PREFACE. XI 



most carefully reaped. By his persevering assiduity he 

 has accomplished the most important discoveries respect- 

 ing several unknown animals which have existed in 

 former ages of this planet. To have omitted an account 

 of these discoveries would have been a departure from 

 the intention of the work ; and to have extracted less 

 than is here given, could not have been done without 

 inj urious mutilation . 



From the frequency with which these invaluable 

 labours are referred to, it would have been very difficult 

 to have marked each reference ; it has, therefore, been 

 thought preferable to give two lists of the references to 

 the places where the several subjects are treated of in 

 the original works of these authors. 



It is presumed, that the phenomena noticed in this 

 work may lead to highly useful discoveries, and to the 

 establishment of important truths. Already the mine- 

 ralized remains of numerous unknown plants and animals 

 have added facts, supplementary, as it were, but of a 

 highly interesting nature, to the sciences of Botany and 



