Jacob Green

“ We have not unfrequently noticed, both in the writings and conversation of some geologists, a disposition to sneer at the subsidiary branches of natural history. Mineralogy and conchology, are light and mean in their estimation, when compared with the study of extensive strata and ponderous boulders. Like Irving's testy governor of Manahatta, who settled the accounts of his clients by placing their books in the opposite scales of a balance, they decide on the value of a science, by the absolute weight of the objects embraced by it. ”

“ The abdomen is composed of three joints; the first passes from the side lobes completely over the body, and on its upper surface, near the middle of the back, there is often a minute elevated pimple. The other two, pass obliquely from the lateral lobes, and are interrupted in their course over the body. The tail, or posterior portion, is expanded, something like that of the Isotelus or Dipleura, and has a deep puncture on each side, about half the distance between its terminal border and the last articulation of the abdomen. The lateral lobes are unlike those of any other genus. ”

“ Another curious geological fact appears to be established more especially by fossil trilobites; it is that precisely the same species of animal relic, is the most generally diffused over the globe, in proportion to the antiquity of the rock which contains it. Thus the transition limestone of England, France, Germany and Sweden, contains the species called the Calymene of Blumenbach, in common with the same formation which extends over so large a portion of the United States. ”

“ The name of this genus is derived from the circumstance, that the abdomen has but three articulations; an organization which is very peculiar. These curious fossil animals are very abundant in the rocks in which they are found; but though I have examined a multitude of specimens from different localities, no vestige of the head or buckler could, on the most minute examination, be discovered. Whether these animals, during their petrifaction, were so contorted or rolled up, as to bring the extremities of the body together, in such a manner as to present the posterior folded part only to the view ”

“ The last joint of the tail is longer than in any other of our species. The ribs of the abdomen are rather broad, and have a deep furrow scooped out along their upper surface; their extremities, where they can be discovered, are detached from each other, and terminate in reflected points, like those of the A. Limulurus. The costal arches of the tail are delicately grooved, and terminate in the membrane. The membranaceous expansion round the edge of the tail is very narrow, and appears to form no projection beyond its central part. The whole epidermis is finely marked with granulations. ”

“ Some geologists imagine that the order of creation is registered in the rocks which compose the external crust of the earth, and that they can there clearly read a progressive development of organic life; in other words, that a succession of more perfect animals may be traced in ascending from the lower strata to the upper or more recent formations; that there is a gradual approach to the present system of things, and a succession of destructions and creations; worlds of living beings alternating with worlds of desolation and death, antecedent to the existence of man. ”

“ Every author who attempts a Monograph of any of the departments of Natural History, must necessarily depend, in a greater or less degree, upon the kindness and liberality of others. Rare and unique specimens, particularly of fossil species, are often scattered through different cabinets, and his work would be rendered very imperfect, if they were not intrusted to his care. ”

“ The geographical distribution of organic remains, is an exceedingly curious inquiry. If accurately pursued, without reference to any preconceived theory, it will no doubt furnish much information as to the comparative ages of the different strata which compose the external crust of our planet—for that these strata were deposited or formed at periods of time more or less remote from each other, every one knows, to be a generally admitted geological fact. ”

“ The cheeks form spherical triangles. The oculiferous prominences are close to the second large tubercle on the front. The cheeks are, however, quite imperfect. The articulations of the back cannot be distinguished from those of the tail. In our specimen they are all beautifully distinct, and are twenty-two in number. The posterior raised rim of the buckler seems to form an articulation; its extremities on each side are a good deal thickened and expanded. The costal arches suddenly curve downwards and backwards, near their middle, so as to divide the abdomen and tail into five unequal sections. ”

“ Every one knows that the sceptical naturalist has drawn from these vestiges of organic life, an argument contradictory to the Mosaic account of the history of the world, and though every cavil of the least importance, urged against the truth of the sacred historian, has been triumphantly confuted, still, the geological sciolist boldly impugns his veracity, whenever any new facts in his science can be distorted to - 23 - his purpose. ”

“ There are, however, many striking differences, which will be obvious to those who compare our cast with the figures of Brongniart. The shape of the ribs, and the tubercles upon them; the form of the middle lobe and of the interstices between the articulations, are all peculiar to - 54 - each. The elongation of the tail in our species is alone sufficient to distinguish it. We have always been doubtful whether the minute granulations on our species were not produced by the sandstone in which it is petrified. ”

“ The incorrectness of the inference that all the genera and species of fossil animals found in the transition rocks must be now extinct, will appear from the following extract from Bakewell's Geology:—"The Madrepora stylina, so common in transition lime-stone rock, is entirely wanting in the secondary and tertiary strata, but a living animal of this species has been recently discovered in the South Seas. ”

“ The fossil remains of the trilobite family, are supposed by most naturalists to belong to a race of beings now extinct; but from the strong analogy which exists between them and certain species of crustaceous animals now living, it is highly probable that they will yet be found alive. ”

“ The kindness which a traveller receives when in a distant land, must ever be among his most pleasing recollections your attentions therefore to me, during any short residence in London a few years since, cannot easily be forgotten. ”

“ The middle lobe of the abdomen, is rarely more than one-fifth the width of the body. As the abdomen and tail of the Asaph are the only portions of the animal commonly found entire, the distinctive characters of the genus above given, may generally be ascertained. ”

“ Fossils are undoubtedly historic medallions of remote periods in the natural history of our earth, and our design is, merely to illustrate with them a neglected department of ancient zoology, by describing a few which have recently fallen under our own observation. ”

“ Body much depressed—elongated into an ellipse, terminated in points—nearly equal at its extremities, and not capable of contracting itself into a spherical form. The buckler is bordered by a slight longitudinal furrow, rising from its anterior extremity, and its posterior angles terminating in elongated points. The abdomen has eight articulations, and its longitudinal lobes are not very prominent. The eyes are neither prominent nor reticulated and there are no other protuberances on the buckler. ”

“ Abdomen, with fourteen articulations, not lobate, the ribs double.
Tail, suborbicular, not so large as the buckler, covered with an epidermis.
This genus derives its name from two Greek words, which signify double ribs; many of the trilobites are thus characterized; but in no species, is this organization so remarkable as in those which belong to the Genus Dipleura. The expansion of the tail resembles, in some degree, that of the Isotelus, but other obvious characters sufficiently distinguish it from that interesting genus. ”

“ First, those who imagine that the six periods of creation, mentioned in the beginning of the pentateuch, mean literally days of 24 hours each, believe that, as only a small part of the earth was at first required for the abode of man and the higher animals, the present continents might have remained as long beneath the waters, and have undergone every change necessary to solve this geological puzzle. ”

“ The genus, however, we think may be readily identified, after becoming familiar with one well characterized species. The general aspect of the buckler is peculiar—the body is not so depressed as in most other genera, and the lateral lobes are destitute of all membranaceous expansion.
To the genus Calymene, belongs the celebrated Dudley fossil, called Entomolithus paradoxus by Blumenbach, but which is not the same organic relic, to which Linné applied that name. ”

“ Notwithstanding the high antiquity of the family of the Trilobites, and the remarkable characters the different individuals which compose it, sustain in the animal kingdom; till within a very few years, the whole race has been almost entirely neglected by naturalists. The first attempt at any systematic arrangement of the genera and species, was made in 1815, by Alexander Brongniart, Professor of Mineralogy, &c. ”

“ Its reticulated structure is in many instances so analogous to that of the eyes of some crustaceous animals, and also of some species of insects, that there can be but little doubt that these tubercular projections, were true organs of vision.
Some of the genera which belong to this remarkable race of fossil animals, possessed the power of rolling or coiling themselves up into a kind of ball, like certain species of insects, or like the armadillo; and they are always found embedded in the rocks in this attitude. ”

“ Others, again, contend that there is often a wide and palpable discrepancy between the nature of the rock, and the fossils which it contains, and, therefore, that such inquiries afford no clue, whatever, to the order of creation. ”

“ This opinion will not be regarded as visionary, when it is recollected how large a portion of the surface of the earth is still unexplored by its enlightened and civilized inhabitants—how small the number of animated beings are yet known to the scientific world—and above all the fact, that many animals as confidently declared to be peculiar to a former world, are now found to be among the creatures at present in existence. ”

“ It is obvious, that if most of the gelatinous animals which now inhabit our seas, were to become extinct, few or no traces of them could be found in any succeeding depositions of earthy matter. Whatever kind of animal life, therefore, may have been the first which appeared in our planet, must be entirely hypothetical. ”

“ The whole upper edge of the buckler is always surrounded by a very ornamental semicircular border, sometimes semi-elliptical, of punctures placed in the meshes of a net-work in high relief and arranged close together, in rays, passing perpendicularly from the buckler and forming at the same time when observed transversely, curved lines parallel to its upper rim or edge, excepting at the sides, where they diverge, leaving a space occupied by other lines of dottings, parallel to the former, but speedily terminating on the cheeks of the buckler. ”

“ The middle lobe is separated from the lateral by a shallow, rude sulcus, which however, does not always - 62 - destroy the continuity of the costæ, as they cross it; this lobe is slightly convex, one inch and a half broad at the top, and so continues to the sixth costa, after which it gradually contracts, until at the bottom it is one-fifth of an inch broad, subsiding insensibly into a flat membrane-like surface; its longitudinal sulci pass one inch farther downwards, and expanding a little, unite with the costæ on each side the posterior edge of the space included by them, being dentated. ”

“ The breadth of the buckler nearly two inches.
This fine large Calymene was accidentally discovered on the Helderberg mountain, by my friend, Professor T. R. Beck. One of the loose pieces of sandstone rolling over, near his feet, presented him the fine natural mould, from which he has kindly permitted our cast to be taken. The animal relic once enclosed in this matrix, must still be near that locality, and yet remains undiscovered, to reward the enterprise of some more fortunate naturalist. ”

“ Animal remains are contained in every part of the rock; besides several genera of trilobites, we have several species of orthocera. Encrinites and Fungites—Nautili—Terebratulæ and Producti, are quite common. ”

“ J. Bigsby, in his Sketch of the Geology of the Island of Montreal, has figured and described a fossil which occurs at that place, which approaches in its specific characters to the fragments found at Trenton—but he does not suggest for his relic any name. ”

“ The accordance between the order in which, according to - 24 - the account of Moses, the work of creation was accomplished, and the order in which the fossil remains of plants and animals are deposited in the earth, has surprised, and has been acknowledged by learned sceptics themselves. ”

“ I know, he observes, only the tail of this Asaph, but it is so different from that of other trilobites, that I do not hesitate to establish a particular species, upon the consideration of this part alone. Its general form is that of a semi-ellipsis; the middle lobe represents a very slender cone. The arched ribs of the lateral lobes are perfectly distinct and simple. ”