"
CHAPTER VI.
THE TESTIMONY OF THE FLORA AND FAUNA.
Proofs are abundant that there must have been at one time uninterrupted
land communication between Europe and America. In the words of a writer
upon this subject,
"When the animals and plants of the Old and New World are compared, one
cannot but be struck with their identity; all or nearly all belong to
the same genera, while many, even of the species, are common to both
continents. This is most important in its bearing on our theory, as
indicating that they radiated from a common centre after the Glacial
Period. . . . The hairy mammoth, woolly-haired rhinoceros, the Irish
elk, the musk-ox, the reindeer, the glutton, the lemming, etc., more or
less accompanied this flora, and their remains are always found in the
post-glacial deposits of Europe as low down as the South of France. In
the New World beds of the same age contain similar remains, indicating
that they came from a common centre, and were spread out over both
continents alike." (Westminster Review, January, 1872, p. 19.)
Recent discoveries in the fossil beds of the Bad Lands of Nebraska prove
that the horse originated in America.
Pages:
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97