2 Berry — Present Tendencies in Paleontology. 



were essentially nationalistic, although such generaliza- 

 tions inevitably do great injustice to individual genius in 

 all countries, and like all generalizations are only enter- 

 taining half-truths. 



Paleontologic work in France, particularly in the verte- 

 brate and plant fields, was characterized by breadth of 

 view and philosophy of interpretation such as it has 

 always exhibited and men like Douville and Kilian in the 

 invertebrate field were fully sustaining the national tradi- 

 tion. Perhaps nowhere have the problems of faunal 

 facies and their lateral variations been as conclusively 

 solved as in that country. German paleontology ran true 

 to the racial temperament. The quantity of detailed 

 descriptive work was probably greater than in any other 

 country, the quality was not especially high and there was 

 no correlation between facts and fancies. The scramble 

 for self-advertisement and professorial advancement 

 may be illustrated by Steinmann's wild book on evolu- 

 tions, or JaekePs speculations on the classification of 

 trilobites, or Arldt's book on paleogeography, or to go 

 back to an earlier day by the factory for the manufacture 

 of subjective phytogenies which Haeckel operated at 

 Jena for so many years. Crossing the channel you will, 

 I think, agree that British paleontology had the solid 

 qualities characteristic of things British. Oftener than 

 not the work was absolutely solid. The point of view 

 was still that of the founders. Whatever had been good 

 enough for Sedgwick or Murchison should be conserved 

 to the bitter end. The younger generation was busily 

 engaged in trying to make over and patch the outworn 

 garments of paleontology, not daring to suppose that 

 what had been insoluble to the grand old men of British 

 geology was capable of solution. (I quote substantially 

 from a letter from an English friend.) 



One cannot probably get into a sufficiently detached 

 frame of mind to visualize correctly the true position of 

 the United States in the present status of paleontology. 

 I think we undoubtedly exhibit a provincialism and radi- 

 calism that goes with young nations as with young indi- 

 viduals. Of one thing I feel reasonably sure, namely 

 that the future belongs to us if we keep our ideals high 

 enough. Our scientific, like our economic, opportunities, 

 are very great. 



A French paleontologist borrowing the metaphor from 



