The Ancient Life History of the Earth

The Ancient Life History of the Earth, by Henry Alleyne Nicholson, is a comprehensive outline of the principles and leading facts of Palæontological science. The preface names Palæontology as the science concerned with the living beings which flourished upon the globe during past periods of its history, and says it may be pursued by two parallel but essentially distinct paths. The text says any doctrine of catastrophism carries the belief that the present order of things was brought about suddenly and irrespective of any pre-existent order, and adds that within an enormously long period, as measured by human standards, we can trace with reasonable certainty the progressive march of events.

The text names Aspidura loricata, a Triassic Ophiuroid from the Muschelkalk, Germany, as highly characteristic of the Muschelkalk. The text says the remains of Articulate Animals are not very abundant in the Trias, if we except the bivalved cases of the little Water-fleas, Ostracoda, which are occasionally very plentiful.