282 FROM THE GREEKS TO DARWIN 



same time, a great multitude of different species be- 

 longing to all branches of the animal kingdom, of 

 which there are no signs in the preceding periods. 

 The first creation shows itself in the Silurian stage. 

 After its annihilation through some geological cause 

 or other, a second creation took place a considerable 

 time after in the Devonian stage, and, twenty-seven 

 times in succession, distinct creations have come to 

 repeople the whole earth with its plants and animals 

 after each of the geological disturbances which de- 

 stroyed everything in living nature. Such is the fact, 

 certain but incomprehensible, which we confine our- 

 selves to stating, with endeavouring to solve the su- 

 perhuman mystery which envelops it. 



Cuvier's scientific and political prestige was 

 almost unbounded. His discoveries and recon- 

 structions of extinct animals were considered 

 brilliant. A favorite of Napoleon, he was able to 

 build up a great school in the Jardin des Plantes 

 and exert his political influence in keeping the 

 *transformists' out of position. He was followed 

 by De Candolle, the botanist, by De Blainville, 

 the palaeontologist, by Dumeril, the invertebrate 

 zoologist, and, in Germany, by Vogt and Bronn. 

 The great English anatomist and palaeontolo- 

 gist, Richard Owen, shared partly Cuvier's views 

 and partly those of Geoffroy St. Hilaire. Cu- 

 vier's greatest disciple was Louis Agassiz, bril- 

 liant in many fields of research and generaliza- 



