90 Observations Concerning' Fossil Organic Remains. 



good fortune to find a piece of red sand stone, bearing on it. 

 the traces of an antediluvian tortoise's foot steps. The 

 whole geological world has been in raptures at this discove- 

 ry ; and in order to make sure of the fact, that the steps tra- 

 ced in the stone were the steps of a tortoise, a meeting of 

 the Society was held, and some soft chalk was prepared, on 

 which a modern tortoise might make his mark, and thus au- 

 thenticate as it were, the signature of his ancestor. Every 

 thing being ready for the demonstration, and the interest of 

 the scientific company wound up to the highest pitch, the 

 tortoise was placed on the chalk, and, first of all, he flatly 

 refused to stir a step. The members, upon this very prop- 

 erly waxed impatient, got in a rage, and began kicking and 

 banging him about, and maledicting him in an extremely 

 moving manner. They had much better, however, have re- 

 frained from these stimulants, for when the tortoise was at 

 last prevailed on to walk, he insisted on walking as straight 

 as an arrow ; whereas the antediluvian tortoise's march was 

 as crooked as a ram's horn. The Society were aghast at 

 the discrepancy. Various arguments however, were used to 

 console them. It was suggested, that the tortoise might 

 have forgotten the true manner of walking while confined 

 in the ark ; and that owing to this circumstance, the proper 

 step might have been lost by its descendants. Or it might 

 be, that chastened by the deluge, his slow race had returned 

 to the path of rectitude, which they had, in the universal 

 degeneracy, wilfully deserted for devious ways. Or, perhaps 

 they had one way of walking on red sand stone, and anoth- 

 er on soft chalk : one manner in private, and another before 

 scientific beholders.* 



Art. Xll. — Observations concerning Fossil Organic Re- 

 mains; by J. E. DooRNiK, M. D. &c. Communicated 

 for this Journal, by the author, in French MS. and trans- 

 lated by Charles U. Shepard. 



Remarks upon M. Cuvier^s method of explaining the im- 

 portance of organic remains in geology.] 



The study of fossil remains is, without doubt, one of the 



* The learned Society here alluded to, will we are persuaded excuse the 

 harmless raillery of our anonymoiis correspondent. Subjects that have form- 

 ed the pursuit of a Cuvier and a Buckl^nd, can never be of themselves ridic- 

 ulous, it is only when they fall into the hands of dilletanti philosophers, tKat 

 they can be stigmatized as puerile. 



t G. Cuvier, surlesossemensfossilesj&c. Paris, vpi, 3. edit. 1825. 1. vol, p. 29 



