I!HV1K\VS. 
457 
ilic extensive plains of tlie Lofliiaiis, begirt by tlic Pen! lands and Lannncr- 
umirs, tlic Bass and Lk-rwick-Jjaw lo the south ;" the prospect IVoni eitiicr sum- 
niii may vie with any in the kiun;(lom, presenting at once to the eye whatever 
is necessary in water, forest, and mountain to form the l)eaiitil'ul, the pic- 
turesque, or the grand." The palace of Falkhind lies at the base of the lliast 
Lomond, and iu the midst of the deep blue waters of Loch-lcven stand tJic 
ruins of the keep in whlc'li the luifortunatc Mary Stuart was imprisoned by her 
subjects. Towards the soutiiern boundary of this county, near a tributary of 
the' river Eden, between the ■well-known towns of C\ipar and St. Andrews, is 
Dura Den, famous in geological circles for its "yellow sandstone," the beautiful 
fossil lish entond)ed in which have given celebrity to this locality iu every quar- 
ter of the world. Most of the sjiecics ])eculiar to this "yellow sandstone" are 
figured in Agassiz' grand work tiu; " Poissons Eossiles," and iu that author's 
separate memoir on the fish(!s of t he Old lied Sandstone (MoHographie des Foisso/is 
fossiks (lit Fie/t.v Girs Roiirje). The present monograph iu a scientific point of 
view derives one of its cliief values from the descriptions of the new piscine 
fonns Fhaneroplcuron Aiidersotd,^ and Gli/ptolcemus Kimairdi, by Professor 
Huxley. 
Of Dr. Anderson's own labours we may say that he has usefidly compiled 
the observations of other geologists on the zoological and physical cluiracter of 
the Old Red sandstone, and that he has done full justice to the opinions of 
^lurchisou, Austen, and Page on the origin of that formation, bringing promi- 
nently forward Mr. Austen's ingenious speculations on its possible lacustrine 
origin. The inference of its mari}ie character derives its strongest support 
from the enormous thickness of the conglomerates iu Scotland and Hereford, 
for tlic fishes may well be freshwater, and their admixture or concurrence with 
marine forms iu the Russian equivalent of this deposit may be due to a possible 
habit of their visituig the sea, like the sturgeon, at certain periods, or to their 
having lived so near the sea as to be swept down by floods. 
But while wishing to favour and encourage this, as we always desire to do 
every monograpliie work, we can not help regretting that many errors of state- 
ment, as well as typal incorrectnesses, have been allowed to pass forth to the 
world. 
Nothing is more essential to scientific books than absolute correctness, and 
in such a monagraph as this of Dura Den, we ought not to find Ptery^otus spelt 
with an improper o (p. 23) for the proper y, Encrinites spoken of and described 
(p. 93) as corals (!). Nor should, an inverted illustration as that of the 
characteristic heteroeercal tail (p. 39), be allowed to escape notice. Truths are 
easily distinguished by the learned from casual errors, but it is diiferent 
with the not skilfully versed : to detect one error is suggestive to them of ano- 
ther, and they naturally argue if an author blunders in small things, lie is not 
reliable for the more important ; thus many a valuable treatise has been cast 
aside, and evei-y author who does not heed such miaor matters will ever be 
subject to the like neglect. 
Associated as Dr. Anderson's name is with the early history, and the compli- 
mentary nomenclatui'e of the fossd fish of Dura Den, to no one coiJd we have 
looked more appropriately for an account of that higldy interesting and beautifiJ 
locality ; and appearing as this work did at the period of a great gathering of 
learned gentlemen (the British Association Meeting), patronized by applaud- 
ing royalty, it must have proved a tempting bijou for the many visitors that 
the Den, from its proximity to the scene of scientific action, woiJd have had on 
the late occasion, and whom we are sm-e received a thorough Scottish welcome 
* The temi Gli/pHcus was applied by Agassiz to some fragments of this fish : that author 
concurs in Professor Huxley's more descriptive generic name. 
