted up1 and always the more so
 in proportion to their narrowness4 ,in 
a chart of the ,falkland ,islands1 by   
,captain ,sulivan1 ,r4,n41 it appears   
that there are several examples there of

 straits where the soundings diminish   
regularly towards the narrowest part4   
,one is so nearly dry that it can be    
walked over at low water1 and another1  
no longer covered by the sea1 is        
supposed to have recently dried up in   
consequence of a small alteration in the
 relative level of sea and land4        
,similar straits1 observes ,mr4         
,chambers1 hovering1 in character1      
between sea and land1 and which may be  
called fords1 are met with in the       
,hebrides4 ,such1 for example1 is the   
passage dividing the islands of ,lewis  
and ,harris1 and that between ,north    
,uist and ,benbecula1 both of which     
would undoubtedly appear as cols1       
coinciding with a terrace or raised     
beach1 all round the islands if the sea 
were to subside499       799 ,r4        
,chambers1 ,ancient ,sea ,margins page  
#aad47  ,the first of the difficulties  
above alluded to1 namely1 the           
non-extension of the shelves over       
certain parts of the glens1 might be    

explained1 said ,mr4 ,darwin1 by        
supposing in certain places a quick     
growth of green turf on a good soil1    
which prevented the rain from washing   
away any loose materials lying on the   
surface4 ,but wherever the soil was     
barren1 and where green sward took long 
to form1 there may have been time for   
the removal of the gravel4 ,in one case 
an intermediate shelf appears for a     
short distance 7three quarters of a     
mile7 on the face of the mountain called
 ,tombhran1 between the two upper       
shelves1 and is seen nowhere else4 ,it  
occurs where there was the longest space
 of open water1 and where the waves may 
have acquired a more than ordinary power
 to heap up detritus4  ,the unequal     
number of the shelves in valleys        
communicating with each other1 and in   
which the boundary rocks are similar in 
composition1 and the general absence of 
any shelves at corresponding altitudes  
in glens on the opposite watershed1 like
 that of the ,spey1 and in valleys where

 the waters flow eastward1 are          
difficulties attending the marine theory
 which have never yet been got over4    
,mr4 ,t4,f4 ,jamieson1 before cited1    
has1 during a late visit to ,lochaber1  
in #ahfa1 observed many facts highly    
confirmatory of the hypothesis of       
glacier-lakes which1 as ,i have already 
stated1 was originally advanced by ,mr4 
,agassiz4 ,in the first place1 he found 
much superficial scoring and polishing  
of rocks1 and accumulation of boulders  
at those points where signs of glacial  
action ought to appear1 if ice had once 
dammed up the waters of the glens in    
which the roads occur4 ,ben ,nevis may  
have sent down its glaciers from the    
south1 and ,glen ,arkaig from the north1
 for the mountains at the head of the   
last-mentioned glen are #cjjj feet high1
 and may1 together with other tributary 
glens1 have helped to choke up the great
 ,caledonian valley with ice1 so as to  
block up for a time the mouths of the   
,spean1 ,roy1 and ,gluoy4 ,the temporary

 conversion of these glens into         
glacier-lakes is the more conceivable1  
because the hills at their upper ends   
not being lofty nor of great extent1    
they may not have been filled with ice  
at a time when great glaciers were      
generated in other adjoining and much   
higher regions4  ,secondly4 ,the        
shelves1 says ,mr4 ,jamieson1 are more  
precisely defined and unbroken than any 
of the raised beaches or acknowledged   
ancient coast-lines visible on the west 
of ,scotland1 as in ,argyllshire1 for   
example4  ,thirdly4 ,at the level of the
 lower shelf in ,glen ,roy1 at points   
where torrents now cut channels through 
the shelf as they descend the hill-side1
 there are small delta-like extensions  
of the shelf1 perfectly preserved1 as if
 the materials1 whether fine or coarse1 
had originally settled there in a placid
 lake1 and had not been acted upon by   
tidal currents1 mingling them with the  
sediment of other streams4 ,these deltas
 are too entire to allow us to suppose  

that they have at any time since their  
origin been exposed to the waves of the 
sea4  ,fourthly4 ,the alluvium on the   
cols or watersheds1 before alluded to1  
is such as would have been formed if the
 waters of the rivers had been made to  
flow east1 or out of the upper ends of  
the supposed glacier-lakes1 instead of  
escaping at the lower ends1 in a        
westerly direction1 where the great     
blockages of ice are assumed to have    
occurred4  ,in addition to these        
arguments of ,mr4 ,jamieson1 ,i may     
mention that in ,switzerland1 at        
present1 no testacea live in the cold   
waters of glacier-lakes2 so that the    
entire absence of fossil shells1 whether
 marine or freshwater1 in the stratified
 materials of each shelf1 would be      
accounted for if the theory above       
mentioned be embraced4  ,when ,i        
examined the parallel roads in #ahbe1 in
 company with ,dr4 ,buckland1 neither   
this glacier theory nor ,mr4 ,darwin's  
suggestion of ancient sea-margins had   

been proposed1 and ,i have never since  
revisited ,lochaber4 ,but ,i retain in  
my memory a vivid recollection of the   
scenery and physical features of the    
district1 and ,i now consider the       
glacier-lake theory as affording by far 
the most satisfactory solution of this  
difficult problem4 ,the objection to it1
 which until lately appeared to be the  
most formidable1 and which led ,mr4     
,robert ,chambers in his ,sea ,margins1 
to reject it entirely1 was the          
difficulty of conceiving how the waters 
could be made to stand so high in ,glen 
,roy as to allow the uppermost shelf to 
be formed4 ,grant a barrier of ice in   
the lower part of the glen of sufficient
 altitude to stop the waters from       
flowing westward1 still1 what prevented 
them from escaping over the col at the  
head of ,glen ,glaster8 ,this col       
coincides exactly in level1 as ,mr4     
,milne ,home first ascertained1 with the
 second or middle shelf of ,glen ,roy4  
,the difficulty here stated appears now 

to be removed by supposing that the     
higher lines or roads were formed before
 the lower ones1 and when the quantity  
of ice was most in excess4 ,we must     
imagine that at the time when the       
uppermost shelf of ,glen ,roy was       
forming in a shallow lake1 the lower    
part of that glen was filled up with    
ice1 and1 according to ,mr4 ,jamieson1 a
 glacier from ,loch ,treig then         
protruded itself across ,glen ,spean and
 rested on the flank of the hill on the 
opposite side in such a manner as       
effectually to prevent any water from   
escaping over the ,glen ,glaster col4   
,the proofs of such a glacier having    
actually existed at the point in        
question consist1 he says1 in numerous  
cross striae observable in the bottom of
 ,glen ,spean1 and in the presence of   
moraine matter in considerable abundance
 on the flanks of the hill extending to 
heights above the ,glen ,glaster col4   
,when the ice shrank into less          
dimensions the second shelf would be    

formed1 having its level determined by  
the col last mentioned1 ,glen ,spean in 
the meantime being filled with a        
glacier4 ,finally1 the ice blockage     
common to glens ,roy1 ,spean1 and       
,laggan1 which consisted probably of a  
glacier from ,ben ,nevis1 gave rise to  
the lowest and most extensive lake1 the 
waters of which escaped over the pass of
 ,muckul or the col at the head of ,loch
 ,laggan1 which1 as ,mr4 ,jamieson has  
now ascertained3 agrees precisely in    
level with the lowest of all the        
shelves1 and where there are unequivocal
 signs of a river having flowed out for 
a considerable period4  ,dr4 ,hooker has
 described some parallel terraces1 very 
analogous in their aspect to those of   
,glen ,roy1 as existing in the higher   
valleys of the ,himalaya1 of which his  
pencil has given us several graphic     
illustrations4 ,he believes these       
,indian shelves to have originated on   
the borders of glacier-lakes1 the       
barriers of which were usually formed by

 the ice and moraines of lateral or     
tributary glaciers1 which descended into
 and crossed the main valley1 as we have
 supposed in the case of ,glen ,roy2 but
 others he ascribes to the terminal     
moraine of the principal glacier itself1
 which had retreated during a series of 
milder seasons1 so as to leave an       
interval between the ice and the        
terminal moraine4 ,this interspace      
caused by the melting of ice becomes    
filled with water and forms a lake1 the 
drainage of which usually takes place by
 percolation through the porous parts of
 the moraine1 and not by a stream       
overflowing that barrier4 ,such a       
glacier-lake ,dr4 ,hooker actually found
 in existence near the head of the      
,yangma valley in the ,himalaya4 ,it was
 moreover partially bounded by recently 
formed marginal terraces or parallel    
roads1 implying changes of level in the 
barrier of ice and moraine matter499    
799 ,hooker1 ,himalayan ,journal volume 
#a page #bdb2 #b pages      #aai1 #aba1 

#aff4 ,i have also profited by the      
author's personal      explanations47   
,it has been sometimes objected to the  
hypothesis of glacier-lakes1 as applied 
to the case of ,glen ,roy1 that the     
shelves must have taken a very long     
period for their formation4 ,such a     
lapse of time1 it is said1 might be     
consistent with the theory of pauses or 
stationary periods in the rise of the   
land during an intermittent upward      
movement1 but it is hardly compatible   
with the idea of so precarious and      
fluctuating a barrier as a mass of ice4 
,but the reader will have seen that the 
permanency of level in such             
glacier-lakes has no necessary          
connection with minor changes in the    
height of the supposed dam of ice4 ,if a
 glacier descending from higher         
mountains through a tributary glen      
enters the main valley in which there   
happens to be no glacier1 the river is  
arrested in its course and a lake is    
formed4 ,the dam may be constantly      

repaired and may vary in height several 
hundreds of feet without affecting the  
level of the lake1 so long as the       
surplus waters escape over a col or     
parting ridge of rock4 ,the height at   
which the waters remain stationary is   
determined solely by the elevation of   
the col1 and not by the barrier of ice1 
provided the barrier is higher than the 
col4  ,but if we embrace the theory of  
glacier-lakes1 we must be prepared to   
assume not only that the sea had nothing
 to do with the original formation of   
the parallel roads1 but that it has     
never1 since the disappearance of the   
lakes1 risen in any one of the glens up 
to the level of the lowest shelf1 which 
is about #hej feet high2 for in that    
case the remarkable persistency and     
integrity of the roads and deltas1      
before described1 must have been        
impaired4  ,we have seen that #ej miles 
to the south of ,lochaber1 the glacier  
formations of ,lanarkshire with marine  
shells of arctic character have been    

traced to the height of #ebd feet4      
,about #ej miles to the south-east in   
,perthshire are those stratified clays  
and sands1 near ,killiecrankie1 which   
were once supposed to be of submarine   
origin1 and which in that case would    
imply the former submergence of what is 
now dry land to the extent of #aeej     
feet1 or several hundred feet beyond the
 highest of the parallel roads4 ,even   
granting that these laminated drifts may
 have had a different origin1 as above  
suggested1 there are still many facts   
connected with the distribution of      
erratics and the striation of rocks in  
,scotland which are not easily accounted
 for without supposing the country to   
have sunk1 since the era of continental 
ice1 to a greater depth than #ebe feet1 
the highest point to which marine shells
 have yet been traced4  ,after what was 
said of the pressure and abrading power 
of a general crust of ice1 like that now
 covering ,greenland1 it is almost      
superfluous to say that the parallel    

roads must have been of later date than 
such a state of things1 for every trace 
of them must have been obliterated by   
the movement of such a mass of ice4 ,it 
is no less clear that as no             
glacier-lakes can now exist in          
,greenland #bf1 so there could have been
 none in ,scotland1 when the mountains  
were covered with one great crust of    
ice4 ,it may1 however1 be contended that
 the parallel roads were produced when  
the general crust of ice first gave     
place to a period of separate glaciers1 
and that no period of deep submergence  
ever intervened in ,lochaber after the  
time of the lakes4 ,even in that case1  
however1 it is difficult not to suppose 
that the ,glen ,roy country participated
 in the downward movement which sank    
part of ,lanarkshire #ebe feet beneath  
the sea1 subsequently to the first great
 glaciation of ,scotland4 ,yet that     
amount of subsidence might have         
occurred1 and even a more considerable  
one1 without causing the sea to rise to 

the level of the lowest shelf1 or to a  
height of #hej feet above the present   
sea-level4  ,this is a question on which
 ,i am not prepared at present to offer 
a decided opinion4  ,whether the        
horizontality of the shelves or         
terrace-lines is really as perfect as   
has been generally assumed is a point   
which will require to be tested by a    
more accurate trigonometrical survey    
than has yet been made4 ,the            
preservation of precisely the same level
 in the lowest line throughout the glens
 of ,roy1 ,spean1 and ,laggan1 for a    
distance of #bj miles east and west1 and
 #aj or #ab miles north and south1 would
 be very wonderful if ascertained with  
mathematical precision4 ,mr4 ,jamieson1 
after making in #ahfb several           
measurements with a spirit-level1 has   
been led to suspect a rise in the lowest
 shelf of one foot in a mile in a       
direction from west to east1 or from the
 mouth of ,glen ,roy to a point #f miles
 east of it in ,glen ,spean4 ,to confirm

 such observations1 and to determine    
whether a similar rate of rise continues
 eastward1 as far as the pass of        
,muckul1 would be most important4  ,on  
the whole1 ,i conclude that the ,glen   
,roy terrace-lines and those of some    
neighbouring valleys1 were formed on the
 borders of glacier-lakes1 in times long
 subsequent to the principal glaciation 
of ,scotland4 ,they may perhaps have    
been nearly as late1 especially the     
lowest of the shelves1 as that portion  
of the ,pleistocene period in which ,man
 co-existed in ,europe with the mammoth4
    ,,chapter #ad4 -- ,,chronological   
,,relations ,,of ,,the ,,glacial        
,,period ,,and ,,the ,,earliest ,,signs 
,,of ,,man',s ,,appearance ,,in         
,,europe--,,continued4     ,signs of    
extinct ,glaciers in ,wales4    ,great  
,submergence of ,wales during the       
,glacial ,period proved by       ,marine
 ,shells4    ,still greater ,depression 
inferred from ,stratified ,drift4       
,scarcity of ,organic ,remains in       

,glacial ,formations4    ,signs of      
extinct ,glaciers in ,england4    ,ice  
,action in ,ireland4    ,maps           
illustrating successive ,revolutions in 
,physical ,geography       during the   
,pleistocene ,period4    ,southernmost  
,extent of ,erratics in ,england4       
,successive ,periods of ,junction and   
,separation of ,england1 ,ireland1      
and the ,continent4    ,time required   
for these ,changes4    ,probable ,causes
 of the ,upheaval and ,subsidence of the
 ,earth's ,crust4    ,antiquity of ,man 
considered in relation to the ,age of   
the existing       ,fauna and ,flora4   
,,extinct ,,glaciers ,,in ,,wales4  ,the
 considerable amount of vertical        
movement in opposite directions1 which  
was suggested in the last chapter1 as   
affording the most probable explanation 
of the position of some of the          
stratified and fossiliferous drifts of  
,scotland1 formed since the commencement
 of the glacial period1 will appear less
 startling if it can be shown that      

independent observations lead us to     
infer that a geographical revolution of 
still greater magnitude accompanied the 
successive phases of glaciation through 
which the ,welsh mountains have passed4 
,that ,wales was once an independent    
centre of the dispersion of erratic     
blocks has long been acknowledged4 ,dr4 
,buckland published in #ahdb his reasons
 for believing that the ,snowdonian     
mountains in ,caernarvonshire were      
formerly covered with glaciers1 which   
radiated from the central heights       
through the seven principal valleys of  
that chain1 where striae and flutings   
are seen on the polished rocks directed 
towards as many different points of the 
compass4 ,he also described the moraines
 of the ancient glaciers1 and the       
rounded masses of polished rock1 called 
in ,switzerland roches moutonnees4 ,his 
views respecting the old extinct        
glaciers of ,north ,wales were          
subsequently confirmed by ,mr4 ,darwin1 
who attributed the transport of many of 

the larger erratic blocks to floating   
ice4 ,much of the ,welsh glacial drift  
had already been shown by ,mr4 ,trimmer 
to have had a submarine origin1 and ,mr4
 ,darwin maintained that when the land  
rose again to nearly its present height1
 glaciers filled the valleys1 and swept 
them clean of all the rubbish left by   
the sea499       799 ,philosophical     
,magazine series #c volume #ba page     
#ahj47  ,professor ,ramsay1 in a paper  
read to the ,geological ,society in     
#ahea1 and in a later work on the       
glaciation of ,north ,wales1 described  
three successive glacial periods1 during
 the first of which the land was much   
higher than it now is1 and the quantity 
of ice excessive2 secondly1 a period of 
submergence when the land was #bcjj feet
 lower than at present1 and when the    
higher mountain tops only stood out of  
the sea as a cluster of low islands1    
which nevertheless were covered with    
snow2 and lastly1 a third period when   
the marine boulder drift formed in the  

middle period was ploughed out of the   
larger valleys by a second set of       
glaciers1 smaller than those of the     
first period4 ,this last stage of       
glaciation may have coincided with that 
of the parallel roads of ,glen ,roy1    
spoken of in the last chapter4 ,in      
,wales it was certainly preceded by     
submergence1 and the rocks had been     
exposed to glacial polishing and        
friction before they sank4  ,fortunately
 the evidence of the sojourn of the     
,welsh mountains beneath the waters of  
the sea is not deficient1 as in         
,scotland1 in that complete             
demonstration which the presence of     
marine shells affords4 ,the late ,mr4   
,trimmer discovered such shells on ,moel
 ,tryfan1 in ,north ,wales1 in drift    
elevated more than #acjj feet above the 
level of the sea4 ,it appears from his  
observations1 and those of the late     
,edward ,forbes1 corroborated by others 
of ,professor ,ramsay and ,mr4          
,prestwich1 that about twelve species of

 shells1 including ,fusus bamfius1 ,f4  
antiquus1 ,venus striatula 7,forbes and 
,hanley71 have been met with at heights 
of between #ajjj and #adjj feet1 in     
drift1 reposing on a surface of rock    
which had been previously exposed to    
glacial friction and striation499       
799 ,ramsay1 ,quarterly ,journal of the 
,geological ,society      volume #h     
#aheb page #cgb47  ,the shells1 as a    
whole1 are those of the glacial period1 
and not of the ,norwich ,crag4 ,two     
localities of these shells in ,wales1 in
 addition to that first pointed out by  
,mr4 ,trimmer1 have since been observed 
by ,professor ,ramsay1 who1 however1 is 
of opinion that the amount of           
submergence can by no means be limited  
to the extreme height to which the      
shells happen to have been traced2 for  
drift of the same character as that of  
,moel ,tryfan extends continuously to   
the height of #bcjj feet4 #bg   ,,rarity
 ,,of ,,organic ,,remains ,,in ,,glacial
 ,,formations4  ,the general dearth of  

shells in such formations1 below as well
 as above the level at which ,mr4       
,trimmer first found them1 deserves     
notice4 ,whether we can explain it or   
not1 it is a negative character which   
seems to belong very generally to       
deposits formed in glacial seas4 ,the   
porous nature of the strata1 and the    
length of time during which they have   
been permeated by rain-water1 may partly
 account1 as we hinted in a former      
chapter1 for the destruction of organic 
remains4 ,but it is also possible that  
they were originally scarce1 for we read
 of the waters of the sea being so      
freshened and chilled by the melting of 
ice-bergs in some ,norwegian and        
,icelandic fjords1 that the fish are    
driven away1 and all the mollusca       
killed4 ,the moraines of glaciers are   
always from the first devoid of shells1 
and if transported by ice-bergs to a    
distance1 and deposited where the ice   
melts1 may continue as barren of every  
indication of life as they were when    

they originated4  ,nevertheless1 it may 
be said1 on the other hand1 that herds  
of seals and walruses crowd the floating
 ice of ,spitzbergen in latitude #hj    
degrees north1 of which ,mr4 ,lamont has
 recently given us a lively             
picture199nand huge whales fatten on    
myriads of pteropods in polar regions4  
799 ,seasons with the ,sea-,horses      
#ahfa47  ,it had been suggested that the
 bottom of the sea1 at the era of       
extreme submergence in ,scotland and    
,wales1 was so deep as to reach the zero
 of animal life1 which1 in part of the  
,mediterranean 7the ,aegean1 for        
example71 the late ,edward ,forbes      
fixed1 after a long series of dredgings1
 at #cjj fathoms4 ,but the shells of the
 glacial drift of ,scotland and ,wales1 
when they do occur1 are not always those
 of deep seas2 and1 moreover1 our faith 
in the uninhabitable state of the ocean 
at great depths has been rudely shaken1 
by the recent discovery of ,captain     
,mc,clintock and ,dr4 ,wallich1 of      

starfish in water more than a thousand  
fathoms deep 7#gefj feet671 midway      
between ,greenland and ,iceland4 ,that  
these radiata were really dredged up    
from the bottom1 and that they had been 
living and feeding there1 appeared from 
the fact that their stomachs were full  
of ,globigerina1 of which foraminiferous
 creatures1 both living and dead1 the   
oozy bed of the ocean at that vast depth
 was found to be exclusively composed4  
#bh  ,whatever may be the cause1 the    
fact is certain1 that over large areas  
in ,scotland1 ,ireland1 and ,wales1 ,i  
might add throughout the northern       
hemisphere on both sides of the         
,atlantic1 the stratified drift of the  
glacial period is very commonly devoid  
of fossils1 in spite of the occurrence  
here and there1 at the height of #ejj1  
#gjj1 and even #adjj feet1 of marine    
shells4 ,these1 when met with1 belong1  
with few exceptions1 to known living    
species4 ,i am therefore unable to agree
 with ,mr4 ,kjerulf that the amount of  

former submergence can be measured by   
the extreme height at which shells      
happen to have been found4   ,,glacial  
,,formations ,,in ,,england4            
,illustration3 ,figure #ch4 ,dome-shaped
 ,rocks    7,,figure #ch4               
,,dome-,,shaped ,,rocks1 ,,or ,,roches  
,,moutonees1 ,,in ,,the ,,valley   ,,of 
,,the ,,rothay1 ,,near ,,ambleside1     
,,from ,a ,,drawing ,,by ,e4 ,,hull1    
,f4,g4,s499    799 ,edinburgh ,new      
,philosophical ,journal volume #aa      
,plate #a page #ca      #ahfj477  ,the  
mountains of ,cumberland and            
,westmorland1 and the ,english lake     
district1 afford equally unequivocal    
vestiges of ice-action not only in the  
form of polished and grooved surfaces1  
but also of those rounded bosses before 
mentioned as being so abundant in the   
,alpine valleys of ,switzerland1 where  
glaciers exist1 or have existed4 ,mr4   
,hall has lately published a faithful   
account of these phenomena1 and has     
given a representation of some of the   

,english roches moutonnees1 which       
precisely resemble hundreds of          
dome-shaped protuberances in ,north     
,wales1 ,sweden1 and ,north ,america499 
799 ,hull1 ,edinburgh ,new              
,philosophical ,journal ,july #ahfj47   
,the marks of glaciation on the rocks1  
and the transportation of erratics from 
,cumberland to the eastward1 have been  
traced by ,professor ,phillips over a   
large part of ,yorkshire1 extending to a
 height of #aejj feet above the sea2 and
 similar northern drift has been        
observed in ,lancashire1 ,cheshire1     
,derbyshire1 ,shropshire1               
,staffordshire1 and ,worcestershire4 ,it
 is rare to find marine shells1 except  
at heights of #bjj or #cjj feet2 but a  
few instances of their occurrence have  
been noticed1 especially of ,turritella 
communis 7a gregarious shell71 far in   
the interior1 at elevations of #ejj     
feet1 and even of #gjj in ,derbyshire1  
and some adjacent counties1 as ,i learn 
from ,mr4 ,binney and ,mr4 ,prestwich4  

,such instances are of no small         
theoretical interest1 as enabling us to 
account for the scattering of large     
erratic blocks at equal or much greater 
elevations1 over a large part of the    
northern and midland counties1 such as  
could only have been conveyed to their  
present sites by floating ice4 ,of this 
nature1 among others1 is a remarkable   
angular block of syenitic greenstone1 #d
 #a_/b feet by #d feet square1 and #b   
feet thick1 which ,mr4 ,darwin describes
 as lying on the summit of ,ashley      
,heath1 in ,staffordshire1 #hjc feet    
above the sea1 resting on ,new ,red     
,sandstone499       799 ,ancient        
,glaciers of ,caernarvonshire1          
,philosophical      ,magazine series #c1
 #ba page #ahj47   ,,signs ,,of         
,,ice-,,action ,,and ,,submergence ,,in 
,,ireland ,,during ,,the ,,glacial      
,,period4  ,in ,ireland we encounter the
 same difficulty as in ,scotland in     
determining how much of the glaciation  
of the higher mountains should be       

referred to land glaciers1 and how much 
to floating ice1 during submergence4    
,the signs of glacial action have been  
traced by ,professor ,jukes to          
elevations of #bejj feet in the         
,killarney district1 and to great       
heights in other mountainous regions2   
but marine shells have rarely been met  
with higher than #fjj feet above the    
sea1 and that chiefly in gravel1 clay1  
and sand in ,wicklow and ,wexford4 ,they
 are so rare in the drift east of the   
,wicklow mountains1 that an exception to
 the rule1 lately observed at ,ballymore
 ,eustace1 by ,professor ,jukes1 is     
considered as a fact of no small        
geological interest4 ,the wide extent of
 drift of the same character1 spread    
over large areas in ,ireland1 shows that
 the whole island was1 in some part of  
the glacial period1 an archipelago1 as  
represented in the maps1 ,figures #ci   
and #dj4  ,speaking of the ,wexford     
drift1 the late ,professor ,e4 ,forbes  
states that ,sir ,h4 ,james found in it1

 together with many of the usual glacial
 shells1 several species which are      
characteristic of the ,crag2 among      
others the reversed variety of ,fusus   
antiquus1 called ,f4 contrarius1 and the
 extinct species ,nucula ,cobboldiae1   
and ,turritella incrassata4 ,perhaps a  
portion of this drift of the south of   
,ireland may belong to the close of the 
,pliocene period1 and may be of a       
somewhat older date than the shells of  
the ,clyde1 alluded to in ,chapter #ac4 
,they may also correspond still more    
nearly in age with the fauna of the     
uppermost strata of the ,norwich ,crag1 
occurring at ,chillesford4 #bi  ,the    
scarcity of mammalian remains in the    
,irish drift favours the theory of its  
marine origin4 ,in the superficial      
deposits of the whole island1 ,i have   
only met with three recorded examples of
 the mammoth1 one in the south near     
,dungarvan1 where the bones of ,elephas 
primigenius1 two species of bear 7,ursus
 arctos and ,ursus spelaeus871 the      

reindeer1 horse1 etc41 were found in a  
cave299 another in the centre of the    
island near ,belturbet1 in the county of
 ,cavan4       799 ,e4 ,brenan and ,dr4 
,carte1 ,dublin #ahei47  ,perhaps the   
conversion into land of the bed of the  
glacial sea1 and the immigration into   
the newly upheaved region of the        
elephant1 rhinoceros1 and hippopotamus1 
which co-existed with the fabricators of
 the ,st4 ,acheul flint hatchets1 were  
events which preceded in time the       
elevation of the ,irish drift1 and the  
union of that island with ,england4     
,ireland may have continued for a longer
 time in the state of an archipelago1   
and was therefore for a much shorter    
time inhabited by the large extinct     
,pleistocene pachyderms4  ,in one of the
 reports of the ,geological ,survey of  
,ireland1 published in #ahei1 ,professor
 ,jukes1 in explanation of sheet #ahd of
 the maps1 alludes to beds of sand and  
gravel1 and signs of the polishing and  
furrowing of the rocks in the counties  

of ,kerry and ,killarney1 as high as    
#bejj feet above the sea1 and supposes  
7perhaps with good reason7 that the land
 was depressed even to that extent4 ,he 
observes that above that elevation      
7#bejj feet7 the rocks are rough1 and   
not smoothed1 as if by ice4 ,some of the
 drift was traced as high as #aejj feet1
 the highest hills there exceeding #cdjj
 feet4 ,mr4 ,jukes1 however1 is by no   
means inclined to insist on submergence 
to the extent of #bejj feet1 as he is   
aware that ice1 like that now prevailing
 in ,greenland1 might explain most1 if  
not all1 the appearances of glaciation  
in the highest regions4  ,although the  
course taken by the ,irish erratics in  
general is such that their              
transportation seems to have been due to
 floating ice or coast-ice1 yet some    
granite blocks have travelled from south
 to north1 as recorded by ,sir ,r4      
,griffiths1 namely1 those of the ,ox    
,mountains in ,sligo2 a fact from which 
,mr4 ,jamieson infers that those        

mountains formed at one time a centre of
 dispersion4 ,in the same part of       
,ireland1 the general direction in which
 the boulders have travelled is         
everywhere from north-west to           
south-east1 a course directly at right  
angles to the prevailing trend of the   
present mountain ridges4   ,,maps       
,,illustrating ,,successive             
,,revolutions ,,in ,,physical           
,,geography ,,during ,,the ,,pleistocene
 ,,period4  ,illustration3 ,figure #ci4 
,map ,of ,the ,british ,isles           
7,,figure #ci4 ,,map ,,of ,,the         
,,british ,,isles ,,and ,,part ,,of     
,,the ,,north-,,west    ,,of ,,europe1  
,,showing ,,the ,,great ,,amount ,,of   
,,supposed ,,submergence    ,,of ,,land 
,,beneath ,,the ,,sea ,,during ,,part   
,,of ,,the ,,glacial ,,period4      ,the
 submergence of ,scotland is to the     
extent of #bjjj feet1     and of other  
parts of the ,british ,isles1 #acjj4    
,in the map1 the dark shade expresses   
the land which alone     remained above 

water4 ,the area shaded by diagonal     
lines is     that which cannot be shown 
to have been under water at the         
period of floating ice by the evidence  
of erratics1 or by     marine shells of 
northern species4 ,how far the several  
parts     of the submerged area were    
simultaneously or successively laid     
under water1 in the course of the       
glacial period1 cannot1 in     the      
present state of our knowledge1 be      
determined47  ,illustration3 ,figure    
#dj4 ,map ,british ,islands    7,,figure
 #dj4 ,,map ,,showing ,,what ,,parts    
,,of ,,the ,,british ,,islands          
,,would ,,remain ,,above ,,water ,,after
 ,a ,,subsidence ,,of ,,the ,,area      
,,to ,,the ,,extent ,,of #fjj ,,feet4   
,the authorities to whom ,i am indebted 
for the information       contained in  
this map are--for3     ,,scotland3      
,a4 ,geikie1 ,esquire1 ,f4,g4,s41 and   
,t4,f4 ,jamieson1 ,esquire1      of     
,ellon1 ,aberdeenshire4     ,,england3  
,for the counties of3      ,yorkshire1  

,lancashire1 and ,durham3 ,colonel ,sir 
,henry ,james1 ,r4,e4      ,dorsetshire1
 ,hampshire1 and ,isle of ,wight3 ,h4,w4
 ,bristow1 ,esquire4                    
,gloucestershire1 ,somersetshire1 and   
part of ,devon3 ,r4 ,etheridge1         
,esquire4      ,kent and ,sussex3       
,frederick ,drew1 ,esquire4      ,isle  
of ,man3 ,w4 ,whitaker1 ,esquire4       
,,ireland3      ,reduced from a contour 
map constructed by ,lieutenant ,larcom1 
,r4,e41 in #ahcg1 for the ,railway      
,commissioners47  ,illustration3 ,figure
 #da4 ,map ,of ,part ,of ,the           
,north-,west ,of ,europe    7,,figure   
#da4 ,,map ,,of ,,part ,,of ,,the       
,,north-,,west ,,of ,,europe1           
,,including    ,,the ,,british ,,isles1 
,,showing ,,the ,,extent ,,of ,,sea     
,,which ,,would ,,become    ,,land ,,if 
,,there ,,were ,a ,,general ,,rise ,,of 
,,the ,,area ,,to ,,the ,,extent    ,,of
 #fjj ,,feet4      ,the darker shade    
expresses what is now land1 the lighter 
shade       the space intervening       

between the present coastline and the   
#ajj fathom line1 which would be        
converted by such a movement       into 
land4     ,the original of this map will
 be found in ,sir ,h4 de la ,beche's    
,theoretical ,researches page #aij1     
#ahcd1 but several important            
corrections have been introduced into it
 from recently       published          
,admiralty ,surveys1 especially3        
#ast4 ,a deep channel passing from the  
,north ,sea into the         entrance of
 the ,baltic4        #bnd4 ,the more    
limited westerly extension of the ,west 
,coast         of ,ireland47   ,the late
 ,mr4 ,trimmer1 before referred to1 has 
endeavoured to assist our speculations  
as to the successive revolutions in     
physical geography1 through which the   
,british ,islands have passed since the 
commencement of the glacial period1 by  
four sketch maps as he termed them1 in  
the first of which he gave an ideal     
restoration of the original ,continental
 period1 called by him the first        

elephantine period1 or that of the      
forest of ,cromer1 before described4 ,he
 was not aware that the prevailing      
elephant of that era 7,e4 meridionalis7 
was distinct from the mammoth4 ,at this 
era he conceived ,ireland and ,england  
to have been united with each other and 
with ,france1 but much of the area      
represented as land in the map1 ,figure 
#da1 was supposed to be under water4    
,his second map1 of the great           
submergence of the glacial period1 was  
not essentially different from our map1 
,figure #ci4 ,his third map expressed a 
period of partial re-elevation1 when    
,ireland was reunited to ,scotland and  
the north of ,england2 but ,england     
still separated from ,france4 ,this     
restoration appears to me to rest on    
insufficient data1 being constructed to 
suit the supposed area over which the   
gigantic ,irish deer1 or ,megaceros1    
migrated from east to west1 also to     
explain an assumed submergence of the   
district called the ,weald1 in the      

south-east of ,england1 which had       
remained land during the grand glacial  
submergence4  ,the fourth map is a      
return to nearly the same continental   
conditions as the first--,ireland1      
,england1 and the ,continent being      
united4 ,this he called the second      
elephantine period2 and it would        
coincide very closely with that part of 
the ,pleistocene era in which ,man      
co-existed with the mammoth1 and when1  
according to ,mr4 ,trimmer's hypothesis 
previously indicated by ,mr4            
,godwin-,austen1 the ,thames was a      
tributary of the ,rhine499       799    
,joshua ,trimmer1 ,quarterly ,journal of
 the ,geological      ,society volume #i
 #ahec1 ,plate #ac1 and ,godwin-,austen1
 ibid4      volume #g #ahea page #acd   
and ,plate #g47  ,these geographical    
speculations were indulged in ten years 
after ,edward ,forbes had published his 
bold generalisations on the geological  
changes which accompanied the successive
 establishment of the ,scandinavian1    

,germanic1 and other living floras and  
faunas in the ,british ,islands1 and1   
like the theories of his predecessor1   
were the results of much reflection on a
 vast body of geological facts4 ,it is  
by repeated efforts of this kind1 made  
by geologists who are prepared for the  
partial failure of some of their first  
attempts1 that we shall ultimately      
arrive at a knowledge of the long series
 of geographical revolutions which have 
followed each other since the beginning 
of the ,pleistocene period4  ,the map1  
,figure #ci1 will give some idea of the 
great extent of land which would be     
submerged1 were we to infer1 as many    
geologists have done1 from the joint    
evidence of marine shells1 erratics1    
glacial striae and stratified drift at  
great heights1 that ,scotland was1      
during part of the glacial period1 #bjjj
 feet below its present level1 and other
 parts of the ,british ,isles1 #acjj    
feet4 ,a subsidence to this amount can  
be demonstrated in the case of ,north   

,wales by marine shells4 ,in the lake   
district of ,cumberland1 in ,yorkshire1 
and in ,ireland1 we must depend on      
proofs derived from glacial striae and  
the transportation of erratics for so   
much of the supposed submergence as     
exceeds #fjj feet4 ,as to central       
,england1 or the country north of the   
,thames and ,bristol ,channel1 marine   
shells of the glacial period sometimes  
reach as high as #fjj and #gjj feet1 and
 erratics still higher1 as we have seen 
above4 ,but this region is of such      
moderate elevation above the sea1 that  
it would be almost equally laid under   
water1 were there a sinking of no more  
than #fjj feet4  ,to make this last     
proposition clear1 ,i have constructed1 
from numerous documents1 many of them   
unpublished1 the map1 ,figure #dj1 which
 shows how that small amount of         
subsidence would reduce the whole of the
 ,british ,isles to an archipelago of   
very small islands1 with the exception  
of parts of ,scotland1 and the north of 

,england and ,wales1 where four islands 
of considerable dimensions would still  
remain4  ,the map does not indicate a   
state of things supposed to have        
prevailed at any one moment of the past1
 because the district south of the      
,thames and the ,bristol ,channel seems 
to have remained land during the whole  
of the glacial period1 at a time when   
the northern area was under water4 ,the 
map simply represents the effects of a  
downward movement of a hundred fathoms1 
or #fjj ,english feet1 assumed to be    
uniform over the whole of the ,british  
,isles4 ,it shows the very different    
state of the physical geography of the  
area in question1 when contrasted with  
the results of an opposite movement1 or 
one of upheaval1 to an equal amount1 of 
which ,sir ,henry de la ,beche had      
already given us a picture1 in his      
excellent treatise called ,theoretical  
,researches499       799 ,also repeated 
in ,de la ,beche's ,geological          
,observer47  ,his map ,i have borrowed  

7,figure #da71 after making some        
important corrections in it4  ,if we are
 surprised when looking at the first    
map1 ,figure #dj1 at the vast expanse of
 sea which so moderate a subsidence as  
#fjj feet would cause1 we shall probably
 be still more astonished to perceive1  
in ,figure #da1 that a rise of the same 
number of feet would unite all the      
,british ,isles1 including the          
,hebrides1 ,orkneys1 and ,shetlands1    
with one another and the ,continent1 and
 lay dry the sea now separating ,great  
,britain from ,sweden and ,denmark4  ,it
 appears from soundings made during     
various ,admiralty surveys1 that the    
gained land thus brought above the level
 of the sea1 instead of presenting a    
system of hills and valleys             
corresponding with those usually        
characterising the interior of most of  
our island1 would form a nearly level   
terrace1 or gently inclined plane1      
sloping outwards like those terraces of 
denudation and deposition which ,i have 

elsewhere described as occurring on the 
coasts of ,sicily and the ,morea499     
799 ,manual of ,geology page #gd47  ,it 
seems that1 during former and perhaps   
repeated oscillations of level undergone
 by the ,british ,isles1 the sea has had
 time to cut back the cliffs for miles  
in many places1 while in others the     
detritus derived from wasting cliffs    
drifted along the shores1 together with 
the sediment brought down by rivers and 
swept by currents into submarine        
valleys1 has exerted a levelling power1 
filling up such depressions as may have 
pre-existed4 ,owing to this twofold     
action few marked inequalities of level 
have been left on the sea-bottom1 the   
silver-pits off the mouth of the ,humber
 offering a rare exception to the       
general rule1 and even there the narrow 
depression is less than #cjj feet in    
depth4  ,beyond the #ajj fathom line1   
the submarine slope surrounding the     
,british coast is so much steeper that a
 second elevation of equal amount 7or of

 #fjj feet7 would add but slightly to   
the area of gained land2 in other words1
 the #ajj and #bjj fathom lines run very
 near each other499       799 ,de la    
,beche1 ,geological ,researches page    
#aia47  ,the naturalist would have been 
entitled to assume the former union1    
within the ,pleistocene period1 of all  
the ,british ,isles with each other and 
with the ,continent1 as expressed in the
 map1 ,figure #da1 even if there had    
been no geological facts in favour of   
such a junction4 ,for in no other way   
would he be able to account for the     
identity of the fauna and flora found   
throughout these lands4 ,had they been  
separated ever since the ,miocene       
period1 like ,madeira1 ,porto ,santo1   
and the ,desertas1 constituting the     
small ,madeiran ,archipelago1 we might  
have expected to discover a difference  
in the species of land-shells1 not only 
when ,ireland was compared to ,england1 
but when different islands of the       
,hebrides were contrasted one with      

another1 and each of them with ,england4
 ,it would not1 however1 be necessary1  
in order to effect the complete fusion  
of the animals and plants which we      
witness1 to assume that all parts of the
 area formed continuous land at one and 
the same moment of time1 but merely that
 the several portions were so joined    
within the ,pleistocene era as to allow 
the animals and plants to migrate freely
 in succession from one district to     
another4   ,,southernmost ,,extent ,,of 
,,erratics ,,in ,,england4  ,in         
reference to that portion of the south  
of ,england which is marked by diagonal 
lines in ,figure #ci1 the theory of its 
having been an area of dry land during  
the period of great submergence and     
floating ice does not depend merely on  
negative evidence1 such as the absence  
of the northern drift or boulder clay on
 its surface2 but we have also1 in      
favour of the same conclusion1 the      
remarkable fact of the presence of      
erratic blocks on the southern coast of 

,sussex1 implying the existence there of
 an ancient coast-line at a period when 
the cold must have been at its height4  
,these blocks are to be seen in greatest
 number at ,pagham and ,selsea1 #ae     
miles south of ,chichester1 in latitude 
#ej degrees #dj minutes north4  ,they   
consist of fragments of granite1 syenite
 and greenstone1 as well as of ,devonian
 and ,silurian rocks1 some of them of   
large size4 ,i measured one of granite  
at ,pagham1 #bg feet in circumference4  
,they are not of northern origin1 but   
must have come from the coast of        
,normandy or ,brittany1 or from land    
which may once have existed to the      
south-west1 in what is now the ,english 
,channel4  ,they were probably drifted  
into their present site by coast ice1   
and the yellow clay and gravel in which 
they are embedded are a littoral        
formation1 as shown by the shells4      
,beneath the gravel containing these    
large erratics1 is a blue mud in which  
skeletons of ,elephas antiquus1 and     

other mammalia1 have been observed4     
,still lower occurs a sandy loam1 from  
which ,mr4 ,r4,g4 ,austen99 has         
collected thirty-eight species of marine
 shells1 all ,recent1 but forming an    
assemblage differing as a whole from    
that now inhabiting the ,english        
,channel4       799 ,quarterly ,journal 
of the ,geological ,society volume #ac  
#aheg page #ej47  ,the presence among   
them of ,lutraria rugosa and ,pecten    
polymorphus1 not known to range farther 
north in the actual seas than the coast 
of ,portugal1 indicates a somewhat      
warmer temperature at the time when they
 flourished4 ,subsequently1 there must  
have been great cold when the ,selsea   
erratics were drifted into their present
 position1 and this cold doubtless      
coincided in time with a low temperature
 farther north4 #cj ,these transported  
rocks of ,sussex are somewhat older than
 a sea-beach with ,recent marine shells 
which at ,brighton is covered by ,chalk 
rubble1 called the elephant-bed which ,i

 cannot describe in this place1 but ,i  
allude to it as one of many geological  
proofs of the former existence of a     
seashore in this region1 and of ancient 
cliffs bounding the channel between     
,france and ,england1 all of older date 
than the close of the glacial period4   
#ca  ,in order to form a connected view 
of the most simple series of changes in 
physical geography which can possibly   
account for the phenomena of the glacial
 period1 and the period of the          
establishment of the present provinces  
of animals and plants1 the following    
geographical states of the ,british and 
adjoining areas may be enumerated4      
,first1 a continental period1 towards   
the close of which the forest of ,cromer
 flourished3 when the land was at least 
#ejj feet above its present level1      
perhaps much higher1 and its extent     
probably greater than that given in the 
map1 ,figure #da4  ,secondly1 a period  
of submergence1 by which the land north 
of the ,thames and ,bristol ,channel1   

and that of ,ireland1 was gradually     
reduced to such an archipelago as is    
pictured in map1 ,figure #dj2 and       
finally to such a general prevalence of 
sea as is seen in map1 ,figure #ci4     
,this was the period of great           
submergence and of floating ice1 when   
the ,scandinavian flora1 which occupied 
the lower grounds during the first      
continental period1 may have obtained   
exclusive possession of the only lands  
not covered with perpetual snow4        
,thirdly1 a second continental period   
when the bed of the glacial sea1 with   
its marine shells and erratic blocks1   
was laid dry1 and when the quantity of  
land equalled that of the first period1 
and therefore probably exceeded that    
represented in the map1 ,figure #da4    
,during this period there were glaciers 
in the higher mountains of ,scotland and
 ,wales1 and the ,welsh glaciers1 as we 
have seen1 pushed before them and       
cleared out the marine drift with which 
some valleys had been filled during the 

period of submergence4 ,the parallel    
roads of ,glen ,roy are referable to    
some part of the same era4  ,as a reason
 for presuming that the land which in   
map1 ,figure #da1 is only represented as
 #fjj feet above its present level1 was 
during part of this period much higher1 
,professor ,ramsay has suggested that1  
as the previous depression far exceeded 
#ajj fathoms 7amounting in ,wales to    
#adjj feet1 as shown by marine shells1  
and to #bcjj1 by stratified drift71 it  
is not improbable that the upward       
movement was on a corresponding scale4  
,in passing from the period of chief    
submergence to this second continental  
condition of things1 we may conceive a  
gradual change first from that of ,map  
#ci to ,map #dj1 then from the latter   
phase to that of ,map #da1 and finally  
to still greater accessions of land4    
,during this last period the passage of 
the ,germanic flora into the ,british   
area took place1 and the ,scandinavian  
plants1 together with northern insects1 

birds1 and quadrupeds1 retreated into   
the higher grounds4  ,judging from the  
evidence at present before us1 the first
 appearance of ,man1 when1 together with
 the mammoth and woolly rhinoceros1 or  
with the ,elephas antiquus1 ,rhinoceros 
hemitoechus1 and ,hippopotamus major1 he
 ranged freely from all parts of the    
,continent into the ,british area1 took 
place during this second continental    
period4  ,fourthly1 the next and last   
change comprised the breaking up of the 
land of the ,british area once more into
 numerous islands1 ending in the present
 geographical condition of things4      
,there were probably many oscillations  
of level during this last conversion of 
continuous land into islands1 and such  
movements in opposite directions would  
account for the occurrence of marine    
shells at moderate heights above the    
level of the sea1 notwithstanding a     
general lowering of the land4 ,to the   
close of this era belong the marine     
deposits of the ,clyde and the ,carses  

of the ,tay and ,forth1 before alluded  
to4  ,in a memoir by ,professor ,e4     
,forbes1 before cited1 he observes1 that
 the land of passage by which the plants
 and animals migrated into ,ireland     
consisted of the upraised marine drift  
which had previously formed the bottom  
of the glacial sea4 ,portions of this   
drift extend to the eastern shores of   
,wicklow and ,wexford1 others are found 
in the ,isle of ,man full of arctic     
shells1 others on the ,british coast    
opposite ,ireland4 ,the freshwater marl1
 containing numerous skeletons of the   
great deer1 or ,megaceros1 overlie in   
the ,isle of ,man that marine glacial   
drift4 ,professor ,forbes also remarks  
that the subsequent disjunction of      
,ireland from ,england1 or the formation
 of the ,irish ,channel1 which is less  
than #djj feet in its greatest depth1   
preceded the opening of the ,straits of 
,dover1 or the final separation of      
,england from the ,continent4 ,this he  
inferred from the present distribution  

of species both in the animal and       
vegetable kingdoms4 ,thus1 for example1 
there are twice as many reptiles in     
,belgium as in ,england1 and the number 
inhabiting ,england is twice that found 
in ,ireland4 ,yet the ,irish species are
 all common to ,england1 and all the    
,english to ,belgium4 ,it is therefore  
assumed that the migration of species   
westward having been the work of time1  
there was not sufficient lapse of ages  
to complete the fusion of the           
continental and ,british reptilian      
fauna1 before ,france was separated from
 ,england and ,england from ,ireland4   
,for the same reason there are also a   
great number of birds of short flight1  
and small quadrupeds1 inhabiting        
,england which do not cross to ,ireland1
 the ,irish ,channel seeming to have    
arrested them in their westward         
course499       799 ,e4 ,forbes1 ,fauna 
and ,flora of ,british ,isles1 ,memoir  
of      the ,geological ,survey volume  
#a #ahdf page #cdd47  ,the depth of the 

,irish ,channel in the narrower parts is
 only #cfj feet1 and the ,english       
,channel between ,dover and ,calais less
 than #bjj1 and rarely anywhere more    
than #cjj feet2 so that vertical        
movements of slight amount compared to  
some of those previously considered1    
with the aid of denuding operations or  
the waste of sea cliffs1 and the        
scouring out of the channel1 might in   
time effect the insulation of the lands 
above alluded to4   ,,time ,,required   
,,for ,,successive ,,changes ,,in       
,,physical ,,geography ,,in ,,the       
,,pleistocene ,,period4  ,the time which
 it would require to bring about such   
changes of level1 according to the      
average rate assumed in ,chapter #c1    
however vast1 will not be found to      
exceed that which would best explain the
 successive fluctuations in terrestrial 
temperature1 the glaciation of solid    
rocks1 the transportation of erratics   
above and below the sea-level1 the      
height of arctic shells above the sea1  

and last1 not least1 the migration of   
the existing species of animals and     
plants into their actual stations1 and  
the extinction of some conspicuous forms
 which flourished during the            
,pleistocene ages4 ,when we duly        
consider all these changes which have   
taken place since the beginning of the  
glacial epoch1 or since the forest of   
,cromer and the ,elephas meridionalis   
flourished1 we shall find that the      
phenomena become more and more          
intelligible in proportion to the       
slowness of the rate of elevation and   
depression which we assume4  ,the       
submergence of ,wales to the extent of  
#adjj feet1 as proved by glacial shells1
 would require #ef1jjj years1 at the    
rate of #b #a_/b feet per century2 but  
taking ,professor ,ramsay's estimate of 
#hjj feet more1 that depression being   
implied by the position of some of the  
stratified drift1 we must demand an     
additional period of #cb1jjj years1     
amounting in all to #hh1jjj2 and the    

same time would be required for the     
re-elevation of the tract to its present
 height4 ,but if the land rose in the   
second continental period as much as    
#fjj feet above its present level1 as in
 ,figure #da1 this #fjj feet1 first of  
rising and then of sinking1 would       
require #dh1jjj years more2 the whole of
 the grand oscillation1 comprising the  
submergence and re-emergence1 having    
taken about #bbd1jjj years for its      
completion2 and this1 even if there were
 no pause or stationary period1 when the
 downward movement ceased1 and before it
 was converted into an upward one4  ,i  
am aware that it may be objected that   
the average rate here proposed is a     
purely arbitrary and conjectural one1   
because1 at the ,north ,cape1 it is     
supposed that there has been a rise of  
about #e feet in a century1 and at      
,spitsbergen1 according to ,mr4 ,lamont1
 a still faster upheaval during the last
 #djj years499       799 ,seasons with  
the ,sea-,horses page #bjb47  ,but1     

granting that in these and some         
exceptional cases 7none of them as yet  
very well established7 the rising or    
sinking has1 for a time1 been           
accelerated1 ,i do not believe the      
average rate of motion to exceed that   
above proposed4 ,mr4 ,darwin1 ,i find1  
considers that such a mean rate of      
upheaval would be as high as we could   
assume for the west coast of ,south     
,america1 where we have more evidence of
 sudden changes of level than anywhere  
else4 ,he has not1 however1 attempted to
 estimate the probable rate of secular  
elevation in that or any other region4  
,little progress has yet been made in   
divining the most probable causes of    
these great movements of the earth's    
crust2 yet what little we know of the   
state of the interior leads us to expect
 that the gradual expansion or          
contraction of large portions of the    
solid crust may be the result of        
fluctuations in temperature1 with which 
the existence of hundreds of active and 

thousands of extinct volcanoes is       
probably connected4  ,it is ascertained 
that solid rocks1 such as granite and   
sandstone1 expand and contract annually1
 even under such a moderate range of    
temperature as that of a ,canadian      
winter and summer4 ,if the heat should  
go on increasing through a thickness1   
say only of #aj miles of the earth's    
crust1 the gradual upheaval of the      
incumbent mass may amount to many       
hundreds of feet2 and the elevation may 
be carried still farther1 by the        
complete fusion of part of the inferior 
rocks4  ,according to the experiments of
 ,deville1 the contraction of granite1  
in passing from a melted1 or as some    
would say its plastic condition1 to a   
solid state1 must be more than #aj per  
cent499       799 ,bull4 ,societe       
,geologique ,france #bnd series volume  
#d      page #acab47  ,so that we have  
at our command a source of depression on
 a grand scale1 at every period when    
granitic rocks have originated in the   

interior of the earth's crust4 ,all     
mineralogists are agreed that the       
passage of voluminous masses1 from a    
liquid or pasty to a solid and          
crystalline state1 must be an extremely 
slow process4 ,it may often happen that1
 in the same series of superimposed     
rocks1 some are expanding while still   
solid or while partially melting1 while 
others are at the same time             
crystallising and contracting2 so that  
the alterations of level at the surface 
may be the result of complicated and    
often of conflicting agencies4 ,the more
 gradually we conceive such changes to  
take place1 the more comprehensible they
 become in the eyes of the chemist and  
natural philosopher who speculates on   
the changes of the earth's interior2 and
 the more fertile are they in the hands 
of the geologist in accounting for      
revolutions on the habitable surface4   
,we may presume1 that after the movement
 has gone on for a long time in one     
determinate direction1 whether of       

elevation or depression1 the change to  
an opposite movement1 implying the      
substitution of a heating for a         
refrigerating operation1 or the reverse1
 would not take place suddenly2 but     
would be marked by a period of inaction1
 or of slight movement1 or such a state 
of quiescence1 as prevails throughout   
large areas of dry land in the normal   
condition of the globe4  ,i see no      
reason for supposing that any part of   
the revolutions in physical geography1  
to which the maps above described have  
reference1 indicate any catastrophes    
greater than those which the present    
generation has witnessed4 ,if ,man was  
in existence when the ,cromer forest was
 becoming submerged1 he would have felt 
no more alarm than the ,danish settlers 
on the east coast of ,baffin's ,bay1    
when they found the poles1 which they   
had driven into the beach to secure     
their boats1 had subsided below their   
original level4  ,already1 perhaps1 the 
melting ice has thrown down till and    

boulders upon those poles1 a counterpart
 of the boulder clay which overlies the 
forest-bed on the ,norfolk cliffs4  ,we 
have seen that all the plants and       
shells1 marine and freshwater1 of the   
forest bed1 and associated fluvio-marine
 strata of ,norfolk1 are specifically   
identical with those of the living      
,european flora and fauna2 so that if   
upon such a stratum a deposit of the    
present period1 whether freshwater or   
marine1 should be thrown down1 it might 
lie conformably over it1 and contain the
 same invertebrate fauna and flora4 ,the
 strata so superimposed would1 in       
ordinary geological language1 be called 
contemporaneous1 not only as belonging  
to the same epoch1 but as appertaining  
strictly to the same subdivision of one 
and the same epoch2 although they would 
in fact have been separated by an       
interval of several hundred thousand    
years4  ,if1 in the lower of the two    
formations1 some of the mammalia of the 
genera elephant and rhinoceros were     

found to be distinct in species from    
those of the same genera in the upper or
 recent stratum1 it might appear as     
though there had been a sudden coming in
 of new forms1 and a sudden dying out of
 old ones2 for there would not have been
 time in the interval for any           
perceptible change in the invertebrate  
fauna1 by which alone we usually measure
 the lapse of time in the older         
formations4  ,when we are contrasting   
the vertebrate contents of two sets of  
superimposed strata of the ,cretaceous1 
,oolitic1 or any other ancient formation
 in which the shells are identical in   
species1 we ought never to lose sight of
 the possibility of their having been   
separated by such intervals or by two or
 three thousand centuries4 ,that number 
of years may sometimes be of small      
moment in reference to the rate of      
fluctuation of species in the lower     
animals1 but very important when the    
succession of forms in the highest      
classes of vertebrata is concerned4  ,if

 we reflect on the long series of events
 of the ,pleistocene and ,recent periods
 contemplated in this chapter1 it will  
be remarked that the time assigned to   
the first appearance of ,man1 so far as 
our geological inquiries have yet gone1 
is extremely modern in relation to the  
age of the existing fauna and flora1 or 
even to the time when most of the living
 species of animals and plants attained 
their actual geographical distribution4 
,at the same time it will also be seen1 
that if the advent of ,man in ,europe   
occurred before the close of the second 
continental period1 and antecedently to 
the separation of ,ireland from ,england
 and of ,england from the ,continent1   
the event would be sufficiently remote  
to cause the historical period to appear
 quite insignificant in duration1 when  
compared to the antiquity of the human  
race4    ,,chapter #ae4 -- ,,extinct    
,,glaciers ,,of ,,the ,,alps ,,and      
,,their ,,chronological ,,relation ,,to 
,,the ,,human ,,period4    ,extinct     

,glaciers of ,switzerland4   ,alpine    
,erratic ,blocks on the ,jura4   ,not   
transported by floating ,ice4   ,extinct
 ,glaciers of the ,italian ,side of the 
,alps4   ,theory of the ,origin of      
,lake-,basins by the erosive ,action of 
,glaciers considered4   ,successive     
phases in the ,development of ,glacial  
,action in the ,alps4   ,probable       
,relation of these to the earliest known
 ,date of ,man4   ,correspondence of the
 same with successive ,changes in the   
,glacial      ,condition of the         
,scandinavian and ,british ,mountains4  
,cold ,period in ,sicily and ,syria4    
,,extinct ,,glaciers ,,of ,,switzerland4
  ,we have seen in the preceding        
chapters that the mountains of          
,scandinavia1 ,scotland1 and ,north     
,wales have served1 during the glacial  
period1 as so many independent centres  
for the dispersion of erratic blocks1   
just as at present the ice-covered      
continent of ,north ,greenland is       
sending down ice in all directions to   

the coast1 and filling ,baffin's ,bay   
with floating bergs1 many of them laden 
with fragments of rocks4  ,another great
 ,european centre of ice-action during  
the ,pleistocene period was the ,alps of
 ,switzerland1 and ,i shall now proceed 
to consider the chronological relations 
of the extinct ,alpine glaciers to those
 of more northern countries previously  
treated of4 #cb  ,the ,alps lie far     
south of the limits of the northern     
drift described in the foregoing pages1 
being situated between the #ddth and    
#dgth degrees of north latitude4 ,on the
 flanks of these mountains1 and on the  
sub-,alpine ranges of hills or plains   
adjoining them1 those appearances which 
have been so often alluded to1 as       
distinguishing or accompanying the      
drift1 between the #ejth and #gjth      
parallels of north latitude1 suddenly   
reappear and assume1 in a southern      
region1 a truly arctic development4     
,where the ,alps are highest1 the       
largest erratic blocks have been sent   

forth2 as1 for example1 from the regions
 of ,mont ,blanc and ,monte ,rosa1 into 
the adjoining parts of ,switzerland and 
,italy2 while in districts where the    
great chain sinks in altitude1 as in    
,carinthia1 ,carniola1 and elsewhere1 no
 such rocky fragments1 or a few only and
 of smaller bulk1 have been detached and
 transported to a distance4  ,in the    
year #ahba1 ,m4 ,venetz first announced 
his opinion that the ,alpine glaciers   
must formerly have extended far beyond  
their present limits1 and the proofs    
appealed to by him in confirmation of   
this doctrine were afterwards           
acknowledged by ,m4 ,charpentier1 who   
strengthened them by new observations   
and arguments1 and declared in #ahcf his
 conviction that the glaciers of the    
,alps must once have reached as far as  
the ,jura1 and have carried thither     
their moraines across the great valley  
of ,switzerland4 ,m4 ,agassiz1 after    
several excursions in the ,alps with ,m4
 ,charpentier1 and after devoting       

himself some years to the study of      
glaciers1 published in #ahdj an         
admirable description of them and of the
 marks which attest the former action of
 great masses of ice over the entire    
surface of the ,alps and the surrounding
 country499       799 ,agassiz1 ,etudes 
sur les ,glaciers et ,systeme           
,glaciaire47  ,he pointed out that the  
surface of every large glacier is       
strewed over with gravel and stones     
detached from the surrounding precipices
 by frost1 rain1 lightning1 or          
avalanches4 ,and he described more      
carefully than preceding writers the    
long lines of these stones1 which settle
 on the sides of the glacier1 and are   
called the lateral moraines2 those found
 at the lower end of the ice being      
called terminal moraines4 ,such heaps of
 earth and boulders every glacier pushes
 before it when advancing1 and leaves   
behind it when retreating4 ,when the    
,alpine glacier reaches a lower and a   
warmer situation1 about #cjjj or #djjj  

feet above the sea1 it melts so rapidly 
that1 in spite of the downward movement 
of the mass1 it can advance no farther4 
,its precise limits are variable from   
year to year1 and still more so from    
century to century2 one example being on
 record of a recession of half a mile in
 a single year4 ,we also learn from ,m4 
,venetz1 that whereas1 between the      
eleventh and fifteenth centuries1 all   
the ,alpine glaciers were less advanced 
than now1 they began in the seventeenth 
and eighteenth centuries to push        
forward1 so as to cover roads formerly  
open1 and to overwhelm forests of       
ancient growth4  ,these oscillations    
enable the geologist to note the marks  
which a glacier leaves behind it as it  
retrogrades2 and among these the most   
prominent1 as before stated1 are the    
terminal moraines1 or mounds of         
unstratified earth and stones1 often    
divided by subsequent floods into       
hillocks1 which cross the valley like   
ancient earthworks1 or embankments made 

to dam up a river4 ,some of these       
transverse barriers were formerly       
pointed out by ,saussure below the      
glacier of the ,rhone1 as proving how   
far it had once transgressed its present
 boundaries4 ,on these moraines we see  
many large angular fragments1 which1    
having been carried along the surface of
 the ice1 have not had their edges worn 
off by friction2 but the greater number 
of the boulders1 even those of large    
size1 have been well rounded1 not by the
 power of water1 but by the mechanical  
force of the ice1 which has pushed them 
against each other1 or against the rocks
 flanking the valley4 ,others have      
fallen down the numerous fissures which 
intersect the glacier1 where1 being     
subject to the pressure of the whole    
mass of ice1 they have been forced      
along1 and either well rounded or ground
 down into sand1 or even the finest mud1
 of which the moraine is largely        
constituted4  ,as the terminal moraines 
are the most prominent of all the       

monuments left by a receding glacier1 so
 are they the most liable to            
obliteration2 for violent floods or     
debacles are sometimes occasioned in the
 ,alps by the sudden bursting of        
glacier-lakes1 or those temporary sheets
 of water before alluded to which are   
caused by the damming up of a river by a
 glacier which has increased during a   
succession of cold seasons1 and         
descending from a tributary into the    
main valley1 has crossed it from side to
 side4 ,on the failure of this icy      
barrier the accumulated waters1 being   
let loose1 sweep away and level many a  
transverse mound of gravel and loose    
boulders below1 and spread their        
materials in confused and irregular beds
 over the river-plain4  ,another mark of
 the former action of glaciers in       
situations where they exist no longer1  
is the polished1 striated1 and grooved  
surfaces of rocks before described4     
,stones which lie underneath the glacier
 and are pushed along by it sometimes   

adhere to the ice1 and as the mass      
glides slowly along at the rate of a few
 inches1 or at the utmost #b or #c feet 
per day1 abrade1 groove1 and polish the 
rock1 and the larger blocks are         
reciprocally grooved and polished by the
 rock on their lower sides4 ,as the     
forces both of pressure and propulsion  
are enormous1 the sand acting like emery
 polishes the surface2 the pebbles1 like
 coarse gravers1 scratch and furrow it2 
and the large stones scoop out grooves  
in it4 ,lastly1 projecting eminences of 
rock1 called roches moutonnees1 are     
smoothed and worn into the shape of     
flattened domes where the glaciers have 
passed over them4  ,although the surface
 of almost every kind of rock when      
exposed to the open air wastes away by  
decomposition1 yet some retain for ages 
their polished and furrowed exterior3   
and if they are well protected by a     
covering of clay or turf1 these marks of
 abrasion seem capable of enduring for  
ever4 ,they have been traced in the     

,alps to great heights above the present
 glaciers1 and to great horizontal      
distances beyond them4  ,another effect 
of a glacier is to lodge a ring of      
stones round the summit of a conical    
peak which may happen to project through
 the ice4 ,if the glacier is lowered    
greatly by melting1 these circles of    
large angular fragments1 which are      
called perched blocks1 are left in a    
singular situation near the top of a    
steep hill or pinnacle1 the lower parts 
of which may be destitute of boulders4  
,,alpine ,,erratic ,,blocks ,,on ,,the  
,,jura4  ,now some or all the marks     
above enumerated1--the moraines1        
erratics1 polished surfaces1 domes1     
striae1 and perched rocks--are observed 
in the ,alps at great heights above the 
present glaciers and far below their    
actual extremities2 also in the great   
valley of ,switzerland1 #ej miles broad2
 and almost everywhere on the ,jura1 a  
chain which lies to the north of this   
valley4 ,the average height of the ,jura

 is about one-third that of the ,alps1  
and it is now entirely destitute of     
glaciers2 yet it presents almost        
everywhere moraines1 and polished and   
grooved surfaces of rocks4 ,the         
erratics1 moreover1 which cover it      
present a phenomenon which has          
astonished and perplexed the geologist  
for more than half a century4 ,no       
conclusion can be more incontestable    
than that these angular blocks of       
granite1 gneiss1 and other crystalline  
formations1 came from the ,alps1 and    
that they have been brought for a       
distance of #ej miles and upwards across
 one of the widest and deepest valleys  
of the world2 so that they are now      
lodged on the hills and valleys of a    
chain composed of limestone and other   
formations1 altogether distinct from    
those of the ,alps4 ,their great size   
and angularity1 after a journey of so   
many leagues1 has justly excited wonder1
 for hundreds of them are as large as   
cottages2 and one in particular1        

composed of gneiss1 celebrated under the
 name of ,pierre a ,bot1 rests on the   
side of a hill about #ijj feet above the
 lake of ,neufchatel1 and is no less    
than #dj feet in diameter4 ,but there   
are some far-transported masses of      
granite and gneiss which are still      
larger1 and which have been found to    
contain #ej1jjj and #fj1jjj cubic feet  
of stone2 and one limestone block at    
,devens1 near ,bex1 which has travelled 
#cj miles1 contains #afa1jjj cubic feet1
 its angles being sharp and unworn4     
,von ,buch1 ,escher1 and ,studer        
inferred1 from an examination of the    
mineral composition of the boulders1    
that those resting on the ,jura1        
opposite the lakes of ,geneva and       
,neufchatel1 have come from the region  
of ,mont ,blanc and the ,valais1 as if  
they had followed the course of the     
,rhone to the lake of ,geneva1 and had  
then pursued their way uninterruptedly  
in a northerly direction4  ,m4          
,charpentier1 who conceived the ,alps in

 the period of greatest cold to have    
been higher by several thousand feet    
than they are now1 had already suggested
 that the ,alpine glaciers once reached 
continuously to the ,jura1 conveying    
thither the large erratics in           
question499       799 ,d',archiac1      
,histoire des ,progres etc4 volume #b   
page      #bdi47  ,m4 ,agassiz1 on the  
other hand1 instead of introducing      
distinct and separate glaciers1 imagined
 that the whole valley of ,switzerland  
might have been filled with ice1 and    
that one great sheet of it extended from
 the ,alps to the ,jura1 the two chains 
being of the same height as now         
relatively to each other4 ,to this idea 
it was objected that the difference of  
altitude1 when distributed over a space 
of #ej miles1 would give an inclination 
of two degrees only1 or far less than   
that of any known glacier4 ,in spite of 
this difficulty1 the hypothesis has     
since received the support of ,professor
 ,james ,forbes in his very able work on

 the ,alps published in #ahdc4  ,in     
#ahda1 ,i advanced jointly with ,mr4    
,darwin99 the theory that the erratics  
may have been transferred by floating   
ice to the ,jura1 at the time when the  
greater part of that chain and the whole
 of the ,swiss valley to the south was  
under the sea4       799 ,see ,elements 
of ,geology #bnd edition #ahda47  ,we   
pointed out that if at that period the  
,alps had attained only half their      
present altitude they would yet have    
constituted a chain as lofty as the     
,chilean ,andes1 which in a latitude    
corresponding to ,switzerland now send  
down glaciers to the head of every      
sound1 from which icebergs covered with 
blocks of granite are floated seaward4  
,opposite that part of ,chile where the 
glaciers abound is situated the island  
of ,chiloe #ajj miles in length with a  
breadth of #cj miles1 running parallel  
to the continent4 ,the channel which    
separates it from the main land is of   
considerable depth and #be miles broad4 

,parts of its surface1 like the adjacent
 coast of ,chile1 are overspread with   
,recent marine shells1 showing an       
upheaval of the land during a very      
modern period2 and beneath these shells 
is a boulder deposit in which ,mr4      
,darwin found large blocks of granite   
and syenite which had evidently come    
from the ,andes4  ,a continuance in     
future of the elevatory movement now    
observed to be going on in this region  
of the ,andes and of ,chiloe might cause
 the former chain to rival the ,alps in 
altitude and give to ,chiloe a height   
equal to that of the ,jura4 ,the same   
rise might dry up the channel between   
,chiloe and the main land so that it    
would then represent the great valley of
 ,switzerland4  ,sir ,roderick ,i4      
,murchison1 after making several        
important geological surveys of the     
,alps1 proposed in #ahdi a theory       
agreeing essentially with that suggested
 by ,mr4 ,darwin and myself1 namely that
 the erratics were transported to the   

,jura at a time when the great strath of
 ,switzerland and many valleys receding 
far into the ,alps were under water4 ,he
 thought it impossible that the glacial 
detritus of the ,rhone could ever have  
been carried to the ,lake of ,geneva and
 beyond it by a glacier1 or that so vast
 a body of ice issuing from one narrow  
valley could have spread its erratics   
over the low country of the cantons of  
,vaud1 ,fribourg1 ,berne1 and ,soleure1 
as well as the slopes of the ,jura1     
comprising a region of about #ajj miles 
in breadth from south-west to           
north-east1 as laid down in the map of  
,charpentier4 ,he therefore imagined the
 granitic blocks to have been translated
 to the ,jura by ice-floats when the    
intermediate country was submerged499   
799 ,quarterly ,journal of the          
,geological ,society volume #f          
#ahej page #fe47  ,it may be remarked   
that this theory1 provided the water be 
assumed to have been salt or brackish1  
demands quite as great an oscillation in

 the level of the land as that on which 
,charpentier had speculated1 the only   
difference being that the one hypothesis
 requires us to begin with a subsidence 
of #bejj or #cjjj feet1 and the other   
with an elevation to the same amount4   
,we should also remember that the crests
 or watersheds of the ,alps and ,jura   
are about #hj miles apart1 and if once  
we suppose them to have been in movement
 during the glacial period it is very   
probable that the movements at such a   
distance may not have been strictly     
uniform4 ,if so the ,alps may have been 
relatively somewhat higher1 which would 
have greatly facilitated the extension  
of ,alpine glaciers to the flanks of the
 less elevated chain4  ,five years      
before the publication of the memoir    
last mentioned1 ,m4 ,guyot had brought  
forward a great body of new facts in    
support of the original doctrine of     
,charpentier1 that the ,alpine glaciers 
once reached as far as the ,jura and    
that they had deposited thereon a       

portion of their moraines499       799  
,bulletin de la ,societe des ,sciences  
,naturelles de      ,neufchatel #ahde47 
,the scope of his observations and      
argument was laid with great clearness  
before the ,british public in #aheb by  
,mr4 ,charles ,maclaren1 who had himself
 visited ,switzerland for the sake of   
forming an independent opinion on a     
theoretical question of so much interest
 and on which so many eminent men of    
science had come to such opposite       
conclusions499       799 ,edinburgh ,new
 ,philosophical ,magazine ,october      
#aheb47  ,m4 ,guyot had endeavoured to  
show that the ,alpine erratics1 instead 
of being scattered at random over the   
,jura and the great plain of            
,switzerland1 are arranged in a certain 
determinate order strictly analogous to 
that which ought to prevail if they had 
once constituted the lateral1 medial1   
and terminal moraines of great glaciers4
 ,the rocks chiefly relied on as        
evidence of this distribution consist of

 three varieties of granite1 besides    
gneiss1 chlorite-slate1 euphotide1      
serpentine1 and a peculiar kind of      
conglomerate1 all of them foreign alike 
to the great ,strath between the ,alps  
and ,jura and to the structure of the   
,jura itself4 ,in these two regions     
limestones1 sandstones1 and clays of the
 ,secondary and ,tertiary formations    
alone crop out at the surface1 so that  
the travelled fragments of ,alpine      
origin can easily be distinguished and  
in some cases the precise localities    
pointed out from whence they must have  
come4  ,illustration3 ,figure #db4 ,map 
of ,ancient ,glacier    7,,figure #db4  
,,map ,,showing ,,the ,,supposed        
,,course ,,of ,,the ,,ancient ,,and     
,,now    ,,extinct ,,glacier ,,of ,,the 
,,rhone1 ,,and ,,the ,,distribution ,,of
 ,,the ,,erratic    ,,blocks ,,and      
,,drift ,,conveyed ,,by ,,it ,,to ,,the 
,,great ,,valley ,,of ,,switzerland     
,,and ,,the ,,jura47  ,the accompanying 
map or diagram 7,figure #db7 slightly   

altered from one given by ,mr4 ,maclaren
 will enable the reader more fully to   
appreciate the line of argument relied  
on by ,m4 ,guyot4 ,the dotted area is   
that over which the ,alpine fragments   
were spread by the supposed extinct     
glacier of the ,rhone4 ,the site of the 
present reduced glacier of that name is 
shown at ,a4 ,from that point the       
boulders may first be traced to ,b1 or  
,martigny1 where the valley takes an    
abrupt turn at right angles to its      
former course4 ,here the blocks         
belonging to the right side of the river
 or derived from c d e have not crossed 
over to the left side at ,b1 as they    
should have done had they been          
transported by floating ice1 but        
continue to keep to the side to which   
they belonged1 assuming that they once  
formed part of a right lateral moraine  
of a great extinct glacier4 ,that       
glacier1 after arriving at the lower end
 of the long narrow valley of the upper 
,rhone at ,f1 filled the ,lake of       

,geneva1 ,f1 ,i1 with ice4 ,from ,f1 as 
from a great vomitory1 it then radiated 
in all directions bearing along with it 
the moraines with which it was loaded   
and spreading them out on all sides over
 the great plain4 ,but the principal icy
 mass moved straight onwards in a direct
 line towards the hill of ,chasseron1 ,g
 7precisely opposite ,f71 where the     
,alpine erratics attain their maximum of
 height on the ,jura1 that is to say    
#bjae ,english feet above the level of  
the ,lake of ,neufchatel or #cdej feet  
above the sea4 ,the granite blocks which
 have ascended to this eminence ,g came 
from the east shoulder of ,mont ,blanc  
h1 having travelled in the direction ,b1
 ,f1 ,g4  ,when these and the           
accompanying blocks resting on the      
south-eastern declivity of the ,jura are
 traced from their culminating point ,g 
in opposite directions1 whether westward
 towards ,geneva or eastwards towards   
,soleure1 they are found to decline in  
height from the middle of the arc ,g    

towards the two extremities ,i and ,k1  
both of which are at a lower level than 
,g1 by about #aejj feet4 ,in other words
 the ice of the extinct glacier1 having 
mounted up on the sloping flanks of the 
,jura in the line of greatest pressure  
to its highest elevation1 began to      
decline laterally in the manner of a    
pliant or viscous mass with a gentle    
inclination till it reached two points  
distant from each other no less than    
#ajj miles4 #cc  ,in further            
confirmation of this theory ,m4 ,guyot  
observed that fragments derived from the
 right bank of the great valley of the  
,rhone c d e are found on the right side
 of the great ,swiss basin or ,strath as
 at l and m1 while those derived from   
the left bank p h occur on the left side
 of the basin or on the ,jura between ,g
 and ,i2 and those again derived from   
places farthest up on the left bank and 
nearest the source of the ,rhone1 as n  
o1 occupy the middle of the great basin1
 constituting between m and ,k what ,m4 

,guyot calls the frontal or terminal    
moraine of the eastern prolongation of  
the old glacier4  ,a huge boulder of    
talcose granite1 now at ,steinhoff1 #aj 
miles east from ,k1 or ,soleure1        
containing #fa1jjj ,french cubic feet1  
or equal in bulk to a mass measuring #dj
 feet in every direction1 was           
ascertained by ,charpentier from its    
composition to have been derived from n1
 one of the highest points on the left  
side of the ,rhone valley far above     
,martigny4 ,from this spot it must have 
gone all round by ,f1 which is the only 
outlet to the deep valley1 so as to have
 performed a journey of no less than    
#aej miles6   ,,general ,,transportation
 ,,of ,,erratics ,,in ,,switzerland     
,,due ,,to ,,glaciers ,,and ,,not ,,to  
,,floating ,,ice4  ,it is evident that  
the above described restriction of      
certain fragments of peculiar           
lithological character to that bank of  
the ,rhone where the parent rocks are   
alone met with and the linear           

arrangement of the blocks in            
corresponding order on the opposite side
 of the great plain of ,switzerland1 are
 facts which harmonise singularly well  
with the theory of glaciers while they  
are wholly irreconcilable with that of  
floating ice4 ,against the latter       
hypothesis all the arguments which      
,charpentier originally brought forward 
in opposition to the first popular      
doctrine of a grand debacle or sudden   
flood rushing down from the ,alps to the
 ,jura might be revived4 ,had there ever
 been such a rush of muddy water1 said  
he1 the blocks carried down the basins  
of the principal ,swiss rivers1 such as 
the ,rhone1 ,aar1 ,reuss1 and ,limmat1  
would all have been mingled confusedly  
together instead of having each remained
 in separate and distinct areas as they 
do and should do according to the       
glacial hypothesis4  ,m4 ,morlot        
presented me in #aheg with an           
unpublished map of ,switzerland in which
 he had embodied the results of his own 

observations and those of ,,mm4 ,guyot1 
,escher1 and others1 marking out by     
distinct colours the limits of the      
ice-transported detritus proper to each 
of the great river-basins4 ,the         
arrangement of the drift and erratics   
thus depicted accords perfectly well    
with ,charpentier's views and is quite  
irreconcilable with the supposition of  
the scattered blocks having been        
dispersed by floating ice when          
,switzerland was submerged4  ,as opposed
 to the latter hypothesis1 ,i may also  
state that nowhere as yet have any      
marine shells or other fossils than     
those of a terrestrial character1 such  
as the bones of the mammoth and a few   
other mammalia and some coniferous wood1
 been detected in those drifts1 though  
they are often many hundreds of feet in 
thickness4  ,a glance at ,m4 ,morlot's  
map1 above mentioned199 will show that  
the two largest areas1 indicated by a   
single colour1 are those over which the 
,rhone and the ,rhine are supposed to   

have spread out in ancient times their  
enormous moraines4       799 ,see map1  
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society      volume #ah #ahfb page #ahe
 ,plate #ah47  ,one of these only1 that 
of the ,rhone1 has been exhibited in our
 diagram1 ,figure #db4 ,the distinct    
character of the drift in the two cases 
is such as it would be if two colossal  
glaciers should now come down from the  
higher ,alps through the valleys        
traversed by those rivers1 leaving their
 moraines in the low country4 ,the space
 occupied by the glacial drift of the   
,rhine is equal in dimensions or rather 
exceeds that of the ,rhone1 and its     
course is not interfered with in the    
least degree by the ,lake of ,constance1
 #de miles long1 any more than is the   
dispersion of the erratics of the ,rhone
 by the ,lake of ,geneva1 about #ej     
miles in length4 ,the angular and other 
blocks have in both instances travelled 
on precisely as if those lakes had no   
existence1 or as if1 which was no doubt 

the case1 they had been filled with     
solid ice4  ,during my last visit to    
,switzerland in #aheg1 ,i made          
excursions1 in company with several     
distinguished geologists1 for the sake  
of testing the relative merits of the   
two rival theories above referred to1   
and ,i examined parts of the ,jura above
 ,neufchatel in company with ,m4 ,desor1
 the country round ,soleure with ,m4    
,langen1 the southern side of the great 
strath near ,lausanne with ,m4 ,morlot1 
the basin of the ,aar around ,berne with
 ,m4 ,escher von der ,linth2 and having 
satisfied myself that all the facts     
which ,i saw north of the ,alps were in 
accordance with ,m4 ,guyot's views1 ,i  
crossed to the ,italian side of the     
great chain and became convinced that   
the same theory was equally applicable  
to the ancient moraines of the plains of
 the ,po4  ,m4 ,escher pointed out to me
 at ,trogen in ,appenzel on the left    
bank of the ,rhine fragments of a rock  
of a peculiar mineralogical character1  

commonly called the granite of          
,pontelyas1 the natural position of     
which is well known near ,trons1 #ajj   
miles from ,trogen1 on the left bank of 
the ,rhine about #cj miles from the     
source of that river4 ,all the blocks of
 this peculiar granite keep to the left 
bank1 even where the valley turns almost
 at right angles to its former course   
near ,mayenfeld below ,chur1 making a   
sharp bend resembling that of the valley
 of the ,rhone at ,martigny4 ,the       
granite blocks1 where they are traced to
 the low country1 still keep to the left
 side of the ,lake of ,constance4 ,that 
they should not have crossed over to the
 opposite river-bank below ,chur is     
quite inexplicable if1 rejecting the aid
 of land-ice1 we appeal to floating ice 
as the transporting power4  ,in ,m4     
,morlot's map already cited we behold   
between the areas occupied by the       
glacial drift of the ,rhine and ,rhone  
three smaller yet not inconsiderable    
spaces distinguished by distinct        

colours1 indicating the peculiar        
detritus brought down by the three great
 rivers1 the ,aar1 ,reuss1 and ,limmat4 
,the ancient glacier of the first of    
these1 the ,aar1 has traversed the lakes
 of ,brienz and ,thun and has borne     
angular1 polished1 and striated blocks  
of limestone and other rocks as far as  
,berne and somewhat below that city4    
,the ,reuss has also stamped the        
lithological character of its own       
mountainous region upon the lower part  
of its hydrographical basin by covering 
it with its peculiar ,alpine drift4 ,in 
like manner the old extinct glacier of  
the ,limmat during its gradual retreat  
has left monuments of its course in the 
,lake of ,zurich in the shape of        
terminal moraines1 one of which has     
almost divided that great sheet of water
 into two lakes4  ,the ice-work done by 
the extinct glaciers1 as contrasted with
 that performed by their dwarfed        
representatives of the present day1 is  
in due proportion to the relative volume

 of the supposed glaciers1 whether we   
measure them by the distances to which  
they have carried erratic blocks or the 
areas which they have strewed over with 
drift or the hard surfaces of rock and  
number of boulders which they have      
polished and striated4 ,instead of a    
length of #e1 #aj1 or #bj miles and a   
thickness of #bjj1 #cjj1 or at the      
utmost #hjj feet1 those giants of the   
olden time must have been from #ej to   
#aej miles long and between #ajjj and   
#cjjj feet deep4 ,in like manner the    
glaciation although identical in kind is
 on so small a scale in the existing    
,alpine glaciers as at first sight to   
disappoint a ,swedish1 ,scotch1 ,welsh1 
or ,north ,american geologist4 ,when ,i 
visited the terminal moraine of the     
glacier of the ,rhone in #ahei and tried
 to estimate the number of angular or   
rounded pebbles and blocks which        
exhibited glacial polishing or scratches
 as compared to those bearing no such   
markings1 ,i found that several thousand

 had to be reckoned before ,i arrived at
 the first which was so striated or     
polished as to differ from the stones of
 an ordinary torrent-bed4 ,even in the  
moraines of the glaciers of ,zermatt1   
,viesch1 and others1 in which fragments 
of limestone and serpentine are abundant
 7rocks which most readily receive and  
most faithfully retain the signs of     
glaciation71 ,i found1 for one which    
displayed such indications1 several     
hundreds entirely free from them4 ,of   
the most opposite character were the    
results obtained by me from a similar   
scrutiny of the boulders and pebbles of 
the terminal moraine of one of the old  
extinct glaciers1 namely1 that of the   
,rhone in the suburbs of ,soleure4 ,thus
 at the point ,k in the map1 ,figure    
#db1 ,i observed a mass of unstratified 
clay or mud1 through which a variety of 
angular and rubbed stones were scattered
 and a marked proportion of the whole   
were polished and scratched and the clay
 rendered so compact1 as if by the      

incumbent pressure of a great mass of   
ice1 that it has been found necessary to
 blow it up with gunpowder in making    
railway cuttings through part of it4 ,a 
limestone of the age of our ,portland   
stone on which this old moraine rests1  
has its surface polished like a         
looking-glass1 displaying beautiful     
sections of fossil shells of the genera 
,nerinaea and ,pteroceras1 while        
occasionally1 besides finer striae1     
there are deep rectilinear grooves1     
agreeing in direction with the course in
 which the extinct glacier would have   
moved according to the theory of ,m4    
,guyot1 before explained4   ,,extinct   
,,glaciers ,,of ,,the ,,italian ,,side  
,,of ,,the ,,alps4  ,illustration3      
,figure #dc4 ,map ,of ,the ,moraines ,of
 ,extinct ,glaciers    7,,figure #dc4   
,,map ,,of ,,the ,,moraines ,,of        
,,extinct ,,glaciers    ,,extending     
,,from ,,the ,,alps ,,into ,,the        
,,plains ,,of ,,the ,,po ,,near ,,turin4
    ,from ,map of the ancient ,glaciers 

of the ,italian side of the ,alps       
by ,signor ,gabriel de ,mortillet4      
,a4 ,crest or watershed of the ,alps4   
,b4 ,snow-covered ,alpine summits which 
fed the ancient glaciers4   ,c4         
,moraines of ancient or extinct         
glaciers47  ,to select another example  
from the opposite or southern side of   
the ,alps4 ,it will be seen in the      
elaborate map recently executed by      
,signor ,gabriel de ,mortillet of the   
ancient glaciers of the ,italian flank  
of the ,alps that the old moraines      
descend in narrow strips from the       
snow-covered ridges through the         
principal valleys to the great basin of 
the ,po1 on reaching which they expand  
and cover large circular or oval areas4 
,each of these groups of detritus is    
observed 7see map1 ,figure #dc7 to      
contain exclusively the wreck of such   
rocks as occur in situ on the ,alpine   
heights of the hydrographical basins to 
which the moraines respectively belong4 
,i had an opportunity of verifying this 

fact1 in company with ,signor ,gastaldi 
as my guide1 by examining the erratics  
and boulder formation between ,susa and 
,turin1 on the banks of the ,dora       
,riparia1 which brings down the waters  
from ,mont ,cenis and from the ,alps    
south-west of it4 ,i there observed     
striated fragments of dolomite and      
gypsum1 which had come down from ,mont  
,cenis and had travelled as far as      
,avigliana2 also masses of serpentine   
brought from less remote points1 some of
 them apparently exceeding in dimensions
 the largest erratics of ,switzerland4  
,i afterwards visited1 in company with  
,signori ,gastaldi and ,michelotti1 a   
still grander display of the work of a  
colossal glacier of the olden time1 #bj 
miles north-east of ,turin1 the moraine 
of which descended from the two highest 
of the ,alps1 ,mont ,blanc and ,monte   
,rosa1 and after passing through the    
valley of ,aosta1 issued from a narrow  
defile above ,ivrea 7see map1 ,figure   
#dc74 ,from this vomitory the old       

glacier poured into the plains of the   
,po that wonderful accumulation of mud1 
gravel1 boulders1 and large erratics1   
which extend for #ae miles from above   
,ivrea to below ,caluso and which when  
seen in profile from ,turin have the    
aspect of a chain of hills4 ,in many    
countries1 indeed1 they might rank as an
 important range of hills1 for where    
they join the mountains they are more   
than #aejj feet high1 and retain more   
than half that height for a great part  
of their course1 rising very abruptly   
from the plain1 often with a slope of   
from #bj to #cj degrees4 ,this glacial  
drift reposes near the mountains on     
ancient metamorphic rocks and farther   
from them on marine ,pliocene strata4   
,portions of the ridges of till and     
stratified matter have been cut up into 
mounds and hillocks by the action of the
 river1 the ,dora ,baltea1 and there are
 numerous lakes1 so that the entire     
moraine much resembles1 except in its   
greater height and width1 the line of   

glacial drift of ,perthshire and        
,forfarshire before described4 ,its     
complicated structure can only be       
explained by supposing that the ancient 
glacier advanced and retreated several  
times and left large lateral moraines1  
the more modern mounds within the limits
 of the older ones1 and masses of till  
thrown down upon the rearranged and     
stratified materials of the first set of
 moraines4 ,such appearances accord well
 with the hypothesis of the successive  
phases of glacial action in             
,switzerland1 to which ,i shall         
presently advert4   ,,contorted ,,strata
 ,,of ,,glacial ,,drift ,,south ,,of    
,,ivrea4  ,at ,mazze near ,caluso 7see  
,figure #dc71 the southern extremity of 
this great moraine has recently been cut
 through in making a tunnel for the     
railway which runs from ,turin to       
,ivrea4 ,in the fine section thus       
exposed ,signor ,gastaldi and ,i had an 
opportunity of observing the internal   
structure of the glacial formation4 ,in 

close juxtaposition to a great mass of  
till with striated boulders1 we saw     
stratified beds of alternating gravel1  
sand1 and loam1 which were so sharply   
bent that many of them had been twice   
pierced through in the same vertical    
cutting4 ,whether they had been thus    
folded by the mechanical power of an    
advancing glacier1 which had pushed     
before it a heap of stratified matter1  
as the glacier of ,zermatt has been     
sometimes known to shove forward blocks 
of stone through the walls of houses1 or
 whether the melting of masses of ice1  
once interstratified with sand and      
gravel1 had given rise to flexures in   
the manner before suggested2 it is at   
least satisfactory to have detected this
 new proof of a close connection between
 ice-action and contorted               
stratification1 such as has been        
described as so common in the ,norfolk  
cliffs and which is also very often seen
 in ,scotland and ,north ,america1 where
 stratified gravel overlies till4 ,i    

have little doubt that if the marine    
,pliocene strata which underlie a great 
part of the moraine below ,ivrea were   
exposed to view in a vertical section1  
those fundamental strata would be found 
not to participate in the least degree  
in the plications of the sands and      
gravels of the overlying glacial drift4 
,to return to the marks of glaciation3  
in the moraine at ,mazze there are many 
large blocks of protogine and large and 
small ones of limestone and serpentine  
which have been brought down from ,monte
 ,rosa1 through the gorge of ,ivrea1    
after having travelled for a distance of
 #ej miles4 ,confining my attention to a
 part of the moraine where pieces of    
limestone and serpentine were very      
numerous1 ,i found that no less than    
one-third of the whole number bore      
unequivocal signs of glacial action2 a  
state of things which seems to bear some
 relation to the vast volume and        
pressure of the ice which once          
constituted the extinct glacier and to  

the distance which the stones had       
travelled4 ,when ,i separated the       
pebbles of quartz1 which were never     
striated1 and those of granite1         
mica-schist1 and diorite1 which do not  
often exhibit glacial markings1 and     
confined my attention to the serpentine 
alone ,i found no less than nineteen in 
twenty of the whole number polished and 
scratched2 whereas in the terminal      
moraines of some modern glaciers1 where 
the materials have travelled not more   
than #aj or #ae1 instead of #ajj miles1 
scarce one in twenty even of the        
serpentine pebbles exhibit glacial      
polish and striation4   ,,theory ,,of   
,,the ,,origin ,,of ,,lake-,,basins ,,by
 ,,the ,,erosive ,,action ,,of          
,,glaciers1 ,,considered4  ,geologists  
are all agreed that the last series of  
movements to which the ,alps owe their  
present form and internal structure     
occurred after the deposition of the    
,miocene strata2 and it has been usual  
to refer the origin of the numerous     

lake-basins of ,alpine and sub-,alpine  
regions both in ,switzerland and        
,northern ,italy to the same movements2 
for it seemed not unnatural to suppose1 
that forces capable of modifying the    
configuration of the greatest ,european 
chain1 by uplifting some of its         
component ,tertiary strata 7those of    
marine origin of the ,miocene period7   
several thousand feet above their former
 level1 after throwing them into        
vertical and contorted positions1 must  
also have given rise to many superficial
 inequalities1 in some of which large   
bodies of water would collect4 ,m4      
,desor1 in a memoir on the ,swiss and   
,italian lakes1 suggested that they may 
have escaped being obliterated by       
sedimentary deposition by having been   
filled with ice during the whole of the 
glacial period4  ,subsequently to the   
retreat of the great glaciers we know   
that the lake-basins have been to a     
certain extent encroached upon and      
turned into land by river deltas2 one of

 which1 that of the ,rhone at the head  
of the ,lake of ,geneva1 is no less than
 #ab miles long and several miles broad1
 besides which there are many torrents  
on the borders of the same lake1 forming
 smaller deltas4  ,m4 ,gabriel de       
,mortillet after a careful study of the 
glacial formations of the ,alps agreed  
with his predecessors that the great    
lakes had existed before the glacial    
period1 but came to the opinion in #ahei
 that they had all been first filled up 
with alluvial matter and then           
re-excavated by the action of ice1 which
 during the epoch of intense cold had by
 its weight and force of propulsion     
scooped out the loose and incoherent    
alluvial strata1 even where they had    
accumulated to a thickness of #bjjj     
feet4 ,besides this erosion1 the ice had
 carried the whole mass of mud and      
stones up the inclined planes1 from the 
central depths to the lower outlets of  
the lakes and sometimes far beyond them4
 ,as some of these rock-basins are #ejj1

 others more than #bjjj feet deep1      
having their bottoms in some cases #ejj1
 in others #ajjj feet below the level of
 the sea1 and having areas from #bj to  
#ej miles in length and from #d to #ab  
in breadth1 we may well be startled at  
the boldness of this hypothesis4  ,the  
following are the facts and train of    
reasoning which induced ,m4 de          
,mortillet to embrace these views4 ,at  
the lower ends of the great ,italian    
lakes1 such as ,maggiore1 ,como1 ,garda1
 and others1 there are vast moraines    
which are proved by their contents to   
have come from the upper ,alpine valleys
 above the lakes4 ,such moraines often  
repose on an older stratified alluvium1 
made up of rounded and worn pebbles of  
precisely the same rocks as those       
forming the moraines1 but not derived   
from them1 being small in size1 never   
angular1 polished1 or striated1 and the 
whole having evidently come from a great
 distance4 ,these older alluvial strata 
must1 according to ,m4 de ,mortillet1 be

 of pre-glacial date and could not have 
been carried past the sites of the      
lakes1 unless each basin had previously 
been filled and levelled up with mud1   
sand1 and gravel1 so that the river     
channel was continuous from the upper to
 the lower extremity of each basin4     
,professor ,ramsay1 after acquiring an  
intimate knowledge of the glacial       
phenomena of the ,british ,isles1 had   
taught many years before that small     
tarns and shallow rock-basins such as we
 see in many mountain regions owe their 
origin to glaciers which erode the      
softer rocks1 leaving the harder ones   
standing out in relief and comparatively
 unabraded4 ,following up this idea     
after he had visited ,switzerland and   
without any communication with ,m4 de   
,mortillet or cognisance of his views1  
he suggested in #ahei that the          
lake-basins were not of pre-glacial     
date1 but had been scooped out by ice   
during the glacial period1 the          
excavation having for the most part been

 effected in ,miocene sandstone1        
provincially called1 on account of its  
softness1 molasse4 ,by this theory he   
dispensed with the necessity of filling 
up pre-existing cavities with stratified
 alluvium1 in the manner proposed by ,m4
 de ,mortillet4  ,i will now explain to 
what extent ,i agree with1 and on what  
points ,i feel compelled to differ from 
the two distinguished geologists above  
cited4 ,first4 ,it is no doubt true1 as 
,professor ,ramsay remarks1 that heavy  
masses of ice1 creeping for ages over a 
surface of dry land 7whether this       
comprise hills1 plateaus1 and valleys1  
as in the case of ,greenland1 before    
described1 or be confined to the bottoms
 of great valleys1 as now in the higher 
,alps71 must often by their grinding    
action produce depressions1 in          
consequence of the different degrees of 
resistance offered by rocks of unequal  
hardness4 ,thus1 for example1 where     
quartzose beds of mica-schist alternate 
with clay-slate1 or where trap-dykes1   

often causing waterfalls in the courses 
of torrents1 cut through sandstone or   
slate--these and innumerable other      
common associations of dissimilar stony 
compounds must give rise to a very      
unequal amount of erosion and           
consequently to lake-basins on a small  
scale4 ,but the larger the size of any  
lake1 the more certain it will be to    
contain within it rocks of every degree 
of hardness1 toughness1 and softness2   
and if we find a gradual deepening from 
the head towards the central parts and a
 shallowing again from the middle to the
 lower end1 as in several of the great  
,swiss and ,italian lakes1 which are #cj
 or #dj miles in length1 we require a   
power capable of acting with a          
considerable degree of uniformity on    
these masses of varying powers of       
resistance4  ,secondly4 ,several of the 
great lakes are by no means in the line 
of direction which they ought to have   
taken had they been scooped out by the  
pressure and onward movement of the     

extinct glaciers4 ,the ,lake of ,geneva1
 for instance1 had it been the work of  
ice1 would have been prolonged from the 
termination of the upper valley of the  
,rhone towards the ,jura1 in the        
direction from ,f to ,g of the map1     
,figure #db1 instead of running from ,f 
to ,i4  ,thirdly4 ,it has been          
ascertained experimentally1 that in a   
glacier1 as in a river1 the rate of     
motion is accelerated or lessened1      
according to the greater or less slope  
of the ground2 also1 that the lower     
strata of ice1 like those of water1 move
 more slowly than those above them4 ,in 
the ,lago ,maggiore1 which is more than 
#bfjj feet deep 7#gig metres71 the ice1 
says ,professor ,ramsay1 had to descend 
a slope of about #c degrees for the     
first #be miles1 and then to ,,ascend   
for the last #ab miles 7from the deepest
 part towards the outlet7 at an angle of
 #e degrees4 ,it is for those who are   
conversant with the dynamics of glacier 
motion to divine whether in such a case 

the discharge of ice would not be       
entirely effected by the superior and   
faster moving strata1 and whether the   
lowest would not be motionless or nearly
 so1 and would therefore exert very     
little1 if any1 friction on the bottom4 
,fourthly4 ,but the gravest objection to
 the hypothesis of glacial erosion on so
 stupendous a scale is afforded by the  
entire absence of lakes of the first    
magnitude in several areas where they   
ought to exist if the enormous glaciers 
which once occupied those spaces had    
possessed the deep excavating power     
ascribed to them4 ,thus in the area laid
 down on the map1 ,figure #dc1 or that  
covered by the ancient moraine of the   
,dora ,baltea1 we see the monuments of a
 colossal glacier derived from ,mont    
,blanc and ,monte ,rosa1 which descended
 from points nearly #ajj miles distant1 
and then emerging from the narrow gorge 
above ,ivrea deployed upon the plains of
 the ,po1 advancing over a floor of     
marine ,pliocene strata of no greater   

solidity than the ,miocene sandstone and
 conglomerate in which the lake-basins  
of ,geneva1 ,zurich1 and some others are
 situated4 ,why did this glacier fail to
 scoop out a deep and wide basin        
rivalling in size the lakes of ,maggiore
 or ,como1 instead of merely giving rise
 to a few ponds above ,ivrea1 which may 
have been due to ice action8 ,there is  
one lake1 it is true--that of ,candia1  
near the southern extremity of the      
moraine--which is larger2 but even this1
 as will be seen by the map1 is quite of
 subordinate importance1 and whether it 
is situated in a rock basin or is simply
 caused by a dam of moraine matter has  
not yet been fully made out4  ,there    
ought also to have been another great   
lake1 according to the theory under     
consideration1 in the space now occupied
 by the moraine of the ,dora ,riparia1  
between ,susa and ,turin 7see map1      
,figure #dc74 ,signor ,gastaldi has     
shown that all the ponds in that area   
consist exclusively of what ,m4 de      

,mortillet has denominated morainic     
lakes1 i4e4 caused by barriers of       
glacier-mud and stones4  ,fifthly4 ,in  
proof of the great lakes having had no  
existence before the glacial period1    
,professor ,ramsay observes that we do  
not find in the ,alps any freshwater    
strata of an age intermediate between   
the close of the ,miocenic and the      
commencement of the glacial epoch499    
799 ,quarterly ,journal of the          
,geological ,society volume #ah         
#ahfb47  ,but although such formations  
are scarce1 they are by no means wholly 
wanting2 and if it can be shown that any
 one of the principal lakes1 that of    
,zurich for example1 existed prior to   
the glacial era it will follow that in  
the ,alps the erosive power of ice was  
not required to produce lake-basins on a
 large scale4 ,the deposits alluded to  
on the borders of the ,lake of ,zurich  
are those of ,utznach and ,durnten1     
situated each about #cej feet above the 
present level of the lake and containing

 valuable beds of lignite4  ,the first  
of them1 that of ,utznach1 is a delta   
formed at the head of the ancient and   
once more extensive lake4 ,the          
argillaceous and lignite-bearing strata1
 more than #ajj feet in thickness1 rest 
unconformably on highly inclined and    
sometimes vertical ,miocene molasse4    
,these clays are covered conformably by 
stratified sand and gravel #fj feet     
thick1 partly consolidated1 in which the
 pebbles are of rocks belonging to the  
upper valleys of the ,limmat and its    
tributaries1 all of them small and not  
glacially striated and wholly without   
admixture of large angular stones4 ,on  
the top of all repose very large erratic
 blocks1 affording clear evidence that  
the colossal glacier which once filled  
the valley of the ,limmat covered the   
old littoral deposit4 ,the great age of 
the lignite is partly indicated by the  
bones of ,elephas antiquus found in it4 
,i visited ,utznach in company with ,m4 
,escher von der ,linth in #aheg1 and    

during the same year examined the       
lignite of ,durnten1 many miles farther 
down on the right bank of the lake1 in  
company with ,professor ,heer and ,m4   
,marcou4 ,the beds there are of the same
 age and within a few feet of the same  
height above the level of the lake4     
,they might easily have been overlooked 
or confounded with the general glacial  
drift of the neighbourhood1 had not the 
bed of lignite1 which is from #e to #ab 
feet thick1 been worked for fuel1 during
 which operation many organic remains   
came to light4 ,among these are the     
teeth of ,elephas antiquus1 determined  
by ,dr4 ,falconer1 and ,rhinoceros      
leptorhinus8 7,r4 megarhinus1           
,christol71 the wild bull and red deer  
7,bos primigenius1 ,boj41 and ,cervus   
elaphus1 ,l471 the last two determined  
by ,professor ,rutimeyer4 ,in the same  
beds ,i found many freshwater shells of 
the genera ,paludina1 ,limnaea1 etc41   
all of living species4 ,the plants named
 by ,professor ,heer are also ,recent   

and agree singularly with those of the  
,cromer buried forest1 before described4
  ,among them are the ,scotch and spruce
 firs1 ,pinus sylvestris and ,pinus     
abies1 and the buckbean1 or ,menyanthes 
trifoliata1 etc41 besides the common    
birch and other ,european plants4       
,overlying this lignite are first1 as at
 ,utznach1 stratified gravel not of     
glacial origin1 about #cj feet thick2   
and secondly1 highest of all1 huge      
angular erratic blocks clearly          
indicating the presence of a great      
glacier posterior in date to all the    
organic remains above enumerated4  ,if  
any one of the existing ,swiss lakes    
were now lowered by deepening its       
outlet1 or by raising the higher portion
 of it relatively to the lower1 we      
should see similar deltas of            
comparatively modern date exposed to    
view1 some of them with embedded trunks 
of pines of the same species drifted    
down during freshets4 ,such deposits    
would be most frequent at the upper ends

 of the lakes1 but a few would occur on 
either bank not far from the shore where
 torrents once entered1 agreeing in     
geographical position with the lignite  
formations of ,utznach and ,durnten4    
,there are other freshwater formations  
with lignite1 besides those on the ,lake
 of ,zurich1 as those of ,wetzikon near 
the ,pfaffikon ,lake1 of ,kaltbrunnen1  
of ,buchberg1 and that of ,morschweil   
between ,st4 ,gall and ,rorschach1 but  
none probably older than the ,durnten   
beds4 ,like the buried forest of ,cromer
 they are all pre-glacial1 yet they by  
no means represent the older nor even   
the newer ,pliocene period1 but rather  
the beginning of the ,pleistocene4 ,it  
is therefore true1 as ,professor ,ramsay
 remarks1 that1 as yet1 no strata of the
 age of the ,english ,crag have been    
detected in any ,alpine valley4 ,in     
other words1 there are no freshwater    
formations yet known corresponding in   
date to the ,pliocene beds of the upper 
,val d',arno1 above ,florence--a fact   

from which we may infer 7though with    
diffidence1 as the inference is based on
 negative evidence71 that1 although the 
great ,alpine valleys were eroded in    
,pliocene times1 the lake-basins were1  
nevertheless1 of ,pleistocene date--some
 of them formed before1 others during1  
the glacial epoch4  ,sixthly4 ,in what  
manner then did the great lake-basins   
originate if they were not hollowed out 
by ice8 ,my answer is1 they are all due 
to unequal movements of upheaval and    
subsidence4 ,we have already seen that  
the buried forest of ,cromer1 which by  
its organic contents seems clearly to be
 of the same age as the lignite of      
,durnten1 was pre-glacial and that it   
has undergone a great oscillation of    
level 7about #ejj feet in both          
directions7 since its origin1 having    
first sunk to that extent below the sea 
and then been raised up again to the    
sea-level4 ,in the countless            
,post-,miocene ages which preceded the  
glacial period there was ample time for 

the slow erosion by water of all the    
principal hydrographical basins of the  
,alps1 and the sites of all the great   
lakes coincide1 as ,professor ,ramsay   
truly says1 with these great lines of   
drainage4 ,the lake-cavities do not lie 
in synclinal troughs1 following the     
strike and foldings of the strata1 but  
often1 as the same geologist remarks1   
cross them at high angles2 nor are they 
due to rents or gaping fissures1        
although these1 with other accidents    
connected with the disturbing movements 
of the ,alps1 may sometimes have        
determined originally the direction of  
the valleys4 ,the conformity of the     
lake-basins to the principal            
watercourses is explicable if we assume 
them to have resulted from inequalities 
in the upward and downward movements of 
the whole country in ,pleistocene times1
 after the valleys were eroded4  ,we    
know that in ,sweden the rate of the    
rise of the land is far from uniform1   
being only a few inches in a century    

near ,stockholm1 while north of it and  
beyond ,gefle it amounts to as many feet
 in the same number of years4 ,let us   
suppose with ,charpentier that the ,alps
 gained in height several thousand feet 
at the time when the intense cold of the
 glacial period was coming on4 ,this    
gradual rise would be an era of aqueous 
erosion and of the deepening1 widening1 
and lengthening of the valleys4 ,it is  
very improbable that the elevation would
 be everywhere identical in quantity1   
but if it was never in excess in the    
outskirts as compared to the central    
region or crest of the chain1 it would  
not give rise to lakes4 ,when1 however1 
the period of upheaval was followed by  
one of gradual subsidence1 the movement 
not being everywhere strictly uniform1  
lake-basins would be formed wherever the
 rate of depression was in excess in the
 upper country4 ,let the region1 for    
example1 near the head waters of the    
great rivers sink at the rate of from #d
 to #f feet per century1 while only half

 as much subsidence occurs towards the  
circumference of the mountains--the rate
 diminishing about an inch per mile in a
 distance1 say of #dj miles--this might 
convert many of the largest and deepest 
valleys at their lower ends into lakes4 
,we have no certainty that such         
movements may not now be in progress in 
the ,alps2 for if they are as slow as we
 have assumed1 they would be as         
insensible to the inhabitants as is the 
upheaval of ,scandinavia or the         
subsidence of ,greenland to the ,swedes 
and ,danes who dwell there4 ,they only  
know of the progress of such            
geographical revolutions because a      
slight change of level becomes manifest 
on the margin of the sea4 ,the lines of 
elevation or depression above supposed  
might leave no clear geological traces  
of their action on the high ridges and  
table-lands separating the valleys of   
the principal rivers2 it is only when   
they cross such valleys that the        
disturbance caused in the course of     

thousands of years in the drainage      
becomes apparent4 ,if there were no ice1
 the sinking of the land might not give 
rise to lakes4 ,to accomplish this in   
the absence of ice1 it is necessary that
 the rate of depression should be       
sufficiently fast to make it impossible 
for the depositing power of the river to
 keep pace with it1 or in other words to
 fill up the incipient cavity as fast as
 it begins to form4 ,such levelling     
operations once complete1 the running   
water1 aided by sand and pebbles1 will  
gradually cut a gorge through the newly 
raised rock so as to prevent it from    
forming a barrier4 ,but if a great      
glacier fill the lower part of the      
valley all the conditions of the problem
 are altered4 ,instead of the mud1 sand1
 and stones drifted down from the higher
 regions being left behind in the       
incipient basin1 they all travel onwards
 in the shape of moraines on the top of 
the ice1 passing over and beyond the new
 depression1 so that when at the end of 

fifty or a thousand centuries the       
glacier melts1 a large and deep basin   
representing the difference in the      
movement of two adjoining mountain      
areas--namely1 the central and the      
circumferential--is for the first time  
rendered visible4  ,by adopting this    
hypothesis1 we concede that there is an 
intimate connection between the glacial 
period and a predominance of lakes1 in  
producing which the action of ice is    
threefold2 first1 by its direct power in
 scooping out shallow basins where the  
rocks are of unequal hardness2 an       
operation which can by no means be      
confined to the land1 for it must extend
 to below the level of high water a     
thousand feet and more in such fjords as
 have been described as filled with ice 
in ,greenland4  ,secondly4 ,the ice will
 act indirectly by preventing cavities  
caused by inequalities of subsidence or 
elevation from becoming the receptacles 
first of water and then of sediment1 by 
which the cavities would be levelled up 

and the lakes obliterated4  ,thirdly4   
,the ice is also an indirect cause of   
lakes1 by heaping up mounds of moraine  
matter and thus giving rise to ponds and
 even to sheets of water several miles  
in diameter4  ,the comparative scarcity1
 therefore1 of lakes of ,pleistocene    
date in tropical countries1 and very    
generally south of the fortieth and     
fiftieth parallels of latitude1 may be  
accounted for by the absence of glacial 
action in such regions4                 
,,post-,,glacial ,,lake-,,dwelling ,,in 
,,the ,,north ,,of ,,italy4  ,we learn  
from ,m4 de ,mortillet that in the peat 
which has filled up one of the morainic 
lakes formed by the ancient glacier of  
the ,ticino1 ,m4 ,moro has discovered at
 ,mercurago the piles of a lake-dwelling
 like those of ,switzerland1 together   
with various utensils and a canoe       
hollowed out of the trunk of a tree4    
,from this fact we learn that south of  
the ,alps as well as north of them a    
primitive people having similar habits  

flourished after the retreat of the     
great glaciers4   ,,successive ,,phases 
,,of ,,glacial ,,action ,,in ,,the      
,,alps1 ,,and ,,their ,,relation ,,to   
,,the ,,human ,,period #cd4  ,according 
to the geological observations of ,m4   
,morlot1 the following successive phases
 in the development of ice-action in the
 ,alps are plainly recognisable3--      
,first4 ,there was a period when the ice
 was in its greatest excess1 when the   
glacier of the ,rhone not only reached  
the ,jura1 but climbed to the height of 
#bjae feet above the ,lake of           
,neufchatel1 and #cdej feet above the   
sea1 at which time the ,alpine ice      
actually entered the ,french territory  
at some points1 penetrating by certain  
gorges1 as through the defile of the    
,fort de l',ecluse1 among others4       
,second4 ,to this succeeded a prolonged 
retreat of the great glaciers1 when they
 evacuated not only the ,jura and the   
low country between that chain and the  
,alps1 but retired some way back into   

the ,alpine valleys4 ,m4 ,morlot        
supposes their diminution in volume to  
have accompanied a general subsidence of
 the country to the extent of at least  
#ajjj feet4 ,the geological formations  
of the second period consist of         
stratified masses of sand and gravel1   
called the ancient alluvium by ,,mm4    
,necker and ,favre1 corresponding to the
 older or lower diluvium of some        
writers4 ,their origin is evidently due 
to the action of rivers1 swollen by the 
melting of ice1 by which the materials  
of parts of the old moraines were       
rearranged and stratified and left      
usually at considerable heights above   
the level of the present valley plains4 
,third4 ,the glaciers again advanced and
 became of gigantic dimensions1 though  
they fell far short of those of the     
first period4 ,that of the ,rhone1 for  
example1 did not again reach the ,jura1 
though it filled the ,lake of ,geneva   
and formed enormous moraines on its     
borders and in many parts of the valley 

between the ,alps and ,jura4  ,fourth4  
,a second retreat of the glaciers took  
place when they gradually shrank nearly 
into their present limits1 accompanied  
by another accumulation of stratified   
gravels which form in many places a     
series of terraces above the level of   
the alluvial plains of the existing     
rivers4  ,in the gorge of the ,dranse1  
near ,thonon1 ,m4 ,morlot discovered no 
less than three of these glacial        
formations in direct superposition1     
namely1 at the bottom of the section1 a 
mass of compact till or boulder-clay    
7,number #a7 #ab feet thick1 including  
striated boulders of ,alpine limestone1 
and covered by regularly stratified     
ancient alluvium 7,number #b7 #aej feet 
thick1 made up of rounded pebbles in    
horizontal beds4 ,this mass is in its   
turn overlaid by a second formation     
7,number #c7 of unstratified boulder    
clay1 with erratic blocks and striated  
pebbles1 which constituted the left     
lateral moraine of the great glacier of 

the ,rhone when it advanced for the     
second time to the ,lake of ,geneva4 ,at
 a short distance from the above section
 terraces 7,number #d7 composed of      
stratified alluvium are seen at the     
heights of #bj1 #ej1 #ajj1 and #aej feet
 above the ,lake of ,geneva1 which by   
their position can be shown to be       
posterior in date to the upper          
boulder-clay and therefore belong to the
 fourth period1 or that of the last     
retreat of the great glaciers4 ,in the  
deposits of this fourth period the      
remains of the mammoth have been        
discovered1 as at ,morges1 for example1 
on the ,lake of ,geneva4 ,the conical   
delta of the ,tiniere1 mentioned in     
,chapter #b as containing at different  
depths monuments of the ,roman as well  
as of the antecedent bronze and stone   
ages1 is the work of alluvial deposition
 going on when the terrace of #ej feet  
was in progress4 ,this modern delta is  
supposed by ,m4 ,morlot to have required
 #aj1jjj years for its accumulation4 ,at

 the height of #aej feet above the lake1
 following up the course of the same    
torrent1 we come to a more ancient      
delta1 about ten times as large1 which  
is therefore supposed to be the monument
 of about ten times as many centuries1  
or #ajj1jjj years1 all referable to the 
fourth period mentioned in the preceding
 page1 or that which followed the last  
retreat of the great glaciers499        
799 ,morlot1 ,terrain quaternaire du    
,bassin de ,leman ,bulletin      de la  
,societe ,vaudoise des ,sciences        
,naturelles ,number #dd47  ,if the lower
 flattened cone of ,tiniere be referred 
in great part to the age of the oldest  
lake-dwellings1 the higher one might    
perhaps correspond with the ,pleistocene
 period of ,st4 ,acheul1 or the era when
 ,man and the ,elephas primigenius      
flourished together2 but no human       
remains or works of art have as yet been
 found in deposits of this age or in any
 alluvium containing the bones of       
extinct mammalia in ,switzerland4  ,upon

 the whole1 it is impossible not to be  
struck with an apparent correspondence  
in the succession of events of the      
glacial period of ,switzerland and that 
of the ,british ,isles before described4
 ,the time of the first ,alpine glaciers
 of colossal dimensions1 when that chain
 perhaps was several thousand feet      
higher than now1 may have agreed with   
the first continental period when       
,scotland was invested with a universal 
crust of ice4 ,the retreat of the first 
,alpine glaciers1 caused partly by a    
lowering of that chain1 may have been   
synchronous with the period of great    
submergence and floating ice in         
,england4 ,the second advance of the    
glaciers may have coincided in date with
 the re-elevation of the ,alps1 as well 
as of the ,scotch and ,welsh mountains2 
and lastly1 the final retreat of the    
,swiss and ,italian glaciers may have   
taken place when ,man and the extinct   
mammalia were colonising the north-west 
of ,europe and beginning to inhabit     

areas which had formed the bed of the   
glacial sea during the era of chief     
submergence4  ,but it must be confessed 
that in the present state of our        
knowledge these attempts to compare the 
chronological relations of the periods  
of upheaval and subsidence of areas so  
widely separated as are the mountains of
 ,scandinavia1 the ,british ,isles1 and 
the ,alps1 or the times of the advance  
and retreat of glaciers in those several
 regions and the greater or less        
intensity of cold1 must be looked upon  
as very conjectural4  ,we may presume   
with more confidence that when the ,alps
 were highest and the ,alpine glaciers  
most developed1 filling all the great   
lakes of northern ,italy and loading the
 plains of ,piedmont and ,lombardy with 
ice1 the waters of the ,mediterranean   
were chilled and of a lower average     
temperature than now4 ,such a period of 
refrigeration is required by the        
conchologist to account for the         
prevalence of northern shells in the    

,sicilian seas about the close of the   
,pliocene or commencement of the        
,pleistocene period4 ,for such shells as
 ,cyprina islandica1 ,panopoea norvegica
 7 ,p4 bivonae1 ,philippi71 ,leda       
pygmaea1 ,munst1 and some others1       
enumerated among the fossils of the     
latest ,tertiary formations of ,sicily  
by ,philippi and ,edward ,forbes1 point 
unequivocally to a former more severe   
climate4 ,dr4 ,hooker also in his late  
journey to ,syria 7in the autumn of     
#ahfj7 found the moraines of extinct    
glaciers1 on which the whole of the     
ancient cedars of ,lebanon grow1 to     
descend #djjj feet below the summit of  
that chain4 ,the temperature of ,syria  
is now so much milder that there is no  
longer perpetual snow even on the summit
 of ,lebanon1 the height of which was   
ascertained to be #aj1bjj feet above the
 ,mediterranean499       799 ,hooker1   
,natural ,history ,review ,number #e    
,january #ahfb      page #aa47  ,such   
monuments of a cold climate in latitudes

 so far south as ,syria and the north of
 ,sicily1 between #cc and #ch degrees   
north1 may be confidently referred to an
 early part of the glacial period1 or to
 times long anterior to those of ,man   
and the extinct mammalia of ,abbeville  
and ,amiens4    ,,chapter #af4 --       
,,human ,,remains ,,in ,,the ,,loess1   
,,and ,,their ,,probable ,,age4         
,nature1 ,origin1 and ,age of the ,loess
 of the ,rhine and ,danube4             
,impalpable ,mud produced by the        
,grinding ,action of ,glaciers4         
,dispersion of this ,mud at the ,period 
of the ,retreat of the      great       
,alpine ,glaciers4   ,continuity of the 
,loess from ,switzerland to the ,low    
,countries4   ,characteristic ,organic  
,remains not ,lacustrine4   ,alpine     
,gravel in the ,valley of the ,rhine    
covered by ,loess4   ,geographical      
,distribution of the ,loess and its     
,height above the ,sea4   ,fossil       
,mammalia4   ,loess of the ,danube4     
,oscillations in the ,level of the ,alps

 and lower ,country required to         
explain the ,formation and ,denudation  
of the ,loess4   ,more rapid ,movement  
of the ,inland ,country4   ,the same    
,depression and ,upheaval might account 
for the ,advance      and ,retreat of   
the ,alpine ,glaciers4   ,himalayan ,mud
 of the ,plains of the ,ganges compared 
to      ,european ,loess4   ,human      
,remains in ,loess near ,maestricht1 and
 their probable      ,antiquity4        
,,nature ,,and ,,origin ,,of ,,the      
,,loess4  ,intimately connected with the
 subjects treated of in the last        
chapter1 is the nature1 origin1 and age 
of certain loamy deposits1 commonly     
called loess1 which form a marked       
feature in the superficial deposits of  
the basins of the ,rhine1 ,danube1 and  
some other large rivers draining the    
,alps1 and which extend down the ,rhine 
into the ,low ,countries1 and were once 
perhaps continuous with others of like  
composition in the north of ,france4 #ce
  ,it has been reported of late years   

that human remains have been detected at
 several points in the loess of the     
,meuse around and below ,maestricht4 ,i 
have visited the localities referred to2
 but1 before giving an account of them1 
it will be desirable to explain what is 
meant by the loess1 a step the more     
necessary as a ,french geologist for    
whose knowledge and judgment ,i have    
great respect1 tells me he has come to  
the conclusion that the loess is a myth1
 having no real existence in a          
geological sense or as holding a        
definite place in the chronological     
series4  ,no doubt it is true that in   
every country1 and at all geological    
periods1 rivers have been depositing    
fine loam on their inundated plains in  
the manner explained above in ,chapter  
#c1 where the ,nile mud was spoken of4  
,this mud of the plains of ,egypt1      
according to ,professor ,bischoff's     
chemical analysis agrees closely in     
composition with the loess of the       
,rhine499       799 ,chemical and       

,physical ,geology volume #a page #acb47
  ,i have also shown when speaking of   
the fossil man of ,natchez1 how         
identical in mineral character and in   
the genera of its terrestrial and       
amphibious shells is the ancient        
fluviatile loam of the ,mississippi with
 the loess of the ,rhine4 ,but granting 
that loam presenting the same aspect has
 originated at different times and in   
distinct hydrographical basins1 it is   
nevertheless true that during the       
glacial period the ,alps were a great   
centre of dispersion1 not only of       
erratics1 as we have seen in the last   
chapter1 and of gravel which was carried
 farther than the erratics1 but also of 
very fine mud which was transported to  
still greater distances and in greater  
volume down the principal river-courses 
between the mountains and the sea4      
,,mud ,,produced ,,by ,,glaciers4  ,they
 who have visited ,switzerland are aware
 that every torrent which issues from an
 icy cavern at the extremity of a       

glacier is densely charged with an      
impalpable powder1 produced by the      
grinding action to which the subjacent  
floor of rock and the stones and sand   
frozen into the ice are exposed in the  
manner before described4 ,we may        
therefore readily conceive that a much  
greater volume of fine sediment was     
swept along by rivers swollen by melting
 ice at the time of the retreat of the  
gigantic glaciers of the olden time4    
,the fact that a large proportion of    
this mud1 instead of being carried to   
the ocean where it might have formed a  
delta on the coast or have been         
dispersed far and wide by the tides and 
currents1 has accumulated in inland     
valleys1 will be found to be an         
additional proof of the former          
occurrence of those grand oscillations  
in the level of the ,alps and parts of  
the adjoining continent which were      
required to explain the alternate       
advance and retreat of the glaciers1 and
 the superposition of more than one     

boulder clay and stratified alluvium4   
,the position of the loess between      
,basle and ,bonn is such as to imply    
that the great valley of the ,rhine had 
already acquired its present shape1 and 
in some places1 perhaps more than its   
actual depth and width1 previously to   
the time when it was gradually filled up
 to a great extent with fine loam4 ,the 
greater part of this loam has been since
 removed1 so that a fringe only of the  
deposit is now left on the flanks of the
 boundary hills1 or occasionally some   
outliers in the middle of the great     
plain of the ,rhine where it expands in 
width4  ,these outliers are sometimes on
 such a scale as to admit of minor hills
 and valleys1 having been shaped out of 
them by the action of rain and small    
streamlets1 as near ,freiburg in the    
,breisgau and other districts4          
,,fossil ,,shells ,,of ,,the ,,loess4   
,illustration3 ,figures #dd1 #de1 and   
#df    7,,figure #dd4 ,succinea         
oblonga47    7,,figure #de4 ,pupa       

muscorum47    7,,figure #df4 ,helix     
hispida1 ,lin42 ,h4 plebeia1 ,drap47    
,the loess is generally devoid of       
fossils1 although in many places they   
are abundant1 consisting of land-shells1
 all of living species1 and comprising  
no small part of the entire molluscous  
fauna now inhabiting the same region4   
,the three shells most frequently met   
with are those represented in the       
annexed figures 7#dd1 #de and #df74 ,the
 slug1 called ,succinea1 is not strictly
 aquatic1 but lives in damp places1 and 
may be seen in full activity far from   
rivers1 in meadows where the grass is   
wet with rain or dew2 but shells of the 
genera ,limnaea1 ,planorbis1 ,paludina1 
,cyclas1 and others1 requiring to be    
constantly in the water1 are extremely  
exceptional in the loess1 occurring only
 at the bottom of the deposit where it  
begins to alternate with ancient        
river-gravel on which it usually        
reposes4  ,this underlying gravel       
consists in the valley of the ,rhine for

 the most part of pebbles and boulders  
of ,alpine origin1 showing that there   
was a time when the rivers had power to 
convey coarse materials for hundreds of 
miles northwards from ,switzerland      
towards the sea2 whereas at a later     
period an entire change was brought     
about in the physical geography of the  
same district1 so that the same river   
deposited nothing but fine mud1 which   
accumulated to a thickness of #hjj feet 
or more above the original alluvial     
plain4  ,but although most of the       
fundamental gravel was derived from the 
,alps1 there has been observed in the   
neighbourhood of the principal mountain 
chains bordering the great valley1 such 
as the ,black ,forest1 ,vosges1 and     
,odenwald1 an admixture of detritus     
characteristic of those several chains4 
,we cannot doubt therefore that as some 
of these mountains1 especially the      
,vosges1 had during the glacial period  
their own glaciers1 a part of the fine  
mud of their moraines must have been    

mingled with loess of ,alpine origin2   
although the principal mass of the      
latter must have come from ,switzerland1
 and can in fact be traced continuously 
from ,basle to ,belgium4                
,,geographical ,,distribution ,,of ,,the
 ,,loess4  ,it was stated in the last   
chapter that at the time of the greatest
 extension of the ,swiss glaciers the   
,lake of ,constance and all the other   
great lakes were filled with ice1 so    
that gravel and mud could pass freely   
from the upper ,alpine valley of the    
,rhine to the lower region between      
,basle and the sea1 the great lake      
intercepting no part of the moraines    
whether fine or coarse4 ,on the other   
hand the ,aar with its great tributaries
 the ,limmat and the ,reuss does not    
join the ,rhine till after it issues    
from the ,lake of ,constance2 and by    
their channels a large part of the      
,alpine gravel and mud could always have
 passed without obstruction into the    
lower country1 even after the ice of the

 great lake had melted4  ,it will give  
the reader some idea of the manner in   
which the ,rhenish loess occurs1 if he  
is told that some of the earlier        
scientific observers imagined it to have
 been formed in a vast lake which       
occupied the valley of the ,rhine from  
,basle to ,mayence1 sending up arms or  
branches into what are now the valleys  
of the ,main1 ,neckar1 and other large  
rivers4 ,they placed the barrier of this
 imaginary lake in the narrow and       
picturesque gorge of the ,rhine between 
,bingen and ,coblenz3 and when it was   
objected that the lateral valley of the 
,lahn1 communicating with that gorge1   
had also been filled with loess1 they   
were compelled to transfer the great dam
 farther down and to place it below     
,bonn4 ,strictly speaking it must be    
placed much farther north1 or in the    
#east parallel of latitude1 where the   
limits of the loess have been traced out
 by ,,mm4 ,omalius ,d',halloy1 ,dumont1 
and others1 running east and west by    

,cologne1 ,juliers1 ,louvain1           
,oudenarde1 and ,courtrai in ,belgium to
 ,cassel1 near ,dunkirk in ,france4     
,this boundary line may not indicate the
 original seaward extent of the         
formation1 as it may have stretched     
still farther north and its present     
abrupt termination may only show how far
 it was cut back at some former period  
by the denuding action of the sea4      
,even if the imbedded fossil shells of  
the loess had been lacustrine1 instead  
of being1 as we have seen1 terrestrial  
and amphibious1 the vast height and     
width of the required barrier would have
 been fatal to the theory of a lake3 for
 the loess is met with in great force at
 an elevation of no less than #afjj feet
 above the sea1 covering the            
,kaiserstuhl1 a volcanic mountain which 
stands in the middle of the great valley
 of the ,rhine1 near ,freiburg in       
,breisgau4 ,the extent to which the     
valley has there been the receptacle of 
fine mud afterwards removed is most     

remarkable4  ,the loess of ,belgium was 
called ,hesbayan mud in the geological  
map of the late ,m4 ,dumont1 who1 ,i am 
told1 recognised it as being in great   
part composed of ,alpine mud4 ,m4       
d',archiac1 when speaking of the loess1 
observes that it envelopes ,hainault1   
,brabant1 and ,limburg like a mantle    
everywhere uniform and homogeneous in   
character1 filling up the lower         
depressions of the ,ardennes and passing
 thence into the north of ,france1      
though not crossing into ,england4 ,in  
,france1 he adds1 it is found on high   
plateaus #fjj feet above some of the    
rivers1 such as the ,marne2 but as we go
 southwards and eastwards of the basin  
of the ,seine1 it diminishes in         
quantity1 and finally thins out in those
 directions499       799 ,d',archiac1   
,histoire des ,progres volume #b pages  
#afi1      #agj47  ,it may even be a    
question whether the limon des plateaux1
 or upland loam of the ,somme valley1   
before alluded to199 may not be a part  

of the same formation4       799 ,number
 #d ,figure #g47  ,as to the higher and 
lower level gravels of that valley1     
which1 like that of the ,seine1 contain 
no foreign rocks1 we have seen that they
 are each of them covered by deposits of
 loess or inundation-mud belonging      
respectively to the periods of the      
gravels1 whereas the upland loam is of  
much older date1 more widely spread1 and
 occupying positions often independent  
of the present lines of drainage4 ,to   
restore in imagination the geographical 
outline of ,picardy1 to which rivers    
charged with so much homogeneous loam   
and running at such heights may once    
have belonged is now impossible499      
799 ,see above1 ,chapter #h4 7  ,in the 
valley of the ,rhine1 as ,i before      
observed1 the body of the loess1 instead
 of having been formed at successively  
lower and lower levels as in the case of
 the basin of the ,somme1 was deposited 
in a wide and deep pre-existing basin1  
or strath1 bounded by lofty mountain    

chains such as the ,black ,forest1      
,vosges1 and ,odenwald4 ,in some places 
the loam accumulated to such a depth as 
first to fill the valley and then to    
spread over the adjoining table-lands1  
as in the case of the ,lower ,eifel1    
where it encircled some of the modern   
volcanic cones of loose pumice and      
ashes4 ,in these instances it does not  
appear to me that the volcanoes were in 
eruption during the time of the         
deposition of the loess1 as some        
geologists have supposed4 ,the          
interstratification of loam and volcanic
 ejectamenta was probably occasioned by 
the fluviatile mud having gradually     
enveloped the cones of loose scoriae    
after they were completely formed4 ,i am
 the more inclined to embrace this view 
after having seen the junction of       
granite and loess on the steep slopes of
 some of the mountains bounding the     
great plain of the ,rhine on its right  
bank in the ,bergstrasse4 ,thus between 
,darmstadt and ,heidelberg perpendicular

 sections are seen of loess #bjj feet   
thick1 at various heights above the     
river1 some of them at elevations of    
#hjj feet and upwards4 ,in one of these 
may be seen1 resting on the hill side of
 ,melibocus in the ,odenwald1 the usual 
yellow loam free from pebbles at its    
contact with a steep slope of granite1  
but divided into horizontal layers for a
 short distance from the line of        
junction4 ,in these layers1 which abut  
against the granite1 a mixture of mica  
and of unrounded grains of quartz and   
felspar occur1 evidently derived from   
the disintegration of the crystalline   
rock1 which must have decomposed in the 
atmosphere before the mud had reached   
this height4 ,entire shells of ,helix1  
,pupa1 and ,succinea1 of the usual      
living species1 are embedded in the     
granitic mixture4 ,we may therefore be  
sure that the valley bounded by steep   
hills of granite existed before the     
tranquil accumulation of this vast body 
of loess4  ,during the re-excavation of 

the basin of the ,rhine successive      
deposits of loess of newer origin were  
formed at various heights2 and it is    
often difficult to distinguish their    
relative ages1 especially as fossils are
 often entirely wanting1 and the mineral
 composition of the formation is so     
uniform4  ,the loess in ,belgium is     
variable in thickness1 usually ranging  
from #aj to #cj feet4 ,it caps some of  
the highest hills or table-land around  
,brussels at the height of #cjj feet    
above the sea4 ,in such places it       
usually rests on gravel and rarely      
contains shells1 but when they occur    
they are of ,recent species4 ,i found   
the ,succinea oblonga1 before mentioned1
 and ,helix hispida in the ,belgian     
loess at ,neerepen1 between ,tongres and
 ,hasselt1 where ,m4 ,bosquet had       
previously obtained remains of an       
elephant referred to ,e4 primigenius4   
,this pachyderm and ,rhinoceros         
tichorhinus are cited as characterising 
the loess in various parts of the valley

 of the ,rhine4 ,several perfect        
skeletons of the marmot have been       
disinterred from the loess of           
,aix-la-,chapelle4 ,but much remains to 
be done in determining the species of   
mammalia of this formation and the      
relative altitudes above the            
valley-plain at which they occur4  ,if  
we ascend the basin of the ,neckar1 we  
find that it is filled with loess of    
great thickness1 far above its junction 
with the ,rhine4 ,at ,canstadt near     
,stuttgart1 loess resembling that of the
 ,rhine contains many fossil bones1     
especially those of ,elephas            
primigenius1 together with some of      
,rhinoceros tichorhinus1 the species    
having been lately determined by ,dr4   
,falconer4 ,at this place the loess is  
covered by a thick bed of travertine1   
used as a building stone1 the product of
 a mineral spring4 ,in the travertine   
are many fossil plants1 all ,recent     
except two1 an oak and poplar1 the      
leaves of which ,professor ,heer has not

 been able to identify with any known   
species4  ,below the loess of ,canstadt1
 in which bones of the mammoth are so   
abundant1 is a bed of gravel evidently  
an old river channel now many feet above
 the level of the ,neckar1 the valley   
having there been excavated to some     
depth below its ancient channel so as to
 lie in the underlying red sandstone of 
,keuper4 ,although the loess1 when      
traced from the valley of the ,rhine    
into that of the ,neckar1 or into any   
other of its tributaries1 often         
undergoes some slight alteration in its 
character1 yet there is so much identity
 of composition as to suggest the idea  
that the mud of the main river passed   
far up the tributary valleys1 just as   
that of the ,mississippi during floods  
flows far up the ,ohio1 carrying its mud
 with it into the basin of that river4  
,but the uniformity of colour and       
mineral composition does not extend     
indefinitely into the higher parts of   
every basin4 ,in that of the ,neckar1   

for example1 near ,tubingen1 ,i found   
the fluviatile loam or brick-earth1     
enclosing the usual ,helices and        
,succineae1 together with the bones of  
the mammoth1 very distinct in colour and
 composition from ordinary ,rhenish     
loess1 and such as no one could confound
 with ,alpine mud4 ,it is mottled with  
red and green1 like the ,new ,red       
,sandstone or ,keuper1 from which it has
 clearly been derived4  ,such examples1 
however1 merely show that where a basin 
is so limited in size that the detritus 
is derived chiefly or exclusively from  
one formation1 the prevailing rock will 
impart its colour and composition in a  
very decided manner to the loam2        
whereas1 in the basin of a great river  
which has many tributaries1 the loam    
will consist of a mixture of almost     
every variety of rock1 and will         
therefore exhibit an average result     
nearly the same in all countries4 ,thus1
 the loam which fills to a great depth  
the wide valley of the ,saone1 which is 

bounded on the west side by an          
escarpment of ,inferior ,oolite1 and by 
the chain of the ,jura on the east1 is  
very like the loess found in the        
continuation of the same great basin    
after the junction of the ,rhone1 by    
which a large supply of ,alpine mud has 
been added and intermixed4  ,in the     
higher parts of the basin of the        
,danube1 loess of the same character as 
that of the ,rhine1 and which ,i believe
 to be chiefly of ,alpine origin1       
attains a far greater elevation above   
the sea than any deposits of ,rhenish   
loess2 but the loam which1 according to 
,m4 ,stur1 fills valleys on the north   
slope of the ,carpathians almost up to  
the watershed between ,galicia and      
,hungary1 may be derived from a distinct
 source4   ,,oscillations ,,of ,,level  
,,required ,,to ,,explain ,,the         
,,accumulation ,,and ,,denudation ,,of  
,,the ,,loess4  ,a theory1 therefore1   
which attempts to account for the       
position of the loess cannot be         

satisfactory unless it be equally       
applicable to the basins of the ,rhine  
and ,danube4 ,so far as relates to the  
source of so much homogeneous loam1     
there are many large tributaries of the 
,danube which1 during the glacial       
period1 may have carried an ample supply
 of moraine-mud from the ,alps to that  
river2 and in regard to grand           
oscillations in the level of the land1  
it is obvious that the same movements   
both downward and upward of the great   
mountain-chain would be attended with   
analogous effects1 whether the great    
rivers flowed northwards or eastwards4  
,in each case fine loam would be        
accumulated during subsidence and       
removed during the upheaval of the land4
 ,changes1 therefore1 of level analogous
 to those on which we have been led to  
speculate when endeavouring to solve the
 various problems presented by the      
glacial phenomena1 are equally available
 to account for the nature and          
geological distribution of the loess4   

,but we must suppose that the amount of 
depression and re-elevation in the      
central region was considerably in      
excess of that experienced in the lower 
countries1 or those nearer the sea1 and 
that the rate of subsidence in the      
latter was never so considerable as to  
cause submergence1 or the admission of  
the sea into the interior of the        
continent by the valleys of the         
principal rivers4  ,we have already     
assumed that the ,alps were loftier than
 now1 when they were the source of those
 gigantic glaciers which reached the    
flanks of the ,jura4 ,at that time      
gravel was borne to the greatest        
distances from the central mountains    
through the main valleys1 which had a   
somewhat steeper slope than now1 and the
 quantity of river-ice must at that time
 have aided in the transportation of    
pebbles and boulders4 ,to this state of 
things gradually succeeded another of an
 opposite character1 when the fall of   
the rivers from the mountains to the sea

 became less and less1 while the ,alps  
were slowly sinking1 and the first      
retreat of the great glaciers was taking
 place4 ,suppose the depression to have 
been at the rate of #e feet in a century
 in the mountains and only as many      
inches in the same time nearer the      
coast1 still1 in such areas as the eye  
could survey at once1 comprising a small
 part only of ,switzerland or of the    
basin of the ,rhine1 the movement might 
appear to be uniform and the            
pre-existing valleys and heights might  
seem to remain relatively to each other 
as before4  ,such inequality in the rate
 of rising or sinking1 when we          
contemplate large continental spaces1 is
 quite consistent with what we know of  
the course of nature in our own times as
 well as at remote geological epochs4   
,thus in ,sweden1 as before stated1 the 
rise of land now in progress is nearly  
uniform as we proceed from north to     
south for moderate distances2 but it    
greatly diminishes southwards if we     

compare areas hundreds of miles apart2  
so that instead of the land rising about
 #e feet in a hundred years as at the   
,north ,cape1 it becomes less than the  
same number of inches at ,stockholm1 and
 farther south the land is stationary1  
or1 if not1 seems rather to be          
descending than ascending499       799  
,principles of ,geology chapter #cj #ith
 edition page #eai      et seq47  ,to   
cite an example of high geological      
antiquity1 ,m4 ,hebert has demonstrated 
that1 during the ,oolitic and           
,cretaceous periods1 similar            
inequalities in the vertical movements  
of the earth's crust took place in      
,switzerland and ,france4 ,by his own   
observations and those of ,m4 ,lory he  
has proved that the area of the ,alps   
was rising and emerging from beneath the
 ocean towards the close of the ,oolitic
 epoch1 and was above water at the      
commencement of the ,cretaceous era2    
while1 on the other hand1 the area of   
the ,jura1 about #ajj miles to the      

north1 was slowly sinking at the close  
of the ,oolitic period1 and had become  
submerged at the commencement of the    
,cretaceous4 ,yet these oscillations of 
level were accomplished without any     
perceptible derangement in the strata1  
which remained all the while horizontal1
 so that the ,lower ,cretaceous or      
,neocomian beds were deposited          
conformably on the ,oolitic499       799
 ,bulletin de la ,societe ,geologique de
 ,france #b series      volume #af #ahei
 page #eif47  ,taking for granted then  
that the depression was more rapid in   
the more elevated region1 the great     
rivers would lose century after century 
some portion of their velocity or       
carrying power1 and would leave behind  
them on their alluvial plains more and  
more of the moraine-mud with which they 
were charged1 till at length1 in the    
course of thousands or some tens of     
thousands of years1 a large part of the 
main valleys would begin to resemble the
 plains of ,egypt where nothing but mud 

is deposited during the flood season4   
,the thickness of loam containing shells
 of land and amphibious mollusca might  
in this way accumulate to any extent1 so
 that the waters might overflow some of 
the heights originally bounding the     
valley and deposits of platform mud1 as 
it has been termed in ,france1 might be 
extensively formed4 ,at length1 whenever
 a re-elevation of the ,alps at the time
 of the second extension of the glaciers
 took place1 there would be renewed     
denudation and removal of such loess2   
and if1 as some geologists believe1     
there has been more than one oscillation
 of level in the ,alps since the        
commencement of the glacial period1 the 
changes would be proportionally more    
complicated and terraces of gravel      
covered with loess might be formed at   
different heights and at different      
periods4   ,,himalayan ,,mud ,,of ,,the 
,,ganges ,,compared ,,to ,,european     
,,loess4  ,some of the revolutions in   
physical geography above suggested for  

the continent of ,europe during the     
,pleistocene epoch1 may have had their  
counterparts in ,india in the ,recent   
,period4 ,the vast plains of ,bengal are
 overspread with ,himalayan mud1 which  
as we ascend the ,ganges extends inland 
for #abjj miles from the sea1 continuing
 very homogeneous on the whole1 though  
becoming more sandy as it nears the     
hills4 ,they who sail down the river    
during a season of inundation see       
nothing but a sheet of water in every   
direction1 except here and there where  
the tops of trees emerge above its      
level4 ,to what depth the mud extends is
 not known1 but it resembles the loess  
in being generally devoid of            
stratification1 and of shells1 though   
containing occasionally land shells in  
abundance1 as well as calcareous        
concretions1 called kunkur1 which may be
 compared to the nodules of carbonate of
 lime sometimes observed to form layers 
in the ,rhenish loess4 ,i am told by    
,colonel ,strachey and ,dr4 ,hooker that

 above ,calcutta1 in the ,hooghly1 when 
the flood subsides1 the ,gangetic mud   
may be seen in river cliffs #hj feet    
high1 in which they were unable to      
detect organic remains1 a remark which  
,i found to hold equally in regard to   
the ,recent mud of the ,mississippi4    
,dr4 ,wallich1 while confirming these   
observations1 informs me that at certain
 points in ,bengal1 farther inland1 he  
met with land-shells in the banks of the
 great river4 ,borings have been made at
 ,calcutta1 beginning not many feet     
above the sea-level1 to the depth of    
#cjj and #djj feet2 and wherever organic
 remains were found in the strata       
pierced through they were of a          
fluviatile or terrestrial character1    
implying that during a long and gradual 
subsidence of the country the sediment  
thrown down by the ,ganges and          
,brahmaputra had accumulated at a       
sufficient rate to prevent the sea from 
invading that region4  ,at the bottom of
 the borings1 after passing through much

 fine loam1 beds of pebbles1 sand1 and  
boulders were reached1 such as might    
belong to an ancient river channel2 and 
the bones of a crocodile and the shell  
of a freshwater tortoise were met with  
at the depth of #djj feet from the      
surface4 ,no pebbles are now brought    
down within a great distance of this    
point1 so that the country must once    
have had a totally different character  
and may have had its valleys1 hills1 and
 rivers1 before all was reduced to one  
common level by the accumulation upon it
 of fine ,himalayan mud4 ,if the latter 
were removed during a gradual           
re-elevation of the country1 many old   
hydrographical basins might reappear1   
and portions of the loam might alone    
remain in terraces on the flanks of     
hills1 or on platforms1 attesting the   
vast extent in ancient times of the     
muddy envelope4 ,a similar succession of
 events has1 in all likelihood1 occurred
 in ,europe during the deposition and   
denudation of the loess of the          

,pleistocene period1 which1 as we have  
seen in a former chapter1 was long      
enough to allow of the gradual          
development of almost any amount of such
 physical changes4   ,,human ,,remains  
,,in ,,the ,,loess ,,near ,,strasburg4  
,m4 ,ami ,boue1 well known by his       
numerous works on geology and a         
well-practised observer in every branch 
of the science1 disinterred in the year 
#ahbc with his own hands many bones of a
 human skeleton from ancient undisturbed
 loess at ,lahr1 nearly opposite        
,strasburg1 on the right side of the    
great valley of the ,rhine4 ,no skull   
was detected1 but the tibia1 fibula1 and
 several other bones were obtained in a 
good state of preservation and shown at 
the time to ,cuvier1 who pronounced them
 to be human4   ,,human ,,remains ,,in  
,,loess ,,near ,,maestricht4  ,the banks
 of the ,meuse at ,maestricht1 like     
those of the ,rhine at ,bonn and        
,cologne1 are slightly elevated above   
the level of the alluvial plain4 ,on the

 right bank of the ,meuse1 opposite     
,maestricht1 the difference of level is 
so marked that a bridge with many arches
 has been constructed to keep up1 during
 the flood season1 a communication      
between the higher parts of the alluvial
 plain and the hills or bluffs which    
bound it4 ,this plain is composed of    
modern loess1 undistinguishable in      
mineral character from that of higher   
antiquity1 before alluded to1 and       
entirely without signs of successive    
deposition and devoid of terrestrial or 
fluviatile shells4 ,it is extensively   
worked for brick-earth to the depth of  
about #h feet4 ,the bluffs before       
alluded to often consist of a terrace of
 gravel1 from #cj to #dj feet in        
thickness1 covered by an older loess1   
which is continuous as we ascend the    
valley to ,liege4 ,in the suburbs of    
that city patches of loess are seen at  
the height of #bjj feet above the level 
of the ,meuse4 ,the table-land in that  
region1 composed of ,carboniferous and  

,devonian rocks1 is about #dej feet     
high1 and is not overspread with loess4 
,a terrace of gravel covered with loess 
has been mentioned as existing on the   
right bank of the ,meuse at ,maestricht4
 ,answering to it another is also seen  
on the left bank below that city1 and a 
promontory of it projecting into the    
alluvial plain of the ,meuse and        
approaching to within a hundred yards of
 the river1 was cut through during the  
excavation of a canal running from      
,maestricht to ,hocht1 between the years
 #ahae and #ahbc4 ,this section occurs  
at the village of ,smeermass1 and is    
about #fj feet deep1 the lower #dj feet 
consisting of stratified gravel and the 
upper of #bj feet of loess4 ,the number 
of molars1 tusks1 and bones 7probably   
parts of entire skeletons7 of elephants 
obtained during these diggings1 was     
extraordinary4 ,not a few of them are   
still preserved in the museums of       
,maestricht and ,leyden1 together with  
some horns of deer1 bones of the        

ox-tribe and other mammalia1 and a human
 lower jaw1 with teeth4 ,according to   
,professor ,crahay1 who published an    
account of it at the time1 this jaw1    
which is now preserved at ,leyden1 was  
found at the depth of #ai feet from the 
surface1 where the loess joins the      
underlying gravel1 in a stratum of sandy
 loam resting on gravel and overlaid by 
some pebbly and sandy beds4 ,the stratum
 is said to have been intact and        
undisturbed1 but the human jaw was      
isolated1 the nearest tusk of an        
elephant being six yards removed from it
 in horizontal distance4  ,most of the  
other mammalian bones were found2 like  
these human remains1 in or near the     
gravel1 but some of the tusks and teeth 
of elephants were met with much nearer  
the surface4 ,i visited the site of     
these fossils in #ahfj in company with  
,m4 van ,binkhorst1 and we found the    
description of the ground1 published by 
the late ,professor ,crahay of ,louvain1
 to be very correct499       799 ,m4 van

 ,binkhorst has shown me the original   
manuscript      read to the ,maestricht 
,athenaeum in #ahbc4 ,the memoir was    
published in #ahcf in the ,bulletin de  
l',academie ,royale de      ,belgique   
volume #c page #dc47  ,the projecting   
portion of the terrace1 which was cut   
through in making the canal1 is called  
the hill of ,caberg1 which is           
flat-topped1 #fj feet high1 and has a   
steep slope on both sides towards the   
alluvial plain4 ,m4 van ,binkhorst 7who 
is the author of some valuable works on 
the palaeontology of the ,maestricht    
,chalk7 has recently visited ,leyden1   
and ascertained that the human fossil   
above mentioned is still entire in the  
museum of the ,university4 ,although we 
had no opportunity of verifying the     
authenticity of ,professor ,crahay's    
statements1 we could see no reason for  
suspecting the human jaw to belong to a 
different geological period from that of
 the extinct elephant4 ,if this were    
granted1 it might have no claims to a   

higher antiquity than the human remains 
which ,dr4 ,schmerling disentombed from 
the ,belgian caverns2 but the fact of   
their occurring in a ,pleistocene       
alluvial deposit in the open plains1    
would be one of the first examples of   
such a phenomenon4 ,the top of the hill 
of ,caberg is not so high above the     
,meuse as is the terrace of ,st4 ,acheul
 with its flint implements above the    
,somme1 but at ,st4 ,acheul no human    
bones have yet been detected4  ,in the  
museum at ,maestricht are preserved a   
human frontal and a pelvic bone1 stained
 of a dark peaty colour2 the frontal    
very remarkable for its lowness and the 
prominence of the superciliary ridges1  
which resemble those of the ,borreby    
skull1 ,figure #e4 ,these remains may be
 the same as those alluded to by        
,professor ,crahay in his memoir1 where 
he says that in a black deposit in the  
suburbs of ,hocht were found leaves1    
nuts1 and freshwater shells in a very   
perfect state1 and a human skull of a   

dark colour4 ,they were of an age long  
posterior to that of the loess          
containing the bones of elephants and in
 which the human jaw now at ,leyden is  
said to have been embedded4    ,,chapter
 #ag4 -- ,,post-,,glacial ,,dislocations
 ,,and ,,foldings ,,of ,,cretaceous     
,,and ,,drift ,,strata ,,in ,,the       
,,island ,,of ,,moen1 ,,in ,,denmark4   
,geological ,structure of the ,island of
 ,moen4   ,great ,disturbances of the   
,chalk posterior in ,date to the        
,glacial ,drift1 with ,recent ,shells4  
,m4 ,puggaard's ,sections of the ,cliffs
 of ,moen4   ,flexures and ,faults      
common to the ,chalk and ,glacial       
,drift4   ,different ,direction of the  
,lines of successive ,movement1         
,fracture1 and ,flexure4   ,undisturbed 
,condition of the ,rocks in the         
adjoining ,danish ,islands4   ,unequal  
,movements of ,upheaval in ,finmark4    
,earthquake of ,new ,zealand in #ahee4  
,predominance in all ,ages of uniform   
,continental ,movements over      those 

by which the ,rocks are locally         
convulsed4  ,in the preceding chapters  
,i have endeavoured to show that the    
study of the successive phases of the   
glacial period in ,europe1 and the      
enduring marks which they have left on  
many of the solid rocks and on the      
character of the superficial drift are  
of great assistance in enabling us to   
appreciate the vast lapse of ages which 
are comprised in the ,pleistocene epoch4
 ,they enlarge at the same time our     
conception of the antiquity1 not only of
 the living species of animals and      
plants but of their present geographical
 distribution1 and throw light on the   
chronological relations of these species
 to the earliest date yet ascertained   
for the existence of the human race4    
,that date1 it will be seen1 is very    
remote if compared to the times of      
history and tradition1 yet very modern  
if contrasted with the length of time   
during which all the living testacea1   
and even many of the mammalia1 have     

inhabited the globe4  ,in order to      
render my account of the phenomena of   
the glacial epoch more complete1 ,i     
shall describe in this chapter some     
other changes in physical geography and 
in the internal structure of the earth's
 crust1 which have happened in the      
,pleistocene period1 because they differ
 in kind from any previously alluded to1
 and are of a class which were thought  
by the earlier geologists to belong     
exclusively to epochs anterior to the   
origin of the existing fauna and flora4 
,of this nature are those faults and    
violent local dislocations of the rocks1
 and those sharp bendings and foldings  
of the strata1 which we so often behold 
in mountain chains1 and sometimes in low
 countries also1 especially where the   
rock-formations are of ancient date4    
,,post-,,glacial ,,dislocations ,,and   
,,foldings ,,of ,,cretaceous ,,and      
,,drift ,,strata ,,in ,,the ,,island    
,,of ,,moen1 ,,denmark4  ,a striking    
illustration of such convulsions of     

,pleistocene date may be seen in the    
,danish island of ,moen1 which is       
situated about #ej miles south of       
,copenhagen4 ,the island is about #fj   
miles in circumference1 and consists of 
white ,chalk1 several hundred feet      
thick1 overlaid by boulder clay and     
sand1 or glacial drift which is made up 
of several subdivisions1 some           
unstratified and others stratified1 the 
whole having a mean thickness of #fj    
feet1 but sometimes attaining nearly    
twice that thickness4 ,in one of the    
oldest members of the formation fossil  
marine shells of existing species have  
been found4  ,throughout the greater    
part of ,moen the strata of the drift   
are undisturbed and horizontal1 as are  
those of the subjacent ,chalk2 but on   
the north-eastern coast they have been  
throughout a certain area bent1 folded1 
and shifted1 together with the beds of  
the underlying ,cretaceous formation4   
,within this area they have been even   
more deranged than is the ,english      

,chalk-with-flints along the central    
axis of the ,isle of ,wight in          
,hampshire1 or of ,purbeck in           
,dorsetshire4 ,the whole displacement of
 the ,chalk is evidently posterior in   
date to the origin of the drift1 since  
the beds of the latter are horizontal   
where the fundamental ,chalk is         
horizontal1 and inclined1 curved1 or    
vertical where the ,chalk displays signs
 of similar derangement4 ,although ,i   
had come to these conclusions respecting
 the structure of ,moen in #ahce1 after 
devoting several days in company with   
,dr4 ,forchhammer to its examination199 
799 ,lyell1 ,geological ,transactions   
#bnd series volume #b page      #bdc47  
,i should have hesitated to cite the    
spot as exemplifying convulsions on so  
grand a scale1 of such extremely modern 
date1 had not the island been since     
thoroughly investigated by a most able  
and reliable authority1 the ,danish     
geologist1 ,professor ,puggaard1 who has
 published a series of detailed sections

 of the cliffs4  ,these cliffs extend   
through the north-eastern coast of the  
island1 called ,moens ,klint199 where   
the ,chalk precipices are bold and      
picturesque1 being #cjj and #djj feet   
high1 with tall beech-trees growing on  
their summits1 and covered here and     
there at their base with huge taluses of
 fallen drift1 verdant with wild shrubs 
and grass1 by which the monotony of a   
continuous range of white ,chalk cliffs 
is prevented4       799 ,puggaard1      
,geologie d4 ,insel ,moen ,bern #ahea2  
and      ,bulletin de la ,societe       
,geologique de ,france #ahea47          
,illustration3 ,figure #dg and #dh4     
,southern ,extremity ,of ,moens ,klint  
7,,figure #dg4 ,,southern ,,extremity   
,,of ,,moens ,,klint 7,,puggaard74      
,a4 ,horizontal drift4   ,b4 ,chalk and 
overlying drift beginning to rise4   ,c4
 ,first flexure and fault4 ,height of   
cliff at this point1      #ahj feet47   
7,,figure #dh4 ,,section ,,of ,,moens   
,,klint 7,,puggaard71 ,,continued       

,,from ,,figure #dg4    ,s4 ,fossil     
shells of recent species in the drift at
 this point4   ,g4 ,greatest height near
 ,g1 #bhj feet47  ,in the low part of   
the island1 at ,a1 ,figure #dg1 or the  
southern extremity of the line of       
section above alluded to1 the drift is  
horizontal1 but when we reach ,b1 a     
change1 both in the height of the cliffs
 and in the inclination of the strata1  
begins to be perceptible1 and the ,chalk
 ,number #a soon makes its appearance   
from beneath the overlying members of   
the drift ,numbers #b1 #c1 #d1 and #e4  
,this ,chalk1 with its layers of flints1
 is so like that of ,england as to      
require no description4 ,the incumbent  
drift consists of the following         
subdivisions1 beginning with the lowest3
  ,number #b4 ,stratified loam and sand1
 #e feet thick1 containing at one spot  
near the base of the cliff1 at s1       
,figure #dh1 ,cardium edule1 ,tellina   
solidula1 and ,turritella1 with         
fragments of other shells4 ,between     

,number #b and the ,chalk ,number #a1   
there usually intervenes a breccia of   
broken flints4  ,number #c4             
,unstratified blue clay or till1 with   
small pebbles and fragments of          
,scandinavian rocks occasionally        
scattered through it1 #bj feet thick4   
,number #d4 ,a second unstratified mass 
of yellow and more sandy clay #dj feet  
thick1 with pebbles and angular polished
 and striated blocks of granite and     
other ,scandinavian rocks1 transported  
from a distance4  ,number #e4           
,stratified sands and gravel1 with      
occasionally large erratic blocks2 the  
whole mass varying from #dj to #ajj feet
 in thickness1 but this only in a few   
spots4  ,the angularity of many of the  
blocks in ,numbers #c and #d1 the       
glaciated surfaces of others1 and the   
transportation from a distance attested 
by their crystalline nature1 prove them 
to belong to the northern drift or      
glacial period4  ,it will be seen that  
the four subdivisions #b1 #c1 #d1 and #e

 begin to rise at ,b1 ,figure #dg1 and  
that at ,c1 where the cliff is #ahj feet
 high1 there is a sharp flexure shared  
equally by the ,chalk and the incumbent 
drift4 ,between ,d and ,g1 ,figure #dh1 
we observe a great fracture in the rocks
 with synclinal and anticlinal folds1   
exhibited in cliffs nearly #cjj feet    
high1 the drift beds participating in   
all the bendings of the ,chalk2 that is 
to say1 the three lower members of the  
drift1 including ,number #b1 which1 at  
the point ,s in this diagram1 contains  
the shells of ,recent species before    
alluded to4  ,near the northern end of  
the ,moens ,klint1 at a place called    
,taler1 more than #cjj feet high1 are   
seen similar folds1 so sharp that there 
is an appearance of four distinct       
alternations of the glacial and         
,cretaceous formations in vertical or   
highly inclined beds2 the ,chalk at one 
point bending over so that the position 
of all the beds is reversed4            
,illustration3 ,figure #di4             

,post-,glacial ,disturbances            
7,,figure #di4 ,,post-,,glacial         
,,disturbances ,,of ,,vertical1         
,,folded1    ,,and ,,shifted ,,strata   
,,of ,,chalk ,,and ,,drift1 ,,in ,,the  
,,dronningestol1    ,,moen1 ,,height    
#djj ,,feet 7,,puggaard74    #a4 ,chalk 
with flints4   #b4 ,marine stratified   
loam1 lowest member of glacial          
formation4   #c4 ,blue clay or till1    
with erratic blocks unstratified4   #d4 
,yellow sandy till1 with pebbles and    
glaciated boulders4   #e4 ,stratified   
sand and gravel with erratics47  ,but   
the most wonderful shiftings and        
faultings of the beds are observable in 
the ,dronningestol part of the same     
cliff1 #djj feet in perpendicular       
height1 where1 as shown in ,figure #di1 
the drift is thoroughly entangled and   
mixed up with the dislocated ,chalk4    
,if we follow the lines of fault1 we may
 see1 says ,m4 ,puggaard1 along the     
planes of contact of the shifted beds1  
the marks of polishing and rubbing which

 the ,chalk flints have undergone1 as   
have many stones in the gravel of the   
drift1 and some of these have also been 
forced into the soft ,chalk4 ,the manner
 in which the top of some of the arches 
of bent ,chalk have been cut off in this
 and several adjoining sections1 attests
 the great denudation which accompanied 
the disturbances1 portions of the bent  
strata having been removed1 probably    
while they were emerging from beneath   
the sea4  ,m4 ,puggaard has deduced the 
following conclusions from his study of 
these cliffs4  ,first4 ,the white       
,chalk1 when it was still in horizontal 
stratification1 but after it had        
suffered considerable denudation1       
subsided gradually1 so that the lower   
beds of drift ,number #b1 with their    
littoral shells1 were superimposed on   
the ,chalk in a shallow sea4  ,second4  
,the overlying unstratified boulder     
clays #c and #d were thrown down in     
deeper water by the aid of floating ice 
coming from the north4  ,third4         

,irregular subsidences then began1 and  
occasionally partial failures of        
support1 causing the bending and        
sometimes the engulfment of overlying   
masses both of the ,chalk and drift1 and
 causing the various dislocations above 
described and depicted4 ,the downward   
movement continued till it exceeded #djj
 feet1 for upon the surface even of     
,number #e1 in some parts of the island1
 lie huge erratics #bj feet or more in  
diameter1 which imply that they were    
carried by ice in a sea of sufficient   
depth to float large icebergs4 ,but     
these big erratics1 says ,puggaard1     
never enter into the fissures as they   
would have done had they been of date   
anterior to the convulsions4  ,fourth4  
,after this subsidence1 the re-elevation
 and partial denudation of the          
,cretaceous and glacial beds took place 
during a general upward movement1 like  
that now experienced in parts of ,sweden
 and ,norway4  ,in regard to the lines  
of movement in ,moen1 ,m4 ,puggaard     

believes1 after an elaborate comparison 
of the cliffs with the interior of the  
island1 that they took at least three   
distinct directions at as many          
successive eras1 all of post-glacial    
date2 the first line running from       
east-south-east to west-north-west1 with
 lines of fracture at right angles to   
them2 the second running from           
south-south-east to north-north-west1   
also with fractures in a transverse     
direction2 and lastly1 a sinking in a   
north and south direction1 with other   
subsidences of contemporaneous date     
running at right angles or east and     
west4  ,when we approach the north-west 
end of ,moens ,klint1 or the range of   
coast above described1 the strata begin 
to be less bent and broken1 and after   
travelling for a short distance beyond  
we find the ,chalk and overlying drift  
in the same horizontal position as at   
the southern end of the ,moens ,klint4  
,what makes these convulsions the more  
striking is the fact that in the other  

adjoining ,danish islands1 as well as in
 a large part of ,moen itself1 both the 
,secondary and ,tertiary formations are 
quite undisturbed4  ,it is impossible to
 behold such effects of reiterated local
 movements1 all of post-,tertiary date1 
without reflecting that1 but for the    
accidental presence of the stratified   
drift1 all of which might easily have   
been missing1 where there has been so   
much denudation1 even if it had once    
existed1 we might have referred the     
verticality and flexures and faults of  
the rocks to an ancient period1 such as 
the era between the ,chalk with flints  
and the ,maestricht ,chalk1 or to the   
time of the latter formation1 or to the 
,eocene1 or ,miocene1 or ,pliocene eras1
 even the last of them long prior to the
 commencement of the glacial epoch4     
,hence we may be permitted to suspect   
that in some other regions1 where we    
have no such means at our command for   
testing the exact date of certain       
movements1 the time of their occurrence 

may be far more modern than we usually  
suppose4 ,in this way some apparent     
anomalies in the position of erratic    
blocks1 seen occasionally at great      
heights above the parent rocks from     
which they have been detached1 might be 
explained1 as well as the irregular     
direction of certain glacial furrows    
like those described by ,professor      
,keilhau and ,mr4 ,horbye on the        
mountains of the ,dovrefjeld in latitude
 #fb degrees north1 where the striation 
and friction is said to be independent  
of the present shape and slope of the   
mountains499       799 ,observations sur
 les ,phenomenes d',erosion en ,norwege 
#aheg47  ,although even in such cases it
 remains to be proved whether a general 
crust of continental ice1 like that of  
,greenland described by ,rink 7see      
above1 ,chapter #ac71 would not account 
for the deviation of the furrows and    
striae from the normal directions which 
they ought to have followed had they    
been due to separate glaciers filling   

the existing valleys4  ,it appears that 
in general the upward movements in      
,scandinavia1 which have raised         
sea-beaches containing marine shells of 
,recent species to the height of several
 hundred feet1 have been tolerably      
uniform over very wide spaces2 yet a    
remarkable exception to this rule was   
observed by ,m4 ,bravais at ,altenfjord 
in ,finmark1 between latitude #gj and   
#ga degrees north4 ,an ancient          
water-level1 indicated by a sandy       
deposit forming a terrace and by marks  
of the erosion of the waves1 can be     
followed for #cj miles from south to    
north along the borders of a fjord      
rising gradually from a height of #he   
feet to an elevation of #bbj feet above 
the sea1 or at the rate of about #d feet
 in a mile499       799 ,proceedings of 
the ,geological ,society #ahde volume #d
      page #id47  ,to pass to another   
and very remote part of the world1 we   
have witnessed so late as ,january #ahee
 in the northern island of ,new ,zealand

 a sudden and permanent rise of land on 
the northern shores of ,cook's ,straits1
 which at one point1 called ,muko-muka1 
was so unequal as to amount to #i feet  
vertically1 while it declined gradually 
from this maximum of upheaval in a      
distance of about #bc miles north-west  
of the greatest rise1 to a point where  
no change of level was perceptible4 ,mr4
 ,edward ,roberts of the ,royal         
,engineers1 employed by the ,british    
,government at the time of the shock in 
executing public works on the coast1    
ascertained that the extreme upheaval of
 certain ancient rocks followed a line  
of fault running at least #ij miles from
 south to north into the interior2 and  
what is of great geological interest1   
immediately to the east of this fault   
the country1 consisting of ,tertiary    
strata1 remained unmoved or stationary2 
a fact well established by the position 
of a line of ,nullipores marking the    
sea-level before the earthquake1 both on
 the surface of the ,tertiary and       

,palaeozoic rocks499       799 ,bulletin
 de la ,societe ,geologique de ,france  
volume #ac      #ahef page #ffj1 where  
,i have described the facts communicated
      to me by ,messrs4 ,roberts and    
,walter ,mantell47  ,the repetition of  
such unequal movements1 especially if   
they recurred at intervals along the    
same lines of fracture1 would in the    
course of ages cause the strata to dip  
at a high angle in one direction1 while 
towards the opposite point of the       
compass they would terminate abruptly in
 a steep escarpment4  ,but it is        
probable that the multiplication of such
 movements in the post-,tertiary period 
has rarely been so great as to produce  
results like those above described in   
,moen1 for the principal movements in   
any given period seem to be of a more   
uniform kind1 by which the topography of
 limited districts and the position of  
the strata are not visibly altered      
except in their height relatively to the
 sea4 ,were it otherwise we should not  

find conformable strata of all ages1    
including the primary fossiliferous of  
shallow-water origin1 which must have   
remained horizontal throughout vast     
areas during downward movements of      
several thousand feet going on at the   
period of their accumulation4 ,still    
less should we find the same primary    
strata1 such as the ,carboniferous1     
,devonian1 or ,silurian1 still remaining
 horizontal over thousands of square    
leagues1 as in parts of ,north ,america 
and ,russia1 having escaped dislocation 
and flexure throughout the entire series
 of epochs which separate ,palaeozoic   
from ,recent times4 ,not that they have 
been motionless1 for they have undergone
 so much denudation1 and of such a kind1
 as can only be explained by supposing  
the strata to have been subjected to    
great oscillations of level1 and exposed
 in some cases repeatedly to the        
destroying and planing action of the    
waves of the sea4  ,it seems probable   
that the successive convulsions in ,moen

 were contemporary with those upward and
 downward movements of the glacial      
period which were described in the      
thirteenth and some of the following    
chapters1 and that they ended before the
 upper beds of ,number #e1 ,figure #di1 
with its large erratic blocks1 were     
deposited1 as some of those beds        
occurring in the disturbed parts of     
,moen appear to have escaped the        
convulsions to which ,numbers #b1 #c1   
and #d were subjected4 ,if this be so1  
the whole derangement1 although         
,pleistocene1 may have been anterior to 
the human epoch1 or rather to the       
earliest date to which the existence of 
man has as yet been traced back4        
,,chapter #ah4 -- ,,the ,,glacial       
,,period ,,in ,,north ,,america4        
,post-glacial ,strata containing        
,remains of ,mastodon giganteus      in 
,north ,america4   ,scarcity of ,marine 
,shells in ,glacial ,drift of ,canada   
and the      ,united ,states4   ,greater
 southern ,extension of ,ice-action in  

,north ,america      than in ,europe4   
,trains of ,erratic ,blocks of vast     
,size in ,berkshire1 ,massachusetts4    
,description of their ,linear           
,arrangement and ,points of ,departure4 
,their ,transportation referred to      
,floating and ,coast ,ice4   ,general   
,remarks on the ,causes of former       
,changes of ,climate at      successive 
geological ,epochs4   ,supposed ,effects
 of the ,diversion of the ,gulf ,stream 
in a      ,northerly instead of         
,north-,easterly ,direction4            
,development of extreme ,cold on the    
opposite ,sides of the ,atlantic      in
 the ,glacial period not strictly       
simultaneous4   ,effect of ,marine      
,currents on ,climate4   ,pleistocene   
,submergence of the ,sahara4  ,on the   
,north ,american continent1 between the 
arctic circle and the #dbnd parallel of 
latitude1 we meet with signs of         
ice-action on a scale as grand as1 if   
not grander than1 in ,europe2 and there 
also the excess of cold appears to have 

been first felt at the close of the     
,tertiary1 and to have continued        
throughout a large portion of the       
,pleistocene period4 #cf  ,the general  
absence of organic remains in the ,north
 ,american glacial formation makes it as
 difficult as in ,europe to determine   
what mammalia lived on the continent at 
the time of the most intense            
refrigeration1 or when extensive areas  
were becoming strewed over with glacial 
drift and erratic blocks1 but it is     
certain that a large proboscidean now   
extinct1 the ,mastodon giganteus1 ,cuv41
 together with many other quadrupeds1   
some of them now living and others      
extinct1 played a conspicuous part in   
the post-glacial era4 ,by its frequency 
as a fossil species1 this pachyderm     
represents the ,european ,elephas       
primigenius1 although the latter also   
occurs fossil in the ,united ,states and
 ,canada1 and abounds1 as ,i learn from 
,sir ,john ,richardson1 in latitudes    
farther north than those to which the   

mastodon has been traced4  ,in the state
 of ,new ,york1 the mastodon is not     
unfrequently met with in bogs and       
lacustrine deposits formed in hollows in
 the drift1 and therefore1 in a         
geological position1 much resembling    
that of ,recent peat and shell-marl in  
the ,british ,isles1 ,denmark1 or the   
valley of the ,somme1 as before         
described4 ,sometimes entire skeletons  
have been discovered within a few feet  
of the surface1 in peaty earth at the   
bottom of small ponds1 which the        
agriculturists had drained4 ,the shells 
in these cases belong to freshwater     
genera1 such as ,limnaea1 ,physa1       
,planorbis1 ,cyclas1 and others1        
differing from ,european species1 but   
the same as those now proper to ponds   
and lakes in the same parts of ,america4
  ,i have elsewhere given an account of 
several of these localities which ,i    
visited in #ahdb199 and can state that  
they certainly have a more modern aspect
 than almost all the ,european deposits 

in which remains of the mammoth occur1  
although a few instances are cited of   
,elephas ,primigenius having been dug   
out of peat in ,great ,britain4         
799 ,travels in ,north ,america volume  
#a page #ee ,london #ahde2      and     
,manual of ,geology chapter #ab #eth    
edition page #add47  ,thus ,i was shown 
a mammoth's tooth in the museum at      
,torquay in ,devonshire which is        
believed to have been dredged up from a 
deposit of vegetable matter now         
partially submerged beneath the sea4 ,a 
more elevated part of the same peaty    
formation constitutes the bottom of the 
valley in which ,tor ,abbey stands4     
,this individual elephant must certainly
 have been of more modern date than his 
fellows found fossil in the gravel of   
the ,brixham cave1 before described1 for
 it flourished when the physical        
geography of ,devonshire1 unlike that of
 the cave period1 was almost identical  
with that now established4  ,i cannot   
help suspecting that many tusks and     

teeth of the mammoth1 said to have been 
found in peat1 may be as spurious as are
 the horns of the rhinoceros cited more 
than once in the ,memoirs of the        
,wernerian ,society as having been      
obtained from shell-marl in ,forfarshire
 and other ,scotch counties2 yet1       
between the period when the mammoth was 
most abundant and that when it died out1
 there must have elapsed a long interval
 of ages when it was growing more and   
more scarce2 and we may expect to find  
occasional stragglers buried in deposits
 long subsequent in date to others1     
until at last we may succeed in tracing 
a passage from the ,pleistocene to the  
,recent fauna1 by geological monuments1 
which will fill up the gap before       
alluded to as separating the era of the 
flint tools of ,amiens and ,abbeville   
from that of the peat of the valley of  
the ,somme4  ,how far the lacustrine    
strata of ,north ,america above         
mentioned may help to lessen this       
hiatus1 and whether some individuals of 

the ,mastodon giganteus may have come   
down to the confines of the historical  
period1 is a question not so easily     
answered as might at first sight be     
supposed4 ,a geologist might naturally  
imagine that the fluviatile formation of
 ,goat ,island1 seen at the falls of    
,niagara1 and at several points below   
the falls199 was very modern1 seeing    
that the fossil shells contained in it  
are all of species now inhabiting the   
waters of the ,niagara1 and seeing also 
that the deposit is more modern than the
 glacial drift of the same locality4    
799 ,travels in ,north ,america by the  
author1 volume #a      chapter #b and   
volume #b chapter #ai47  ,in fact1 the  
old river bed1 in which bones of the    
mastodon occur1 holds the same position 
relatively to the boulder formation as  
the strata of shell-marl and bog-earth  
with bones of mastodon1 so frequent in  
the ,state of ,new ,york1 bear to the   
glacial drift1 and all may be of        
contemporaneous date4 ,but in the case  

of the valley of the ,niagara we happen 
to have a measure of time which is      
wanting in the other localities1 namely1
 the test afforded by the recession of  
the falls1 an operation still in        
progress1 by which the deep ravine of   
the ,niagara1 #g miles long1 between    
,queenstown and ,goat ,island has been  
hollowed out4 ,this ravine is not only  
post-glacial1 but also posterior in date
 to the fluviatile or mastodon-bearing  
beds4 ,the individual therefore found   
fossil near ,goat ,island flourished    
before the gradual excavation of the    
deep and long chasm1 and we must reckon 
its antiquity1 not by thousands1 but by 
tens of thousands of years1 if ,i have  
correctly estimated the minimum of time 
which was required for the erosion of   
that great ravine499       799          
,principles of ,geology #ith edition    
page #b2 and ,travels      in ,north    
,america volume #a page #cb #ahde47     
,the stories widely circulated of bones 
of the mastodon having been observed    

with their surfaces pierced as if by    
arrow-heads or bearing the marks of     
wounds inflicted by some stone          
implement1 must in future be more       
carefully inquired into1 for we can     
scarcely doubt that the mastodon in     
,north ,america lived down to a period  
when the mammoth co-existed with ,man in
 ,europe4 ,but ,i need say no more on   
this subject1 having already explained  
my views in regard to the evidence of   
the antiquity of ,man in ,north ,america
 when treating of the human bone        
discovered at ,natchez on the           
,mississippi4  ,in ,canada and the      
,united ,states we experience the same  
difficulty as in ,europe when we attempt
 to distinguish between glacial         
formations of submarine and those of    
supra-marine origin4 ,in the ,new       
,world1 as in ,scotland and ,england1   
marine shells of this era have rarely   
been traced higher than #ejj feet above 
the sea1 and #gjj feet seems to be the  
maximum to which at present they are    

known to ascend4 ,in the same countries1
 erratic blocks have travelled from     
north to south1 following the same      
direction as the glacial furrows and    
striae imprinted almost everywhere on   
the solid rocks underlying the drift4   
,their direction rarely deviates more   
than fifteen degrees east or west of the
 meridian1 so that we can scarcely      
doubt1 in spite of the general dearth of
 marine shells1 that icebergs floating  
in the sea and often running aground on 
its rocky bottom were the instruments by
 which most of the blocks were conveyed 
to southern latitudes4  ,there are1     
nevertheless1 in the ,united ,states1 as
 in ,europe1 several groups of mountains
 which have acted as independent centres
 for the dispersion of erratics1 as1 for
 example1 the ,white ,mountains1        
latitude #dd degrees north1 the highest 
of which1 ,mount ,washington1 rises to  
about #fcjj feet above the sea2 and     
according to ,professor ,hitchcock some 
of the loftiest of the hills of         

,massachusetts once sent down their     
glaciers into the surrounding lower     
country4   ,,great ,,southern           
,,extension ,,of ,,trains ,,of ,,erratic
 ,,blocks ,,in ,,berkshire1             
,,massachusetts1 ,u4,s41 ,,latitude #db 
,,degrees ,,north4  ,having treated so  
fully in this volume of the events of   
the glacial period1 ,i am unwilling to  
conclude without laying before the      
reader the evidence displayed in ,north 
,america of ice-action in latitudes     
farther south by about ten degrees than 
any seen on an equal scale in ,europe4  
,this extension southwards of glacial   
phenomena in regions where there are no 
snow-covered mountains like the ,alps to
 explain the exception1 nor any hills of
 more than moderate elevation1          
constitutes a feature of the western as 
compared to the eastern side of the     
,atlantic1 and must be taken into       
account when we speculate on the causes 
of the refrigeration of the northern    
hemisphere during the ,pleistocene      

period4  ,illustration3 ,figure #ej4    
,erratic ,blocks ,in ,berkshire1        
,massachusetts    7,,figure #ej4 ,,map  
,,showing ,,the ,,relative ,,position   
,,and ,,direction    ,,of ,,seven       
,,trains ,,of ,,erratic ,,blocks ,,in   
,,berkshire1 ,,massachusetts1    ,,and  
,,in ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,state ,,of     
,,new ,,york4      ,distance in a       
straight line1 between the mountain     
ranges        ,a and ,c1 about eight    
miles4    ,a4 ,canaan range1 in the     
,state of ,new ,york4 ,the crest        
consists of      green chloritic rock4  
,b4 ,richmond range1 the western        
division of which consists in           
,merriman's ,mount of the same green    
rock as ,a1 but in a more      schistose
 form1 while the eastern division is    
composed of      slaty limestone4   ,c4 
,the ,lenox range1 consisting in part of
 mica-schist1 and in some      districts
 of crystalline limestone4   d4 ,knob in
 the range ,a1 from which most of the   
train ,number #f is      supposed to    

have been derived4   e4 ,supposed       
starting point of the train ,number #e  
in the range ,a4   f4 ,hiatus of #age   
yards1 or space without blocks4   g4    
,sherman's ,house4   h4 ,perry's ,peak4 
k4 ,flat ,rock4   l4 ,merriman's ,mount4
   m4 ,dupey's ,mount4   n4 ,largest    
block of train1 ,number #f4 ,see        
,figures #ea and #eb4   p4 ,point of    
divergence of part of the train ,number 
#f1 where a      branch is sent off to  
,number #e4   ,number #a4 ,the most     
southerly train examined by ,messrs4    
,hall and      ,lyell1 between          
,stockbridge and ,richmond1 composed of 
blocks      of black slate1 blue        
limestone and some of the green ,canaan 
rock1 with here and there a boulder of  
white quartz4   ,number #b4 ,train      
composed chiefly of large limestone     
masses1 some      of them divided into  
two or more fragments by natural joints4
   ,number #c4 ,train composed of blocks
 of limestone and the green      ,canaan
 rock2 passes south of the ,richmond    

,station on the ,albany      and ,boston
 railway2 is less defined than ,numbers 
#a and #b4   ,number #d4 ,train chiefly 
of limestone blocks1 some of them thirty
      feet in diameter1 running to the  
north-west of the ,richmond             
,station1 and passing south of the      
,methodist ,meeting-house1      where it
 is intersected by a railway cutting4   
,number #e4 ,south train of ,dr4 ,reid1 
composed entirely of large      blocks  
of the green chloritic ,canaan rock2    
passes north of      the ,old ,richmond 
,meeting-house1 and is three-quarters of
 a mile      north of the preceding     
train 7,number #d74   ,number #f4 ,the  
great or principal train 7north train of
 ,dr4 ,reid71      composed of very     
large blocks of the ,canaan rock1       
diverges at p1      and unites by a     
branch with train ,number #e4   ,number 
#g4 ,a well-defined train of limestone  
blocks1 with a few      of the ,canaan  
rock1 traced from the ,richmond to the  
slope      of the ,lenox range47  ,in   

#aheb1 accompanied by ,mr4 ,james ,hall1
 state geologist of ,new ,york1 author  
of many able and well-known works on    
geology and palaeontology1 ,i examined  
the glacial drift and erratics of the   
county of ,berkshire1 ,massachusetts1   
and those of the adjoining parts of the 
state of ,new ,york1 a district about   
#acj miles inland from the ,atlantic    
coast and situated due west of ,boston  
in latitude #db degrees #be minutes     
north4 ,this latitude corresponds in    
,europe to that of the north of         
,portugal4 ,here numerous detached      
fragments of rock are seen1 having a    
linear arrangement or being continuous  
in long parallel trains1 running nearly 
in straight lines over hill and dale for
 distances of #e1 #aj1 and #bj miles1   
and sometimes greater distances4 ,seven 
of the more conspicuous of these trains1
 from #a to #g inclusive1 ,figure #ej1  
are laid down in the accompanying map or
 ground plan499       799 ,this ground  
plan1 and a farther account of the      

,berkshire      erratics was given in an
 abstract of a lecture delivered by     
me to the ,royal ,institution of ,great 
,britain1 ,april #bg1 #ahee      and    
published in their ,proceedings47  ,it  
will be remarked that they run in a     
north-west and south-east direction1 or 
almost transversely to the ranges of    
hills ,a1 ,b1 and ,c1 which run         
north-north-east and south-south-west4  
,the crests of these chains are about   
#hjj feet in height above the           
intervening valleys4 ,the blocks of the 
northernmost train1 ,number #g1 are of  
limestone derived from the calcareous   
chain ,b2 those of the two trains next  
to the south1 ,numbers #f and #e1 are   
composed exclusively in the first part  
of their course of a green chloritic    
rock of great toughness1 but after they 
have passed the ridge ,b1 a mixture of  
calcareous blocks is observed4 ,after   
traversing the valley for a distance of 
#f miles these two trains pass through  
depressions or gaps in the range ,c1 as 

they had previously done in crossing the
 range ,b1 showing that the dispersion  
of the erratics bears some relation to  
the acutal inequalities of the surface1 
although the course of the same blocks  
is perfectly independent of the more    
leading features of the geography of the
 country1 or those by which the present 
lines of drainage are determined4 ,the  
greater number of the green chloritic   
fragments in trains #e and #f have      
evidently come from the ridge ,a1 and a 
large proportion of the whole from its  
highest summit d1 where the crest of the
 ridge has been worn into those         
dome-shaped masses called roches        
moutonnees1 already alluded to1 and     
where several fragments having this     
shape1 some of them #cj feet long1 are  
seen in situ1 others only slightly      
removed from their original position1 as
 if they had been just ready to set out 
on their travels4 ,although smooth and  
rounded on their tops they are angular  
on their lower parts1 where their       

outline has been derived from the       
natural joints of the rock4 ,had these  
blocks been conveyed from d by glaciers1
 they would have radiated in all        
directions from a centre1 whereas not   
one even of the smaller ones is found to
 the westward of ,a1 though a very      
slight force would have made them roll  
down to the base of that ridge1 which is
 very steep on its western declivity4   
,it is clear1 therefore1 that the       
propelling power1 whatever it may have  
been1 acted exclusively in a            
south-easterly direction4 ,professor    
,hall and ,i observed one of the green  
blocks--#bd feet long1 poised upon      
another about #ai feet in length4 ,the  
largest of all on the west flank of m1  
or ,dupey's ,mount1 called the          
,alderman1 is above #ij feet in         
diameter1 and nearly #cjj feet in       
circumference4 ,we counted at some      
points between forty and fifty blocks   
visible at once1 the smallest of them   
larger than a camel4  ,illustration3    

,figure #ea4 ,dome-,shaped ,block       
7,,figure #ea4 ,,erratic ,,dome-,,shaped
 ,,block ,,of ,,compact ,,chloritic     
,,rock   7n in map in ,figure #ej71 near
 the ,richmond ,meeting-house1          
,berkshire1 ,massachusetts1 latitude #db
 degrees #be minutes     ,north4        
,length1 #eb feet2 width1 #dj feet2     
height above the     soil1 #ae feet47   
,the annexed drawing 7,figure #ea7      
represents one of the best known of     
train ,number #f1 being that marked n on
 the map 7,figure #ej74 ,according to   
our measurement it is #eb feet long by  
#dj in width1 its height above the drift
 in which it is partially buried being  
#ae feet4 ,at the distance of several   
yards occurs a smaller block1 #c or #d  
feet in height1 #bj feet long1 and #ad  
broad1 composed of the same compact     
chloritic rock1 and evidently a detached
 fragment from the bigger mass1 to the  
lower and angular part of which it would
 fit on exactly4 ,this erratic n has a  
regularly rounded top1 worn and smoothed

 like the roches moutonnees before      
mentioned1 but no part of the attrition 
can have occurred since it left its     
parent rock1 the angles of the lower    
portion being quite sharp and unblunted4
  ,illustration3 ,figure #eb4 ,position 
of ,block in ,figure #ea    7,,figure   
#eb4 ,,section ,,showing ,,the          
,,position ,,of ,,the ,,block ,,in      
,,figure #ea4    a4 ,the large block in 
,figure #ea and n in the map in ,figure 
#ej4   b4 ,fragment detached from the   
same4   c4 ,unstratified drift with     
boulders4   d4 ,silurian limestone in   
inclined stratification47  ,from railway
 cuttings through the drift of the      
neighbourhood and other artificial      
excavations1 we may infer that the      
position of the block n1 if seen in a   
vertical section1 would be as           
represented in ,figure #eb4 ,the deposit
 c in that section consists of sand1    
mud1 gravel1 and stones1 for the most   
part unstratified1 resembling the till  
or boulder clay of ,europe4 ,it varies  

in thickness from #aj to #ej feet1 being
 of greater depth in the valleys4 ,the  
uppermost portion is occasionally1      
though rarely1 stratified4 ,some few of 
the imbedded stones have flattened1     
polished1 striated1 and furrowed sides4 
,they consist invariably1 like the seven
 trains above mentioned1 of kinds of    
rock confined to the region lying to the
 north-west1 none of them having come   
from any other quarter4 ,whenever the   
surface of the underlying rock has been 
exposed by the removal of the           
superficial detritus1 a polished and    
furrowed surface is seen1 like that     
underneath a glacier1 the direction of  
the furrows being from north-west to    
south-east1 or corresponding to the     
course of the large erratics4  ,as all  
the blocks1 instead of being dispersed  
from a centre1 have been carried in one 
direction and across the ridges ,a1 ,b1 
,c and the intervening valleys1 the     
hypothesis of glaciers is out of the    
question4 ,i conceive1 therefore1 that  

the erratics were conveyed to the places
 they now occupy by coast ice1 when the 
country was submerged beneath the waters
 of a sea cooled by icebergs coming     
annually from arctic regions4           
,illustration3 ,figure #ec4 ,canaan ,and
 ,richmond ,valleys    7,,figure #ec4   
,,section ,,through ,,canaan ,,and      
,,richmond ,,valleys ,,at ,a ,,time     
,,when ,,they ,,were ,,marine           
,,channels4    d1 e4 ,masses of floating
 ice carrying fragments of rock47       
,suppose the highest peaks of the ridges
 ,a1 ,b1 ,c in the annexed diagram      
7,figure #ec7 to be alone above water1  
forming islands1 and d e to be masses of
 floating ice1 which drifted across the 
,canaan and ,richmond valleys at a time 
when they were marine channels1         
separating islands or rather chains of  
islands1 having a north-north-east and  
south-south-west direction4 ,a fragment 
of ice such as d1 freighted with a block
 from ,a1 might run aground and add to  
the heap of erratics at the north-west  

base of the island 7now ridge7 ,b1 or1  
passing through a sound between ,b and  
the next island of the same group1 might
 float on till it reached the channel   
between ,b and ,c4 ,year after year two 
such exposed cliffs in the ,canaan range
 as d and e of the map1 ,figure #ej1    
undermined by the waves1 might serve as 
the points of departure of blocks1      
composing the trains ,numbers #e and #f4
 ,it may be objected that oceanic       
currents could not always have had the  
same direction2 this may be true1 but   
during a short season of the year when  
the ice was breaking up the prevailing  
current may have always run south-east4 
,if it be asked why the blocks of each  
train are not more scattered1 especially
 when far from their source1 it may be  
observed that after passing through     
sounds separating islands1 they issued  
again from a new and narrow             
starting-point2 moreover1 we must not   
exaggerate the regularity of the trains1
 as their width is sometimes twice as   

great in one place in as another2 and   
,number #f sends off a branch at p1     
which joins ,number #e4 ,there are also 
stragglers1 or large blocks here and    
there in the spaces between the two     
trains4 ,as to the distance to which any
 given block would be carried1 that must
 have depended on a variety of          
circumstances2 such as the strength of  
the current1 the direction of the wind1 
the weight of the block or the quantity 
and draught of the ice attached to it4  
,the smaller fragments would1 on the    
whole1 have the best chance of going    
farthest2 because1 in the first place1  
they were more numerous1 and then1 being
 lighter1 they required less ice to     
float them1 and would not ground so     
readily on shoals1 or if stranded1 would
 be more easily started again on their  
travels4 ,many of the blocks1 which at  
first sight seem to consist of single   
masses1 are found when examined to be   
made up of two1 three1 or more pieces   
divided by natural joints4 ,in the case 

of a second removal by ice1 one or more 
portions would become detached and be   
drifted to different points further on4 
,whenever this happened1 the original   
size would be lessened1 and the         
angularity of the block previously worn 
by the breakers would be restored1 and  
this tendency to split may explain why  
some of the far-transported fragments   
remain very angular4  ,these various    
considerations may also account for the 
fact that the average size of the blocks
 of all the seven trains laid down on   
the plan1 ,figure #ej1 lessens sensibly 
in proportion as we recede from the     
principal points of departure of        
particular kinds of erratics1 yet not   
with any regularity1 a huge block now   
and then recurring when the rest of the 
train consists of smaller ones4  ,all   
geologists acquainted with the district 
now under consideration are agreed that 
the mountain ranges ,a1 ,b1 and c1 as   
well as the adjoining valleys1 had      
assumed their actual form and position  

before the drift and erratics           
accumulated on and in them and before   
the surface of the fixed rocks was      
polished and furrowed4 ,i have the less 
hesitation in ascribing the transporting
 power to coast-ice1 because ,i saw in  
#aheb an angular block of sandstone1 #h 
feet in diameter1 which had been brought
 down several miles by ice only three   
years before to the mouth of the        
,petitcodiac estuary1 in ,nova ,scotia1 
where it joins the ,bay of ,fundy2 and  
,i ascertained that on the shores of the
 same bay1 at the ,south ,joggins1 in   
the year #ahej1 much larger blocks had  
been removed by coast-ice1 and after    
they had floated half a mile1 had been  
dropped in salt water by the side of a  
pier built for loading vessels with     
coal1 so that it was necessary at low   
tide to blast these huge ice-borne rocks
 with gunpowder in order that the       
vessels might be able to draw up        
alongside the pier4 ,these recent       
exemplifications of the vast carrying   

powers of ice occurred in latitude #df  
degrees north 7corresponding to that of 
,bordeaux71 in a bay never invaded by   
icebergs4  ,i may here remark that a    
sheet of ice of moderate thickness1 if  
it extend over a wide area1 may suffice 
to buoy up the largest erratics which   
fall upon it4 ,the size of these will   
depend1 not on the intensity of the cold
 but on the manner in which the rock is 
jointed1 and the consequent dimensions  
of the blocks into which it splits when 
falling from an undermined cliff4  ,when
 ,i first endeavoured in the ,principles
 of ,geology in #ahcj199 to explain the 
causes1 both of the warmer and colder   
climates which have at former periods   
prevailed on the globe1 ,i referred to  
successive variations in the height and 
position of the land and its extent     
relatively to the sea in polar and      
equatorial latitudes--also to           
fluctuations in the course of oceanic   
currents and other geographical         
conditions1 by the united influence of  

which ,i still believe the principal    
revolutions in the meteorological state 
of the atmosphere at different          
geological periods have been brought    
about4       799 #ast edition chapter   
#g2 #ith edition ibid47  ,the ,gulf     
,stream was particularly alluded to by  
me as moderating the winter climate of  
northern ,europe and as depending for   
its direction on temporary and          
accidental peculiarities in the shape of
 the land1 especially that of the narrow
 ,straits of ,bahama1 which a slight    
modification in the earth's crust would 
entirely alter4  ,mr4 ,hopkins1 in a    
valuable essay on the causes of former  
changes of climate199nhas attempted to  
calculate how much the annual           
temperature of ,europe would be lowered 
if this ,gulf ,stream were turned in    
some other and new direction1 and       
estimates the amount at about six or    
seven degrees of ,fahrenheit4       799 
,hopkins1 ,quarterly ,journal of the    
,geological ,society      volume #h     

#aheb page #ef47  ,he also supposes that
 if at the same time a considerable part
 of northern and central ,europe were   
submerged1 so that a cold current from  
the arctic seas should sweep over it1 an
 additional refrigeration of three or   
four degrees would be produced4 ,he has 
speculated in the same essay on the     
effects which would be experienced in   
the eastern hemisphere if the same      
mighty current of warm water1 instead of
 crossing the ,atlantic1 were made to   
run northwards from the ,gulf of ,mexico
 through the region now occupied by the 
valley of the ,mississippi1 and so      
onwards to the arctic regions4  ,after  
reflecting on what has been said in the 
thirteenth chapter of the submergence   
and re-elevation of the ,british ,isles 
and the adjoining parts of ,europe1 and 
the rising and sinking of the ,alps and 
the basins of some of the great rivers  
flowing from that chain1 since the      
commencement of the glacial period1 a   
geologist will not be disposed to object

 to the theory above adverted to1 on the
 score of its demanding too much        
conversion of land into sea1 or almost  
any amount of geographical change in    
,pleistocene times4 ,but a difficulty of
 another kind presents itself4 ,we have 
seen that1 during the glacial period1   
the cold in ,europe extended much       
farther south than it does at present1  
and in this chapter we have demonstrated
 that in ,north ,america the cold also  
extended no less than #aj degrees of    
latitude still farther southwards than  
in ,europe2 so that if a great body of  
heated water1 instead of flowing        
north-eastward1 were made to pass       
through what is now the centre of the   
,american continent towards the ,arctic 
,circle1 it could not fail to mitigate  
the severity of the winter's cold in    
precisely those latitudes where the cold
 was greatest and where it has left     
monuments of ice-action surpassing in   
extent any exhibited on the ,european   
side of the ocean4  ,in the actual state

 of the globe1 the isothermal lines1 or 
lines of equal winter temperature when  
traced westward from ,europe to ,north  
,america bend #aj degrees south1 there  
being a marked excess of winter cold in 
corresponding latitudes west of the     
,atlantic4 ,during the glacial period1  
viewing it as a whole1 we behold signs  
of a precisely similar deflection of    
these same isothermal lines when        
followed from east to west2 so that if1 
in the hope of accounting for the former
 severity of glacial action in ,europe1 
we suppose the absence of the ,gulf     
,stream and imagine a current of        
equivalent magnitude to have flowed due 
north from the ,gulf of ,mexico1 we     
introduce1 as we have just hinted1 a    
source of heat into precisely that part 
of the continent where the extreme      
conditions of refrigeration are most    
manifest4 ,viewed in this light1 the    
hypothesis in question would render the 
glacial phenomena described in the      
present chapter more perplexing and     

anomalous than ever4 ,but here another  
question arises1 whether the eras at    
which the maximum of cold was attained  
on the opposite sides of the ,atlantic  
were really contemporaneous8 ,we have   
now discovered not only that the glacial
 period was of vast duration1 but that  
it passed through various phases and    
oscillations of temperature2 so that1   
although the chief polishing and        
furrowing of the rocks and              
transportation of erratics in ,europe   
and ,north ,america may have taken place
 contemporaneously1 according to the    
ordinary language of geology1 or when   
the same testacea and the same          
,pleistocene assemblage of mammalia     
flourished1 yet the extreme development 
of cold on the opposite sides of the    
ocean may not have been strictly        
simultaneous1 but on the contrary the   
one may have preceded or followed the   
other by a thousand or more than a      
thousand centuries4  ,it is probable    
that the greatest refrigeration of      

,norway1 ,sweden1 ,scotland1 ,wales1 the
 ,vosges1 and the ,alps coincided very  
nearly in time2 but when the            
,scandinavian and ,scotch mountains were
 encrusted with a general covering of   
ice1 similar to that now enveloping     
,greenland1 this last country may not   
have been in nearly so glacial a        
condition as now1 just as we find that  
the old icy crust and great glaciers1   
which have left their mark on the       
mountains of ,norway and ,sweden1 have  
now disappeared1 precisely at a time    
when the accumulation of ice in         
,greenland is so excessive4 ,in other   
words1 we see that in the present state 
of the northern hemisphere1 at the      
distance of about #aejj miles1 two      
meridional zones enjoying very different
 conditions of temperature may co-exist1
 and we are1 therefore1 at liberty to   
imagine some former alternations of     
colder and milder climates on the       
opposite sides of the ocean throughout  
the ,pleistocene era of a compensating  

kind1 the cold on the one side balancing
 the milder temperature on the other4   
,by assuming such a succession of events
 we can more easily explain why there   
has not been a greater extermination of 
species1 both terrestrial and aquatic1  
in polar and temperate regions during   
the glacial epoch1 and why so many      
species are common to pre-glacial and   
post-glacial times4  ,the numerous      
plants which are common to the temperate
 zones north and south of the equator   
have been referred by ,mr4 ,darwin and  
,dr4 ,hooker to migrations which took   
place along mountain chains running from
 north to south during some of the      
colder phases of the glacial epoch499   
799 ,darwin1 ,origin of ,species chapter
 #aa page #cfe2 ,hooker1      ,flora of 
,australia ,introduction page #ah       
#ahei47  ,such an hypothesis enables us 
to dispense with the doctrine that the  
same species ever originated            
independently in two distinct and       
distant areas2 and it becomes more      

feasible if we admit the doctrine of the
 co-existence of meridional belts of    
warmer and colder climate1 instead of   
the simultaneous prevalence of extreme  
cold both in the eastern and western    
hemisphere4 ,it also seems necessary1 as
 colder currents of water always flow to
 lower latitudes1 while warmer ones are 
running towards polar regions1 that some
 such compensation should take place1   
and that an increase of cold in one     
region must to a certain extent be      
balanced by a mitigation of temperature 
elsewhere4  ,sir ,john ,f4 ,herschel1 in
 his recent work on ,physical           
,geography1 when speaking of the open   
sea which is caused in part of the polar
 regions by the escape of ice through   
,behring's ,straits1 and the flow of    
warmer water northwards through the same
 channel1 observes that these straits1  
by which the continents of ,asia and    
,north ,america are now parted1 are only
 thirty miles broad where narrowest and 
only twenty-five fathoms in their       

greatest depth4 ,but this narrow        
channel1 he adds1 is yet important in   
the economy of nature1 inasmuch as it   
allows a portion of the circulating     
water from a warmer region to find its  
way into the polar basin1 aiding thereby
 not only to mitigate the extreme rigour
 of the polar cold1 but to prevent in   
all probability a continual accretion of
 ice1 which else might rise to a        
mountainous height499       799         
,herschel's ,physical ,geography page   
#da #ahfa47  ,behring's ,straits1 here  
alluded to1 happen to agree singularly  
in width and depth with the ,straits of 
,dover1 the difference in depth not     
being more than #c or #d feet2 so that  
at the rate of upheaval1 which is now   
going on in many parts of ,scandinavia1 
of #b #a_/b feet in a century1 such     
straits might be closed in #cjjj years1 
and a vast accumulation of ice to the   
northward commence forthwith4  ,but1 on 
the other hand1 although such an        
accumulation might spread its           

refrigerating influence for many miles  
southwards beyond the new barrier1 the  
warm current which now penetrates       
through the straits1 and which at other 
times is chilled by floating ice issuing
 from them1 would when totally excluded 
from all communication with the icy sea 
have its temperature raised and its     
course altered1 so that the climate of  
some other area must immediately begin  
to improve4  ,there is still another    
probable cause of a vast change in the  
temperature of central ,europe in       
comparatively modern times1 to which no 
allusion has yet been made2 namely1 the 
conversion of the great desert of the   
,sahara from sea into land since the    
commencement of the ,pleistocene period4
 ,when that vast region was still       
submerged1 no sirocco blowing for days  
in succession carried its hot blasts    
from a wide expanse of burning sand     
across the ,mediterranean4 ,the south   
winds were comparatively cool1 allowing 
the snows of the ,alps to augment to an 

extent which the colossal dimensions of 
the moraines of extinct glaciers can    
alone enable us to estimate4  ,the scope
 and limits of this volume forbid my    
pursuing these speculations and         
reasonings farther2 but ,i trust ,i have
 said enough to show that the monuments 
of the glacial period1 when more        
thoroughly investigated1 will do much   
towards expanding our views as to the   
antiquity of the fauna and flora now    
contemporary with ,man1 and will        
therefore enable us the better to       
determine the time at which ,man began  
in the northern hemisphere to form part 
of the existing fauna4 #cg    ,,chapter 
#ai4 -- ,,recapitulation ,,of           
,,geological ,,proofs ,,of ,,man',s     
,,antiquity4    ,recapitulation of      
,results arrived at in the earlier      
,chapters4   ,ages of ,stone and        
,bronze4   ,danish ,peat and            
,kitchen-,middens4   ,swiss             
,lake-,dwellings4   ,local ,changes in  
,vegetation and in the wild and         

domesticated      ,animals and in       
,physical ,geography coeval with the    
,age of      ,bronze and the later      
,stone ,period4   ,estimates of the     
positive ,date of some ,deposits of the 
later      ,stone ,period4   ,ancient   
,division of the ,age of ,stone of ,st4 
,acheul and ,aurignac4   ,migrations of 
,man in that ,period from the ,continent
 to ,england      in ,post-,glacial     
,times4   ,slow ,rate of ,progress in   
barbarous ,ages4   ,doctrine of the     
superior ,intelligence and ,endowments  
of the      original ,stock of ,mankind 
considered4   ,opinions of the ,greeks  
and ,romans1 and their ,coincidence with
      those of the ,modern              
,progressionist4  ,the ages of stone and
 bronze1 so called by archaeologists1   
were spoken of in the earlier chapters  
of this work4 ,that of bronze has been  
traced back to times anterior to the    
,roman occupation of ,helvetia1 ,gaul1  
and other countries north of the ,alps4 
,when weapons of that mixed metal were  

in use1 a somewhat uniform civilisation 
seems to have prevailed over a wide     
extent of central and northern ,europe1 
and the long duration of such a state of
 things in ,denmark and ,switzerland is 
shown by the gradual improvement which  
took place in the useful and ornamental 
arts4 ,such progress is attested by the 
increasing variety of the forms1 and the
 more perfect finish and tasteful       
decoration of the tools and utensils    
obtained from the more modern deposits  
of the bronze age1 those from the upper 
layers of peat1 for example1 as compared
 to those found in the lower ones4 ,the 
great number also of the ,swiss         
lake-dwellings of the bronze age 7about 
seventy villages having been already    
discovered71 and the large population   
which some of them were capable of      
containing1 afford indication of a      
considerable lapse of time1 as does the 
thickness of the stratum of mud in which
 in some of the lakes the works of art  
are entombed4 ,the unequal antiquity1   

also1 of the settlements is occasionally
 attested by the different degrees of   
decay which the wooden stakes or piles  
have undergone1 some of them projecting 
more above the mud than others1 while   
all the piles of the antecedent age of  
stone have rotted away quite down to the
 level of the mud1 such part of them    
only as was originally driven into the  
bed of the lake having escaped          
decomposition499       799 ,troyon1     
,habitations lacustres ,lausanne #ahfj47
  ,among the monuments of the stone     
period1 which immediately preceded that 
of bronze1 the polished hatchets called 
celts are abundant1 and were in very    
general use in ,europe before metallic  
tools were introduced4 ,we learn1 from  
the ,danish peat and shell-mounds1 and  
from the older ,swiss lake-settlements1 
that the first inhabitants were hunters 
who fed almost entirely on game1 but    
their food in after ages consisted more 
and more of tamed animals and still     
later a more complete change to a       

pastoral state took place1 accompanied  
as population increased by the          
cultivation of some cereals4  ,both the 
shells and quadrupeds belonging to the  
later stone period and to the age of    
bronze consist exclusively of species   
now living in ,europe1 the fauna being  
the same as that which flourished in    
,gaul at the time when it was conquered 
by ,julius ,caesar1 even the ,bos       
primigenius1 the only animal of which   
the wild type is lost1 being still      
represented1 according to ,cuvier1      
,bell1 and ,rutimeyer1 by one of the    
domesticated races of cattle now in     
,europe4  ,these monuments1 therefore1  
whether of stone or bronze1 belong to   
what ,i have termed geologically the    
,recent period1 the definition of which 
some may think rather too dependent on  
negative evidence1 or on the            
non-discovery hitherto of extinct       
mammalia1 such as the mammoth1 which may
 one day turn up in a fossil state in   
some of the oldest peaty deposits1 as   

indeed it is already said to have done  
at some spots1 though ,i have failed as 
yet to obtain authentic evidence of the 
fact499       799 ,a molar of ,e4       
primigenius1 in a very fresh state1 in  
the      museum at ,torquay1 believed to
 have been washed up by the      waves  
of the sea out of the submerged mass of 
vegetable      matter at the extremity  
of the valley in which ,tor ,abbey      
stands1 is the best case ,i have seen4  
,see above1 ,chapter      #ah47  ,no    
doubt some such exceptional cases may be
 met with in the course of future       
investigations1 for we are still        
imperfectly acquainted with the entire  
fauna of the age of stone in ,denmark as
 we may infer from an opinion expressed 
by ,steenstrup1 that some of the        
instruments exhumed by antiquaries from 
the ,danish peat are made of the bones  
and horns of the elk and reindeer4 ,yet 
no skeleton or uncut bone of either of  
those species has hitherto been observed
 in the same peat4  ,nevertheless1 the  

examination made by naturalists of the  
various ,danish and ,swiss deposits of  
the ,recent period has been so          
searching1 that the finding in them of a
 stray elephant or rhinoceros1 should it
 ever occur1 would prove little more    
than that some few individuals lingered 
on1 when the species was on the verge of
 extinction1 and such rare exceptions   
would not render the classification     
above proposed inappropriate4  ,at the  
time when many wild quadrupeds and birds
 were growing scarce and some of them   
becoming locally extirpated in ,denmark1
 great changes were taking place in the 
vegetation4 ,the pine1 or ,scotch fir1  
buried in the oldest peat1 gave place at
 length to the oak1 and the oak1 after  
flourishing for ages1 yielded in its    
turn to the beech1 the periods when     
these three forest trees predominated in
 succession tallying pretty nearly with 
the ages of stone1 bronze1 and iron in  
,denmark4 ,in the same country also1    
during the stone period1 various        

fluctuations1 as we have seen1 occurred 
in physical geography4 ,thus1 on the    
ocean side of certain islands1 the old  
refuse-heaps1 or kitchen-middens1 were  
destroyed by the waves1 the cliffs      
having wasted away1 while on the side of
 the ,baltic1 where the sea was making  
no encroachment or where the land was   
sometimes gaining on the sea1 such      
mounds remained uninjured4 ,it was also 
shown that the oyster1 which supplied   
food to the primitive people1 attained  
its full size in parts of the ,baltic   
where it cannot now exist owing to a    
want of saltness in the water1 and that 
certain marine univalves and bivalves1  
such as the common periwinkle1 mussel1  
and cockle1 of which the castaway shells
 are found in the mounds1 attained in   
the olden time their full dimensions1   
like the oysters1 whereas the same      
species1 though they still live on the  
coast of the inland sea adjoining the   
mounds1 are dwarfed and never half their
 natural size1 the water being rendered 

too fresh for them by the influx of so  
many rivers4  ,some archaeologists and  
geologists of merit have endeavoured to 
arrive at positive dates1 or an exact   
estimate of the minimum of time         
assignable to the later age of stone4   
,these computations have been sometimes 
founded on changes in the level of the  
land1 or on the increase of peat1 as in 
the ,danish bogs1 or on the conversion  
of water into land by alluvial deposits1
 since certain lake-settlements in      
,switzerland were abandoned4            
,alterations also in the geographical   
distribution or preponderance of certain
 living species of animals and plants   
have been taken into account in         
corroboration1 as have the signs of     
progress in human civilisation1 as      
serving to mark the lapse of time during
 the stone and bronze epochs4  ,m4      
,morlot has estimated with care the     
probable antiquity of three superimposed
 vegetable soils cut open at different  
depths in the delta of the ,tiniere1    

each containing human bones or works of 
art1 belonging successively to the      
,roman1 bronze1 and later stone periods4
 ,according to his estimate1 an         
antiquity of #gjjj years at least must  
be assigned to the oldest of these      
remains1 though believed to be long     
posterior in date to the time when the  
mammoth and other extinct mammalia      
flourished together with ,man in        
,europe4 ,such computations of past time
 must be regarded as tentative in the   
present state of our knowledge and much 
collateral evidence will be required to 
confirm them2 yet the results appear to 
me already to afford a rough            
approximation to the truth4  ,between   
the newer or ,recent division of the    
stone period and the older division1    
which has been called the ,pleistocene1 
there was evidently a vast interval of  
time--a gap in the history of the past1 
into which many monuments of            
intermediate date will one day have to  
be intercalated4 ,of this kind are those

 caves in the south of ,france1 in which
 ,m4 ,lartet has lately found bones of  
the reindeer1 associated with works of  
art somewhat more advanced in style than
 those of ,st4 ,acheul or of ,aurignac4 
,in the valley of the ,somme we have    
seen that peat exists of great          
thickness1 containing in its upper      
layers ,roman and ,celtic memorials1 the
 whole of which has been of slow growth1
 in basins or depressions conforming to 
the present contour and drainage levels 
of the country1 and long posterior in   
date to older gravels1 containing bones 
of the mammoth and a large number of    
flint implements of a very rude and     
antique type4 ,some of those gravels    
were accumulated in the channels of     
rivers which flowed at higher levels by 
#ajj feet than the present streams1 and 
before the valley had attained its      
present depth and form4 ,no intermixture
 has been observed in those ancient     
river beds of any of the polished       
weapons1 called celts1 or other relics  

of the more modern times1 or of the     
second or ,recent stone period1 nor any 
interstratified peat2 and the climate of
 those ,pleistocene ages1 when ,man was 
a denizen of the north-west of ,france  
and of southern and central ,england1   
appears to have been much more severe in
 winter than it is now in the same      
region1 though far less cold than in the
 glacial period which immediately       
preceded4  ,we may presume that the time
 demanded for the gradual dying out or  
extirpation of a large number of wild   
beasts which figure in the ,pleistocene 
strata and are missing in the ,recent   
fauna was of protracted duration1 for we
 know how tedious a task it is in our   
own times1 even with the aid of         
fire-arms1 to exterminate a noxious     
quadruped1 a wolf1 for example1 in any  
region comprising within it an extensive
 forest or a mountain chain4 ,in many   
villages in the north of ,bengal1 the   
tiger still occasionally carries off its
 human victims1 and the abandonment of  

late years by the natives of a part of  
the ,sunderbunds or lower delta of the  
,ganges1 which they once peopled1 is    
attributed chiefly to the ravages of the
 tiger4 ,it is probable that causes more
 general and powerful than the agency of
 ,man1 alterations in climate1          
variations in the range of many species 
of animals1 vertebrate and invertebrate1
 and of plants1 geographical changes in 
the height1 depth1 and extent of land   
and sea1 some or all of these combined1 
have given rise in a vast series of     
years to the annihilation1 not only of  
many large mammalia1 but to the         
disappearance of the ,cyrena fluminalis1
 once common in the rivers of ,europe1  
and to the different range or relative  
abundance of other shells which we find 
in the ,european drifts4  ,that the     
growing power of ,man may have lent its 
aid as the destroying cause of many     
,pleistocene species1 must1 however1 be 
granted2 yet1 before the introduction of
 fire-arms1 or even the use of improved 

weapons of stone1 it seems more         
wonderful that the aborigines were able 
to hold their own against the cave-lion1
 hyaena1 and wild bull1 and to cope with
 such enemies1 than that they failed to 
bring about their speedy extinction4    
,it is already clear that ,man was      
contemporary in ,europe with two species
 of elephant1 now extinct1 ,e4          
primigenius and ,e4 antiquus1 two also  
of rhinoceros1 ,r4 tichorhinus and ,r4  
hemitoechus 7,falc471 at least one      
species of hippopotamus1 the cave-bear1 
cave-lion1 and cave-hyaena1 various     
bovine1 equine1 and cervine animals now 
extinct1 and many smaller ,carnivora1   
,rodentia1 and ,insectivora4 ,while     
these were slowly passing away1 the musk
 ox1 reindeer1 and other arctic species 
which have survived to our times were   
retreating northwards from the valleys  
of the ,thames and ,seine to their      
present more arctic haunts4  ,the human 
skeletons of the ,belgian caverns of    
times coeval with the mammoth and other 

extinct mammalia do not betray any signs
 of a marked departure in their         
structure1 whether of skull or limb1    
from the modern standard of certain     
living races of the human family4 ,as to
 the remarkable ,neanderthal skeleton   
7,chapter #e71 it is at present too     
isolated and exceptional1 and its age   
too uncertain1 to warrant us in relying 
on its abnormal and ape-like characters1
 as bearing on the question whether the 
farther back we trace ,man into the     
past1 the more we shall find him        
approach in bodily conformation to those
 species of the anthropoid quadrumana   
which are most akin to him in structure4
  ,in the descriptions already given of 
the geographical changes which the      
,british ,isles have undergone since the
 commencement of the glacial period 7as 
illustrated by several maps1 ,figures   
#ci to #da71 it has been shown that     
there must have been a free             
communication by land between the       
,continent and these islands1 and       

between the several islands themselves1 
within the ,pleistocene epoch1 in order 
to account for the ,germanic fauna and  
flora having migrated into every part of
 the area1 as well as for the           
,scandinavian plants and animals to have
 retreated into the higher mountains4   
,during some part of the ,pleistocene   
ages1 the large pachyderms and          
accompanying beasts of prey1 now        
extinct1 wandered from the ,continent to
 ,england2 and it is highly probable    
that ,france was united with some part  
of the ,british ,isles as late as the   
period of the gravels of ,st4 ,acheul   
and the era of those engulfed rivers    
which1 in the basin of the ,meuse near  
,liege1 swept into many a rent and      
cavern the bones of ,man and of the     
mammoth and cave-bear4 ,there have been 
vast geographical revolutions in the    
times alluded to1 and oscillations of   
land1 during which the ,english         
,channel1 which can be shown by the     
,pagham erratics and the old ,brighton  

beach 7,chapter #ad71 to be of very     
ancient origin1 may have been more than 
once laid dry and again submerged4      
,during some one of these phases1 ,man  
may have crossed over1 whether by land  
or in canoes1 or even on the ice of a   
frozen sea 7as ,mr4 ,prestwich has      
hinted71 for the winters of the period  
of the higher-level gravels of the      
valley of the ,somme were intensely     
cold4  ,the primitive people1 who       
co-existed with the elephant and        
rhinoceros in the valley of the ,ouse at
 ,bedford1 and who made use of flint    
tools of the ,amiens type1 certainly    
inhabited part of ,england which had    
already emerged from the waters of the  
glacial sea and the fabricators of the  
flint tools of ,hoxne1 in ,suffolk1 were
 also1 as we have seen1 post-glacial4   
,we may likewise presume that the people
 of ,pleistocene date1 who have left    
their memorials in the valley of the    
,thames1 were of corresponding          
antiquity1 posterior to the boulder clay

 but anterior to the time when the      
rivers of that region had settled into  
their present channels4  ,the vast      
distance of time which separated the    
origin of the higher and lower gravels  
of the valley of the ,somme1 both of    
them rich in flint implements of similar
 shape 7although those of oval form     
predominate in the newer gravels71 leads
 to the conclusion that the state of the
 arts in those early times remained     
stationary for almost indefinite        
periods4 ,there may1 however1 have been 
different degrees of civilisation and in
 the art of fabricating flint tools1 of 
which we cannot easily detect the signs 
in the first age of stone1 and some     
contemporary tribes may have been       
considerably in advance of others4      
,those hunters1 for example1 who feasted
 on the rhinoceros and buried their dead
 with funeral rites at ,aurignac may    
have been less barbarous than the       
savages of ,st4 ,acheul1 as some of     
their weapons and utensils have been    

thought to imply4 ,to a ,european who   
looks down from a great eminence on the 
products of the humble arts of the      
aborigines of all times and countries1  
the stone knives and arrows of the ,red 
,indian of ,north ,america1 the hatchets
 of the native ,australian1 the tools   
found in the ancient ,swiss             
lake-dwellings or those of the ,danish  
kitchen-middens and of ,st4 ,acheul1    
seem nearly all alike in rudeness and   
very uniform in general character4 ,the 
slowness of the progress of the arts of 
savage life is manifested by the fact   
that the earlier instruments of bronze  
were modelled on the exact plan of the  
stone tools of the preceding age1       
although such shapes would never have   
been chosen had metals been known from  
the first4 ,the reluctance or incapacity
 of savage tribes to adopt new          
inventions has been shown in the ,east  
by their continuing to this day to use  
the same stone implements as their      
ancestors1 after that mighty empires1   

where the use of metals in the arts was 
well known1 had flourished for three    
thousand years in their neighbourhood4  
,we see in our own times that the rate  
of progress in the arts and sciences    
proceeds in a geometrical ratio as      
knowledge increases1 and so when we     
carry back our retrospect into the past1
 we must be prepared to find the signs  
of retardation augmenting in a like     
geometrical ratio2 so that the progress 
of a thousand years at a remote period  
may correspond to that of a century in  
modern times1 and in ages still more    
remote ,man would more and more resemble
 the brutes in that attribute which     
causes one generation exactly to imitate
 in all its ways the generation which   
preceded it4  ,the extent to which even 
a considerably advanced state of        
civilisation may become fixed and       
stereotyped for ages1 is the wonder of  
,europeans who travel in the ,east4 ,one
 of my friends declared to me1 that     
whenever the natives expressed to him a 

wish that he might live a thousand      
years1 the idea struck him as by no     
means extravagant1 seeing that if he    
were doomed to sojourn for ever among   
them1 he could only hope to exchange in 
ten centuries as many ideas1 and to     
witness as much progress as he could do 
at home in half a century4  ,it has     
sometimes happened that one nation has  
been conquered by another less civilised
 though more warlike1 or that during    
social and political revolutions1 people
 have retrograded in knowledge4 ,in such
 cases1 the traditions of earlier ages1 
or of some higher and more educated     
caste which has been destroyed1 may give
 rise to the notion of degeneracy from a
 primaeval state of superior            
intelligence1 or of science             
supernaturally communicated4 ,but had   
the original stock of mankind been      
really endowed with such superior       
intellectual powers and with inspired   
knowledge and had possessed the same    
improvable nature as their posterity1   

the point of advancement which they     
would have reached ere this would have  
been immeasurably higher4 ,we cannot    
ascertain at present the limits1 whether
 of the beginning or the end1 of the    
first stone period when ,man co-existed 
with the extinct mammalia1 but that it  
was of great duration we cannot doubt4  
,during those ages there would have been
 time for progress of which we can      
scarcely form a conception1 and very    
different would have been the character 
of the works of art which we should now 
be endeavouring to interpret--those     
relics which we are now disinterring    
from the old gravel-pits of ,st4        
,acheul1 or from the ,liege caves4 ,in  
them1 or in the upraised bed of the     
,mediterranean1 on the south coast of   
,sardinia1 instead of the rudest pottery
 or flint tools so irregular in form as 
to cause the unpractised eye to doubt   
whether they afford unmistakable        
evidence of design1 we should now be    
finding sculptured forms surpassing in  

beauty the masterpieces of ,phidias or  
,praxiteles2 lines of buried railways or
 electric telegraphs from which the best
 engineers of our day might gain        
invaluable hints2 astronomical          
instruments and microscopes of more     
advanced construction than any known in 
,europe1 and other indications of       
perfection in the arts and sciences such
 as the nineteenth century has not yet  
witnessed4 ,still farther would the     
triumphs of inventive genius be found to
 have been carried1 when the later      
deposits1 now assigned to the ages of   
bronze and iron1 were formed4 ,vainly   
should we be straining our imaginations 
to guess the possible uses and meaning  
of such relics--machines1 perhaps1 for  
navigating the air or exploring the     
depths of the ocean1 or for calculating 
arithmetical problems beyond the wants  
or even the conception of living        
mathematicians4  ,the opinion           
entertained generally by the classical  
writers of ,greece and ,rome1 that ,man 

in the first stage of his existence was 
but just removed from the brutes1 is    
faithfully expressed by ,horace in his  
celebrated lines1 which begin3--  ,quum 
prorepserunt primis animalia            
terris4--,sat4 lib4 #a1 #c1 #ii4  ,the  
picture of transmutation given in these 
verses1 however severe and contemptuous 
the strictures lavishly bestowed on it  
by ,christian commentators1 accords     
singularly with the train of thought    
which the modern doctrine of progressive
 development has encouraged4  ,when     
animals1 he says1 first crept forth from
 the newly formed earth1 a dumb and     
filthy herd1 they fought for acorns and 
lurking-places with their nails and     
fists1 then with clubs1 and at last with
 arms1 which1 taught by experience1 they
 had forged4 ,they then invented names  
for things and words to express their   
thoughts1 after which they began to     
desist from war1 to fortify cities and  
enact laws4 ,they who in later times    
have embraced a similar theory1 have    

been led to it by no deference to the   
opinions of their pagan predecessors1   
but rather in spite of very strong      
prepossessions in favour of an opposite 
hypothesis1 namely1 that of the         
superiority of their original           
progenitors1 of whom they believe       
themselves to be the corrupt and        
degenerate descendants4  ,so far as they
 are guided by palaeontology1 they      
arrive at this result by an independent 
course of reasoning2 but they have been 
conducted partly to the same goal as the
 ancients by ethnological considerations
 common to both1 or by reflecting in    
what darkness the infancy of every      
nation is enveloped and that true       
history and chronology are the creation1
 as it were1 of yesterday4    ,,chapter 
#bj4 -- ,,theories ,,of ,,progression   
,,and ,,transmutation4    ,antiquity and
 ,persistence in ,character of the      
existing ,races      of ,mankind4       
,theory of their ,unity of ,origin      
considered4   ,bearing of the ,diversity

 of ,races on the ,doctrine of          
,transmutation4   ,difficulty of        
defining the ,terms ,species and ,race4 
,lamarck's ,introduction of the ,element
 of ,time into the      ,definition of a
 ,species4   ,his ,theory of ,variation 
and ,progression4   ,objections to his  
,theory1 how far answered4   ,arguments 
of modern ,writers in favour of         
,progression in the      ,animal and    
,vegetable ,world4   ,the old ,landmarks
 supposed to indicate the first         
,appearance of ,man1      and of        
different ,classes of ,animals1 found to
 be erroneous4   ,yet the ,theory of an 
advancing ,series of ,organic ,beings   
not      inconsistent with ,facts4      
,earliest known ,fossil ,mammalia of low
 ,grade4   ,no ,vertebrata as yet       
discovered in the oldest ,fossiliferous 
,rocks4   ,objections to the ,theory of 
,progression considered4   ,causes of   
the ,popularity of the ,doctrine of     
,progression as compared      to that of
 ,transmutation4  ,when speaking in a   

former work of the distinct races of    
mankind199 ,i remarked that1 if all the 
leading varieties of the human family   
sprang originally from a single pair 7a 
doctrine1 to which then1 as now1 ,i     
could see no valid objection71 a much   
greater lapse of time was required for  
the slow and gradual formation of such  
races as the ,caucasian1 ,mongolian1 and
 ,negro1 than was embraced in any of the
 popular systems of chronology4         
799 ,principles of ,geology #gth edition
 page #fcg1 #ahdg2 see      also #ith   
edition page #ffj47  ,in confirmation of
 the high antiquity of two of these1 ,i 
referred to pictures on the walls of    
ancient temples in ,egypt1 in which1 a  
thousand years or more before the       
,christian era1 the ,negro and          
,caucasian physiognomies were portrayed 
as faithfully1 and in as strong         
contrast1 as if the likenesses of these 
races had been taken yesterday4 ,in     
relation to the same subject1 ,i dwelt  
on the slight modification which the    

,negro has undergone1 after having been 
transported from the tropics and settled
 for more than two centuries in the     
temperate climate of ,virginia4 ,i      
therefore concluded that1 if the various
 races were all descended from a single 
pair1 we must allow for a vast series of
 antecedent ages1 in the course of which
 the long-continued influence of        
external circumstances gave rise to     
peculiarities increased in many         
successive generations and at length    
fixed by hereditary transmission4  ,so  
long as physiologists continued to      
believe that ,man had not existed on the
 earth above six thousand years1 they   
might with good reason withhold their   
assent from the doctrine of a unity of  
origin of so many distinct races but the
 difficulty becomes less and less1      
exactly in proportion as we enlarge our 
ideas of the lapse of time during which 
different communities may have spread   
slowly1 and become isolated1 each       
exposed for ages to a peculiar set of   

conditions1 whether of temperature1 or  
food1 or danger1 or ways of living4 ,the
 law of the geometrical rate of the     
increase of population which causes it  
always to press hard on the means of    
subsistence1 would ensure the migration 
in various directions of offshoots from 
the society first formed abandoning the 
area where they had multiplied4 ,but    
when they had gradually penetrated to   
remote regions by land or water--drifted
 sometimes by storms and currents in    
canoes to an unknown shore--barriers of 
mountains1 deserts1 or seas1 which      
oppose no obstacle to mutual intercourse
 between civilised nations1 would ensure
 the complete isolation for tens or     
thousands of centuries of tribes in a   
primitive state of barbarism4  ,some    
modern ethnologists1 in accordance with 
the philosophers of antiquity1 have     
assumed that men at first fed on the    
fruits of the earth1 before even a stone
 implement or the simplest form of canoe
 had been invented4 ,they may1 it is    

said1 have begun their career in some   
fertile island in the tropics1 where the
 warmth of the air was such that no     
clothing was needed and where there were
 no wild beasts to endanger their       
safety4 ,but as soon as their numbers   
increased they would be forced to       
migrate into regions less secure and    
blest with a less genial climate4       
,contests would soon arise for the      
possession of the most fertile lands1   
where game or pasture abounded and their
 energies and inventive powers would be 
called forth1 so that at length they    
would make progress in the arts4  ,but  
as ethnologists have failed1 as yet1 to 
trace back the history of any one race  
to the area where it originated1 some   
zoologists of eminence have declared    
their belief that the different races1  
whether they be three1 five1 twenty1 or 
a much greater number 7for on this point
 there is an endless diversity of       
opinion7199 have all been primordial    
creations1 having from the first been   

stamped with the characteristic         
features1 mental and bodily1 by which   
they are now distinguished1 except where
 intermarriage has given rise to mixed  
or hybrid races4       799 ,see         
,transactions of the ,ethnological      
,society volume #a      #ahfa47  ,were  
we to admit1 say they1 a unity of origin
 of such strongly marked varieties as   
the ,negro and ,european1 differing as  
they do in colour and bodily            
constitution1 each fitted for distinct  
climates and exhibiting some marked     
peculiarities in their osteological1 and
 even in some details of cranial and    
cerebral conformation1 as well as in    
their average intellectual              
endowments--if1 in spite of the fact    
that all these attributes have been     
faithfully handed down unaltered for    
hundreds of generations1 we are to      
believe that1 in the course of time1    
they have all diverged from one common  
stock1 how shall we resist the arguments
 of the transmutationist1 who contends  

that all closely allied species of      
animals and plants have in like manner  
sprung from a common parentage1 albeit  
that for the last three or four thousand
 years they may have been persistent in 
character8 ,where are we to stop1 unless
 we make our stand at once on the       
independent creation of those distinct  
human races1 the history of which is    
better known to us than that of any of  
the inferior animals8  ,so long as      
,geology had not lifted up a part of the
 veil which formerly concealed from the 
naturalist the history of the changes   
which the animate creation had undergone
 in times immediately antecedent to the 
,recent period1 it was easy to treat    
these questions as too transcendental1  
or as lying too far beyond the domain of
 positive science to require serious    
discussion4 ,but it is no longer        
possible to restrain curiosity from     
attempting to pry into the relations    
which connect the present state of the  
animal and vegetable worlds1 as well as 

of the various races of mankind1 with   
the state of the fauna and flora which  
immediately preceded4  ,in the very     
outset of the inquiry1 we are met with  
the difficulty of defining what we mean 
by the terms species and race2 and the  
surprise of the unlearned is usually    
great1 when they discover how wide is   
the difference of opinion now prevailing
 as to the significance of words in such
 familiar use4 ,but1 in truth1 we can   
come to no agreement as to such         
definitions1 unless we have previously  
made up our minds on some of the most   
momentous of all the enigmas with which 
the human intellect ever attempted to   
grapple4  ,it is now thirty years since 
,i gave an analysis in the first edition
 of my ,principles of ,geology 7volume  
#b #ahcb7 of the views which had been   
put forth by ,lamarck1 in the beginning 
of the century1 on this subject4 ,in    
that interval the progress made in      
zoology and botany1 both in augmenting  
the number of known animals and plants1 

and in studying their physiology and    
geographical distribution and above all 
in examining and describing fossil      
species1 is so vast that the additions  
made to our knowledge probably exceed   
all that was previously known2 and what 
,lamarck then foretold has come to pass2
 the more new forms have been           
multiplied1 the less are we able to     
decide what we mean by a variety1 and   
what by a species4 ,in fact1 zoologists 
and botanists are not only more at a    
loss than ever how to define a species1 
but even to determine whether it has any
 real existence in nature1 or is a mere 
abstraction of the human intellect1 some
 contending that it is constant within  
certain narrow and impassable limits of 
variability1 others that it is capable  
of indefinite and endless modification4 
,before ,i attempt to explain a great   
step1 which has recently been made by   
,mr4 ,darwin and his fellow-labourers in
 this field of inquiry1 ,i think it     
useful to recapitulate in this place    

some of the leading features of         
,lamarck's system1 without attempting to
 adjust the claims of some of his       
contemporaries 7,geoffroy ,st4 ,hilaire 
in particular7 to share in the credit of
 some of his original speculations4     
,from the time of ,linnaeus to the      
commencement of the present century1 it 
seemed a sufficient definition of the   
term species to say that a species      
consisted of individuals all resembling 
each other1 and reproducing their like  
by generation4 ,but ,lamarck after      
having first studied botany with        
success1 had then turned his attention  
to conchology1 and soon became aware    
that in the newer 7or ,tertiary7 strata 
of the earth's crust there were a       
multitude of fossil species of shells1  
some of them identical with living ones1
 others simply varieties of the living1 
and which as such were entitled to be   
designated1 according to the ordinary   
rules of classification1 by the same    
names4 ,he also observed that other     

shells were so nearly allied to living  
forms that it was difficult not to      
suspect that they had been connected by 
a common bond of descent4 ,he therefore 
proposed that the element of time should
 enter into the definition of a species1
 and that it should run thus3 ,a species
 consists of individuals all resembling 
each other1 and reproducing their like  
by generation1 ,,so ,,long ,,as ,,the   
,,surrounding ,,conditions ,,do ,,not   
,,undergo ,,changes ,,sufficient ,,to   
,,cause ,,their ,,habits1 ,,characters1 
,,and ,,forms ,,to ,,vary4 ,he came at  
last to the conclusion that none of the 
animals and plants now existing were    
primordial creations1 but were all      
derived from pre-existing forms1 which1 
after they may have gone on for         
indefinite ages reproducing their like1 
had at length1 by the influence of      
alterations in climate and in the       
animate world been made to vary         
gradually1 and adapt themselves to new  
circumstances1 some of them deviating in

 the course of ages so far from their   
original type as to have claims to be   
regarded as new species4  ,in support of
 these views1 he referred to wild and   
cultivated plants and to wild and       
domesticated animals1 pointing out how  
their colour1 form1 structure1          
physiological attributes and even       
instincts were gradually modified by    
exposure to new soils and climates1 new 
enemies1 modes of subsistence1 and kinds
 of food4  ,nor did he omit to notice   
that the newly acquired peculiarities   
may be inherited by the offspring for an
 indefinite series of generations1      
whether they be brought about           
naturally--as when a species1 on the    
extreme verge of its geographical range1
 comes into competition with new        
antagonists and is subjected to new     
physical conditions2 or artificially--as
 when by the act of the breeder or      
horticulturist peculiar varieties of    
form or disposition are selected4  ,but 
,lamarck taught not only that species   

had been constantly undergoing changes  
from one geological period to another1  
but that there also had been a          
progressive advance of the organic world
 from the earliest to the latest times1 
from beings of the simplest to those of 
more and more complex structure1 and    
from the lowest instincts up to the     
highest1 and finally from brute         
intelligence to the reasoning powers of 
,man4 ,the improvement in the grade of  
being had been slow and continuous1 and 
the human race itself was at length     
evolved out of the most highly organised
 and endowed of the inferior mammalia4  
,in order to explain how1 after an      
indefinite lapse of ages1 so many of the
 lowest grades of animal or plant still 
abounded1 he imagined that the germs or 
rudiments of living things1 which he    
called monads1 were continually coming  
into the world and that there were      
different kinds of these monads for each
 primary division of the animal and     
vegetable kingdoms4 ,this last          

hypothesis does not seem essentially    
different from the old doctrine of      
equivocal or spontaneous generation2 it 
is wholly unsupported by any modern     
experiments or observation1 and         
therefore affords us no aid whatever in 
speculating on the commencement of vital
 phenomena on the earth4  ,some of the  
laws which govern the appearance of new 
varieties were clearly pointed out by   
,lamarck4 ,he remarked1 for example1    
that as the muscles of the arm become   
strengthened by exercise or enfeebled by
 disuse1 some organs may in this way1 in
 the course of time1 become entirely    
obsolete1 and others previously weak    
become strong and play a new or more    
leading part in the organisation of a   
species4 ,and so with instincts1 where  
animals experience new dangers they     
become more cautious and cunning1 and   
transmit these acquired faculties to    
their posterity4 ,but not satisfied with
 such legitimate speculations1 the      
,french philosopher conceived that by   

repeated acts of volition animals might 
acquire new organs and attributes1 and  
that in plants1 which could not exert a 
will of their own1 certain subtle fluids
 or organising forces might operate so  
as to work out analogous effects4       
,after commenting on these purely       
imaginary causes1 ,i pointed out in     
#ahcb1 as the two great flaws in        
,lamarck's attempt to explain the origin
 of species1 first1 that he had failed  
to adduce a single instance of the      
initiation of a new organ in any species
 of animal or plant2 and secondly1 that 
variation1 whether taking place in the  
course of nature or assisted            
artificially by the breeder and         
horticulturist1 had never yet gone so   
far as to produce two races sufficiently
 remote from each other in physiological
 constitution as to be sterile when     
intermarried1 or1 if fertile1 only      
capable of producing sterile hybrids1   
etc499       799 ,principles of ,geology
 #ast edition volume #b chapter #b47    

,to this objection ,lamarck would1 no   
doubt1 have answered that there had not 
been time for bringing about so great an
 amount of variation2 for when ,cuvier  
and some other of his contemporaries    
appealed to the embalmed animals and    
plants taken from ,egyptian tombs1 some 
of them #cjjj years old1 which had not  
experienced in that long period the     
slightest modification in their specific
 characters1 he replied that the climate
 and soil of the valley of the ,nile had
 not varied in the interval1 and that   
there was therefore no reason for       
expecting that we should be able to     
detect any change in the fauna and      
flora4 ,but if1 he went on to say1 the  
physical geography1 temperature1 and    
other conditions of life had been       
altered in ,egypt as much as we know    
from geology has happened in other      
regions1 some of the same animals and   
plants would have deviated so far from  
their pristine types as to be thought   
entitled to take rank as new and        

distinct species4  ,although ,i cited   
this answer of ,lamarck in my account of
 his theory199 ,i did not at the time   
fully appreciate the deep conviction    
which it displays of the slow manner in 
which geological changes have taken     
place and the insignificance of thirty  
or forty centuries in the history of a  
species1 and that1 too1 at a period when
 very narrow views were entertained of  
the extent of past time by most of the  
ablest geologists1 and when great       
revolutions of the earth's crust1 and   
its inhabitants1 were generally         
attributed to sudden and violent        
catastrophes4      799 ,ibid4 page      
#ehg47  ,while in #ahcb ,i argued       
against ,lamarck's doctrine of the      
gradual transmutation of one species    
into another1 ,i agreed with him in     
believing that the system of changes now
 in progress in the organic world would 
afford1 when fully understood1 a        
complete key to the interpretation of   
all the vicissitudes of the living      

creation in past ages4 ,i contended     
against the doctrine1 then very popular1
 of the sudden destruction of vast      
multitudes of species and the abrupt    
ushering into the world of new batches  
of plants and animals4  ,i endeavoured  
to sketch out 7and it was1 ,i believe1  
the first systematic attempt to         
accomplish such a task7 the laws which  
govern the extinction of species1 with a
 view of showing that the slow but      
ceaseless variations now in progress in 
physical geography1 together with the   
migration of plants and animals into new
 regions1 must in the course of ages    
give rise to the occasional loss of some
 of them and eventually cause an entire 
fauna and flora to die out2 also that we
 must infer from geological data that   
the places thus left vacant from time to
 time are filled up without delay by new
 forms adapted to new conditions1       
sometimes by immigration from adjoining 
provinces1 sometimes by new creations4  
,among the many causes of extinction    

enumerated by me were the power of      
hostile species1 diminution of food1    
mutations in climate1 the conversion of 
land into sea and of sea into land1 etc4
 ,i firmly opposed ,brocchi's hypothesis
 of a decline in the vital energy of    
each species299 maintaining that there  
was every reason to believe that the    
reproductive powers of the last         
surviving representatives of a species  
were as vigorous as those of their      
predecessors1 and that they were as     
capable1 under favourable circumstances1
 of repeopling the earth with their     
kind4       799 ,principles of ,geology 
#ast edition volume #b chapter #h2      
and #ith edition page #ffh47  ,the      
manner in which some species are now    
becoming scarce and dying out1 one after
 the other1 appeared to me to favour the
 doctrine of the fixity of the specific 
character1 showing a want of pliancy and
 capability of varying1 which ensured   
their annihilation whenever changes     
adverse to their well-being occurred2   

time not being allowed for such a       
transformation as might be conceived    
capable of adapting them to the new     
circumstances1 and of converting them   
into what naturalists would call new    
species499       799 ,laws of           
,extinction1 ,principles of ,geology    
#ast edition      #ahcb volume #b       
chapters #e to #aa inclusive2 and #ith  
edition      chapters #cg to #db        
inclusive #ahec47  ,but while rejecting 
transmutation1 ,i was equally opposed to
 the popular theory that the creative   
power had diminished in energy1 or that 
it had been in abeyance ever since ,man 
had entered upon the scene4 ,that a     
renovating force which had been in full 
operation for millions of years should  
cease to act while the causes of        
extinction were still in full activity1 
or even intensified by the accession of 
,man's destroying power1 seemed to me in
 the highest degree improbable4 ,the    
only point on which ,i doubted was      
whether the force might not be          

intermittent instead of being1 as       
,lamarck supposed1 in ceaseless         
operation4 ,might not the births of new 
species1 like the deaths of old ones1 be
 sudden8 ,might they not still escape   
our observation8 ,if the coming in of   
one new species1 and the loss of one    
other which had endured for ages1 should
 take place annually1 still1 assuming   
that there are a million of animals and 
plants living on the globe1 it would    
require1 ,i observed1 a million of years
 to bring about a complete revolution in
 the fauna and flora4 ,in that case1 ,i 
imagined that1 although the first       
appearance of a new form might be as    
abrupt as the disappearance of an old   
one1 yet naturalists might never yet    
have witnessed the first entrance on the
 stage of a large and conspicuous animal
 or plant1 and as to the smaller kinds1 
many of them may be conceived to have   
stolen in unseen1 and to have spread    
gradually over a wide area1 like species
 migrating into new provinces499        

799 ,principles of ,geology #ast edition
 #ahcb volume #b chapter      #aa2 and  
#ith edition page #gjf47  ,it may now be
 useful to offer some remarks on the    
very different reception which the twin 
branches of ,lamarck's development      
theory1 namely1 progression and         
transmutation1 have met with1 and to    
inquire into the causes of the          
popularity of the one and the great     
unpopularity of the other4 ,we usually  
test the value of a scientific          
hypothesis by the number and variety of 
the phenomena of which it offers a fair 
or plausible explanation4 ,if           
transmutation1 when thus tested1 has    
decidedly the advantage over progression
 and yet is comparatively in disfavour1 
we may reasonably suspect that its      
reception is retarded1 not so much by   
its own inherent demerits1 as by some   
apprehended consequences which it is    
supposed to involve and which run       
counter to our preconceived opinions4   
,,theory ,,of ,,progression4  ,in       

treating of this question1 ,i shall     
begin with the doctrine of progression1 
a concise statement of which1 so far as 
it relates to the animal kingdom1 was   
thus given twelve years ago by          
,professor ,sedgwick1 in the preface to 
his ,discourse on the ,studies of the   
,university of ,cambridge4  ,there are  
traces1 he says1 among the old deposits 
of the earth of an organic progression  
among the successive forms of life4     
,they are to be seen in the absence of  
mammalia in the older1 and their very   
rare appearance in the newer ,secondary 
groups2 in the diffusion of warm-blooded
 quadrupeds 7frequently of unknown      
genera7 in the older ,tertiary system1  
and in their great abundance 7and       
frequently of known genera7 in the upper
 portions of the same series2 and       
lastly1 in the recent appearance of ,man
 on the surface of the earth4  ,this    
historical development1 continues the   
same author1 of the forms and functions 
of organic life during successive       

epochs1 seems to mark a gradual         
evolution of creative power1 manifested 
by a gradual ascent towards a higher    
type of being4 ,but the elevation of the
 fauna of successive periods was not    
made by transmutation1 but by creative  
additions2 and it is by watching these  
additions that we get some insight into 
,nature's true historical progress1 and 
learn that there was a time when        
,cephalopoda were the highest types of  
animal life1 the primates of this world2
 that ,fishes next took the lead1 then  
,reptiles2 and that during the secondary
 period they were anatomically raised   
far above any forms of the reptile class
 now living in the world4 ,mammals were 
added next1 until ,nature became what   
she now is1 by the addition of ,man499  
799 ,professor ,sedgwick's ,discourse on
 the ,studies of the      ,university of
 ,cambridge ,preface to #eth edition    
pages #dd1      #aed1 #baf1 #ahej47     
,although in the half century which has 
elapsed between the time of ,lamarck and

 the publication of the above summary1  
new discoveries have caused geologists  
to assign a higher antiquity both to    
,man and the oldest fossil mammalia1    
fish1 and reptiles than formerly1 yet   
the generalisation1 as laid down by the 
,woodwardian ,professor1 as to          
progression1 still holds good in all    
essential particulars4  ,the progressive
 theory was propounded in the following 
terms by the late ,hugh ,miller in his  
,footprints of the ,creator4  ,it is of 
itself an extraordinary fact without    
reference to other considerations1 that 
the order adopted by ,cuvier in his     
,animal ,kingdom1 as that in which the  
four great classes of vertebrate        
animals1 when marshalled according to   
their rank and standing1 naturally      
range1 should be also that in which they
 occur in order of time4 ,the brain1    
which bears an average proportion to the
 spinal cord of not more than two to    
one1 comes first--it is the brain of the
 fish2 that which bears to the spinal   

cord an average proportion of two and a 
half to one succeeded it--it is the     
brain of the reptile2 then came the     
brain averaging as three to one--it is  
that of the bird4 ,next in succession   
came the brain that averages as four to 
one--it is that of the mammal2 and last 
of all there appeared a brain that      
averages as twenty-three to             
one--reasoning1 calculating ,man had    
come upon the scene499       799        
,footprints of the ,creator ,edinburgh  
#ahdi page #bhc47  ,m4 ,agassiz1 in his 
,essay on ,classification1 has devoted a
 chapter to the ,parallelism between the
 ,geological ,succession of ,animals and
 ,plants and their present relative     
,standing2 in which he has expressed a  
decided opinion that within the limits  
of the orders of each great class there 
is a coincidence between their relative 
rank in organisation and the order of   
succession of their representatives in  
time499       799 ,contributions to the 
,natural ,history of the ,united        

,states ,part #a4--;,essay on           
,classification page #ajh47  ,professor 
,owen1 in his ,palaeontology1 has       
advanced similar views1 and has         
remarked1 in regard to the vertebrata   
that there is much positive as well as  
negative evidence in support of the     
doctrine of an advance in the scale of  
being1 from ancient to more modern      
geological periods4 ,we observe1 for    
example1 in the ,triassic1 ,oolitic1 and
 ,cretaceous strata1 not only an absence
 of placental mammalia1 but the presence
 of innumerable reptiles1 some of large 
size1 terrestrial and aquatic1          
herbivorous and predaceous1 fitted to   
perform the functions now discharged by 
the mammalia4  ,the late ,professor     
,bronn1 of ,heidelberg1 after passing in
 review more than #bd1jjj fossil animals
 and plants1 which he had classified and
 referred each to their geological      
position in his ,index                  
,palaeontologicus1 came to the          
conclusion that1 in the course of time1 

there had been introduced into the earth
 more and more highly organised types of
 animal and vegetable life2 the modern  
species being1 on the whole1 more       
specialised1 i4e4 having separate       
organs1 or parts of the body1 to perform
 different functions1 which1 in the     
earlier periods and in beings of simpler
 structure1 were discharged in common by
 a single part or organ4  ,professor    
,adolphe ,brongniart1 in an essay       
published in #ahdi on the botanical     
classification and geological           
distribution of the genera of fossil    
plants199 arrives at similar results as 
to the progress of the vegetable world  
from the earliest periods to the        
present4       799 ,tableau des ,genres 
de ,vegetaux fossiles1 etc4             
,dictionnaire ,universel d',histoire    
,naturelle ,paris #ahdi47  ,he does not 
pretend to trace an exact historical    
series from the sea-weed to the fern1 or
 from the fern again to the conifers and
 cycads1 and lastly from those families 

to the palms and oaks1 but he1          
nevertheless1 points out that the       
cryptogamic forms1 especially the       
acrogens1 predominate among the fossils 
of the primary formations1 the          
,carboniferous especially1 while the    
gymnosperms or coniferous and cycadeous 
plants abound in all the strata1 from   
the ,trias to the ,wealden inclusive2   
and lastly1 the more highly developed   
angiosperms1 both monocotyledonous and  
dicotyledonous1 do not become abundant  
until the ,tertiary period4 ,it is a    
remarkable fact1 as he justly observes1 
that the angiospermous exogens1 which   
comprise four-fifths of living plants--a
 division to which all our native       
,european trees1 except the ,coniferae1 
belong1 and which embrace all the       
,compositae1 ,leguminosae1              
,umbelliferae1 ,cruciferae1 ,heaths1 and
 so many other families--are wholly     
unrepresented by any fossils hitherto   
discovered in the ,primary and          
,secondary formations from the ,silurian

 to the ,oolitic inclusive4 ,it is not  
till we arrive at the ,cretaceous period
 that they begin to appear1 sparingly at
 first1 and only playing a conspicuous  
part1 together with the palms and other 
endogens1 in the ,tertiary epoch4  ,when
 commenting on the eagerness with which 
the doctrine of progression was embraced
 from the close of the last century to  
the time when ,i first attempted1 in    
#ahcj1 to give some account of the      
prevailing theories in geology1 ,i      
observed that far too much reliance was 
commonly placed on the received dates of
 the first appearances of certain orders
 or classes of animals or plants1 such  
dates being determined by the age of the
 stratum in which we then happened to   
have discovered the earliest memorials  
of such types4 ,at that time 7#ahcj71 it
 was taken for granted that ,man had not
 co-existed with the mammoth and other  
extinct mammalia1 yet now that we have  
traced back the signs of his existence  
to the ,pleistocene era1 and may        

anticipate the finding of his remains on
 some future day in the ,pliocene       
period1 the theory of progression is not
 shaken2 for we cannot expect to meet   
with human bones in the ,miocene        
formations1 where all the species and   
nearly all the genera of mammalia belong
 to types widely differing from those   
now living2 and had some other rational 
being1 representing ,man1 then          
flourished1 some signs of his existence 
could hardly have escaped unnoticed1 in 
the shape of implements of stone or     
metal1 more frequent and more durable   
than the osseous remains of any of the  
mammalia4  ,in the beginning of this    
century it was one of the canons of the 
popular geological creed that the first 
warm-blooded quadrupeds which had       
inhabited this planet were those derived
 from the ,eocene gypsum of ,montmartre 
in the suburbs of ,paris1 almost all of 
which ,cuvier had shown to belong to    
extinct genera4 ,this dogma continued in
 force for more than a quarter of a     

century1 in spite of the discovery in   
#ahah of a marsupial quadruped in the   
,stonesfield strata1 a member of the    
,lower ,oolite1 near ,oxford4 ,some     
disputed the authority of ,cuvier       
himself as to the mammalian character of
 the fossil2 others1 the accuracy of    
those who had assigned to it so ancient 
a place in the chronological series of  
rocks4 ,in #ahcb ,i pointed out that the
 occurrence of this single fossil in the
 ,oolite was fatal to the theory of     
successive development as then          
propounded499       799 ,principles of  
,geology #bnd edition #a #agc47  ,since 
that period great additions have been   
made to our knowledge of the existence  
of land quadrupeds in the olden times4  
,we have ascertained that1 in ,eocene   
strata older than the gypsum of ,paris1 
no less than four distinct sets of      
placental mammalia have flourished2     
namely1 first1 those of the ,headon     
series in the ,isle of ,wight1 from     
which fourteen species have been        

procured2 secondly1 those of the        
antecedent ,bagshot and ,bracklesham    
beds1 which have yielded1 together with 
the contemporaneous calcaire grossier of
 ,paris1 twenty species2 thirdly1 the   
still older beds of ,kyson1 near        
,ipswich1 and those of ,herne ,bay1 at  
the mouth of the ,thames1 in which seven
 species have been found2 and fourthly1 
the ,woolwich and ,reading beds1 which  
have supplied ten species499       799  
,lyell's supplement to #eth edition of  
,elements #aheg47  ,we can scarcely     
doubt that we should already have traced
 back the evidence of this class of     
fossils much farther had not our        
inquiries been arrested1 first by the   
vast gap between the ,tertiary and      
,secondary formations1 and then by the  
marine nature of the ,cretaceous rocks4 
,the mammalia next in antiquity1 of     
which we have any cognisance1 are those 
of the ,upper ,oolite of ,purbeck1      
discovered between the years #ahed and  
#aheg1 and comprising no less than      

fourteen species1 referable to eight or 
nine genera2 one of them1 ,plagiaulax1  
considered by ,dr4 ,falconer to have    
been a herbivorous marsupial4 ,the whole
 assemblage appear1 from the joint      
observations of ,professor ,owen and    
,dr4 ,falconer1 to indicate a low grade 
of quadruped1 probably of the marsupial 
type4 ,they were1 for the most part1    
diminutive1 the two largest not much    
exceeding our common hedgehog and       
polecat in size4  ,next anterior in age 
are the mammalia of the ,lower ,oolite  
of ,stonesfield1 of which four species  
are known1 also very small and probably 
marsupial1 with one exception1 the      
,stereognathus ooliticus1 which1        
according to ,professor ,owen's         
conjecture1 may have been a hoofed      
quadruped and placental1 though1 as we  
have only half of the lower jaw with    
teeth1 and the molars are unlike any    
living type1 such an opinion is of      
course hazarded with due caution4       
,still older than the above are some    

fossil quadrupeds of small size1 found  
in the ,upper ,trias of ,stuttgart in   
,germany1 and more lately by ,mr4 ,c4   
,moore in beds of corresponding age near
 ,frome1 which are also of a very low   
grade1 like the living ,myrmecobius of  
,australia4 ,beyond this limit our      
knowledge of the highest class of       
vertebrata does not as yet extend into  
the past1 but the frequent shifting back
 of the old landmarks1 nearly all of    
them once supposed in their turn to     
indicate the date of the first          
appearance of warm-blooded quadrupeds on
 this planet1 should serve as a warning 
to us not to consider the goal at       
present reached by palaeontology as one 
beyond which they who come after us are 
never destined to pass4  ,on the other  
hand1 it may be truly said in favour of 
progression that after all these        
discoveries the doctrine is not         
gainsaid1 for the less advanced         
marsupials precede the more perfect     
placental mammalia in the order of their

 appearance on the earth4  ,if the three
 localities where the most ancient      
mammalia have been found--,purbeck1     
,stonesfield1 and ,stuttgart--had       
belonged all of them to formations of   
the same age1 we might well have        
imagined so limited an area to have been
 peopled exclusively with pouched       
quadrupeds1 just as ,australia now is1  
while other parts of the globe were     
inhabited by placentals1 for ,australia 
now supports one hundred and sixty      
species of marsupials1 while the rest of
 the continents and islands are tenanted
 by about seventeen hundred species of  
mammalia1 of which only forty-six are   
marsupial1 namely1 the opossums of      
,north and ,south ,america4 ,but the    
great difference of age of the strata in
 each of these three localities seems to
 indicate the predominance throughout a 
vast lapse of time 7from the era of the 
,upper ,trias to that of the ,purbeck   
beds7 of a low grade of quadrupeds2 and 
this persistency of similar generic and 

ordinal types in ,europe while the      
species were changing1 and while the    
fish1 reptiles1 and mollusca were       
undergoing vast modifications1 raises a 
strong presumption that there was also a
 vast extension in space of the same    
marsupial forms during that portion of  
the ,secondary epoch which has been     
termed the age of reptiles4  ,as to the 
class ,reptilia1 some of the orders     
which prevailed when the ,secondary     
rocks were formed are confessedly much  
higher in their organisation than any of
 the same class now living4 ,if the less
 perfect ophidians1 or snakes1 which now
 abound on the earth had taken the lead 
in those ancient days among the land    
reptiles1 and the ,deinosaurians had    
been contemporary with ,man1 there can  
be no doubt that the progressionist     
would have seized upon this fact with   
unfeigned satisfaction as confirmatory  
of his views4 ,now that the order of    
succession is precisely reversed1 and   
that the age of the ,iguanodon was long 

anterior to that of the ,eocene         
,palaeophis and living boa1 while the   
crocodile is in our own times the       
highest representative of its class1 a  
retrograde movement in this important   
division of the vertebrata must be      
admitted4 ,it may perhaps be accounted  
for by the power acquired by the        
placental mammalia1 when they became    
dominant1 a power before which the class
 of vertebrata next below them1 as      
coming most directly in competition with
 them1 may more than any other have     
given way4  ,for no less than           
thirty-four years it had been a received
 axiom in palaeontology that reptiles   
had never existed before the ,permian or
 ,magnesian ,limestone period1 when at  
length in #ahdd this supposed barrier   
was thrown down1 and ,carboniferous     
reptiles1 terrestrial and aquatic1 of   
several genera were brought to light2   
and discussions are now going on as to  
whether some remains of an ,enaliosaur  
7perhaps a large ,labyrinthodon7 have   

not been detected in the coal of ,nova  
,scotia1 and whether certain sandstones 
near ,elgin in ,scotland1 containing the
 bones of lacertian1 crocodilian1 and   
rhynchosaurian reptiles1 may not be     
referable to the ,old ,red or ,devonian 
group4 ,still1 no traces of this class  
have yet been detected in rocks as      
ancient as those in which the oldest    
fish have been found4 #ch  ,as to fossil
 representatives of the ichthyic type1  
the most ancient were not supposed      
before #ahch to be of a date anterior to
 the ,coal1 but they have since been    
traced back1 first to the ,devonian1 and
 then to the ,silurian rocks4 ,no       
remains1 however1 of them or of any     
vertebrate animal have yet been         
discovered in the ,ordovician strata1   
rich as these are in invertebrate       
fossils1 nor in the still older         
,cambrian2 so that we seem authorised to
 conclude1 though not without           
considerable reserve1 that the          
vertebrate type was extremely scarce1 if

 not wholly wanting1 in those epochs    
often spoken of as primitive1 but which1
 if the ,development ,theory be true1   
were probably the last of a long series 
of antecedent ages in which living      
beings flourished4  ,as to the          
,mollusca1 which afford the most        
unbroken series of geological medals1   
the highest of that class1 the          
,cephalopoda1 abounded in older         
,silurian times1 comprising several     
hundred species of chambered univalves4 
,had there been strong prepossessions   
against the progressive theory1 it would
 probably have been argued that when    
these cephalopods abounded1 and the     
siphonated gasteropods were absent1 a   
higher order of zoophagous mollusca     
discharged the functions afterwards     
performed by an inferior order in the   
,secondary1 ,tertiary1 and              
,post-,tertiary seas4 ,but ,i have never
 seen this view suggested as adverse to 
the doctrine of progress1 although much 
stress has been laid on the fact that   

the ,silurian ,brachiopoda1 creatures of
 a lower grade1 formerly discharged the 
functions of the existing               
lamellibranchiate bivalves1 which are   
higher in the scale4  ,it is said truly 
that the ,ammonite1 ,orthoceras1 and    
,nautilus of these ancient rocks were of
 the tetrabranchiate division1 and none 
of them so highly organised as the      
,belemnite and other dibranchiate       
cephalopods which afterwards appeared1  
and some of which now flourish in our   
seas4 ,therefore1 we may infer that the 
simplest forms of the ,cephalopoda took 
precedence of the more complex in time4 
,but if we embrace this view1 we must   
not forget that there are living        
,cephalopoda1 such as the ,octopods1    
which are devoid of any hard parts1     
whether external or internal1 and which 
could leave behind them no fossil       
memorials of their existence1 so that we
 must make a somewhat arbitrary         
assumption1 namely1 that at a remote    
era1 no such ,dibranchiata were in      

being1 in order to avail ourselves of   
this argument in favour of progression4 
,on the other hand1 it is true that in  
the ,lower ,cambrian not even the       
shell-bearing tetrabranchiates have yet 
been discovered4  ,in regard to plants1 
although the generalisation above cited 
of ,m4 ,adolphe ,brongniart is probably 
true1 there has been a tendency in the  
advocates of progression to push the    
inferences deducible from known facts1  
in support of their favourite dogma1    
somewhat beyond the limits which the    
evidence justifies4 ,dr4 ,hooker        
observes1 in his recent ,introductory   
,essay to the ,flora of ,australia1 that
 it is impossible to establish a        
parallel between the successive         
appearances of vegetable forms in time1 
and their complexity of structure or    
specialisation of organs as represented 
by the successively higher groups in the
 natural method of classification4 ,he  
also adds that the earliest recognisable
 ,cryptogams are not only the highest   

now existing1 but have more highly      
differentiated vegetative organs than   
any subsequently appearing1 and that the
 dicotyledonous embryo and perfect      
exogenous wood1 with the highest        
specialised tissue known 7the coniferous
 with glandular tissue71 preceded the   
monocotyledonous embryo and endogenous  
wood in date of appearance on the       
globe--facts wholly opposed to the      
doctrine of progression1 and which can  
only be set aside on the supposition    
that they are fragmentary evidence of a 
time farther removed from the origin of 
vegetation than from the present day499 
799 ,introductory ,essay to the ,flora  
of ,australia1 page #ca      ,london    
#ahei4 ,published separately47 #ci  ,it 
would be an easy task to multiply       
objections to the theory now under      
consideration2 but from this ,i refrain1
 as ,i regard it not only as a useful1  
but rather in the present state of      
science as an indispensable hypothesis1 
and one which though destined hereafter 

to undergo many and great modifications 
will never be overthrown4  ,it may be   
thought almost paradoxical that writers 
who are most in favour of transmutation 
7,mr4 ,c4 ,darwin and ,dr4 ,j4 ,hooker1 
for example7 are nevertheless among     
those who are most cautious1 and one    
would say timid1 in their mode of       
espousing the doctrine of progression2  
while1 on the other hand1 the most      
zealous advocates of progression are    
oftener than not very vehement opponents
 of transmutation4 ,we might have       
anticipated a contrary leaning on the   
part of both1 for to what does the      
theory of progression point8 ,it        
supposes a gradual elevation in grade of
 the vertebrate type in the course of   
ages from the most simple ichthyic form 
to that of the placental mammalia and   
the coming upon the stage last in the   
order of time of the most               
anthropomorphous mammalia1 followed by  
the human race--this last thus appearing
 as an integral part of the same        

continuous series of acts of            
development1 one link in the same chain1
 the crowning operation as it were of   
one and the same series of              
manifestations of creative power4 ,if   
the dangers apprehended from            
transmutation arise from the too        
intimate connection which it tends to   
establish between the human and merely  
animal natures1 it might have been      
expected that the progressive           
development of organisation1 instinct1  
and intelligence might have been        
unpopular1 as likely to pioneer the way 
for the reception of the less favoured  
doctrine4 ,but the true explanation of  
the seeming anomaly is this1 that no one
 can believe in transmutation who is not
 profoundly convinced that all we know  
in palaeontology is as nothing compared 
with what we have yet to learn1 and they
 who regard the record as so            
fragmentary1 and our acquaintance with  
the fragments which are extant as so    
rudimentary1 are apt to be astounded at 

the confidence placed by the            
progressionists in data which must be   
defective in the extreme4 ,but exactly  
in proportion as the completeness of the
 record and our knowledge of it are     
overrated1 in that same degree are many 
progressionists unconscious of the goal 
towards which they are drifting4 ,their 
faith in the fullness of the annals     
leads them to regard all breaks in the  
series of organic existence1 or in the  
sequence of the fossiliferous rocks1 as 
proofs of original chasms and leaps in  
the course of nature--signs of the      
intermittent action of the creational   
force1 or of catastrophes which         
devastated the habitable surface4 ,they 
do not doubt that there is a continuity 
of plan1 but they believe that it exists
 in the ,divine mind alone1 and they are
 therefore without apprehension that any
 facts will be discovered which would   
imply a material connection between the 
outgoing organisms and the incoming     
ones4    ,,chapter #ba4 -- ,,on ,,the   

,,origin ,,of ,,species ,,by ,,variation
 ,,and ,,natural ,,selection4    ,mr4   
,darwin's ,theory of the ,origin of     
,species by ,natural ,selection4        
,memoir by ,mr4 ,wallace4   ,manner in  
which favoured ,races prevail in the    
,struggle for ,existence4   ,formation  
of new ,races by breeding4   ,hypotheses
 of definite and indefinite             
,modifiability equally arbitrary4       
,competition and ,extinction of ,races4 
,progression not a necessary            
,accompaniment of ,variation4           
,distinct ,classes of ,phenomena which  
,natural ,selection explains4   ,unity  
of ,type1 ,rudimentary ,organs1         
,geographical ,distribution1            
,relation of the extinct to the living  
,fauna and ,flora1 and      mutual      
,relations of successive ,groups of     
,fossil ,forms4   ,light thrown on      
,embryological ,development by ,natural 
,selection4   ,why large ,genera have   
more variable ,species than small ones4 
,dr4 ,hooker on the ,evidence afforded  

by the ,vegetable ,kingdom      in      
favour of ,creation by ,variation4      
,steenstrup on alternation of           
,generations4   ,how far the ,doctrine  
of ,independent ,creation is opposed to 
the      ,laws now governing the        
,migration of ,species4  ,for many years
 after the promulgation of ,lamarck's   
doctrine of progressive development1    
geologists were much occupied with the  
question whether the past changes in the
 animate and inanimate world were       
brought about by sudden and paroxysmal  
action1 or gradually and continuously1  
by causes differing neither in kind nor 
degree from those now in operation4     
,the anonymous author of ,the ,vestiges 
of ,creation published in #ahdd a       
treatise1 written in a clear and        
attractive style1 which made the        
,english public familiar with the       
leading views of ,lamarck on            
transmutation and progression1 but      
brought no new facts or original line of
 argument to support those views1 or to 

combat the principal objections which   
the scientific world entertained against
 them4  ,no decided step in this        
direction was made until the publication
 in #aheh of two papers1 one by ,mr4    
,darwin and another by ,mr4 ,wallace1   
followed in #ahei by ,mr4 ,darwin's     
celebrated work on ,the ,origin of      
,species by ,means of ,natural          
,selection2 or1 the ,preservation of    
favoured ,races in the ,struggle for    
,life4 ,the author of this treatise had 
for twenty previous years strongly      
inclined to believe that variation and  
the ordinary laws of reproduction were  
among the secondary causes always       
employed by the ,author of nature1 in   
the introduction from time to time of   
new species into the world1 and he had  
devoted himself patiently to the        
collecting of facts and making of       
experiments in zoology and botany1 with 
a view of testing the soundness of the  
theory of transmutation4 ,part of the   
manuscript of his projected work was    

read to ,dr4 ,hooker as early as #ahdd  
and some of the principal results were  
communicated to me on several occasions4
 #dj ,dr4 ,hooker and ,i had repeatedly 
urged him to publish without delay1 but 
in vain1 as he was always unwilling to  
interrupt the course of his             
investigations2 until at length ,mr4    
,alfred ,r4 ,wallace1 who had been      
engaged for years in collecting and     
studying the animals of the ,east       
,indian archipelago1 thought out        
independently for himself one of the    
most novel and important of ,mr4        
,darwin's theories4 ,this he embodied in
 an essay ,on the ,tendency of          
,varieties to depart indefinitely from  
the original ,type4 ,it was written at  
,ternate in ,february #aheh1 and sent to
 ,mr4 ,darwin with a request that it    
might be shown to me if thought         
sufficiently novel and interesting4 ,dr4
 ,hooker and ,i were of opinion that it 
should be immediately printed1 and we   
succeeded in persuading ,mr4 ,darwin to 

allow one of the manuscript chapters of 
his ,origin of ,species1 entitled ,on   
the ,tendency of ,species to form       
,varieties1 and on the ,perpetuation of 
,species and ,varieties by natural      
,means of ,selection1 to appear at the  
same time499       799 ,see ,proceedings
 of the ,linnaean ,society #aheh47  ,by 
reference to these memoirs it will be   
seen that both writers begin by applying
 to the animal and vegetable worlds the 
,malthusian doctrine of population1 or  
its tendency to increase in a           
geometrical ratio1 while food can only  
be made to augment even locally in an   
arithmetical one4 ,there being therefore
 no room or means of subsistence for a  
large proportion of the plants and      
animals which are born into the world1 a
 great number must annually perish4     
,hence there is a constant struggle for 
existence among the individuals which   
represent each species and the vast     
majority can never reach the adult      
state1 to say nothing of the multitudes 

of ova and seeds which are never hatched
 or allowed to germinate4 ,of birds it  
is estimated that the number of those   
which die every year equals the         
aggregate number by which the species to
 which they respectively belong is on   
the average permanently represented4    
,the trial of strength which must decide
 what individuals are to survive and    
what to succumb occurs in the season    
when the means of subsistence are       
fewest1 or enemies most numerous1 or    
when the individuals are enfeebled by   
climate or other causes2 and it is then 
that those varieties which have any1    
even the slightest1 advantage over      
others come off victorious4 ,they may   
often owe their safety to what would    
seem to a casual observer a trifling    
difference1 such as a darker or lighter 
shade of colour rendering them less     
visible to a species which preys upon   
them1 or sometimes to attributes more   
obviously advantageous1 such as greater 
cunning or superior powers of flight or 

swiftness of foot4 ,these peculiar      
qualities and faculties1 bodily and     
instinctive1 may enable them to outlive 
their less favoured rivals1 and being   
transmitted by the force of inheritance 
to their offspring will constitute new  
races1 or what ,mr4 ,darwin calls       
incipient species4 ,if one variety1     
being in other respects just equal to   
its competitors1 happens to be more     
prolific1 some of its offspring will    
stand a greater chance of being among   
those which will escape destruction1 and
 their descendants1 being in like manner
 very fertile1 will continue to multiply
 at the expense of all less prolific    
varieties4  ,as breeders of domestic    
animals1 when they choose certain       
varieties in preference to others to    
breed from1 speak technically of their  
method as that of selecting1 ,mr4       
,darwin calls the combination of natural
 causes1 which may enable certain       
varieties of wild animals or plants to  
prevail over others of the same species1

 natural selection4  ,a breeder finds   
that a new race of cattle with short    
horns or without horns may be formed in 
the course of several generations by    
choosing varieties having the most      
stunted horns as his stock from which to
 breed2 so nature1 by altering in the   
course of ages1 the conditions of life1 
the geographical features of a country1 
its climate1 the associated plants and  
animals1 and consequently the food and  
enemies of a species and its mode of    
life1 may be said1 by this means to     
select certain varieties best adapted   
for the new state of things4 ,such new  
races may often supplant the original   
type from which they have diverged1     
although that type may have been        
perpetuated without modification for    
countless anterior ages in the same     
region1 so long as it was in harmony    
with the surrounding conditions then    
prevailing4  ,lamarck1 when speculating 
on the origin of the long neck of the   
giraffe1 imagined that quadruped to have

 stretched himself up in order to reach 
the boughs of lofty trees1 until by     
continued efforts and longing to reach  
higher he obtained an elongated neck4   
,mr4 ,darwin and ,mr4 ,wallace simply   
suppose that1 in a season of scarcity1 a
 longer-necked variety1 having the      
advantage in this respect over most of  
the herd1 as being able to browse on    
foliage out of their reach1 survived    
them and transmitted its peculiarity of 
cervical conformation to its successors4
  ,by the multiplying of slight         
modifications in the course of thousands
 of generations and by the handing down 
of the newly-acquired peculiarities by  
inheritance1 a greater and greater      
divergence from the original standard is
 supposed to be effected1 until what may
 be called a new species1 or in a       
greater lapse of time a new genus will  
be the result4  ,every naturalist admits
 that there is a general tendency in    
animals and plants to vary2 but it is   
usually taken for granted1 though he    

have no means of proving the assumption 
to be true1 that there are certain      
limits beyond which each species cannot 
pass under any circumstances or in any  
number of generations4 ,mr4 ,darwin and 
,mr4 ,wallace say that the opposite     
hypothesis1 which assumes that every    
species is capable of varying           
indefinitely from its original type1 is 
not a whit more arbitrary1 and has this 
manifest claim to be preferred1 that it 
will account for a multitude of         
phenomena which the ordinary theory is  
incapable of explaining4  ,we have no   
right1 they say1 to assume1 should we   
find that a variable species can no     
longer be made to vary in a certain     
direction1 that it has reached the      
utmost limit to which it might under    
more favourable conditions or if more   
time were allowed be made to diverge    
from the parent type4  ,hybridisation is
 not considered by ,mr4 ,darwin as a    
cause of new species1 but rather as     
tending to keep variation within bounds4

 ,varieties which are nearly allied     
cross readily with each other1 and with 
the parent stock1 and such crossing     
tends to keep the species true to its   
type1 while forms which are less nearly 
related1 although they may intermarry1  
produce no mule offspring capable of    
perpetuating their kind4  ,the          
competition of races and species1       
observes ,mr4 ,darwin1 is always most   
severe between those which are most     
closely allied and which fill nearly the
 same place in the economy of nature4   
,hence when the conditions of existence 
are modified the original stock runs    
great risk of being superseded by some  
one of its modified offshoots4 ,the new 
race or species may not be absolutely   
superior in the sum of its powers and   
endowments to the parent stock1 and may 
even be more simple in structure and of 
a lower grade of intelligence1 as well  
as of organisation1 provided on the     
whole it happens to have some slight    
advantage over its rivals4 ,progression1

 therefore1 is not a necessary          
accompaniment of variation and natural  
selection1 though when a higher         
organisation happens to be coincident   
with superior fitness to new conditions1
 the new species will have greater power
 and a greater chance of permanently    
maintaining and extending its ground4   
,one of the principal claims of ,mr4    
,darwin's theory to acceptance is that  
it enables us to dispense with a law of 
progression as a necessary accompaniment
 of variation4 ,it will account equally 
well for what is called degradation1 or 
a retrograde movement towards a simpler 
structure1 and does not require         
,lamarck's continual creation of monads2
 for this was a necessary part of his   
system1 in order to explain how1 after  
the progressive power had been at work  
for myriads of ages1 there were as many 
beings of the simplest structure in     
existence as ever4  ,mr4 ,darwin argues1
 and with no small success1 that all    
true classification in zoology and      

botany is in fact genealogical1 and that
 community of descent is the hidden bond
 which naturalists have been            
unconsciously seeking1 while they often 
imagined that they were looking for some
 unknown plan of creation4  ,as the     
,origin of ,species99 is in itself a    
condensed abstract of a much larger work
 not yet published #da ,i could not     
easily give an analysis of its contents 
within narrower limits than those of the
 original1 but it may be useful to      
enumerate briefly some of the principal 
classes of phenomena on which the theory
 of natural selection would throw light4
       799 ,origin of ,species page     
#aba47  ,in the first place it would    
explain1 says ,mr4 ,darwin1 the unity of
 type which runs through the whole      
organic world1 and why there is         
sometimes a fundamental agreement in    
structure in the same class of beings   
which is quite independent of their     
habits of life1 for such structure1     
derived by inheritance from a remote    

progenitor1 has been modified in the    
course of ages in different ways        
according to the conditions of          
existence4 ,it would also explain why   
all living and extinct beings are       
united1 by complex radiating and        
circuitous lines of affinity with one   
another into one grand system299 also1  
there having been a continued extinction
 of old races and species in progress   
and a formation of new ones by          
variation1 why in some genera which are 
largely represented1 or to which a great
 many species belong1 many of these are 
closely but unequally related2 also1 why
 there are distinct geographical        
provinces of species of animals and     
plants1 for after long isolation by     
physical barriers each fauna and flora  
by varying continually must become      
distinct from its ancestral type1 and   
from the new forms assumed by other     
descendants which have diverged from the
 same stock4       799 ,origin page     
#dih47  ,the theory of indefinite       

modification would also explain why     
rudimentary organs are so useful in     
classification1 being the remnants      
preserved by inheritance of organs which
 the present species once used--as in   
the case of the rudiments of eyes in    
insects and reptiles inhabiting dark    
caverns1 or of the wings of birds and   
beetles which have lost all power of    
flight4 ,in such cases the affinities of
 species are often more readily         
discerned by reference to these         
imperfect structures than by others of  
much more physiological importance to   
the individuals themselves4  ,the same  
hypothesis would explain why there are  
no mammalia in islands far from         
continents1 except bats1 which can reach
 them by flying2 and also why the birds1
 insects1 plants1 and other inhabitants 
of islands1 even when specifically      
unlike1 usually agree generically with  
those of the nearest continent1 it being
 assumed that the original stock of such
 species came by migration from the     

nearest land4  ,variation and natural   
selection would also afford a key to a  
multitude of geological facts otherwise 
wholly unaccounted for1 as for example  
why there is generally an intimate      
connection between the living animals   
and plants of each great division of the
 globe and the extinct fauna and flora  
of the ,post-,tertiary or ,tertiary     
formations of the same region2 as1 for  
example1 in ,north ,america1 where we   
not only find among the living mollusca 
peculiar forms foreign to ,europe1 such 
as ,gnathodon and ,fulgur 7a subgenus of
 ,fusus71 but meet also with extinct    
species of those same genera in the     
,tertiary fauna of the same part of the 
world4 ,in like manner1 among the       
mammalia we find in ,australia not only 
living kangaroos and wombats1 but fossil
 individuals of extinct species of the  
same genera4 ,so also there are recent  
and fossil sloths1 armadilloes and other
 ,edentata in ,south ,america1 and      
living and extinct species of elephant1 

rhinoceros1 tiger1 and bear in the great
 ,europeo-,asiatic continent4 ,the      
theory of the origin of new species by  
variation will also explain why a       
species which has once died out never   
reappears and why the fossil fauna and  
flora recede farther and farther from   
the living type in proportion as we     
trace them back to remoter ages4 ,it    
would also account for the fact that    
when we have to intercalate a new set of
 fossiliferous strata between two groups
 previously known1 the newly discovered 
fossils serve to fill up gaps between   
specific or generic types previously    
familiar to us1 supplying often the     
missing links of the chain1 which1 if   
transmutation is accepted1 must once    
have been continuous4  ,one of the most 
original speculations in ,mr4 ,darwin's 
work is derived from the fact that1 in  
the breeding of animals1 it is often    
observed that at whatever age any       
variation first appears in the parent1  
it tends to reappear at a corresponding 

age in the offspring4 ,hence the young  
individuals of two races which have     
sprung from the same parent stock are   
usually more like each other than the   
adults4 ,thus the puppies of the        
greyhound and bull-dog are much more    
nearly alike in their proportions than  
the grown-up dogs1 and in like manner   
the foals of the carthorse and racehorse
 than the adult individuals4 ,for the   
same reason we may understand why the   
species of the same genus1 or genera of 
the same family1 resemble each other    
more nearly in their embryonic than in  
their more fully developed state1 or how
 it is that in the eyes of most         
naturalists the structure of the embryo 
is even more important in classification
 than that of the adult1 for the embryo 
is the animal in its less modified      
state1 and in so far it reveals the     
structure of its progenitor4 ,in two    
groups of animals1 however much they may
 at present differ from each other in   
structure and habits1 if they pass      

through the same or similar embryonic   
stages1 we may feel assured that they   
have both descended from the same or    
nearly similar parents1 and are         
therefore in that degree closely        
related4 ,thus community in embryonic   
structure reveals community of descent1 
however much the structure of the adult 
may have been modified499       799     
,darwin1 ,origin etc4 page #ddh47  ,if  
then there had been a system of         
progressive development1 the successive 
changes through which the embryo of a   
species of a high class1 a mammifer for 
example1 now passes1 may be expected to 
present us with a picture of the stages 
through which1 in the course of ages1   
that class of animals has successively  
passed in advancing from a lower to a   
higher grade4 ,hence the embryonic      
states exhibited one after the other by 
the human individual bear a certain     
amount of resemblance to those of the   
fish1 reptile1 and bird before assuming 
those of the highest division of the    

vertebrata4  ,mr4 ,darwin1 after making 
a laborious analysis of many floras1    
found that those genera which are       
represented by a large number of species
 contain a greater number of variable   
species1 relatively speaking1 than the  
smaller genera or those less numerously 
represented4 ,this fact he adduces in   
support of his opinion that varieties   
are incipient species1 for he observes  
that the existence of the larger genera 
implies that the manufacturing of       
species has been active in the period   
immediately preceding our own1 in which 
case we ought generally to find the same
 forces still in full activity1 more    
especially as we have every reason to   
believe the process by which new species
 are produced is a slow one499       799
 ,origin of ,species chapter #b page    
#ef47  ,dr4 ,hooker tells us that he was
 long disposed to doubt this result1 as 
he was acquainted with so many variable 
small genera1 but after examining ,mr4  
,darwin's data1 he was compelled to     

acquiesce in his generalisation499      
799 ,introductory ,essay to the ,flora  
of ,australia page #f47  ,it is one of  
those conclusions1 to verify which      
requires the investigation of many      
thousands of species1 and to which      
exceptions may easily be adduced both in
 the animal and vegetable kingdoms1 so  
that it will be long before we can      
expect it to be thoroughly tested1 and  
if true1 fairly appreciated4 ,among the 
most striking exceptions will be some   
genera still large1 but which are       
beginning to decrease1 the conditions   
favourable to their former predominance 
having already begun to change4 ,to     
many1 this doctrine of natural          
selection1 or the preservation of       
favoured races in the struggle for life1
 seems so simple1 when once clearly     
stated1 and so consonant with known     
facts and received principles1 that they
 have difficulty in conceiving how it   
can constitute a great step in the      
progress of science4 ,such is often the 

case with important discoveries1 but in 
order to assure ourselves that the      
doctrine was by no means obvious1 we    
have only to refer back to the writings 
of skilful naturalists who attempted in 
the earlier part of the nineteenth      
century to theorise on this subject1    
before the invention of this new method 
of explaining how certain forms are     
supplanted by new ones and in what      
manner these last are selected out of   
innumerable varieties and rendered      
permanent4   ,,dr4 ,,hooker ,,on ,,the  
,,theory ,,of ,,creation ,,by           
,,variation ,,as ,,applied ,,to ,,the   
,,vegetable ,,kingdom4  ,of ,dr4        
,hooker1 whom ,i have often cited in    
this chapter1 ,mr4 ,darwin has spoken in
 the ,introduction to his ,origin of    
,species1 as one who had1 for fifteen   
years1 aided him in every possible way1 
by his large stores of knowledge1 and   
his excellent judgment4 ,this           
distinguished botanist published his    
,introductory ,essay to the ,flora of   

,australia in ,december #ahei1 the year 
after the memoir on ,natural ,selection 
was communicated to the ,linnaean       
,society1 and a month after the         
appearance of the ,origin of ,species4  
,having1 in the course of his extensive 
travels1 studied the botany of arctic1  
temperate1 and tropical regions1 and    
written on the flora of ,india1 which he
 had examined at all heights above the  
sea from the plains of ,bengal to the   
limits of perpetual snow in the         
,himalaya1 and having specially devoted 
his attention to geographical varieties1
 or those changes of character which    
plants exhibit when traced over wide    
areas and seen under new conditions2    
being also practically versed in the    
description and classification of new   
plants1 from various parts of the world1
 and having been called upon carefully  
to consider the claims of thousands of  
varieties to rank as species1 no one was
 better qualified by observation and    
reflection to give an authoritative     

opinion on the question1 whether the    
present vegetation of the globe is or is
 not in accordance with the theory which
 ,mr4 ,darwin has proposed4 ,we cannot  
but feel1 therefore1 deeply interested  
when we find him making the following   
declaration3  ,the mutual relations of  
the plants of each great botanical      
province1 and1 in fact1 of the world    
generally1 is just such as would have   
resulted if variation had gone on       
operating throughout indefinite periods1
 in the same manner as we see it act in 
a limited number of centuries1 so as    
gradually to give rise in the course of 
time1 to the most widely divergent      
forms4  ,in the same essay1 this author 
remarks1 ,the element of mutability     
pervades the whole ,vegetable ,kingdom2 
no class1 nor order1 nor genus of more  
than a few species claims absolute      
exemption from it1 whilst the grand     
total of unstable forms1 generally      
assumed to be species1 probably exceeds 
that of the stable4 ,yet he contends    

that species are neither visionary1 nor 
even arbitrary creations of the         
naturalist1 but realities1 though they  
may not remain true for ever4 ,the      
majority of them1 he remarks1 are so far
 constant1 within the range of our      
experience1 and their forms and         
characters so faithfully handed down    
through thousands of generations1 that  
they admit of being treated as if they  
were permanent and immutable4 ,but the  
range of our experience is so limited1  
that it will not account for a single   
fact in the present geographical        
distribution1 or origin of any one      
species of plant1 nor for the amount of 
variation it has undergone1 nor will it 
indicate the time when it first         
appeared1 nor the form it had when      
created499       799 ,hooker1           
,introductory ,essay to the ,flora of   
,australia47  ,to what an extent the    
limits of species are indefinable1 is   
evinced1 he says1 by the singular fact  
that1 among those botanists who believe 

them to be immutable1 the number of     
flowering plants is by some assumed to  
be #hj1jjj1 and by others over #aej1jjj4
 ,the general limitation of species to  
certain areas suggests the idea that    
each of them1 with all their varieties1 
have sprung from a common parent and    
have spread in various directions from a
 common centre4 ,the frequency also of  
the grouping of genera within certain   
geographical limits is in favour of the 
same law1 although the migration of     
species may sometimes cause apparent    
exceptions to the rule and make the same
 types appear to have originated        
independently at different spots499     
799 ,ibid4 page #ac47  ,certain genera  
of plants1 which1 like the brambles1    
roses1 and willows in ,europe1 consist  
of a continuous series of varieties     
between the terms of which no           
intermediate forms can be intercalated1 
may be supposed to be newer types and on
 the increase1 and therefore undergoing 
much variation2 whereas genera which    

present no such perplexing gradations   
may be of older date and may have been  
losing species and varieties by         
extinction4 ,in this case1 the          
annihilation of intermediate forms which
 once existed makes it an easy task to  
distinguish those which remain4  ,it had
 usually been supposed by the advocates 
of the immutability of species that     
domesticated races1 if allowed to run   
wild1 always revert to their parent     
type4 ,mr4 ,wallace had said in reply   
that a domesticated species1 if it loses
 the protection of ,man1 can only stand 
its ground in a wild state by resuming  
those habits and recovering those       
attributes which it may have lost when  
under domestication4 ,if these faculties
 are so much enfeebled as to be         
irrecoverable it will perish2 if not and
 if it can adapt itself to the          
surrounding conditions1 it will revert  
to the state in which ,man first found  
it3 for in one1 two1 or three thousand  
years1 which may have elapsed since it  

was originally tamed1 there will not    
have been time for such geographical1   
climatal1 and organic changes as would  
only be suited to a new race or a new   
and allied species4  ,but in regard to  
plants ,dr4 ,hooker questions the fact  
of reversion4 ,according to him1 species
 in general do not readily vary1 but    
when they once begin to do so the new   
varieties1 as every horticulturist      
knows1 show a great inclination to go on
 departing more and more from the old   
stock4 ,as the best marked varieties of 
a wild species occur on the confines of 
the area which it inhabits1 so the best 
marked varieties of a cultivated plant  
are those last produced by the gardener4
 ,cabbages1 for example1 wall fruits1   
and cereal1 show no disposition1 when   
neglected1 to assume the characters of  
the wild states of these plants4 ,hence 
the difficulty of determining what are  
the true parent species of most of our  
cultivated plants4 ,thus the finer kinds
 of apples1 if grown from seed1         

degenerate and become crabs1 but in so  
doing they do not revert to the original
 wild crab-apple1 but become crab states
 of the varieties to which they         
belong499       799 ,introductory ,essay
 to the ,flora of ,australia page #i47  
,it would lead me into too long a       
digression were ,i to attempt to give a 
fuller analysis of this admirable essay2
 but ,i may add that none of the        
observations are more in point1 as      
bearing on the doctrine of what ,hooker 
terms creation by variation1 than the   
great extent to which the internal      
characters and properties of plants1 or 
their physiological constitution1 are   
capable of being modified1 while they   
exhibit externally no visible departure 
from the normal form4 ,thus1 in one     
region a species may possess peculiar   
medicinal qualities which it wants in   
another1 or it may be hardier and better
 able to resist cold4 ,the average range
 in altitude1 says ,hooker1 of each     
species of flowering plant in the       

,himalayan ,mountains1 whether in the   
tropical1 temperate1 or ,alpine region1 
is #djjj feet1 which is equivalent to   
twelve degrees of isothermals of        
latitude4 ,if an individual of any of   
these species be taken from the upper   
limits of its range and carried to      
,england1 it is found to be better able 
to stand our climate than those from the
 lower or warmer stations4 ,when several
 of these internal or physiological     
modifications are accompanied by        
variation in size1 habits of growth1    
colour of the flowers1 and other        
external characters1 and these are found
 to be constant in successive           
generations1 botanists may well begin to
 differ in opinion as to whether they   
ought to regard them as distinct species
 or not4   ,,alternation ,,of           
,,generations4  ,hitherto1 no rival     
hypothesis has been proposed as a       
substitute for the doctrine of          
transmutation2 for what we term         
independent creation1 or the direct     

intervention of the ,supreme ,cause1    
must simply be considered as an avowal  
that we deem the question to lie beyond 
the domain of science4  ,the discovery  
by ,steenstrup of alternate generation  
enlarges our views of the range of      
metamorphosis through which a species   
may pass1 so that some of its stages 7as
 when a ,sertularia and a ,medusa       
interchange7 deviate so far from others 
as to have been referred by able        
zoologists to distinct genera1 or even  
families4 ,but in all these cases the   
organism1 after running through a       
certain cycle of change1 returns to the 
exact point from which it set out1 and  
no new form or species is thereby       
introduced into the world4 ,the only    
secondary cause therefore which has as  
yet been even conjecturally brought     
forward1 to explain how in the ordinary 
course of nature a new specific form may
 be generated is1 as ,lamarck declared1 
variation1 and this has been rendered a 
far more probable hypothesis by the way 

in which natural selection is shown to  
give intensity and permanency to certain
 varieties4   ,,independent ,,creation4 
,when ,i formerly advocated the doctrine
 that species were primordial creations 
and not derivative1 ,i endeavoured to   
explain the manner of their geographical
 distribution1 and the affinity of      
living forms to the fossil types nearest
 akin to them in the ,tertiary strata of
 the same part of the globe1 by         
supposing that the creative power1 which
 originally adapts certain types to     
aquatic and others to terrestrial       
conditions1 has at successive geological
 epochs introduced new forms best suited
 to each area and climate1 so as to fill
 the places of those which may have died
 out4  ,in that case1 although the new  
species would differ from the old 7for  
these would not be revived1 having been 
already proved by the fact of their     
extinction to be incapable of holding   
their ground71 still they would resemble
 their predecessors generically4 ,for1  

as ,mr4 ,darwin states in regard to new 
races1 those of a dominant type inherit 
the advantages which made their parent  
species flourish in the same country1   
and they likewise partake in those      
general advantages which made the genus 
to which the parent species belonged a  
large genus in its own country4  ,we    
might therefore1 by parity of reasoning1
 have anticipated that the creative     
power1 adapting the new types to the new
 combination of organic and inorganic   
conditions of a given region1 such as   
its soil1 climate1 and inhabitants1     
would introduce new modifications of the
 old types--marsupials1 for example1 in 
,australia1 new sloths and armadilloes  
in ,south ,america1 new heaths at the   
,cape1 new roses in the northern and new
 calceolarias in the southern           
hemisphere4 ,but to this line of        
argument ,mr4 ,darwin and ,dr4 ,hooker  
reply that when animals or plants       
migrate into new countries1 whether     
assisted by man or without his aid1 the 

most successful colonisers appertain by 
no means to those types which are most  
allied to the old indigenous species4   
,on the contrary it more frequently     
happens that members of genera1 orders1 
or even classes1 distinct and foreign to
 the invaded country1 make their way    
most rapidly and become dominant at the 
expense of the endemic species4 ,such is
 the case with the placental quadrupeds 
in ,australia1 and with horses and many 
foreign plants in the pampas of ,south  
,america1 and numberless instances in   
the ,united ,states and elsewhere which 
might easily be enumerated4 ,hence the  
transmutationists infer that the reason 
why these foreign types1 so peculiarly  
fitted for these regions1 have never    
before been developed there is simply   
that they were excluded by natural      
barriers4 ,but these barriers of sea or 
desert or mountain could never have been
 of the least avail had the creative    
force acted independently of material   
laws or had it not pleased the ,author  

of ,nature that the origin of new       
species should be governed by some      
secondary causes analogous to those     
which we see preside over the appearance
 of new varieties1 which never appear   
except as the offspring of a parent     
stock very closely resembling them4     
,,chapter #bb4 -- ,,objections ,,to     
,,the ,,hypothesis ,,of ,,transmutation 
,,considered4    ,statement of          
,objections to the ,hypothesis of       
,transmutation      founded on the      
,absence of ,intermediate ,forms4       
,genera of which the ,species are       
closely allied4   ,occasional ,discovery
 of the missing ,links in a ,fossil     
,state4   ,davidson's ,monograph on the 
,brachiopoda4   ,why the ,gradational   
,forms1 when found1 are not accepted as 
,evidence of ,transmutation4   ,gaps    
caused by ,extinction of ,races and     
,species4   ,vast ,tertiary ,periods    
during which this ,extinction has been  
going      on in the ,fauna and ,flora  
now existing4   ,genealogical ,bond     

between ,miocene and ,recent ,plants and
 ,insects4   ,fossils of ,oeningen4     
,species of ,insects in ,britain and    
,north ,america represented by          
distinct ,varieties4   ,falconer's      
,monograph on living and fossil         
,elephants4   ,fossil ,species and      
,genera of the ,horse ,tribe in ,north  
and      ,south ,america4   ,relation of
 the ,pliocene ,mammalia of ,north      
,america1 ,asia1      and ,europe4      
,species of ,mammalia1 though less      
persistent than the ,mollusca1          
change slowly4   ,arguments for and     
against ,transmutation derived from the 
,absence      of ,mammalia in ,islands4 
,imperfection of the ,geological        
,record4   ,intercalation of newly      
discovered ,formation of intermediate   
,age      in the chronological ,series4 
,reference of the ,st4 ,cassian ,beds to
 the ,triassic ,periods4   ,discovery of
 new organic ,types4   ,feathered       
,archaeopteryx of the ,oolite4          
,,theory ,,of ,,transmutation--,,absence

 ,,of ,,intermediate ,,links4  ,the most
 obvious and popular of the objections  
urged against the theory of             
transmutation may be thus expressed3 ,if
 the extinct species of plants and      
animals of the later geological periods 
were the progenitors of the living      
species1 and gave origin to them by     
variation and natural selection1 where  
are all the intermediate forms1 fossil  
and living1 through which the lost types
 must have passed during their          
conversion into the living ones8 ,and   
why do we not find almost everywhere    
passages between the nearest allied     
species and genera1 instead of such     
strong lines of demarcation and often   
wide intervening gaps8  ,we may consider
 this objection under two heads3--      
,first4 ,to what extent are the         
gradational links really wanting in the 
living creation or in the fossil world1 
and how far may we expect to discover   
such as are missing by future research8 
,secondly4 ,are the gaps more numerous  

than we ought to anticipate1 allowing   
for the original defective state of the 
geological records1 their subsequent    
dilapidation and our slight acquaintance
 with such parts of them as are extant1 
and allowing also for the rate of       
extinction of races and species now     
going on1 and which has been going on   
since the commencement of the ,tertiary 
period8  ,first4 ,as to the alleged     
absence of intermediate varieties       
connecting one species with another1    
every zoologist and botanist who has    
engaged in the task of classification   
has been occasionally thrown into this  
dilemma--if ,i make more than one       
species in this group1 ,i must1 to be   
consistent1 make a great many4 ,even in 
a limited region like the ,british      
,isles this embarrassment is continually
 felt4  ,scarcely any two botanists1 for
 example1 can agree as to the number of 
roses1 still less as to how many species
 of bramble we possess4 ,of the latter  
genus1 ,rubus1 there is one set of forms

 respecting which it is still a question
 whether it ought to be regarded as     
constituting three species or           
thirty-seven4 ,mr4 ,bentham adopts the  
first alternative and ,mr4 ,babington   
the second1 in their well-known         
treatises on ,british plants4  ,we learn
 from ,dr4 ,hooker that at the          
antipodes1 both in ,new ,zealand and    
,australia1 this same genus ,rubus is   
represented by several species rich in  
individuals and remarkable for their    
variability4 ,when we consider how1 as  
we extend our knowledge of the same     
plant over a wider area1 new            
geographical varieties commonly present 
themselves1 and then endeavour to       
imagine the number of forms of the genus
 ,rubus which may now exist1 or probably
 have existed1 in ,europe and in regions
 intervening between ,europe and        
,australia1 comprehending all which may 
have flourished in ,tertiary and        
,post-,tertiary periods1 we shall       
perceive how little stress should be    

laid on arguments founded on the assumed
 absence of missing links in the flora  
as it now exists4  ,if in the battle of 
life the competition is keenest between 
closely allied varieties and species1 as
 ,mr4 ,darwin contends1 many forms can  
never be of long duration1 nor have a   
wide range1 and these must often pass   
away without leaving behind them any    
fossil memorials4 ,in this manner we may
 account for many breaks in the series  
which no future researches will ever    
fill up4   ,,davidson ,,on ,,fossil     
,,brachiopoda4  ,it is from fossil      
conchology more than from any other     
department of the organic world that we 
may hope to derive traces of a          
transition from certain types to others1
 and fossil memorials of all the        
intermediate shades of form4 ,we may    
especially hope to gain this information
 from the study of some of the lower    
groups1 such as the ,brachiopoda1 which 
are persistent in type1 so that the     
thread of our inquiry is less likely to 

be interrupted by breaks in the sequence
 of the fossiliferous rocks4 ,the       
splendid monograph just concluded by    
,mr4 ,davidson on the ,british          
,brachiopoda1 illustrates1 in the first 
place1 the tendency of certain generic  
forms in this division of the mollusca  
to be persistent throughout the whole   
range of geological time yet known to   
us2 for the four genera1 ,rhynchonella1 
,crania1 ,discina1 and ,lingula1 have   
been traced through the ,silurian1      
,devonian1 ,carboniferous1 ,permian1    
,jurassic1 ,cretaceous1 ,tertiary1 and  
,recent periods1 and still retain in the
 existing seas the identical shape and  
character which they exhibited in the   
earliest formations4 ,on the other hand1
 other ,brachiopoda have gone through in
 shorter periods a vast series of       
transformations1 so that distinct       
specific and even generic names have    
been given to the same varying form1    
according to the different aspects and  
characters it has put on in successive  

sets of strata4  ,in proportion as      
materials of comparison have            
accumulated1 the necessity of uniting   
species previously regarded as distinct 
under one denomination has become more  
and more apparent4 ,mr4 ,davidson1      
accordingly1 after studying not less    
than #bfj reputed species from the      
,british ,carboniferous rocks1 has been 
obliged to reduce that number to #ajj1  
to which he has added #bj species either
 entirely new or new to the ,british    
strata2 but he declares his conviction  
that1 when our knowledge of these #abj  
,brachiopoda is more complete1 a further
 reduction of species will take place4  
,speaking of one of these forms1 which  
he calls ,spirifer trigonalis1 he says  
that it is so dissimilar to another     
extreme of the series1 ,s4 crassa1 that 
in the first part of his memoir         
7published some ten years ago7 he       
described them as distinct1 and the idea
 of confounding them together must1 he  
admits1 appear absurd to those who have 

never seen the intermediate links1 such 
as are presented by ,s4 bisulcata1 and  
at least four others with their         
varieties1 most of them shells formerly 
recognised as distinct by the most      
eminent palaeontologists1 but respecting
 which these same authorities now agree 
with ,mr4 ,davidson in uniting them into
 one species499       799 ,monograph on 
,british ,brachiopoda                   
,palaeontographical      ,society page  
#bbb47  ,the same species has sometimes 
continued to exist under slightly       
modified forms throughout the whole of  
the ,ordovician and ,silurian as well as
 the entire ,devonian and ,carboniferous
 periods1 as in the case of the shell   
generally known as ,leptaena            
rhomboidalis1 ,wahlenberg4 ,no less than
 fifteen commonly received species are  
demonstrated by ,mr4 ,davidson by the   
aid of a long series of transitional    
forms1 to appertain to this one type2   
and it is acknowledged by some of the   
best writers that they were induced on  

purely theoretical grounds to give      
distinct names to some of the varieties 
now suppressed1 merely because they     
found them in rocks so widely remote in 
time that they deemed it contrary to    
analogy to suppose that the same species
 could have endured so long3 a          
fallacious mode of reasoning1 analogous 
to that which leads some zoologists and 
botanists to distinguish by specific    
names slight varieties of living plants 
and animals met with in very remote     
countries1 as in ,europe and ,australia1
 for example2 it being assumed that each
 species has had a single birthplace or 
area of creation1 and that they could   
not by migration have gone from the     
northern to the southern hemisphere     
across the intervening tropics4         
,examples are also given by ,mr4        
,davidson of species which pass from the
 ,devonian into the ,carboniferous1 and 
from that again into the ,permian rocks4
 ,the vast longevity of such specific   
forms has not been generally recognised 

in consequence of the change of names   
which they have undergone when derived  
from such distant formations1 as when   
,atrypa unguicularis assumes1 when      
derived from a ,carboniferous rock1 the 
name of ,spirifer ,urei1 besides several
 other synonyms1 and then1 when it      
reaches the ,permian period1 takes the  
name of ,spirifer ,clannyana1 ,king2 all
 of which forms the author of the       
monograph1 now under consideration1     
asserts to be one and the same4  ,no    
geologist will deny that the distance of
 time which separates some of the eras  
above alluded to1 or the dates of the   
earliest and latest appearances of some 
of the fossils above mentioned1 must be 
reckoned by millions of years4          
,according to ,mr4 ,darwin's views1 it  
is only by having at our command the    
records of such enormous periods that we
 can expect to be able to point out the 
gradations which unite very distinct    
specific forms4 ,but the advocate of    
transmutation must not be disappointed  

if1 when he has succeeded in obtaining  
some of the proofs which he was         
challenged to produce1 they make no     
impression on the mind of his opponent4 
,all that will be conceded is that      
specific variation in the ,brachiopoda1 
at least1 has a wider range than was    
formerly suspected4 ,so long as several 
allied species were brought nearer and  
nearer to each other1 considerable      
uneasiness might have been felt as to   
the reality of species in general1 but  
when fifteen or more are once fairly    
merged in one group1 constituting in the
 aggregate a single species1 one and    
indivisible1 and capable of being       
readily distinguished from every other  
group at present known1 all misgivings  
are at an end4 ,implicit trust in the   
immutability of species is then         
restored1 and the more insensible the   
shades from one extreme to the other1 in
 a word1 the more complete the evidence 
of transition1 the more nugatory does   
the argument derived from it appear4 ,it

 then simply resolves itself into one of
 those exceptional instances of what is 
called a protean form4  ,thirty years   
ago a great ,london dealer in shells1   
himself an able naturalist1 told me that
 there was nothing he had so much reason
 to dread1 as tending to depreciate his 
stock in trade1 as the appearance of a  
good monograph on some large genus of   
mollusca2 for1 in proportion as the work
 was executed in a philosophical spirit1
 it was sure to injure him1 every       
reputed species pronounced to be a mere 
variety becoming from that time         
unsaleable4 ,fortunately1 so much       
progress has since been made in ,england
 in estimating the true ends and aims of
 science1 that specimens indicating a   
passage between forms usually separated 
by wide gaps1 whether in the ,recent or 
fossil fauna1 are eagerly sought for1   
and often more prized than the mere     
normal or typical forms4  ,it is clear  
that the more ancient the existing      
mollusca1 or the farther back into the  

past we can trace the remains of shells 
still living1 the more easy it becomes  
to reconcile with the doctrine of       
transmutation the distinctness in       
character of the majority of living     
species4 ,for1 what we want is time1    
first1 for the gradual formation1 and   
then for the extinction of races and    
allied species1 occasioning gaps between
 the survivors4  ,in the year #ahcj ,i  
announced1 on the authority of ,m4      
,deshayes1 that about one-fifth of the  
mollusca of the ,falunian or ,upper     
,miocene strata of ,europe1 belonged to 
living species4 ,although the soundness 
of that conclusion was afterwards called
 in question by two or three eminent    
conchologists 7and by the late ,m4      
,alcide d',orbigny among others71 it has
 since been confirmed by the majority of
 living naturalists and is well borne   
out by the copious evidence on the      
subject laid before the public in the   
magnificent work edited by ,dr4         
,hoernes1 and published under the       

auspices of the ,austrian ,government1  
,on the ,fossil ,shells of the ,vienna  
,basin4  ,the collection of ,tertiary   
shells from which those descriptions and
 beautiful figures were taken is almost 
unexampled for the fine state of        
preservation of the specimens1 and the  
care with which all the varieties have  
been compared4 ,it is now admitted that 
about one-third of these ,miocene forms1
 univalves and bivalves included1 agree 
specifically with living mollusca1 so   
that much more than the enormous        
interval which divides the ,miocene from
 the ,recent period must be taken into  
our account when we speculate on the    
origin by transmutation of the shells   
now living1 and the disappearance by    
extinction of intermediate varieties and
 species4   ,,miocene ,,plants ,,and    
,,insects ,,related ,,to ,,recent       
,,species4  ,geologists were acquainted 
with about three hundred species of     
marine shells from the ,falunian strata 
on the banks of the ,loire1 before they 

knew anything of the contemporary       
insects and plants4 ,at length1 as if to
 warn us against inferring from negative
 evidence the poverty of any ancient set
 of strata in organic remains proper to 
the land1 a rich flora and entomological
 fauna was suddenly revealed to us      
characteristic of ,central ,europe      
during the ,upper ,miocene period4 ,this
 result followed the determination of   
the true position of the ,oeningen beds 
in ,switzerland1 and of certain         
formations of ,brown ,coal in ,germany4 
,professor ,heer1 who has described     
nearly five hundred species of fossil   
plants from ,oeningen1 besides many more
 from other ,miocene localities in      
,switzerland199 estimates the           
phanerogamous species which must have   
flourished in ,central ,europe at that  
time at #cjjj1 and the insects as having
 been more numerous in the same         
proportion as they now exceed the plants
 in all latitudes4       799 ,heer1     
,flora tertiaria ,helvetiae #ahei2 and  

,gaudin's      ,french translation1 with
 additions1 #ahfa47  ,this ,european    
,miocene flora was remarkable for the   
preponderance of arborescent and shrubby
 evergreens1 and comprised many generic 
types no longer associated together in  
any existing flora or geographical      
province4 ,some genera1 for example1    
which are at present restricted to      
,america1 co-existed in ,switzerland    
with forms now peculiar to ,asia1 and   
with others at present confined to      
,australia4  ,professor ,heer has not   
ventured to identify any of this vast   
assemblage of ,miocene plants and       
insects with living species1 so far at  
least as to assign to them the same     
specific names1 but he presents us with 
a list of what he terms homologous      
forms1 which are so like the living ones
 that he supposes the one to have been  
derived genealogically from the others4 
,he hesitates indeed as to the manner of
 the transformation or the precise      
nature of the relationship1 whether the 

changes were brought about by some      
influence exerted continually for ages1 
or whether at some given moment the old 
types were struck with a new image4     
,among the homologous plants alluded to 
are forty species1 of which both the    
leaves and fruits are preserved1 and    
thirty others1 known at present by their
 leaves only4 ,in the first list we find
 many ,american types1 such as the tulip
 tree 7,liriodendron71 the deciduous    
cypress 7,taxodium71 the red maple and  
others1 together with ,japanese forms1  
such as a cinnamon1 which is very       
abundant4 ,and what is worthy of notice1
 some of these fossils so closely allied
 to living plants occur not only in the 
,upper1 but even some few of them as far
 back in time as the ,lower ,miocene    
formations of ,switzerland and ,germany1
 which are probably as distant from the 
,upper ,miocene or ,oeningen beds as are
 the latter from our own era4  ,some of 
the fossil plants to which ,professor   
,heer has given new names have been     

regarded as ,recent species by other    
eminent naturalists4 ,thus1 one of the  
trees allied to the elm ,unger had      
called ,planera ,richardi1 a species    
which now flourishes in the ,caucasus   
and ,crete4 ,professor ,heer had        
attempted to distinguish it from the    
living tree by the greater size of its  
fruit1 but this character he confessed  
did not hold good1 when he had an       
opportunity 7#ahfa7 of comparing all the
 varieties of the living ,planera       
,richardi which ,dr4 ,hooker laid before
 him in the rich herbarium of ,kew4  ,as
 to the homologous insects of the ,upper
 ,miocene period in ,switzerland1 we    
find among them1 mingled with genera now
 wholly foreign to ,europe1 some very   
familiar forms1 such as the common      
glowworm1 ,lampyris noctiluca1 ,linn41  
the dung-beetle1 ,geotrupes             
stercorarius1 ,linn41 the ladybird1     
,coccinella septempunctata1 ,linn41 the 
ear-wig1 ,forficula auricularia1 ,linn41
 some of our common dragon-flies1 as    

,libellula depressa1 ,linn41 the        
honey-bee1 ,apis mellifera1 ,linn41 the 
cuckoo spittle insect1 ,aphrophora      
spumaria1 ,linn41 and a long catalogue  
of others1 to all of which ,professor   
,heer had given new names1 but which    
some entomologists may regard as mere   
varieties until some stronger reasons   
are adduced for coming to a contrary    
opinion4  ,several of the insects above 
enumerated1 like the common ladybird1   
are well known at present to have a very
 wide range over nearly the whole of the
 ,old ,world1 for example1 without      
varying1 and might therefore be expected
 to have been persistent throughout many
 successive changes of the earth's      
surface and climate4 ,yet we may fairly 
anticipate that even the most constant  
types will have undergone some          
modifications in passing from the       
,miocene to the ,recent epoch1 since in 
the former period the geography and     
climate of ,europe1 the height of the   
,alps1 and the general fauna and flora  

were so different from what they now    
are4 ,but the deviation may not exceed  
that which would generally be expressed 
by what is called a well-marked variety4
  ,before ,i pass on to another topic1  
it may be well to answer a question     
which may have occurred to the reader2  
how it happens that we remained so long 
ignorant of the vegetation and insects  
of the ,upper ,miocene period in        
,europe8 ,the answer may be instructive 
to those who are in the habit of        
underrating the former richness of the  
organic world wherever they happen to   
have no evidence of its condition4 ,a   
large part of the ,upper ,miocene       
insects and plants alluded to have been 
met with at ,oeningen1 near the ,lake of
 ,constance1 in two or three spots      
embedded in thinly laminated marls1 the 
entire thickness of which scarcely      
exceeds #c or #d feet1 and in two       
quarries of very limited dimensions4    
,the rare combination of causes which   
seems to have led to the faithful       

preservation of so many treasures of a  
perishable nature in so small an area1  
appear to have been the following3      
first1 a river flowing into a lake2     
secondly1 storms of wind1 by which      
leaves and sometimes the boughs of trees
 were torn off and floated by the stream
 into the lake2 thirdly1 mephitic gases 
rising from the lake1 by which insects  
flying over its surface were            
occasionally killed3 and fourthly1 a    
constant supply of carbonate of lime in 
solution from mineral springs1 the      
calcareous matter when precipitated to  
the bottom mingling with fine mud and   
thus forming the fossiliferous marls4   
,,species ,,of ,,insects ,,in ,,britain 
,,and ,,north ,,america1 ,,represented  
,,by ,,distinct ,,varieties4  ,if we    
compare the living ,british insects with
 those of the ,american continent1 we   
frequently find that even those species 
which are considered to be identical1   
are nevertheless varieties of the       
,european types4 ,i have noticed this   

fact when speaking of the common        
,english butterfly1 ,vanessa atalanta1  
or red admiral1 which ,i saw flying     
about the woods of ,alabama in          
mid-winter4 ,i was unable to detect any 
difference myself1 but all the ,american
 specimens which ,i took to the ,british
 ,museum were observed by ,mr4          
,doubleday to exhibit a slight          
peculiarity in the colouring of a minute
 part of the anterior wing199 a         
character first detected by ,mr4 ,t4,f4 
,stephens1 who has also discovered that 
similar slight1 but equally constant    
variations1 distinguish other           
,lepidoptera now inhabiting the opposite
 sides of the ,atlantic1 insects which1 
nevertheless1 he and ,mr4 ,westwood and 
the late ,mr4 ,kirby1 have always agreed
 to regard as mere varieties of the same
 species4       799 ,lyell's ,second    
,visit to the ,united ,states volume #b 
page      #bic47  ,mr4 ,t4,v4           
,wollaston1 in treating of the variation
 of insects in maritime situations and  

small islands1 has shown how the colour1
 growth of the wings1 and many other    
characters1 undergo modification under  
the influence of local conditions1      
continued for long periods of time299   
and ,mr4 ,brown has lately called our   
attention to the fact that the insects  
of the ,shetland ,isles present slight  
deviations from the corresponding types 
occurring in ,great ,britain1 but far   
less marked than those which distinguish
 the ,american from the ,european       
varieties49999 ,in the case of          
,shetland1 ,mr4 ,brown remarks1 a land  
communication may well be supposed to   
have prevailed with ,scotland at a more 
modern era than that between ,europe and
 ,america4 ,in fact1 we have seen that  
,shetland can hardly fail to have been  
united with ,scotland after the         
commencement of the glacial period 7see 
map1 ,figure #da72 whereas a            
communication between the north of      
,europe by ,iceland and ,greenland      
7which1 as before stated1 once enjoyed a

 genial climate7 must have been anterior
 to the glacial epoch4 ,a much larger   
isolation1 and the impossibility of     
varieties formed in the two separated   
areas crossing with each other1 would   
account1 according to ,mr4 ,darwin's    
theory1 for the much wider divergence   
observed in the specific types of the   
two regions4       799 ,wollaston1 ,on  
the ,variation of ,species etc4 ,london 
#ahef47       79999 ,transactions of    
,northern ,entomological ,society       
#ahfb47  ,the reader will remember that 
at the commencement of the ,glacial     
period there was scarcely any           
appreciable difference between the      
molluscous fauna and that now living4   
,when therefore the events of the       
,glacial period1 as described in the    
earlier part of this volume1 are duly   
pondered on1 and when we reflect that in
 the ,upper ,miocene period the living  
species of mollusca constitute only     
one-third of the whole fauna1 we see    
clearly by how high a figure we must    

multiply the time in order to express   
the distance between the ,miocene period
 and our own days4  ,,species ,,of      
,,mammalia ,,recent ,,and               
,,fossil--,,proboscidians4  ,but it may 
perhaps be said that the mammalia afford
 more conspicuous examples than do the  
mollusca1 insects1 or plants of the wide
 gaps which separate species and genera1
 and that if in this higher class such a
 multitude of transitional forms had    
ever existed as would be required to    
unite the ,tertiary and ,recent species 
into one series or net-work of allied or
 transitional forms1 they could not so  
entirely have escaped observation       
whether in the fossil or living fauna4  
,a zoologist who entertains such an     
opinion would do well to devote himself 
to the study of some one genus of       
mammalia1 such as the elephant1         
rhinoceros1 hippopotamus1 bear1 horse1  
ox1 or deer2 and after collecting all   
the materials he can get together       
respecting the extinct and ,recent      

species1 decide for himself whether the 
present state of science justifies his  
assuming that the chain could never have
 been continuous1 the number of the     
missing links being so great4  ,among   
the extinct species formerly            
contemporary with man1 no fossil        
quadruped has so often been alluded to  
in this work as the mammoth1 ,elephas   
primigenius4 ,from a monograph on the   
proboscidians by ,dr4 ,falconer1 it     
appears that this species represents one
 extreme of a type of which the         
,pliocene ,mastodon borsoni represents  
the other4 ,between these extremes there
 are already enumerated by ,dr4         
,falconer no less than twenty-six       
species1 some of them ranging as far    
back in time as the ,miocene period1    
others still living1 like the ,indian   
and ,african forms4 ,two of these       
species1 however1 he has always         
considered as doubtful1 ,stegodon       
ganesa1 probably a mere variety of one  
of the others1 and ,elephas priscus of  

,goldfuss1 founded partly on specimens  
of the ,african elephant1 assumed by    
mistake to be fossil1 and partly on some
 aberrant forms of ,e4 antiquus4  ,the  
first effect of the intercalation of so 
many intermediate forms between the two 
most divergent types1 has been to break 
down almost entirely the generic        
distinction between ,mastodon and       
,elephas4 ,dr4 ,falconer1 indeed1       
observes that ,stegodon 7one of several 
subgenera which he has founded7         
constitutes an intermediate group1 from 
which the other species diverge through 
their dental characters1 on the one side
 into the mastodons1 and on the other   
into the ,elephants499       799        
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society volume #ac      #aheg page     
#cad47  ,the next result is to diminish 
the distance between the several members
 of each of these groups4  ,dr4         
,falconer has discovered that no less   
than four species of elephant were      
formerly confounded together under the  

title of ,elephas primigenius1 whence   
its supposed ubiquity in ,pleistocene   
times1 or its wide range over half the  
habitable globe4 ,but even when this    
form has been thus restricted in its    
specific characters1 it has still its   
geographical varieties2 for the         
mammoth's teeth brought from ,america   
may in most instances1 according to ,dr4
 ,falconer1 be distinguished from those 
proper to ,europe4 ,on this ,american   
variety ,dr4 ,leidy has conferred the   
name of ,e4 americanus4 ,another race of
 the same mammoth 7as determined by ,dr4
 ,falconer7 existed1 as we have seen1   
before the ,glacial period1 or at the   
time when the buried forest of ,cromer  
and the ,norfolk cliffs was deposited2  
and the ,swiss geologists have lately   
found remains of the mammoth in their   
country1 both in pre-glacial and        
post-glacial formations4  ,since the    
publication of ,dr4 ,falconer's         
monograph1 two other species of         
elephant1 ,f4 mirificus1 ,leidy1 and ,f4

 imperator1 have been obtained from the 
,pliocene formations of the ,niobrara   
,valley in ,nebraska1 one of which1     
however1 may possibly be found hereafter
 to be the same as ,e4 columbi1 ,falc4  
,a remarkable dwarf species also        
7,elephas melitensis7 has been          
discovered1 belonging1 like the existing
 ,e4 africanus1 to the group ,loxodon4  
,this species has been established by   
,dr4 ,falconer on remains found by      
,captain ,spratt ,r4,n4 in a cave in    
,malta499       799 ,proceedings of the 
,geological ,society ,london #ahfb47    
,how much the difficulty of             
discriminating between the fossil       
representatives of this genus may       
hereafter augment1 when all the species 
with their respective geographical      
varieties are known1 may be inferred    
from the following fact--,professor ,h4 
,schlegel1 in a recently published      
memoir1 endeavours to show that the     
living elephant of ,sumatra agrees with 
that of ,ceylon1 but is a distinct      

species from that of ,continental       
,india1 being distinguishable by the    
number of its dorsal vertebrae and ribs1
 the form of its teeth1 and other       
characteristics499       799 ,schlegel1 
,natural ,history ,review ,number #e    
#ahfb page      #gb47  ,dr4 ,falconer1  
on the other hand1 considers these two  
living species as mere geographical     
varieties1 the characters referred to   
not being constant1 as he has           
ascertained1 on comparing different     
individuals of ,e4 indicus in different 
parts of ,bengal in which the ribs vary 
from nineteen to twenty1 and different  
varieties of ,e4 africanus in which they
 vary from twenty to twenty-one4  ,an   
inquiry into the various species of the 
genus ,rhinoceros1 recent and fossil1   
has led ,dr4 ,falconer to analogous     
results1 as might be inferred from what 
was said in ,chapter #aj1 and as a      
forthcoming memoir by the same writer   
will soon more fully demonstrate4       
,among the fossils brought in #aheh by  

,mr4 ,hayden from the ,niobrara ,valley1
 ,dr4 ,leidy describes a rhinoceros so  
like the ,asiatic species1 ,r4 indicus1 
that he at first referred it to the     
same1 and1 what is most singular1 he    
remarks generally of the ,pliocene fauna
 of that part of ,north ,america that it
 is far more related in character to the
 ,pleistocene and ,recent fauna of      
,europe than to that now inhabiting the 
,american continent4  ,it seems indeed  
more and more evident that when we      
speculate in future on the pedigree of  
any extinct quadruped which abounds in  
the drift or caverns of ,europe1 we     
shall have to look to ,north and ,south 
,america as a principal source of       
information4 ,thirty years ago1 if we   
had been searching for fossil types     
which might fill up a gap between two   
species or genera of the horse tribe 7or
 great family of the ,solipedes71 we    
might have thought it sufficient to have
 got together as ample materials as we  
could obtain from the continents of     

,europe1 ,africa1 and ,asia4 ,we might  
have presumed that as no living         
representative of the equine family1    
whether horse1 ass1 zebra1 or quagga1   
had been furnished by ,north or ,south  
,america when those regions were first  
explored by ,europeans1 a search in the 
transatlantic world for fossil species  
might be dispensed with4 ,but how       
different is the prospect now opening   
before us6 ,mr4 ,darwin first detected  
the remains of a fossil horse during his
 visit to ,south ,america1 since which  
two other species have been met with on 
the same continent1 while in ,north     
,america1 in the valley of the ,nebraska
 alone1 ,mr4 ,hayden1 besides a species 
not distinguishable from the domestic   
horse1 has obtained1 according to ,dr4  
,leidy1 representatives of five other   
fossil genera of ,solipedes4 ,these he  
names1 ,hipparion1 ,protohippus1        
,merychippus1 ,hypohippus1 and          
,parahippus4 ,on the whole1 no less than
 twelve equine species1 belonging to    

seven genera 7including the ,miocene    
,anchitherium of ,nebraska71 being      
already detected in the ,tertiary and   
,post-,tertiary formations of the       
,united ,states499       799            
,proceedings of the ,academy of ,natural
 ,science      ,philadelphia for #aheh  
page #hi47  ,professors ,unger99 and    
,heer9999 have advocated1 on botanical  
grounds1 the former existence of an     
,atlantic continent during some part of 
the ,tertiary period1 as affording the  
only plausible explanation that can be  
imagined1 of the analogy between the    
,miocene flora of ,central ,europe and  
the existing flora of ,eastern ,america4
 ,professor ,oliver1 on the other hand1 
after showing how many of the ,american 
types found fossil in ,europe are common
 to ,japan1 inclines to the theory1     
first advanced by ,dr4 ,asa ,gray1 that 
the migration of species1 to which the  
community of types in the eastern states
 of ,north ,america and the ,miocene    
flora of ,europe is due1 took place when

 there was an overland communication    
from ,america to eastern ,asia between  
the fiftieth and sixtieth parallels of  
latitude1 or south of ,behring ,straits1
 following the direction of the         
,aleutian islands4999999 ,by this course
 they may have made their way1 at any   
epoch1 ,miocene1 ,pliocene1 or          
,pleistocene1 antecedently to the       
glacial epoch1 to ,mongolia1 on the east
 coast of northern ,asia4       799 ,die
 versunkene ,insel ,atlantis47          
79999 ,flora tertiaria ,helvetiae47     
7999999 ,oliver1 ,lecture at the ,royal 
,institution1 ,march #g1 #ahfb47  ,we   
have already seen that a large          
proportion of the living quadrupeds of  
,mongolia 7#cd out of #dh7 are          
specifically identical with those at    
present inhabiting the continent of     
,western ,europe and the ,british       
,isles4  ,a monograph on the            
hippopotamus1 bear1 ox1 stag1 or any    
other genus of mammalia common in the   
,european drift or caverns1 might       

equally well illustrate the defective   
state of the materials at present at our
 command4 ,we are rarely in possession  
of one perfect skeleton of any extinct  
species1 still less of skeletons of both
 sexes1 and of different ages4 ,we      
usually know nothing of the geographical
 varieties of the ,pleistocene and      
,pliocene species1 least of all1 those  
successive changes of form which they   
must have undergone in the preglacial   
epoch between the ,upper ,miocene and   
,pleistocene eras4 ,such being the      
poverty of our palaeontological data1 we
 cannot wonder that osteologists are at 
variance as to whether certain remains  
found in caverns are of the same species
 as those now living2 whether1 for      
example1 the ,talpa fossilis is really  
the common mole1 the ,meles morreni the 
common badger1 ,lutra antiqua the otter 
of ,europe1 ,sciurus priscus the        
squirrel1 ,arctomys primigenia the      
marmot1 ,myoxus fossilis the dormouse1  
,schmerling's ,felis engihoulensis the  

,european lynx1 or whether ,ursus       
spelaeus and ,ursus priscus are not     
extinct races of the living brown bear  
7,ursus arctos74  ,if at some future    
period all the above-mentioned species  
should be united with their allied      
congeners1 it cannot fail to enlarge our
 conception of the modifications which a
 species is capable of undergoing in the
 course of time1 although the same form 
may appear absolutely immutable within  
the narrow range of our experience4     
,,longevity ,,of ,,species ,,in ,,the   
,,mammalia4  ,in the ,principles of     
,geology1 in #ahcc199 ,i stated that the
 longevity of species in the class      
mollusca exceeded that in the mammalia4 
,it has been since found that this      
generalisation can be carried much      
farther1 and that in fact the law which 
governs the changes in organic being is 
such that the lower their place in a    
graduated scale1 or the simpler their   
structure1 the more persistent are they 
in form and organisation4 ,i soon became

 aware of the force of this rule in the 
class mollusca1 when ,i first attempted 
to calculate the numerical proportion of
 ,recent species in the ,newer ,pliocene
 formations as compared to the ,older   
,pliocene1 and of them again as         
contrasted with the ,miocene2 for it    
appeared invariably that a greater      
number of the lamellibranchs could be   
identified with living species than of  
the gasteropods1 and of these last a    
greater number in the lower division1   
that of entire-mouthed univalves1 than  
in that of the siphonated4 ,in whatever 
manner the changes have been brought    
about1 whether by variation and natural 
selection1 or by any other causes1 the  
rate of change has been greater where   
the grade of organisation is higher4    
799 #ast edition volume #c pages #dh and
 #adj47  ,it is only1 therefore1 where  
there is a full representation of all   
the principal orders of mollusca1 or    
when we compare those of corresponding  
grade1 that we can fully rely on the    

percentage test1 or on the proportion of
 ,recent to extinct species as          
indicating the relation of two groups to
 the existing fauna4  ,the foraminifera 
which exemplify the lowest stage of     
animal existence exhibit1 as we learn   
from the researches of ,dr4 ,carpenter  
and of ,messrs4 ,jones and ,parker1     
extreme variability in their specific   
forms1 and yet these same forms are     
persistent throughout vast periods of   
time1 exceeding1 in that respect1 even  
the brachiopods before mentioned4  ,dr4 
,hooker observes1 in regard to plants of
 complex floral structure1 that they    
manifest their physical superiority in a
 greater extent of variation and in thus
 better securing a succession of race1  
an attribute which in some senses he    
regards as of a higher order than that  
indicated by mere complexity or         
specialisation of organ499       799    
,introductory ,essay to the ,flora of   
,australia page #g47  ,as one of the    
consequences of this law1 he says that  

species1 genera1 and orders are1 on the 
whole1 best limited in plants of higher 
grade1 the dicotyledons better than the 
monocotyledons1 and the ,dichlamydeae   
better than the ,achlamydeae4  ,mr4     
,darwin remarks1 ,we can1 perhaps1      
understand the apparently quicker rate  
of change in terrestrial1 and in more   
highly organised productions1 compared  
with marine and lower productions1 by   
the more complex relations of the higher
 beings to their organic and inorganic  
conditions of life499       799 ,origin 
of ,species #crd edition page #cdj47    
,if we suppose the mammalia to be more  
sensitive than are the inferior classes 
of the vertebrata1 to every fluctuation 
in the surrounding conditions1 whether  
of the animate or inanimate world1 it   
would follow that they would oftener be 
called upon to adapt themselves by      
variation to new conditions1 or if      
unable to do so1 to give place to other 
types4 ,this would give rise to more    
frequent extinction of varieties1       

species1 and genera1 whereby the        
surviving types would be better limited1
 and the average duration of the same   
unaltered specific types would be       
lessened4   ,,absence ,,of ,,mammalia   
,,in ,,islands ,,considered ,,in        
,,reference ,,to ,,transmutation4  ,but 
if mammalia vary upon the whole at a    
more rapid rate than animals lower in   
the scale of being1 it must not be      
supposed that they can alter their      
habits and structures readily1 or that  
they are convertible in short periods   
into new species4 ,the extreme slowness 
with which such changes of habits and   
organisation take place1 when new       
conditions arise1 appears to be well    
exemplified by the absence even of small
 warm-blooded quadrupeds in islands far 
from continents1 however well such      
islands may be fitted by their          
dimensions to support them4  ,mr4       
,darwin has pointed to this absence of  
mammalia as favouring his views1        
observing that bats1 which are the only 

exceptions to the rule1 might have made 
their way to distant islands by flight1 
for they are often met with on the wing 
far out at sea4 ,unquestionably1 the    
total exclusion of quadrupeds in        
general1 which could only reach such    
isolated habitations by swimming1 seems 
to imply that nature does not dispense  
with the ordinary laws of reproduction  
when she peoples the earth with new     
forms2 for if causes purely immaterial  
were alone at work1 we might naturally  
look for squirrels1 rabbits1 polecats1  
and other small vegetable feeders and   
beasts of prey1 as often as for bats1 in
 the spots alluded to4  ,on the other   
hand1 ,i have found it difficult to     
reconcile the antiquity of certain      
islands1 such as those of the ,madeiran 
,archipelago1 and those of still larger 
size in the ,canaries1 with the total   
absence of small indigenous quadrupeds1 
for1 judging by ancient deposits of     
littoral shells1 now raised high above  
the level of the sea1 several of these  

volcanic islands 7,porto ,santo and the 
,grand ,canary among others7 must have  
existed ever since the ,upper ,miocene  
period4 ,but1 waiving all such claims to
 antiquity1 it is at least certain that 
since the close of the ,newer ,pliocene 
period1 ,madeira1 and ,porto ,santo have
 constituted two separate islands1 each 
in sight of the other1 and each         
inhabited by an assemblage of land      
shells 7,helix1 ,pupa1 ,clausilia1      
etc471 for the most part different or   
proper to each island4 ,about thirty-two
 fossil species have been obtained in   
,madeira1 and forty-two in ,porto       
,santo1 only five of the whole being    
common to both islands4 ,in each the    
living land-shells are equally distinct1
 and correspond1 for the most part1 with
 the species found fossil in each island
 respectively4  ,among the fossil       
species1 one or two appear to be        
entirely extinct1 and a larger number   
have disappeared from the fauna of the  
,madeiran ,archipelago1 though still    

extant in ,africa and ,europe4 ,many    
which were amongst the most common in   
the ,pliocene period1 have now become   
the scarcest1 and others formerly       
scarce1 are now most numerously         
represented4 ,the variety-making force  
has been at work with such              
energy--perhaps we ought to say1 has had
 so much time for its development--that 
almost every isolated rock within       
gun-shot of the shores has its peculiar 
living forms1 or those very marked races
 to which ,mr4 ,lowe1 in his excellent  
description of the fauna1 has given the 
name of sub-species4  ,since the fossil 
shells were embedded in sand near the   
coast1 these volcanic islands have      
undergone considerable alterations in   
size and shape by the wasting action of 
the waves of the ,atlantic beating      
incessantly against the cliffs1 so that 
the evidence of a vast lapse of time is 
derivable from inorganic as well as from
 organic phenomena4  ,during this period
 no mammalia1 not even of small species1

 excepting bats1 have made their        
appearance1 whether in ,madeira and     
,porto-,santo or in the larger and more 
numerous islands of the ,canarian group4
 ,it might have been expected1 from some
 expressions met with here and there in 
the ,origin of ,species1 though not     
perhaps from a fair interpretation of   
the whole tenor of the author's         
reasoning1 that this dearth of the      
highest class of vertebrata is          
inconsistent with the powers of mammalia
 to accommodate their habits and        
structures to new conditions4 ,why did  
not some of the bats1 for example1 after
 they had greatly multiplied1 and were  
hard pressed by a scarcity of insects on
 the wing1 betake themselves to the     
ground in search of prey1 and1 gradually
 losing their wings1 become transformed 
into non-volant ,insectivora8 ,mr4      
,darwin tells me that he has learnt that
 there is a bat in ,india which has been
 known occasionally to devour frogs4    
,one might also be tempted to ask1 how  

it has happened that the seals which    
swarmed on the shores of ,madeira and   
the ,canaries1 before the ,european     
colonists arrived there1 were never     
induced1 when food was scarce in the    
sea1 to venture inland from the shores1 
and begin in ,teneriffe1 and the ,grand 
,canary especially1 and other large     
islands1 to acquire terrestrial habits1 
venturing first a few yards inland1 and 
then farther and farther until they     
began to occupy some of the places left 
vacant in the economy of nature4 ,during
 these excursions1 we might suppose some
 varieties1 which had the skin of the   
webbed intervals of their toes less     
developed1 to succeed best in walking on
 the land1 and in the course of several 
generations they might exchange their   
present gait or manner of shuffling     
along and jumping by aid of the tail and
 their fin-like extremities1 for feet   
better adapted for running4  ,it is said
 that one of the bats in the island of  
,palma 7one of the ,canaries7 is of a   

peculiar species1 and that some of the  
,cheiroptera of the ,pacific islands are
 even of peculiar genera4 ,if so1 we    
seem1 on organic as well as on          
geological grounds1 to be precluded from
 arguing that there has not been time   
for great divergence of character4 ,we  
seem also entitled to ask why the bats  
and rodents of ,australia1 which are    
spread so widely among the marsupials   
over that continent1 have never1 under  
the influence of the principle of       
progression1 been developed into higher 
placental types1 since we have now      
ascertained that that continent was by  
no means unfitted to sustain such       
mammalia1 for these when once introduced
 by ,man have run wild and become       
naturalised in many parts4 ,the         
following answers may perhaps be offered
 to the above criticisms of some of ,mr4
 ,darwin's theoretical views4  ,first1  
as to the bats and seals3 they are what 
zoologists call aberrant and highly     
specialised types1 and therefore        

precisely those which might be expected 
to display a fixity and want of pliancy 
in their organisation1 or the smallest  
possible aptitude for deviating in new  
directions towards new structures1 and  
the acquisition of such altered habits  
as a change from aquatic to terrestrial 
or from ,volant to non-volant modes of  
living would imply4  ,secondly1 the same
 powers of flight which enabled the     
first bats to reach ,madeira or the     
,canaries1 would bring others from time 
to time from the ,african continent1    
which1 mixing with the first emigrants  
and crossing with them1 would check the 
formation of new races1 or keep them    
true to the old types1 as is found to be
 actually the case with the birds of    
,madeira and the ,bermudas4  ,this would
 happen the more surely1 if1 as ,mr4    
,darwin has endeavoured to prove1 the   
offspring of races slightly varying are 
usually more vigorous than the progeny  
of parents of the same race1 and would  
be more prolific1 therefore1 than the   

insular stock which had been for a long 
time breeding in and in4  ,the same     
cause would tend in a still more decided
 manner to prevent the seals from       
diverging into new races or incipient   
species1 because they range freely over 
the wide ocean1 and1 may therefore have 
continual intercourse with all other    
individuals of their species4  ,thirdly1
 as to peculiar species1 and even genera
 of bats in islands1 we are perhaps too 
little acquainted at present with all   
the species and genera of the           
neighbouring continents to be able to   
affirm1 with any degree of confidence1  
that the forms supposed to be peculiar  
do not exist elsewhere3 those of the    
,canaries in ,africa1 for example4 ,but 
what is still more important1 we must   
bear in mind how many species and genera
 of ,pleistocene mammalia have          
everywhere become extinct by causes     
independent of ,man4 ,it is always      
possible1 therefore1 that some types of 
,cheiroptera1 originally derived from   

the main land1 have survived in islands1
 although they have gradually died out  
on the continents from whence they came2
 so that it would be rash to infer that 
there has been time for the creation1   
whether by variation or other agency1 of
 new species or genera in the islands in
 question4  ,as to the ,rodents and     
,cheiroptera of ,australia1 we are as   
yet too ignorant of the ,pleistocene and
 ,pliocene fauna of that part of the    
world1 to be able to decide whether the 
introduction of such forms dates from a 
remote geological time4 ,we know1       
however1 that1 before the ,recent       
period1 that continent was peopled with 
large kangaroos1 and other herbivorous  
and carnivorous marsupials1 of species  
long since extinct1 their remains having
 been discovered in ossiferous caverns4 
,the preoccupancy of the country by such
 indigenous tribes may have checked the 
development of the placental ,rodents   
and ,cheiroptera1 even were we to       
concede the possibility of such forms   

being convertible by variation and      
progressive development into higher     
grades of mammalia4   ,,imperfection    
,,of ,,the ,,geological ,,record #db4   
,when treating in the eighth chapter of 
the dearth of human bones in alluvium   
containing flint implements in          
abundance1 ,i pointed out that it is not
 part of the plan of ,nature to write   
everywhere1 and at all times1 her       
autobiographical memoirs4 ,on the       
contrary1 her annals are local and      
exceptional from the first1 and portions
 of them are afterwards ground into mud1
 sand1 and pebbles1 to furnish materials
 for new strata4 ,even of those ancient 
monuments now forming the crust of the  
earth1 which have not been destroyed by 
rivers and the waves of the sea1 or     
which have escaped being melted by      
volcanic heat1 three-fourths lie        
submerged beneath the ocean1 and are    
inaccessible to ,man2 while of those    
which form the dry land1 a great part   
are hidden for ever from our observation

 by mountain masses1 thousands of feet  
thick1 piled over them4  ,mr4 ,darwin   
has truly said that the fossiliferous   
rocks known to geologists consist1 for  
the most part1 of such as were formed   
when the bottom of the sea was          
subsiding4 ,this downward movement      
protects the new deposits from          
denudation1 and allows them to          
accumulate to a great thickness2 whereas
 sedimentary matter1 thrown down where  
the sea-bottom is rising1 must almost   
invariably be swept away by the waves as
 fast as the land emerges4  ,when we    
reflect1 therefore1 on the fractional   
state of the annals which are handed    
down to us1 and how little even these   
have as yet been studied1 we may wonder 
that so many geologists should attribute
 every break in the series of strata and
 every gap in the past history of the   
organic world to catastrophes and       
convulsions of the earth's crust or to  
leaps made by the creational force from 
species to species1 or from class to    

class4 ,for it is clear that1 even had  
the series of monuments been perfect and
 continuous at first 7an hypothesis     
quite opposed to the analogy of the     
working of causes now in action71 it    
could not fail to present itself to our 
eyes in a broken and disconnected state4
  ,those geologists who have watched the
 progress of discovery during the last  
half century can best appreciate the    
extent to which we may still hope by    
future exertion to fill up some of the  
wider chasms which now interrupt the    
regular sequence of fossiliferous rocks4
 ,the determination1 for example1 of    
late years of the true place of the     
,hallstadt and ,st4 ,cassian beds on the
 north and south flanks of the ,austrian
 ,alps1 has revealed to us1 for the     
first time1 the marine fauna of a period
 7that of the ,upper ,trias7 of which1  
until lately1 but little was known4 ,in 
this case1 the palaeontologist is called
 upon suddenly to intercalate about #hjj
 species of ,mollusca and ,radiata1     

between the fauna of the ,lower ,lias   
and that of the ,middle ,trias4 ,the    
period in question was previously       
believed1 even by many a philosophical  
geologist1 to have been comparatively   
barren of organic types4 ,in ,england1  
,france1 and northern ,germany1 the only
 known strata of ,upper ,triassic date  
had consisted almost entirely of fresh  
or brackish-water beds1 in which the    
bones of terrestrial and amphibious     
reptiles were the most characteristic   
fossils4 ,the new fauna was1 as might   
have been expected1 in part peculiar1   
not a few of the species of ,mollusca   
being referable to new genera2 while    
some species were common to the older1  
and some to the newer rocks4 ,on the    
whole1 the new forms have helped greatly
 to lessen the discordance1 not only    
between the ,lias and ,trias1 but also  
generally between ,palaeozoic and       
,mesozoic formations4 ,thus the genus   
,orthoceras has been for the first time 
recognised in a ,mesozoic deposit1 and  

with it we find associated1 for the     
first time1 large ,ammonites with       
foliated lobes1 a form never seen before
 below the ,lias2 also the ,ceratites1 a
 family of ,cephalopods never before met
 with in the ,upper ,trias1 and never   
before in the same stratum with such    
lobed ,ammonites4  ,we can now no longer
 doubt that should we hereafter have an 
opportunity of studying an equally rich 
marine fauna of the age of the ,lower   
,trias 7or ,bunter ,sandstein71 the     
marked hiatus which still separates the 
,triassic and ,permian eras would almost
 disappear4  ,archaeopteryx macrurus1   
,owen4  ,i could readily add a copious  
list of minor deposits1 belonging to the
 ,primary1 ,secondary and ,tertiary     
series1 which we have been called upon  
in like manner to intercalate in the    
course of the last quarter of a century 
into the chronological series previously
 known2 but it would lead me into too   
long a digression4 ,i shall therefore   
content myself with pointing out that it

 is not simply new formations which are 
brought to light from year to year1     
reminding us of the elementary state of 
our knowledge of palaeontology1 but new 
types also of structure are discovered  
in rocks whose fossil contents were     
supposed to be peculiarly well known4   
,the last and most striking of these    
novelties is the feathered fossil from  
the lithographic stone of ,solenhofen4  
,until the year #aheh1 no               
well-determined skeleton of a bird had  
been detected in any rocks older than   
the ,tertiary4 ,in that year1 ,mr4      
,lucas ,barrett found in the ,cambridge 
,greensand of the ,cretaceous series1   
the femur1 tibia1 and some other bones  
of a swimming bird1 supposed by him to  
be of the gull tribe4 ,his opinion as to
 the ornithic character of the remains  
was afterwards confirmed by ,professor  
,owen4  ,the ,archaeopteryx macrurus1   
,owen1 recently acquired by the ,british
 ,museum1 affords a second example of   
the discovery of the osseous remains of 

a bird in strata older than the ,eocene4
 ,it was found in the great quarries of 
lithographic limestone at ,solenhofen in
 ,bavaria1 the rock being a member of   
the ,upper ,oolite4  ,it was at first   
conjectured in ,germany1 before any     
experienced osteologist had had an      
opportunity of inspecting the original  
specimen1 that this fossil might be a   
feathered ,pterodactyl 7flying reptiles 
having been often met with in the same  
stratum71 or that it might at least     
supply some connecting links between a  
reptile and a bird4 ,but ,professor     
,owen1 in a memoir lately read to the   
,royal ,society 7,november #bj1 #ahfb71 
has shown that it is unequivocally a    
bird1 and that such of its characters as
 are abnormal are by no means strikingly
 reptilian4 ,the skeleton was lying on  
its back when embedded in calcareous    
sediment1 so that the ventral part is   
exposed to view4 ,it is about #a foot #h
 inches long1 and #a foot across1 from  
the apex of the right to that of the    

left wing4 ,the furculum1 or            
merry-thought1 which is entire1 marks   
the fore part of the trunk2 the ischium1
 scapula1 and most of the wing and leg  
bones are preserved1 and there are      
impressions of the quill feathers and of
 down on the body4 ,the vanes and shafts
 of the feathers can be seen by the     
naked eye4 ,fourteen long quill feathers
 diverge on each side of the metacarpal 
and phalangial bones1 and decrease in   
length from #f inches to #a inch4 ,the  
wings have a general resemblance to     
those of gallinaceous birds4 ,the       
tarso-metatarsal1 or drumstick1 exhibits
 at its distal end a trifid articular   
surface supporting three toes1 as in    
birds4 ,the furculum1 pelvis1 and bones 
of the tail are in their natural        
position4 ,the tail consists of twenty  
vertebrae1 each of which supports a pair
 of plumes4 ,the length of the tail with
 its feathers is #aa #a_/b inches1 and  
its breadth #c #a_/b4 ,it is obtusely   
truncated at the end4 ,in all living    

birds the tail-feathers are arranged in 
fan-shaped order and attached to a      
coccygean bone1 consisting of several   
vertebrae united together1 whereas in   
the embryo state these same vertebrae   
are distinct4 ,the greatest number is   
seen in the ostrich1 which has eighteen 
caudal vertebrae in the foetal state1   
which are reduced to nine in the adult  
bird1 many of them having been          
anchylosed together4 ,professor ,owen   
therefore considers the tail of the     
,archaeopteryx as exemplifying the      
persistency of what is now an embryonic 
character4 ,the tail1 he remarks1 is    
essentially a variable organ2 there are 
long-tailed bats and short-tailed bats1 
long-tailed rodents and short-tailed    
rodents1 long-tailed pterodactyls and   
short-tailed pterodactyls4  ,the        
,archaeopteryx differs from all known   
birds1 not only in the structure of its 
tail1 but in having two1 if not three1  
digits in the hand2 but there is no     
trace of the fifth digit of the winged  

reptile4  ,the conditions under which   
the skeleton occurs are such1 says      
,professor ,owen1 as to remind us of the
 carcass of a gull which has been a prey
 to some ,carnivore1 which had removed  
all the soft parts1 and perhaps the     
head1 nothing being left but the bony   
legs and the indigestible               
quill-feathers4 ,but since ,professor   
,owen's paper was read1 ,mr4 ,john      
,evans1 whom ,i have often had occasion 
to mention in the earlier chapters of   
this work1 seems to have found what may 
indicate a part of the missing cranium4 
,he has called our attention to a smooth
 protuberance on the otherwise even     
surface of the slab of limestone which  
seems to be the cast of the brain or    
interior of the skull4 ,some part even  
of the cranial bone itself appears to be
 still buried in the matrix4 ,mr4 ,evans
 has pointed out the resemblance of this
 cast to one taken by himself from the  
cranium of a crow1 and still more to    
that of a jay1 observing that in the    

fossil the median line which separates  
the two hemispheres of the brain is     
visible4  ,to conclude1 we may learn    
from this valuable relic how rashly the 
existence of ,birds at the epoch of the 
,secondary rocks has been questioned1   
simply on negative evidence1 and        
secondly1 how many new forms may be     
expected to be brought to light in      
strata with which we are already best   
acquainted1 to say nothing of the new   
formations which geologists are         
continually discovering4    ,,chapter   
#bc4 -- ,,origin ,,and ,,development    
,,of ,,languages ,,and ,,species        
,,compared #dc4    ,aryan ,hypothesis   
and ,controversy4   ,the ,races of      
,mankind change more slowly than their  
,languages4   ,theory of the gradual    
,origin of ,languages4   ,difficulty of 
defining what is meant by a ,language as
 distinct      from a ,dialect4   ,great
 ,number of extinct and living ,tongues4
   ,no ,european ,language a ,thousand  
,years old4   ,gaps between ,languages1 

how caused4   ,imperfection of the      
,record4   ,changes always in ,progress4
   ,struggle for ,existence between     
rival ,terms and ,dialects4   ,causes of
 ,selection4   ,each ,language formed   
slowly in a single ,geographical ,area4 
,may die out gradually or suddenly4     
,once lost can never be revived4   ,mode
 of ,origin of ,languages and ,species a
 ,mystery4   ,speculations as to the    
,number of original ,languages or       
,species      unprofitable4  ,the       
supposed existence1 at a remote and     
unknown period1 of a language           
conventionally called the ,aryan1 has of
 late years been a favourite subject of 
speculation among ,german philologists1 
and ,professor ,max ,muller has given us
 lately the most improved version of    
this theory1 and has set forth the      
various facts and arguments by which it 
may be defended1 with his usual         
perspicuity and eloquence4 ,he observes 
that if we know nothing of the existence
 of ,latin--if all historical documents 

previous to the fifteenth century had   
been lost--if tradition even was silent 
as to the former existence of a ,roman  
empire1 a mere comparison of the        
,italian1 ,spanish1 ,portuguese1        
,french1 ,wallachian1 and ,rhaetian     
dialects would enable us to say that at 
some time there must have been a        
language from which these six modern    
dialects derive their origin in common4 
,without this supposition it would be   
impossible to account for their         
structure and composition1 as1 for      
example1 for the forms of the auxiliary 
verb to be1 all evidently varieties of  
one common type1 while it is equally    
clear that no one of the six affords the
 original form from which the others    
could have been borrowed4 ,so also in   
none of the six languages do we find the
 elements of which these verbal and     
other forms could have been composed2   
they must have been handed down as      
relics from a former period1 they must  
have existed in some antecedent         

language1 which we know to have been the
 ,latin4  ,but1 in like manner1 he goes 
on to show1 that ,latin itself1 as well 
as ,greek1 ,sanscrit1 ,zend 7or         
,bactrian71 ,lithuanian1 old ,sclavonic1
 ,gothic1 and ,armenian are also eight  
varieties of one common and more ancient
 type1 and no one of them could have    
been the original from which the others 
were borrowed4 ,they have all such an   
amount of mutual resemblance as to point
 to a more ancient language1 the ,aryan1
 which was to them what ,latin was to   
the six ,romance languages4 ,the people 
who spoke this unknown parent speech1 of
 which so many other ancient tongues    
were off-shoots1 must have migrated at a
 remote era to widely separated regions 
of the old world1 such as ,northern     
,asia1 ,europe1 and ,india south of the 
,himalaya499       799 ,max ,muller1    
,comparative ,mythology ,oxford ,essays 
#ahef47  ,the soundness of some parts of
 this ,aryan hypothesis has lately been 
called in question by ,mr4 ,crawfurd1 on

 the ground that the ,hindoos1          
,persians1 ,turks1 ,scandinavians1 and  
other people referred to as having      
derived not only words but grammatical  
forms from an ,aryan source1 belong each
 of them to a distinct race1 and all    
these races have1 it is said1 preserved 
their peculiar characters unaltered from
 the earliest dawn of history and       
tradition4 ,if1 therefore1 no           
appreciable change has occurred in three
 or four thousand years1 we should be   
obliged to assume a far more remote date
 for the first branching off of such    
races from a common stock than the      
supposed period of the ,aryan           
migrations1 and the dispersion of that  
language over many and distant          
countries4  ,but ,mr4 ,crawfurd has1 ,i 
think1 himself helped us to remove this 
stumbling-block1 by admitting that a    
nation speaking a language allied to the
 ,sanscrit 7the oldest of the eight     
tongues alluded to71 once probably      
inhabited that region situated to the   

north-west of ,india1 which within the  
period of authentic history has poured  
out its conquering hordes over a great  
extent of ,western ,asia and ,eastern   
,europe4 ,the same people1 he says1 may 
have acted the same part in the long1   
dark night which preceded the dawn of   
tradition499       799 ,crawfurd1       
,transactions of the ,ethnological      
,society      volume #a #ahfa47  ,these 
conquerors may have been few in number  
when compared to the populations which  
they subdued4 ,in such cases the new    
settlers1 although reckoned by tens of  
thousands1 might merge in a few         
centuries into the millions of subjects 
which they ruled4 ,it is an acknowledged
 fact that the colour and features of   
the ,negro or ,european are entirely    
lost in the fourth generation1 provided 
that no fresh infusion of one or other  
of the two races takes place4 ,the      
distinctive physical features1          
therefore1 of the ,aryan conquerors     
might soon wear out and be lost in those

 of the nations they overran2 yet many  
of the words1 and1 what is more in      
point1 some of the grammatical forms of 
their language1 might be retained by the
 masses which they had governed for     
centuries1 these masses continuing to   
preserve the same features of race which
 had distinguished them long before the 
,aryan invasions4  ,there can be no     
question that if we could trace back any
 set of cognate languages now existing  
to some common point of departure1 they 
would converge and meet sooner in some  
era of the past than would the existing 
races of mankind2 in other words1 races 
change much more slowly than languages4 
,but1 according to the doctrine of      
transmutation1 to form a new species    
would take an incomparably longer period
 than to form a new race4 ,no language  
seems ever to last for a thousand years1
 whereas many a species seems to have   
endured for hundreds of thousands4 ,a   
philologist1 therefore1 who is          
contending that all living languages are

 derivative and not primordial1 has a   
great advantage over a naturalist who is
 endeavouring to inculcate a similar    
theory in regard to species4  ,it may   
not be uninstructive1 in order fairly to
 appreciate the vast difficulty of the  
task of those who advocate transmutation
 in natural history1 to consider how    
hard it would be even for a philologist 
to succeed1 if he should try to convince
 an assemblage of intelligent but       
illiterate persons that the language    
spoken by them1 and all those talked by 
contemporary nations1 were modern       
inventions1 moreover that these same    
forms of speech were still constantly   
undergoing change1 and none of them     
destined to last for ever4  ,we will    
suppose him to begin by stating his     
conviction1 that the living languages   
have been gradually derived from others 
now extinct1 and spoken by nations which
 had immediately preceded them in the   
order of time1 and that those again had 
used forms of speech derived from still 

older ones4 ,they might naturally       
exclaim1 ,how strange it is that you    
should find records of a multitude of   
dead languages1 that a part of the human
 economy which in our own time is so    
remarkable for its stability1 should    
have been so inconstant in bygone ages6 
,we all speak as our parents and        
grandparents spoke before us1 and so1 we
 are told1 do the ,germans and ,french4 
,what evidence is there of such         
incessant variation in remoter times8   
and1 if it be true1 why not imagine that
 when one form of speech was lost1      
another was suddenly and supernaturally 
created by a gift of tongues or         
confusion of languages1 as at the       
building of the ,tower of ,babel8 ,where
 are the memorials of all the           
intermediate dialects1 which must have  
existed1 if this doctrine of perpetual  
fluctuation be true8 ,and how comes it  
that the tongues now spoken do not pass 
by insensible gradations the one into   
the other1 and into the dead languages  

of dates immediately antecedent8        
,lastly1 if this theory of indefinite   
modifiability be sound1 what meaning can
 be attached to the term language1 and  
what definition can be given of it so as
 to distinguish a language from a       
dialect8  ,in reply to this last        
question1 the philologist might confess 
that the learned are not agreed as to   
what constitutes a language as distinct 
from a dialect4 ,some believe that there
 are #djjj living languages1 others that
 there are #fjjj1 so that the mode of   
defining them is clearly a mere matter  
of opinion4 ,some contend1 for example1 
that the ,danish1 ,norwegian1 and       
,swedish form one ,scandinavian tongue1 
others that they constitute three       
different languages1 others that the    
,danish and ,norwegian are one--mere    
dialects of the same language1 but that 
,swedish is distinct4  ,the philologist1
 however1 might fairly argue that this  
very ambiguity was greatly in favour of 
his doctrine1 since if languages had all

 been constantly undergoing             
transmutation1 there ought often to be a
 want of real lines of demarcation      
between them4 ,he might1 however1       
propose that he and his pupils should   
come to an understanding that two       
languages should be regarded as distinct
 whenever the speakers of them are      
unable to converse together1 or freely  
to exchange ideas1 whether by word or   
writing4 ,scientifically speaking1 such 
a test might be vague and               
unsatisfactory1 like the test of species
 by their capability of producing       
fertile hybrids2 but if the pupil is    
persuaded that there are such things in 
nature as distinct languages1 whatever  
may have been their origin1 the         
definition above suggested might be of  
practical use1 and enable the teacher to
 proceed with his argument4  ,he might  
begin by undertaking to prove that none 
of the languages of modern ,europe were 
a thousand years old4 ,no ,english      
scholar1 he might say1 who has not      

specially given himself up to the study 
of ,anglo-,saxon1 can interpret the     
documents in which the chronicles and   
laws of ,england were written in the    
days of ,king ,alfred1 so that we may be
 sure that none of the ,english of the  
nineteenth century could converse with  
the subjects of that monarch if these   
last could now be restored to life4 ,the
 difficulties encountered would not     
arise merely from the intrusion of      
,french terms1 in consequence of the    
,norman conquest1 because that large    
portion of our language 7including the  
articles1 pronouns1 etc471 which is     
,saxon has also undergone great         
transformations by abbreviation1 new    
modes of pronunciation1 spelling1 and   
various corruptions1 so as to be unlike 
both ancient and modern ,german4 ,they  
who now speak ,german1 if brought into  
contact with their ,teutonic ancestors  
of the ninth century1 would be quite    
unable to converse with them1 and1 in   
like manner1 the subjects of            

,charlemagne could not have exchanged   
ideas with the ,goths of ,alaric's army1
 or with the soldiers of ,arminius in   
the days of ,augustus ,caesar4 ,so rapid
 indeed has been the change in ,germany1
 that the epic poem called the          
,nibelungen ,lied1 once so popular1 and 
only seven centuries old1 cannot now be 
enjoyed1 except by the erudite4  ,if we 
then turn to ,france1 we meet again with
 similar evidence of ceaseless change4  
,there is a treaty of peace still extant
 a thousand years old1 between ,charles 
the ,bald and ,king ,louis of ,germany  
7dated ,a4,d4 #hda71 in which the       
,german king takes an oath in what was  
the ,french tongue of that day1 while   
the ,french king swears in the ,german  
of the same era1 and neither of these   
oaths would now convey a distinct       
meaning to any but the learned in these 
two countries4 ,so also in ,italy1 the  
modern ,italian cannot be traced back   
much beyond the time of ,dante1 or some 
six centuries before our time4 ,even in 

,rome1 where there had been no permanent
 intrusion of foreigners1 such as the   
,lombard settlers of ,german origin in  
the plains of the ,po1 the common people
 of the year #ajjj spoke quite a        
distinct language from that of their    
,roman ancestors or their ,italian      
descendants1 as is shown by the         
celebrated chronicle of the monk        
,benedict1 of the convent of ,st4       
,andrea on ,mount ,soracte1 written in  
such barbarous ,latin1 and with such    
strange grammatical forms1 that it      
requires a profoundly skilled linguist  
to decipher it499       799 ,see ,g4    
,pertz1 ,monumenta ,germanica volume    
#c47  ,having thus established the      
preliminary fact1 that none of the      
tongues now spoken were in existence ten
 centuries ago1 and that the ancient    
languages have passed through many a    
transitional dialect before they settled
 into the forms now in use1 the         
philologist might bring forward proofs  
of the great numbers both of lost and   

living forms of speech4  ,strabo tells  
us that in his time1 in the ,caucasus   
alone 7a chain of mountains not longer  
than the ,alps1 and much narrower71     
there were spoken at least seventy      
languages4 ,at the present period the   
number1 it is said1 would be still      
greater if all the distinct dialects of 
those mountains were reckoned4 ,several 
of these ,caucasian tongues admit of no 
comparison with any known living or lost
 ,asiatic or ,european language4 ,others
 which are not peculiar are obsolete    
forms of known languages1 such as the   
,georgian1 ,mongolian1 ,persian1        
,arabic1 and ,tartarian4 ,it seems that 
as often as conquering hordes swept over
 that part of ,asia1 always coming from 
the north and east1 they drove before   
them the inhabitants of the plains1 who 
took refuge in some of the retired      
valleys and high mountain fastnesses1   
where they maintained their             
independence1 as do the ,circassians in 
our time in spite of the power of       

,russia4  ,in the ,himalayan ,mountains1
 from ,assam to its extreme             
north-western limit1 and generally in   
the more hilly parts of ,british ,india1
 the diversity of languages is          
surprisingly great1 impeding the advance
 of civilisation and the labours of the 
missionary4 ,in ,south ,america and     
,mexico1 ,alexander ,humboldt reckoned  
the distinct tongues by hundreds1 and   
those of ,africa are said to be equally 
numerous4 ,even in ,china1 some eighteen
 provincial dialects prevail1 almost all
 deviating so much from others that the 
speakers are not mutually intelligible1 
and besides these there are other       
distinct forms of speech in the         
mountains of the same empire4  ,the     
philologist might next proceed to point 
out that the geographical relations of  
living and dead languages favour the    
hypothesis of the living ones having    
been derived from the extinct1 in spite 
of our inability1 in most instances1 to 
adduce documentary evidence of the fact 

or to discover monuments of all the     
intermediate and transitional dialects  
which must have existed4 ,thus he would 
observe that the modern ,romance        
languages are spoken exactly where the  
ancient ,romans once lived or ruled1 and
 the ,greek of our days where the older 
classical ,greek was formerly spoken4   
,exceptions to this rule might be       
detected1 but they would be explicable  
by reference to colonisation and        
conquest4  ,as to the many and wide gaps
 sometimes encountered between the dead 
and living languages1 we must remember  
that it is not part of the plan of any  
people to preserve memorials of their   
forms of speech expressly for the       
edification of posterity4 ,their        
manuscripts and inscriptions serve some 
present purpose1 are occasional and     
imperfect from the first1 and are       
rendered more fragmentary in the course 
of time1 some being intentionally       
destroyed1 others lost by the decay of  
the perishable materials on which they  

are written2 so that to question the    
theory of all known languages being     
derivative on the ground that we can    
rarely trace a passage from the ancient 
to the modern through all the dialects  
which must have flourished one after the
 other in the intermediate ages1 implies
 a want of reflection on the laws which 
govern the recording as well as the     
obliterating processes4  ,but another   
important question still remains to be  
considered1 namely1 whether the trifling
 changes which can alone be witnessed by
 a single generation1 can possibly      
represent the working of that machinery 
which1 in the course of many centuries1 
has given rise to such mighty           
revolutions in the forms of speech      
throughout the world4 ,everyone may have
 noticed in his own lifetime the        
stealing in of some slight alterations  
of accent1 pronunciation or spelling1 or
 the introduction of some words borrowed
 from a foreign language to express     
ideas of which no native term precisely 

conveyed the import4 ,he may also       
remember hearing for the first time some
 cant terms or slang phrases1 which have
 since forced their way into common use1
 in spite of the efforts of the purist4 
,but he may still contend that within   
the range of his experience1 his        
language has continued unchanged1 and he
 may believe in its immutability in     
spite of minor variations4 ,the real    
question1 however1 at issue is1 whether 
there are any limits to this            
variability4 ,he will find on farther   
investigation1 that new technical terms 
are coined almost daily in various arts1
 sciences1 professions1 and trades1 that
 new names must be found for new        
inventions1 that many of these acquire a
 metaphorical sense1 and then make their
 way into general circulation1 as       
stereotyped1 for instance1 which would  
have been as meaningless to the men of  
the seventeenth century as would the new
 terms and images derived from steamboat
 and railway travelling to the men of   

the eighteenth4  ,if the numerous words1
 idioms1 and phrases1 many of them of   
ephemeral duration1 which are thus      
invented by the young and old in various
 classes of society1 in the nursery1 the
 school1 the camp1 the fleet1 the courts
 of law and the study of the man of     
science or literature1 could all be     
collected together and put on record1   
their number in one or two centuries    
might compare with the entire permanent 
vocabulary of the language4 ,it becomes1
 therefore1 a curious subject of        
inquiry1 what are the laws which govern 
not only the invention1 but also the    
selection of some of these words or     
idioms1 giving them currency in         
preference to others8--for as the powers
 of the human memory are limited1 a     
check must be found to the endless      
increase and multiplication of terms1   
and old words must be dropped nearly as 
fast as new ones are put into           
circulation4 ,sometimes the new word or 
phrase1 or a modification of the old    

ones1 will entirely supplant the more   
ancient expressions1 or1 instead of the 
latter being discarded1 both may        
flourish together1 the older one having 
a more restricted use4  ,although the   
speakers may be unconscious that any    
great fluctuation is going on in their  
language--although when we observe the  
manner in which new words and phrases   
are thrown out1 as if at random or in   
sport1 while others get into vogue1 we  
may think the process of change to be   
the result of mere chance--there are    
nevertheless fixed laws in action1 by   
which1 in the general struggle for      
existence1 some terms and dialects gain 
the victory over others4 ,the slightest 
advantage attached to some new mode of  
pronouncing or spelling1 from           
considerations of brevity or euphony1   
may turn the scale1 or more powerful    
causes of selection may decide which of 
two or more rivals shall triumph and    
which succumb4 ,among these are fashion1
 or the influence of an aristocracy1    

whether of birth or education1 popular  
writers1 orators1 preachers--a          
centralised government organising its   
schools expressly to promote uniformity 
of diction1 and to get the better of    
provincialisms and local dialects4      
,between these dialects1 which may be   
regarded as so many incipient languages1
 the competition is always keenest when 
they are most nearly allied1 and the    
extinction of any one of them destroys  
some of the links by which a dominant   
tongue may have been previously         
connected with some other widely        
distinct one4 ,it is by the perpetual   
loss of such intermediate forms of      
speech that the great dissimilarity of  
the languages which survive is brought  
about4 ,thus1 if ,dutch should become a 
dead language1 ,english and ,german     
would be separated by a wider gap4      
,some languages which are spoken by     
millions1 and spread over a wide area1  
will endure much longer than others     
which have never had a wide range1      

especially if the tendency to incessant 
change in one of these dominant tongues 
is arrested for a time by a standard    
literature4 ,but even this source of    
stability is insecure1 for popular      
writers themselves are great innovators1
 sometimes coining new words1 and still 
oftener new expressions and idioms1 to  
embody their own original conceptions   
and sentiments1 or some peculiar modes  
of thought and feeling characteristic of
 their age4 ,even when a language is    
regarded with superstitious veneration  
as the vehicle of divine truths and     
religious precepts1 and which has       
prevailed for many generations1 it will 
be incapable of permanently maintaining 
its ground4 ,hebrew had ceased to be a  
living language before the ,christian   
era4 ,sanscrit1 the sacred language of  
the ,hindoos1 shared the same fate1 in  
spite of the veneration in which the    
,vedas are still held1 and in spite of  
many a ,sanscrit poem once popular and  
national4  ,the ,christians of          

,constantinople and the ,morea still    
hear the ,new ,testament and their      
liturgy read in ancient ,greek1 while   
they speak a dialect in which ,paul     
might have preached in vain at ,athens4 
,so in the ,catholic ,church1 the       
,italians pray in one tongue and talk   
another4 ,luther's translation of the   
,bible acted as a powerful cause of     
selection1 giving at once to one of many
 competing dialects 7that of ,saxony7 a 
prominent and dominant position in      
,germany2 but the style of ,luther has1 
like that of our ,english ,bible1       
already become somewhat antiquated4  ,if
 the doctrine of gradual transmutation  
be applicable to languages1 all those   
spoken in historical times must each of 
them have had a closely allied          
prototype2 and accordingly1 whenever we 
can thoroughly investigate their        
history1 we find in them some internal  
evidence of successive additions by the 
invention of new words or the           
modification of old ones4 ,proofs also  

of borrowing are discernible1 letters   
being retained in the spelling of some  
words which have no longer any meaning  
as they are now pronounced--no          
connection with any corresponding       
sounds4 ,such redundant or silent       
letters1 once useful in the parent      
speech1 have been aptly compared by ,mr4
 ,darwin to rudimentary organs in living
 beings1 which1 as he interprets them1  
have at some former period been more    
fully developed1 having had their proper
 functions to perform in the            
organisation of a remote progenitor4    
,if all known languages are derivative  
and not primordial creations1 they must 
each of them have been slowly elaborated
 in a single geographical area4 ,no one 
of them can have had two birthplaces4   
,if one were carried by a colony to a   
distant region1 it would immediately    
begin to vary unless frequent           
intercourse was kept up with the mother 
country4 ,the descendants of the same   
stock1 if perfectly isolated1 would in  

five or six centuries1 perhaps sooner1  
be quite unable to converse with those  
who remained at home1 or with those who 
may have migrated to some distant       
region1 where they were shut out from   
all communication with others speaking  
the same tongue4  ,a ,norwegian colony  
which settled in ,iceland in the ninth  
century1 maintained its independence for
 about #djj years1 during which time the
 old ,gothic which they at first spoke  
became corrupted and considerably       
modified4 ,in the meantime the natives  
of ,norway1 who had enjoyed much        
commercial intercourse with the rest of 
,europe1 acquired quite a new speech1   
and looked on the ,icelandic as having  
been stationary1 and as representing the
 pure ,gothic original of which their   
own was an offshoot4  ,a ,german colony 
in ,pennsylvania was cut off from       
frequent communication with ,europe for 
about a quarter of a century1 during the
 wars of the ,french ,revolution between
 #agib and #ahae4 ,so marked had been   

the effect even of this brief and       
imperfect isolation1 that when ,prince  
,bernhard of ,saxe-,weimar travelled    
among them a few years after the peace1 
he found the peasants speaking as they  
had done in ,germany in the preceding   
century1997 and retaining a dialect     
which at home had already become        
obsolete4       799 ,travels of ,prince 
,bernhard of ,saxe-,weimar1 in ,north   
,america1 in #ahbe and #ahbf1 page      
#abc47  ,even after the renewal of the  
,german emigration from ,europe1 when ,i
 travelled in #ahda among the same      
people in the retired valleys of the    
,alleghenies1 ,i found the newspapers   
full of terms half ,english and half    
,german1 and many an ,anglo-,saxon word1
 which had assumed a ,teutonic dress1 as
 fencen1 to fence1 instead of umzaunen1 
flauer for flour1 instead of mehl1 and  
so on4 ,what with the retention of terms
 no longer in use in the mother country1
 and the borrowing of new ones from     
neighbouring states1 there might have   

arisen in ,pennsylvania in five or six  
generations1 but for the influx of      
newcomers from ,germany1 a mongrel      
speech equally unintelligible to the    
,anglo-,saxon and to the inhabitants of 
the ,european fatherland4  ,if languages
 resemble species in having had each    
their specific centre or single area of 
creation1 in which they have been slowly
 formed1 so each of them is alike liable
 to slow or to sudden extinction4 ,they 
may die out very gradually in           
consequence of transmutation1 or        
abruptly by the extermination of the    
last surviving representatives of the   
unaltered type4 ,we know in what century
 the last ,dodo perished1 and we know   
that in the seventeenth century the     
language of the ,red ,indians of        
,massachusetts1 into which ,father      
,eliot had translated the ,bible1 and in
 which ,christianity was preached for   
several generations1 ceased to exist1   
the last individuals by whom it was     
spoken having at that period died       

without issue499       799 ,lyell1      
,travels in ,north ,america volume #a   
page #bfj      #ahde47  ,but if just    
before that event the white man had     
retreated from the continent1 or had    
been swept off by an epidemic1 those    
,indians might soon have repeopled the  
wilderness1 and their copious vocabulary
 and peculiar forms of expression might 
have lasted without important           
modification to this day4 ,the          
extinction1 however1 of languages in    
general is not abrupt1 any more than    
that of species4 ,it will also be       
evident from what has been said1 that a 
language which has once died out can    
never be revived1 since the same        
assemblage of conditions can never be   
restored even among the descendants of  
the same stock1 much less simultaneously
 among all the rounding nations with    
whom they may be in contact4  ,we may   
compare the persistency of languages1 or
 the tendency of each generation to     
adopt without change the vocabulary of  

its predecessor1 to the force of        
inheritance in the organic world1 which 
causes the offspring to resemble its    
parents4 ,the inventive power which     
coins new words or modifies old ones1   
and adapts them to new wants and        
conditions as often as these arise1     
answers to the variety-making power in  
the animate creation4  ,progressive     
improvement in language is a necessary  
consequence of the progress of the human
 mind from one generation to another4   
,as civilisation advances1 a greater    
number of terms are required to express 
abstract ideas1 and words previously    
used in a vague sense1 so long as the   
state of society was rude and barbarous1
 gradually acquire more precise and     
definite meanings1 in consequence of    
which several terms must be employed to 
express ideas and things1 which a single
 word had before signified1 though      
somewhat loosely and imperfectly4  ,the 
farther this subdivision of function is 
carried1 the more complete and perfect  

the language becomes1 just as species of
 higher grade have special organs1 such 
as eyes1 lungs1 and stomach1 for seeing1
 breathing1 and digesting1 which in     
simple organisms are all performed by   
one and the same part of the body499    
799 ,see ,herbert ,spencer's ,psychology
 and ,scientific      ,essays47  ,when  
we had satisfied ourselves that all the 
existing languages1 instead of being    
primordial creations1 or the direct     
gifts of a supernatural ,power1 have    
been slowly elaborated1 partly by the   
modification of pre-existing dialects1  
partly by borrowing terms at successive 
periods from numerous foreign sources1  
and partly by new inventions made some  
of them deliberately1 and some casually 
and as it were fortuitously--when we    
have discovered the principal causes of 
selection1 which have guided the        
adoption or rejection of rival names for
 the same things and ideas1 rival modes 
of pronouncing the same words and       
provincial dialects competing one with  

another--we are still very far from     
comprehending all the laws which have   
governed the formation of each language4
  ,it was a profound saying of ,william 
,humboldt1 that ,man is ,man only by    
means of speech1 but in order to invent 
speech he must be already ,man4 ,other  
animals may be able to utter sounds more
 articulate and as varied as the click  
of the ,bushman1 but voice alone can    
never enable brute intelligence to      
acquire language4  ,when we consider the
 complexity of every form of speech     
spoken by a highly civilised nation1 and
 discover that the grammatical rules and
 the inflections which denote number1   
time1 and equality are usually the      
product of a rude state of society--that
 the savage and the sage1 the peasant   
and man of letters1 the child and the   
philosopher1 have worked together1 in   
the course of many generations1 to build
 up a fabric which has been truly       
described as a wonderful instrument of  
thought1 a machine1 the several parts of

 which are so well adjusted to each     
other as to resemble the product of one 
period and of a single mind--we cannot  
but look upon the result as a profound  
mystery1 and one of which the separate  
builders have been almost as unconscious
 as are the bees in a hive of the       
architectural skill and mathematical    
knowledge which is displayed in the     
construction of the honeycomb4  ,in our 
attempts to account for the origin of   
species1 we find ourselves still sooner 
brought face to face with the working of
 a law of development of so high an     
order as to stand nearly in the same    
relation as the ,deity himself to man's 
finite understanding1 a law capable of  
adding new and powerful causes1 such as 
the moral and intellectual faculties of 
the human race1 to a system of nature   
which had gone on for millions of years 
without the intervention of any         
analogous cause4 ,if we confound        
,variation or ,natural ,selection with  
such creational laws1 we deify secondary

 causes or immeasurably exaggerate their
 influence4  ,yet we ought by no means  
to undervalue the importance of the step
 which will have been made1 should it   
hereafter become the generally received 
opinion of men of science 7as ,i fully  
expect it will71 that the past changes  
of the organic world have been brought  
about by the subordinate agency of such 
causes as ,variation and ,natural       
,selection4 ,all our advances in the    
knowledge of ,nature have consisted of  
such steps as these1 and we must not be 
discouraged because greater mysteries   
remain behind wholly inscrutable to us4 
,if the philologist is asked whether in 
the beginning of things there was one or
 five1 or a greater number of languages1
 he may answer that1 before he can reply
 to such a question1 it must be decided 
whether the origin of ,man was single1  
or whether there were many primordial   
races4 ,but he may also observe1 that if
 mankind began their career in a rude   
state of society1 their whole vocabulary

 would be limited to a few words1 and   
that if they then separated into several
 isolated communities1 each of these    
would soon acquire an entirely distinct 
language1 some roots being lost and     
others corrupted and transformed beyond 
the possibility of subsequent           
identification1 so that it might be     
hopeless to expect to trace back the    
living and dead languages to one        
starting point1 even if that point were 
of much more modern date than we have   
now good reason to suppose4 ,in like    
manner it may be said of species1 that  
if those first formed were of very      
simple structure1 and they began to vary
 and to lose some organs by disuse and  
acquire new ones by development1 they   
might soon differ as much as so many    
distinctly created primordial types4 ,it
 would therefore be a waste of time to  
speculate on the number of original     
monads or germs from which all plants   
and animals were subsequently evolved1  
more especially as the oldest           

fossiliferous strata known to us may be 
the last of a long series of antecedent 
formations1 which once contained organic
 remains4 ,it was not till geologists   
ceased to discuss the condition of the  
original nucleus of the planet1 whether 
it was solid or fluid1 and whether it   
owed its fluidity to aqueous or igneous 
causes1 that they began to achieve their
 great triumphs2 and the vast progress  
which has recently been made in showing 
how the living species may be connected 
with the extinct by a common bond of    
descent1 has been due to a more careful 
study of the actual state of the living 
world1 and to those monuments of the    
past in which the relics of the animate 
creation of former ages are best        
preserved and least mutilated by the    
hand of time4    ,,chapter #bd4 --      
,,bearing ,,of ,,the ,,doctrine ,,of    
,,transmutation ,,on ,,the ,,origin ,,of
 ,,man1 ,,and ,,his ,,place ,,in ,,the  
,,creation4    ,whether ,man can be     
regarded as an ,exception to the ,rule  

if the      ,doctrine of ,transmutation 
be embraced for the rest of the         
,animal ,kingdom4   ,zoological         
,relations of ,man to other ,mammalia4  
,systems of ,classification4   ,term    
,quadrumanous1 why deceptive4   ,whether
 the ,structure of the ,human ,brain    
entitles ,man to form a      distinct   
,sub-class of the ,mammalia4            
,intelligence of the lower ,animals     
compared to the ,intellect and          
,reason of ,man4   ,grounds on which    
,man has been referred to a distinct    
,kingdom of      ,nature4   ,immaterial 
,principle common to ,man and ,animals4 
,non-discovery of intermediate ,links   
among ,fossil ,anthropomorphous         
,species4   ,hallam on the compound     
,nature of ,man1 and his ,place in the  
,creation4   ,great ,inequality of      
mental ,endowment in different ,human   
,races      and ,individuals developed  
by ,variation and ordinary ,generation4 
,how far a corresponding ,divergence in 
physical ,structure may result      from

 the ,working of the same ,causes4      
,concluding remarks4  ,some of the      
opponents of transmutation1 who are well
 versed in ,natural ,history1 admit that
 though that doctrine is untenable1 it  
is not without its practical advantages 
as a useful working hypothesis1 often   
suggesting good experiments and         
observations and aiding us to retain in 
the memory a multitude of facts         
respecting the geographical distribution
 of genera and species1 both of animals 
and plants1 the succession in time of   
organic remains1 and many other         
phenomena which1 but for such a theory1 
would be wholly without a common bond of
 relationship4  ,it is in fact conceded 
by many eminent zoologists and          
botanists1 as before explained1 that    
whatever may be the nature of the       
species-making power or law1 its effects
 are of such a character as to imitate  
the results which variation1 guided by  
natural selection1 would produce1 if    
only we could assume with certainty that

 there are no limits to the variability 
of species4 ,but as the                 
anti-transmutationists are persuaded    
that such limits do exist1 they regard  
the hypothesis as simply a provisional  
one1 and expect that it will one day be 
superseded by another cognate theory1   
which will not require us to assume the 
former continuousness of the links which
 have connected the past and present    
states of the organic world1 or the     
outgoing with the incoming species4  ,in
 like manner1 many of those who hesitate
 to give in their full adhesion to the  
doctrine of progression1 the other twin 
branch of the development theory1 and   
who even object to it1 as frequently    
tending to retard the reception of new  
facts supposed to militate against      
opinions solely founded on negative     
evidence1 are nevertheless agreed that  
on the whole it is of great service in  
guiding our speculations4 ,indeed it    
cannot be denied that a theory which    
establishes a connection between the    

absence of all relics of vertebrata in  
the oldest fossiliferous rocks1 and the 
presence of man's remains in the newest1
 which affords a more than plausible    
explanation of the successive appearance
 in strata of intermediate age of the   
fish1 reptile1 bird1 and mammal1 has no 
ordinary claims to our favour as        
comprehending the largest number of     
positive and negative facts gathered    
from all parts of the globe1 and        
extending over countless ages1 that     
science has perhaps ever attempted to   
embrace in one grand generalisation4    
,but will not transmutation1 if adopted1
 require us to include the human race in
 the same continuous series of          
developments1 so that we must hold that 
,man himself has been derived by an     
unbroken line of descent from some one  
of the inferior animals8 ,we certainly  
cannot escape from such a conclusion    
without abandoning many of the          
weightiest arguments which have been    
urged in support of variation and       

natural selection considered as the     
subordinate causes by which new types   
have been gradually introduced into the 
earth4 ,many of the gaps which separate 
the most nearly allied genera and orders
 of mammalia are1 in a physical point of
 view1 as wide as those which divide    
,man from the mammalia most nearly akin 
to him1 and the extent of his isolation1
 whether we regard his whole nature or  
simply his corporeal attributes1 must be
 considered before we can discuss the   
bearing of transmutation upon his origin
 and place in the creation4   ,,systems 
,,of ,,classification4  ,in order to    
qualify ourselves to judge of the degree
 of affinity in physical organisation   
between ,man and the lower animals1 we  
cannot do better than study those       
systems of classification which have    
been proposed by the most eminent       
teachers of natural history4 ,of these  
an elaborate and faithful summary has   
recently been drawn up by the late      
,isidore ,geoffroy ,st4 ,hilaire1 which 

the reader will do well to consult499   
799 ,histoire ,naturale ,generale des   
,regnes organiques ,paris      volume #b
 #ahef47  ,he begins by passing in      
review numerous schemes of              
classification1 each of them having some
 merit1 and most of them having been    
invented with a view of assigning to    
,man a separate place in the system of  
,nature1 as1 for example1 by dividing   
animals into rational and irrational1 or
 the whole organic world into three     
kingdoms1 the human1 the animal1 and the
 vegetable--an arrangement defended on  
the ground that ,man is raised as much  
by his intelligence above the animals as
 are these by their sensibility above   
plants4 ,admitting that these schemes   
are not unphilosophical1 as duly        
recognising the double nature of ,man   
7his moral and intellectual1 as well as 
his physical attributes71 ,isidore ,g4  
,st4 ,hilaire observes that little      
knowledge has been imparted by them4 ,we
 have gained1 he says1 much more from   

those masters of the science who have   
not attempted any compromise between two
 distinct orders of ideas1 the physical 
and psychological1 and who have confined
 their attention strictly to ,man's     
physical relation to the lower animals4 
,linnaeus led the way in this field of  
inquiry by comparing ,man and the apes1 
in the same manner as he compared these 
last with the carnivores1 ruminants1    
rodents1 or any other division of       
warm-blooded quadrupeds4 ,after several 
modifications of his original scheme1 he
 ended by placing ,man as one of the    
many genera in his order ,primates1     
which embraced not only the apes and    
lemurs1 but the bats also1 as he found  
these last to be nearly allied to some  
of the lowest forms of the monkeys4 ,but
 all modern naturalists1 who retain the 
order ,primates1 agree to exclude from  
it the bats or ,cheiroptera2 and most of
 them class ,man as one of several      
families of the order ,primates4 ,in    
this1 as in most systems of             

classification1 the families of modern  
zoologists and botanists correspond with
 the genera of ,linnaeus4  ,blumenbach1 
in #aggi1 proposed to deviate from this 
course1 and to separate ,man from the   
apes as an order apart1 under the name  
of ,bimana1 or two-handed4 ,in making   
this innovation he seems at first to    
have felt that it could not be justified
 without calling in psychological       
considerations to his aid1 to strengthen
 those which were purely anatomical2    
for1 in the earliest edition of his     
,manual of ,natural ,history1 he defined
 ,man to be animal rationale1 loquens1  
erectum1 bimanum1 whereas in later      
editions he restricted himself entirely 
to the two last characters1 namely1 the 
erect position and the two hands1 or    
animal erectum1 bimanum4  ,the terms    
bimanous and quadrumanous had been      
already employed by ,buffon in #agff1   
but not applied in a strict zoological  
classification till so used by          
,blumenbach4 ,twelve years later1       

,cuvier adopted the same order ,bimana  
for the human family1 while the apes1   
monkeys1 and lemurs constituted a       
separate order called ,quadrumana4      
,respecting this last innovation1       
,isidore ,g4 ,st4 ,hilaire asks1 ,how   
could such a division stand1 repudiated 
as it was by the anthropologists in the 
name of the moral and intellectual      
supremacy of ,man2 and by the           
zoologists1 on the ground of its        
incompatibility with natural affinities 
and with the true principles of         
classification8 ,separated as a group of
 ordinal value1 placed at the same      
distance from the ape as the latter from
 the carnivore1 ,man is at once too near
 and too distant from the higher        
mammalia--too near if we take into      
account those elevated faculties1 which1
 raising ,man above all other organised 
beings1 accord to him not only the      
first1 but a separate place in the      
creation--too far if we merely consider 
the organic affinities which unite him  

with the quadrumana2 with the apes      
especially1 which1 in a purely physical 
point of view1 approach ,man more nearly
 than they do the lemurs4  ,what1 then1 
is this order of ,bimana of ,blumenbach 
and ,cuvier8 ,an impracticable          
compromise between two opposite and     
irreconcilable systems--between two     
orders of ideas which are clearly       
expressed in the language of natural    
history by these two words3 the human   
,,kingdom and the human ,,family4 ,it is
 one of those would-be via media        
propositions which1 once seen through1  
satisfy no one1 precisely because they  
are intended to please everybody2       
half-truths1 perhaps1 but also          
half-falsehoods2 for what1 in science1  
is a half-truth but an error8  ,isidore 
,g4 ,st4 ,hilaire then proceeds to show 
how1 in spite of the great authority of 
,blumenbach and ,cuvier1 a large        
proportion of modern zoologists of note 
have rejected the order ,bimana1 and    
have regarded ,man simply as a family of

 one and the same order1 ,primates4     
,,term ,,quadrumanous1 ,,why            
,,deceptive4  ,even the term            
,quadrumanous has lately been shown by  
,professor ,huxley1 in a lecture        
delivered by him in the spring of       
#ahfj-fa1 which ,i had the good fortune 
to hear1 to have proved a fertile source
 of popular delusion1 conveying ideas   
which the great anatomists ,blumenbach  
and ,cuvier never entertained           
themselves1 namely1 that in the         
so-called ,quadrumana the extremities of
 the hind-limbs bear a real resemblance 
to the human hands1 instead of          
corresponding anatomically with the     
human feet4  ,as this subject bears very
 directly on the question1 how far ,man 
is entitled1 in a purely zoological     
classification1 to rank as an order     
apart1 ,i shall proceed to cite1 in an  
abridged form1 the words of the lecturer
 above alluded to499       799          
,professor ,huxley's third lecture ,on  
the ,motor ,organs of      ,man compared

 with those of other ,animals1 delivered
 in the      ,royal ,school of ,mines1  
in ,jermyn ,street 7,march #ahfa7 has   
been embodied with the rest of the      
course in his work      entitled        
,evidence as to ,man's ,place in        
,nature47  ,to gain1 he observes1 a     
precise conception of the resemblances  
and differences of the hand and foot1   
and of the distinctive characters of    
each1 we must look below the skin1 and  
compare the bony framework and its motor
 apparatus in each4  ,the foot of ,man  
is distinguished from his hand by3--    
#a4 ,the arrangement of the tarsal      
bones4  #b4 ,by having a short flexor   
and a short extensor muscle of the      
digits4  #c4 ,by possessing the muscle  
termed peronaeus longus4  ,and if we    
desire to ascertain whether the terminal
 division of a limb in other animals is 
to be called a foot or a hand1 it is by 
the presence or absence of these        
characters that we must be guided1 and  
not by the mere proportions1 and greater

 or lesser mobility of the great toe1   
which may vary indefinitely without any 
fundamental alteration in the structure 
of the foot4 ,keeping these             
considerations in mind1 let us now turn 
to the limbs of the ,gorilla4 ,the      
terminal division of the fore-limb      
presents no difficulty--bone for bone1  
and muscle for muscle1 are found to be  
arranged precisely as in ,man1 or with  
such minute differences as are found as 
varieties in ,man4 ,the ,gorilla's hand 
is clumsier1 heavier1 and has a thumb   
somewhat shorter in proportion than that
 of ,man2 but no one has ever doubted   
its being a true hand4  ,at first sight1
 the termination of the hind-limb of the
 ,gorilla looks very hand-like1 and as  
it is still more so in the lower apes1  
it is not wonderful that the appellation
 ',quadrumana1' or four-handed          
creatures1 adopted from the older       
anatomists by ,blumenbach1 and          
unfortunately rendered current by       
,cuvier1 should have gained such wide   

acceptance as a name for the ape order4 
,but the most cursory anatomical        
investigation at once proves that the   
resemblance of the so-called 'hindhand' 
to a true hand is only skin deep1 and   
that1 in all essential respects1 the    
hind-limb of the ,gorilla is as truly   
terminated by a foot as that of ,man4   
,the tarsal bones1 in all important     
circumstances of number1 disposition1   
and form1 resemble those of ,man4 ,the  
metatarsals and digits1 on the other    
hand1 are proportionally longer and more
 slender1 while the great toe is not    
only proportionally shorter and weaker1 
but its metatarsal bone is united by a  
far more movable joint with the tarsus4 
,at the same time1 the foot is set more 
obliquely upon the leg than in ,man4    
,as to the muscles1 there is a short    
flexor1 a short extensor1 and a         
peronaeus longus1 while the tendons of  
the long flexors of the great toe and of
 the other toes are united together and 
into an accessory fleshy bundle4  ,the  

hind-limb of the ,gorilla1 therefore1   
ends in a true foot with a very movable 
great toe4 ,it is a prehensile foot1 if 
you will1 but is in no sense a hand3 it 
is a foot which differs from that of    
,man in no fundamental character1 but in
 mere proportions--degree of            
mobility--and secondary arrangement of  
its parts4  ,it must not be supposed1   
however1 that because ,i speak of these 
differences as not fundamental1 that ,i 
wish to underrate their value4 ,they are
 important enough in their way1 the     
structure of the foot being in strict   
correlation with that of the rest of the
 organism2 but after all1 regarded      
anatomically1 the resemblances between  
the foot of ,man and the foot of the    
,gorilla are far more striking and      
important than the differences499       
799 ,professor ,huxley1 ibid47  ,after  
dwelling on some points of anatomical   
detail1 highly important1 but for which 
,i have not space here1 the ,professor  
continues--,throughout all these        

modifications1 it must be recollected   
that the foot loses no one of its       
essential characters4 ,every monkey and 
lemur exhibits the characteristic       
arrangement of tarsal bones1 possesses a
 short flexor and short extensor muscle1
 and a peronaeus longus4 ,varied as the 
proportions and appearance of the organ 
may be1 the terminal division of the    
hind-limb remains in plan and principle 
of construction a foot1 and never in the
 least degree approaches a hand499      
799 ,ibid47  ,for these reasons1        
,professor ,huxley rejects the term     
,quadrumana1 as leading to serious      
misconception1 and regards ,man as one  
of the families of the ,primates4 ,this 
method of classification he shows to be 
equally borne out by an appeal to       
another character on which so much      
reliance has always been placed in      
classification1 as affording in the     
mammalia the most trustworthy           
indications of affinity1 namely1 the    
dentition4  ,the number of teeth in the 

,gorilla and all the ,old ,world        
monkeys1 except the lemurs1 is          
thirty-two1 the same as in ,man1 and the
 general pattern of their crowns the    
same4 ,but besides other distinctions1  
the canines in all but ,man project in  
the upper or lower jaws almost like     
tusks4 ,but all the ,american apes have 
four more teeth in their permanent set1 
or thirty-six in all1 so that they      
differ in this respect more from the    
,old ,world apes than do these last from
 ,man4  ,if therefore1 by reference to  
this character1 we place ,man in a      
separate order1 we must make several    
orders for the apes1 monkeys1 and       
lemurs1 and so1 in regard to the        
structure of the hands and feet before  
alluded to1 the ,gorilla differs far    
more from some of the quadrumana than he
 differs from ,man4 ,indeed1 ,professor 
,huxley contends that there is more     
difference between the hand and foot of 
the ,gorilla and those of the ,orang1   
one of the anthropomorphous apes1 than  

between those of the ,gorilla and ,man1 
for the thumb of the ,orang differs by  
its shortness and by the absence of any 
special long flexor muscle from that of 
the ,gorilla more than it differs from  
that of ,man4 ,the carpus also of the   
,orang1 like that of most lower apes1   
contains nine bones1 while in the       
,gorilla1 as in ,man and the            
,chimpanzee1 there are only eight4      
,other characters are also given to show
 that the ,orang's foot separates it    
more widely from the ,gorilla than that 
of the ,gorilla separates that ape from 
,man4 ,in some of the lower apes1 the   
divergence from the human type of hand  
and foot1 as well as from those of the  
,gorilla1 is still greater1 as1 for     
example1 in the spider-monkey and       
marmoset499       799 ,huxley1 ibid4    
page #bi47  ,if the muscles1 viscera1 or
 any other part of the animal fabric1   
including the brain1 be compared1 the   
results are declared to be similar4     
,,whether ,,the ,,structure ,,of ,,the  

,,human ,,brain ,,entitles ,,man ,,to   
,,form ,a ,,distinct ,,sub-,,class ,,of 
,,the ,,mammalia4  ,in consequence of   
these and many other zoological         
considerations1 the order ,bimana had   
already been declared1 in #ahef1 by     
,isidore ,g4 ,st4 ,hilaire in his       
history of the science above quoted to  
have become obsolete1 even though       
sanctioned by the great names of        
,blumenbach and ,cuvier4 ,but in        
opposition to the new views ,professor  
,owen announced1 the year after the     
publication of ,g4 ,st4 ,hilaire's work1
 that he had been led by purely         
anatomical considerations to separate   
,man from the other ,primates and from  
the mammalia generally as a distinct    
,,sub-,,class1 thus departing farther   
from the classification of ,blumenbach  
and ,cuvier than they had ventured to do
 from that of ,linnaeus4  ,the proposed 
innovation was based chiefly on three   
cerebral characters belonging1 it was   
alleged1 exclusively to ,man and thus   

described in the following passages of a
 memoir communicated to the ,linnaean   
,society in #aheg1 in which all the     
mammalia were divided1 according to the 
structure of the brain1 into four       
sub-classes1 represented by the         
kangaroo1 the beaver1 the ape1 and ,man 
respectively3--  ,in ,man1 the brain    
presents an ascensive step in           
development1 higher and more strongly   
marked than that by which the preceding 
sub-class was distinguished from the one
 below it4 ,not only do the cerebral    
hemispheres overlap the olfactory lobes 
and cerebellum1 but they extend in      
advance of the one and farther back than
 the other4 ,their posterior development
 is so marked that anatomists have      
assigned to that part the character of a
 third lobe2 it is peculiar to the genus
 ,homo1 and equally peculiar is the     
'posterior horn of the lateral          
ventricle' and the 'hippocampus minor'  
which characterises the hind-lobe of    
each hemisphere4 ,the superficial grey  

matter of the cerebrum1 through the     
number and depth of its convolutions1   
attains its maximum of extent in ,man4  
,peculiar mental powers are associated  
with this highest form of brain1 and    
their consequences wonderfully          
illustrate the value of the cerebral    
character2 according to my estimate of  
which ,i am led to regard the genus     
,homo as not merely a representative of 
a distinct order1 but of a distinct     
sub-class of the mammalia1 for which ,i 
propose the name of ',archencephala4'99 
799 ,owen1 ,proceedings of the ,linnaean
 ,society ,london volume      #h page   
#bj47  ,the above definition is         
accompanied in the same memoir by the   
following note3--,not being able to     
appreciate1 or conceive1 of the         
distinction between the psychical       
phenomena of a chimpanzee and of a      
,boschisman1 or of an ,aztec with       
arrested brain-growth1 as being of a    
nature so essential as to preclude a    
comparison between them1 or as being    

other than a difference of degree1 ,i   
cannot shut my eyes to the significance 
of that all-pervading similitude of     
structure--every tooth1 every bone1     
strictly homologous--which makes the    
determination of the difference between 
,homo and ,pithecus the anatomist's     
difficulty2 and therefore1 with every   
respect for the author of the ,records  
of ,creation199 ,i follow ,linnaeus and 
,cuvier in regarding mankind as a       
legitimate subject of zoological        
comparison and classification4       799
 ,the late ,archbishop of ,canterbury1  
,dr4 ,sumner47  ,illustration3 ,figure  
#ed1 #ee and #ef4 ,brain ,of ,chimpanzee
    7,,figure #ed4 ,,upper ,,surface    
,,of ,,brain ,,of ,,chimpanzee1         
,,distorted 7,,from    ,,schroeder ,,van
 ,,der ,,kolk ,,and ,,vrolik47   ,scale 
half the diameter of the natural size4  
,a4 ,left cerebral hemisphere4    ,b4   
,right cerebral hemisphere4    ,c4      
,cerebellum displaced47    7,,figure    
#ee4 ,,side ,,view ,,of ,,brain ,,of    

,,chimpanzee1 ,,distorted 7,,from       
,,schroeder ,,van ,,der ,,kolk ,,and    
,,vrolik47   ,scale half the diameter of
 the natural size4     e4 ,the extension
 of the displaced cerebellum beyond the 
cerebrum at d47    7,,figure #ef4       
,,correct ,,side ,,view ,,of            
,,chimpanzee',s ,,brain 7,,from         
,,gratiolet74    ,scale half the        
diameter of the natural size4     d4    
,backward extension of the cerebrum1    
beyond the cerebellum at e4    f4       
,fissure of ,sylvius47  ,illustration3  
,figure #eg and #eh4 ,chimpanzee and    
,human ,brain    7,,figure #eg4         
,,correct ,,view ,,of ,,upper ,,surface 
,,of ,,chimpanzee',s ,,brain    7,,from 
,,gratiolet71      in which the cerebrum
 covers and conceals the cerebellum4    
,scale half the diameter of the natural 
size47    7,,figure #eh4 ,,side ,,view  
,,of ,,human ,,brain 7,,from            
,,gratiolet71 ,,namely1    ,,that ,,of  
,,the ,,bushwoman ,,called ,,the        
,,hottentot ,,venus4      ,scale half   

the diameter of the natural size4    ,a4
 ,left cerebral hemisphere4   ,c4       
,cerebellum4   ff4 ,fissure of          
,sylvius47  ,to illustrate the          
difference between the human and ,simian
 brain1 ,professor ,owen gave figures of
 the negro's brain as represented by    
,tiedemann1 an original one of a ,south 
,american monkey1 ,midas rufimanus1 and 
one of the chimpanzee 7,figure #ed71    
from a memoir published in #ahdi by     
,,mm4 ,schroeder van der ,kolk and ,m4  
,vrolik499       799 ,comptes rendus de 
l',academie ,royale des ,sciences       
,amsterdam volume #ac47  ,the selection 
of ,figure #ed was most unfortunate1 for
 three years before1 ,m4 ,gratiolet1 the
 highest authority in cerebral anatomy  
of our age1 had1 in his splendid work on
 ,the ,convolutions of the ,brain in    
,man and the ,primates 7,paris1 #ahed71 
pointed out that1 though this engraving 
faithfully expressed the cerebral       
foldings as seen on the surface1 it gave
 a very false idea of the relative      

position of the several parts of the    
brain1 which1 as very commonly happens  
in such preparations1 had shrunk and    
greatly sunk down by their own weight499
       799 ,gratiolet's words are3 ,les 
plis cerebraux du chimpanze y      sont 
fort bien etudies1 malheureusement le   
cerveau qui leur      a servi de modele 
etait profondement affaisse1 aussi la   
forme generale du cerveau est-elle      
rendue1 dans leurs      planches1 d'une 
maniere tout-a-fait fausse4 ,ibid4 page 
#ah47  ,anticipating the serious        
mistakes which would arise from this    
inaccurate representation of the brain  
of the ape1 published under the auspices
 of men so deserving of trust as the two
 above-named ,dutch anatomists1 ,m4     
,gratiolet thought it expedient1 by way 
of warning to his readers1 to repeat    
their incorrect figures 7,figures #ed   
and #ee71 and to place by the side of   
them two correct views 7,figures #ef and
 #eg7 of the brain of the same ape4 ,by 
reference to these illustrations1 as    

well as to ,figure #eh1 the reader will 
see not only the contrast of the        
relative position of the cerebrum and   
cerebellum1 as delineated in the natural
 as well as in the distorted state1 but 
also the remarkable general             
correspondence between the chimpanzee   
brain and that of the human subject in  
everything save in size4 ,the human     
brain 7,figure #eh7 here given1 by      
,gratiolet1 is that of an ,african      
bushwoman1 called the ,hottentot ,venus1
 who was exhibited formerly in ,london1 
and who died in ,paris4  ,respecting    
this striking analogy of cerebral       
structure in ,man and the apes1         
,gratiolet says1 in the work above      
cited3 ,the convoluted brain of ,man and
 the smooth brain of the marmoset       
resemble each other by the quadruple    
character of a rudimentary olfactory    
lobe1 a posterior lobe ,,completely     
,,covering ,,the ,,cerebellum1 a        
well-defined fissure of ,sylvius 7ff1   
,figure #ef71 and lastly a posterior    

horn in the lateral ventricle4 ,these   
characters are not met with together    
except in ,man and the apes499       799
 ,gratiolet1 ibid4 ,avant-propos page #b
 #ahed47  ,in reference to the other    
figure of a monkey given by ,professor  
,owen1 namely1 that of the ,midas1 one  
of the marmosets1 he states1 in #aheg as
 he had done in #ahcg1 that the         
posterior part of the cerebral          
hemispheres extends1 as in most of the  
quadrumana1 over the greater part of the
 cerebellum499       799 ,proceedings of
 the ,linnaean ,society #aheg page #ah  
note1      and ,philosophical           
,transactions #ahcg page #ic47  ,in     
#ahei1 in his ,rede ,lecture1 delivered 
to the ,university of ,cambridge1 the   
same illustrations of the ape's brain   
were given1 namely1 that of the ,midas  
and the distorted one of the ,dutch     
anatomists already cited 7,figure       
#ed7499       799 ,see ,appendix ,m47   
,two years later1 ,professor ,huxley1 in
 a memoir ,on the ,zoological ,relations

 of ,man with the ,lower ,animals1 took 
occasion to refer to ,gratiolet's       
warning1 and to cite his criticism on   
the ,dutch plates299 but this reminder  
appears to have been overlooked by      
,professor ,owen1 who six months later  
came out with a new paper on ,the       
,cerebral ,character of ,man and the    
,ape1 in which he repeated the incorrect
 representation of ,schroeder van der   
,kolk and ,vrolik1 associating it with  
,tiedemann's figure of a negro's brain1 
expressly to show the relative and      
different extent to which the cerebellum
 is overlapped by the cerebrum in the   
two cases respectively49999 ,in the     
ape's brain as thus depicted1 the       
portion of the cerebellum left uncovered
 is greater than in the lemurs1 the     
lowest type of ,primates1 and almost as 
large as in the rodentia1 or some of the
 lowest grades of the mammalia4         
799 ,huxley1 ,natural ,history ,review  
,january #g1 #ahfa page      #gf47      
79999 ,annals and ,magazine of ,natural 

,history volume #g #ahfa      page #def 
and ,plate #bj47  ,when the ,dutch      
naturalists above mentioned found their 
figures so often appealed to as         
authority1 by one the weight of whose   
opinion on such matters they well knew  
how to appreciate1 they resolved to do  
their best towards preventing the public
 from being misled4 ,accordingly1 they  
addressed to the ,royal ,academy of     
,amsterdam a memoir ,on the brain of an 
,orang-outang which had just died in the
 ,zoological ,gardens of that city499   
799 ,this paper is reprinted in the     
original ,french in the      ,natural   
,history ,review volume #b #ahfb page   
#aaa47  ,the dissection of this ape1 in 
#ahfa1 fully bore out the general       
conclusions at which they had previously
 arrived in #ahdi1 as to the existence  
both in the human and the simian brain  
of the three characters1 which          
,professor ,owen had represented as     
exclusively appertaining to ,man1       
namely1 the occipital or posterior lobe1

 the hippocampus minor1 and the         
posterior cornu4 ,these last two        
features consist of certain cavities and
 furrows in the posterior lobes1 which  
are caused by the foldings of the brain1
 and are only visible when it is        
dissected4 ,,mm4 ,schroeder van der     
,kolk and ,vrolik took this opportunity 
of candidly confessing that ,m4         
,gratiolet's comments on the defects of 
their two figures 7,figures #ed and #ee7
 were perfectly just1 and they expressed
 regret that ,professor ,owen should    
have overstated the differences existing
 between the brain of ,man and the      
,quadrumana1 led astray1 as they        
supposed1 by his zeal to combat the     
,darwinian theory respecting the        
transformation of species1 a doctrine   
against which they themselves protested 
strongly1 saying that it belongs to a   
class of speculations which are sure to 
be revived from time to time1 and are   
always peculiarly seductive to young and
 sanguine minds499       799 ,ibid4 page

 #aad47  ,as the two memoirs before     
alluded to by us1 the one by ,mr4       
,darwin on ,natural ,selection1 and the 
other by ,mr4 ,wallace ,on the ,tendency
 of ,varieties to depart indefinitely   
from the original ,type1 did not appear 
till #aheh1 a year after ,professor     
,owen's classification of the mammalia1 
and as ,darwin's ,origin of ,species was
 not published till another year had    
elapsed1 we cannot accept the           
explanation above offered to us of the  
causes which led the founder of the     
sub-class ,archencephala to seek for new
 points of distinction between the human
 and simian brains2 but the ,dutch      
anatomists may have fallen into this    
anachronism by having just read1 in the 
paper by ,professor ,owen in the        
,annals1 some prefatory allusions to the
 ,vestiges of ,creation1 ,natural       
,selection1 and the question whether man
 be or be not a descendant of the ape4  
,the number of original and important   
memoirs to which this discussion on the 

cerebral relations of ,man to the       
,primates has already given rise in less
 than five years1 must render the       
controversy for ever memorable in the   
history of ,comparative ,anatomy499     
799 ,rolleston1 ,natural ,history       
,review ,april #ahfa4 ,huxley1      on  
,brain of ,ateles ,proceedings of the   
,zoological ,society      #ahfa4        
,flower1 ,posterior ,lobe in ,quadrumana
 etc41      ,philosophical ,transactions
 #ahfb4 ,id4 ,javan ,loris              
,proceedings of the ,zoological ,society
 #ahfb4 ,id4 on      ,anatomy of        
,pithecia ibid4 #ahfb47  ,in ,england   
alone1 no less than fifteen genera of   
the ,primates 7the subjects having been 
almost all furnished by that admirable  
institution the ,zoological ,gardens of 
,london7 have been anatomically         
examined1 and they include nearly all   
the leading types of structure of the   
,old and ,new ,world apes and monkeys1  
from the most anthropoid form to that   
farthest removed from ,man2 in other    

words1 from the ,chimpanzee to the      
,lemur4 ,these are3--       ,troglodytes
 7,chimpanzee74      ,pithecus 7,orang74
      ,hylobates 7,gibbon74             
,semnopithecus4      ,cercopithecus4    
,macacus4      ,cynocephalus 7,baboon74 
,ateles 7,spider ,monkey74       ,cebus 
7,capuchin ,monkey74      ,pithecia     
7,saki74      ,nyctipithecus            
7,douricouli74       ,hapale            
7,marmoset74       ,otolicnus4          
,stenops4      ,lemur4  ,in ,july #ahfa 
,mr4 ,marshall1 in a paper on the brain 
of a young ,chimpanzee1 which he had    
dissected immediately after its death1  
gave a series of photographic drawings1 
showing that when the parts are all in a
 fresh state1 the posterior lobe of the 
cerebrum1 instead of simply covering the
 cerebellum1 is prolonged backwards     
beyond it even to a greater extent than 
in ,gratiolet's figure1 #ef1 and1 what  
is more in point1 in a greater degree   
relatively speaking 7at least in the    
young state of the animal7 than in ,man4

 ,in fact1 the projection is to the     
extent of about one-ninth of the total  
length of the cerebrum1 whereas the     
average excess of overlapping is only   
one-eleventh in the human brain499      
799 ,marshall1 ,natural ,history ,review
 ,july #ahfa4 ,see also on      this    
subject ,professor ,rolleston on the    
slight degree of      backward extension
 of the cerebrum in some races of ,man4 
,medical ,times ,october #ahfb1 page    
#dai47  ,the same author gives an       
instructive account of the manner in    
which displacement and distortion take  
place when such brains are preserved in 
spirits as in the ordinary preparations 
of the anatomist4  ,mr4 ,flower1 in a   
recent paper on the posterior lobe of   
the cerebrum in the ,quadrumana199      
remarks1 that although ,tiedemann had   
declared himself unable in #ahba to     
detect the hippocampus minor or the     
posterior cornu of the lateral ventricle
 in the brain of a ,macacus dissected by
 him1 ,cuvier1 nevertheless1 mentions   

the latter as characteristic of ,man and
 the apes1 and ,m4 ,serres in his       
well-known work on the brain in #ahbf1  
has shown in at least four species of   
apes the presence of both the           
hippocampus minor and the posterior     
cornu4       799 ,philosophical         
,transactions #ahfb page #ahe47         
,tiedemann had expressly stated that the
 third or hinder lobe in the ape covered
 the cerebellum as in ,man199 and as to 
his negative evidence in respect to the 
internal structure of that lobe1 it can 
have no weight whatever against the     
positive proofs obtained to the contrary
 by a host of able observers4 ,even     
before ,tiedemann's work was published1 
,kuhl had dissected1 in #ahbj1 the brain
 of the spider-monkey 7,ateles          
beelzebuth71 and had given a figure of a
 long posterior cornu to the lateral    
ventricle1 which he had described as    
such49999       799 ,tiedemann1 ,icones 
cerebri ,simiarum etc4 page #dh47       
79999 ,beitrage zur ,zoologie etc4      

,frankfurt am ,main #ahbj47  ,the       
general results arrived at by the       
,english anatomists already cited1 and  
by ,professor ,rolleston in various     
papers on the same subject1 have thus   
been briefly stated by ,professor       
,huxley3--  ,every lemur which has yet  
been examined has its cerebellum        
partially visible from above1 and its   
posterior lobe1 with the contained      
posterior cornu and hippocampus minor1  
more or less rudimentary4 ,every        
marmoset1 ,american monkey1 ,old ,world 
monkey1 baboon1 or man-like ape1 on the 
contrary1 has its cerebellum entirely   
hidden1 and possesses a large posterior 
cornu1 with a well-developed hippocampus
 minor4  ,in many of these creatures1   
such as the ,saimiri 7,chrysothrix71 the
 cerebral lobes overlap and extend much 
farther behind the cerebellum in        
proportion than they do in ,man499      
799 ,huxley1 ,evidence as to ,man's     
place in ,nature page #ig47  ,it is by  
no means pretended that these           

conclusions of ,british observers as to 
the affinity in cerebral structure of   
,man and the ,primates are new1 but on  
the contrary that they confirm the      
inductions previously made by the       
principal continental teachers of the   
last and present generations1 such as   
,tiedemann1 ,cuvier1 ,serres1 ,leuret1  
,wagner1 ,schroeder van der ,kolk1      
,vrolik1 ,gratiolet1 and others4  ,at a 
late meeting of the ,british            
,association 7#ahfb71 ,professor ,owen  
read a paper ,on the brain and limb     
characters of the ,gorilla as contrasted
 with those of ,man99 in which1 he      
observes1 that in the gorilla the       
cerebrum extends over the cerebellum1   
not beyond it4       799 ,medical ,times
 and ,gazette ,october #ahfb page #cgc47
  ,this statement1 although slightly at 
variance with one published the year    
before 7#ahfa7 by ,professor ,huxley1   
who maintains that it does project      
beyond1 is interesting as correcting the
 description of the same brain given by 

,professor ,owen in that year1 in a     
lecture to the ,royal ,institution1 in  
which a considerable part of the        
cerebellum of the gorilla was           
represented as uncovered499       799   
,athenaeum ,report of ,royal            
,institution ,lecture1 ,march      #bc1 
#ahfa1 and reference to it by ,professor
 ,owen as to      ,gorilla1 ibid4 ,march
 #cj page #dcd47  ,in the same memoir1  
it is remarked that in the ,maimon      
,baboon the cerebrum not only covers but
 extends backwards even beyond the      
cerebellum499       799 ,for ,report of 
,professor ,owen's ,cambridge ,british  
,association paper see ,medical ,times  
,october #aa1 #ahfb page      #cgc47    
,this baboon1 therefore1 possesses a    
posterior lobe1 according to every      
description yet given of such a lobe1   
including a new definition of the same  
lately proposed by ,professor ,owen4    
,for the posterior lobe was formerly    
considered to be that part of the       
cerebrum which covers the cerebellum1   

whereas ,professor ,owen defines it as  
that part which covers the posterior    
third of the cerebellum1 and extends    
beyond it4  ,we may1 therefore1 consider
 the attempt to distinguish the brain of
 ,man from that of the ape on the ground
 of newly-discovered cerebral           
characters1 presenting differences in   
kind1 as virtually abandoned by its     
originator1 and if the sub-class        
,archencephala is to be retained1 it    
must depend on differences in degree1   
as1 for example1 the vast increase of   
the brain in ,man1 as compared with that
 of the highest ape1 in absolute size1  
and the still greater superiority in    
relative size to the bulk and weight of 
the body499       799 ,owen1 ibid4 page 
#cgc47  ,if we ask why this character1  
though well known to ,cuvier and other  
great anatomists before our time1 was   
not considered by them to entitle ,man1 
physically considered1 to claim a more  
distinct place in the group called      
,primates than that of a separate order1

 or1 according to others1 a separate    
genus or family only1 we shall find the 
answer thus concisely stated by         
,professor ,huxley in his new work1     
before cited3--  ,so far as ,i am aware1
 no human cranium belonging to an adult 
man has yet been observed with a less   
cubical capacity than #fb cubic inches1 
the smallest cranium observed in any    
race of men1 by ,morton1 measuring #fc  
cubic inches2 while on the other hand1  
the most capacious gorilla skull yet    
measured has a content of not more than 
#cd #a_/b cubic inches4 ,let us assume  
for simplicity's sake1 that the lowest  
man's skull has twice the capacity of   
the highest gorilla's4 ,no doubt this is
 a very striking difference1 but it     
loses much of its apparent systematic   
value1 when viewed by the light of      
certain other equally indubitable facts 
respecting cranial capacities4  ,the    
first of these is1 that the difference  
in the volume of the cranial cavity of  
different races of mankind is far       

greater1 absolutely1 than that between  
the lowest man and the highest ape1     
while1 relatively1 it is about the same2
 for the largest human skull measured by
 ,morton contained #aad cubic inches1   
that is to say1 had very nearly double  
the capacity of the smallest1 while its 
absolute preponderance of over #ej cubic
 inches is far greater than that by     
which the lowest adult male human       
cranium surpasses the largest of the    
gorillas 7#fb minus #cd #a_/b  #bg      
#a_/b74 ,secondly1 the adult crania of  
gorillas which have as yet been         
measured1 differ among themselves by    
nearly one-third1 the maximum capacity  
being #cd4e cubic inches1 the minimum   
#bd cubic inches2 and1 thirdly1 after   
making all due allowance for difference 
of size1 the cranial capacities of some 
of the lower apes fall nearly as much   
relatively below those of the higher    
apes1 as the latter fall below ,man499  
799 ,huxley1 ,evidence as to ,man's     
place in ,nature ,london      #ahfc page

 #gh4 7  ,are we then to conclude that  
differences in mental power have no     
intimate connection with the comparative
 volume of the brain8 ,we cannot draw   
such an inference1 because the highest  
and most civilised races of ,man exceed 
in the average of their cranial capacity
 the lowest races1 the ,european brain1 
for example1 being larger than that of  
the negro1 and somewhat more convoluted 
and less symmetrical1 and those apes1 on
 the other hand1 which approach nearest 
to ,man in the form and volume of their 
brain being more intelligent than the   
,lemurs1 or still lower divisions of the
 mammalia1 such as the ,rodents and     
,marsupials1 which have smaller brains4 
,but the extraordinary intelligence of  
the elephant and dog1 so far exceeding  
that of the larger part of the          
,quadrumana1 although their brains are  
of a type much more remote from the     
human1 may serve to convince us how far 
we are as yet from understanding the    
real nature of the dependence of        

intellectual superiority on cerebral    
structure4  ,professor ,rolleston1 in   
reference to this subject1 remarks1 that
 even if it were to be proved that the  
differences between ,man's brain and    
that of the ape are differences entirely
 of quantity1 there is no reason1 in the
 nature of things1 why so many and such 
weighty differences in degree should not
 amount to a difference in kind4        
,differences of degree and differences  
of kind are1 it is true1 mutually       
exclusive terms in the language of the  
schools2 but whether they are so also in
 the laboratory of ,nature1 we may very 
well doubt499       799 ,report of a    
,lecture delivered at the ,royal        
,institution by      ,professor ,george 
,rolleston ,on the ,brain of ,man and   
,animals      ,medical ,gazette ,march  
#ae1 #ahfb page #bfb47  ,the same       
physiologist suggests1 that as there is 
considerable plasticity in the human    
frame1 not only in youth and during     
growth1 but even in the adult1 we ought 

not always to take for granted1 as some 
advocates of the development theory seem
 to do1 that each advance in psychical  
power depends on an improvement in      
bodily structure1 for why may not the   
soul1 or the higher intellectual and    
moral faculties1 play the first instead 
of the second part in a progressive     
scheme8   ,,intelligence ,,of ,,the     
,,lower ,,animals ,,compared ,,to ,,that
 ,,of ,,man4  ,ever since the days of   
,leibnitz1 metaphysicians who have      
attempted to draw a line of demarcation 
between the intelligence of the lower   
animals and that of ,man1 or between    
instinct and reason1 have experienced   
difficulties analogous to those which   
the modern anatomist encounters when he 
tries to distinguish the brain of an ape
 from that of ,man by some characters   
more marked than those of mere size and 
weight1 which vary so much in           
individuals of the same species1 whether
 simian or human4  ,professor ,agassiz1 
after declaring that as yet we scarcely 

possess the most elementary information 
requisite for a scientific comparison of
 the instincts and faculties of animals 
with those of ,man1 confesses that he   
cannot say in what the mental faculties 
of a child differ from those of a young 
chimpanzee4 ,he also observes1 that the 
range of the passions of animals is as  
extensive as that of the human mind1 and
 ,i am at a loss to perceive a          
difference of kind between them1 however
 much they may differ in degree and in  
the manner in which they are expressed4 
,the gradations of the moral faculties  
among the higher animals and ,man are1  
moreover1 so imperceptible1 that to deny
 to the first a certain sense of        
responsibility and consciousness would  
certainly be an exaggeration of the     
difference between animals and ,man4    
,there exists1 besides1 as much         
individuality within their respective   
capabilities among animals as among     
,man1 as every sportsman1 or every      
keeper of menageries1 or every farmer   

and shepherd can testify1 who has had a 
large experience with wild1 or tamed1 or
 domesticated animals4 ,this argues     
strongly in favour of the existence in  
every animal of an immaterial principle1
 similar to that which1 by its          
excellence and superior endowments1     
places ,man so much above animals4 ,yet 
the principle exists unquestionably1 and
 whether it be called soul1 reason1 or  
instinct1 it presents1 in the whole     
range of organised beings1 a series of  
phenomena closely linked together1 and  
upon it are based not only the higher   
manifestations of the mind1 but the very
 permanence of the specific differences 
which characterise every organ4 ,most of
 the arguments of philosophy in favour  
of the immortality of ,man apply equally
 to the permanency of this principle in 
other living beings499       799        
,contributions to the ,natural ,history 
of the ,united      ,states of ,north   
,america volume #a part #a pages #fj and
 #fd47  ,professor ,huxley1 when        

commenting on a passage in ,professor   
,owen's memoir1 above cited1 argues that
 there is a unity in psychical as in    
physical plan among animated beings1 and
 adds1 that although he cannot go so far
 as to say that the determination of the
 difference between ,homo and ,pithecus 
is the anatomist's difficulty1 yet no   
impartial judge can doubt that the      
roots1 as it were1 of those great       
faculties which confer on ,man his      
immeasurable superiority above all other
 animate things are traceable far down  
into the animate world4 ,the dog1 the   
cat1 and the parrot1 return love for our
 love and hatred for our hatred4 ,they  
are capable of shame and of sorrow1 and 
though they may have no logic nor       
conscious ratiocination1 no one who has 
watched their ways can doubt that they  
possess that power of rational          
cerebration which evolves reasonable    
acts from the premises furnished by the 
senses--a process which takes fully as  
large a share as conscious reason in    

human activity499       799 ,natural    
,history ,review ,number #a ,january    
#ahfa page #fh47   ,,grounds ,,for      
,,referring ,,man ,,to ,a ,,distinct    
,,kingdom ,,of ,,nature4  ,few if any of
 the authors above cited1 while they    
admit so fully the analogy which exists 
between the faculties of ,man and the   
inferior animals1 are disposed to       
underrate the enormous gap which        
separates ,man from the brutes1 and if  
they scarcely allow him to be referable 
to a distinct order1 and much less to a 
separate sub-class1 on purely physical  
grounds1 it does not follow that they   
would object to the reasoning of ,m4    
,quatrefages1 who says1 in his work on  
the ,unity of the ,human ,species1 that 
,man must form a kingdom by himself if  
once we permit his moral and            
intellectual endowments to have their   
due weight in classification4  ,as to   
his organisation1 he observes1 ,we find 
in the mammalia nearly absolute identity
 of anatomical structure1 bone for bone1

 muscle for muscle1 nerve for           
nerve--similar organs performing like   
functions4 ,it is not by a vertical     
position on his feet1 the os sublime of 
,ovid1 which he shares with the penguin1
 nor by his mental faculties1 which1    
though more developed1 are fundamentally
 the same as those of animals1 nor by   
his powers of perception1 will1 memory1 
and a certain amount of reason1 nor by  
articulate speech1 which he shares with 
birds and some mammalia1 and by which   
they express ideas comprehended not only
 by individuals of their own species but
 often by ,man1 nor is it by the        
faculties of the heart1 such as love and
 hatred1 which are also shared by       
quadrupeds and birds1 but it is by      
something completely foreign to the mere
 animal1 and belonging exclusively to   
,man1 that we must establish a separate 
kingdom for him 7page #ba74 ,these      
distinguishing characters1 he goes on to
 say1 are the abstract notion of good   
and evil1 right and wrong1 virtue and   

vice1 or the moral faculty1 and a belief
 in a world beyond ours1 and in certain 
mysterious beings1 or a ,being of a     
higher nature than ours1 whom we ought  
to fear or revere2 in other words1 the  
religious faculty4--page #bc4  ,by these
 two attributes the moral and the       
religious1 not common to man and the    
brutes1 ,m4 ,quatrefages proposes to    
distinguish the human from the animal   
kingdom4  ,but he omits to notice one   
essential character1 which ,dr4 ,sumner1
 the late ,archbishop of ,canterbury1   
brought out in strong relief fifty years
 ago in his ,records of ,creation4      
,there are writers1 he observes1 who    
have taken an extraordinary pleasure in 
levelling the broad distinction which   
separates ,man from the ,brute          
,creation4 ,misled to a false conclusion
 by the infinite variety of ,nature's   
productions1 they have described a chain
 of existence connecting the vegetable  
with the animal world1 and the different
 orders of animals one with another1 so 

as to rise by an almost imperceptible   
gradation from the tribe of ,simiae to  
the lowest of the human race1 and from  
these upwards to the most refined4 ,but 
if a comparison were to be drawn1 it    
should be taken1 not from the upright   
form1 which is by no means confined to  
mankind1 nor even from the vague term   
reason1 which cannot always be          
accurately separated from instinct1 but 
from that power of progressive and      
improvable reason1 which is ,man's      
peculiar and exclusive endowment4  ,it  
has been sometimes alleged1 and may be  
founded on fact1 that there is less     
difference between the highest brute    
animal and the lowest savage than       
between the savage and the most improved
 ,man4 ,but1 in order to warrant the    
pretended analogy1 it ought to be also  
true that this lowest savage is no more 
capable of improvement than the         
,chimpanzee or ,orang-outang4  ,animals1
 he adds1 are born what they are        
intended to remain4 ,nature has bestowed

 upon them a certain rank1 and limited  
the extent of their capacity by an      
impassable decree4 ,man she has         
empowered and obliged to become the     
artificer of his own rank in the scale  
of beings by the peculiar gift of       
improvable reason499       799 ,records 
of ,creation volume #b chapter #b #bnd  
edition      #ahaf47  ,we have seen that
 ,professor ,agassiz1 in his ,essay on  
,classification1 above cited1 speaks of 
the existence in every animal of an     
immaterial principle similar to that    
which1 by its excellence and superior   
endowments1 places man so much above    
animals2 and he remarks1 that most of   
the arguments of philosophy in favour of
 the immortality of ,man1 apply equally 
to the permanency of this principle in  
other living beings4  ,although the     
author has no intention by this remark  
to impugn the truth of the great        
doctrine alluded to1 it may be well to  
observe1 that if some of the arguments  
in favour of a future state are         

applicable in common to ,man and the    
lower animals1 they are by no means     
those which are the weightiest and most 
relied on4 ,it is no doubt true that1 in
 both1 the identity of the individual   
outlasts many changes of form and       
structure which take place during the   
passage from the infant to the adult    
state1 and from that to old age1 and the
 loss again and again of every particle 
of matter which had entered previously  
into the composition of the body during 
its growth1 and the substitution of new 
elements in their place1 while the      
individual remains always the same1     
carries the analogy a step farther4 ,but
 beyond this we cannot push the         
comparison4 ,we cannot imagine this     
world to be a place of trial and moral  
discipline for any of the inferior      
animals1 nor can any of them derive     
comfort and happiness from faith in a   
hereafter4 ,to ,man alone is given this 
belief1 so consonant to his reason1 and 
so congenial to the religious sentiments

 implanted by nature in his soul1 a     
doctrine which tends to raise him       
morally and intellectually in the scale 
of being1 and the fruits of which are1  
therefore1 most opposite in character to
 those which grow out of error and      
delusion4  ,the opponents of the theory 
of transmutation sometimes argue that1  
if there had been a passage by variation
 from the lower ,primates to ,man1 the  
geologist ought ere this to have        
detected some fossil remains of the     
intermediate links of the chain4 ,but   
what we have said respecting the absence
 of gradational forms between the       
,recent and ,pliocene mammalia may serve
 to show the weakness in the present    
state of science of any argument based  
on such negative evidence1 especially in
 the case of ,man1 since we have not yet
 reached those pages of the great book  
of nature1 in which alone we have any   
right to expect to find records of the  
missing links alluded to4 ,the countries
 of the anthropomorphous apes are the   

tropical regions of ,africa1 and the    
islands of ,borneo and ,sumatra1 lands  
which may be said to be quite unknown in
 reference to their ,pliocene and       
,pleistocene mammalia4 ,man is an       
old-world type1 and it is not in        
,brazil1 the only equatorial region     
where ossiferous caverns have yet been  
explored1 that the discovery1 in a      
fossil state1 of extinct forms allied to
 the human1 could be looked for4 ,lund1 
a ,danish naturalist1 found in ,brazil1 
not only extinct sloths and armadilloes1
 but extinct genera of fossil monkeys1  
but all of the ,american type1 and1     
therefore1 widely departing in their    
dentition and some other characters from
 the ,primates of the old world4  ,at   
some future day1 when many hundred      
species of extinct quadrumana may have  
been brought to light1 the naturalist   
may speculate with advantage on this    
subject2 at present we must be content  
to wait patiently1 and not to allow our 
judgment respecting transmutation to be 

influenced by the want of evidence1     
which it would be contrary to analogy to
 look for in ,pleistocene deposits in   
any districts1 which as yet we have     
carefully examined4 ,for1 as we meet    
with extinct kangaroos and wombats in   
,australia1 extinct llamas and sloths in
 ,south ,america1 so in equatorial      
,africa1 and in certain islands of the  
,east ,indian ,archipelago1 may we hope 
to meet hereafter with lost types of the
 anthropoid ,primates1 allied to the    
gorilla1 chimpanzee1 and orang-outang4  
#dd  ,europe1 during the ,pliocene      
period1 seems not to have enjoyed a     
climate fitting it to be the habitation 
of the quadrumanous mammalia2 but we no 
sooner carry back our researches into   
,miocene times1 where plants and        
insects1 like those of ,oeningen1 and   
shells1 like those of the ,faluns of the
 ,loire1 would imply a warmer           
temperature both of sea and land1 than  
we begin to discover fossil apes and    
monkeys north of the ,alps and          

,pyrenees4 ,among the few species       
already detected1 two at least belong to
 the anthropomorphous class4 ,one of    
these1 the ,dryopithecus of ,lartet1 a  
gibbon or long-armed ape1 about equal to
 man in stature1 was obtained in the    
year #ahef in the ,upper ,miocene strata
 at ,sansan1 near the foot of the       
,pyrenees in the ,south of ,france1 and 
one bone of the same ape is reported to 
have been since procured from a deposit 
of corresponding age at ,eppelsheim1    
near ,darmstadt1 in a latitude answering
 to that of the southern counties of    
,england499       799 ,owen1 ,geologist 
,november #ahfb47  ,but according to the
 doctrine of progression it is not in   
these ,miocene strata1 but in those of  
,pliocene and ,pleistocene date1 in more
 equatorial regions1 that there will be 
the greatest chance of discovering      
hereafter some species more highly      
organised than the gorilla and          
chimpanzee4  ,the only reputed fossil   
monkey of ,eocene date1 namely1 that    

found in #ahdj at ,kyson1 in ,suffolk1  
and so determined by ,professor ,owen1  
has recently been pronounced by the same
 anatomist1 after re-examination1 and   
when he had ampler materials at his     
command1 to be a pachyderm4  ,m4        
,rutimeyer199 however1 an able          
osteologist1 referred to in the earlier 
chapters of this work1 has just         
announced the discovery in ,eocene      
strata1 in the ,swiss ,jura1 of a monkey
 allied to the lemurs1 but as he has    
only obtained as yet a small fragment of
 a jaw with three molar teeth1 we must  
wait for fuller information before we   
confidently rely on the claims of his   
,coenopithecus lemuroides to take rank  
as one of the ,primates4       799      
,rutimeyer1 ,eocene ,saugethiere ,zurich
 #ahfb47   ,,hallam ,,on ,,man',s       
,,place ,,in ,,the ,,creation4  ,hallam1
 in his ,literature of ,europe1 after   
indulging in some profound reflections  
on the thoughts of ,pascal1 and the     
theological dogmas of his school        

respecting the fallen nature of ,man1   
thus speaks of ,man's place in the      
creation--,it might be wandering from   
the proper subject of these volumes if  
we were to pause1 even shortly1 to      
inquire whether1 while the creation of a
 world so full of evil must ever remain 
the most inscrutable of mysteries1 we   
might not be led some way in tracing the
 connection of moral and physical evil  
in mankind1 with his place in that      
creation1 and especially1 whether the   
law of continuity1 which it has not     
pleased his ,maker to break with respect
 to his bodily structure1 and which     
binds that1 in the unity of one great   
type1 to the lower forms of animal life 
by the common conditions of nourishment1
 reproduction1 and self-defence1 has not
 rendered necessary both the physical   
appetites and the propensities which    
terminate in self2 whether again the    
superior endowments of his intellectual 
nature1 his susceptibility of moral     
emotion1 and of those disinterested     

affections which1 if not exclusively1 he
 far more intensely possesses than an   
inferior being--above all1 the gifts of 
conscience and a capacity to know ,god1 
might not be expected1 even beforehand1 
by their conflict with the animal       
passions1 to produce some partial       
inconsistencies1 some anomalies at      
least1 which he could not himself       
explain in so compound a being4 ,every  
link in the long chain of creation does 
not pass by easy transition into the    
next4 ,there are necessary chasms1 and1 
as it were1 leaps from one creature to  
another1 which1 though no exceptions to 
the law of continuity1 are              
accommodations of it to a new series of 
being4 ,if ,man was made in the image of
 ,god1 he was also made in the image of 
an ape4 ,the framework of the body of   
him who has weighed the stars and made  
the lightning his slave1 approaches to  
that of a speechless brute1 who wanders 
in the forests of ,sumatra4 ,thus       
standing on the frontier land between   

animal and angelic natures1 what wonder 
that he should partake of both699       
799 ,hallam1 ,introduction to the       
,literature of ,europe etc4      volume 
#d page #afb47  ,the law of continuity  
here spoken of1 as not being violated by
 occasional exceptions1 or by leaps from
 one creature to another1 is not the law
 of variation and natural selection     
above explained 7,chapter #ba71 but that
 unity of plan supposed to exist in the 
,divine ,mind1 whether realised or not  
materially and in the visible creation1 
of which the links do not pass by an    
easy transition the one into the other1 
at least as beheld by us4  ,dr4 ,asa    
,gray1 an eminent ,american botanist1 to
 whom we are indebted for a             
philosophical essay of great merit on   
the ,origin of ,species by ,variation   
and ,natural ,selection1 has well       
observed1 when speaking of the axiom of 
,leibnitz1 ,natura non agit saltatim1   
that nature secures her ends and makes  
her distinctions1 on the whole1 manifest

 and real1 but without any important    
breaks or long leaps4 ,we need not      
wonder that gradations between species  
and varieties should occur1 or that     
genera and other groups should not be   
absolutely limited1 though they are     
represented to be so in our systems4    
,the classifications of the naturalist  
define abruptly where nature more or    
less blends4 ,our systems are nothing if
 not definite4  ,the same writer reminds
 us that plants and animals are so      
different1 that the difficulty of the   
ordinary observer would be to find      
points of comparison1 whereas1 with the 
naturalist1 it is all the other way4    
,all the broad differences vanish one by
 one as we approach the lower confines  
of the animal and vegetable kingdoms1   
and no absolute distinction whatever is 
now known between them499       799     
,gray1 ,natural ,selection not          
inconsistent with ,natural              
,theology ,trubner  ,co4 ,london #ahfa  
page #ee47  ,the author of an elaborate 

review of ,darwin's ,origin of ,species1
 himself an accomplished geologist1     
declares that if we embrace the doctrine
 of the continuous variation of all     
organic forms from the lowest to the    
highest1 including ,man as the last link
 in the chain of being1 there must have 
been a transition from the instinct of  
the brute to the noble mind of ,man2 and
 in that case1 where1 he asks1 are the  
missing links1 and at what point of his 
progressive improvement did ,man acquire
 the spiritual part of his being1 and   
become endowed with the awful attribute 
of immortality899       799 ,physical   
,theories of the ,phenomena of ,life    
,fraser's      ,magazine ,july #ahfj    
page #hh47  ,before we raise objections 
of this kind to a scientific hypothesis1
 it would be well to pause and inquire  
whether there are no analogous enigmas  
in the constitution of the world around 
us1 some of which present even greater  
difficulties than that here stated4     
,when we contemplate1 for example1 the  

many hundred millions of human beings   
who now people the earth1 we behold     
thousands who are doomed to helpless    
imbecility1 and we may trace an         
insensible gradation between them and   
the half-witted1 and from these again to
 individuals of perfect understanding1  
so that tens of thousands must have     
existed in the course of ages1 who in   
their moral and intellectual condition1 
have exhibited a passage from the       
irrational to the rational1 or from the 
irresponsible to the responsible4       
,moreover we may infer from the returns 
of the ,registrar ,general of births and
 deaths in ,great ,britain1 and from    
,quetelet's statistics of ,belgium1 that
 one-fourth of the human race die in    
early infancy1 nearly one-tenth before  
they are a month old2 so that we may    
safely affirm that millions perish on   
the earth in every century1 in the first
 few hours of their existence4 ,to      
assign to such individuals their        
appropriate psychological place in the  

creation is one of the unprofitable     
themes on which theologians and         
metaphysicians have expended much       
ingenious speculation4  ,the            
philosopher1 without ignoring these     
difficulties1 does not allow them to    
disturb his conviction that whatever is1
 is right1 nor do they check his hopes  
and aspirations in regard to the high   
destiny of his species2 but he also     
feels that it is not for one who is so  
often confounded by the painful         
realities of the present1 to test the   
probability of theories respecting the  
past1 by their agreement or want of     
agreement with some ideal of a perfect  
universe which those who are opposed to 
opinions may have pictured to           
themselves4  ,we may also demur to the  
assumption that the hypothesis of       
variation and natural selection obliges 
us to assume that there was an          
absolutely insensible passage from the  
highest intelligence of the inferior    
animals to the improvable reason of     

,man4 ,the birth of an individual of    
transcendent genius1 of parents who have
 never displayed any intellectual       
capacity above the average standard of  
their age or race1 is a phenomenon not  
to be lost sight of1 when we are        
conjecturing whether the successive     
steps in advance by which a progressive 
scheme has been developed may not admit 
of occasional strides1 constituting     
breaks in an otherwise continuous series
 of psychical changes4  ,the inventors  
of useful arts1 the poets and prophets  
of the early stages of a nation's       
growth1 the promulgators of new systems 
of religion1 ethics1 and philosophy1 or 
of new codes of laws1 have often been   
looked upon as messengers from ,heaven1 
and after their death have had divine   
honours paid to them1 while fabulous    
tales have been told of the prodigies   
which accompanied their birth4 ,nor can 
we wonder that such notions have        
prevailed when we consider what         
important revolutions in the moral and  

intellectual world such leading spirits 
have brought about2 and when we reflect 
that mental as well as physical         
attributes are transmissible by         
inheritance1 so that we may possibly    
discern in such leaps the origin of the 
superiority of certain races of mankind4
 ,in our own time the occasional        
appearance of such extraordinary mental 
powers may be attributed to atavism2 but
 there must have been a beginning to the
 series of such rare and anomalous      
events4 ,if1 in conformity with the     
theory of progression1 we believe       
mankind to have risen slowly from a rude
 and humble starting point1 such leaps  
may have successively introduced not    
only higher and higher forms and grades 
of intellect1 but at a much remoter     
period may have cleared at one bound the
 space which separated the highest stage
 of the unprogressive intelligence of   
the inferior animals from the first and 
lowest form of improvable reason        
manifested by ,man4  ,to say that such  

leaps constitute no interruption to the 
ordinary course of nature is more than  
we are warranted in affirming4 ,in the  
case of the occasional birth of an      
individual of superior genius there is  
certainly no break in the regular       
genealogical succession2 and when all   
the mists of mythological fiction are   
dispelled by historical criticism1 when 
it is acknowledged that the earth did   
not tremble at the nativity of the      
gifted infant and that the face of      
heaven was not full of fiery shapes1    
still a mighty mystery remains          
unexplained1 and it is the ,,order of   
the phenomena1 and not their ,,cause1   
which we are able to refer to the usual 
course of nature4  ,dr4 ,asa ,gray1 in  
the excellent essay already cited1 has  
pointed out that there is no tendency in
 the doctrine of ,variation and ,natural
 ,selection to weaken the foundations of
 ,natural ,theology1 for1 consistently  
with the derivative hypothesis of       
species1 we may hold any of the popular 

views respecting the manner in which the
 changes of the natural world are       
brought about4 ,we may imagine that     
events and operations in general go on  
in virtue simply of forces communicated 
at the first1 and without any subsequent
 interference1 or we may hold that now  
and then1 and only now and then1 there  
is a direct interposition of the ,deity2
 or1 lastly1 we may suppose that all the
 changes are carried on by the immediate
 orderly and constant1 however          
infinitely diversified1 action of the   
intelligent1 efficient ,cause4 ,they who
 maintain that the origin of an         
individual1 as well as the origin of a  
species or a genus1 can be explained    
only by the direct action of the        
creative cause1 may retain their        
favourite theory compatibly with the    
doctrine of transmutation4  ,professor  
,agassiz1 having observed that1 while   
human thought is consecutive1 divine    
thought is simultaneous1 ,dr4 ,asa ,gray
 has replied that1 if divine thought is 

simultaneous1 we have no right to affirm
 the same of divine action4  ,the whole 
course of nature may be the material    
embodiment of a preconcerted            
arrangement2 and if the succession of   
events be explained by transmutation1   
the perpetual adaptation of the organic 
world to new conditions leaves the      
argument in favour of design1 and       
therefore of a designer1 as valid as    
ever2 for to do any work by an          
instrument must require1 and therefore  
presuppose1 the exertion rather of more 
than of less power1 than to do it       
directly499       799 ,asa ,gray1       
,natural ,selection not inconsistent    
with      ,natural ,theology ,trubner   
,co4 ,london #ahfa page #ee47  ,as to   
the charge of materialism brought       
against all forms of the development    
theory1 ,dr4 ,gray has done well to     
remind us that of the two great minds of
 the seventeenth century1 ,newton and   
,leibnitz1 both profoundly religious as 
well as philosophical1 one produced the 

theory of gravitation1 the other        
objected to that theory1 that it was    
subversive of natural religion499       
799 ,ibid4 page #ca47  ,it may be said  
that1 so far from having a materialistic
 tendency1 the supposed introduction    
into the earth at successive geological 
periods of                              
life--sensation--instinct--the          
intelligence of the higher mammalia     
bordering on reason--and lastly the     
improvable reason of ,man himself1      
presents us with a picture of the       
ever-increasing dominion of mind over   
matter4      ,,notes4    ,footnote #a3  
,the classification of the strata above 
the ,chalk1 as at present employed by   
the majority of ,british geologists1 is 
merely a slight modification of that    
proposed by ,lyell in #ahcc4 ,the       
subdivisions generally recognised are as
 follows 7,lake and ,rastall1 ,textbook 
of ,geology1 ,london1 #aiaj1 page       
#dch73--      ,neogene3     ,pleistocene
     ,pliocene     ,miocene4            

,palaeogene3     ,oligocene     ,eocene4
  ,this differs chiefly from ,lyell's   
classification in the introduction of   
the term ,oligocene for the upper part  
of the original ,eocene1 which was      
somewhat unwieldy4 ,in the earlier      
editions of the ,antiquity of ,man and  
of the ,principles of ,geology1 the     
strata here classed as ,pleistocene were
 designated as ,post-pliocene4 ,the term
 diluvium1 now obsolete in ,britain but 
still lingering on the ,continent1 is   
equivalent to ,pleistocene4 ,this       
subdivision is still sometimes separated
 from the ,tertiary1 as the ,quaternary 
epoch4 ,this1 however1 is unnecessary   
and indeed objectionable1 as attributing
 too great importance to relatively     
insignificant deposits4 ,there is no    
definite break1 either stratigraphical  
or palaeontological1 at the top of the  
,pliocene1 and it is most natural to    
regard the ,tertiary epoch as still in  
progress4 ,equally unnecessary is the   
separation of the post-glacial deposits 

as ,recent1 a distinction which still   
prevails in many quarters1 apparently   
with the sole object of adding another  
name to an already over-burdened list4  
,footnote #b3 ,the table of strata here 
printed is not that given by ,lyell in  
the later editions of the ,antiquity of 
,man4 ,this would have required so much 
explanation in the light of modern work 
that it was thought better to abolish it
 altogether and to substitute an        
entirely new table1 which is to some    
extent a compromise between the numerous
 classifications now in vogue4 ,in this 
form it is only strictly applicable to  
the ,british ,isles1 though the         
divisions adopted in other countries are
 generally similar1 and in many cases   
identical4  ,footnote #c3 ,a similar    
succession of forest-beds1 five in      
number1 has been observed in the peat of
 the ,fenland1 near ,ely4 ,each bed     
consists for the most part of a single  
species of tree1 and a definite         
succession of oak1 yew1 ,scotch fir1    

alder1 and willow has been made out4    
,the forest beds are supposed to        
indicate temporarily drier conditions1  
due either to changes of climate or to  
slight uplift of the land1 the growth of
 peat being renewed during periods of   
damp climate or of depression of the    
land4 7,see ,clement ,reid1 ,submerged  
,forests1 ,cambridge1 #aiac47  ,footnote
 #d3 ,since the ,stone ,age1 in the     
sense in which the term is here         
employed1 obviously occupied an enormous
 lapse of time and embraced very        
different stages of culture1 it has been
 found convenient to subdivide it into  
two primary subdivisions4 ,for these    
,lord ,avebury proposed in #ahfe the    
terms ,palaeolithic and ,neolithic4 7   
,prehistoric ,times1 ,london1 #ahfe1    
page #fj47 ,the first comprises the ages
 during which man fabricated flint      
implements solely by chipping1 whereas  
the implements of ,neolithic ,age are   
polished by rubbing4 ,but there is      
another and more fundamental            

distinction4 ,palaeolithic man was      
exclusively a hunter1 and consequently  
nomadic in his habits2 ,neolithic man   
possessed domesticated animals and      
cultivated crops4 ,a pastoral and       
agricultural life implies a settled     
abode1 and these are found1 for example1
 in the lake-villages of ,switzerland4  
,the kitchen-middens of ,denmark also   
indicate long continuance in one place1 
in this instance the seashore4          
,footnote #e3 ,the famous case of the   
so-called ,temple of ,serapis at        
,pozzuoli1 has given rise to a          
considerable literature4 ,the subject is
 discussed by ,suess at length 7,des    
,antlitz der ,erde1 ,vienna1 #ahhh1     
volume #b page #dfc1 or ,english        
translation1 ,the ,face of the ,earth1  
,oxford1 #aijd74 ,this author shows that
 the whole region is highly volcanic1   
and consequently very liable to         
disturbance1 much relative movement of  
land and sea having occurred within     
historic times4 ,hence the facts here   

observed cannot be taken as evidence for
 any general upward or downward movement
 of wide-spread or universal extent4    
,footnote #f3 ,darwin1 ,voyage of the   
,beagle1 chapter #ad1 and a much fuller 
account in the same author's ,geological
 ,observations on the ,volcanic ,islands
 and ,parts of ,south ,america ,visited 
during the ,voyage of ,h4,m4,s4 ,beagle1
 chapter #i4  ,footnote #g3 ,for a full 
discussion of the evidence for and      
against continental elevation and       
subsidence in general1 and as affecting 
the ,british ,isles and ,scandinavia in 
particular1 see ,sir ,a4 ,geikie's      
,presidential ,address to the           
,geological ,society for #aijd 7        
,proceedings of the ,geological         
,society' volume #fj1 #aijd1 pages #hj  
to #ajd474 ,here it is shown that the   
oldest raised beaches of ,scotland are  
pre-glacial1 and the same also holds for
 the south of ,ireland4  ,footnote #h3  
,the argument here employed is          
fallacious1 since the mere existence of 

a distinct beach implies a pause in the 
movement and a long continuance at one  
level4 ,it is impossible to form any    
estimate of the lapse of time necessary 
for the building up of a beach-terrace4 
,we can only1 in some cases1 obtain a   
measure of the time that elapsed between
 the formation of two successive        
beaches1 as in this instance4  ,footnote
 #i3 ,the strand lines1 or raised       
beaches of ,norway1 have given rise to  
much discussion1 of which a summary will
 be found in the address cited in ,note 
#g4  ,footnote #aj3 ,a considerable     
number of skulls and skeletons of the   
,neanderthal type have now been found in
 different parts of ,southern ,europe1  
extending from ,belgium to ,gibraltar   
and ,croatia1 and it is now known that  
this type of skull is associated with   
flint implements of ,mousterian ,age4   
7,see ,note #ab47  ,footnote #aa3 ,the  
most important discovery of recent years
 in this connection is that made in     
,sussex by ,mr4 ,c4 ,dawson and ,dr4 ,a4

 ,smith ,woodward2 this find is         
described in great detail in the        
,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological  
,society1 volume #fi1 #aiac1 pages #aag 
to #aea4 ,at a height of about #hj feet 
above the present level of the ,river   
,ouse1 at ,piltdown1 near ,uckfield1 is 
a gravel1 containing many brown flints  
of peculiar character1 some of which are
 implements of ,chellean or earlier     
type1 associated with some remains of   
,pleistocene animals and a few of older 
date1 derived from ,pliocene deposits4  
,embedded in this gravel were found     
fragments of a human skull and lower jaw
 of very remarkable type1 showing in    
some respects distinctly simian         
characters1 while in other respects it  
is less ape-like than the ,mousterian   
skulls of ,neanderthal and other        
localities4 ,for this form the name of  
,eoanthropus has been proposed1 thus    
constituting a new genus of the         
,hominidae4  ,footnote #ab3 ,it will be 
well at this point to give a brief      

summary of the modern classification of 
the ,palaeolithic implement-bearing     
deposits of ,europe4 ,from the labours  
of many geologists and prehistoric      
archaeologists1 especially in ,france1 a
 definite succession of types of        
implement has been established1 and in  
some cases it has been found possible to
 correlate these with actual human      
remains and with certain well-marked    
events in the physical history of       
,pleistocene times1 especially with the 
advance and retreat of ice-sheets4 ,the 
present state of our knowledge is       
admirably summarised by ,professor      
,sollas 7,ancient ,hunters1 ,london1    
#aiaa71 and from that work the following
 note is condensed4  ,the stages of     
,palaeolithic culture now recognised are
 as follows3--       ,azilian           
,magdalenian      ,solutrean            
,aurignacian      ,mousterian           
,acheulean      ,chellean      ,strepyan
      ,mesvinian4  ,below the ,mesvinian
 comes the nebulous region of eoliths1  

which are not yet definitely proved to  
be of human workmanship4 ,the           
,neanderthal skull belongs to the       
,mousterian stage1 but the oldest known 
definitely human remain1 the jaw from   
the ,mauer sands near ,heidelberg1 may  
be older than any of these1 indeed by   
some it is assigned to the first        
interglacial period of ,penck and       
,bruckner 7see ,note #cb74 ,for figures 
of the types of implement characterising
 each period1 see ,guide to the         
,antiquities of the ,stone ,age in the  
,department of ,british and ,medieval   
,antiquities1 ,british ,museum1 #bnd    
edition1 ,london1 #aiaa1 pages #a to    
#gd4 ,this publication gives an         
admirable summary of recent knowledge on
 this subject4 ,for an excellent and    
critical summary of the latest          
researches on ,palaeolithic man up till 
the end of the ,aurignacian period1 see 
,duckworth1 ,prehistoric ,man1          
,cambridge1 #aiab4 ,see also note #dd4  
,footnote #ac3 ,sir ,john ,evans1       

,k4,c4,b4 7#ahbc-aijh71 was one of the  
foremost authorities on prehistoric     
archaeology and a prolific writer on the
 subject4 ,his best known work is ,the  
,ancient ,stone ,implements1 ,weapons1  
and ,ornaments of ,great ,britain1 #bnd 
edition1 #ahig4  ,footnote #ad3 ,by the 
expression ,celtic weapons of the stone 
period is presumably meant ,neolithic   
implements1 with polished surfaces4     
,footnote #ae3 ,it has recently been    
shown that the growth of peat is a very 
slow process1 and at the present time it
 is in many places either at a          
standstill or even in a state of        
retrogression4 ,in the peat-mosses of   
,scotland1 ,lewis has traced nine       
successive layers1 marked by different  
floras4 ,the lowest of these and another
 at a higher level are distinctly of an 
arctic character1 the intermediate      
forest beds1 on the other hand1 indicate
 periods of milder climate1 when the    
limit of the growth of trees was at a   
higher level in ,scotland than is now   

the case4 ,from these facts it is       
certain that the peat-mosses of         
,scotland and northern ,england date    
back at least as far as the later stages
 of the glacial period1 and indicate at 
least one mild interglacial episode1    
when the climate was somewhat warmer    
than it now is4 7,see ,lewis1 ,science  
,progress1 volume #b1 #aijg1 page #cjg47
 ,hence the statements of the ,french   
workmen1 here quoted1 do not possess    
much significance4  ,footnote #af3      
,cyrena fluminalis is very abundant in  
the gravels of an old terrace of the    
,river ,cam1 at ,barnwell1 in the       
suburbs of ,cambridge1 and also in      
glacial gravels at ,kelsey ,hill in     
,holderness4 ,it is a very remarkable   
fact that this shell1 now an inhabitant 
of warm regions1 should be so abundant  
in these ,pleistocene deposits1 in close
 association with glacial accumulations4
  ,footnote #ag3 ,the implement-bearing 
deposits of ,hoxne1 in ,suffolk1 were   
investigated with great care by a       

committee of the ,british ,association1 
and the results were published in a     
special and detailed report 7,the       
,relation of ,palaeolithic ,man to the  
,glacial ,epoch1 ,report of the ,british
 ,association1 ,liverpool1 #ahif1 pages 
#djj to #dae74 ,the deposit consists of 
a series of lacustrine or fluviatile    
strata with plant remains1 some being   
arctic in character1 resting on ,chalky 
,boulder ,clay1 and this again on sand4 
,the ,palaeolithic deposits are all     
clearly later than the latest           
boulder-clay of ,east ,anglia1 and      
between their formation and that of the 
glacial deposits at least two important 
climatic changes took place1 indicating 
a very considerable lapse of time4      
,mention may conveniently be made here  
of the supposed discovery of the remains
 of pre-glacial man at ,ipswich1 which  
appears to be founded on errors of      
observation4 ,the boulder-clay above the
 interment is1 according to the best    
authorities1 merely a landslip or flow4 

,footnote #ah3 ,it has been suggested   
with a considerable degree of           
probability1 that in ,auvergne volcanic 
eruptions persisted even into historic  
times4 ,the subject is obscure1         
depending on the interpretation of      
difficult passages in two ,latin        
chronicles of the fifth century4 ,the   
most obvious meaning of both passages   
would certainly appear to be the        
occurrence of volcanic eruptions and    
earthquakes1 but attempts have been made
 to explain them as referring to some   
artificial conflagration1 possibly the  
burning of a town by an invader4 7,see  
,bonney1 ,volcanoes1 #crd edition1      
,london1 #aiac1 page #abi47  ,footnote  
#ai3 ,in the early days of glacial      
geology in ,britain1 it was commonly    
accepted that the phenomena could be    
most satisfactorily explained on the    
hypothesis of a general submergence of  
the northern parts of the country to a  
depth of many hundreds of feet1 and this
 in spite of the original comparison by 

,agassiz of the glacial deposits of     
,britain to those of the ,alps4 ,in     
later times1 however1 a school of       
geologists arose who attributed the     
glaciation of ,britain to land-ice of   
the ,continental or ,greenland type4 ,of
 late years this school has been        
dominant in ,british geology1 with a few
 notable exceptions1 of whom the most   
important is ,professor ,bonney4 ,the   
difficulties presented by both theories 
are almost equally great1 and at the    
present time1 in spite of the vehemence 
of the supporters of the land-ice       
theory1 it is impossible to hold any    
dogmatic views on the subject4 ,against 
the doctrine of submergence is the      
absence of glacial deposits in places   
where they would naturally be expected  
to occur if the whole of the ,british   
,isles north of the ,thames and ,bristol
 ,channel had been covered by the sea1  
together with the very general absence  
of sea-shells in the deposits4 ,the     
objections to the land-ice hypothesis   

are largely of a mechanical nature4 ,if 
we take into account the lateral extent 
and the thickness that can be assigned  
to the ice-sheet1 we are at once        
confronted by very considerable         
difficulties as to the sufficiency of   
the driving-power behind the ice4       
,another great difficulty is the        
shallowness of the ,north ,sea1 in which
 a comparatively thin mass of ice would 
run aground at almost any point4 ,it has
 been calculated that the maximum slope 
of the surface of the ice from ,norway  
to the ,english coast could not exceed  
half a degree1 and it is therefore      
difficult to see what force could compel
 it to move forward at all1 much less to
 climb steep slopes in the way          
postulated by the extremists of this    
school4  ,footnote #bj3 ,the most       
complete account of the geology of the  
,norfolk coast is contained in ,the     
,geology of ,cromer1 by ,clement ,reid  
7,memoir of the ,geological ,survey74   
7,see also ,harmer1 ,the ,pleistocene   

,period in the ,eastern ,counties of    
,england1 ,geology in the ,field1 the   
,jubilee ,volume of the ,geologists     
,association1 #aiji1 chapter #d474      
,above the ,norwich ,crag several more  
subdivisions are now recognised1 and the
 complete succession of the ,pliocene   
and ,pleistocene strata of ,east ,anglia
 may be summarised as follows3--        
,pleistocene3      ,peat and ,alluvium  
,gravel ,terraces of the present river  
systems      ,gravels of the old        
river-systems      ,plateau gravels     
,chalky boulder-clay      ,interglacial 
sands and gravels and ,contorted ,drift 
,cromer ,till      ,arctic ,plant ,bed4 
,pliocene3      ,cromer ,forest ,series 
,weybourn ,crag      ,chillesford ,crag 
,norwich ,crag      ,red ,crag          
,coralline ,crag4   ,footnote #ba3 ,it  
is now generally agreed that the        
tree-stumps in the ,cromer ,forest bed  
are not in the position of growth4 ,many
 of them are upside down or lying on    
their sides1 and they were probably     

floated into their present position by  
the waters of a river flowing to the    
north4 ,this river was a tributary of   
the ,rhine which then flowed for several
 hundred miles over a plain now forming 
the bed of the ,north ,sea1 collecting  
all the drainage of eastern ,england1   
and debouching into the ,north ,atlantic
 somewhere to the south of the ,faroe   
,isles4 7,see ,harmer1 ,the ,pleistocene
 ,period in the ,eastern ,counties of   
,england1 ,geological ,association      
,jubilee ,volume1 ,london1 #aiji1 pages 
#ajc to #abc47  ,footnote #bb3 ,of late 
years an enormous number of             
characteristic rocks from ,norway and   
,sweden have been recognised in the     
drifts of ,eastern ,england1 as far     
south as ,essex and ,middlesex4 ,one of 
the most easily identifiable types is   
the well-known ,rhombporphyry of the    
,christiania ,fjord1 a rock which occurs
 nowhere else in the world1 and is quite
 unmistakable in appearance4 ,along with
 it are many of the distinctive         

soda-syenites found in the same         
district1 the granites of southern      
,sweden1 and many others4 ,the          
literature of the subject is very large1
 but many details may be found in the   
annual reports of the ,british          
,association for the last twenty years4 
,from a study of these erratics it has  
been found possible to draw important   
conclusions as to the direction and     
sequence of the ice streams which flowed
 over these regions during the different
 stages of the glacial period4          
,footnote #bc3 ,during his first        
crossing of ,greenland from east to     
west1 ,nansen attained a height of #ijjj
 feet on a vast expanse of frozen snow1 
and it is believed that towards the     
north the surface of this great         
snow-plateau rises to even greater      
elevations4 ,the surface of the snow is 
perfectly clean and free from           
moraine-material4 ,no rock in situ has  
been seen in the interior of ,greenland 
at a distance greater than #ge miles    

from the coast4  ,a great amount of     
valuable information concerning the     
glacial conditions of ,greenland is to  
be found in the ,meddelelser om         
,gronland1 a ,danish publication1 but   
containing many summaries in ,french or 
,english4 ,for a good account of the    
phenomena seen in the coastal region of 
the west coast1 see ,drygalski1         
,gronland-,expedition1 a large monograph
 published by the ,gesellschaft fur     
physischen ,erdkunde1 ,berlin1 #ahig4   
,footnote #bd3 ,the argument is here    
considerably understated4 ,the southern 
point of ,greenland1 ,cape ,farewell1 is
 in the same latitude as the ,shetland  
,islands and ,christiania1 and only one 
degree north of ,stockholm2 ,disko is in
 about the same latitude as the ,north  
,cape4 ,hence the inhabited portion of  
,greenland is in the same latitude as   
,norway and ,sweden1 both fertile and   
well-populated countries4 ,even in      
,central ,norway1 in the ,gudbrandsdal  
and ,romsdal1 thick forests grow up to a

 height of at least #cjjj feet above    
sea-level1 a much greater elevation than
 trees now attain in the ,british       
,isles4 ,this latter fact is probably to
 be attributed to the protective effect 
of thick snow lying throughout the      
winter4  ,footnote #be3 ,for a summary  
of the most recent views as to the      
classification and succession of the    
glacial deposits of the ,british ,isles1
 see ,lake an ,rastall1 ,textbook of    
,geology1 ,london1 #aiaj1 pages #dff to 
#dgc4 ,reference may also be made to    
,jukes-,browne1 ,the ,building of the   
,british ,isles1 ,london1 #aiab1 pages  
#dcj to #ddj4  ,footnote #bf3           
,glacier-lakes are fairly common among  
the fjords of the west coast of         
,greenland1 and illustrate very well    
what must have been the state of affairs
 in ,glen ,roy at the time of formation 
of the ,parallel ,roads4  ,footnote #bg3
 ,the high-level shell-bearing deposits 
of ,moel ,tryfan1 ,gloppa1 near         
,oswestry1 and ,macclesfield1 have given

 rise to much controversy between the   
supporters of submergence and of        
land-ice4 ,at ,moel ,tryfan certain     
sands and gravels1 with erratics1 at a  
height of about #acej feet1 contain     
abundant marine shells1 generally much  
broken4 ,the northern or seaward face of
 the hill is much plastered with drift1 
but none is to be found on the landward 
side1 and it is suggested that the      
shell-bearing material is the           
ground-moraine of a great ice-sheet that
 came in from the ,irish ,sea1 and was  
forced up on to the ,welsh coast1 just  
reaching the watershed1 but failing to  
overtop it4 ,with regard to the         
explanation by submergence1 the great   
objection is the absence of marine drift
 on the landward side1 which is very    
difficult to explain if the whole had   
been submerged sufficiently to allow of 
normal marine deposits at such a great  
height4 ,the shell beds of ,macclesfield
 and ,gloppa are at a less elevation but
 of essentially similar character4  ,the

 shell-bearing deposits of ,moel ,tryfan
 were examined by a committee of the    
,british ,association4 7,see ,report of 
the ,british ,association ,dover1 #ahii1
 pages #dad to #dbc47 ,at the end of    
this report is an extensive             
bibliography4  ,footnote #bh3 ,during   
the last forty years the deep-sea       
dredging expeditions of ,h4 ,m4,s4      
,challenger and others have shown the   
abundance and variety of animal life at 
great depths1 especially in the ,arctic 
and ,antarctic seas4 ,for a recent      
summary1 see ,murray and ,hjort1 ,the   
,depths of the ,ocean1 ,london1 #aiab4  
,footnote #bi3 ,it is now generally     
admitted that these shell-beds in       
,wexford are of ,pliocene age1 and they 
therefore have no bearing on the subject
 under discussion4  ,footnote #cj3 ,the 
boulder deposit at ,selsey has been     
described by ,mr4 ,clement ,reid        
7,quarterly ,journal of the ,geological 
,society1 volume #dh1 #ahib1 page #cee74
 ,immediately above the ,tertiary beds  

is a hard greenish clay1 full of derived
 ,tertiary fossils and ,pleistocene     
shells with large flints and erratic    
blocks1 some of the latter weighing     
several tons4 ,they include granite1    
greenstone1 schist1 slate1 quartzite1   
and sandstone1 and most of them must    
have been transported for a long        
distance4 ,above them are black muds    
with marine shells1 then a shingle      
beach1 and above all the ,coombe ,rock4 
7,see next note47  ,footnote #ca3 ,the  
,brighton elephant-bed and its          
equivalent1 the ,coombe ,rock1 are fully
 described by ,clement ,reid 7,on the   
,origin of ,dry ,chalk ,valleys and the 
,coombe ,rock1 ,quarterly ,journal of   
the ,geological ,society1 volume #dc1   
#ahhg1 page #cfd74 ,the ,coombe ,rock is
 a mass of unstratified flints and      
,chalk debris filling the lower parts of
 the dry valleys 7,coombes7 of the      
,south ,downs and gradually passing into
 the brick-earth 7loam7 of the coastal  
plain4 ,it is clearly a torrential      

accumulation1 and is supposed to have   
been formed while the ,chalk was frozen1
 thus preventing percolation of water   
and causing the surface water to run off
 as strong streams4 ,this must have     
occurred during some part of the glacial
 period1 which would naturally be a     
period of heavy precipitation4 ,of very 
similar origin is the ,head of          
,cornwall1 a surface deposit often rich 
in tinstone and other minerals of       
economic value4 ,the ,coombe ,rock has  
recently been correlated with deposits  
of ,mousterian ,age4  ,footnote #cb3    
,the former extension of the ,alpine    
glaciers and the deposits formed by them
 have been exhaustively investigated by 
,penck and ,bruckner 7,die ,alpen im    
,eiszeitalter1 #c volumes1 ,leipzig1    
#aija to #aiji74 ,in this monumental    
work the authors claim to have          
established the occurrence of four      
periods of advance of the ice1 to which 
they give the names of ,gunz1 ,mindel1  
,riss1 and ,wurm glaciations1 with      

corresponding interglacial genial       
episodes1 when the climate was possibly 
even somewhat warmer than now4 ,their   
conclusions and the data on which they  
are established are summarised by       
,sollas 7 ,ancient ,hunters1 ,london1   
#aiaa1 especially pages #ah to #bh74    
,for a general account of the glaciers  
of the ,alps and their accompanying     
phenomena1 see ,bonney1 ,the ,building  
of the ,alps1 ,london1 #aiab1 pages #ajc
 to #aea4  ,footnote #cc3 ,at the time  
of the maximum advance of the ice1      
during the ,riss period of ,penck and   
,bruckner1 the terminal moraine of the  
great glacier of the ,rhone extended as 
far as the city of ,lyon1 and towards   
the north-east it became continuous with
 the similar moraine of the ,rhine      
glacier4  ,footnote #cd3 ,for the       
successive phases of advance and retreat
 of the ,alpine glaciers1 see the works 
quoted in ,note #cb4  ,footnote #ce3    
,the ,loess of ,central ,europe includes
 deposits of two different ages4        

,according to ,penck the ,older ,loess  
was formed in the period of warm and dry
 climate that intervened between the    
third and fourth glacial episodes1 while
 the ,younger ,loess is post-glacial4   
,both divisions are for the most part   
aeolian deposits1 formed by the         
redistribution of fine glacial mud      
originally laid down in water and       
carried by the wind often to            
considerable heights4 ,a part1 however1 
of the so-called ,loess of northern     
,france1 e4g4 in the valley of the      
,somme1 is rain-wash1 similar in        
character to the brick-earth of parts of
 south-eastern ,england4 ,the ,older    
,loess contains ,acheulean implements1  
while the ,younger ,loess is of         
,aurignacian ,age4  ,the greatest       
development of the ,loess is in ,central
 ,asia and in ,china4 7,see ,richthofen1
 ,china1 ,berlin1 #ahgg47 ,in ,china the
 ,loess reaches a thickness of several  
thousand feet1 and whole mountain-ranges
 are sometimes almost completely buried 

in it4 ,in the deserts of ,central ,asia
 the formation of the ,loess is still in
 progress4 ,a very similar deposit1     
called adobe1 is also found in certain  
parts of the ,mississippi valley4  ,the 
,loess is a fine calcareous silt or clay
 of a yellowish colour1 quite soft and  
crumbling between the fingers4 ,however1
 it resists denudation in a remarkable  
manner1 and in ,china it often stands up
 in vertical walls hundreds of feet in  
height4 ,this property is probably      
assisted by the presence of numerous    
fine tubes arranged vertically and lined
 with calcium carbonate2 these are      
supposed to have been formed in the     
first place by fibrous rootlets4        
,footnote #cf3 ,although highly         
probable1 it cannot yet be regarded as  
conclusively demonstrated that the      
,pleistocene glaciations of ,europe and 
of ,north ,america were exactly         
contemporaneous4 ,the ice--sheets in    
each case radiated from independent     
centres which were not in the extreme   

north of either continent1 and were not 
in any way connected with a general     
polar ice-cap4 ,the ,european centre was
 over the ,baltic region or the south of
 ,scandinavia1 and the ,american centre 
in the neighbourhood of ,hudson's ,bay4 
,the southern margin of the ,american   
ice-sheet extended about as far south as
 latitude #ch degrees north in the area 
lying south of the ,great ,lakes1       
whereas the ,north ,european ice barely 
passed the limit of #ej degrees north in
 ,central ,europe4 ,this greater        
southward extension in ,america was     
doubtless correlated with the same      
causes as now produce the low winter    
temperatures of the eastern states1     
especially the cold ,newfoundland       
current4 ,the literature of ,north      
,american glacial geology has now       
attained colossal dimensions1 and it is 
impossible to give here even a short    
abstract of the main conclusions4 ,for a
 general summary reference may be made  
to ,chamberlin and ,salisbury1 ,geology1

 volume #c2 ,earth ,history1 ,london and
 ,new ,york1 #aije2 or the same authors'
 ,geology1 ,shorter ,course1 ,london and
 ,new ,york1 #aiji4  ,footnote #cg3     
,during the last fifty years scarcely   
any geological subject has given rise to
 a greater amount of speculation than   
the cause of the ,ice ,age1 and the     
solution of the problem is still        
apparently far off4 ,the theories put   
forward may for convenience be divided  
into three groups1 namely astronomical1 
geographical1 and meteorological4  ,as  
examples of astronomical explanation1 we
 may take the well-known theory of      
,adhemar and ,crohl1 which is founded on
 changes in the ellipticity of the      
earth's orbit4 ,this is expounded and   
amplified by ,sir ,robert ,ball in his  
,cause of an ,ice ,age4 ,the weak point 
of this theory1 which is mathematically 
unassailable1 is that it proves too     
much1 and postulates a constant         
succession of glacial periods throughout
 earth-history1 and for this there is no

 evidence4 ,the geographical            
explanations are chiefly founded on     
supposed changes in the distribution of 
sea and land1 with consequent diversion 
of cold and warm currents4 ,another     
suggestion is that the glaciated areas  
had undergone elevation into mountain   
regions1 but this is in conflict with   
evidence for submergence beneath the sea
 in certain cases4 ,meteorological      
hypotheses1 such as that of ,harmer1    
founded on a different arrangement of   
air pressures and wind-directions1 seem 
to offer the most promising field for   
exploration and future work1 but it is  
clear that much still remains to be     
explained4  ,footnote #ch3 ,the         
reptile-bearing ,elgin ,sandstones are  
of ,triassic ,age1 and they contain a   
most remarkable assemblage of strange   
and eccentric forms1 especially         
,anomodont reptiles resembling those    
found in the ,karroo formation of ,south
 ,africa4  ,footnote #ci3 ,the meaning  
of this statement is not very clear4    

,the ,conifers are not dicotyledons3    
their seeds contain numerous cotyledons1
 up to twenty in number1 and the whole  
plant1 and especially the reproductive  
system1 belongs to a lower stage of     
development4 ,the argument here employed
 is therefore fallacious1 and in point  
of fact the different groups actually   
appeared in the order postulated by the 
theory of evolution1 namely3 7#a7       
,gymnosperms1 7#b7 ,monocotyledons1 7#c7
 ,dicotyledons4 ,see ,arber1 ,the       
,origin of ,gymnosperms1 ,science       
,progress1 volume #a1 #aijf1 pages #bbb 
to #bcg4  ,footnote #dj3 ,the part of   
the manuscript read to ,dr4 ,hooker in  
#ahdd was undoubtedly the ,essay of     
#ahdd1 forming the second part of the   
,foundations of the ,origin of ,species1
 a volume published by ,sir ,francis    
,darwin on the occasion of the ,darwin  
,centenary at ,cambridge in #aiji4 7,see
 also ,darwin's ,life and ,letters1     
volume #b pages #af to #ah47  ,footnote 
#da3 ,this projected larger work1 which 

is often referred to in the ,origin of  
,species1 was never published as such1  
but ,darwin's views on various aspects  
of evolution were set forth in several  
later books1 such as ,the ,variation of 
,animals and ,plants under              
,domestication1 ,the ,descent of ,man1  
,various ,contrivances by which ,orchids
 are ,fertilised by ,insects1 ,movements
 and ,habits of ,climbing ,plants1      
,insectivorous ,plants1 and others4     
,footnote #db3 ,with this section       
compare the famous chapter with the same
 title in the ,origin of ,species4      
,footnote #dc3 ,no attempt has been made
 to annotate this chapter1 owing to the 
impossibility of doing so within        
reasonable compass4 ,many of the        
theories here quoted1 and the           
conclusions drawn from them1 have not   
stood the test of time1 and recent      
philological and ethnographical research
 have clearly shown the danger of       
attempting to infer the relationships of
 different peoples from their languages4

 ,the modifications undergone by the    
languages themselves are also subject to
 influences of such complex character1  
so largely artificial in their origin1  
that any attempt to compare them with   
natural evolution in the organic world  
must lead to false analogies4 ,the      
chapter must be regarded as an          
interesting exposition of one phase of  
,mid-,victorian scientific thought1 but 
having little real bearing on the       
subjects discussed in the rest of the   
book4  ,footnote #dd3 ,that the prophecy
 here given was justified is shown by   
the discovery in ,java in #ahia1 of the 
skull and parts of the skeleton of      
,pithecanthropus erectus1 a form which1 
according to the best authorities1 must 
be regarded as in many ways intermediate
 between man and the apes1 though       
perhaps with more human than ape-like   
characteristics4 ,for an account of the 
circumstances of its discovery and a    
general description of the remains1 see 
,sollas1 ,ancient ,hunters1 ,london1    

#aiaa1 pages #cj to #ci 7with many      
references74 ,within the last year or   
two interest in the ancestry of man has 
been greatly increased1 especially by   
the ,piltdown discovery 7see ,note #aa74
 ,this has led to a revision of the     
whole subject1 and the views formerly   
held have undergone a certain amount of 
modification4 ,it now seems certain that
 the different types of culture as      
represented by the succession of stages 
given in ,note #ab do not correspond to 
a continuous development of one single  
race of mankind4 ,there is1 undoubtedly1
 a great break between the ,mousterian  
and ,aurignacian4 ,mousterian or        
,neanderthal man appears to have become 
extinct1 possibly having been           
exterminated by a migration of the more 
highly developed ,aurignacian race1     
which may be regarded as the ancestor of
 modern man in ,europe4 ,it appears1    
therefore1 that the really important    
line of division comes1 not as was      
formerly thought between ,palaeolithic  

and ,neolithic1 but in the middle of the
 ,palaeolithic between ,mousterian and  
,aurignacian4 ,hence it appears that our
 classification will in the near future 
have to undergo revision1 since the     
stages of culture from ,aurignacian to  
,azilian show a much closer affinity to 
the ,neolithic than they do to the      
earlier ,palaeolithic4 ,at the present  
time scarcely sufficient data are       
available to determine the relationship 
of ,pithecanthropus and ,eoanthropus to 
the later types of man4 ,for an         
excellent summary of the most recent    
views see ,thacker1 ,the ,significance  
of the ,piltdown ,discovery1 ,science   
,progress1 volume #h1 #aiac1 page #bge4