ORGANIC REMAINS ORIENTAL LITERATURE. 



341 



and slates that a ;company coal contain, with remains 

 of many other unknown vegetables, parts of various 

 cryptogamous plants, the recent analogies of which 

 are found only in tropical regions. It is impossible 

 to give an idea, without figures, of the beauty and 

 variety of the impressions thus found in the argilla- 

 ceous and bituminous slate formations of the coal 

 measures. Concerning the mineral matters which 

 enter into the composition of fossils that are deno- 

 minated petrifactions and all organic remains are 

 thus termed whose original particles have given place 

 to matter of another sort they are chiefly of three 

 kinds, viz., calcarious, silicious, and argillaceous. 

 Iron and copper pyrites are found performing the 

 same part, though with less frequency than the sub- 

 stance first mentioned. Fluor rarely occurs as the 

 replacing material of fossils. The precise manner 

 in which the substitution takes place it is difficult in 

 many cases to conceive of : in general, we are sure 

 that the mineral matter is slowly deposited by intro- 

 mission into the original interstices and cavities of the 

 organic body, or is introduced to fill the spaces which 

 have been produced by the partial removal of the 

 original organic substance. 



In conclusion, we have only to remark concerning 

 these monuments of former worlds, that, in the 

 several formations composing the outer part of the 

 earth down to the primitive rocks, the fossil remains 

 which they contain vary in each formation, and at the 

 same time differ from those beings which now exist. 

 The discovery of animals peculiar to certain forma- 

 tions, and the general agreement with each other of 

 the fossils of the same formations, have led to the be- 

 lief that these several formations were the conse- 

 quences of successive changes effected on the earth's 

 surface ; and that the contained fossils are the pre- 

 served remains of the several creations which had 

 been successively formed to accord with the state of 

 the planet under its several changes. In the lower, 

 and consequently earlier formed, strata, are found the 

 bituminized remains of unknown vegetables ; and in 

 the masses of mountain limestone are immense accu- 

 mulations of crinoideal and terebratular remains, of 

 the numerous species of which tribes scarcely a liv- 

 ing individual can now be found. Here also exist 

 the multilocular univalves in such abundance, while 

 the genus nautilus is the only one of this family 

 whose existence through a few species is continued 

 to the present day. The fossils of the next superior 

 formation the lias afford proofs, also, of their hav- 

 ing been the production of a distinct creation. But 

 the most decided proof of these fossils being the re- 

 mains of another world, and of a distinct creation, is 

 their containing relics of a tribe of enormous marine 

 animals, such as quadrupeds possessing the blended 

 structure of fish and lizard, no traces of which have 

 been observed in the preceding strata. The fossil 

 remains, through the succeeding higher formations of 

 oolite, green sand, chalk, and clay, show new genera, 

 both of saurian and testaceous animals ; and when we 

 follow, on the surface of the vast mass of upper clay, 

 the traces of diluvial action, and the desolation which 

 accompanied the last grand catastrophe which the 

 planet appears to have sustained, we there find the 

 remains of another creation the terrestrial quadru- 

 peds. These changes in the state of the planet, 

 and this partial destruction, appear to have been 

 succeeded by the creation of man, and of such quad- 

 rupeds and other animals as were fit inhabitants of 

 the earth after its last change ; from whence it ap- 

 pears that beings have proceeded, gradually increas- 

 ing in superiority, from testaceous animals to reptiles, 

 marine and fresh water amphibia, quadrupeds, and, 

 lastly, to man. 



Tor further information., see Parkinson's Organic 



Remains of a Former IPbrld (London, 1804 11,3 

 vols., 4to); and his Introduction to the Study of Or- 

 ganic Fossil Remains (1822) ; Buckland's Reliquiae 

 Diluviante (London, 1824 28); and Cuvier's great 

 work Ossemens Fossiles (3d ed., 1826, 5 vols.); 

 Schlottheim's Beitrage zur Flora Unterwelt ; and 

 Sternberg's Darstellung der Flora der Forwelt; 

 Link's Urwelt und das Alterthut.t (Berlin, 1821); 

 Schubert's Urwelt und die Fixsterne (Dresden, 1822); 

 and Kriiger's Geschichte der Urwelt (Quedlinburg, 

 1822). Godman ? s Natural History describes the 

 fossil remains of North America. See, also, our 

 articles Geology, Mastodon, Mammoth, Megalothe- 

 rium, Megalosaurus, &c. 



ORGANOLOG Y ; a term used to denote a branch 

 of physiology which treats,, in particular, of the dif- 

 ferent organs of animals, especially of the human 

 species. It is, as may well be imagined, one of the 

 most interesting branches of natural science. 



ORGIES (ofyia.) ; the mystic rites and wild revels 

 celebrated in honour of Bacchus ; also the festivals 

 and mysteries of other deities. (See Bacchus, and 

 Mysteries.) The term has hence been applied to 

 any scene of riotous mirth and excessive revelry. 



ORIENTAL EMPIRE. See Byzantine Empire. 



ORIENTAL LITERATURE. This vast field of 

 learning, which comprises the languages and litera- 

 ture of nations, some of which are totally distinct 

 from others, has been cultivated, in recent times, 

 with great zeal. Not only is the number of Oriental 

 languages, now studied, much greater than formerly, 

 but they are much more accurately known. For- 

 merly, even the most celebrated Orientalists, in 

 general, possessed but a superficial knowledge ; 

 and the difference between the learning required 

 from a classical philologist, and that expected from 

 an Orientalist, in his branch, was very great. Many 

 Orientalists were unable to conjugate or decline the 

 Arabic correctly. The grammatical knowledge of 

 some of these languages has become much more 

 profound in our time, though there have been, yet, 

 comparatively few Oriental works printed. This 

 great change must be traced, in part, to the writings 

 of Silvestre de Sacy, who may be considered as hav- 

 ing more knowledge of Arabic than any other Euro- 

 pean scholar. His Grammaire Arabe (Paris, 1810) 

 gave an entirely new turn to the study of this 

 language, and indirectly influenced the study of 

 Persian and Hebrew. This progress is, in part, also 

 attributable to the zeal and activity of the British in 

 India, which have been exerted not only on the 

 Indian languages, but also in the publication of Per- 

 sian and Arabian works. From British presses in 

 the East Indies, at Serampore and Calcutta, and from 

 the Turkish in Scutari and Constantinople, have 

 issued the most important works of Oriental litera- 

 ture ; for instance, the original dictionaries of the 

 Arabs, Persians, and Turks. Not only has the study 

 of the languages been much extended in recent times, 

 but much has been done for its application to scien- 

 tifical, historical, geographical, mythological, and 

 philosophical investigations. It must be confessed, 

 indeed, that instances are not wanting, in which 

 inquirers have been seduced, by these discoveries, to 

 erroneous theories, particularly through unfounded 

 etymologies. Five Asiatic societies have been estab- 

 lished, by Europeans, for the promotion of the study 

 ef Oriental literature, three of which are in India (in 

 Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras), and ar composed 

 of scholars and military men. Each of them publishes 

 its Transactions. That of Calcutta has published 

 fifteen volumes, under the name of Asiatic Re- 

 searches. That of Bombay, of a much later date, 

 has published at least three volumes. The two 

 other societies are that of Paris (founded in 1822, 



