De Quatrefages. — On Moas and Moa-liunters. 21 



coveries confirm the observations that I put forward just now, 

 and make New Zealand conform to the general rule. This 

 distant country has never produced mammals. The type of 

 brevipennate birds has developed itself into an abundance and 

 variety of subordinate groups, met with nowhere else. There 

 is complete accord between its fossil fauna and its living fauna ; 

 and these faunas by the very characteristics which are common 

 to them further attest the universality of the law which every- 

 where links together the past and the present in the animal 

 world. H 



The number of moa-bones collected by scientists or by 

 amateurs living in New Zealand is very considerable ; and it 

 is only just to recognise the generosity with which these 

 scientific treasures have been shared with other scientists all 

 over the world. All the large museums of Europe and 

 America possess more or less complete skeletons of these 

 strange birds. Mr. Walter Mantell, who was one of the first 

 to occupy himself with this question, sent Eichard Owen more 

 than a thousand bones. ( 1:i ) When the learned geologist of 



secute his studies mainly through the materials sent by Mr. W. Man- 

 tell. The results appeared in the " Transactions of the Zoological 

 Society " of 18S4 and following years. 



(12.) Here is Dr. Haasfc's classification, which only comprises eleven 

 species: — I. Family of Dinornitliidce : Genus Dinomis, comprising 

 D. maximns, D. robustus, D. ingcns, D. struthioidcs, D. gracilis ; 

 genus Meionomis, comprising M. casuarinus, M. didiforviis. II. 

 Family of Palapterygidce : Genus Palaptcryx, comprising P. eleplian- 

 topus, P. crassus ; genus Euryapteryx, comprising E. gravis, E. 

 rlicides. (" Proceedings of the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury," 

 March, 1874; "Address," by J. Haast, President; Transactions of 

 the New Zealand Institute, vol. vi., p. 426.) Dr. Haast, basing 

 himself upon the scale of dimensions, seems inclined to believe that 

 he himself reunited, under the name of Meionomis casuarinus, two 

 species which must hereafter be distinguished. He says the same with 

 regard to Palaptcryx elcphantopus (p. 429). Professor Hutton, Director 

 of the Otago Museum, criticized Dr. Haast's classification, contradicting 

 some of the facts quoted by his colleague. He thinks, like Owen, that 

 all the moas formed one natural family, that of Dinomitliidcp. (Transac- 

 tions, vol. ix., p. 363.) Owen and M. A. Edwards admit only two 

 kinds, Dinomis and Palaptcryx, the former tridactyle, the latter with 

 a fourth finger, short and directed backwards. 



(13.) The preceding observations do not only affect the history of the 

 New Zealand fauna : they are closely related to the history of man him- 

 self. In themselves they are sufficient to refute a theory recently put 

 forward by M. P. A. Lesson — in a book filled, however, with important 

 documents and facts, three volumes out of four of which have appeared : 

 " Les Polynesiens, leur Origine, leurs Migrations, et leur Langage :" 

 Paris, 1882. The author admits that the whole of Polynesia— Tahiti, 

 the Sandwich Islands, Samoa group, Tonga group, &c. — has been peopled 

 through migrations ; but, instead of considering the Malay Archipelago 

 as a racial starting-point, he makes New Zealand tho birthplace of the 

 Polynesian. Thus he returns to the old idea of autochthonism, which is 

 little to bo relied on, as Mr. H. Hall's magnificent work has already 



