ABSENCE OF DOMESTIC AKIMALS. 247 



certainly difficult to see why they should have brought a 

 fossil bone into their cave, more especially as the bones of 

 elephants, from the looseness of their texture, are not well 

 adapted for implements. Still MM. Christy and Lartet do 

 not commit themselves to any opinion, having, as they say, 

 laid down " une loi de ne proceder dans nos inductions que 

 par evidences incontestables." 



As regards the Felis spelcea, a metacarpal bone belonging 

 probably to this species, and bearing marks of knives, was 

 found in the cave of Les Eyzies. 



Still, so far as the positive zoological evidence is con- 

 cerned, the antiquity of the human remains found in these 

 grottoes rests mainly on the presence of the reindeer, as 

 regards which the evidence is conclusive. The bones of 

 this species are all broken open for the marrow; many of 

 them bear the marka of knives, and at Les Eyzies a ver- 

 tebra was found which had been pierced by a flint flake. 

 MM. Christy and Lartet are quite satisfied that this bone 

 must have been fresh when it was thus transfixed. More- 

 over, as we shall presently see, there is still more conclusive 

 evidence that man. and the reindeer were contemporaneous 

 in .this locality. 



But in its negative aspect the zoological evidence is also 

 very instructive. No remains have been found which, in the 

 opinion of MM. Christy and Lartet, can be referred to do- 

 mestic animals. It is true that bones of the ox and horse 

 occur, but there is no evidence that they belonged to domes- 

 ticated individuals. Remains of the boar are very rare, 

 and if these animals had been domesticated we might have 

 expected to find them in greater abundance. The sheep and 

 goat are entirely wanting, and what is still more remarkable, 

 even the dog appears to be absent. At the same time the 

 bones of the horse and reindeer, especially of the latter, are 

 very numerous, and I do not feel so satisfied as MM. Lartet 



