6 THE PALEONTOLOGIC RECORD 



quoting from the address of Professor Woodward, to which reference 

 has already been made : 



Geology and paleontology in the past have furnished some of the grandest 

 contributions to our knowledge of the world of life; they have revealed hidden 

 meanings which no study of the existing world could even suggest; and they 

 have started lines of inquiry which the student of living plants and animals 

 alone would scarcely have suspected to be profitable. 



ADEQUACY OF THE PALEONTOLOGIC KECOED 



BY R. S. BASSLER 



U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM 



THE imperfection or inadequacy, instead of the adequacy of the 

 paleontologic record, has long been a favorite subject of discus- 

 sion, and it is only within recent years that this heresy of an imperfect 

 record is being abandoned by paleontologists in general. However, as 

 many of our biologic, and even a few of our paleontologic, friends still 

 have doubts regarding the matter, the present conference upon this and 

 allied subjects is very opportune. 



I have a vivid recollection of the joy experienced in my school days, 

 when, during an examination in geology, the subject of an impromptu 

 essay was announced as "The Imperfection of the Paleontologic 

 Kecord." Here was a subject in which I was well grounded from text- 

 book reading, and I remember distinctly the telling points made. The 

 lack of hard parts causing the absence of many classes of animals ; the 

 great amount of unrepresented time in the geologic column; the meta- 

 morphism and consequent disappearance of fossils, and, when present, 

 the frequent imperfectness of the specimens themselves, were dwelt on 

 in great detail. Since that time, my experience in invertebrate paleon- 

 tology has compelled me to unlearn every one of these supposed facts, 

 and to come to the conclusion that, considered both biologically and 

 stratigraphically, the paleontologic record is sufficiently adequate for 

 all reasonable purposes. 



Professor Calvin's paper tells us (1) of the detailed perfection of 

 the record, (2) of the profusion of the material, and (3) of the broad 

 view as to trend and tendency of biologic characters which the study 

 of paleontology gives. His presentation of the subject is such that we 

 must all agree with him. It therefore seems best for me to confine my 

 remarks to the reasons usually advocated for the imperfection, namely, 

 the lack of hard parts in many animals, metamorphism, the frequent 

 imperfect preservation of fossils, and the unrepresented time in the 

 geologic column. 



The lack of hard parts in many animals is a serious, although not 

 fatal, objection to their preservation as fossils. For the best results as 



