“The remarkable development of these vegetables (equisetums) during the first (or coal measure) period of vegetation, and their size in the second (or oolitic) period, _smaller_ than before, but still far greater than our existing equisetums, accord with many other facts, furnished by fossil vegetables of many other families, to lead us to regard the _climate of the earth, at these remote epochs, to have been hotter than the hottest of modern climates_.” _Ibid_, p. 443. “There is no doubt, however, that _palms with fan-shaped leaves covered Europe with their lofty vegetation at this remote period, in regions where no species of these plants could_ NOW _grow_!” _Ibid_, p. 452. The palm is well known to be a _tropical_ plant, and cannot thrive, except in a warm climate. The climate of Europe, when it grew in the north, must have been tropical. Indeed, in all parts of northern Europe _tropical flowers_, _leaves_, and _fruits_ are found in such a state of preservation as to convince the most incredulous, _that they must have grown on the spot_; which would be to convince him of the high temperature, anciently, of those regions. “Professor Kounizin describes in the Isis for 1821, immense beds of fossil wood in several localities of the governments of Novogorod and Twer in the _north_ of Russia, _where no such trees are now found to grow_. “Near Constand on the river Necker, M. Autenrieth found an entire forest of the trunks of _palm trees_, buried along with the remains of elephants.” _Ure, Ibid_, p. 455. “The fossil shells found in the strata of England, and France, and the contiguous countries, having for the most part, no _antitypes alive except in equatorial regions_, harmonize with the preceding details.” _Ibid_, p. 456. To the above testimony might be added the _caves_ in Germany, England, and France, in which great quantities of bones are found in such a state of preservation, and under such circumstances as to show that the animals whose bones are found were in the habit of frequenting these caves, and perished in them suddenly, as their remains are found mixed with sand and gravel, _but not water-worn_. Of these bones, the great majority are those of the hyæna; hence these dens, specially in England, are called _hyæna dens_. In them are also found the bones of other animals _gnawed_ by the hyænas. From these facts there can be no doubt but the hyæna inhabited England, France, and Germany, and dwelt in these caves, and here perished when the sudden catastrophe of the flood overtook him. This argues beyond doubt that these countries were once _warm_, _when these tropical animals lived in them_.