288 JOSEPH PRESTWICHj P.E.S_, F.G.S., ON A POSSIBLE 



those animals in the night. It is always in the night that the 

 herbivoi'a are overtaken, for at night they rest on the ground 

 and sleep, and the floods catch them ; whereas the carnivora, being 

 astir at night, more often escajDe. So that when you find the 

 remains of animals intermixed, the carnivora with the herbivora, it 

 has doubtless been due to a very sudden local flood, as under such 

 circumstances they would not have had time to escape. Then, of 

 course, periods of drought drive animals long distances and cause 

 them to make stampedes when they rush to the water, and 

 thousands of them perish. So also in times of flood and prairie 

 fires. All these events are clearly marked on the American 

 Continent, as for instance at " Big-Bone-Lick," Kentucky, and 

 many other well known deposits. No doubt a large number of 

 animals went down to drink, or to lick the salt, and there perished. 

 I will not occupy your time any longer as there are many present 

 ^yho are much more able than myself to address you. I will only 

 beg leave to move that the best thanks of this Meeting be accorded 

 to Pi'ofessor Prestwich for his very valuable and interesting Paper 

 (applause). 



Sir Henry Howorth, K.C.I.E., M.P., F/R.S., &c.— I beg to 

 second the vote of thanks to Professor Prestwich, for this Paper. 

 I am quite sure with regard to that part of my duty, it is an 

 extremely light one. We should all have liked to have welcomed 

 here the Nestor of geology, and we know that he would have 

 much liked to have been present. To myself it is naturally a very 

 pleasant occasion indeed, because, heretic as I am, and having 

 written two or three rather large and heavy books on this subject, 

 I am pleased to find myself so much at one with my friend. In 

 other words, it is very gratifying to find a veteran geologist 

 coming so closely to the conclusions that I have put forward for 

 so many years. In fact, were it not for one postulate, which I 

 cannot quite accept, we should be very nearly in absolute agree- 

 ment. I do not quite accord with my friend that it is necessary 

 to postulate a great and lasting upheaval and a great submergence 

 of the land in order to produce the events he postulates himself. 

 If a local submergence of the land took place over a considei-able 

 area, that is quite sufiicient, according to the mathematical investi- 

 gations of several competent writers, to produce the motive force 

 to which some of us appeal. 



Now the whole subject is one of enormous intricacy and 



