THE GEOLOGIST. 



39 



that these most useful plants, amongst which we find the apple, 

 the pear, the medlar, the strawberry, the peach, the apricot, the 

 almond, the plum, &c., &c., only made their appearance on the 

 globe with the advent of man. We see, however, by the above, 

 that four species of the Bosacece family have been detected in the 

 Schlossnitz Tertiary by Professor Goeppert. 



For the materials upon which Professor Goeppert has worked to 

 form his tertiaiy flora of Java, he is indebted to M. Junghulm, the 

 ingenious naturalist to whom we owe a detailed description of the 

 geology of this interesting island, published in Dutch and German. 

 — The fossils of Java appear to belong to the Eocene period, i.e., 

 to the oldest Tertiary beds. A singular circumstance immediately 

 strikes us as we examine these fossils ; the petiified trunks of trees 

 that have been brought to light in the tertiary formations of Java 

 are, witho3it exception, Dicotjiedonous plants, whilst the forests 

 that flourish at the present time on the island are composed of 

 palms and arborescent ferns. However we must not attach too 

 great an importance to this fact, for, the other fossils, i.e., those 

 not petrified, found in these regions, seem to imply that it is merely 

 an accidental occun-ence. 



The number of species collected by M. Junghuhn amounts only to 

 thirt)^-nine, amongst which we find : six Palms, five Lauracea, five 

 Celastraeae, three Magnoliacese, three Corjiocese (all belonging to 

 the genus Quercus), three Pipracese, two plants of the genus Ficus, 

 two Apocynacese, two Rhamnacese ; of the Musacese, Malpighiaceae, 

 Zingiberacese, Comaceae, and Ebenacee, each one we have also a 

 species of Fungus, and three doubtful genera. 



This small collection however is sufficient to rivet our attention on 

 two striking facts : 1st. The plants of which it is composed are all 

 new ; 2nd. The families to which they belong still abound in Java. 

 The vegetative system of this island has therefore not changed 

 since the teiiiaiy periods — which is contrary to what we observe in 

 Europe — the whole of the species discovered as yet and a few 

 genera only, are alone found to be difierent. 



