180 FOSSIL HUMAN JAW. [l863. 



and at first seemed to think that any doubt of its 

 authority was a reflection on the honour of France. 



" The French savants, the more they went into the 

 case, were more convinced of the soundness of their 

 conclusions ; while their English opponents, the more 

 they weighed the evidence before them, were the more 

 strengthened in their doubts." 



To settle the question definitely, it was agreed that 

 a conference between the English savants and their 

 French brethren should take place, and that for this 

 purpose the former should proceed to Paris. As is 

 evident from his note on the occasion, Falconer wrote 

 with boyish glee at the prospect of a good fight : 



H. Falconer to J. Prestwich. 5^ May 1863. 



MY DEAR PKESTWICH, Make your arrangements instanter. 



Dr Carpenter has called on me with a formal cartel from 

 Quatrefages, challenging me, you, and Evans to go over to Paris, 

 and to do battle about the Moulin Quignon human jaw. 



I have written to Lartet, accepting. 



Carpenter as " avvocato di Diavolo," i.e., pro, and I, con, start 

 by the mail train of Friday next, 8th, for Paris. 



Either you or Evans must come. He cannot you can. Get 

 ready, oh Gravel Sifter ! and send me anyhow all your forged 

 Moulin Quignon hdches. 



Try and get Alfred Tylor to deliver up his one. 



The term "gravel sifter" was applied to Prestwich 

 in a humorous and satirical caricature of a scientific 

 controversy, entitled " Report of a sad case, recently 

 tried before the Lord Mayor, Owen versus Huxley, 

 in which will be found fully given the merits of the 

 great recent Bone Case." 



This was attributed to Dr Pycroft of Exeter, and 

 it was printed anonymously in April 1863. It was 



