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The Professor in His Chair Again

           and,agreeinginthatwithCuvier,herefusedtoadmitthatthehumanspeciescouldbecontemporarywiththeanimalsofthequaternaryperiod.MyuncleLiedenbrock,alongwiththegreatbodyofthegeologists,hadmaintainedhisground,disputed,andargued,untilM.EliedeBeaumontstoodalmostaloneinhisopinion.

           Weknewallthesedetails,butwewerenotawarethatsinceourdeparturethequestionhadadvancedtofartherstages.Othersimilarmaxillaries,thoughbelongingtoindividualsofvarioustypesanddifferentnations,werefoundintheloosegreysoilofcertaingrottoesinFrance,Switzerland,andBelgium,aswellasweapons,tools,earthenutensils,bonesofchildrenandadults.Theexistencethereforeofmaninthequaternaryperiodseemedtobecomedailymorecertain.

           Norwasthisall.Freshdiscoveriesofremainsinthepleioceneformationhademboldenedothergeologiststoreferbackthehumanspeciestoahigherantiquitystill.Itistruethattheseremainswerenothumanbones,butobjectsbearingthetracesofhishandiwork,suchasfossilleg-bonesofanimals,sculpturedandcarvedevidentlybythehandofman.

           Thus,atonebound,therecordoftheexistenceofmanrecededfarbackintothehistoryoftheagespast;hewasapredecessorofthemastodon;hewasacontemporaryofthesouthernelephant;helivedahundredthousandyearsago,when,accordingtogeologists,thepleioceneformationwasinprogress.

           Suchthenwasthestateofpalæontologicalscience,andwhatweknewofitwassufficienttoexplainourbehaviourinthepresenceofthisstupendousGolgotha.Anyonemaynowunderstandthefrenziedexcitementofmyuncle,when,twentyyardsfartheron,hefoundhimselffacetofacewithaprimitiveman!

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