1893.] NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 73 



T£-pdnoda, four footed and in the Vulgate, Jumenta, draught cattle. 

 The word rmsh we have translated " moving thing," consistently 

 with the interpretation already given of that word in verse 21. 

 The woi'd was translated kpnerd in the Septuagint and reptilia 

 in the Vulgate ; inconsistently in the latter case, however, as 

 essentially the same word was previously rendered motabilem. 

 It is difficult to understand why the word "reptile" should be associa- 

 ted with cattle and wild beasts as the context would lead one to 

 suppose that at this late period in the creation of animal life beasts 

 were more particularly created. It is immaterial, however, to the 

 argument whether rmsh be translated in this verse "reptiles" or 

 " moving, creeping or crawling creatures," since it is not to be sup- 

 posed that reptiles at once ceased to appear upon the earth. 

 The translation of the Hebrew word hitu admits of no discussion, 

 being translated in the Septuagint ftypia, in the Vulgate bestias and 

 in the English versions " beasts." It will be remembered that the first 

 mammalia appearing upon the earth, the descendants of reptiles, 

 were probably Mouotremata, resembling the Ornithorynchus and 

 Echidna of the present day. From such lowly organized mamma- 

 lian forms descended the mammalia of the early Tertiary which in 

 turn gave place to the mammalia of the later Tertiary and present 

 geologic epochs. As the "beasts," "mammalia," the bhm of the 

 Hebrews were created on " day the sixth," that is after the rmsh or 

 promammalia, the account of the creation of the mammalia as given 

 in Genesis is therefore consistent with the order of the evolution of 

 the mammalia as based upon the testimony of the rocks. Resuming 

 what Genesis states as to the creation of life, it appears, if the trans, 

 lation just submitted be accepted as correct, that during "day the 

 fifth " the ancestors of the reptiles, the proreptilia, appeared upon the 

 earth, being succeeded during that period successively by the ances- 

 tors of the birds, the pro-aves, reptiles, the pro-mammalia and birds, 

 and that during the following period, " day the sixth," the mammalia 

 appeared. The accompanying diagram will illustrate succintly and. 

 genealogically the order of creation as just given. 



The order of creation then, as given in the verses of the first 

 chapter of Genesis just translated, is essentially the same order as 

 that based upon the remains of animal life preserved in the rocks. 

 It may be argued, however, that the account of the creation of ani- 

 mal life as given in Genesis is very meagre, nothing being said as to 

 the creation or appearance of the lower forms of life, fishes even being 



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