successors are the natural complement of Scilla's demonstration of the true
nature of fossils.

A contemporary of Newton and of Leibnitz, sharing therefore in the
intellectual activity of the remarkable age which witnessed the birth of
modern physical science, Benoit de Maillet spent a long life as a consular
agent of the French Government in various Mediterranean ports. For sixteen
years, in fact, he held the office of Consul-General in Egypt, and the
wonderful phenomena offered by the valley of the Nile appear to have
strongly impressed his mind, to have directed his attention to all facts of
a similar order which came within his observation, and to have led him to
speculate on the origin of the present condition of our globe and of its
inhabitants. But, with all his ardour for science, De Maillet seems to have
hesitated to publish views which, notwithstanding the ingenious attempts to
reconcile them with the Hebrew hypothesis contained in the preface to
"Telliamed," were hardly likely to be received with favour by his
contemporaries.

But a short time had elapsed since more than one of the great anatomists
and physicists of the Italian school had paid dearly for their endeavours
to dissipate some of the prevalent errors; and their illustrious pupil,
Harvey, the founder of modern physiology, had not fared so well, in a
country less oppressed by the benumbing influences of theology, as to tempt
any man to follow his example. Probably not uninfluenced by these
considerations, his Catholic majesty's Consul-General for Egypt kept his
theories to himself throughout a long life, for "Telliamed," the only
scientific work which is known to have proceeded from his pen, was not
printed till 1735, when its author had reached the ripe age of
seventy-nine; and though De Maillet lived three years longer, his book was
not given to the world before 1748. Even then it was anonymous to those who