times we are told that teeth of the elephant were found in the
Zahnloch, and a vertebra, supposed, of a rhinoceros, in the
Schneiderloch. The bones of domestic animals, such as deer, roes,
foxes, and badgers, frequently found in the caves, shew, at a glance,
that they have come into their present situation accidentally, at a
modern period.
The cave at _Mockas_ formerly contained in its deepest fissures,
teeth and fragments of bones of bears, associated with rolled stones,
and enveloped in earthy marl. The entrance to this cave is situated
on the acclivity of a hill. Goldfuss ascended to the entrance of
it by means of a rope, and found in its interior many narrow, wide
extended hollows, which are generally so confined that we can only
visit them by creeping. Here and there there are small widenings, and
frequently narrow outlets occur in the roof.
The _Zahnloch_ and the _Schneiderloch_, which also contain single
bones of bears, are small vaults, with wide openings, into which we
can penetrate without difficulty.
[437] The fact mentioned in the text brings to our recollection an
interesting Memoir of Professor Walther, entitled, “On the Antiquity
of diseases in Bones,” printed in Grasse and Walther’s Journal der
Chirurgie und Augenheil Kunde, viii. From eleven specimens of bones
of cave-bears found in the Caves of Sundwich, described by Walther,
a proof is obtained, that the common forms of osseous diseases occur
in them, just as they are observed at present in the human species,
viz. necrosis, anchylosis, caries, exostosis, formation of new bony
matter, thickening, thinning, and arthritic properties of diseased
bones. Most of those diseases are such as would result from violent
injuries, and the consequent very tedious organo-vital reaction. Such
mechanical injuries would give rise to necrosis, caries, exostosis,
&c. We can easily conceive, says Walther, how that the rapacious
animals of a former world may have been exposed to violent mechanical
injuries of their bodies, and of single parts of them. It is worthy
of remark, that most of the diseased bones are of the lower jaw, the
alveolar processes of it and the walls of single alveolæ. During the
combats of the cave bears for their prey amongst themselves, or with
other gigantic animals, the jaws and teeth must have experienced the
greatest mechanical injuries. The necroses of the humeral bones are
such as might result from a bruising of the bones, and the caries of
the upper surface of the bodies of the lumbar vertebræ, may have been
occasioned by external violence. Walther is also of opinion, that
the cave-bears suffered from diseases of the bones not referrible
to mechanical injuries. He remarks of a radius and a vertebra,
whose arthritic condition he carefully describes, “These bones have
experienced pathological changes, which could only arise from a long
continued diseased condition of the nutritive process. They are very
light, have an extremely thin crust, the greater part of their mass
is of a spongy, very porous substance, and are uncommonly fragile.
Such a change could not be produced by any external mechanical
injury, nor by any slight action of the weather; but must proceed
from a tedious constitutional disease, connected with a total
change of the organo-forming plastic activity, and proceeding from
a peculiar dyscrasia.” Hence it is probable, these cave-bears even
suffered from gout, scrophula, and other similar diseases.
[438] According to Laugier, in 100 parts of the earth in which
the bones in the caves of Gaylenreuth are imbedded, he found the
following proportional quantity of constituent parts:
1. Lime, with a little magnesia, in the state of carbonate, 32.0
2. Carbonic acid and moisture, 24.0
3. Phosphate of lime, 21.5
4. Animal matter and water, 10.0
5. Alumina slightly coloured with manganese, 4.0
6. Silica coloured with iron, 4.0
7. Oxide of iron, probably combined with phosphoric acid, 3.5
8. Loss, 1.0
-----
100.0
* * * * *
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TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE
Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been
corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within
the text and consultation of external sources.
There are several references to both ‘De Luc’ and ‘Deluc’; these
refer to the same person, and have not been changed.
Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text,
and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained.
Pg vi: ‘gradual developement’ replaced by ‘gradual development’.
Pg xxi: ‘Zodaical’ replaced by ‘Zodiacal’.
Pg xxii: ‘Horse, 288’ replaced by ‘Horse, 285’.
Pg 3: ‘of the Peleponnesus’ replaced by ‘of the Peloponnesus’.
Pg 21: ‘formations, aud’ replaced by ‘formations, and’.
Pg 58: ‘lama, the vicuna’ replaced by ‘llama, the vicuna’.
Pg 68: ‘large qradupeds’ replaced by ‘large quadrupeds’.
Pg 74: ‘Three several’ replaced by ‘Three separate’.
Pg 78: was incorrectly labelled as ‘87’ in the original book.
Pg 80: ‘lama, the vicunna’ replaced by ‘llama, the vicuna’.
Pg 84: ‘corrrespond, and’ replaced by ‘correspond, and’.
Pg 112: ‘that the fosil’ replaced by ‘that the fossil’.
Pg 138: ‘by the Phenicians’ replaced by ‘by the Phœnicians’.
Pg 149: ‘a very reremote’ replaced by ‘a very remote’.
Pg 155: ‘the Bramins, and’ replaced by ‘the Brahmins, and’.
Pg 172: was incorrectly labelled as ‘146’ in the original book.
Pg 211: ‘even admiting’ replaced by ‘even admitting’.
Pg 212: ‘Zodaical’ replaced by ‘Zodiacal’.
Pg 212: ‘1_{s}’ (subscript s) replaced by ‘1^s’ (superscript s).
Pg 222: ‘double suppositon’ replaced by ‘double supposition’.
Pg 225: ‘found bebetween’ replaced by ‘found between’.
Pg 227: missing anchor for Footnote [226] inserted after
‘at that period’.
Pg 249 Table: the duplicate headings ‘Transition Formations’ and
‘Primitive Formations’ have been removed from the last two
blocks of the table.
Pg 263: ‘named it _Iquanodon_’ replaced by ‘named it _Iguanodon_‘.
Pg 263: missing anchor for Footnote [261] inserted after
‘_Iguanodon_‘.
Pg 279: ‘whereever our ancient’ replaced by ‘wherever our ancient’.
Pg 280: ‘or anaplothæria,’ replaced by ‘or anaplotheria,’.
Pg 302: ‘of Bufffon’ replaced by ‘of Buffon’.
Pg 360: ‘is very obsure’ replaced by ‘is very obscure’.
Pg 361: ‘Letters sur l’Histoire’ replaced by ‘Lettres sur l’Histoire’.
Pg 367: ‘islands of Pelworm’ replaced by ‘islands of Pellworm’.
Pg 374: ‘of Maviston’ replaced by ‘of Mavieston’.
Pg 378: ‘Great Britian’ replaced by ‘Great Britain’.
Pg 379: ‘sands of Barrey’ replaced by ‘sands of Barray’.
Pg 385: ‘breaks of in’ replaced by ‘breaks off in’.
Pg 401: ‘1770’ replaced by ‘1700’.
Pg 461: ‘a slop of even’ replaced by ‘a slope of even’.
Pg 475: ‘sol d crust’ replaced by ‘solid crust’.
Pg 476: ‘it of contributiug’ replaced by ‘it of contributing’.
Pg 493: ‘with the\nPalm,’ replaced by ‘with the Palm’.
Pg 506 Table: the heading ‘HEAD.’ has been inserted at the top of
column 1.
Pg 522: ‘various corridores’ replaced by ‘various corridors’.
Pg 541: ‘crosses the torent’ replaced by ‘crosses the torrent’.
Pg 547 Table: this multipage Table has been split into three parts.
The right-hand column ‘OBSERVATIONS’ with four entries has
been replaced by four Notes (a) to (d) below the Table.
Pg 549: Note (d); ‘the fissil rocks’ replaced by ‘the fossil rocks’.
Pg 550 Table: this wide Table has been split into two parts.
The right-hand column ‘OBSERVATIONS’ with a single entry has
been replaced by a Note (a) below the Table.
Pg 24 Footnote [7]: ‘Geschechte der Natürliche’ replaced by
‘Geschichte der Natürlichen’.
Pg 62 Footnote [34]: ‘on the Hippopatamus’ replaced by
‘on the Hippopotamus’.
Pg 65 Footnote [56]: ‘describes the chace’ replaced by
‘describes the chase’.
Pg 136 Footnote [110]: ‘the peat-moses of’ replaced by
‘the peat-mosses of’.
Pg 144 Footnote [119]: ‘principal Phenician’ replaced by
‘principal Phœnician’.
Pg 291 Footnote [334]: ‘458’ replaced by ‘p. 458’.
Pg 351 Footnote [355]: Some adjustments have been made to the
Greek quotation, after checking with external sources.
Pg 510 Footnote [431]: ‘been found some’ replaced by
‘been found in some’.
There is a reference to ‘Note K’ and ‘Note N’ and ‘Note O’, but they
do not exist. ‘Note J’ does not exist and has no reference to it.
End of Project Gutenberg's Essay on the Theory of the Earth, by Georges Cuvier