Notices of Books . 
[April, 
256 
Central Germany, Baden, part of Eastern France, and Belgium. 
Central France, Holland, North Germany, the east of England, 
the middle of Switzerland, and the valley of the Danube and 
part of Northern Italy were the bed of a sea, whilst to the west 
a large island extended from Liverpool to the mouth of the 
Loire. After the Jurassic epoch, Prof. Heer is of opinion that 
a transformation of the whole of organic nature had taken place. 
In the cretaceous period the central European island was 
greatly enlarged, and connected with Western England and 
Southern France, though the places where London, Paris, 
Vienna, Berlin, and Amsterdam now stand were still under 
water. The Swiss cretaceous marine fauna has two-thirds of its 
species in common with the Southern French (Mediterranean) 
sea, and only one-third in common with the Franco-Britannic 
sea. No remains of the land flora of this period have been 
hitherto discovered in Switzerland. From fossils found in other 
parts of Europe it appears that true leafy trees, such as poplars, 
figs, laurels, and myrtles, had now made their appearance. 
In the Eocene period Europe must have possessed a nearly 
tropical climate and every condition favourable for the develop- 
ment of a rich fauna and flora. Evergreen forests of figs and 
Sapindacese, myrtles, and palms were inhabited by P alceotheria , 
musk deer and monkeys. Ferns have become scarcer than in 
the Cretaceous age, and Cycads have disappeared. The general 
character of the flora is Indo-Australian, though the peculiarly 
Australian types are less predominant. Mammalia are met with 
for the first time in Switzerland. There have been discovered 
24 species of Pachydermata, 12 Ruminants, 1 Rodent, 8 Carni- 
vora, and 1 Primate. All the species are distinCt from those 
now living, and of the 25 genera represented only 4 have been 
handed down to modern times. One of the serpents was a 
python similar to those in India, and about 10 feet in length. 
We arrive next at the Miocene epoch, and find the configura- 
tion of the European continent more nearly approaching its 
present state. Britain is united with France ; Holland, Belgium, 
and Westphalia are still covered by the North Sea. The Medi- 
terranean covers Egypt, spreads over Mesopotamia, and is pro- 
bably diredlly connected with the Caspian on the one hand, and 
with the Indian Ocean on the other. Several isthmuses con- 
nected the European and the African coasts, and thus the African 
elephant, the hippopotamus, and the spotted hyaena are found in 
Sicily. The British Islands formed part of a great continent 
stretching across the Atlantic, and probably united to America. 
We thus perceive that Prof. Heer does not admit that vast anti- 
quity of the existing oceans which many geologists and zoo- 
geographers uphold. 
As far as research has gone Switzerland “ takes the lead of 
all countries in its magnificent specimens of the Miocene flora, 
of which no fewer than 920 species have been collected within 
