PRESIDENTS ADDEESS. 187 
examination of the terrestrial mollusca of the Pacific Islands, 
he says—" The remarkable homogeneity of faunas scattered 
over so wide an area of Polynesia indicates either a former 
great extension, and therefore approximation of the Archi- 
pelagos, or they actually formed parts of.a single land-mass.” 
He believes, however, that this mid-Pacific continent never 
joined America, and became separated from other lands in 
mid-Mesozoic. 
Hedley (Hedley, ‘99 and ‘92 and ’98) practically proves a 
former Jand connection between Fiji and New Guinea, 
through the Solomons. This would appear to have been a 
more modern extension than that advocated by Pilsbry, and 
far less extensive. 
There is no need to further multiply quoiaticns in favour 
of an almost continuous land-belt from South America 
through Africa, India, and away into the Pacific, in Meso- 
zoic times, and blocking encrance into the Atlantic well 
dewn inio the Tertiary. This land is usually regarded as 
a means for the spread of the terrestrial fauna and flora, 
though its effect as a barrier io marine forms is an article 
of faith with many Indian geologists, and indeed it is from 
their studies that its existence was first surmised. While 
it existed, in whole or in part, it must have exerted a re 
tarding influence on the commingling of the northern and 
southern marine faunas; and as it appears to have persisted 
into Tertiary times. across the Southern Atlantic, its effect 
in keeping apart the faunas of this age in the two heme 
spheres must greatly lessen the value of all attempts to cor- 
relate Australian and European Tertiary strata by direct 
comparison. Had the recent marine West Indian fauna 
been a fossil one, a strong case could have been made out 
in favour of its Miocene age. Similarly, our geographical 
remoteness from Europe, and the former seclusion of its 
Tertiary seas, must cause us to hesitate before correlating 
.our strata with theirs on what appears to be misleading evi 
dence. 
ConcLusion. 
It is possible im most cases to refer our Australian strata 
definitely to one or other of the great European periods; but 
it is not always so. Terms such as. Permo-Carboniferous 
and Trias-jura express a mingling of faunes representing 
two distinct northeru systems, and are not cloaks to hide our 
ignorance. This mingling is not necessarily due to the 
Australian systems being intermediate in age, and Leing the 
representatives of the great unconformities of the Northern 
