Imperial Institute of France, 315 



Imperial institute op prance for the te\r 1812, 

 drawn up by m. cuvier. 



Mineralogy and Geology, 



The fossil remains of organised bodies continue to occupy 

 the attention of naturalists. 



M. Traulle, of Abbeville, has presented to the Class the 



fietrified head of a small cttacea, which seems to have be- 

 onged to the whale genus, and which was dug up in the 

 basin of Antwerp. Count Dejean has sent one similar, and 

 from the same place, to the Museum of Natural History. 

 There were also found at the same time a great number of 

 vertebrae of animals of the same class, and several shells. 



M. Traulle also presented a portion of the lower jaw of a 

 rhinoceros, found in the sandpits of the valley of the Somme, 

 in the environs of Abbeville. 



M. Daudebart de Ferussac, a young military officer who 

 has visited most parts of Europe, has profited by his leisure 

 to notice fossils ; and as he has made a particular study of the 

 shells found in fresh water, he applied himself particularly 

 to that sort of soil in the environs of Paris, exposed by 

 Messrs. Brongniart andCuvier, which, as containing nothing 

 but fresh- water shells, appeared to these naturalists not to owe 

 its origin to the sea, like most other secondary formations. 



M. de Ferussac has foimd similar strata, containing the 

 same shells and composed of the same substances, in the 

 south of France, in several provinces of Spain, in Germany^ 

 and even in Silesia; so that it seems to be no longer doubt- 

 ful that it is formed everywhere. 



M. de Ferussac, in order to give more precision to his 

 observations, turned his attention (o ihe shells themselves, 

 determined the species with much rigour, and gave some 

 good observations on the variations which they may unders;©, 

 and several correct notions which may distinguish the 

 genera. 



M. Cuvlcr has published in 4 volumes, 4to. with many 

 plates, a collection of all his memoirs on the fossil bones 

 of quadrupeds. He describes 78 species, 49 of which are 

 undoubtedly unknown to naturalists, and of which sixteen 

 or eighteen are still doubtful. The other bones found in 

 recent soils appear to belong to animals which are known. 

 In a preliminary discourse the author details the method 

 which he pursued, and the results which he obtained. Kea- 

 ioning upon facts which he has discovered, it seems to liiin 

 that the earth has undergone several great and sudden revo- 

 Jutions^ ilie last uf which (not more than 5 or 6 thousand 



yeari 



