294 Proceedings of Metropolitan Societies. [April, 
the Nile; but it should not be forgotten, although it appears to have 
been almost lost sight of, that Russegger discovered fluviatile shells at 
high levels in the Nile Valley more than five-and-twenty years ago. 
6. Much light has been thrown upon the geology of the West Indian 
Islands in two papers (or, rather, two parts of one paper) by Dr. 
Duncan “On the Fossil Corals of the West Indian Islands,” and one 
by Mr. J. Carrick Moore “ On some Tertiary Shells from Jamaica.” 
Many years ago Mr. Carrick Moore suggested that the separation 
of the Caribbean Sea from the Pacific Ocean was not so complete in 
early Tertiary times as it now is, and the chief result of the papers 
just mentioned is that they prove, almost to demonstration, that this 
separation was not complete until long after the commencement of the 
Tertiary period. 
Tt may be useful to give a synopsis of this argument, as it is an 
extremely good specimen of the manner in which the paleontologist 
infers the character and the date of changes that have occurred on the 
surface of the earth in geological periods. In most of the West Indian 
Tslands certain strata occur containing shells and corals which, at first 
sight, appear (especially the shells) to resemble those now living in the 
Caribbean Sea ; but, when closely examined and compared, they are 
found to be nearly all distinct. Furthermore, a careful comparison of 
them with recent fossil species from different localities shows that, 
while many of them resemble or are identical with species found in the 
Miocene beds of Europe, others bear the same relation to forms now 
living in the Pacific Ocean, a very small proportion (especially of 
corals) being allied to, or identical with, Caribbean species. It there- 
fore follows, granting the usual postulates of paleontology, that the 
deposits are approximately of the age of the Miocene beds of Europe, 
and that, at or about the time when the animals lived, the remains of 
which occur fossil in these strata, there was free communication between 
the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. 
Dr. Duncan also discusses many other interesting points, such as it 
ean easily be understood the determination of no fewer than 76 species 
of fossil corals from such a region would suggest to the mind of a 
paleontologist ; but it is here quite impossible to do more than draw 
attention to his valuable papers. 
7. The Abbeville jaw and the associated flint implements have 
attracted so much attention, and the circumstances attending their dis- 
covery have already been so often explained, that a knowledge of them 
may be fairly assumed in discussing Mr. Prestwich’s paper ‘“ On the 
‘Section at Moulin Quignon, Abbeville, and on the peculiar character 
of some of the flint implements recently discovered there.” It is 
absolutely refreshing to read a paper in which the identical pit in 
which the jaw was found is described, but which contains merely a few 
passing allusions to that redoubted relic of, possibly, man’s antiquity, 
but, much more probably, of his cupidity and deceitfulness. 
The question of the authenticity of the jaw and of certain asso- 
ciated flint implements is as complicated as that of Schleswig-Holstein 
itself, and is still less likely ever to be satisfactorily settled. Even the 
author of this paper, one of our most competent observers, after devoting 
