28 Dr Boue's Observations on the 



place at that period are fully adequate to explain why whole 

 classes of animals, as belemnites, &c. and even of vegetables, 

 disappeared from Europe, and that other animals and plants 

 took their origin, or sprang into existence from this new state of 

 things. 



In pursuing our examination of the reasoning of our adver- 

 saries, we were startled with the following remark, — " that if 

 the Eastern Alps have been elevated at so recent a period, there 

 must be on their jlanlis a continuous succession of deposites be- 

 tween the new secondary, and the older tertiary periods^'' (112). 

 We really do not see the force or meaning of this observation, 

 for we cannot see what an upheaving, may it even be alluvial, 

 has to do with the existence of certain deposites, for very few 

 formations, and especially the more recent ones, are generally 

 distributed over the whole surface of the globe. The deposites 

 wished for may, or may not, have existed along the Alps ; but 

 the fact is, that no one, excepting our authors, have found a 

 trace of them. 



We agree with our authors " that the age of the Gossau beds 

 must be determined by their relations, structures, and Jhssils, 

 and that there is nothing in their relations and structure which 

 proves them to be older than the chalk (including thegreensand). 

 Besides, we confess that the appearance of majiy, and even of 

 the greater number of the Gossau Jhssils, is tertiary, from their 

 state of preservation, the great preponderance of univalves over 

 bivalves, and the incredible abundance of shells of certain genera, 

 seldom found except in the newest formations^'' (p. 112). But, 

 on the other hand, we find ourselves brought back to the 

 secondary class by the gryphites, catillus, inoceramus, neritina, 

 trigonia, plicatula, the pectcn quinquecostatus, &c. If, contrary 

 to acknowledged geological principles, we neglect thedifficulty oc- 

 casioned by the presenceof secondary chalk fossils, and attend only 

 to the tertiary shells, shall we be right or wrong in maintaining 

 that the deposite is newer than chalk ? We do not believe that 

 this mode of proceeding is allowed ; and we are gratified to find 

 our opinion agree with that of men well fittedfor judging of such 

 difficulties. First, if Mr Alexander Brongniart classifies, as do 

 our opponents, the greensand of the Kressenberg in the tertiary 

 class, it is because he has been shewn only the tertiary genera ;- 



