232 Notices respecting New Books. 



agreement could be established between the recent and the 

 fossil corals. 



*' With respect to the degree of accordance of the fossil 

 ^vith the recent alcyonia, sponges, and other soft, and, con- 

 sequently, easily altered zoophytes, I considered myself as 

 not authorized to speak with confidence; since it being pro- 

 bable, that from these bodies never having been the object of 

 very general attention in a recent state, many may be yet 

 withheld from our knowledge, which might, when found, 

 considerably reduce the number of those fossil species, which 

 we are obliged, at present, to consider as without any recent 

 analogies. 



*■' With respect to those zoophytes, with the examination 

 of which the latter part of this volunie has been engaged, it 

 must be acknowledged that they seem to point out most de- 

 cidedly a considerable want of agreement between theinha- 

 bitants of the former and of the present world. Tt appears 

 that of these zoophytes, which, perhaps, should be arranged 

 under two genera, encrinus and pentacrinus, upwards of 

 twenty species are known in a mineralized state; but that, 

 incalculably numerous as these animals must have been, not 

 a single fragment of any individual, of any of the numerous 

 species belonging to the genus encrinus, has ever yet been 

 seen in a recent state. Two or three fragments of pentacrini 

 have indeed been discovered, but whether exactly agreeing 

 with any of the fossil species, I have not been able to ascer- 

 tain. 



*' No stronger proof need be required of the sea having 

 long covered this globe, than the various mineralized re- 

 mains of zoophytes, which have been found in different 

 parts of the world, imbedded at considerable depths and at 

 very great elevations, in some of the loftiest lime-stone 

 mountains. But it may be argued, that although the ma- 

 rine origin of these remains be admitted, and although they 

 are found thus imbedded, still it is not yet proved that the 

 sea has rested on the parts where these fossil remains have 

 been found ; since they might have been brought there by 

 floods from 'distant parts. But that these animals dwelt, 

 and perished, on the identical spots where they are now 



found, 



