152 ON THE METHOD OF ZADIG. 



be, nor Las any valid theory of their physiological import 

 yet been suggested. And if we have no knowledge of 

 the physiological importance of the bones themselves, it 

 is obviously absurd to pretend that we are able to give 

 physiological reasons why the presence of these bones is 

 associated with certain peculiarities of the teeth and of 

 the jaws. If any one knows why four molar teeth and 

 an inflected angle of the jaw are very generally found 

 along with marsupial bones, he has not yet communicated 

 that knowledge to the world. 



If, however, Zadig was right in concluding from the 

 likeness of the hoof -prints which he observed to a horse's 

 that the creature which made them had a tail like that of 

 a horse, Cuvier, seeing that the teeth and jaw of his fossil 

 were just like those of an opossum, had the same right to 

 conclude that the pelvis would also be like an opossum's ; 

 and so strong was his conviction that this retrospective 

 prophecy, about an animal which he had never seen 

 before, and which had been dead and buried for millions 

 of years, would be verified, that he went to work upon 

 the slab which contained the pelvis in confident expecta- 

 tion of finding and laying bare the " marsupial bones," 

 to the satisfaction of some persons whom he had invited 

 to witness their disinterment. As he says : " Cette ope- 

 ration se fit en presence de quelques personnes a qui j'en 

 avais annonce d'avance le re*sultat, dans 1'intention de leur 

 prouver par le fait la justice de nos theories zoologiques ; 

 puisque le vrai cachet d'une theorie est sans contredit la 

 aculte qu'elle donne de prcvoir les phenomenes." 



