Reviews—The Life and Works of Prof. Oswald Heer. 281 
Eocene floras when Heer wrote, and that the present abundant 
materials for comparison did not then exist. 
Want of space prevents our giving an exhaustive analysis of Dr. 
Schriter’s work. Besides a review of Heer’s “ Primaeval World of 
Switzerland,” so well known to the scientific world of England, and 
an exhaustive criticism of the ‘Flora fossilis arctica” (seven vols. 
4to. 398 plates, 1868-83), it treats of Heer’s contributions to several 
scientific problems. We may here call to mind that Heer was the 
first paleeobotanist who expressed the opinion that the polar regions 
had been the centre of distribution for a multitude of plants, 
especially since Cretaceous and Tertiary times, and this view was 
developed and defended in many of his works. It is therefore very 
annoying, Dr. Schréter says, to find a statement in ‘“ Nature,” ?* in 
which Heer is specifically excluded from the list of naturalists who 
are said to have rendered services to the theory of the migration of 
plants from the polar regions. 
Dr. Schréter gives, further, an exposition of Heer’s contributions 
to the Climatology of ancient epochs; of his phylogenetical studies 
of different genera and families, and of his position towards the 
theory of evolution. Heer has generally been regarded as an 
antagonist to this theory, but this is so far from correct, that he 
should rather be considered as one of the precursors of Darwin. 
Already, in 1855, Heer pronounced the opinion that species owed 
their origin to other species, and he may therefore be looked upon 
as an evolutionist (compare also Life of Lyell, part ii. p. 246), even 
though he did not believe in the gradual development of species, 
but considered that the transitional changes were sudden, and 
occurred during certain short periods. 
The great productivity of Heer as a scientific author, and the 
diversity of subjects he treated, make it very difficult to obtain a full 
comprehensive view of his scientific achievements. Next to con- 
sulting his original works, the present volume affords us the best 
idea of the entire life-work of the great paleeobotanist of Zurich. 
No doubt Dr. Schréter’s task has been a very difficult one, and there 
is therefore the more reason to congratulate him on having accom- 
plished it in such a successful manner. A. G. Natuorst. 
2. Oswatp Herr: BIBLiIoGRAPHIE ET TABLES ICONOGRAPHIQUES, 
PAR GoprEFRoY MatLnoizeEL; PRECEDE D'UNE NOTICE BIOGRA- 
PHIQUE PAR R. ZEILLER; AVEC UN PORTRAIT D’OswaLp HEER. 
Svo. pp 176.. (Stockholm, F. & G. Beijer, 1888.) 
HE volume now under consideration may be said to complete and 
supplement that by Dr. Schroiter, noticed above. Whilst this 
latter gives a sketch of Heer’s life, and a general analysis of his 
scientific works, the present volume is intended to facilitate references 
to the works themselves. The biographical sketch by M. Zeiller is 
limited to ten pages; the rest of the volume by M. Malloizel, Sub- 
Librarian of the Museum of Natural History, Paris, contains a com- 
1 May, 1879, p. 12. 
