P. N. Bose—History of the Extinct Carnivora. 203 
relationship with the Placental Carnivora, and placed it provisionally 
amongst the Urside, by the side of Amphicyon and Arctocyon. 
M. Paul Gervais united De Blainville’s Taxotherium with Hyenodon, 
but maintained the generic distinctness of Pterodon.' Later discoveries 
have proved the soundness of Gervais’ opinion; and these two 
genera have ever since remained distinct. Gervais threw the 
weight of his authority on the side of De Blainville as to their 
zoological position; but placed them amongst the Felide in the 
second edition of his ‘ Zoologie et Palxonotologie Francaise.” 
Lately, MM. G. Vasseur? and H. Filhol* have adduced very strong 
evidence in favour of retaining Myenodon in the company of the 
Placental Carnivora. Later still, however, Prof. Gaudry*‘ has carried 
it back to the place originally assigned it by Laizer and Parieu. So 
that ever since Hyenodon was unearthed, it has had to lead a most 
restless existence. We hope to be able to assign it and its companion, 
Pierodon, a place where they would be allowed to rest unmolested. 
If Hyenodon and Pterodon deserve credit for having given rise to 
such a long controversy, and caused such a division amongst the 
able palzeontologists mentioned above, Arctocyon enjoys the unique 
reputation of being the most primitive mammal known to us since 
the conclusion of the Mesozoic epoch. Its remains have been found 
in deposits of the same age as the ‘‘ Thanet Sands” of this country. 
De Blainville, who first introduced it to the paleontological world, 
found it a place amongst the “ Petits Ours.”*® Laurillard, however, 
transferred it to the group of the Didelphide.6 Prof. Gervais seems 
rather to have inclined to the same view. But, by way of compromise, 
he more lately proposed to establish a separate family under the title 
of the Arctocyonide for its reception.’ Quite recently, however, M. 
Albert Gaudry has decided to class it with the Marsupials.® 
Paleonictis, too, based by De Blainville on a lower jaw from beds 
of the same age as the Woolwich and Reading of this country, and 
associated with the Civettes by him, has shared the fate of Arctocyon 
at the hands of the learned Professor of Paleontology at the Natural 
History Museum of Paris.’ The genera Cynodon and Elocyon were 
established by Aymard on certain remains from deposits of the 
Inferior Miocene Age, in 1849." The same paleontologist based a 
genus called Cyotherium on the Viverra Parisiensis of Cuvier,” and 
the Canis viverroides’* of De Blainville, both from the Gypseous 
series of Paris. A year afterwards Bravard and Pomel described 
certain remains from deposits of the same age under the name of 
1 “Zool. et Pal.” 2° edit. p. 236. 
2 “Compt. Rend.” t. Ixxvii. p. 1446. 
3 « Rech. sur les Phosph. du Quercy,” Paris, 1877. 
4 «Les Enchainements du Monde Animal,” Paris, 1878. 
5 « Osteographie,’ gen. Subursus, p. 73, pl. xiii. 
6 “ Dict. d’ Hist. Nat.” t. ix. p. 400. 
7 “Noy. Archives du Mus. d’ Hist. Nat. de Paris,” t. vi. 1870, p. 147. 
8 op. cit. p. 23. 9 op. ett. p. 19. 
10 « Ann. de la Soc. d’Agr. du Puy,” t. xiv. May, 1849. 
n « Rech. sur les Ossem. foss.’’ 4¢ edit. t. vy. p. 496. 
12 op. cit. “ Chiens,”’ p. 109. 
