Reviews—D Archiac’s Paléontologie. 79 
‘Handbooks’ have not been wanting, without ever having been so 
abundant as similar aids to the study of pure Geology, yet a good 
exposition of the Principles of Paleontology—illustrating the fauna of 
each bygone age by means of that of the present day—has not yet 
been published, unless an exception be made in favour of the second 
part of the volume we are now about to notice. That this is the réle 
assigned to it by the author is apparent from the following sentence, 
extracted from the advertisement to this portion of the work :—‘ The 
first part has been devoted to a Précis de Histoire de la Paléontologie 
stratigraphique ; the second will embrace, under the title of Connais- 
sances générales qut doivent précéder Pétude de la Paléontologie et 
phénomenes organiques de Pépogue actuelle qui sy rattachent, some 
very diverse subjects, all of which, however, assist in elucidating, 
completing, and explaining the past by the knowledge of the pre- 
sent ; and to this second part we shall confine our attention, merely 
mentioning that the first consists of a useful résumé of the progress of 
paleontology in different countries, being a kind of précis of the 
paleontological portion of the author’s ‘ Histoire des Progrés de la 
Géologie,’ arranged geographically. 
The author’s subject is one which offers many opportunities for 
a display of original ideas, both on the subject-matter itself, and 
more usefully, perhaps, in the mode of treating it; but although his 
arrangement is excellent, we cannot always admire the spirit of his 
criticisms: the plan is sufficiently philosophical; but the execution is 
not always so. We have looked for original inferences in vain, but 
though naturally disappointed, we remember that the first volume 
only is before us, and thus we may still hope that they wili be 
found in some future portion of the work. Still it must be acknow- 
ledged that the author does not seem sufficiently alive to the im- 
portance of comparing the operation of the laws which regulate the 
distribution of existing animals with their presumed operation in 
geological periods, for which this volume seems to offer an oppor- 
tunity ; still, however, it is possible that he reserves all such con- 
siderations until after he has discussed each ancient fauna in the same 
manner as he now reviews that of the present epoch. 
The chapter on the Distribution of Plants consists chiefly of 
excerpts from M. de Candolle’s ‘ Essai sur la géographie des plantes;’ 
but the remarks on the Distribution of Animals are culled from — 
several sources—the Mollusca entirely from Woodward’s Manual ; 
and are interspersed with a few original observations, especially in 
the form of criticisms, of which Dr. Wallich comes in for a large 
share. In the chapter on the Distribution of Aquatic Animals, we 
find more references to organic laws than anywhere else in the book; 
but the principles enunciated, and the laws included in them, are 
familiar to us as having been put forward by the late Edward 
Forbes, and in reading these few pages we feel that he is the 
presiding genius, and that he, not M. d’Archiac, invests these 
scientific realities with a charm which makes us almost dream 
that we are in the regions of romance. 
M. d’Archiac appears too unimaginative to treat of laws; he 
