Tlie First Jfen. 



205 



When we consider the archaic style of tlie narrative, therefore, and its 

 analogies, it seems clear that this indicates that man not only existed, 

 but had reached a stage of development at the close of the Pliocene 

 period, contemporaneously with the development of other herbivora. 



The work of the sixth day was thus completed. ^'And God saw 

 every thing that He had made, and behold it was very good. And the 

 evening and the morning were the sixth day/'' 



Le Coute, in his recent work on the Elements of Geology, while 

 admitting that man may be traced to the Pliocene or even to the Mio- 

 cene epoch, advances an argument against it which is worthy of con- 

 sideration : ^^not a single species of mammal now living/' he says, "is 

 found in the Tertiary. Shall man, the higliest of all, be the only 

 exception ? Man is one of the present mammalian fauna, and came 

 in with it. But, again, several distinct mammalian fauiioe have 

 appeared and disappeared since the beginning of the Miocene. The 

 Miocene mammalian fauna is totally different from the Eocene; the 

 Pliocene totally different from the Miocene ; the Quaternary from the 

 Pliocene, and the present from the Quaternary. It seems in the high- 

 est degree improbable that man, a mammal, should survive the appear- 

 ance and disappearance of several mammalian fauna?. If, therefore^ 

 man should ever be traced to the Miocene, it would probably be a 

 different species of man — the genus Homo, but not the species 

 Sapiens.'' 



This argument necessirates the consideration of an opposing one, 

 based upon acknowledged facts, which is similar in its ratiocination, 

 and yet the very antipodes in its result. The flora and fauna of 

 Australia resemble those of Eocene Europe, and in Australia there 

 exist' low forms of man which are held by some to be the oldest be- 

 cause the lowest. Did this man come in with the Eocene flora and 

 fauna, the same as modern man came in with modej-n flora and fauna? 

 Again, the Miocene flora of Europe resembles that of America not only at 

 present but in Eocene times. Did the most ancient man on this 

 continent, then, enter it with the Miocene vegetal and animal life 

 of which he apparently formed a part ? Further, the Pliocene flora 

 of Europe resembles that of Southern United States at present. Did 

 man, then, enter this continent, with this vegetation, before he entered 

 Europe ? These questions are pertinent, for the reason that wo have 

 undoubted traces of Quaternary man. Why not, then. Pliocene and 

 even of Miocene if not of Eocene? The answers to these questions 

 will be given as we proceed, indirectly if not directly. 



The comparisons wc have cited show that, at some common center, 

 there was a steady progress toward the Pliocene consummation, which 

 resulted in the colonizing of various subdivisions of the earth with 



