12 



his ascent to the peak, says he passed five different 

 zones, distinguished by their vegetation, the first being 

 that of the vine and palm, the thermometer stand- 

 ing, at 67 in January, about noon ; the next belt, about 

 5,780 feet above the level of the sea, consists mostly 

 of forests, oaks, myrtles, olives ; the next zone extends 

 more than 8,000 feet above the sea level, and is a 

 region of pines ; the fourth and fifth zones are covered 

 with the leguminous Eetama and several species of 

 Graminece, a few of which and lichens struggle for 

 existence among the volcanic matter at the summit. In 

 the corresponding beds of Puy, in the centre of 

 France, a palm, Phoenix Aymardi, has been met with 

 bearing a male inflorescence ; as it belongs to a family 

 chiefly African it gives force to other attested proofs 

 how closely allied is the eocene flora of Europe with 

 that of the neighbouring continent, which its southern 

 extremity touches. The climate of that period was 

 not dissimilar to that of Central Africa, of the present 

 day, subject to intermittent rains at intervals of con- 

 siderable length evidenced by the meagre, stunted cori- 

 aceous trees. The difference of latitude had now a more 

 decided influence upon plants. There was a gradual 

 invasion of cold, which was more intense at one time than 

 another, supporting the theory that there was a glacial 

 period during the eocene as well as the well-attested 

 pliocene age. The succeeding miocene was under the 

 influence of a more humid climate, and its vegetation 

 unfitted for long droughts. In the southern and central 

 parts of France the rniocenes are extensively developed. 



