REYIEWS. 
69 
compared with many of the ammonites, our naked cuttle-fishes are probably 
as bulky as those of any of the former geological formations. The living 
crustaceans and fishes are not inferior to their predecessors in size; and 
though the giant saurians of the past were much larger than our crocodiles, 
yet they do not completely dwarf them by comparison. The extinct Dinornis 
far surpassed the ostrich in size, but the mammoth and the mastodon find 
their equal in our elephant ; and though the sloths of the present day are 
mere pigmies when compared with the Megatherium , yet no extinct mammal 
attains the size of the Greenland whale.” 
This quotation is a sort of conclusion to the portion of the book 
devoted to the history of the fossil animals upon the globe. It is followed 
by a general account of the physical geography of the earth ; and herein is 
contained a long account of the various peculiarities of the globe, of the 
artificial wells, of earthquakes, volcanoes, and the several underground 
caverns which are to be found in different parts of the world. The chapter 
on earthquakes is about the most interesting, for it not only contains an 
account of the most remarkable of those dreadful commotions, but it gives 
the leading details of the more general disturbances which have taken place 
within the past couple of centuries. With regard to these, we may quote 
the author’s remarks on the subject of earthquake shocks. 
i: Earthquake shocks are either vertical or undulatory. A vertical shock, 
which is felt immediately above the seat or focus of the subterranean dis- 
turbance, causes a movement up and down. Like an exploding mine, it 
frequently jerks movable bodies high up into the air. Thus during the 
great earthquake of Riobamba, the bodies of many of the inhabitants were 
thrown upon the hill of La Culla, which rises to the height of several 
hundred feet at the other side of the Lican torrent ; and during the earth- 
quake of Chili, in 1837, a large mast planted thirty feet in the ground at 
Fort San Carlos, and propped with iron bars, was thrown upwards, so that 
a round hole remained behind.” 
Numerous other examples are given, and the author concludes, with Mr. 
Mallet, that the rotating hypothesis is not correct, but that earthquake 
movements are essentially backward and forward movements. We much 
regret that we have not space for further quotations from this interesting 
volume. We may, however, just mention that there are hundreds of places 
from which we could quote with interest, such as the chapters on subterra- 
nean water-courses, on cavern animals, on ice-caves, on subterranean cata- 
combs, on mines, and on the several minerals and precious stones. However, 
we must now conclude our notice, and offer our best thanks to Dr. Hartwig 
for the very capital treat his pages have afforded us. 
A TOPULAR HISTORY OF BRITISH INSECTS.* 
M R. J. G. WOOD has written us so many and good manuals on 
different branches of British and general zoology, that we had almost 
imagined he had come, so to speak, u to the end of his tether,” and that we 
* u Insects at Home ; being a Popular Account of British Insects, their 
Structure, Habits, and Transformations.” By the Rev. J. G. Wood, M.A., 
F.L.S. London : Longmans and Co., 1872. 
