file which includes the original illustrations4 ,see #bhbdh-;h4htm or #bhbdh-;h4zip3 7https3_/_/www4gutenberg4org_/dirs_/#b_/ h_/b_/d_/bhbdh_/bhbdh-;h_/#bhbdh-;h4htm7 or 7https3_/_/www4gutenberg4org_/dirs_/#b_/ h_/b_/d_/bhbdh_/bhbdh-;h4zip7 ,transcriber's note3 ,the punctuation and spelling from the original text have been faithfully preserved4 ,only obvious typographical errors have been corrected4 ,,the ,,testimony ,,of ,,the ,,rocks2 ,or1 ,geology in ,its ,bearings on the ,two ,theologies1 ,natural and ,revealed4 by ,,hugh ,,miller 99 99 99 99 99 ,,works ,,by ,,hugh ,,miller1 ,,published ,,by ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 #ei ,,washington ,,street1 ,,boston4 ,i4 ,,the ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone2 ,,or1 ,,new ,,walks ,,in ,,an ,,old ,,field4 ,illustrated with ,plates and ,geological ,sections4 #abmo1 cloth4 ,price #a4jj4 ,it is withal one of the most beautiful specimens of ,english composition to be found1 conveying information on a most difficult and profound science1 in a style at once novel1 pleasing and elegant4--,,dr4 ,,sprague1 ,,albany ,,spectator4 ,,ii4 ,,my ,,first ,,impressions ,,of ,,england ,,and ,,its ,,people4 ,with a fine ,engraving of the ,author4 #abmo1 cloth4 ,price #a4jj4 ,a thrillingly interesting and instructive book of travels2 presenting the most perfectly life-like views of ,england and its ,people to be found in the language4 ,,iii4 ,,the ,,footprints ,,of ,,the ,,creator2 ,,or1 ,,the ,,asterolepis ,,of ,,stromness4 ,with numerous ,illustrations4 ,with a ,memoir of the ,author1 by ,louis ,agassiz4 #abmo1 cloth4 ,price #a4jj4 ,dr4 ,buckland said ,,he ,,would ,,give ,,his ,,left ,,hand ,,to ,,possess ,,such ,,powers ,,of ,,description ,,as ,,this ,,man4 ,,iv4 ,,my ,,schools ,,and ,,schoolmasters2 ,,or1 ,,the ,,story ,,of ,,my ,,education4 ,,an ,,autobiography4 ,with a full length ,portrait of the ,author4 #abmo1 cloth4 ,price #a4be4 ,this is a personal narrative of a deeply interesting and instructive character1 concerning one of the most remarkable men of the age4 ,it should be read and studied by every young man in the land4 ,v4 ,,testimony ,,of ,,the ,,rocks2 ,,or1 ,,geology ,,in ,,its ,,bearings ,,on ,,the ,,two ,,theologies1 ,,natural ,,and ,,revealed4 ,thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field4--,,job4 ,with numerous elegant ,illustrations4 ,one volume1 royal #abmo4 ,price #a4be4 ,this is the largest and most comprehensive geological work of this distinguished author4 ,it exhibits the profound learning1 the felicitous style1 and the scientific perception1 which characterize his former works1 while it embraces the latest results of geological discovery4 ,but the great charm of the book lies in those passages of glowing eloquence1 in which1 having spread out his facts1 the author proceeds to make deductions from them of the most striking and exciting character4 99 99 99 99 99 -- ,the above works may be had in sets of uniform size and style of binding4 ,,valuable ,,works4 ,,knowledge ,,is ,,power3 ,a ,,view ,,of ,,the ,,productive ,,forces ,,of ,,modern ,,society1 and the ,result of ,labor1 ,capital1 and ,skill4 ,by ,,charles ,,knight4 ,american edition1 with ,additions1 by ,,david ,a4 ,,wells1 ,editor of ,annual of ,scientific ,discovery1 c4 ,with numerous ,illustrations4 #abmo1 cloth4 #a4be4 ,this work is eminently entitled to be ranked in that class1 styled1 ,,books ,,for ,,the ,,people4 ,the author is one of the most popular writers of the day4 ,knowledge is ,power treats of those things ,which come home to the business and bosoms of every man4 ,it is remarkable for its fullness and variety of information1 and for the felicity and force with which the author applies his facts to his reasoning4 ,the facts and illustrations are drawn from almost every branch of skilful industry4 ,it is a work which the mechanic and artizan of every description will be sure to read with a ,,relish4 ,this is a work of rare merit1 and touches many strings of importance with which society is linked together4 ,no work we have ever seen is better calculated to inspire and awaken inventive genius in man than this4 ,almost every department of human labor is represented1 and it contains a large fund of useful information1 condensed in a volume1 every chapter of which is worth the cost of the book4 ,it would be an act of manifest injustice to the community for any editor to feel an indifference about commending this volume to a reading public4--,n4,y4 ,,ch4 ,,herald4 ,the style is admirable1 and the book itself is as full of information as an egg is of meat4--,,journal4 ,as teachers we know no better remuneration1 than for them ,,first to buy this book and diligently read it themselves2 ,,second1 to teach to their pupils the principles of industrial organization which it contains1 and of the facts by which it is illustrated4 ,it is one of the merits of this book that its facts will interest youthful minds and be retained to blossom hereafter into theories of which they are now incapable4 ,,third1 endeavor to have a copy procured for the district library1 that the parents may read it1 and the teachers reap fruit in the present generation4--,n4,y4 ,,teacher4 ,contains a great amount of information1 accompanied with numerous illustrations1 rendering it a compendious history of the subjects upon which it treats4--,n4,y4 ,,courier ,,and ,,inquirer4 ,we commend the work as one of real value and profitable reading4--,,rochester ,,american4 ,this work is a rich repository of valuable information on various subjects1 having a bearing on the industrial end social interests of a community4--,,puritan ,,recorder4 ,,my ,,schools ,,and ,,schoolmasters2 ,,or1 ,,the ,,story ,,of ,,my ,,education4 ,,by ,,hugh ,,miller1 author of ,old ,red ,sandstone1 ,footprints of the ,creator1 ,my ,first ,impressions of ,england1 etc4 #abmo1 cloth4 #a4be4 ,this autobiography is quite worthy of the renowned author4 ,his first attempts at literature1 and his career until he stood forth an acknowledged power among the philosophers and ecclesiastical leaders of his native land1 are given without egotism1 with a power and vivacity which are equally truthful and delightsome4--,,presbyterian4 ,hugh ,miller is one of the most remarkable men of the age4 ,having risen from the humble walks of life1 and from the employment of a stone-cutter1 to the highest rank among scientific men1 everything relating to his history possesses an interest which belongs to that of few living men4 ,there is much even in his school-boy days which points to the man as he now is4 ,the book has all the ease and graphic power which in characteristic of his writings4--,,new ,,york ,,observer4 ,this volume is a book for the ten thousand4 ,it is embellished with an admirable likeness of ,hugh ,miller1 the stone mason--his coat off and his sleeves rolled up--with the implements of labor in hand--his form erect1 and his eye bright and piercing4 ,the biography of such a man will interest every reader4 ,it is a living thing--teaching a lesson of self-culture of immense value4--,,philadelphia ,,christian ,,observer4 ,it is a portion of autobiography exquisitely told4 ,he is a living proof that a single man may contain within himself something more than all the books in the world1 some unuttered word1 if he will look within and read4 ,this is one of the best books we have had of late1 and must have a hearty welcome and a large circulation in ,america4--,,london ,,corresp4 ,n4,y4 ,,tribune4 ,it is a work of rare interest2 at times having the fascination of a romance1 and again suggesting the profoundest views of education and of science4 ,the ex-mason holds a graphic pen2 a quiet humor runs through his pages2 he tells a story well1 and some of his pictures of home life might almost be classed with ,wilson's4--,,new ,,york ,,independent4 ,this autobiography is ,,the book for poor boys1 and others who are struggling with poverty and limited advantages2 and perhaps it is not too much to predict that in a few years it will become one of the poor man's classics1 filling a space on his scanty shelf next to the ,autobiography of ,franklin4--,,new ,,england ,,farmer4 ,lovers of the romantic should not neglect the book1 as it contains a narrative of tender passion and happily reciprocated affection1 which will be read with subdued emotion and unfailing interest4--,,boston ,,traveller4 99 99 99 99 99 ,illustration3 ,,sphenopteris ,,affinis4 ,a ,fern of the ,lower ,coal ,measures4 7,restored47 ,,the ,,testimony ,,of ,,the ,,rocks2 ,or1 ,geology in ,its ,bearings on the ,two ,theologies1 ,natural and ,revealed4 by ,,hugh ,,miller1 ,author of ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 ,footprints of the ,creator1 ,etc41 ,etc4 ,with ,memorials of the ,death and ,character of the ,author4 ,thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field4--,,job4 ,boston3 ,gould and ,lincoln1 #ei ,washington ,street4 ,new ,york3 ,sheldon1 ,blakeman ,co4 ,cincinnati3 ,george ,s4 ,blanchard4 #aheg4 ,entered according to ,act of ,congress1 in the year #aheg1 by ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 ,in the ,clerk's ,office of the ,district ,court of the ,district of ,massachusetts4 ,electro-,stereotyped by ,geo4 ,j4 ,stiles1 #bc ,congress ,st41 ,boston4 ,,to ,,james ,,miller1 ,,esq41 ,f4,r4,s4,e4 ,,professor ,,of ,,surgery ,,in ,,the ,,university ,,of ,,edinburgh4 ,,my ,,dear ,,sir1 ,this volume is chiefly taken up in answering1 to the best of its author's knowledge and ability1 the various questions which the old theology of ,scotland has been asking for the last few years of the newest of the sciences4 ,will you pardon me the liberty ,i take in dedicating it to you8 ,in compliance with the peculiar demand of the time1 that what a man knows of science or of art he should freely communicate to his neighbors1 we took the field nearly together as popular lecturers1 and have at least so far resembled each other in our measure of success1 that the same class of censors have been severe upon both4 ,for while you have been condemned as a physiologist for asserting that the human framework1 when fairly wrought during the week1 is greatly the better for the rest of the ,sabbath1 ,i have been described by the same pen as one of the wretched class of persons who teach that geology1 rightly understood1 does not conflict with revelation4 ,besides1 ,i owe it to your kindness that1 when set aside by the indisposition which renders it doubtful whether ,i shall ever again address a popular audience1 you enabled me creditably to fulfil one of my engagements by reading for me in public two of the following discourses1 and by doing them an amount of justice on that occasion which could never have been done them by their author4 ,further1 your kind attentions and advice during the crisis of my illness were certainly every way suited to remind me of those so gratefully acknowledged by the wit of the last century1 when he bethought him of kind ,arbuthnot's aid1 ,who knew his art1 but not his trade4 ,and so1 though the old style of dedication has been long out of fashion1 ,i avail myself of the opportunity it affords me of expressing my entire concurrence in your physiological views1 my heartfelt gratitude for your good services and friendship1 and my sincere respect for the disinterested part you have taken in the important work of elevating and informing your humbler countryfolk1--while at the same time maintaining professionally1 with ,simpson and with ,goodsir1 the reputation of that school of anatomy and medicine for which the ,scottish capital has been long so famous4 ,i am1 ,,my ,,dear ,,sir1 ,with sincere respect and regard1 ,yours affectionately1 ,,hugh ,,miller4 ,,to ,,the ,,reader4 ,of the twelve following ,lectures1 four 7the ,first1 ,second1 ,fifth1 and ,sixth7 were delivered before the members of the ,edinburgh ,philosophical ,institution 7#aheb and #ahee74 ,one 7the ,third7 was read at ,exeter ,hall before the ,young ,men's ,christian ,association 7#ahed71 and the substance of two of the others 7the ,eleventh and ,twelfth7 at ,glasgow1 before the ,geological ,section of the ,british ,association 7#ahee74 ,of the five others1--written mainly to complete and impart a character of unity to the volume of which they form a part1--only three 7the ,fourth1 ,seventh1 and ,eighth7 were addressed viva voce to popular audiences4 ,the ,third ,lecture was published both in this country and ,america1 and translated into some of the ,continental languages4 ,the rest now appear in print for the first time4 ,though their writer has had certainly no reason to complain of the measure of favor with which the read or spoken ones have been received1 they are perhaps all better adapted for perusal in the closet than for delivery in the public hall or lecture-room2 while the two concluding ,lectures are mayhap suited to interest only geologists who1 having already acquainted themselves with the generally ascertained facts of their science1 are curious to cultivate a further knowledge with such new facts as in the course of discovery are from time to time added to the common fund4 ,in such of the following ,lectures as deal with but the established geologic phenomena1 and owe whatever little merit they may possess to the inferences drawn from these1 or on the conclusions based upon them1 most of the figured illustrations1 though not all1 will be recognized as familiar3 in the two concluding ,lectures1 on the contrary1 they will be found to be almost entirely new4 ,they are contributions1 representative of the patient gleanings of years1 to the geologic records of ,scotland2 and exhibit1 in a more or less perfect state1 no inconsiderable portion of all the forms yet detected in the rocks of her earlier ,palozoic and ,secondary floras4 ,it will be seen that ,i adopt1 in my ,third and ,fourth ,lectures1 that scheme of reconciliation between the ,geologic and ,mosaic ,records which accepts the six days of creation as vastly extended periods2 and ,i have been reminded by a somewhat captious critic that ,i once held a very different view1 and twitted with what he terms inconsistency4 ,i certainly did once believe with ,chalmers and with ,buckland that the six days were simply natural days of twenty-four hours each1--that they had compressed the entire work of the existing creation1--and that the latest of the geologic ages was separated by a great chaotic gap from our own4 ,my labors at the time as a practical geologist had been very much restricted to the ,palozoic and ,secondary rocks1 more especially to the ,old ,red and ,carboniferous ,systems of the one division1 and the ,oolitic ,system of the other2 and the long extinct organisms which ,i found in them certainly did not conflict with the view of ,chalmers4 ,all ,i found necessary at the time to the work of reconciliation was some scheme that would permit me to assign to the earth a high antiquity1 and to regard it as the scene of many succeeding creations4 ,during the last nine years1 however1 ,i have spent a few weeks every autumn in exploring the later formations1 and acquainting myself with their peculiar organisms4 ,i have traced them upwards from the raised beaches and old coast lines of the human period1 to the brick clays1 ,clyde beds1 and drift and boulder deposits of the ,pleistocene era1 and again from these1 with the help of museums and collections1 up through the mammaliferous crag of ,england1 to its ,red and its ,coral crags4 ,and the conclusion at which ,i have been compelled to arrive is1 that for many long ages ere man was ushered into being1 not a few of his humbler contemporaries of the fields and woods enjoyed life in their present haunts1 and that for thousands of years anterior to even their appearance1 many of the existing molluscs lived in our seas4 ,that day during which the present creation came into being1 and in which ,god1 when he had made the beast of the earth after his kind1 and the cattle after their kind1 at length terminated the work by moulding a creature in his own image1 to whom he gave dominion over them all1 was not a brief period of a few hours' duration1 but extended over mayhap millenniums of centuries4 ,no blank chaotic gap of death and darkness separated the creation to which man belongs from that of the old extinct elephant1 hippopotamus1 and hyna2 for familiar animals such as the red deer1 the roe1 the fox1 the wild cat1 and the badger1 lived throughout the period which connected their times with our own2 and so ,i have been compelled to hold1 that the days of creation were not natural1 but prophetic days1 and stretched far back into the bygone eternity4 ,after in some degree committing myself to the other side1 ,i have yielded to evidence which ,i found it impossible to resist2 and such in this matter has been my inconsistency1--an inconsistency of which the world has furnished examples in all the sciences1 and will1 ,i trust1 in its onward progress1 continue to furnish many more4 ,,edinburgh1 ,,december1 #ahef4 ,the last proofs of this preface were despatched by the ,author to his printer only the day before that melancholy termination of his life1 the details of which will be found in the ,,memorials following4--,,am4 ,,publishers4 ,,contents4 ,,page ,,memorials ,,of ,,the ,,death ,,and ,,character ,,of ,,hugh ,,miller1 #g ,,lecture ,,first4 ,,the ,,pal,,ontological ,,history ,,of ,,plants1 #cc ,,lecture ,,second4 ,,the ,,pal,,ontological ,,history ,,of ,,animals1 #hf ,,lecture ,,third4 ,,the ,,two ,,records1 ,,mosaic ,,and ,,geological1 #ada ,,lecture ,,fourth4 ,,the ,,mosaic ,,vision ,,of ,,creation1 #agi ,,lecture ,,fifth4 ,,geology ,,in ,,its ,,bearings ,,on ,,the ,,two ,,theologies4 ,,part ,i4 #baa ,,lecture ,,sixth4 ,,geology ,,in ,,its ,,bearings ,,on ,,the ,,two ,,theologies4 ,,part ,,ii4 #bcg ,,lecture ,,seventh4 ,,the ,,noachian ,,deluge4 ,,part ,i4 #bhc ,,lecture ,,eighth4 ,,the ,,noachian ,,deluge4 ,,part ,,ii4 #cbj ,,lecture ,,ninth4 ,,the ,,discoverable ,,and ,,the ,,revealed1 #cfb ,,lecture ,,tenth4 ,,the ,,geology ,,of ,,the ,,anti-,,geologists1 #cib ,,lecture ,,eleventh4 ,,on ,,the ,,less ,,known ,,fossil ,,floras ,,of ,,scotland4 ,,part ,i4 #dbi ,,lecture ,,twelfth4 ,,on ,,the ,,less ,,known ,,fossil ,,floras ,,of ,,scotland4 ,,part ,,ii4 #dfc ,list of ,illustrations ,,page ,a ,restoration of ,sphenopteris affinis 7,frontispiece7 #a4 ,the ,genealogy of ,plants1 #dj #b4 ,cyclopteris ,hibernicus1 #db #c4 ,conifer of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 #dc #d4 ,the ,genealogy of ,animals1 #de #e4 ,oldhamia antiqua 7oldest known ,zoophyte71 #dh #f4 ,palochorda minor1 #di #g4 ,lycopodium clavatum1 #ea #h4 ,equisetum fluviatile1 #ea #i4 ,osmunda regalis 7,royal ,fern71 #eb #aj4 ,pinus sylvestris 7,scotch ,fir71 #ec #aa4 ,calamite8 of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 #ee #ab4 ,lycopodite8 of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 #ee #ac4 ,fern8 of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 #ef #ad-ai4 ,ferns of the ,coal ,measures1 #eh #bj4 ,altingia excelsa 7,norfolk ,island ,pine71 #ei #ba4 ,east ,indian ,fern 7,asophila perrotetiana71 #fj #bb4 ,section of ,stem1 of ,tree-,fern 7,cyathea71 #fj #bc-be4 ,lepidodendron ,sternbergii1 #fb #bf4 ,calamites ,mougeotii1 #fc #bg4 ,sphenophyllum dentatum1 #fc #bh4 ,sigillaria reniformis1 #fd #bi4 ,sigillaria reniformis 7nat4 size71 #fe #cj4 ,sigillaria pachyderma1 #ff #ca4 ,stigmaria ficoides1 #fg #cb4 ,favularia tessellata1 #fh #cc4 ,lepidodendron obovatum1 #fh #cd4 ,cycas revoluta1 #fi #ce4 ,zamia pungens1 #fi #cf4 ,zamia ,feneonis1 #fi #cg4 ,mantellia nidiformis1 #gj #ch4 ,equisetum columnare1 #ga #ci4 ,carpolithes conica1 #gb #dj4 ,carpolithes ,bucklandii1 #gb #da4 ,acer trilobatum1 #gc #db4 ,ulmus ,bronnii 7leaf of a tree allied to the ,elm71 #gd #dc4 ,palmacites ,lamanonis 7a ,palm of the ,miocene of ,aix71 #ge #dd4 ,cyclophthalmus ,bucklandii 7a ,fossil ,scorpion of the ,coal ,measures of ,bohemia71 #ha #de4 ,fossil ,dragon-,fly1 #hc #df4 ,cyathaxonia ,dalmani1 #hh #dg4 ,glyptocrinus decadactylus1 #hh #dh4 ,calymene ,blumenbachii1 #hi #di4 ,orthisina ,verneuili1 #hi #ej4 ,lituites cornu-arietis1 #hi #ea4 ,lingula ,lowisii1 #hi #eb4 ,fort ,jackson ,shark 7,cestracion ,philippi71 #ia #ec4 ,the ,genealogy of ,fishes1 #ic #ed4 ,amblypterus macropterus 7a ,ganoid of the ,carboniferous ,system71 #id #ee4 ,lebias cephalotes 7,cycloids of ,aix71 #id #ef4 ,platax altissimus 7a ,ctenoid of ,monte ,bolca71 #ie #eg4 ,pterichthys oblongus1 #ih #eh4 ,pleuracanthus lvissimus1 #ajj #ei4 ,carcharias productus 7,cutting ,tooth71 #aja #fj4 ,placodus gigas 7,crushing ,teeth71 #aja #fa4 ,vespertilio ,parisiensis 7a ,bat of the ,eocene71 #ajf #fb4 ,ichthyosaurus communis1 #ajf #fc4 ,plesiosaurus dolichodeirus1 #ajh #fd4 ,pterodactylus crassirostris1 #ajh #fe4 ,chelonia ,benstedi1 #aji #ff4 ,palophis ,toliapicus 7,ophidian of the ,eocene71 #aaj #fg4 ,bird-tracks of the ,connecticut1 #aac #fh4 ,fossil ,footprint1 #aad #fi4 ,thylacotherium ,prevosti1 #aag #gj4 ,anoplotherium commune1 #abj #ga4 ,animals of the ,paris ,basin1 #aba #gb4 ,dinotherium giganteum1 #abb #gc4 ,elephas primigenius 7,great ,british ,elephant71 #abg #gd4 ,trogontherium ,cuvieri 7,gigantic ,beaver71 #abh #ge4 ,ursus spelus 7,cave ,bear71 #abh #gf4 ,hyena ,spela 7,cave ,hyna71 #abi #gg4 ,asaphus caudatus1 #acd #gh4 ,orthoceras laterale1 #acd #gi4 ,spirigerina reticularis1 #acd #hj4 ,ammonites margaritatus1 #acd #ha4 ,ammonites bisulcatus1 #acd #hb4 ,belemnitella mucronata1 #acd #hc4 ,belemnites sulcatus1 #acd #hd4 ,murex alveolatus1 #ace #he4 ,astarte ,omalli1 #ace #hf4 ,balanus crassus1 #acf #hg4 ,astarte arctica1 #aeb #hh4 ,tellina proxima1 #aeb #hi4 ,norwegian ,spruce 7,abies excelsa71 #aec #ij4 ,lepidodendron ,sternbergii1 #afd #ia4 ,calamites cannformis1 #afe #ib4 ,megatherium ,cuvieri1 #afg #ic4 ,skull of ,dinotherium giganteum #afh #id4 ,ammonites ,humphriesianus1 #bdb #ie4 ,encrinites moniliformis1 #bdc #if4 ,cupressocrinus crassius1 #bdc #ig4 ,pentacrinus fasciculosus1 #bde #ih4 ,chamfered and ,imbricated ,scales1 #bdf #ii4 ,scale of ,holoptychius giganteus1 #bdg #ajj4 ,section of ,scale of ,holoptychius1 #bdh #aja4 ,sigillaria ,groeseri1 #bee #ajb-ajd4 ,whorled ,shells of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 #bef #aje4 ,murchisonia bigranulosa1 #beh #ajf4 ,conularia ornata1 #beh #ajg4 ,calico pattern 7,manchester71 #bei #ajh4 ,smithia ,pengellyi1 #bei #aji4 ,apamean ,medal1 #bih #aaj4 ,old ,mexican ,picture1 #bii #aaa4 ,megaceros ,hibernicus 7,irish ,elk71 #cca #aab4 ,mylodon robustus1 #cdf #aac4 ,glyptodon clavipes1 #cdf #aad4 ,the ,geography of ,cosmas1 #cgf #aae4 ,the ,heavens and ,earth of ,cosmas1 #cgg #aaf4 ,nummulites lvigata 7,pharaoh's ,beans71 #dba #aag4 ,silurian ,organism1 ,graptolite1 etc41 #dca #aah4 ,fucoid1 #dcc #aai4 ,fucoids1 #dcd #abj4 ,plant resembling ,lycopodium clavatum1 #dcg #aba4 ,parka decipiens1 #ddi #abb4 ,fossil ,fern 7probably71 #dej #abc4 ,unnamed ,fossil ,plant1 #dej #abd4 ,cyclopterus ,hibernicus1 #deh #abe4 ,new and peculiar ,fern from ,airdrie coal field1 #dfd #abf4 ,stigmaria1 #dfe #abg4 ,the same1 magnified1 #dfe #abh4 ,stigmaria1 #dff #abi4 ,sphenopteris bifida1 #dgj #acj4 ,conifers8 #dge #aca4 ,conifer ,twigs1 #dgf #acb4 ,unnamed ,fossil ,plant1 #dgh #acc4 ,zamia1 #dgi #acd4 ,zamia1 #dhj #ace4 ,zamia of the ,lias1 #dha #acf4 ,zamia of the ,oolite1 #dha #acg4 ,zamia resembling ,z4 lanceolata1 #dhb #ach4 ,fossil ,cone1 #dhc #aci4 ,fossil ,cone1 #dhd #adj4 ,helmsdale ,fossil ,plants1 #dhe #ada4 ,fossil ,ferns in ,helmsdale ,deposits1 #dhf #adb4 ,unnamed ,fossil ,plant1 #dhh #adc4 ,pecopteris obtusifolia1 #dhi #add4 ,apparent ,fern 7new71 #dij #ade4 ,pachypteris1 #dij #adf4 ,phlebopteris1 #dia #adg4 ,unnamed ,fossil ,plant1 #dib #adh4 ,pentagon1 illustrative of ,fern allies1 #dic #adi4 ,imbricated ,stem1 #did #aej4 ,fossil ,plant 7,helmsdale71 #die #aea4 ,dicotyledonous ,leaf of the ,oolite1 #dif #aeb4 ,fern1 #dig ,,memorials ,,of ,,hugh ,,miller4 ,unknown he came4 ,he went a ,mystery-- ,a mighty vessel foundered in the calm1 ,her freight half-given to the world4 ,to die ,he longed1 nor feared to meet the great ,i ,,am4 ,fret not4 ,god's mystery is solved to him4 ,he quarried ,truth all rough-hewn from the earth1 ,and chiselled it into a perfect gem-- ,a rounded ,absolute4 ,twain at a birth-- ,science with a celestial halo crowned1 ,and ,heavenly ,truth--,god's ,works by ,his ,word illumed-- ,these twain he viewed in holiest concord bound4 ,reason outsoared itself4 ,his mind consumed ,by its volcanic fire1 and frantic driven1 ,he dreamed himself in hell and woke in heaven4 ,,edinburgh1 ,december1 #ahef4 ,,memorials ,,of ,,the ,,death ,,and ,,character ,,of ,,hugh ,,miller1 ,,with ,,an ,,account ,,of ,,his ,,funeral ,,obsequies4 ,near the end of last autumn the ,american publishers of ,hugh ,miller's works received from him1 through his ,edinburgh publishers1 the offer of a new work from his pen4 ,the offer was accepted and a contract was at once closed4 ,soon the advance sheets began to come2 and as successive portions were received and perused1 it became more and more evident that the work was destined not only to extend his fame1 but to establish for him new and special claims to the admiration and gratitude of mankind4 ,in the midst of these anticipations1 and ere more than half the sheets had been received1 the publishers and the public here were startled by the news that ,mr4 ,miller had come to a violent death4 ,the paragraph conveying the intelligence was such as to leave the mind in a state of painful suspense4 ,but the next steamer from ,europe brought full details of the lamentable event4 ,it appeared that in a momentary fit of mental aberration he had died by his own hand1 on the night of ,december #bc;d1 #ahef4 ,the cause was over much brain-work4 ,he had been long and incessantly engaged in preparing the present work for the press1 when1 just as he had given the last touches to the eloquent1 the immortal record1 reason abandoned her throne1 and in the brief interregnum1 that great light of science was quenched forever4 ,the event caused universal lamentation throughout the ,british ,isles4 ,it was treated as a public calamity4 ,the ,british press1 from the ,london ,times to the remotest provincial newspaper1 gave expression to the general sorrow in strains of unwonted eloquence2 and in so doing recounted his great services to the cause of science1 and paid homage to his genius4 ,some of the articles which the event thus called forth have seemed to the ,american publishers worthy of preservation1 from the authentic facts which they embody1 the judgments which they express1 and the literary excellence by which they are marked4 ,they have therefore determined to print them in connection with this work as permanent ,memorials of its distinguished and lamented author4 ,the first piece appeared in the ,edinburgh ,witness of ,december #bgth1 #ahef1--the paper of which ,mr4 ,miller had been the editor from its establishment in #ahdj4 ,it presents an authentic account of the circumstances attending his death1 and is understood to be from the pen of the ,,rev4 ,,william ,,hanna1 ,l4,l4,d41 the son-in-law and biographer of ,dr4 ,chalmers1 and sometime editor of the ,north ,british ,review4 ,in the belief that nothing touching the character and memory of such a man can be regarded with other than the deepest interest1 the friends of ,mr4 ,hugh ,miller have thought it due at once to his great name and to the cause of truth1 to lay fully before the public a statement of the most mournful circumstances under which he has departed from this life4 ,for some months past his over-tasked intellect had given evidence of disorder4 ,he became the prey of false or exaggerated alarms4 ,he fancied--if1 indeed1 it was a fancy--that occasionally1 and for brief intervals1 his faculties quite failed him1--that his mind broke down4 ,he was engaged at this time with a treatise on the ,testimony of the ,rocks1 upon which he was putting out all his strength1--working at his top-most pitch of intensity4 ,that volume will in a few weeks be in the hands of many of our readers2 and while they peruse it with the saddened impression that his intellect and genius poured out their latest treasures in its composition1 they will search through it in vain for the slightest evidence of feebleness or decaying power4 ,rather let us anticipate the general verdict that will be pronounced upon it1 and speak of it as one of the ablest of all his writings4 ,but he wrought at it too eagerly4 ,hours after midnight the light was seen to glimmer through the window of that room which within the same eventful week was to witness the close of the volume1 and the close of the writer's life4 ,this over-working of the brain began to tell upon his mental health4 ,he had always been somewhat moodily apprehensive of being attacked by footpads1 and had carried loaded firearms about his person4 ,latterly1 having occasion sometimes to return to ,portobello from ,edinburgh at unseasonable hours1 he had furnished himself with a revolver4 ,but now1 to all his old fears as to attacks upon his person1 there was added an exciting and over-mastering impression that his house1 and especially that ,museum1 the fruit of so much care1 which was contained in a separate outer building1 were exposed to the assault of burglars4 ,he read all the recent stories of house robberies4 ,he believed that one night1 lately1 an actual attempt to break in upon his ,museum had been made4 ,visions of ticket-of-leave men1 prowling about his premises1 haunted him by day and by night4 ,the revolver1 which lay nightly near him1 was not enough2 a broad-bladed dagger was kept beside it2 whilst behind him1 at his bed head1 a claymore stood ready at hand4 ,a week or so ago1 a new and more aggravated feature of cerebral disorder showed itself in sudden and singular sensations in his head4 ,they came only after lengthened intervals4 ,they did not last long1 but were intensely violent4 ,the terrible idea that his brain was deeply and hopelessly diseased1--that his mind was on the verge of ruin1--took hold of him1 and stood out before his eye in all that appalling magnitude in which such an imagination as his alone could picture it4 ,it was mostly at night that these wild paroxysms of the brain visited him2 but up till last ,monday he had spoken of them to no one4 ,a friend who had a long conversation with him on the ,thursday of last week1 never enjoyed an interview more1 or remembers him in a more genial mood4 ,on the ,saturday forenoon another friend from ,edinburgh found him in the same happy frame4 ,as was his wont when with an old friend with whom he felt particularly at ease1 he read or recited some favorite passages1 repeating1 on this occasion1 with great emphasis1 that noble prayer of ,john ,knox1#a which1 he told his friend1 it had been his frequent custom to repeat privately during the days of the ,disruption4 ,on the forenoon of ,sunday last he worshipped in the ,free ,church at ,portobello2 and in the evening read a little work which had been put into his hands1 penning that brief notice of it which will be read with melancholy interest as his last contribution to this journal4 ,about ten o'clock on ,monday morning he took what with him was an altogether unusual step4 ,he called on ,dr4 ,balfour1 in ,portobello1 to consult him as to his state of health4 ,on my asking1 says ,dr4 ,balfour1 in a communication with which we have been favored1 what was the matter with him1 he replied1 ',my brain is giving way4 ,i cannot put two thoughts together to-day4 ,i have had a dreadful night of it2 ,i cannot face another such4 ,i was impressed with the idea that my ,museum was attacked by robbers1 and that ,i had got up1 put on my clothes1 and gone out with a loaded pistol to shoot them4 ,immediately after that ,i became unconscious4 ,how long that continued1 ,i cannot say2 but when ,i awoke in the morning ,i was trembling all over1 and quite confused in my brain4 ,on rising ,i felt as if a stiletto was suddenly1 and as quickly as an electric shock1 passed through my brain from front to back1 and left a burning sensation on the top of the brain just below the bone4 ,so thoroughly convinced was ,i that ,i must have been out through the night1 that ,i examined my trousers to see if they were wet or covered with mud1 but could find none4' ,he further said1--',i may state that ,i was somewhat similarly affected through the night twice last week1 and ,i examined my trousers in the morning to see if ,i had been out4 ,still the terrible sensations were not nearly so bad as they were last night2 and ,i may further inform you1 that towards the end of last week1 while passing through the ,exchange in ,edinburgh1 ,i was seized with such a giddiness that ,i staggered1 and would1 ,i think1 have fallen1 had ,i not gone into an entry1 where ,i leaned against the wall1 and became quite unconscious for some seconds4' ,dr4 ,balfour stated his opinion of the case2 told him that he was over-working his brain1 and agreed to call on him on the following day to make a fuller examination4 ,meanwhile the quick eye of affection had noticed that there was something wrong1 and on ,monday forenoon ,mrs4 ,miller came up to ,edinburgh to express her anxiety to ,professor ,miller1 and request that he would see her husband4 ,i arranged1 says ,professor ,miller1 to meet ,dr4 ,balfour at ,shrub ,mount 7,mr4 ,hugh ,miller's house71 on the afternoon of next day4 ,we met accordingly at half-past three on ,tuesday4 ,he was a little annoyed at ,mrs4 ,miller's having given me the trouble1 as he called it1 but received me quite in his ordinary kind1 friendly manner4 ,we examined his chest and found that unusually well2 but soon we discovered that it was head symptoms that made him uneasy4 ,he acknowledged having been1 night after night1 up till very late in the morning1 working hard and continuously at his new book1 'which1' with much satisfaction1 he said1 ',i have finished this day4' ,he was sensible that his head had suffered in consequence1 as evidenced in two ways3 first1 occasionally he felt as if a very fine poignard had been suddenly passed through and through his brain4 ,the pain was intense1 and momentarily followed by confusion and giddiness1 and the sense of being 'very drunk1'--unable to stand or walk4 ,he thought that a period of unconsciousness must have followed this1--a kind of swoon1--but he had never fallen4 ,second1 what annoyed him most1 however1 was a kind of nightmare1 which for some nights past had rendered sleep most miserable4 ,it was no dream1 he said2 he saw no distinct vision1 and could remember nothing of what had passed accurately4 ,it was a sense of vague and yet intense horror1 with a conviction of being abroad in the night wind1 and dragged through places as if by some invisible power4 ',last night1' he said1 ',i felt as if ,i had been ridden by a witch for fifty miles1 and rose far more wearied in mind and body than when ,i lay down4' ,so strong was his conviction of having been out1 that he had difficulty in persuading himself to the contrary1 by carefully examining his clothes in the morning1 to see if they were not wet or dirty2 and he looked inquiringly and anxiously to his wife1 asking if she was sure he had not been out last night1 and walking in this disturbed trance or dream4 ,his pulse was quiet1 but tongue foul4 ,the head was not hot1 but he could not say it was free from pain4 ,but ,i need not enter into professional details4 ,suffice it to say that we came to the conclusion that he was suffering from an over-worked mind1 disordering his digestive organs1 enervating his whole frame1 and threatening serious head affection4 ,we told him this1 and enjoined absolute discontinuance of work1 bed at eleven1 light supper 7he had all his life made that a principal meal71 thinning the hair of the head1 a warm sponging-bath at bed time1 c4 ,to all our commands he readily promised obedience1 not forgetting the discontinuance of neck rubbing1 to which he had unfortunately been prevailed to submit some days before4 ,for fully an hour we talked together on these and other subjects1 and ,i left him with no apprehension of impending evil1 and little doubting but that a short time of rest and regimen would restore him to his wonted vigor4 ,it was a cheerful hour that thus was passed1 and his wife and family partook of the hopeful feeling with which his kind friend1 ,professor ,miller1 had parted with him4 ,it was now near the dinner hour1 and the servant entered the room to spread the table4 ,she found ,mr4 ,miller in the room alone4 ,another of the paroxysms was on him4 ,his face was such a picture of horror that she shrunk in terror from the sight4 ,he flung himself on the sofa1 and buried his head1 as if in agony1 upon the cushion4 ,again1 however1 the vision flitted by1 and left him in perfect health4 ,the evening was spent quietly with his family4 ,during tea he employed himself in reading aloud ,cowper's ,castaway1 the ,sonnet on ,mary ,unwin1 and one of his more playful pieces1 for the special pleasure of his children4 ,having corrected some proofs of the forthcoming volume1 he went up stairs to his study4 ,at the appointed hour he had taken the bath1 but unfortunately his natural and peculiar repugnance to physic had induced him to leave untaken the medicine that had been prescribed4 ,he had retired into his sleeping-room1--a small apartment opening out of his study1 and which1 for some time past1 in consideration of the delicate state of his wife's health1 and the irregularity of his own hours of study1 he occupied at night alone1--and lain sometime upon the bed4 ,the horrible trance1 more horrible than ever1 must have returned4 ,all that can now be known of what followed is to be gathered from the facts1 that next morning his body1 half dressed1 was found lying lifeless on the floor1 the feet upon the study rug1 the chest pierced with the ball of the revolver pistol1 which was found lying in the bath that stood close by4#b ,the deadly bullet had perforated the left lung1 grazed the heart1 cut through the pulmonary artery at its root1 and lodged in the rib in the right side4 ,death must have been instantaneous4 ,the servant by whom the body was first discovered1 acting with singular discretion1 gave no alarm1 but went instantly in search of the doctor and minister2 and on the latter the melancholy duty was devolved of breaking the fearful intelligence to that now broken-hearted widow1 over whose bitter ,borrow it becomes us to draw the veil4 ,the body was lifted and laid upon the bed4 ,we saw it there a few hours afterwards4 ,the head lay back sideways on the pillow4 ,there was the massive brow1 the firm-set1 manly features1 we had so often looked upon admiringly1 just as we had lately seen them1--no touch nor trace upon them of disease1--nothing but that overspread pallor of death to distinguish them from what they had been4 ,but the expression of that countenance in death will live in our memory forever4 ,death by gunshot wounds is said to leave no trace of suffering behind2 and never was there a face of the dead freer from all shadow of pain1 or grief1 or conflict1 than that of our dear departed friend4 ,and as we bent over it1 and remembered the troubled look it sometimes had in life1 and thought what must have been the sublimely terrific expression that it wore at the moment when the fatal deed was done1 we could not help thinking that it lay there to tell us1 in that expression of unruffled1 majestic repose that sat upon every feature1 what we so assuredly believe1 that the spirit had passed through a terrible tornado1 in which reason had been broken down2 but that it had made the great passage in safety1 and stood looking back to us1 in humble1 grateful triumph1 from the other side4 ,on looking round the room in which the body had been discovered1 a folio sheet of paper was seen lying on the table4 ,on the centre of the page the following lines were written1--the last which that pen was ever to trace3-- ,,dearest ,,lydia1--,my brain burns4 ,i must have walked2 and a fearful dream rises upon me4 ,i cannot bear the horrible thought4 ,god and ,father of the ,lord ,jesus ,christ have mercy upon me4 ,dearest ,lydia1 dear children1 farewell4 ,my brain burns as the recollection grows4 ,my dear1 dear wife1 farewell4 ,,hugh ,,miller4 ,what a legacy of love to a broken-hearted family6 and to us1 and all who loved him1 how pleasing to observe1 that in that bewildering hour1 when the horror of that great darkness came down upon that noble spirit1 and some hideous1 shapeless phantom overpowered it1 and took from it even the capacity to discern the right from the wrong1 humility1 and faith1 and affection1 still kept their hold2--amid the ruins of the intellect1 that tender heart remaining still unbroken6 ,these last lines remain as the surest evidence of the mysterious power that laid his spirit prostrate1 and of the noble elements of which that spirit was composed1--humble1 and reverent1 and loving to the last4 ,yesterday1 at the request of friends1 and under the authority of the ,procurator-,fiscal1 a post mortem examination of the body took place4 ,we subjoin the result3-- ,,edinburgh1 ,december #bf1 #ahef4 ,we hereby certify1 on soul and conscience1 that we have this day examined the body of ,mr4 ,hugh ,miller1 at ,shrub ,mount1 ,portobello4 ,the cause of death we found to be a pistol-shot through the left side of the chest2 and this1 we are satisfied1 was inflicted by his own hand4 ,from the diseased appearances found in the brain1 taken in connection with the history of the case1 we have no doubt that the act was suicidal under the impulse of insanity4 ,,james ,,miller1 ,w4,t4 ,,gairdner1 ,a4,h4 ,,balfour1 ,a4,m4 ,,edwards4 ,we must ask to be excused from attempting any analysis of ,mr4 ,miller's character and genius1 or any estimate of the distinguished services he has rendered to literature1 science1 and the ,christian faith4 ,his loss is too heavy a one1--his removal has come upon us too suddenly and too awfully for mind or hand to be steady enough for such a task4 ,the voice of the public press has already told what a place he had won for himself in the admiration and affection of his countrymen2 and for the delicate and tender way in which the manner of his departure has universally been alluded to1 were we permitted to speak in the name of ,mr4 ,miller's friends1 we should express our deepest gratitude4 ,it is a beautiful and worthy tribute that his brother journalists have rendered to the memory of one who was a laborer along with them in elevating the talent and tone of our newspaper literature4 ,as ,free ,churchmen1 however1 it would be unpardonable were we to omit all reference1 at such a time as this1 to what he did on behalf of the church of his adoption4 ,dr4 ,chalmers did not err when1 self-oblivious1 he spake of ,mr4 ,miller1 as he so often did1 as the greatest ,scotchman alive after ,sir ,walter ,scott's death1 and as the man who had done more than all others to defend and make popular throughout the country the non-intrusion cause4 ,we know well what the mutual love and veneration was of those two great men for one another whilst living2 and now that both are gone1--and hereafter we believe still more so than even now1--their two names will be intertwined in the grateful and admiring remembrance of the ministers and members of the ,free ,church4 ,it was die high honor of the writer of these hurried lines to record the part taken by his venerated relative in that great ecclesiastical struggle which terminated in the ,disruption4 ,at that lime it was matter to him of great regret that1 as his office was that of the biographer1 and not of the historian1 there did not occur those natural opportunities of speaking of the part taken by ,mr4 ,miller in that struggle1 of which he gladly would have availed himself4 ,and he almost wishes now that he had violated what appeared to him to be his duty1 in order to create such an opportunity4 ,he feels as if in this he had done some injustice to the dead1--an injustice which it would gratify him beyond measure if he could now in any way repair1 by expressing it as his own judgment1 and the judgment of the vast body of his ,church1 that1 next to the writings and actings of ,dr4 ,chalmers1 the leading articles of ,mr4 ,miller in this journal did more than anything else to give the ,free ,church the place it holds in the affections of so many of our fellow-countrymen4 ,but ,mr4 ,miller was far more than a ,free ,churchman1 and did for the ,christianity of his country and the world a far higher service than any which in that simple character and office was rendered by him4 ,there was nothing in him of the spirit and temper of the sectarian4 ,he breathed too broad an atmosphere to live and move within such narrow bounds4 ,in the heat of the conflict there may have been too much occasionally of the partisan2 and in the pleasure that the sweep and stroke of his intellectual tomahawk gave to him who wielded it1 he may have forgotten at times the pain inflicted where it fell2 but let his writings before and after the ,disruption be now consulted1 and it will be found that it was mainly because of his firm belief1 whether right or wrong1 that the interests of vital godliness were wrapped up in it1 that he took his stand1 and played his conspicuous part1 in the ecclesiastical conflict4 ,it is well known that for some time past1--for reasons to which it would be altogether unseasonable to allude1--he has ceased to take any active part in ecclesiastical affairs4 ,he had retired even1 in a great measure1 from the field of general literature1 to devote himself to the study of ,geology4 ,his past labors in this department1--enough to give him a high and honored place among its most distinguished cultivators1--he looked upon but as his training for the great life-work he had marked out for himself1--the full investigation and illustration of the ,geology of ,scotland4 ,he had large materials already collected for this work2 and it was his intention1 after completing that volume which has happily been left in so finished a state1 to set himself to their arrangement4 ,the friends of science in many lands will mourn over the incompleted project which1 however ably it may hereafter be accomplished by another1 it were vain to hope shall ever be so accomplished as it should have been by one who united in himself the power of accurate observation1 of logical deduction1 of broad generalization1 and of pictorial and poetic representation4 ,but the friends of ,christianity cannot regret1 that since it was the mysterious decree of ,heaven that he should prematurely fall1--his work as a pure ,geologist not half done1--he should have been led aside by the publication of the ,vestiges of ,creation to that track of semi-theological1 semi-scientific research to which his later studies and later writings have been devoted4 ,that1 as it now seems to us1 was the great work which it was given him on earth to do1--to illustrate the perfect harmony of all that science tells us of the physical structure and history of our globe1 with all that the ,bible tells of the creation and government of this earth by and through ,christ ,jesus our ,lord4 ,the establishment and exhibition of that harmony was a task to which is it too much to say that there was no man living so competent as he8 ,we leave it to the future to declare how much he has done by his writings to fulfil that task2 but mourning1 as we now can only do1 over his sad and melancholy death1--to that very death1 with all the tragic circumstances that surround it1 we would point as the closing sacrifice offered on the altar of our faith4 ,his very intellect1 his reason1--,god's most precious gift1--a gift dearer than life1--perished in the great endeavor to harmonize the works and word of the ,eternal4 ,a most inscrutable event1 that such an intellect should have been suffered to go to wreck through too eager a prosecution of such a work4 ,but amid the mystery1 which we cannot penetrate1 our love1 and our veneration1 and our gratitude1 toward that so highly gifted and truly ,christian man shall only grow the deeper because of the cloud and the whirlwind in which he has been borne off from our side4 ,on the #cast of ,december1 two days after the obsequies had been performed1 ,dr4 ,hanna resumed the subject in the following elevated strain3 ,we have still but little heart to dilate on any political or literary topic4 ,our thoughts can dwell on but one thrice melancholy event4 ,need we name that event8 ,alas1 no6 ,it had occurred but a few hours when the tidings of it struck our city with stunning1 stupefying1 and deeply saddening blow4 ,it has already thrilled our whole land2 and is on its way1 through a hundred channels1 to the west1 to the east1 and to the south1 carrying with it mourning and lamentation throughout the vast area which is covered by the language in which ,hugh ,miller wrote4 ,writing1 as it were1 amid the deep shadows of the funeral chamber1 and brought in a manner into the very presence of the dead1 we are made strongly to feel1 and we daresay our readers to a large extent will feel1 too1 the nothingness of those discussions which usually occupy and engross men4 ,the weightiest matter that ever occupied the wisdom of cabinet or the pen of journalist appears verily but fleeting and transitory1 when brought thus into prominent contrast with the awful realities of human existence and destiny2 and it is only when reflection shows us that these matters are yet parts of a grand ,providential scheme1 embracing man's happiness now1 and entering deeply into the question of his future and eternal well-being1 that we can see in them that amount of significance and importance which they really possess4 ,from the firmament of ,british literature and science a great light has departed4 ,but yesterday we rejoiced in its beams1 and now it has set all suddenly and forever2 and to us there remains but the melancholy task of bewailing its departure1 and tracing very hastily and imperfectly its track4 ,the intellectual powers of ,hugh ,miller had certainly not declined4 ,he was marked to the very last by that wonderful robustness of mind which had characterized him all through life4 ,his sense was as manly1 his judgment as sound and comprehensive1 his penetration as discriminating and deep1 his imagination as vigorous and bold1 and his taste as pure and trusty1 as they had ever been4 ,the whole of his great powers were found working together up to the last week of his earthly career1 with their usually calm1 noiseless strength1 and finely balanced and exquisitely toned harmony4 ,we have evidence of this fact under his own hand in recent numbers of the ,witness4 ,his last two articles were1 the one on ,russia1 and the other on our modern poets4 ,the former1--that on the resources of the ,russian empire1--is characterized by the same wide range of thinking1 the same skill in analysis1 and the same power of grouping and arranging details1 and making them to throw light on some great principle1 which usually marked and notified his hand when employed on such subjects4 ,the latter1--that on the poets1--is rich and genial as usual1 betokening a full and unclouded recollection of all his early reading in that department of our literature1 abounding in the finest touches of pathos and beauty1 and redolent with a most generous sympathy with kindred genius4 ,it is not inconsistent with what we have now stated1 and it is the fact1 that latterly the inroads of disease1 which had entrenched itself deeply in a constitution originally strong1 and which kept steadily advancing upon the vital powers1 had come so near the seat of the mind1 that for short intervals the noble spirit was sadly beclouded1 and its moral and intellectual action momentarily suspended4 ,but1 apart from this1 there seemed ground to believe that there was yet before ,mr4 ,miller much honorable and noble labor4 ,the strong man1 after all his tasks1 appeared to be still strong4 ,his powers were mellowing into richness and calm1 matured strength2 his conceptions of great principles were growing yet wider2 his store of facts1 literary as well as scientific1 was accumulating with every busy and laborious year that passed over him2 and there did seem ground to expect from his pen1 unrivalled among his contemporaries in its exquisite purity and calm power1 many a deep thoughted article1 and many a profoundly reasoned and richly illustrated volume4 ,we looked to him for the solution of many a dark question in science2 and we certainly hoped1 from that fine union of science and theology which dwelt in him above all men1 for a yet fuller and more complete adjustment of the two great records of ,creation1--that of the ,rocks1 and that of ,moses4 ,but alas6 all these hopes have suddenly failed us4 ,it seemed right otherwise to the ,great ,disposer of all4 ,he has said to his faithful servant1 ,enough4 ,let us look back upon that work4 ,we by no means aim at giving a calm1 well weighed1 and deeply pondered estimate of it1 but only such a glance as the circumstances permit and require4 ,his great and special work was his advocacy of the principles of the ,free ,church4 ,mr4 ,miller was par excellence the popular expounder and defender of these principles1 whether in their embryotic state in the ,non-,intrusion party1 or as embodied in the fully developed and completely emancipated ,free ,protesting ,church of ,scotland4 ,for this service1 in connection with which he would have best liked to be remembered1 as he best deserved it1 he had unconsciously been undergoing a course of preparation even when a boy4 ,he himself has told us with what eagerness he devoured1 at that period of life1 the legendary histories of ,wallace and ,bruce2 and the occupation had its use4 ,it gave him a capacity for admiring what was great though perilous in exploit1 and for truly and largely sympathizing with what was patriotic and self-sacrificing in character2 and so it created a groundwork for his own future thinking and acting4 ,the admiration he then bore to these earliest of our ,scottish ,worthies1 who vindicated on ,bannockburn1 and kindred fields1 ,scotland's right to be an independent and free country1 he afterwards transferred to our later ,worthies1 whom he revered as greater still4 ,not that he ever lost his admiration of the former1 or ceased to value the incalculable services they rendered to the ,scottish nation2 but that he regarded ,knox and ,melville as men occupying a yet higher platform1--as gifted with a yet deeper insight into their country's wants1--as1 in short1 carrying forward and consummating the glorious task which ,wallace and ,bruce had but begun4 ,he saw that unless our reformers had come after our heroes1 planting schools1 founding colleges1 and1 above all1 imparting to their countrymen a scriptural and rational faith1 in vain had ,bruce unsheathed his sword1--in vain had ,wallace laid down his life4 ,wallace and ,bruce had created an independent country2 ,knox and ,melville had created an independent people4 ,they were the creators of the ,scottish nation1--the real enfranchisers of our people2 and it was this that taught ,mr4 ,miller to venerate these men so profoundly1 and that made him in his inmost soul a devoted follower1 and to the utmost extent of his great faculties a defender1 of their cause4 ,he was a soldier from love1--pure1 heroic1 chivalrous devotion soaring infinitely above the partisan4 ,he saw that the ,church of ,scotland was the creator of the rights and privileges of the people of ,scotland1--that she was the grand palladium of the country's liberties1--that while she stood an independent and free institution1 the people stood an independent and free nation1--and that bonds to her meant slavery to them4 ,therefore did he gird on the sword when he saw peril gathering around her4 ,the privileges1--the entire standing of the common people1 as given them by the ,reformation1--he saw to be in danger3 he was one of themselves2 and he felt and fought as if almost the quarrel had been a personal one1 and the question at issue his own liberty or slavery4 ,how richly equipped and nobly armed he came into the field1 we need not here state4 ,what fulness yet precision of ecclesiastical lore1--what strength and conclusiveness of argument1--what flashes of humor1 wit1 and sarcasm1--and in what a luminous yet profoundly philosophical light did he set the great principles involved in the controversy1 making them patent in the very cottages of our land1 and so fixing them in the understandings of the very humblest of our people1 that they never afterwards could be either misunderstood or forgotten6 ,it was thus that the way was prepared for the great result of the #ahth of ,may1 #ahdc4 ,of ,mr4 ,miller1 as a man of science and a public journalist1 we cannot speak at present at any length4 ,in him the love of science was deeply seated and early developed4 ,the first arena on which he appeared--obscure and humble as it was--afforded him special opportunities of initiating himself into what to him was then1 and continued ever afterwards to be1 a most fascinating study4 ,the study of geology was eagerly prosecuted amid the multifarious duties1 and during the brief pauses1 of a busy life4 ,several original discoveries rewarded his patient and laborious investigations4 ,he succeeded at length in placing his name in the first rank of ,british scientific thinkers and writers4 ,his works are characterized by a fine union of strict science1 classic diction1 and enchanting description1 which rises not unfrequently into the loftiest vein of poetry4 ,the fruits of his researches were ever made to bear upon the defence and elucidation of the ,oracles of ,truth4 ,our common ,christianity owes much to his pen4 ,viewing him as a journalist1 ,mr4 ,miller not only excelled in article writing1--the most difficult of all kinds of composition1--but1 as will be generally admitted1 he has introduced a new era into newspaper writing4 ,if the moral tone of our newspaper press is higher now than it was twenty-five years ago1 we have ,mr4 ,miller in large degree to thank for it2 and to him1 too1 is to be traced that purer style and more philosophic spirit which begins to be discernible in the columns of our public journals4 ,but the character in which his personal friends will deplore him most1 and will most frequently recall his memory1 will be that of the man4 ,how meek and gentle he was6--how unpretending and modest1 even as a very child6--how true and steady in friendship6--how wise and playful his mirth6--how ripened and chastened his wisdom6--how ready to counsel6--how willing to oblige6--how generous and large his sympathies6 ,no little jealousies1 no fretful envyings1 had he6 ,even in opposition1 how noble and manly was he3 if a powerful1 he was a fair and open antagonist2 and whatever hard blows were dealt1 they were dealt in his own journal4 ,we have seen him in various moods and in all circumstances2 but never did we hear him utter an unkind or disparaging word of man4 ,he was1 too1 a sincere and humble ,christian2 and the lively faith which he cherished in the adorable ,redeemer and his all-efficacious sacrifice1 bore abundantly its good fruits in a life including no ordinary variety of condition and trial1 and running on to such term as to make abundantly manifest what manner of man he was4 ,the article which follows is from the ,edinburgh ,news4 ,it is evidently from the pen of one who was intimately acquainted with ,hugh ,miller1 and is worthy of attention1 not only for its eloquent and discriminating notices of his works1 but also for its statements respecting his great designs1 never1 alas1 to be accomplished4 ,it is not many months since we chronicled the death of the greatest of living ,scotsmen1 and the prince of modern philosophers--,sir ,william ,hamilton4 ,these last few days have bereft us of another of our countrymen not less illustrious1 and known all over the world as one of the princes of geology4 ,we cannot well estimate the loss which society sustains in the death of ,mr4 ,miller4 ,he occupied a foremost place among us1 and there is none on whom his mantle can fall4 ,in the world of letters his name takes high rank1 for undoubtedly he was one of the ablest writers in our literature4 ,who can have read without delight his manly1 vigorous language1 soaring sometimes into the highest eloquence1 anon plunging into the depths of metaphysical argument1 or grappling with the dry technicalities of science1 yet ever rolling along with the same easy1 onward flow8 ,his style has all the charm of ,goldsmith's sweetness1 with the infusion of a rich vigor that gives it an air of great originality4 ,he is one of the few writers who have successfully conjoined the graces of literature with the formal details of science1 and whose works are perused for their literary excellences1 independently altogether of their scientific merit4 ,his writings will ever be regarded among the classics of the ,english language4 ,for obvious reasons we pass over his editorial labors4 ,it is on the republic of science that his death will fall most heavily4 ,there can be little doubt that he has done more to popularize his favorite department than any other writer4 ,of all geological works1 his enjoy1 perhaps1 the widest circulation--not in this country1 merely1 but all over the world1 and especially in the ,united ,states4 ,his reputation1 however1 does not rest solely on his standing as an exponent of science to the people2 he was himself an original and accurate observer4 ,when the infant science of geology was battling for existence against the opposing phalanx of united ,christendom1 ,hugh ,miller1 then a mere lad1 was quietly working as a stone-mason in the north of ,scotland1 and employing his leisure time among the fossil fishes of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and the ammonites and the belemnites of the ,lias1 that abound in the neighborhood of ,cromarty4 ,as years rolled slowly away1 he continued his observations1 and when at length1 in #ahda1 the results were given to the world in his well known ,old ,red ,sandstone1 every one was charmed with the novelty and beauty of the style1 and his reputation as a writer was at once established4 ,men of science1 however1 though acknowledging the graphic and elegant diction of his descriptions1 had some doubts as to their truthfulness4 ,indeed1 by some geologists they were cast aside as fanciful1 and other restorations of the ,old ,red fishes were proposed and adopted4 ,those who are acquainted with ,old ,red ichthyolites1 or who have had the pleasure of examining the exquisite series in ,mr4 ,miller's collection1 may well smile at the absurdity of the restorations that were adopted4 ,yet some of these found their way into a work of no little popularity1--,mantell's ,medals of ,creation4 ,it is sufficient to state that the drawings there given bear no resemblance to anything in the heavens above or on the earth beneath1 or in the waters under the earth1 nor to any fossil organism that has ever been discovered4 ,at length the progress of investigation led to the discarding of these monstrosities1 and ,miller's restorations were returned to1 as1 after all1 the true ones4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone formed an era in the history of fossil geology4 ,that formation had hitherto been regarded as well nigh barren of organic remains2 but ,mr4 ,miller demonstrated that it contains at least three successive stages1 each characterized by a suite of uncouth and hitherto unknown fishes4 ,a few years later he published his ,footprints of the ,creator4 ,this is undoubtedly his chef-d'oeuvre1 exhibiting1 as it does1 the full powers of his massive intellect and his poetic imagination4 ,as a piece of scientific investigation and research1 it is of a very high order2 as a reply to the crudities of the development theory1 it is unanswerable2 and as a contribution to our physico-theological literature1 it ranks1 with ,chalmers' ,astronomical ,lectures1 among the finest in this or any other language4 ,some of the ideas are as profound as they are original1 opening up a new field of thought1 which it was doubtless the intention of the deceased himself to cultivate4 ,his published works1 however1 contain but a fraction1 of the labors of his lifetime4 ,for many years past he has been1 one of the most energetic members of the ,royal ,physical ,society1 at whose meetings he from time to time made known the progress of his researches4 ,were these papers collected1 they would form several goodly volumes4 ,but their author studiously refrained from publishing them1 save occasionally in the columns of the ,witness newspaper4 ,it was his intention that they should each form a part of the great work of his life1 to which for many years his leisure moments had been devoted4 ,his design was to combine the results of all his labors among the different rock formations of ,scotland into one grand picture of the geological history of our country4 ,for this end he had explored a large part of the ,scottish counties1 anxious that his statements should rest as far as possible upon the authority of his own personal investigations4 ,his knowledge of the geology of the country was thus far more extensive than was generally supposed4 ,we may refer particularly to that branch of it on which he bestowed the unremitted attention of his closing years1--the palontological history of the glacial beds1--that strange and as yet almost unknown period that ushered in the existing creation4 ,he studied it minutely along the shores of the ,moray ,firth1 on the east coast of ,scotland1 along the shores of ,fife and the ,lothians1 and on the coast of ,ayrshire and the ,firth of ,clyde4 ,this last summer he made a tour through the centre of the island1 and obtained boreal shells at ,buchlyvie in ,stirlingshire1--the omphalos of ,scotland4 ,the importance of this discovery1 in connection with those he had previously made in following out the same chain of evidence1 can only be appreciated by those who have paid some attention to geology4 ,we may state briefly that it proves the central area of ,scotland to have been submerged beneath an icy sea1 and icebergs to have grated along over what is now the busy valley of the ,forth and ,clyde1 while the waters were tenanted by shells at present found only in the ,northern ,ocean4 ,a large part of his work is written1 though it is to be feared that much knowledge1 amassed in the course of its preparation1 has perished with him4 ,in particular1 there were whole sections of his ,museum understood only by himself4 ,every little fragment had its story1 and contributed its quota of evidence to the truth of his descriptions4 ,there is1 perhaps1 but another mind in ,britain1--that of ,sir ,philip ,egerton1--that can catch up the thread1 and read off1 though with difficulty1 the meaning of those carefully arranged fragments4 ,yet1 even with such aid1 much must long1 if not forever1 remain dark and obscure4 ,the work on which he was more immediately engaged at the time of his death was partly theological1 partly scientific4 ,it was to embrace the substance of some lectures lately delivered1 and a paper read last year before the ,british ,association at ,glasgow on the fossil plants collected by himself from the ,oolite and ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,scotland4 ,it was likewise to contain the figures of some thirty or forty hitherto undescribed species of vegetables4 ,we hope that1 as it was all but ready for publication1 it may yet be given to the world4 ,the name of ,hugh ,miller will ever stand forth as synonymous with all that is honest and manly2 as the impersonation of moral courage and indomitable energy2 as the true ideal of a self-educated man4 ,from the humblest sphere of life1 and from the toils of a stone-mason's apprentice1 without means1 without friends1 without other than the most rudimentary education1 he rose1 by his own unaided and unwearied exertions1 to fill one of the brightest pages in the annals of our country4 ,and when1 in future years1 an example is sought of unconquerable perseverance1 of fearless integrity1 and of earnest1 ceaseless activity1 the voice of universal approbation shall proclaim--the stone-mason of ,cromurty4 ,we have spoken of this mournful event only as a public calamity2 yet1 to those who were personally acquainted with the departed1 it is invested with no ordinary sadness4 ,long1 long shall they remember the playful fancy1 the rich humor1 the warm1 genial heart of their friend4 ,his simple1 open frankness endeared him to every one1 though his retiring disposition prevented him from making many intimate friendships4 ,to those who enjoyed this higher privilege1 his death must have caused the most poignant regret4 ,yet what can even their sorrow be to that of the relatives of the departed8 ,we lament the death of one who was alike an honor to his profession1 to literature1 to science1 and to his country1--one of the most loved and cherished of friends4 ,let us not forget to mingle our sympathy and our sorrow with that deeper grief that mourns the loss of a husband and a father4 ,as coming from a different quarter1 and presenting a somewhat different view1 the following1 from the ,london ,literary ,gazette1 should have a place here4 ,hugh ,miller was born at ,cromarty in #ahje4 ,in his early life he worked as a laborer in the ,sandstone quarries in his native district1 and afterwards as a stone-mason in different parts of ,scotland4 ,in a work published in #ahed1 ,my ,schools and ,schoolmasters1 or the story of my ,education1 ,mr4 ,miller gives a most interesting account of his early history1 and of the training and self-culture by which he rose to honorable rank in literature and science4 ,notwithstanding the unpretending statements of this narrative1 and the disavowal of any other elements of success than are within ordinary reach1 every reader of that book feels that homage is due to a genius original and rare1 as well as to natural talents diligently and judiciously cultivated4 ,while professedly written for the benefit of the working classes of his own country1 there are few who may not derive pleasant and profitable lessons from this most remarkable piece of autobiography4 ,after being engaged in manual labor for about fifteen years1 ,mr4 ,miller was for some time manager of a bank that was established in his native town4 ,while in this position1 a pamphlet that he published1 on the ecclesiastical controversies which then distracted ,scotland1 attracted the attention of the leaders of the party who now form the ,free ,church1 and they invited him to be editor of the ,witness newspaper1 then about to be established for the advocacy of their principles4 ,mr4 ,miller had already published a volume of ,legendary ,tales of ,cromarty1 of which the late ,baron ,hume1 nephew of the historian1 himself a man of much judgment and taste1 said it was written in an ,english style1 which he had begun to regard as one of the lost arts4 ,the ability displayed by ,mr4 ,miller as editor of the ,witness1 and the influence exerted by him on ecclesiastical and educational events in ,scotland1 are well known4 ,mr4 ,miller did not confine his newspaper to topics of local or passing interest4 ,in its columns he made public his geological observations and researches2 and most of his works originally appeared in the form of articles in that newspaper4 ,it was in #ahdj1 the year at which the autobiographical memoir closes1 that the name of ,hugh ,miller first became widely known beyond his own country4 ,at the meeting of the ,british ,association for the ,advancement of ,science at ,glasgow that year1 ,sir ,roderick1 then ,mr4 ,murchison1 gave an account of the striking discoveries recently made in the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,scotland4 ,m4 ,agassiz1 who was present1 pointed out the peculiarities and the importance of these discoveries2 and it was on this occasion that he proposed to associate the name of ,mr4 ,miller with them1 by the wonderful fossil1 the ,pterichthys ,milleri1 specimens of which were then under the notice of the section4 ,dr4 ,buckland1 following ,m4 ,agassiz1 said that he had never been so much astonished in his life by the powers of any man as he had been by the geological descriptions of ,mr4 ,miller4 ,he described these objects with a felicity which made him ashamed of the comparative meagreness and poverty of his own descriptions in the ',bridgewater ,treatise1' which had cost him hours and days of labor4 ,he 7,dr4 ,buckland7 would give his left hand to possess such powers of description as this man2 and if it pleased ,providence to spare his useful life1 he1 if any one1 would certainly render the science attractive and popular1 and do equal service to theology and geology4 ,at the meetings of the ,association1 the language of panegyric and of mutual compliment is not unfrequent1 and does not signify much2 but these were spontaneous tributes of praise to one comparatively unknown4 ,the publication of the volume on the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 with the details of the author's discoveries and researches1 more than justified all the anticipations that had been formed4 ,it was received with highest approbation1 not by men of science alone1 for the interest of its facts1 but by men of letters1 for the beauty of its style4 ,sir ,roderick ,murchison1 in his address to the ,geological ,society that year1 hailed the accession to their science of such a writer1 and said that his work is1 to a beginner1 worth a thousand didactic treatises4 ,the ,edinburgh ,review spoke of the book being as admirable for the clearness of its descriptions1 and the sweetness of its composition1 as for the purity and gracefulness that pervade it4 ,the impression made by such a testimony was the more marked1 that the reviewer spoke of the writer as a fellow countryman1 meritorious and self-taught4 ,in #ahdg appeared ,first ,impressions of ,england and its ,people1 the result of a tour made during the previous year4 ,some parts of this book1 especially the account of the pilgrimages to ,stratford-on-,avon1 and the ,leasowes1 and ,olney1 and other places memorable for their literary associations1 are as fine pieces of descriptive writing as the ,english language possesses4 ,this magic of style characterized all his works1 whether those of a more popular kind1 or his scientific treatises1 such as the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and ,footprints of the ,creator1 a volume suggested by the ,vestiges of ,creation1 and subversive of the fallacies of that superficial and plausible book4 ,not one of the authors of our day has approached ,hugh ,miller as a master of ,english composition1 for the equal of which we must go back to the times of ,addison1 ,hume1 and ,goldsmith4 ,other living writers have now a wider celebrity1 but they owe it much to the peculiarities of their style or the popularity of their topics4 ,mr4 ,miller has taken subjects of science1 too often rendered dry and repulsive1 and has thrown over them an air of attractive romance4 ,his writings on literature1 history1 and politics1 are known to comparatively few1 from having appeared in the columns of a local newspaper4 ,a judicious selection from his miscellaneous articles in the ,witness would widely extend his fame1 and secure for him a place1 in classic ,english literature1 as high as he held during his life as a periodical writer and as a scientific geologist4 ,the personal appearance of ,mr4 ,miller1 or ,old ,red1 as he was familiarly named by his scientific friends1 will not be forgotten by any who have seen him4 ,a head of great massiveness1 magnified by an abundant profusion of sub-,celtic hair1 was set on a body of muscular compactness1 but which in later years felt the undermining influence of a life of unusual physical and mental toil4 ,generally wrapped in a bulky plaid1 and with a garb ready for any work1 he had the appearance of a shepherd from the ,rosshire hills rather than an author and a man of science4 ,in conversation or in lecturing1 the man of original genius and cultivated mind at once shone out1 and his abundant information and philosophical acuteness were only less remarkable than his amiable disposition1 his generous spirit1 and his consistent1 humble piety4 ,literature and science have lost in him one of their brightest ornaments1 and ,scotland one of its greatest men4 99 99 99 99 99 ,on the ,sabbath following ,mr4 ,miller's death1 sermons referring to the event were preached in many of the churches in ,edinburgh4 ,some of these were reported in the newspapers1 among which may be mentioned those by the ,rev4 ,drs4 ,hanna1 ,guthrie1 ,hetherington1 ,begg1 and ,tweedie4 ,on ,monday1 ,december the #bith1 the ,funeral ,obsequies were performed4 ,the following account of the imposing ceremonial is from the ,edinburgh ,witness4 ,,funeral ,,of ,,mr4 ,,hugh ,,miller4 ,the mortal remains of this truly great man were consigned to the grave on ,monday1 amid the most marked demonstrations of sorrow on the part of the entire community4 ,the private company1 numbering about sixty individuals1 met at ,shrub ,mount1 the residence of the deceased at ,portobello1 about a quarter to one in the afternoon4 ,amongst those present were the ,lord ,provost of ,edinburgh2 ,a4,m4 ,dunlop1 ,esq41 ,m4,p42 ,a4 ,black1 ,esq41 ,m4,p42 ,professors ,simpson1 ,balfour1 and ,fraser2 ,rev4 ,principal ,cunningham2 ,professor ,james ,buchanan2 ,rev4 ,drs4 ,guthrie1 ,candlish1 ,hanna1 ,bruce1 ,begg1 ,hetherington1 and ,wylie2 ,rev4 ,messrs4 ,m',kenzie of ,dunfermline1 ,cameron and ,hunter of ,nagpoor2 ,maurice ,lothian1 ,esq42 ,geo4 ,dalziell1 ,esq41 ,w4,s42 ,w4 ,wood1 ,esq42 ,r4 ,paul1 ,esq42 ,francis ,russell1 ,esq41 advocate2 ,m4 ,torrance1 ,esq42 ,dr4 ,russell2 ,dr4 ,geo4 ,bell2 ,j4,f4 ,macfarlan1 ,esq42 ,archibald ,gibson1 ,esq42 and ,councillor ,johnston4 ,the devotional exercises were conducted by ,dr4 ,guthrie1 who was deeply affected during the prayer1 and whose feelings at times threatened to overcome him4 ,thirteen two-horse mourning coaches were here in waiting to convey the company to the place of sepulture in the ,grange ,cemetery1 preceded by the hearse1 which had four horses4 ,the melancholy event1 as might have been expected1 cast a gloom over the whole of ,portobello2 and the ,provost and ,magistrates1 anticipating the general feeling of the inhabitants1 to whom ,mr4 ,miller had endeared himself by his genius and the modesty of his demeanor1 and also by the readiness which he ever displayed to contribute to their intellectual elevation1 by taking part in several courses of popular lectures in the town1 recommended the closing of the different shops1--a request which was at once readily complied with4 ,another striking proof of the general desire to pay the last tribute of respect to the remains of the deceased1 was furnished by the circumstance that upwards of one hundred gentlemen1 many of whom had1 so recently as the previous ,tuesday1 listened to the reading of one of the ablest of his lectures1 by the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,wight1 the ,congregational minister1 met at half-past twelve in the ,free ,church1 in order to accompany the funeral1 either on foot or in carriages1 to the burial place1--a distance of about four miles4 ,after a short1 impressive religious service1 conducted by the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,philip and the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,wight1 they proceeded to join the private company1 who had by this time taken their places in the mourning carriages1 on their way to ,edinburgh4 ,on reaching the ,general ,post-,office1 in ,waterloo ,place1 the ranks of the funeral procession were largely augmented1 there being here as many as from twenty to thirty private carriages in waiting1 filled with the leading citizens1 and a large body of the inhabitants1 of all ranks1 classes1 and denominations1 drawn up in line three or four abreast4 ,the ,kirk-,session of ,free ,st4 ,john's1 of which ,mr4 ,miller was an office-bearer1 headed by the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,guthrie and the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,hanna1 who left the carriage at the ,post-,office1 occupied the front of the procession1 immediately followed by the ,royal ,physical ,society1 of which the lamented deceased was a leading member1 the employes in the ,witness office1 and a large body of the general public4 ,a still more numerous body of the citizens1 as well as of parties from ,glasgow1 ,liverpool1 ,stirling1 ,bridge of ,allan1 and other parts of the country1 drew up in the rear of the long line of carriages1 while the sides of the streets were also lined with mourners1 who accompanied the procession to the ,cemetery4 ,besides the large concourse of people who here joined the procession1 the whole front of the ,register ,office and the corners of the ,north ,bridge were densely occupied by some thousands of spectators2 and it may be safely said1 that no event since the death of ,dr4 ,chalmers has caused such deep-felt sorrow and regret in ,edinburgh4 ,the numbers present in the funeral cortege must have amounted to from one to two thousand2 indeed1 one paper states that at one time there could not have been many less than four thousand people in the procession2 whilst another journal says1 that although the inclemency of the weather1 the day being one of the dreariest of the season1 kept back many who would otherwise have swelled the line of mourners1 even with this drawback1 it has been informed that the attendance was even greater than on the occasion of the funeral of ,dr4 ,chalmers in #ahdg4 ,after a short delay1 caused by these accessions to the procession1 the whole moved up the ,north ,bridge4 ,it was gratifying to observe that nearly all the shops on the ,north and ,south ,bridges1 and in ,nicolson and ,clerk streets1 along which the cortege passed1 were closed2 and along the whole route many a saddened countenance and tearful eye could be seen1 all testifying to the deep respect entertained for him whose manly form had so often traversed these same streets4 ,on reaching the entrance of the ,grange ,cemetery1 the coffin was removed from the hearse1 and borne shoulder high to the tomb1 followed by the pall-bearers and the general company4 ,the ground selected for the burial-place is the westmost space but one on the northern side of the ,cemetery1 and in a line with the graves of ,dr4 ,chalmers1 ,sir ,andrew ,agnew1 and ,sheriff ,speirs1 with which it is in close proximity4 ,as many of our readers are aware1 the situation is one of surpassing scenic beauty1 and was described by the deceased's own matchless pen but a few years ago1 on the occasion of the burial of ,chalmers2 and certainly in the grave of ,hugh ,miller a new feature of attraction has been added to the spot4 ,the pall-bearers were ,mr4 ,miller's oldest son1--a boy about fourteen years of age1--who was accompanied by his younger brother1 six or seven years old2 ,mr4 ,a4 ,williamson1 his half-brother and nearest kinsman2 ,mr4 ,fairly1 his partner in business2 ,rev4 ,dr4 ,guthrie1 ,rev4 ,dr4 ,hanna1 ,mr4 ,dunlop1 ,m4,p41 ,mr4 ,r4 ,paul1 and ,principal ,cunningham4 ,the mournful ceremony was now near its close4 ,as the heavy1 dull sound1 caused by the fall of the damp earth upon the coffin1 fell upon the ear1 a sad and painful sensation crept over the frame1 increased as this was by the wintry aspect of the day and the heavy leaden sky1 which1 like a pall1 was spread over the face of nature1 in striking harmony with the solemnity of the scene4 ,a few minutes more1 and all was over2 and the vast company1 uncovered1 paid the closing mark of respect to the ashes of the mighty dead4 ,a touching scene occurred at the close of all4 ,after the whole of the company had retired1 a laboring man1 clad in humble habiliments1 seized hold of a handful of ivy or laurel leaves1 and gently strewed them upon the grave1 while the tearful eye eloquently spoke of the strength of his feelings4 ,so passed away one of whom ,dr4 ,chalmers made the remark that since ,scott's death he was the greatest ,scotchman that was left4 ,the space his name occupied in the literary and scientific world1 says another1 could hardly have been conjectured1 but for the blank he leaves behind him now that he has left it4 ,other men may have extended the domain of science wider2 but no man has done more to extend the circle of its votaries by the magic of his style and the life-like power of his descriptions2 nor has any man done more to keep together the claims1 too often made to appear divergent1 of ,science and ,religion1 and to blend them into one intelligent and reasonable service4 ,it was worth while to have lived to effect this1 even at the cost of the clouds which saddened and darkened the close4 ,but ----'glory without end ,scatters the clouds away2 and on that name attend ,the thanks and praises of all time4' ,a ,,prayer ,,by ,,john ,,knox1 ,,made ,,at ,,the ,,first ,,assemblie ,,of ,,the ,,congregation1 ,,when ,,the ,,confession ,,of ,,our ,,faithe ,,and ,,whole ,,orders ,,of ,,the ,,church ,,was ,,there ,,red ,,and ,,approved4#c ,o ,lord ,god ,almightie1 and ,father moste mcrcifull1 there is none lyke thee in heaven nor in earthe1 which workest all thinges for the glorie of thy name and the comfort of thyne elect4 ,thou dydst once make man ruler over all thy creatures1 and placed hym in the garden of all pleasures2 but how soone1 alas1 dyd he in his felicitie forget thy goodness8 ,thy people ,israel also1 in their wealth dyd evermore runne astray1 abusinge thy manifold mercies2 lyke as all fleshe contynually rageth when it hath gotten libertie and external prosperitie4 ,but such is thy wisdome adjoyned to thy mercies1 deare ,father1 that thou sekest all means possible to brynge thy chyldren to the sure sense and lyvely feelinge of thy fatherly favour4 ,and therefore when prosperitie wyll not serve1 then sendest thow adversitie1 graciously correctinge all thy chyldren whome thou receyvest into thy howshold4 ,wherfore we1 wretched and miserable synners1 render unto thee most humble and hartie thankes1 that yt hath pleased thee to call us home to thy folde by thy ,fatherly correction at this present1 wheras in our prosperitie and libertie we dyd neglect thy graces offered unto us4 ,for the which negligence1 and many other grevous synnes whereof we now accuse our selves before thee1 thow mightest moste justly have gyven us up to reprobate mynds and induration of our hartes1 as thow haste done others4 ,but such is thy goodnes1 ,o ,lord1 that thou semest to forget alt our offences1 and haste called us of thy good pleasure from all idolatries into this ,citie most ,christianlye refourmed1 to professe thy name1 and to suffer some crosse amongest thy people for thy truth and ,gospell's sake2 and so to be thy wytnesses with thy ,prophets and ,apostles1 yea1 with thy dearely beloved ,sonne ,jesus ,christ our head1 to whome thow dost begynne here to fashion us lyke1 that in his glorie we may also be lyke hym when he shall appear4 ,o ,lord ,god1 what are we upon whome thowe shuldest shewe this great mercye8 ,o moste lovynge ,lord1 forgyve us our unthankfulnes1 and all our synnes1 for ,jesus ,christ's sake4 ,o heavenly ,father1 increase thy ,holy ,spirit in us1 to teache our heartes to cry ,abba1 deare ,father6 to assure us of our eternal election in ,christ2 to revele thy wyll more and more towards us2 to confirme us so in thy trewthe1 that we may lyve and dye therein2 and that by the power of the same ,spirit we may boldlely gyve an accompts of our faith to all men with humblenes and mekenes1 that whereas they backbyte and slaunder us as evyll doers1 they may be ashamed and once stopp their mowthes1 seinge our good conversation in ,christ ,iesu1 for whose sake we beseche thee1 ,o ,lord ,god1 to guide1 governe1 and prosper this our enterprise in assemblinge our bretherne1 to prayse thy holie name4 ,and not only to be here present with us thy children according to thy promesse1 but also mercifullie to assist thy like persecuted people1 our ,bretherne1 gathered in all other places1 that they and we1 consentinge together in one spirite and truethe1 may 7all worldly respectes set a part7 seke thy onely honor and glorie in all our and their ,assemblies4 ,,so ,,be ,,it4 ,,the ,,testimony ,,of ,,the ,,rocks4 ,,lecture ,,first4 ,,the ,,pal,,ontological ,,history ,,of ,,plants4 ,palontology1 or the science of ancient organisms1 deals1 as its subject1 with all the plants and animals of all the geologic periods4 ,it bears nearly the same sort of relation to the physical history of the past1 that biography does to the civil and political history of the past4 ,for just as a complete biographic system would include every name known to the historian1 a complete palontologic system would include every fossil known to the geologist4 ,it enumerates and describes all the organic existences of all the extinct creations1--all the existences1 too1 of the present creation that occur in the fossil or semi-fossil form2 and1 thus coextensive in space with the earth's surface1--nay1 greatly more than coextensive with the earth's surface1--for in the vast hieroglyphic record which our globe composes1 page lies beneath page1 and inscription covers over inscription1--coextensive1 too1 in time1 with every period in the terrestrial history since being first began upon our planet1--it presents to the student a theme so vast and multifarious1 that it might seem but the result1 on his part1 of a proper modesty1 conscious of the limited range of his powers1 and of the brief and fleeting term of his life1 were he to despair of being ever able effectually to grapple with it4 ,but1 to borrow from one of the most ingenious of our ,scottish metaphysicians1 in this1 as in other instances in which nature has given us difficulties with which to cope1 she has not left us to be wholly overcome4 ,if1 says ,dr4 ,thomas ,brown1 in his remarks on the classifying principle1--if she has placed us in a labyrinth1 she has at the same time furnished us with a clue which may guide us1 not1 indeed1 through all its dark and intricate windings1 but through those broad paths which conduct us into day4 ,the single power by which we discover resemblance or relation in general1 is a sufficient aid to us in the perplexity or confusion of our first attempts at arrangement4 ,it begins by converting thousands1 and more than thousands1 into one2 and1 reducing in the same manner the numbers thus formed1 it arrives at last at the few distinctive characters of those great comprehensive tribes on which it ceases to operate1 because there is nothing left to oppress the memory or the understanding4 ,but1 is this all8 ,can the ,palontologist but say that that classifying principle1 which in every other department of science yields such assistance to the memory1 is also of use in his1 or but urge that it enables him to sort and arrange his facts2 and that1 by converting one idea into the type and exemplar of many resembling ones1 it imparts to him an ability of carrying not inadequate conceptions of the mighty whole in his mind8 ,if this were all1 you might well ask1 ,why obtrude upon us1 in connection with your special science1 a common semi-metaphysical idea1 equally applicable to all the sciences1--in especial1 for example1 to that botany which is the science of existing plants1 and to that zoology which is the science of existing animals8 ,nay1 ,i reply1 but it is not all4 ,i refer to this classifying principle because1 while it exists in relation to all other sciences as a principle--to use the words of the metaphysician just quoted--given to us by nature1--as a principle of the mind within1--it exists in ,palontological science as a principle of nature itself1--as a principle palpably external to the mind4 ,it is a marvellous fact1 whose full meaning we can as yet but imperfectly comprehend1 that myriads of ages ere there existed a human mind1 well nigh the same principles of classification now developed by man's intellect in our better treatises of zoology and botany1 were developed on this earth by the successive geologic periods2 and that the by-past productions of our planet1 animal and vegetable1 were chronologically arranged in its history1 according to the same laws of thought which impart regularity and order to the works of the later naturalist and phytologists4 ,i need scarce say how slow and interrupted in both provinces the course of arrangement has been1 or how often succeeding writers have had to undo what their predecessors had done1 only to have their own classifications set aside by their successors in turn4 ,at length1 however1 when the work appears to be well nigh completed1 a new science has arisen1 which presents us with a very wonderful means of testing it4 ,cowley1 in his too eulogistic ode to ,hobbes1--smit by the singular ingenuity of the philosophic infidel1 and unable to look through his sophisms to the consequences which they involved1--could say1 in addressing him1 that only ,god could know ,whether the fair idea he did show ,agreed entirely with ,god's own or no4 ,and he then not very wisely added1-- ,this1 ,i dare boldly tell1 ',t is so like truth1 't will serve our turn as well4 ,we now know1 however1 that no mere resemblance to truth will for any considerable length of time serve its turn4 ,it is because the resemblances have1 like those of ,hobbes1 been mere resemblances1 that so much time and labor have had to be wasted by the pioneers of science in their removal2 and1 now that a wonderful opportunity has occurred of comparing1 in this matter of classification1 the human with the ,divine idea1--the idea embodied by the zoologists and botanists in their respective systems1 with the idea embodied by the ,creator of all in geologic history1--we cannot perhaps do better1 in entering upon our subject1 than to glance briefly at the great features in which ,god's order of classification1 as developed in ,palontology1 agrees with the order in which man has at length learned to range the living productions1 plant and animal1 by which he is surrounded1 and of which he himself forms the most remarkable portion4 ,in an age in which a class of writers not without their influence in the world of letters would fain repudiate every argument derived from design1 and denounce all who hold with ,paley and ,chalmers as anthropomorphists1 that labor to create for themselves a god of their own type and form1 it may be not altogether unprofitable to contemplate the wonderful parallelism which exists between the ,divine and human systems of classification1 and--remembering that the geologists who have discovered the one had no hand in assisting the naturalists and phytologists who framed the other--soberly to inquire whether we have not a new argument in the fact for an identity in constitution and quality of the ,divine and human minds1--not a mere fanciful identity1 the result of a disposition on the part of man to imagine to himself a ,god bearing his own likeness1 but an identity real and actual1 and the result of that creative act by which ,god formed man in his own image4 ,the study of plants and animals seems to have been a favorite one with thoughtful men in every age of the world4 ,according to the ,psalmist1 these great works of the ,lord are sought out of all them that have pleasure therein4 ,the ,book of ,job1 probably the oldest writing in existence1 is full of vivid descriptions of the wild denizens of the flood and desert2 and it is expressly recorded of the wise old king1 that he spake of trees1 from the cedar tree that is in ,lebanon1 even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall2 and also of beasts1 and of fowl1 and of creeping things1 and of fishes4 ,solomon was a zoologist and botanist2 and there is palpable classification in the manner in which his studies are described4 ,it is a law of the human mind1 as has been already said1 that1 wherever a large stock of facts are acquired1 the classifying principle steps in to arrange them4 ,even the rudest wanderer in the fields1 says ,dr4 ,brown1 finds that the profusion of blossoms around him--in the greater number of which he is able himself to discover many striking resemblances--may be reduced to some order of arrangement4 ,but1 for many centuries1 this arranging faculty labored but to little purpose4 ,as specimens of the strange classification that continued to obtain down till comparatively modern times1 let us select that of two works which1 from the literary celebrity of their authors1 still possess a classical standing in letters1--,cowley's ,treatise on ,plants1 and ,goldsmith's ,history of the ,earth and ,animated ,nature4 ,the plants we find arranged by the poet on the simple but very inadequate principle of size and show4 ,herbs are placed first1 as lowest and least conspicuous in the scale2 then flowers2 and1 finally1 trees4 ,among the herbs1 at least two of the ferns--the true maidenhair and the spleenwort--are assigned places among plants of such high standing as sage1 mint1 and rosemary3 among the flowers1 monocotyledons1 such as the iris1 the tulip1 and the lily1 appear among dicotyledons1 such as the rose1 the violet1 the sunflower1 and the auricula3 and among trees we find the palms placed between the plum and the olive2 and the yew1 the fir1 and the juniper1 flanked on one side by the box and the holly1 and on the other by the oak4 ,such1 in treating of plants1 was the classification adopted by one of the most learned of ,english poets in the year #afeg4 ,nor was ,goldsmith1-who wrote more than a century later1 much more fortunate in dealing with the animal kingdom4 ,buffon had already published his great work2 and even he could bethink him of no better mode of dividing his animals than into wild and tame4 ,and in ,goldsmith1 who adopted1 in treating of the mammals1 a similar principle1 we find the fishes and molluscs placed1 in advance of the sauroid1 ophidian1 and batrachian reptiles1--the whale united in close relationship to the sharks and rays1--animals of the tortoise kind classed among animals of the lobster kind1 and both among shell fish1 such as the snail1 the nautilus1 and the oyster4 ,and yet ,goldsmith was engaged on his work little more than eighty years ago4 ,in fine1 the true principles of classification in the animal kingdom are of well nigh as recent development as geologic science itself1 and not greatly more ancient in even the vegetable kingdom4 ,it would1 of course1 be wholly out of place to attempt giving a minute history here of the progress of arrangement in either department2 but it can scarce be held that the natural system of plants was other than very incomplete previous to #aghi1 when ,jussieu first enunciated his scheme of classification2 nor did it receive its later improvements until so late as #ahdf1 when1 after the publication1 in succession1 of the schemes of ,de ,candolle and ,endlicher1 ,lindley communicated his finished system to the world4 ,and there certainly existed no even tolerably perfect system of zoology until #ahaf1 when the ,animal ,kingdom of ,cuvier appeared4 ,later naturalists1--such as ,agassiz1 in his own special department1 the history of fishes1 and ,professor ,owen in the invertebrate divisions1--have improved on the classification of even the great ,frenchman2 but for purposes of comparison between the scheme developed in geologic history and that at length elaborated by the human mind1 the system of ,cuvier will be found1 for at least our present purpose1 sufficiently complete4 ,and in tracing through time the course of the vegetable kingdom1 let us adopt1 as our standard to measure it by1 the system of ,lindley4 ,commencing at the bottom of the scale1 we find the ,thallogens1 or flowerless plants which lack proper stems and leaves1--a class which includes all the alg4 ,next succeed the ,acrogens1 or flowerless plants that possess both stems and leaves1--such as the ferns and their allies4 ,next1 omitting an inconspicuous class1 represented by but a few parasitical plants incapable of preservation as fossils1 come the ,endogens1--monocotyledonous flowering plants1 that include the palms1 the liliace1 and several other families1 all characterized by the parallel venation of their leaves4 ,next1 omitting another inconspicuous tribe1 there follows a very important class1--the ,gymnogens1--polycotyledonous trees1 represented by the conifers2 and cycadace4 ,and1 last of all1 come the ,dicotyledonous ,exogens1--a class to which all our fruit1 and what are known as our forest trees1 belong1 with a vastly preponderating majority of the herbs and flowers that impart fertility and beauty to our gardens and meadows4 ,this last class1 though but one1 now occupies much greater space in the vegetable kingdom than all the others united4 ,such is the arrangement of ,lindley1 or rather an arrangement the slow growth of ages1 to which this distinguished botanist has given the last finishing touches4 ,and let us now mark how closely it resembles the geologic arrangement as developed in the successive stages of the earth's history4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #a4d -------------------------- ,thallogens4 ,silurian4 ,acrogens4 ------------------------- ,gymnogens4 ,old ,red4 ------------------------ ,monocotyledons4 ,carboniferous4 ----------------------- ,permian4 ----------------------- ,triassic4 ----------------------- 3 ,dicotyledons4 ,oolitic4 3 ---------------------- ,cretaceous4 ---------------------- ,dicotyledonous ,trees4 ,tertiary4 ---------------------- ,geologic ,thal4 ,ac4 ,gy4 ,mon4 ,dic4 arrangement4 ,lindley's ,thal4 ,ac4 ,mon4 ,gy4 ,dic4 arrangement4 ,,the ,,genealogy ,,of ,,plants4 ,the most ancient period of whose organisms any trace remains in the rocks seems to have been1 prevailingly at least1 a period of ,thallogens4 ,we must1 of course1 take into account the fact1 that it has yielded no land plants1 and that the sea is everywhere now1 as of old1 the great habitat of the alg1--one of the four great orders into which the ,thallogens are divided4 ,there appear no traces of a terrestrial vegetation until we reach the uppermost beds of the ,upper ,silurian ,system4 ,but1 account for the fact as we may1 it is at least worthy of notice1 that1 alike in the systems of our botanists and in the chronological arrangements of our geologists1 the first or introductory class which occurs in the ascending order is this humble ,thallogenic class4 ,there is some trace in the ,lower ,silurians of ,scotland of a vegetable structure which may have belonged to one of the humbler ,endogens1 of which1 at least1 a single genus1 the ,zosterace1 still exists in salt water2 but the trace is faint and doubtful1 and1 even were it established1 it would form merely a solitary exception to the general evidence that the first known period of vegetable existence was a period of ,thallogens4 ,the terrestrial remains of the ,upper ,silurians of ,england1 the oldest yet known1 consist chiefly of spore-like bodies1 which belonged1 says ,dr4 ,hooker1 to ,lycopodiace1--an order of the second or acrogenic class4 ,and1 in the second great geologic period1--that of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1--we find this second class not inadequately represented4 ,in its lowest fossiliferous beds we detect a ,lycopodite which not a little resembles one of the commonest of our club mosses1--,lycopodium clavatum1--with a minute fern and a large striated plant resembling a calamite1 and evidently allied to an existing genus of ,acrogens1 the equisetace4 ,in the ,middle ,old ,red ,sandstone there also occurs a small fern1 with some trace of a larger2 and one of its best preserved vegetable organisms is a lepidodendron1--an extinct ally of the ,lycopodiums2 while in the upper beds of the system1 especially as developed in the south of ,ireland1 the noble fern known as ,cyclopteris ,hibernicus is very abundant4 ,this fern has been detected also in the ,upper ,old ,red of our own country1 mingled with fragments of contemporary calamites4 ,with1 however1 these earliest plants of the land yet known1 there occurs a true wood1 which belonged1 as shown by its structure1 to a gymnospermous or polycotyledonous tree1 and which we find associated with remains of ,coccosteus and ,diplacanthus4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #b4 ,,cyclopteris ,,hibernicus4 7,nat4 size47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #c4 ,,conifer ,,of ,,the ,,lower ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone4 ,cromarty4 7,mag4 forty diameters47 ,and here let me remark1 that the facts of ,palontological science compel us to blend1 in some degree1 with the classification of our modern botanists1 that of the botanists of an earlier time4 ,in a passage already quoted1 ,solomon is said to have discoursed of plants1 from the cedar tree that is in ,lebanon1 to the hyssop that springeth out of the wall1--from the great tree to the minute herb2 and ,cowley rose1 in his metrical treatise1 as has been shown1 from descriptions of herbs and flowers to descriptions of fruit and forest trees4 ,and as in every age in which there existed a terrestrial vegetation there seem to have been trees as certainly as herbs1 the palontological botantist finds that he has1 in consequence1 to range his classes1 not in one series1 but in two1--the ,gymnogens1 or cone-bearing trees1 in a line nearly parallel with the ,acrogens1 or flowerless1 spore-bearing herbs4 ,but the arrangement is in no degree the less striking from the circumstance that it is ranged1 not in one1 but in two lines4 ,it is1 however1 an untoward arrangement for the purposes of the ,lamarckian1 whose peculiar hypothesis would imperatively demand1 not a double1 but a single column1 in which the ferns and club mosses would stand far in advance1 in point of time1 of the ,conifer4 ,in the ,coal ,measures1 so remarkable for the great luxuriance of their flora1 both the ,gymnogens and ,acrogens are largely developed1 with a very puzzling intermediate class1 that1 while they attained to the size of trees1 like the former1 retained in a remarkable degree1 as in the ,lepidodendra and the ,calamites1 the peculiar features of the latter4 ,and with these there appear1 though more sparingly1 the ,endogens1--monocotyledonous plants1 represented by a few palm-like trees 7,palmacites71 a few date-like fruits 7,trigonocarpum71 and a few grass-like herbs 7,poacites74 ,in the great ,secondary division1 the true dicotyledonous plants first appear2 but1 so far as is yet known1 no dicotyledonous wood4 ,in the earlier formations of the division a degree of doubt attaches to even the few leaves of this class hitherto detected2 but in the ,lower ,cretaceous strata they become at once unequivocal in their character1 and comparatively abundant1 both as individuals and species2 and in the ,tertiary deposits they greatly outnumber all the humbler classes1 and appear not only as herbs1 but also as great trees4 ,not1 however1 until shortly before the introduction of man do some of their highest orders1 such as the ,rosace1 come upon the scene1 as plants of that great garden--including the fields of the agriculturist--which it has been part of man's set task upon earth to keep and to dress4 ,and such seems to be the order of classification in the vegetable kingdom1 as developed in creation1 and determined by the geologic periods4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #d4e ---------------------------------------- -- ,rad4 ,art4 ,mol4 ,silurian4 ,fishes4 ---------------------------------------- - ,old ,red4 ,reptiles4 ---------------------------------------- ,carboniferous4 ---------------------------------------- ,permian4 ---------------------------------------- ,triassic4 ---------------------------------------- ,birds4 ,oolitic4 3 ,mammals4 3 -------------------------------------- 3 ,cretaceous4 3 3 -------------------------------------- ,pla4 ,mam4 ,tertiary4 ------------------------------------- ,recent4 ,man4 ------------------------------------- ,geologic ,rad4 ,art4 ,mol4 ,fish4 ,rep4 ,bird4 ,mam4 ,man4 ,arrangement4 ,cuvier's ,rad4 ,art4 ,mol4 ,fish4 ,rep4 ,bird4 ,mam4 ,man4 ,arrangement4 ,,the ,,genealogy ,,of ,,animals4 ,the parallelism which exists between the course of creation1 as exhibited in the animal kingdom1 and the classification of the greatest zoologist of modern times1 is perhaps still more remarkable4 ,cuvier divides all animals into vertebrate and invertebrate2 the invertebrates consisting1 according to his arrangement1 of three great divisions1--mollusca1 articulata1 and radiata2 and the vertebrates1 of four great classes1--the mammals1 the birds1 the reptiles1 and the fishes4 ,from the lowest zone at which organic remains occur1 up till the higher beds of the ,lower ,silurian ,system1 all the animal remains yet found belong to the invertebrate divisions4 ,the numerous tables of stone which compose the leaves of this first and earliest of the geologic volumes correspond in their contents with that concluding volume of ,cuvier's great work in which he deals with the mollusca1 articulata1 and radiata2 with1 however1 this difference1 that the three great divisions1 instead of occurring in a continnous series1 are ranged1 like the terrestrial herbs and trees1 in parallel columns4 ,the chain of animal being on its first appearance is1 if ,i may so express myself1 a threefold chain2--a fact nicely correspondent with the further fact1 that we cannot in the present creation range serially1 as either higher or lower in the scale1 at least two of these divisions1--the mollusca and articulata4 ,in one of the higher beds of the ,upper ,silurian ,system1--a bed which borders on the base of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1--the vertebrates make their earliest appearance in their fourth or ichthyic class2 and we find ourselves in that volume of the geologic record which corresponds to ,cuvier's volume on the fishes4 ,in the many-folded pages of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 till we reach the highest and last1 there occur the remains of no other vertebrates than those of this fourth class2 but in its uppermost deposits there appear traces of the third or reptilian class2 and in passing upwards still1 through the ,carboniferous1 ,permian1 and ,triassic ,systems1 we find reptiles continuing the master existences of the time4 ,the geologic volume in which these great formations are included corresponds to the ,cuvierian one devoted to the ,reptilia4 ,early in the ,oolitic ,system1 birds1 ,cuvier's second class of the vertebrata1 make their first appearance1 though their remains1 like those of birds in the present time1 are rare and infrequent2 and1 for at least the earlier periods of their existence1 we know that they were1--that they haunted for food the waters of the period1 and waded in their shallows1--only from marks similar to those by which ,crusoe became first aware of the visits paid to his island by his savage neighbors1--their footprints1 left impressed on the sands over which they stalked of old4 ,this early ,oolitic volume corresponds in its contents to the section devoted by ,cuvier1 in his great work1 to his second class1 the birds4 ,and in the ,stonisfield slate1--a deposit interposed between the ,inferior and ,great ,oolites1 we detect the earliest indications of his first or mammaliferous class1 apparently represented1 however1 by but one order1--the ,marsupiata1 or pouched animals1 to whose special place in the scale ,i shall afterwards have occasion to refer4 ,not until we reach the times of the ,tertiary division do the mammals in their higher orders appear4 ,the great ,tertiary volume corresponds to those volumes of ,cuvier which treat of the placental animals that suckle their young4 ,and finally1--last born of creation1--man appears upon the scene1 in his several races and varieties2 the sublime arch of animal being at length receives its keystone2 and the finished work stands up complete1 from foundation to pinnacle1 at once an admirably adjusted occupant of space1 and a wonderful monument of ,divine arrangement and classification1 as it exists in time4 ,save at two special points1 to which ,i shall afterwards advert1 the particular arrangement unfolded by geologic history is exactly that which the greatest and most philosophic of the naturalists had1 just previous to its discovery1 originated and adopted as most conformable to nature3 the arrangements of geologic history as exhibited in time1 if1 commencing at the earliest ages1 we pursue it downwards1 is exactly that of the ,animal ,kingdom of ,cuvier read backwards4 ,let us then1 in grappling with the vast multiplicity of our subject1 attempt reducing and simplifying it by means of the classifying principle2 not simply1 however1--again to recur to the remark of the metaphysician1--as an internal principle given us by nature1 but as an external principle exemplified by nature4 ,let us take the organisms of the old geologic periods in the order in which they occur in time2 secure1 as has been shown1 that if our chronology be correct1 our classification will1 as a consequence1 be good4 ,it will be for the natural theologians of the coming age to show the bearing of this wonderful fact on the progress of man towards the just and the solid1 and on the being and character of man's ,creator1--to establish1 on the one hand1 against the undue depreciators of intellect and its results1 that in certain departments of mind1 such as that which deals with the arrangement and development of the scheme of organic being1 human thought is not profitlessly revolving in an idle circle1 but progressing ,godwards1 and gradually unlocking the order of creation4 ,and1 on the other hand1 it will be equally his proper business to demand of the ,pantheist how1--seeing that only persons 7such as the ,cuviers and ,lindleys7 could have wrought out for themselves the real arrangement of this scheme1--how1 ,i say1 or on what principle1 it is to be held that it was a scheme originated and established at the beginning1 not by a personal1 but by an impersonal ,god4 ,but our present business is with the fact of the parallel arrangements1 ,divine and human1--not with the inferences legitimately deducible from it4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #e4 ,,oldhamia ,,antiqua2--the oldest known ,zoophyte4 ,wrae ,head1 ,ireland4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #f4 ,,pal,,ochorda ,,minor4 7,one half nat4 size47 ,beginning with the plants1 let us1 however1 remark1 that they do not precede in the order of their appearance the humbler animals4 ,no more ancient organism than the ,oldhamia of the ,lowest ,irish ,silurians1 a plant-like zoophyte somewhat resembling our modern sertularia1 has yet been detected by the geologist2 though only a few months ago the researches of ,mr4 ,salter in the ancient rocks of the ,longmynd1 ,shropshire1 previously deemed unfossiliferous1 have given1 to it what seem to be contemporary vegetable organisms1 in a few ill-preserved fucoids4 ,so far as is yet known1 plants and animals appear together4 ,the long upward march of the animal kingdom takes its departure at its starting point from a thick forest of alg4 ,in ,bohemia1 in ,norway1 in ,sweden1 in the ,british ,islands1 in ,north ,america1 wherever1 in fine1 what appears to be the lowest1 or at least one of the lowest1 zones of life has yet been detected1 the rocks are found to be darkened by the remains of alg1 so abundantly developed in some cases1 that they compose1 as in the ancient ,lower ,silurians of ,dumfriesshire1 impure beds of anthracite several feet in thickness4 ,apparently1 from the original looseness of their texture1 the individual plants are but indifferently preserved2 nor can we expect that organisms so ancient should exhibit any very close resemblance to the plants which darken the half-tide rocks and skerries of our coasts at the present time4 ,we do detect1 however1 in some of these primordial fossils1 at least a noticeable likeness to families familiar to the modern algologist4 ,the cord-like plant1 ,chorda filum1 known to our children as dead men's ropes1 from its proving fatal at times to the too adventurous swimmer who gets entangled in its thick wreaths1 had a ,lower ,silurian representative1 known to the ,palontologist as the ,palochorda1 or ancient chorda1 which existed apparently in two species1--a larger and smaller4 ,the still better known ,chondrus crispus1 the ,irish moss or carrageen of our cookery-books1 has likewise its apparent though more distant representative in ,chondritis1 a ,lower ,silurian alg1 of which there seems to exist at least three species4 ,the fucoids1 or kelp weeds1 appear to have had also their representatives in such plants as ,fucoides gracilis of the ,lower ,silurians of the ,malverns2 in short1 the ,thallogens of the first ages of vegetable life seem to have resembled1 in the group1 and in at least their more prominent features1 the alg of the existing time4 ,and with the first indications of land we pass direct from the ,thallogens to the ,acrogens1--from the sea weeds to the fern allies4 ,the ,lycopodiace21 or club mosses1 bear in the axils of their leaves minute circular cases1 which form the receptacles of their spore-like seeds4 ,and when1 high in the ,upper ,silurian ,system1 and just when preparing to quit it for the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 we detect our earliest terrestrial organisms1 we find that they are composed exclusively of those little spore receptacles4 ,the number of land plants gradually increases as we ascend into the overlying system4 ,still1 however1 the ,flora of even the ,old ,red is but meagre and poor2 and you will perhaps permit me to lighten this part of my subject1 which threatens too palpably to partake of the poverty of that with which it deals1 by a simple illustration4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #g4 ,,lycopodium ,,clavatum4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #h4 ,,equisetum ,,fluviatile4 ,we stand1 at low ebb1 on the outer edge of one of those iron-bound shores of the ,western ,highlands1 rich in forests of alg1 from which1 not yet a generation bygone1 our ,celtic proprietors used to derive a larger portion of their revenues than from their fields and moors4 ,rock and skerry are brown with sea weed4 ,the long cylindrical lines of ,chorda filum1 many feet in length1 lie aslant in the tideway2 long shaggy bunches of ,fucus serratus and ,fucus nodosus droop heavily from the rock sides2 while the flatter ledges1 that form the uneven floor upon which we tread1 bristle thick with the stiff1 cartilaginous1 many-cleft fronds of at least two species of chondrus1--the common carrageen1 and the smaller species1 ,c4 ,norvegicus4 ,now1 in the thickly-spread fucoids of this ,highland shore we have not a very inadequate representation of the first1 or thallogenic vegetation1--that of the great ,silurian period1 as exhibited in the rocks1 from the base to nearly the top of the system4 ,and should we add to the rocky tract1 rich in fucoids1 a submarine meadow of pale shell sand1 covered by a deep green swathe of zostera1 with its jointed saccharine roots and slim flowers1 unfurnished with petals1 we would render it perhaps more adequately representative still4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #i4 ,,osmunda ,,regalis4 7,royal ,fern47 ,we cross the beach1 and enter on a bare brown moor1 comparatively fertile1 however1 in the club mosses4 ,one of the largest and finest of the species1 ,lycopodium clavatum1 with its long scaly stems and upright spikes of lighter green1--altogether a graceful though flowerless plant1 which the herd-boy learns to select from among its fellows1 and to bind round his cap1--goes trailing on the drier spots for many feet over the soil2 while at the edge of trickling runnel or marshy hollow1 a smaller and less hardy species1 ,lycopodium inundatum1 takes its place4 ,the marshes themselves bristle thick with the deep green horse tail1 ,equisetum fluviatile1 with its fluted stem and verticillate series of linear brandies4 ,two other species of the same genus1 ,equisetum sylvaticum and ,equisetum arvense1 flourish on the drier parts of the moor1 blent with two species of minute ferns1 the moonwort and the adder's tongue1--ferns that1 like the magnificent royal fern 7,osmunda regalis71 though on a much humbler scale1 bear their seed cases on independent stems1 and were much sought after of old for imaginary virtues1 which the modern schools of medicine refuse to recognize4 ,higher up the moor1 ferns of ampler size occur1 and what seems to be rushes1 which bear atop conglobate panicles on their smooth leafless stems2 but at its lower edge little else appears than the higher ,acrogens1--ferns and their allies4 ,there occurs1 however1 just beyond the first group of club mosses1--a remarkable exception in a solitary pine1--the advance guard of one of the ancient forests of the country1 which may be seen far in the background1 clothing with its shaggy covering of deep green the lower hill-slopes4 ,and as we found in the ,thallogens of that littoral zone over which we have just passed1 representatives of the marine flora of the ,silurian ,system1 from the first appearance of organisms in its nether beds1 to its bone-bed of the ,upper ,ludlow rocks1 in which the ,lycopodites first appear1 so in the ,acrogens of that moor1 with its solitary coniferous tree1 we may recognize an equally striking representative of the terrestrial flora which existed during the deposition of these ,ludlow rocks1 and of the various formations of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 ,lower1 ,middle1 and ,upper4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aj4 ,,pinus ,,sylvestris4 7,scotch ,fir47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aa4 ,,calamite8 ,of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,shetland4 7,one eighth nat4 size47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ab4 ,,lycopodite8 ,of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,thurso4 7,mag4 two diameters47 ,in the upper beds of the ,upper ,silurian1 as has been already remarked1 ,lycopodites are the only terrestrial plants yet found4 ,in the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone we find added to these1 with ,thallogens that bear at least the same general character as in the system beneath1 minute ferns1 and a greatly larger plant1 allied to the horse tails4 ,the ,old ,red flora seems to have been prevailingly an acrogenic flora2 and yet with almost its first beginnings1--contemporary with at least the earlier fossils of the system in ,scotland1 we find a true polycotyledonous tree1 not lower in the scale than the araucarites of the ,coal ,measures1--which in structure it greatly resembles1--or than the pines or cedars of our own times 7see ,fig4 #c74 ,in the ,middle ,old ,red ,sandstone there occurs1 with plants representative apparently of the ferns and their allies1 a somewhat equivocal and doubtful organism1 which may have been the panicle or compound fruit of some aquatic rush2 while in the ,upper ,old ,red1 just ere the gorgeous flora of the ,coal ,measures began to be1 there existed in considerable abundance a stately fern1 the ,cyclopteris ,hibernicus 7see ,fig4 #b71 of mayhap not smaller proportions than our monarch of the ,british ferns1 ,osmunda regalis1 associated with a peculiar lepidodendron1 and what seems to be a lepidostrobus1--possibly the fructiferous spike or cone of the latter1 mingled with carbonaceous stems1 which1 in the simplicity of their texture1 and their abundance1 give evidence of a low but not scanty vegetation4 ,ere passing to the luxuriant carboniferous flora1 ,i shall make but one other remark4 ,the existing plants whence we derive our analogies in dealing with the vegetation of this early period1 contribute but little1 if at all1 to the support of animal life4 ,the ferns and their allies remain untouched by the grazing animals4 ,our native club mosses1 though once used in medicine1 are positively deleterious2 the horse tails1 though harmless1 so abound in silex1 which wraps them round with a cuticle of stone1 that they are rarely cropped by cattle2 while the thickets of fern which cover our hill-sides1 and seem so temptingly rich and green in their season1 scarce support the existence of a single creature1 and remain untouched in stem and leaf1 from their first appearance in spring1 until they droop and wither under the frosts of early winter4 ,even the insects that infest the herbaria of the botanist almost never injure his ferns4 ,nor are our resin-producing conifers1 though they nourish a few beetles1 favorites with the herbivorous tribes in a much greater degree4 ,judging from all we yet know1 the earliest terrestrial flora may have covered the dry land with its mantle of cheerful green1 and served its general purposes1 chemical and others1 in the well-balanced economy of nature2 but the herb-eating animals would have fared but ill even where it throve most luxuriantly2 and it seems to harmonize with the fact of its non-edible character1 that up to the present time we know not that a single herbivorous animal lived among its shades4 ,from all that appears1 it may be inferred that it had not to serve the purposes of the floras of the passing time1 in which1 according to the poet1 ,the world's bread depends on the shooting of a seed4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ac4 ,,fern8 of ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,orkney4 7,nat4 ,size47 ,the flora of the ,coal ,measures was the richest and most luxuriant1 in at least individual productions1 with which the fossil botanist has formed any acquaintance4 ,never before or since did our planet bear so rank a vegetation as that of which the numerous coal seams and inflammable shales of the carboniferous period form but a portion of the remains1--the portion spared1 in the first instance1 by dissipation and decay1 and in the second by the denuding agencies4 ,almost all our coal1--the stored up fuel of a world1--forms but a comparatively small part of the produce of this wonderful flora4 ,amid much that was so strange and antique of type in its productions as to set the analogies of the botanist at fault1 there occurred one solitary order1 not a few of whose species closely resembled their cogeners of the present time4 ,i refer1 of course1 to its ferns4 ,and these seem to have formed no small proportion of the entire flora of the period4 ,francis estimates the recent dorsiferous ferns of ,great ,britain at thirty-five species1 and the species of all the other genera at six more1--forty-one species in all2 and as the flowering plants of the country do not fall short of fourteen hundred species1 the ferns bear to them the rather small proportion of about one to thirty-five2 whereas of the ,british ,coal ,measure flora1 in which we do not yet reckon quite three hundred species of plants1 about a hundred and twenty were ferns4 ,three sevenths of the entire carboniferous flora of ,britain belonged to this familiar class2 and for about fifty species more we can discover no nearer analogies than those which connect them with the fern allies4 ,and if with the ,british ,coal ,measure we include those also of the ,continent of ,america1 we shall find the proportions in favor of the ferns still greater4 ,the number of carboniferous plants hitherto described amounts1 says ,m4 ,ad4 ,brogniart1 to about five hundred1 and of these two hundred and fifty1--one half of the whole1--were ferns4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ad4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ae4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #af4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ag4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ah4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ai4 ,illustration3 ,,ferns ,,of ,,the ,,coal ,,measures4#f ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bj4 ,,altingia ,,excelsa4 ,norfolk ,island ,pine4 7,young ,specimen47 ,rising in the scale from the lower to the higher vegetable forms of the system1--from its ferns to its trees1--we find great conifers1--so great that they must have raised their heads more than a hundred feet over the soil2 and such was their abundance in this neighborhood1 that one can scarce examine a fragment of coal beside one's household fire that is not charged with their carbonized remains4 ,though marked by certain peculiarities of structure1 they bore1 as is shown by the fossil trunks of ,granton and ,craigleith1 the familiar outlines of true coniferous trees2 and would mayhap have differed no more in appearance from their successors of the same order that now live in our forests1 than these differ from the conifers of ,new ,zealand or of ,new ,south ,wales4 ,we have thus1 in the numerous ferns and numerous coniferous trees of the ,coal ,measures1 known objects by which to conceive of some of the more prominent features of the flora of which they composed so large a part4 ,we have not inadequate conceptions of at once the giants of its forests and the green swathe of its plains and hill-sides1--of its mighty trees and its dwarf underwood1--of its cedars of ,lebanon1 so to speak1 and its hyssop of the wall4 ,but of an intermediate class we have no existing representatives2 and in this class the fossil botanist finds puzzles and enigmas with which hitherto at least he has been able to deal with only indifferent success4 ,there is a view1 however1 sufficiently simple1 which may be found somewhat to lessen1 if not altogether remove1 the difficulty4 ,nature does not dwell willingly in mediocrity2 and so in all ages she as certainly produced trees1 or plants of tree-like proportions and bulk1 as she did minute shrubs and herbs4 ,in not a few of the existing orders and families1 such as the ,rosace1 the ,leguminos1 the ,myrtace1 and many others1 we have plants of all sizes1 from the creeping herb1 half hidden in the sward1 to the stately tree4 ,the wild dwarf strawberry and minute stone-bramble are of the same order as our finer orchard trees1--apple1 pear1 and plum1--or as those noble hawthorn1 mountain ash1 and wild cherry trees1 that impart such beauty to our lawns and woods2 and the minute spring vetch and everlasting pea are denizens of the same great family as the tall locust and rosewood trees1 and the gorgeous laburnum4 ,did there exist no other plants than the ,rosace or the ,leguminos1 we would possess1 notwithstanding1 herbs1 shrubs1 and trees1 just as we do now4 ,and in plants of a greatly humbler order we have instances of similar variety in point of size4 ,the humblest grass in our meadows belongs to the same natural order as the tall bamboo1 that1 shooting up its panicles amid the jungles of ,india to the height of sixty feet1 looks down upon all the second class trees of the country4 ,again1 the minute forked spleenwort of ,arthur ,seat1 which rarely exceeds three inches in length1 is of the same family as those tree-ferns of ,new ,zealand and ,tasmania that rise to an elevation of from twenty to thirty feet4 ,and we know how in the ferns provision is made for the attainment and maintenance of the tree-like size and character4 ,the rachis1 which in the smaller species is either subterranean or runs along the ground1 takes in the tree-fern a different direction1 and1 rising erect1 climbs slowly upwards in the character of a trunk or stem1 and sends out atop1 year after year1 a higher and yet higher coronal of fronds4 ,and in order to impart the necessary strength to this trunk1 and to enable it to war for ages with the elements1 its mass of soft cellular tissue is strengthened all round by internal buttresses of dense vascular fibre1 tough and elastic as the strongest woods4 ,now1 not a few of the more anomalous forms of the ,coal ,measures seem to be simply fern allies of the types ,lycopodiace1 ,marsileace1 and ,equisetum1 that1 escaping from the mediocrity of mere herbs1 shot up into trees1--some of them very great trees1--and that had of necessity to be furnished with a tissue widely different from that of their minuter contemporaries and successors4 ,it was of course an absolute mechanical necessity1 that if they were to present1 by being tall and large1 a wide front to the tempest1 they should also be comparatively solid and strong to resist it2 but with this simple mechanical requirement there seems to have mingled a principle of a more occult character4 ,the ,gymnogens or conifers were the highest vegetable existences of the period1--its true trees2 and all the tree-like fern allies were strengthened to meet the necessities of their increased size1 on1 if ,i may so speak1 a coniferous principle4 ,tissue resembling that of their contemporary conifers imparted the necessary rigidity to their framework2 nay1 so strangely were they pervaded throughout by the coniferous characteristics1 that it seems difficult to determine whether they really most resembled the acrogenous or gymnogenous families4 ,the ,lepidodendra1--great plants of the club moss type1 that rose from fifty to seventy feet in height1--had well nigh as many points of resemblance to the conifer as to the ,lycopodites4 ,the ,calamites1--reed-like1 jointed plants1 that more nearly resemble the ,equisetace than aught else which now exists1 but which attained1 in the larger specimens1 to the height of ordinary trees1 also manifest very decidedly1 in their internal structure1 some of the characteristics of the conifers4 ,it has been remarked by ,lindley and ,hutton of even ,sphenophyllum1--a genus of plants with verticillate leaves1 of which at least six species occur in our ,coal ,measures1 and which ,brogniart refers to one of the humblest families of the fern allies1--that it seems at least as nearly related to the ,conifer as to its lowlier representatives1 the ,marsileace4 ,and it is this union of traits1 pertaining to what are now widely separated orders1 that imparts to not a few of the vegetables of the ,coal ,measures their singularly anomalous character4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ba4 ,,east ,,india ,,tree-,,fern4#g 7,asophila perrotetiana47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bb4 ,,section ,,of ,,stem ,,of ,,tree-,,fern4#h 7,cyathea47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bc4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bd4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #be4 ,illustration3 ,,lepidodendron ,,sternbergii4#i ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bf4 ,,calamites ,,mougeotii4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bg4 ,,sphenophyllum ,,dentatum4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bh4 ,,sigillaria ,,reniformis4 ,let me attempt introducing you more intimately to one of those plants which present scarce any analogy with existing forms1 and which must have imparted so strange a character and appearance to the flora of the ,coal ,measures4 ,the ,sigillaria formed a numerous genus of the ,carboniferous period3 no fewer than twenty-two different species have been enumerated in the ,british coal fields alone2 and such was their individual abundance1 that there are great seams of coal which seem to be almost entirely composed of their remains4 ,at least the ancient soil on which these seams rest1 and on which their materials appear to have been elaborated from the elements1 is in many instances as thickly traversed by their underground stems as the soil occupied by our densest forests is traversed by the tangled roots of the trees by which it is covered2 and we often find associated with them in these cases the remains of no other plant4 ,the ,sigillaria were remarkable for their beautifully sculptured stems1 various in their pattern1 according to their species4 ,all were fluted vertically1 somewhat like columns of the ,grecian ,doric2 and each flute or channel had its line of sculpture running adown its centre4 ,in one species 7,s4 flexuosa7 the sculpture consists of round knobs1 surrounded by single rings1 like the heads of the bolts of the ship carpenter2 in another 7,s4 reniformis7 the knobs are double1 and of an oval form1 somewhat resembling pairs of kidneys1--a resemblance to which the species owes its name4 ,in another species 7,s4 catenulata7 what seems a minute chain of distinctly formed elliptical links drops down the middle of each flute2 in yet another 7,s4 oculata7 the carvings are of an oval form1 and1 bearing each a round impression in its centre1 they somewhat resemble rows of staring goggle-eyes2 while the carvings in yet another species 7,s4 pachyderma7 consist chiefly of crescent-shaped depressions4 ,the roots1 or rather underground stems1 of this curious genus attracted notice1 from their singularity1 long ere their connection with the carved and fluted stems had been determined1 and have been often described as the stigmaria of the fossil botanist4 ,they1 too1 have their curious carvings1 consisting of deeply marked stigmata1 quincuncially arranged1 with each a little ring at its bottom1 and1 in at least one rare species1 surrounded by a sculptured star4 ,unlike true roots1 they terminate abruptly2 each rootlet which they send forth was jointed to the little ring or dimpled knob at the bottom of the stigmata2 and the appearance of the whole1 as it radiated from the central mass1 whence the carved trunk proceeded1 somewhat resembled that of an enormous coach-wheel divested of the rim4 ,unfortunately we cannot yet complete our description of this strange plant4 ,a specimen1 traced for about forty feet across a shale bed1 was found to bifurcate atop into two great branches1--a characteristic in which1 with several others1 it differed from most of the tree-ferns1--a class of plants to which ,adolphe ,brogniart is inclined to deem it related2 but no specimen has yet shown the nature of its foliage4 ,i am1 however1 not a little disposed to believe with ,brogniart that it may have borne as leaves some of the supposed ferns of the ,coal ,measures2 nowhere1 at least1 have ,i found these lie so thickly1 layer above layer1 as around the stems of ,sigillaria2 and the fact that1 even in our own times1 plants widely differing from the tree-ferns1--such1 for instance1 as one of the ,cycade1--should bear leaves scarce distinguishable from fern fronds1 may well reconcile us to an apparent anomaly in the case of an ancient plant such as ,sigillaria1 whose entire constitution1 so far as it has been ascertained1 appears to have been anomalous4 ,the sculpturesque character of this richly fretted genus was shared by not a few of its contemporaries4 ,the ,ulodendra1 with their rectilinear rows of circular scars1 and their stems covered with leaf-like carvings1 rivalled in effect the ornately relieved torus of a ,corinthian column3 ,favularia1 ,knorria1 ,halonia1 many of the ,calamites1 and all the ,lepidodendra1 exhibited the most delicate sculpturing4 ,in walking among the ruins of this ancient flora1 the ,palontologist almost feels as if he had got among the broken fragments of ,italian palaces1 erected long ages ago1 when the architecture of ,rome was most ornate1 and every moulding was roughened with ornament2 and in attempting to call up in fancy the old ,carboniferous forests1 he has to dwell on this peculiar feature as one of the most prominent1 and to see1 in the multitude of trunks darkened above by clouds of foliage1 that rise upon him in the prospect1 the slim columns of an elder ,alhambra1 roughened with arabesque tracery and exquisite filagree work4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #bi4 ,,sigillaria ,,reniformis4 7,nat4 size47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #cj4 ,,sigillaria ,,pachyderma4 7,one fourth nat4 size47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ca4 ,,stigmaria ,,ficoides4 7,one fourth nat4 size47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #cb4 ,,favularia ,,tessellata4 7,one fifth nat4 size47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #cc4 ,,lepidodendron ,,obovatum4 7,nat4 size47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #cd4 ,,cycas ,,revoluta4 7,recent47 ,illustration3 ,fig4#ce4 ,,zamia ,,pungens4 7,recent47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #cf4 ,,zamia ,,feneonis 7,,portland ,,oolite47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #cg4 ,,mantellia ,,nidiformis4 7,portland ,dirt-bed47 ,in the ,oolitic flora we find a few peculiar features introduced4 ,the ,cyeade1--a family of plants allied to the ferns on the one hand1 and to the conifers on the other1 and which in their general aspect not a little resemble stunted palms1--appear in this flora for the first time4 ,its coniferous genera1 too1 receive great accessions to their numbers1 and begin to resemble1 more closely than at an earlier period1 the genera which still continue to exist4 ,the cypresses1 the yews1 the thujas1 the dammaras1 all make their earliest appearance in the flora of the ,oolite4 ,among our existing woods there seem to be but two conifers 7that attain to the dignity of trees7 indigenous to ,britain1--the common yew1 ,taxus baccata1 and the common ,scotch fir1 ,pinus sylvestris2 and yet we know that the latter alone formed1 during the last few centuries1 great woods1 that darkened for many miles together the now barren moors and bare hill-sides of the ,highlands of ,scotland1--moors and hill-sides that1 though long since divested of their last tree1 are still known by their old name of forests4 ,in the times of the ,oolite1 on the other hand1 ,britain had from fourteen to twenty different species of conifers2 and its great forests1 of whose existence we have direct evidence in the very abundant lignites of the system1 must have possessed a richness and variety which our ancient fir woods of the historic or human period could not have possessed4 ,with the ,conifers and the ,cycade there were many ferns associated1--so many1 that they still composed nearly two fifths of the entire flora2 and associated with these1 though in reduced proportions1 we find the fern allies4 ,the reduction1 however1 of these last is rather in species than in individuals4 ,the ,brora ,coal1 one of the most considerable ,oolitic seams in ,europe1 seems to have been formed almost exclusively of an equisetum1--,e4 columnare4 ,in this flora the more equivocal productions of the ,coal ,measures are represented by what seems to be the last of the ,calamites2 but it contains no ,lepidodendra1--no ,ulodendra1--no ,sigillaria1--no ,favularia1--no ,knorria or ,halonia4 ,those monsters of the vegetable world that united to the forms of its humbler productions the bulk of trees1 had1 with the solitary exception of the ,calamites1 passed into extinction2 and ere the close of the system they too had disappeared4 ,the forms borne by most of the ,oolitic plants were comparatively familiar forms4 ,with the ,acrogens and ,gymnogens we find the first indication of the ,liliace1 or lily-like plants1--of plants1 too1 allied to the ,pandanace or screw pines1 the fruits of which are sometimes preserved in a wonderfully perfect state of keeping in the ,inferior ,oolite1 together with ,carpolithes1--palm-like fruits1 very ornately sculptured1--and the remains of at least one other monocotyledon1 that bears the somewhat general name of an ,endogenite4 ,with these there occur a few disputed leaves1 which ,i must persist in regarding as dicotyledonous4 ,but they formed1 whatever their true character1 a very inconspicuous feature in the ,oolitic flora2 and not until the overlying ,cretaceous ,system is ushered in do we find leaves in any considerable quantity decidedly of this high family2 nor until we enter into the earlier ,tertiaries do we succeed in detecting a true dicotyledonous tree4 ,on such an amount of observation is this order of succession determined1--though the evidence is1 of course1 mainly negative1--that when1 some eight or ten years ago1 ,dr4 ,john ,wilson1 the learned ,free ,church missionary to the ,parsees of ,india1 submitted to me specimens of fossil woods which he had picked up in the ,egyptian ,desert1 in order that ,i might if possible determine their age1 ,i told him1 ere yet the optical lapidary had prepared them for examination1 that if they exhibited the coniferous structure1 they might belong to any geologic period from the times of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone downwards2 but that if they manifested in their tissue the dicotyledonous character1 they could not be older than the times of the ,tertiary4 ,on submitting them in thin slices to the microscope1 they were found to exhibit the peculiar dicotyledonous structure as strongly as the oak or chestnut4 ,and ,lieutenant ,newbold's researches in the deposit in which they occur has since demonstrated1 on stratigraphical evidence1 that not only does it belong to the great ,tertiary division1 but also to one of the comparatively modern formations of the ,tertiary4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ch ,,equisetum ,,columnare4 7,nat4 size47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ci4 ,,carpolithes ,,conica4 7,reduced one third47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #dj4 ,,carpolithes ,,bucklandii4#aj 7,reduced one third47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #da4 ,,acer ,,trilobatum4#aa 7,miocene of ,o,eningen47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #db4 ,,ulmus ,,bronnii4#ab 7,miocene of ,bohemia47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #dc4 ,,palmacites ,,lamanonis4 7,a ,palm of the ,miocene of ,aix47 ,the earlier flora of this ,tertiary division presents an aspect widely different from that of any of the previous ones4 ,the ferns and their allies sink into their existing proportions2 nor do the conifer1 previously so abundant1 occupy any longer a prominent place4 ,on the other hand1 the dicotyledonous herbs and trees1 previously so inconspicuous in creation1 are largely developed4 ,trees of those ,amentiferous orders to which the oak1 the hazel1 the beech1 and the plane belong1 were perhaps not less abundant in the ,eocene woods than in those of the present time3 they were mingled with trees of the ,laurel1 the ,leguminous1 and the ,anonaceous or custard apple families1 with many others2 and deep forests1 in the latitude of ,london 7in which the intertropical forms must now be protected1 as in the ,crystal ,palace1 with coverings of glass1 and warmed by artificial heat71 abounded in graceful palms4 ,mr4 ,bowerbank found in the ,london clay of the island of ,sheppey alone the fruits of no fewer than thirteen different species of this picturesque family1 which lends so peculiar a feature to the landscapes in which it occurs2 and ascertained that the undergrowth beneath was composed1 in large proportion1 of creeping plants of the gourd and melon order4 ,from the middle or ,miocene flora of the ,tertiary division1--of which we seem to possess in ,britain only the small but interesting fragment detected by his ,grace the ,duke of ,argyll among the trap-beds of ,mull1--most of the more exotic forms seem to have been excluded4 ,the palms1 however1 still survive in no fewer than thirty-one different species1 and we find in great abundance1 in the place of the other exotics1 remains of the plane and buckthorn families1--part of a group of plants that in their general aspect1 as shown in the ,tertiary deposits of the ,continent1 not a little resembled the vegetation of the ,united ,states at the present day4 ,the nearer we approach to existing times1 the more familiar in form and outline do the herbs and trees become4 ,we detect1 as has been shown1 at least one existing order in the ferns of the ,coal ,measures2 we detect at least existing genera among the ,conifer1 ,equisetace1 and ,cycadace of the ,oolite2 the acacias1 gourds1 and laurels of the ,eocene flora1 and the planes1 willows1 and buckthorns of the ,miocene1 though we fail to identify their species with aught that now lives1 still more strongly remind us of the recent productions of our forests or conservatories2 and1 on entering1 in our downward course1 the ,pleistocene period1 we at length find ourselves among familiar species4 ,on old terrestrial surfaces1 that date before the times of the glacial period1 and underlie the boulder clay1 the remains of forests of oak1 birch1 hazel1 and fir have been detected1--all of the familiar species indigenous to the country1 and which still flourish in our native woods4 ,and it was held by the late ,professor ,edward ,forbes1 that the most ancient of his five existing ,british floras1--that which occurs in the south-west of ,ireland1 and corresponds with the flora of the northwest of ,spain and the ,pyrenees1--had been introduced into the country as early1 perhaps1 as the times of the ,miocene4 ,be this1 however1 as it may1 there can rest no doubt on the great antiquity of the prevailing trees of our indigenous forests4 ,the oak1 the birch1 the hazel1 the ,scotch fir1 all lived1 ,i repeat1 in what is now ,britain1 ere the last great depression of the land4 ,the gigantic northern elephant and rhinoceros1 extinct for untold ages1 forced their way through their tangled branches2 and the ,british tiger and hyna harbored in their thickets4 ,cuvier framed an argument for the fixity of species on the fact that the birds and beasts embalmed in the catacombs were identical in every respect with the animals of the same kinds that live now4 ,but what1 it has been asked1 was a brief period of three thousand years1 compared with the geologic ages8 or how could any such argument be founded on a basis so little extended8 ,it is1 however1 to no such narrow basis we can refer in the case of these woods4 ,all human history is comprised in the nearer corner of the immense period which they measure out2 and yet1 from their first appearance in creation till now they have not altered a single fibre4 ,and such1 on this point1 is the invariable testimony of ,palontologic science1--testimony so invariable1 that no great ,palontologist was ever yet an asserter of the development hypothesis4 ,with the existing trees of our indigenous woods it is probable that in even these early times a considerable portion of the herbs of our recent flora would have been associated1 though their remains1 less fitted for preservation1 have failed to leave distinct trace behind them4 ,we at least know generally1 that with each succeeding period there appeared a more extensively useful and various vegetation than that which had gone before4 ,i have already referred to the sombre1 unproductive character of the earliest terrestrial flora with which we are acquainted4 ,it was a flora unfitted1 apparently1 for the support of either graminivorous bird or herbivorous quadruped4 ,the singularly profuse vegetation of the ,coal ,measures was1 with all its wild luxuriance1 of a resembling cast4 ,so far as appears1 neither flock nor herd could have lived on its greenest and richest plains2 nor does even the flora of the ,oolite seem to have been in the least suited for the purposes of the shepherd or herdsman4 ,not until we enter on the ,tertiary periods do we find floras amid which man might have profitably labored as a dresser of gardens1 a tiller of fields1 or a keeper of flocks and herds4 ,nay1 there are whole orders and families of plants of the very first importance to man which do not appear until late in even the ,tertiary ages4 ,some degree of doubt must always attach to merely negative evidence2 but ,agassiz1 a geologist whose statements must be received with respect by every student of the science1 finds reason to conclude that the order of the ,rosace1--an order more important to the gardener than almost any other1 and to which the apple1 the pear1 the quince1 the cherry1 the plum1 the peach1 the apricot1 the victorine1 the almond1 the raspberry1 the strawberry1 and the various brambleberries belong1 together with all the roses and the potentillas1--was introduced only a short time previous to the appearance of man4 ,and the true grasses1--a still more important order1 which1 as the corn-bearing plants of the agriculturist1 feed at the present time at least two thirds of the human species1 and in their humbler varieties form the staple food of the grazing animals1--scarce appear in the fossil state at all4 ,they are peculiarly plants of the human period4 ,let me instance one other family of which the fossil botanist has not yet succeeded in finding any trace in even the ,tertiary deposits1 and which appears to have been specially created for the gratification of human sense4 ,unlike the ,rosace1 it exhibits no rich blow of color1 or tempting show of luscious fruit2--- it does not appeal very directly to either the sense of taste or of sight3 but it is richly odoriferous2 and1 though deemed somewhat out of place in the garden for the last century and more1 it enters largely into the composition of some of our most fashionable perfumes4 ,i refer to the ,labiate family1--a family to which the lavenders1 the mints1 the thymes1 and the hyssops belong1 with basil1 rosemary1 and marjoram1--all plants of gray renown1 as ,shenstone happily remarks in his description of the herbal of his ,schoolmistress4 ,herbs too she knew1 and well of each could speak1 ,that in her garden sipped the silvery dew1 ,where no vain flower disclosed a gaudy streak1 ,but herbs for use and physic not a few1 ,of gray renown within those borders grew4 ,the tufted basil1 pun-provoking thyme1 ,and fragrant balm1 and sage of sober hue4 ,and marjoram sweet in shepherd's posie found1 ,and lavender1 whose spikes of azure bloom ,shall be erewhile in arid bundles bound1 ,to lurk amid her labors of the loom1 ,and crown her kerchiefs clean with meikle rare perfume4 ,and here trim rosemary1 that whilom crowned ,the daintiest garden of the proudest peer1 ,ere1 driven from its envied site1 it found ,a sacred shelter for its branches here1 ,where1 edged with gold1 its glittering skirts appear1 ,with horehound gray1 and mint of softer green4 ,all the plants here enumerated belong to the labiate family2 which1 though unfashionable even in ,shenstone's days1 have still their products favorably received in the very best society4 ,the rosemary1 whose banishment from the gardens of the great he specially records1 enters largely in the composition of eau de ,cologne4 ,of the lavenders1 one species 7,lavendula vera7 yields the well known lavender oil1 and another 7,l4 latifolio7 the spike oil4 ,the peppermint 7,meantha viridus7 furnishes the essence so popular under that name among our confectioners2 and one of the most valued perfumes of the ,east 7next to the famous ,attar1 a product of the ,rosace7 is the oil of the ,patchouly plant1 another of the labiates4 ,let me indulge1 ere quitting this part of the subject1 in a single remark4 ,there have been classes of religionists1 not wholly absent from our own country1 and well known on the ,continent1 who have deemed it a merit to deny themselves every pleasure of sense1 however innocent and delicate4 ,the excellent but mistaken ,pascal refused to look upon a lovely landscape2 and the ,port ,royalist nuns remarked1 somewhat simply for their side of the argument1 that they seemed as if warring with ,providence1 seeing that the favors which he was abundantly showering upon them1 they1 in obedience to the stern law of their lives1 were continually rejecting4 ,but it is better1 surely1 to be on the side of ,providence against ,pascal and the nuns1 than on the side of ,pascal and the nuns against ,providence4 ,the great ,creator1 who has provided so wisely and abundantly for all his creatures1 knows what is best for us1 infinitely better than we do ourselves2 and there is neither sense nor merit1 surely1 in churlishly refusing to partake of that ample entertainment1 sprinkled with delicate perfumes1 garnished with roses1 and crowned with the most delicious fruit1 which we now know was not only specially prepared for us1 but also got ready1 as nearly as we can judge1 for the appointed hour of our appearance at the feast4 ,this we also know1 that when the ,divine ,man came into the world1--unlike the ,port ,royalists1 he did not refuse the temperate use of any of these luxuries1 not even of that ointment of spikenard1 very precious 7a product of the labiate family71 with which ,mary anointed his feet4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #dd4 ,,cyclophthalmus ,,bucklandi4 7,a ,fossil ,scorpion of the ,coal ,measures of ,bohemia47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #de4 ,,fossil ,,dragon-,,fly4 ,solenhofen4 ,though it may at first seem a little out of place1 let us anticipate here1 for the sake of the illustration which it affords1 one of the sections of the other great division of our subject1--that which treats of the fossil animals4 ,let us run briefly over the geologic history of insects1 in order that we may mark the peculiar light which it casts on the character of the ancient floras4 ,no insects have yet been detected in the ,silurian or ,old ,red ,sandstone ,systems4 ,they first appear amid the hard1 dry1 flowerless vegetation of the ,coal ,measures1 and in genera suited to its character4 ,among these the scorpions take a prominent place1--carnivorous arachnid of ill repute1 that live under stones and fallen trunks1 and seize fast with their nippers upon the creatures on which they prey1 crustaceans usually1 such as the wood-louse1 or insects1 such as the earth-beetles and their grubs4 ,with the scorpions there occur cockroaches of types not at all unlike the existing ones1 and that1 judging from their appearance1 must have been foul feeders1 to which scarce anything could have come amiss as food4 ,books1 manuscripts1 leather1 ink1 oil1 meat1 even the bodies of the dead1 are devoured indiscriminately by the recent ,blatta gigantea of the warmer parts of the globe1--one of the most disagreeable pests of the ,european settler1 or of war vessels on foreign stations4 ,i have among my books an age-embrowned copy of ,ramsay's ,tea ,table ,miscellany1 that had been carried into foreign parts by a musical relation1 after it had seen hard service at home1 and had become smoke dried and black2 and yet even it1 though but little tempting1 as might be thought1 was not safe from the cockroaches2 for1 finding it left open one day1 they ate out in half an hour half its table of contents1 consisting of several leaves4 ,assuredly1 if the ancient ,blatt were as little nice in their eating as the devourers of the ,tea ,table ,miscellany1 they would not have lacked food amid even the unproductive flora and meagre fauna of the ,coal ,measures4 ,with these ancient cockroaches a few locusts and beetles have been found associated1 together with a small ,tinea1--a creature allied to the common clothes-moth1 and a ,phasmia1--a creature related to the spectre insects4 ,but the group is an inconsiderable one2 for insects seem to have occupied no very conspicuous place in the carboniferous fauna4 ,the beetles appear to have been of the wood and seed devouring kinds1 and would probably have found their food among the conifers2 the ,phasmid and grasshoppers would have lived on the tender shoots of the less rigid plants their contemporaries2 the ,tinea1 probably on ligneous or cottony fibre4 ,not a single insect has the system yet produced of the now numerous kinds that seek their food among flowers4 ,in the ,oolitic ages1 however1 insects become greatly more numerous1--so numerous that they seemed to have formed almost exclusively the food of the earliest mammals1 and apparently also of some of the flying reptiles of the time4 ,the magnificent dragon-flies1 the carnivorous tyrants of their race1 were abundant2 and we now know1 that while they were1 as their name indicates1 dragons to the weaker insects1 they themselves were devoured by dragons as truly such as were ever yet feigned by romancer of the middle ages4 ,ants were also common1 with crickets1 grasshoppers1 bugs both of the land and water1 beetles1 two-winged flies1 and1 in species distinct from the preceding carboniferous ones1 the disgusting cockroaches4 ,and for the first time amid the remains of a flora that seems to have had its few flowers1--though flowers could have formed no conspicuous feature in even an ,oolitic landscape1--we detect in a few broken fragments of the wings of butterflies1 decided trace of the flower-sucking insects4 ,not1 however1 until we enter into the great ,tertiary division do these become numerous4 ,the first bee makes its appearance in the amber of the ,eocene1 locked up hermetically in its gem-like tomb1--an embalmed corpse in a crystal coffin1--along with fragments of flower-bearing herbs and trees4 ,the first of the ,bombycid too1--insects that maybe seen suspended over flowers by the scarce visible vibrations of their wings1 sucking the honied juices by means of their long1 slender trunks1--also appear in the amber1 associated with moths1 butterflies1 and a few caterpillars4 ,bees and butterflies are present in increased proportions in the latter ,tertiary deposits3 but not until that terminal creation to which we ourselves belong was ushered on the scene did they receive their fullest development4 ,there is exquisite poetry in ,wordsworth's reference to the soft murmur of the vagrant bee1-- ,a slender sound1 yet hoary ,time ,doth to the soul exalt it with the chime ,of all his years2 a company ,of ages coming1 ages gone1 ,nations from before them sweeping4 ,and yet1 mayhap1 the naked scientific facts of the history of this busy insect are scarcely less poetic than the pleasing imagination of the poet regarding it4 ,they tell that man's world1 with all its griefs and troubles1 is more emphatically a world of flowers than any of the creations that preceded it1 and that as one great family--the grasses--were called into existence1 in order1 apparently1 that he might enter in favoring circumstances upon his two earliest avocations1 and be in good hope a keeper of herds and a tiller of the ground2 and as another family of plants--the ,rosace--was created in order that the gardens which it would be also one of his vocations to keep and to dress should have their trees good for food and pleasant to the taste2 so flowers in general were profusely produced just ere he appeared1 to minister to that sense of beauty which distinguishes him from all the lower creatures1 and to which he owes not a few of his most exquisite enjoyments4 ,the poet accepted the bee as a sign of high significance3 the geologist also accepts her as a sign4 ,her entombed remains testify to the gradual fitting up of our earth as a place of habitation for a creature destined to seek delight for the mind and the eye as certainly as for the grosser senses1 and in especial marks the introduction of the stately forest trees1 and the arrival of the delicious flowers4 ,and1 ,thus in their stations lifting toward the sky ,the foliaged head in cloud-like majesty1 ,the shadow-casting race of trees survive3 ,thus in the train of spring arrive ,sweet flowers3 what living eye hath viewed ,their myriads8 endlessly renewed ,wherever strikes the sun's glad ray1 ,where'er the subtile waters stray1 ,wherever sportive zephyrs bend ,their course1 or genial showers descend4 ,,lecture ,,second4 ,,the ,,pal,,ontological ,,history ,,of ,,animals4 ,amid the unceasing change and endless variety of nature there occur certain great radical ideas1 that1 while they form1 if ,i may so express myself1 the groundwork of the change1--the basis of the variety1--admit in themselves of no change or variety whatever4 ,they constitute the aye-enduring tissue on which the ever-changing patterns of creation are inscribed3 the patterns are ever varying2 the tissue which exhibits them for ever remains the same4 ,in the animal kingdom1 for instance1 the prominent ideas have always been uniform4 ,however much the faunas of the various geologic periods may have differed from each other1 or from the fauna which now exists1 in their general aspect and character1 they were all1 if ,i may so speak1 equally underlaid by the great leading ideas which still constitute the master types of animal life4 ,and these leading ideas are four in number4 ,first1 there is the star-like type of life1--life embodied in a form that1 as in the corals1 the sea-anemones1 the sea-urchins1 and the star-fishes1 radiates outwards from a centre2 second1 there is the articulated type of life1--life embodied in a form composed1 as in the worms1 crustaceans1 and insects1 of a series of rings united by their edges1 but more or less moveable on each other2 third1 there is the bilateral or molluscan type of life1--life embodied in a form in which there is a duality of corresponding parts1 ranged1 as in the cuttle-fishes1 the clams1 and the snails1 on the sides of a central axis or plane2 and fourth1 there is the vertebrate type of life1--life embodied in a form in which an internal skeleton is built up into two cavities placed the one over the other2 the upper for the reception of the nervous centres1 cerebral and spinal1--the lower for the lodgment of the respiratory1 circulatory1 and digestive organs4 ,such have been the four central ideas of the faunas of every succeeding creation1 except perhaps the earliest of all1 that of the ,lower ,silurian ,system1 in which1 so far as is yet known1 only three of the number existed1--the radiated1 articulated1 and molluscan ideas or types4 ,that ,omnipotent ,creator1 infinite in his resources1--who1 in at least the details of his workings1 seems never yet to have repeated himself1 but1 as ,lyell well expresses it1 breaks1 when the parents of a species have been moulded1 the dye in which they were cast1--manifests himself1 in these four great ideas1 as the unchanging and unchangeable ,one4 ,they serve to bind together the present with all the past2 and determine the unity of the authorship of a wonderfully complicated design1 executed on a groundwork broad as time1 and whose scope and bearing are deep as eternity4 ,the fauna of the ,silurian ,system bears in all its three great types the stamp of a fashion peculiarly antique1 and which1 save in a few of the mollusca1 has long since become obsolete4 ,its radiate animals are chiefly corals1 simple or compound1 whose inhabitants may have somewhat resembled the sea-anemones2 with zoophites1 akin mayhap to the sea-pens1 though the relationship must have been a remote one2 and numerous crinoids1 or stone lilies1 some of which consisted of but a sculptured calyx without petals1 while others threw off a series of long1 flexible arms1 that divided and subdivided like the branches of a tree1 and were thickly fringed by hair-like fibres4 ,there is great variety and beauty among these ,silurian crinoids2 and1 from the ornate sculpture of their groined and ribbed capitals and slender columns1 the ,gothic architect might borrow not a few striking ideas4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #df4 ,,cyathaxonia ,,dalmani4 ,the difference between the older and newer fashions1 as exemplified in the cup-shaped corals1 may be indicated in a single sentence4 ,the ancient corals were stars of four rays1 or of multiples of four2 the modern corals are stars of six rays1 or of multiples of six4 ,but though1 at a certain definite period1--that during which the great ,palozoic division ended and the ,secondary division began--nature1 in forming this class of creatures1 discarded the number four1 and adopted instead the number six1 the great leading idea of the star itself was equally retained in corals of the modern as in those of the more ancient type4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #dg4 ,,glyptocrinus ,,decadactylus4 7,hudson ,river ,group1 ,lower ,silurian47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #dh4 ,,calymene ,,blumenbachii4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #di4 ,,orthisina ,,verneuili4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ej4 ,,lituites ,,cornu-,,arietis4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ea4 ,,lingula ,,lowisii4 ,the articulata of the ,silurian period bore a still more peculiar character4 ,they consisted mainly of the ,trilobites1--a family in whose nicely-jointed shells the armorer of the middle ages might have found almost all the contrivances of his craft1 anticipated1 with not a few besides which he had failed to discover2 and which1 after receiving so immense a development during the middle and later times of the ,silurian period1 that whole rocks were formed almost exclusively of their remains1 gradually died out in the times of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and disappeared for ever from creation after the ,carboniferous ,limestone had been deposited4 ,the ,palontologist knows no more unique family than that of the ,trilobites1 or a family more unlike any which now exists1 or a family which marks with more certainty the early rocks in which they occur4 ,and yet1 though formed in a fashion that perished myriads of ages ago1 how admirably does it not exhibit the articulated type of being1 and illustrate that unity of design which1 amid endless diversity1 pervades all nature4 ,the mollusca of the ,silurians ranged from the high cephalopoda1 represented in our existing seas by the nautili and the cuttle-fishes1 to the low brachipods1 some of whose congeners may still be detected in the terebratula of our ,highland lochs and bays1 and some in the lingul of the southern hemisphere4 ,the cephalopods of the system are all of an obsolete type1 that disappeared myriads of ages ago1--a remark which1 with the exceptions just intimated1 and perhaps one or two others1 applies equally to its brachipods2 but of at least two of its intermediate families1--the gasteropoda and lamellibranchiata1--several of the forms resemble those of recent shells of the temperate latitudes4 ,in its general aspect1 however1 the ,silurian fauna1 antiquely fashioned1 as ,i have said1 as became its place in the primeval ages of existence1 was unlike any other which the world ever saw2 and the absence of the vertebrata1 or at least the inconspicuous place which they occupied if they were at all present1 must have imparted to the whole1 as a group1 a humble and mediocre character4 ,it seems to have been for many ages together a creation of molluscs1 corals1 and ,crustacea4 ,at length1 in an upper bed of the system1 immediately under the base of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 the remains of the earliest known fishes appear1 blent with what also appears for the first time1--the fragmentary remains of a terrestrial vegetation4 ,the rocks beneath this ancient bone-bed have yielded1 as ,i have already said1 no trace of any plant higher than the ,thallogens1 or at least not higher than the ,zosteracea1--plants whose proper habitat is the sea2 but1 through an apparently simultaneous advance of the two kingdoms1 animal and vegetable1--though of course the simultaneousness may be but merely apparent1--the first land plants and the first vertebrates appear together in the same deposit4 ,what1 let us inquire1 is the character of these ancient fishes1 that first complete the scale of animated nature in its four master ideas1 by adding the vertebrate to the invertebrate divisions8 ,so far as is yet known1 they all consist of one well marked order1--that placoidal order of ,agassiz that to an internal framework of cartilage adds an external armature1 consisting of plates1 spines1 and shagreen points of solid bone4 ,either of the two kinds of dog-fishes on our coasts1--the spiked or spotted1--maybe accepted as not inadequate representatives of this order as it now exists4 ,the ,port ,jackson shark1 however1--a creature that to the dorsal spines and shagreen-covered skin of the common dog-fish adds a mouth terminal at the snout1 not placed beneath1 as in most other sharks1 and a palate covered with a dense pavement of crushing teeth1--better illustrates the order as it first appeared in creation than any of our ,british placoids4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #eb4 ,,port ,,jackson ,,shark4 7,cestracion ,phillippi47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ec4ac ----------------------- ,silurian4 ----------------------,placoid4 ,ganoid4 ,old ,red4 --------------------- ,carboniferous4 --------------------- ,permian4 --------------------- ,triassic4 --------------------- ,oolitic4 ------------------- ,cretaceous4 ,ctenoid and ,cycloid4 ------------------- ,tertiary4 ------------------- ,geologic ,pla4 ,gan4 ,cte4 ,cyc4 arrangement4 ,agassiz's ,pla4 ,gan4 ,cte4 ,cyc4 arrangement4 ,,the ,,genealogy ,,of ,,fishes4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ed4 ,,amblypterus ,,macroptertus4 ,from the ,coal at ,saarbruck4 7,a ,ganoid of the ,carboniferous ,system47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ee4 ,,lebias ,,cephalotes4 ,cycloids of ,aix4 7,miocene47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ef4 ,,platax ,,altissimus4 ,a ,ctenoid of ,monte ,bolca4 7,eocene47 ,and here let me adduce another and very remarkable instance of the correspondence which obtains between the sequence in which certain classes of organisms were first ushered into being1 and the order of classification adopted1 after many revisions1 by the higher naturalists4 ,cuvier1 with not a few of the ichthyologists who preceded him1 arranged the fishes into two distinct series1--the ,cartilaginous and ,osseous2 and these last he mainly divided into the hard or spiny-finned fishes1 and the soft or joint-finned fishes4 ,he placed the sturgeon in his ,cartilaginous series2 while in his soft-finned order he found a place for the ,polypterus of the ,nile and the ,lepidosteus of the ,ohio and ,st4 ,lawrence4 ,but the arrangement1 though it seemed at the time one of the best and most natural possible1 failed to meet any corresponding arrangement in the course of geologic history4 ,the place assigned to the class of fishes as a whole corresponded to their place in the ,palontological scale2--- first of the vertebrate division in the order of their appearance1 they border1 as in the ,animal ,kingdom of the naturalist1 on the invertebrate divisions4 ,but it was not until the new classification of ,agassiz had ranged them after a different fashion that the correspondence became complete in all its parts4 ,first1 he erected the fishes that to an internal cartilaginous skeleton unite an external armature of plates and points of bone1 into his ,placoid order2 next1 gathering together a mere handful of individuals from among the various orders and families over which they had been scattered1--the sturgeons from among the cartilaginous fishes1 and the lepidosteus and polypterus from among the ,clupia or herrings1--he erected into a small ganoid order all the fishes that are covered1 whatever the consistency of their skeleton1 by a continuous or nearly continuous armor of enamelled bone1 or by great bony plates that lock into each other at their edges4 ,out of the remaining fishes1--those covered with scales of a horny substance1 and which now comprise nearly nine tenths of the whole class1--he erected two orders more1--a ,ctenoid order1 consisting of fishes whose scales1 like those of the perch1 are pectinated at their lower edges like the teeth of a comb1 and a ,cycloid order1 composed of fishes whose scales1 like those of the salmon1 are defined all around by a simple continuous margin2 and no sooner was the division effected than it was found to cast a singularly clear light on the early history of the class4 ,the earliest fishes--firstborn of their family--seem to have been all placoids4 ,the ,silurian ,system has not yet afforded trace of any other vertebral animal4 ,with the ,old ,red ,sandstone the ganoids were ushered upon the scene in amazing abundance2 and for untold ages1 comprising mayhap millions of years1 the entire ichthyic class consisted1 so far as is yet known1 of but these two orders4 ,during the times of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 of the ,carboniferous1 of the ,permian1 of the ,triassic1 and of the ,oolitic ,systems1 all fishes1 though apparently as numerous individually as they are now1 were comprised in the ganoidal and placoidal orders4 ,the period of these orders seems to have been nearly correspondent with the reign1 in the vegetable kingdom1 of the ,acrogens and ,gymnogens1 with the intermediate classes1 their allies4 ,at length1 during the ages of the ,chalk1 the ,cycloids and ,ctenoids were ushered in1 and were gradually developed in creation until the human period1 in which they seem to have reached their culminating point1 and now many times exceed in number and importance all other fishes4 ,we do not see a sturgeon 7our ,british representative of the ganoids7 once in a twelvemonth2 and though the skate and dog-fish 7our representatives of the placoids7 are greatly less rare1 their number bears but a small proportion to that of the fishes belonging to the two prevailing orders1 of which thousands of boat-loads are landed on our coasts every day4 ,the all but entire disappearance of the ganoids from creation is surely a curious and not unsuggestive circumstance4 ,in the human family there are races that have long since reached their culminating point1 and are now either fast disappearing or have already disappeared4 ,the ,aztecs of ,central ,america1 or the ,copts of the valley of the ,nile1 are but the inconsiderable fragments of once mighty nations1 memorials of whose greatness live in the vast sepulchral mounds of the far ,west1 or in the temples of ,thebes or ,luxor1 or the pyramids of ,gizah4 ,but in the rivers of these very countries1--in the ,polypterus of the ,nile1 or the ,lepidosteus of the ,mississippi1--we are presented with the few surviving fragments of a dynasty compared with which that of ,egypt or of ,central ,america occupied but an exceedingly small portion of either space or time4 ,the dynasty of the ganoids was at one time coextensive with every river1 lake1 and sea1 and endured during the unreckoned eons which extended from the times of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone until those of the ,chalk4 ,i may here mention1 that as there are orders of plants1 such as the ,rosace and the ,grasses1 that scarce preceded man in their appearance1 so there are families of fishes that seem peculiarly to belong to the human period4 ,of these1 there is a family very familiar on our coasts1 and which1 though it furnishes none of our higher ichthyic luxuries1 is remarkable for the numbers of the human family which it provides with a wholesome and palatable food4 ,the delicate ,salmonid and the ,pleuronectid1--families to which the salmon and turbot belong1--were ushered into being as early as the times of the ,chalk2 but the ,gadid or cod family1--that family to which the cod proper1 the haddock1 the dorse1 the whiting1 the coal-fish1 the pollock1 the hake1 the torsk1 and the ling belong1 with many other useful and wholesome species1--did not precede man by at least any period of time appreciable to the geologist4 ,no trace of the family has yet been detected in even the ,tertiary rocks4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #eg ,,pterichthys ,,oblongus4 7,one half nat4 size47 ,of the ganoids of the second age of vertebrate existence1--that of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1--some were remarkable for the strangeness of their forms1 and some for constituting links of connection which no longer exist in nature1 between the ganoid and placoid orders4 ,the ,acanth family1 which ceased with the ,coal ,measures1 was characterized1 especially in its ,old ,red species1 by a combination of traits common to both orders2 and among the extremer forms1 in which ,palontologists for a time failed to detect that of the fish at all1 we reckon those of the genera ,coccosteus1 ,pterichthys1 and ,cephalaspis4 ,the more aberrant genera1 however1 even while they consisted each of several species1 were comparatively short lived4 ,the ,coccosteus and ,cephalaspis were restricted to but one formation apiece2 while the ,pterichthys1 which appears for the first time in the lower deposits of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 becomes extinct at its close4 ,on the other hand1 some of the genera that exemplified the general type of their class were extremely long lived4 ,the ,celacanths were reproduced in many various species1 from the times of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone to those of the ,chalk2 and the ,cestracions1 which appear in the ,upper ,ludlow ,rocks as the oldest of fishes1 continue in at least one species to exist still4 ,it would almost seem as if some such law influenced the destiny of genera in this ichthyic class1 as that which we find so often exemplified in our species4 ,the dwarf1 or giant1 or deformed person1 is seldom a long liver2--all the more remarkable instances of longevity have been furnished by individuals cast in the ordinary mould and proportions of the species4 ,not a few of these primordial ganoids wore1 however1 of the highest rank and standing ever exemplified by their class2 and we find ,agassiz boldly assigning a reason for their superiority to their successors1 important for the fact which it embodies1 and worthy1 as coming from him1 of our most respectful attention4 ,it is plain1 we find him saying1 that before the class of reptiles was introduced upon our globe1 the fishes1 being then the only representatives of the type of vertebrata1 were invested with the characters of a higher order1 embodying1 as it were1 a prospective view of a higher development in another class1 which was introduced as a distinct type only at a later period2 and from that time the reptilian character1 which had been so prominent in the oldest fishes1 was gradually reduced1 till in more recent periods1 and in the present creation1 the fishes lost all this herpetological relationship1 and were at last endowed with characters which contrast as much1 when compared with those of reptiles1 as they agreed closely in the beginning4 ,lepidosteus alone reminds us in our time of these old-fashioned characters of the class of fishes as it was in former days4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #eh ,,pleuracanthus ,l,,vissimus4 7,coal ,measures47 7,half nat4 size47 ,the ancient fishes seem to have received their fullest development during the ,carboniferous period4 ,their number was very great3 some of them attained to an enormous size1 and1 though the true reptile had already appeared1 they continued to retain1 till the close of the system1 the high reptilian character and organization4 ,nothing1 however1 so impresses the observer as the formidable character of the offensive weapons with which they were furnished1 and the amazing strength of their defensive armature4 ,i need scarce say1 that the ,palontologist finds no trace in nature of that golden age of the world1 of which the poets delighted to sing1 when all creatures lived together in unbroken peace1 and war and bloodshed were unknown4 ,ever since animal life began upon our planet1 there existed1 in all the departments of being1 carnivorous classes1 who could not live but by the death of their neighbors1 and who were armed1 in consequence1 for their destruction1 like the butcher with his axe and knife1 and the angler with his hook and spear4 ,but there were certain periods in the history of the past1 during which these weapons assumed a more formidable aspect than at others2 and never were they more formidable than in the times of the ,coal ,measures4 ,the teeth of the ,rhizodus--a ganoidal fish of our coal fields--were more sharp and trenchant than those of the crocodile of the ,nile1 and in the larger specimens fully four times the bulk and size of the teeth of the hugest reptile of this species that now lives4 ,the dorsal spine of its contemporary1 the ,gyracanthus1 a great placoid1 much exceeded in size that of any existing fish3 it was a mighty spear head1 ornately carved like that of a ,new ,zealand chief1 but in a style that1 when he first saw a specimen in my collection1 greatly excited the admiration of ,mr4 ,ruskin4 ,but one of the most remarkable weapons of the period was the sting of the ,pleuracanthus1 another great placoid of the age of gigantic fishes4 ,it was sharp and polished as a stiletto1 but1 from its rounded form and dense structure1 of great strength2 and along two of its sides1 from the taper point to within a few inches of the base1 there ran a thickly-set row of barbs1 hooked downwards1 like the thorns that bristle on the young shoots of the wild rose1 and which must have rendered it a weapon not merely of destruction1 but also of torture4 ,the defensive armor of the period1 especially that of its ganoids1 seems to have been us remarkable for its powers of resistance as the offensive must have been for their potency in the assault2 and it seems probable that in the great strength of the bony and enamelled armature of this order of fishes we have the secret of the extremely formidable character of the teeth1 spines1 and stings that coexisted along with it4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ei4 ,,carcharias ,,productus4 ,cutting ,tooth4 7,miocene47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fj4 ,,placodus ,,gigas4 ,crushing ,teeth4 7,trias47 ,such of the fishes of the present time as live on crustacea and the shelled molluscs1--such as the ,wrasse or rock-fish family1 and at least one of the ,goby family1 the sea-wolf1--have an apparatus of crushing teeth greatly more solid and strong than the teeth of such of their contemporaries as are either herbivorous or feed on the weaker families of their own class4 ,a similar remark applies to the ancient sharks1 as contrasted with those of later times4 ,so long as the strongly-armed ganoidal order prevailed in nature1 the sharks were furnished with massive crushing teeth2 but when the ganoids waned in creation1 and the soft-scaled cycloid and ctenoid orders took and amply filled the place which they had left vacant1 the well known modern form of sharks' teeth was introduced1--a form much rather suited for cutting soft bodies than for crushing hard ones4 ,in fine1 the offensive weapons of the times of the ,coal ,measures seem very formidable1 just as those personal weapons of the middle ages seem so that were borne at a time when every soldier took the field cased in armor of proof4 ,the slim scimitar or slender rapier would have availed but little against massive iron helmets or mail coats of tempered steel4 ,and so the warriors of the period armed themselves with ponderous maces1 battle-axes as massive as hammers1 and double-handed swords of great weight and strength4 ,before passing onwards to other and higher classes and orders1 as they occurred in creation1 permit me to make the formidable armor of the earlier fishes1 offensive and defensive1 the subject of a single remark4 ,we are told by ,goethe1 in his autobiography1 that he had attained his sixth year when the terrible earthquake at ,lisbon took place1--an event1 he says1 which greatly disturbed his peace of mind for the first time4 ,he could not reconcile a catastrophe so suddenly destructive to thousands1 with the ideas which he had already formed for himself of a ,providence all-powerful and all-benevolent4 ,but he afterwards learned1 he tells us1 to recognize in such events the ,god of the ,old ,testament4 ,i know not in what spirit the remark was made2 but this ,i know1 that it is the ,god of the ,old ,testament whom we see exhibited in all nature and all providence2 and that it is at once wisdom and duty in his rational creatures1 however darkly they may perceive or imperfectly they may comprehend1 to hold in implicit faith that the ,adorable ,monarch of all the past and of all the future is a ,king who can do no wrong4 ,this early exhibition of tooth1 and spine1 and sting1--of weapons constructed alike to cut and to pierce1--to unite two of the most indispensable requirements of the modern armorer1--a keen edge to a strong back1--nay1 stranger still1 the examples furnished in this primeval time1 of weapons formed not only to kill1 but also to torture1--must be altogether at variance with the preconceived opinions of those who hold that until man appeared in creation1 and darkened its sympathetic face with the stain of moral guilt1 the reign of violence and outrage did not begin1 and that there was no death among the inferior creatures1 and no suffering4 ,but preconceived opinion1 whether it hold fast1 with ,lactantius and the old ,schoolmen1 to the belief that there can be no antipodes1 or assert1 with ,caccini and ,bellarmine1 that our globe hangs lazily in the midst of the heavens1 while the sun moves round it1 must yield ultimately to scientific truth4 ,and it is a truth as certain as the existence of a southern hemisphere1 or the motion of the earth round both its own axis and the great solar centre1 that1 untold ages ere man had sinned or suffered1 the animal creation exhibited exactly its present state of war1--that the strong1 armed with formidable weapons1 exquisitely constructed to kill1 preyed upon the weak2 and that the weak1 sheathed1 many of them1 in defensive armor equally admirable in its mechanism1 and ever increasing and multiplying upon the earth far beyond the requirements of the mere maintenance of their races1 were enabled to escape1 as species1 the assaults of the tyrant tribes1 and to exist unthinned for unreckoned ages4 ,it has been weakly and impiously urged1--as if it were merely with the geologist that men had to settle this matter1--that such an economy of warfare and suffering1--of warring and of being warred upon1--would be1 in the words of the infant ,goethe1 unworthy of an all-powerful and all-benevolent ,providence1 and in effect a libel on his government and character4 ,but that grave charge we leave the objectors to settle with the great ,creator himself4 ,be it theirs1 not ours1 according to the poet1 to ,snatch from his hand the balance and the rod1 ,rejudge his justice1 be the god of ,god4 ,be it enough for the geologist rightly to interpret the record of creation1--to declare the truth as he finds it1--to demonstrate1 from evidence no clear intellect ever yet resisted1 that he1 the ,creator1 from whom even the young lions seek their food1 and who giveth to all the beasts1 great and small1 their meat in due season1 ever wrought as he now works in his animal kingdom1--that he gave to the primeval fishes their spines and their stings1--to the primeval reptiles their trenchant teeth and their strong armor of bone1--to the primeval mammals their great tusks and their sharp claws1--that he of old divided all his creatures1 as now1 into animals of prey and the animals preyed upon1--that from the beginning of things he inseparably established among his non-responsible existences the twin laws of generation and of death1--nay1 further1 passing from the established truths of ,geologic to one of the best established truths of ,theologic science1--,god's eternal justice and truth1--let us assert1 that in the ,divine government the matter of fact always determines the question of right1 and that whatever has been done by him who rendereth no account to man of his matters1 he had in all ages1 and in all places1 an unchallengeable right to do4 ,the oldest known reptiles appear just a little before the close of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 just as the oldest known fishes appeared just a little before the close of the ,silurian ,system4 ,what seems to be the ,upper ,old ,red of our own country1 though there still hangs a shade of doubt on the subject1 has furnished the remains of a small reptile1 equally akin1 it would appear1 to the lizards and the batrachians2 and what seems to be the ,upper ,old ,red of the ,united ,states has exhibited the foot-tracks of a larger animal of the same class1 which not a little resemble those which would be impressed on recent sand or clay by the alligator of the ,mississippi1 did not the alligator of the ,mississippi efface its own footprints 7a consequence of the shortness of its legs7 by the trail of its abdomen4 ,in the ,coal ,measures1 the reptiles hitherto found1--and it is still little more than ten years since the first was detected1--are all allied1 though not without a cross of the higher crocodilian or lacertian nature1 to the batrachian order1--that lowest order of the reptiles to which the frogs1 newts1 and salamanders belong4 ,these reptiles of the carboniferous era1 though only a few twelvemonths ago we little suspected the fact1 seem to have been not very rare in our own neighborhood4 ,my attention was called some time since by ,mr4 ,henry ,cadell1--an intelligent practical geologist1--to certain appearances in one of the ,duke of ,buccleuch's coal pits near ,dalkeith1 which lie regarded as the tracks of air-breathing quadrupeds2 and1 after examining a specimen1 containing four footprints1 which he had brought above ground1 and which not a little excited my curiosity1 we visited the pit together4 ,and there1 in a side working about half a mile from the pit mouth1 and about four hundred feet under the surface1 ,i found the roof of the coal1 which rose at a high angle1 traversed by so many foot-tracks1 upwards1 downwards1 and athwart1 that it cost me some little care to trace the individual lines4 ,at least one of the number1 however1--consisting of eleven footprints of the right and as many of the left foot--,i was able to trace from side to side of the working1 a distance of four yards2 and several of the others for shorter spaces4 ,the prints1 which were reverses or casts in a very coarse sandstone1 were about thirtecn inches apart across the creature's chest1 and rather more than a foot apart from its fore to its hinder limbs4 ,they were alternately larger and smaller1--the smaller 7those of the fore feet7 measuring about four inches in length1 and the larger 7those of the hinder feet7 about six inches4 ,the number of toes seemed to be alternately four and five2 but from the circumstance that the original matrix on which the tracks had been impressed1--a micaceous clay resolved into a loose fissile sandstone1--had fallen away in the working of the pit1 leaving but the boldly-relieved though ill-defined casts on the coarse sandstone1 ,i could not definitely determine the point4 ,enough1 however1 remained to show that at that spot1--little more than a mile from where the ,duke of ,buccleuch's palace now stands1--large reptiles had congregated in considerable numbers shortly after the great eight feet coal seam of the ,dalkeith basin had been formed4 ,in another part of the pit ,i found foot-tracks of apparently the same animal in equal abundance1 but still less distinct in their state of keeping4 ,but they bore testimony with the others to the comparative abundance of reptilian life at an early period1 when the coal-bearing strata of the empire were little more than half deposited4 ,it was not1 however1 until the ,permian and ,triassic ,systems had come to a close1 and even the earlier ages of the ,oolitic ,system had passed away1 that the class received its fullest development in creation4 ,and certainly very wonderful was the development which it then did receive4 ,reptiles became everywhere the lords and masters of this lower world4 ,when any class of the air-breathing vertebrates is very largely developed1 we find it taking possession of all the three old terrestrial elements1--earth1 air1 and water4 ,the human period1 for instance1 like that which immediately preceded it1 is peculiarly a period of mammals2 and we find the class1 free1 if ,i may so express myself1 of the three elements1 disputing possession of the sea with the fishes1 in its ,cetaceans1 its seals1 and its sea-lions1 and of the air with the birds1 in its numerous genera of the bat family4 ,further1 not until the great mammaliferous period is fairly ushered in do either the bats or the whales make their appearance in creation4 ,remains of ,oolitic reptiles have been mistaken in more than one instance for those of ,cetacea2 but it is now generally held that the earliest known specimens of the family belong to the ,tertiary ages1 while those of the oldest bats occur in the ,eocene of the ,paris ,basin1 associated with the bones of dolphins1 lamantines1 and morses4 ,now1 in the times of the ,oolite it was the reptilian class that possessed itself of all the elements4 ,its gigantic enaliosaurs1 huge reptilian whales mounted on paddles1 were the tyrants of the ocean1 and must have reigned supreme over the already reduced class of fishes2 its pterodactyles1--dragons as strange as were ever feigned by romancer of the middle ages1 and that to the jaws and teeth of the crocodile added the wings of a bat and the body and tail of an ordinary mammal1 had the power of the air1 and1 pursuing the fleetest insects in their flight1 captured and bore them down2#ad its lakes and rivers abounded in crocodiles and fresh water tortoises of ancient type and fashion2 and its woods and plains were the haunts of a strange reptilian fauna1 of what has been well termed fearfully great lizards1--some of which1 such as the iguanodon1 rivalled the largest elephant in height1 and greatly more than rivalled him in length and bulk4 ,judging from what remains1 it seems not improbable that the reptiles of this ,oolitic period were quite as numerous individually1 and consisted of well nigh as many genera and species1 as all the mammals of the present time4 ,in the cretaceous ages1 the class1 though still the dominant one1 is visibly reduced in its standing2 it had reached its culminating point in the ,oolite1 and then began to decline2 and with the first dawn of the ,tertiary division we find it occupying1 as now1 a very subordinate place in creation4 ,curiously enough1 it is not until its times of humiliation and decay that one of the most remarkable of its orders appears1--an order itself illustrative of extreme degradation1 and which figures largely1 in every scheme of mythology that borrowed through traditional channels from ,divine revelation1 as a meet representative of man's great enemy the ,evil ,one4 ,i of course refer to the ophidian or serpent family4 ,the earliest ophidian remains known to the ,palontologist occur in that ancient deposit of the ,tertiary division known as the ,london ,clay1 and must have belonged to serpents1 some of them allied to the ,pythons1 some to the sea-snakes1 which1 judging from the corresponding parts of recent species1 must have been from fourteen to twenty feet in length4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fa4 ,,vespertilio ,,parisiensis4 ,a ,bat of the ,eocene4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fb ,,ichthyosaurus ,,communis4 7,lias47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fc4 ,,plesiosaurus ,,dolichodeirus4 7,lias47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fd4 ,,pterodactylus ,,crassirostris4 7,oolite47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fe4 ,,chelonia ,,benstedi4 7,chalk47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ff4 ,,pal,,ophis ,,toliapicus4 7,ophidian of the ,eocene47 ,and here let us again pause for a moment1 to remark how strangely these irascible1 repulsive reptiles1--creatures lengthened out far beyond the proportions of the other members of their class by mere vegetative repetitions of the vertebr1--condemned to derive1 worm-like1 their ability of progressive motion from the ring-like scutes of the abdomen--venomous in many of their species1--formidable in others to even the noblest animals1 from their fascinating powers and their great craft1--without1 fore or hinder limbs1 without thoracic or pelvic arches1--the very types and exemplars 7our highest naturalists being the judges7 of the extreme of animal degradation1--let us1 ,i say1 remark how strangely their history has been mixed up with that of man and of religion in all the older mythologies1 and in that ,divine ,revelation whence the older mythologies were derived4 ,it was one of the most ancient of the ,phoenician fables1 that the great antagonist of the gods was a gigantic serpent1 that had at one time been their subject1 but revolted against them and became their enemy4 ,it was a monstrous serpent that assailed and strove to destroy the mother of ,apollo ere yet the birth of the god1 but which1 long after1 ,apollo in turn assaulted and slew4 ,it was a great serpent that watched over the apples of the ,hesperides1 and that ,hercules1 ere he could possess himself of the fruit1 had to combat and kill4 ,it was a frightful serpent that guarded the golden fleece from ,jason1 and which the hero had to destroy in the first instance1 and next to exterminate the strange brood of armed men that sprang up from its sown teeth4 ,in short1 the old mythologies are well nigh as full of the serpent as those ancient ,runic obelisks of our country1 whose endless knots and complicated fretwork are formed throughout of the interlacings of snakes4 ,let us1 however1 accept as representative of this innumerable class of legends1 the classical story1 rendered yet more classical by the profound and reverend comment given by ,bacon in his ,wisdom of the ,ancients4 ,jupiter and the other gods1 says the philosopher1 in his simple version of the tradition1 conferred upon men a most acceptable and desirable boon1--the gift of perpetual youth4 ,but men1 foolishly overjoyed hereat1 laid this present of the gods upon an ass1 who1 in returning back with it1 being extremely thirsty1 and coming to a fountain1 the serpent who was guardian thereof would not suffer him to drink but upon condition of receiving the burden he carried1 whatever it should be4 ,the silly ass complied2 and thus the perpetual renewal of youth was for a sup of water transferred from men to the race of serpents4 ,that this gift of perpetual youth should pass from men to serpents1 continues ,bacon1 seems added1 by way of ornament and illustration1 to the fable4 ,and it certainly has much the appearance of an after-thought4 ,but how very striking the resemblance1 borne by the story1 as a whole1 to that narrative in the opening page of human history which exhibits the first parents of the race as yielding up to the temptation of the serpent the gift of immortality2 and further1 how remarkable the fact1 that the reptile selected as typical here of the great fallen spirit that kept not his first estate1 should be at once the reptile of latest appearance in creation1 and the one selected by philosophical naturalists as representative of a reversed process in the course of being1--of a downward1 sinking career1 from the vertebrate antetype towards greatly lower types in the invertebrate divisions6 ,the fallen spirit is represented in revelation by what we are now taught to recognize in science as a degraded reptile4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fg4 ,,bird ,,tracks ,,of ,,the ,,connecticut4 7,lias or ,oolite47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fh4 ,,fossil ,,footprint4 ,connecticut4 ,birds make their first appearance in a ,red ,sandstone deposit of the ,united ,states in the valley of the ,connecticut1 which was at one time supposed to belong to the ,triassic ,system1 but which is now held to be at least not older than the times of the ,lias4 ,no fragments of the skeletons of birds have yet been discovered in formations older than the ,chalk3 the ,connecticut remains are those of footprints exclusively2 and yet they tell their extraordinary story1 so far as it extends1 with remarkable precision and distinctness4 ,they were apparently all of the ,grall or stilt order of birds1--an order to which the cranes1 herons1 and bustards belong1 with the ostriches and cassowaries1 and which is characterized by possessing but three toes on each foot 7one species of ostrich has but two71 or1 if a fourth toe be present1 so imperfectly is it developed in most of the cases1 that it fails to reach the ground4 ,and in almost all the footprints of the primeval birds of the ,connecticut there are only three toes exhibited4 ,peculiar1 ill understood laws regulate the phalangal divisions of the various animals4 ,it is a law of the human kind1 for instance1 that the thumb should consist of but three phalanges2 while the fingers1 even the smallest1 consist of four4 ,and1 in the same way1 it is a law generally exemplified among birds1 that of the three toes which correspond to the fingers1 the inner toe should be composed of three phalanges1 the middle or largest toe of four phalanges1 and the outer toe1 though but second in point of size1 of five phalanges4 ,such is the law now1 and such was equally the law1 as shown by the ,american footprints1 in the times of the ,lias4 ,some of the impressions are of singular distinctness4 ,every claw and phalange has left its mark in the stone2 while the trifid termination of the tarso-metatarsal bone leaves three marks more1--fifteen in all1--the true ornithic number4 ,in some of the specimens even the pressure of a metatarsal brush1 still possessed by some birds1 is distinctly traceable2 nay1 there are instances in which the impress of the dermoid papill has remained as sharply as if made in wax4 ,but the immense size of some of these footprints served to militate for a time against belief in their ornithic origin4 ,the impressions that are but secondary in point of size greatly exceed those of the hugest birds which now exist2 while those of the largest class equal the prints of the bulkier quadrupeds4 ,there are tridactyle footprints in the red sandstones of ,connecticut that measure eighteen inches in length from the heel to the middle claw1 nearly thirteen inches in breadth from the outer to the inner toe1 and which indicate1 from their distance apart in the straight line1 a stride of about six feet in the creature that impressed them in these ancient sands1--measurements that might well startle zoologists who had derived their experience of the ornithic class from existing birds exclusively4 ,comparatively recent discoveries have1 however1 if not lessened1 at least familiarized us to the wonder4 ,in a deposit of ,new ,zealand that dates little if at all in advance of the human period1 there have been detected the remains of birds scarce inferior in size to those of ,america in the ,liassic ages4 ,the bones of the ,dinornus giganteus1 exhibited by the late ,dr4 ,mantell in ,edinburgh in the autumn of #ahej1 greatly exceeded in bulk those of the largest horse4 ,a thigh bone sixteen inches in length measured nearly nine inches in circumference in the middle of the shaft3 the head of a tibia measured twenty-one inches in circumference4 ,it was estimated that a foot entire in all its parts1 which formed an interesting portion of the exhibition1 would1 when it was furnished with nails1 and covered by the integuments1 have measured about fifteen inches in length2 and it was calculated by a very competent authority1 ,professor ,owen1 that of the other bones of the leg to which it belonged1 the tibia must have been about two feet nine inches1 and the femur about fourteen and a half inches long4 ,the larger thigh bone referred to must have belonged1 it was held1 to a bird that stood from eleven to twelve feet high1--the extreme height of the great ,african elephant4 ,such were the monster birds of a comparatively recent period2 and their remains serve to render credible the evidence furnished by the great footprints of their remote predecessors of the ,lias4 ,the huge feet of the greatest ,dinornus whose bones have yet been found would have left impressions scarcely an inch shorter than those of the still huger birds of the ,connecticut4 ,is it not truly wonderful1 that in this late age of the world1 in which the invention of the poets seems to content itself with humbler and lowlier flights than of old1 we should thus find the facts of geology fully rivalling1 in the strange and the outr1 the wildest fancies of the romancers who flourished in the middle ages8 ,i have already referred to flying dragons1--real existences of the ,oolitic period1--that were quite as extraordinary of type1 if not altogether so huge of bulk1 as those with which the ,seven ,champions of ,christendom used to do battle2 and here are we introduced to birds of the ,liassic ages that were scarce less gigantic than the roc of ,sinbad the ,sailor4 ,they are fraught with strange meanings these footprints of the ,connecticut4 ,they tell of a time far removed into the by-past eternity1 when great birds frequented by myriads the shores of a nameless lake1 to wade into its shallows in quest of mail-covered fishes of the ancient type1 or long-extinct molluscs2 while reptiles equally gigantic1 and of still stranger proportions1 haunted the neighboring swamps and savannahs2 and when the same sun that shone on the tall moving forms beside the waters1 and threw their long shadows across the red sands1 lighted up the glades of deep forests1 all of whose fantastic productions1--tree1 bush1 and herb1--have even in their very species long since passed away4 ,and of this scene of things only the footprints remain1--footprints on the sands of time1 that tell us1 among other matters1 whence the graceful ,american poet derived his quiet but singularly effective and unmistakeably indigenous figure3-- ,lives of great men all remind us ,we can make our lives sublime1 ,and1 departing1 leave behind us ,footprints on the sand of time4 ,footprints that perhaps another1 ,sailing o'er life's solemn main1 ,a forlorn and shipwrecked brother1 ,seeing1 shall take heart again4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #fi4 ,,thylacotherium ,,prevosti4 7,stonisfield ,slate47 ,with the ,stonisfield slates1--a deposit which lies above what is known as the ,inferior ,oolite1--the remains of mammaliferous animals first appear4 ,as1 however1 no other mammalian remains occur until after the close of the great ,secondary ,division1 and as certain marked peculiarities attach to these ,oolitic ones1 it may be well to inquire whether their place1 so far in advance of their fellows1 may not be indicative of a radical difference of character1--a difference considerable enough to suggest to the zoologist an improvement in his scheme of classification4 ,it has been shown by ,professor ,owen1--our highest authority in comparative anatomy1--that while one ,stonisfield genus unequivocally belonged to the marsupial order1 another of its genera bears also certain of the marsupial traits2 and that the group which they composed1--a very small one1 and consisting exclusively of minute insect-eating animals1--exhibits in its general aspect the characteristics of this pouched family4 ,even the genus of the group that least resembles them was pronounced by ,cuvier to have its nearest affinities with the opossums4 ,and let us mark how very much may be implied in this circumstance4 ,in the ,animal ,kingdom of the great naturalist just named1 the marsupiata1 or pouched animals1 are made to occupy the fourth place among the nine orders of the ,mammalia2 but should they not rather occupy a place intermediate between the placental mammals and the birds8 and does not nature indicate their true position by the position which she assigns to them in the geologic scale8 ,the birds are oviparous2 and between the extrusion of the egg and the development of the perfect young bird they have to hatch it into life during a long period of incubation4 ,the marsupiata are not oviparous1 for their eggs want the enveloping shell or skin2 but they1 too1 are extruded in an exceedingly rudimentary and foetal state1 and have to undergo in the pouch a greatly longer period of incubation than that demanded by nature for any bird whatever4 ,the young kangaroo is extruded1 after it has remained for little more than a month in the womb1 as a foetus scarcely an inch in length by somewhat less than half an inch in breadth3 it is blind1 exhibiting merely dark eye spots2 its limbs are so rudimentary1 that even the hinder legs1 so largely developed in the genus when mature1 exist as mere stumps2 it is unable even to suck1 but1 holding permanently on by a minute dug1 has the sustaining fluid occasionally pressed into its mouth by the mother4 ,and1 undergoing a peculiar but not the less real process of incubation1 the creature that had to remain for little more than a month in the womb1--strictly thirty-nine days1--has to remain in the mother's pouch1 ere it is fully developed and able to provide for itself1 for a period of eight months4 ,it is found to increase in weight during this hatching process1 from somewhat less than an ounce to somewhat more than eight pounds4 ,now1 this surely is a process quite as nearly akin to the incubation of egg-bearing birds as to the ordinary nursing process of the placental mammals2 and on the occult but apparently real principle1 that the true arrangement of the animal kingdom is that which we find exemplified by the successive introduction of its various classes and orders in the course of geologic history1 should we not anticipate a point of time for the introduction of the marsupiata1 intermediate between the widely-distant points at which the egg-bearing birds and the true placental mammals appeared8 ,ranged at once chronologically1 and by their mode of reproduction1 the various classes of the vertebrata would run1 did we accept the suggested reading1 as follows3--,first appear cold-blooded vertebrates 7fishes71 that propagate by eggs or spawn1--chiefly by the latter4 ,next appear cold-blooded vertebrates 7reptiles71 that propagate by eggs or spawn1--chiefly by the former4 ,then appear warm-blooded vertebrates 7birds71 that propagate by eggs exclusively4 ,then warm-blooded vertebrates come upon the stage1 that produce eggs without shells1 which have to be subjected for months to a species of extra-placental incubation4 ,and last of all the true placental mammals appear4 ,and thus1 tried by the test of perfect reproduction1 the great vertebral division receives its full development in creation4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #gj4 ,,anopltherium ,,commune4 7,eocene47 ,the placental mammals make their appearance1 as ,i have said1 in the earliest ages of the great ,tertiary division1 and exhibit in the group an aspect very unlike that which they at present bear4 ,the ,eocene ages were peculiarly the ages of the ,palotheres1--strange animals of that pachydermatous or thick-skinned order to which the elephants1 the tapirs1 the hogs1 and the horses belong4 ,it had been remarked by naturalists1 that there are fewer families of this order in living nature than of almost any other1 and that1 of the existing genera1 not a few are widely separated in their analogies from the others4 ,but in the ,palotheres of the ,eocene1 which ranged in size from a large horse to a hare1 not a few of the missing links have been found1--links connecting the tapirs to the hogs1 and the hogs to the ,palotheres proper2 and there is at least one species suggestive of an union of some of the more peculiar traits of the tapirs and the horses4 ,it was among these extinct ,pachydermata of the ,paris basin that ,cuvier effected his wonderful restorations1 and produced those figures in outline which are now as familiar to the geologist as any of the forms of the existing animals4 ,the ,london ,clay and the ,eocene of the ,isle of ,wight have also yielded numerous specimens of those pachyderms1 whose identity with the ,continental ones has been established by ,owen2 but they are more fragmentary1 and their state of keeping less perfect1 than those furnished by the gypsum quarries of ,velay and ,montmartre4 ,in these the smaller animals occur often in a state of preservation so peculiar and partial as to excite the curiosity of even the untaught workmen4 ,only half the skeleton is present4 ,the limbs and ribs of the under side are found lying in nearly their proper places2 while of the limbs and ribs of the upper side usually not a trace can be detected1--even the upper side of the skull is often awanting4 ,it-would almost seem as if some pre-,adamite butcher had divided the carcasses longitudinally1 and carried away with him all the upper halves4 ,the reading of the enigma seems to be1 that when the creatures lay down and died1 the gypsum in which their remains occur was soft enough to permit their under sides to sink into it1 and that then gradually hardening1 it kept the bones in their places2 while the uncovered upper sides1 exposed to the disintegrating influences1 either mouldered away piecemeal1 or were removed by accident4 ,the bones of the larger animals of the basin are usually found detached2 and ere they could be reconstructed into perfect skeletons1 they taxed the extraordinary powers of the greatest of comparative anatomists4 ,rather more than twenty different species of extinct mammals have been detected in the ,paris basin1--not a great number1 it may be thought2 and yet for so limited a locality we may deem it not a very small one1 when we take into account the fact that all our native mammals of ,britain and ,ireland amount 7according to ,fleming71 if we except the ,cetace and the seals1 to but forty species4 ,illustration3 ,fig #ga4 ,,animals ,,of ,,the ,,paris ,,basin4#ae 7,eocene47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #gb4 ,,dinotherium ,,giganteum4 7,miocene47 ,in the ,middle or ,miocene ,tertiary1 pachyderms1 though of a wholly different type from their predecessors1 are still the prevailing forms4 ,the ,dinotherium1 one of the greatest quadrupedal mammals that ever lived1 seems to have formed a connecting link in this middle age between the ,pachydermata and the ,cetace4 ,each ramus of the under jaw1 which in the larger specimens are fully four feet in length1 bore at the symphysis a great bent tusk turned downwards1 which appears to have been employed as a pickaxe in uprooting the aquatic plants and liliaceous roots on which the creature seems to have lived4 ,the head1 which measured about three feet across1--a breadth1 sufficient1 surely1 to satisfy the demands of the most exacting phrenologist1--was provided with muscles of enormous strength1 arranged so as to give potent effect to the operations of this strange tool4 ,the hinder part of the skull not a little resembled that of the ,cetace2 while1 from the form of the nasal bones1 the creature was evidently furnished with a trunk like the elephant4 ,it seems not improbable1 therefore1 that this bulkiest of mammaliferous quadrupeds constituted1 as ,i have said1 a sort of uniting tie between creatures still associated in the human mind1 from the circumstance of their massive proportions1 as the greatest that swim the sea or walk the land1--the whale and the elephant4 ,the ,mastodon1 an elephantoid animal1 also furnished1 like the elephant1 with tusks and trunk1 but marked by certain peculiarities which constitute it a different genus1 seems in ,europe to have been contemporary with the ,dinotherium2 but in ,north ,america 7the scene of its greatest numerical development7 it appears to belong to a later age4 ,in height it did not surpass the ,african elephant1 but it considerably exceeded it in length1--a specimen which could not have stood above twelve feet high indicating a length of about twenty-five feet3 it had what the elephants want1--tusks fixed in its lower jaw1 which the males retained through life1 but the females lost when young2 its limbs were proportionally shorter1 but more massive1 and its abdomen more elongated and slim2 its grinder teeth too1 some of which have been known to weigh from seventeen to twenty pounds1 and their cusps elevated into great mamm-like protuberances1 to which the creature owes its name1 and wholly differ in their proportions and outline from the grinders of the elephant4 ,the much greater remoteness of the mastodonic period in ,europe than in ,america is a circumstance worthy of notice1 as it is one of many facts that seem to indicate a general transposition of at least the later geologic ages on the opposite sides of the ,atlantic4 ,groups of corresponding character on the eastern and western shores of this great ocean were not contemporaneous in time4 ,it has been repeatedly remarked1 that the existing plants and trees of the ,united ,states1 with not a few of its fishes and reptiles1 bear in their forms and construction the marks of a much greater antiquity than those of ,europe4 ,the geologist who sets himself to discover similar types on the eastern side of the ,atlantic would have to seek for them among the deposits of the later ,tertiaries4 ,north ,america seems to be still passing through its later ,tertiary ages2 and it appears to be a consequence of this curious transposition1 that while in ,europe the mastodonic period is removed by two great geologic eras from the present time1 it is removed from it in ,america by only one4 ,even in ,america1 however1 that period lies far beyond the reach of human tradition1--a fact borne out by the pseudo-traditions retailed by the aborigines regarding the mastodon4 ,by none of at least the higher naturalists has there been a doubt entertained respecting its herbivorous character2 and the discovery of late years of the stomach of an individual charged with decayed herbage and fragments of the succulent branches of trees1 some of them of existing species1 has demonstrated the solidity of the reasonings founded on its general structure and aspect4 ,the pseudo-traditions1 however1 represent it in every instance as a carnivorous tyrant1 that1 had it not been itself destroyed1 would have destroyed all the other animals its contemporaries4 ,it is said by the red men of ,virginia1 that a troop of these tremendous quadrupeds made fearful havoc for some time among the deer1 the buffaloes1 and all the other animals created for the use of the ,indians1 and spread desolation far and wide4 ,at last 'the ,mighty ,man above' seized his thunder and killed them all1 with the exception of the largest of the males1 who presenting his head to the thunderbolts1 shook them off as they fell2 but1 being wounded in the side1 he betook himself to flight towards the great lakes1 where he still resides at the present day4 ,let me here remind you in the passing1 that that antiquity of type which characterizes the recent productions of ,north ,america is one of many wonders1--not absolutely geological in themselves1 but which1 save for the revelations of geology1 would have forever remained unnoted and unknown1--which have been pressed1 during the last half century1 on the notice of naturalists4 ,it is a circumstance quite extraordinary and unexpected1 says ,agassiz1 in his profoundly interesting work on ,lake ,superior1 that the fossil plants of the ,tertiary beds of ,oeningen resemble more closely the trees and shrubs which grow at present in the eastern parts of ,north ,america1 than those of any other parts of the world2 thus allowing us to express correctly the difference between the opposite coasts of ,europe and ,america1 by saying that the present eastern ,american flora1 and1 ,i may add1 the fauna also1 have a more ancient character than those of ,europe4 ,the plants1 especially the trees and shrubs1 growing in our days in the ,united ,states1 are1 as it were1 old-fashioned2 and the characteristic genera ,lagomys1 ,chelydra1 and the large ,salamanders with permanent gills1 that remind us of the fossils of ,oeningen1 are at least equally so2--they bear the marks of former ages4 ,how strange a fact6 ,not only are we accustomed to speak of the eastern continents as the ,old ,world1 in contradistinction to the great continent of the west1 but to speak also of the world before the ,flood as the ,old ,world1 in contradistinction to the post-diluvian world which succeeded it4 ,and yet equally1 if we receive the term in either of its acceptations1 is ,america an older world still1--an older world than that of the eastern continents1--an older world1 in the fashion and type of its productions1 than the world before the ,flood4 ,and when the immigrant settler takes axe amid the deep backwoods1 to lay open for the first time what he deems a new country1 the great trees that fall before him1--the brushwood that he lops away with a sweep of his tool1--the unfamiliar herbs which he tramples under foot1--the lazy fish-like reptile that scarce stirs out of his path as he descends to the neighboring creek to drink1--the fierce alligator-like tortoise1 with the large limbs and small carpace1 that he sees watching among the reeds for fish and frogs1 just as he reaches the water1--and the little hare-like rodent1 without a tail1 that he startles by the way1--all attest1 by the antiqueness of the mould in which they are cast1 how old a country the seemingly new one really is1--a country vastly older1 in type at least1 than that of the antediluvians and the patriarchs1 and only to be compared with that which flourished on the eastern side of the ,atlantic long ere the appearance of man1 and the remains of whose perished productions we find locked up in the loess of the ,rhine1 or amid the lignites of ,nassau4 ,america is emphatically the ,old ,world4 ,if we accept1 however1 as sound the ingenious logic by which ,colton labors to show1 in not inelegant verse1 that the ,moderns are the true ,ancients1 we may continue to term it the ,new ,world still4 ,we that on these late days are thrown ,must be the oldest ,ancients known2 ,the earliest ,modern earth hath seen ,was ,adam in his apron green4 ,he lived when young ,creation pealed ,her morning hymn o'er flood and field1 ,till all her infant offspring came ,to that great christening for a name4 ,and he that would the ,ancients know1 ,must forward come1 not backward go3 ,the learned lumber of the shelves ,shows nothing older than ourselves4 ,but who in older times than we ,shall live8--,that infant on the knee1-- ,see sights to us were never shown1 ,and secrets known to us unknown4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #gc4 ,,elephas ,,primigenius4 7,mammoth47 ,great ,british ,elephant4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #gd4 ,,trogontherium ,,cuvieri4 ,gigantic ,beaver4 7,pleistocene47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ge4 ,,ursus ,,spel,,us4 ,cave ,bear4 7,pleistocene47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #gf4 ,,hyena ,,spel,a4 ,cave ,hyna4 7,pleistocene47 ,the group of mammals which1 in ,europe1 at least1 immediately preceded the human period seems to have been everywhere a remarkable one2 and nowhere was it more so than in the ,british islands4 ,our present mammaliferous fauna is rather poor2 but the contents of the later deposits show that we must regard it as but a mere fragment of a very noble one4 ,associated with species that still exist in the less cultivated parts of the country1 such as the badger1 the fox1 the wild cat1 the roe and the red deer1 we find the remains of great animals1 whose congeners must now be sought for in the intertropical regions4 ,britain1 during the times of the boulder clay1 and for ages previous1 had its native elephant1 its two species of rhinoceros1 its hippopotamus1 its hyna1 its tiger1 its three species of bears1 its two species of beavers1 its great elk1 and its gigantic deer4 ,forms now found widely apart1 and in very different climates1 meet within the ,british area4 ,during at least the earlier times of the group1 the temperature of our island seems to have been very much what it is now4 ,as ,i have already had occasion to remark1 the ,british oak flourished on its plains and lower slopes1 and the birch and ,scotch fir on its hills4 ,and yet under these familiar trees the lagomys or tailless hare1 a form now mainly restricted to ,siberia and the wilds of ,northern ,america1 and the reindeer1 an animal whose proper habitat at the present time is ,lapland1 were associated with forms that are now only to be found between the tropics1 such as that of the hippopotamus and rhinoceros4 ,these last1 however1 unequivocally of extinct species1 seem to have been adapted to live in a temperate climate2 and we know from the famous ,siberian specimen1 that the ,british elephant1 with its covering of long hair and closely-felted wool1 was fitted to sustain the rigors of a very severe one4 ,it is surely a strange fact1 but not less true than strange1 that since hill and dale assumed in ,britain their present configuration1 and the oak and birch flourished in its woods1 there were caves in ,england haunted for ages by families of hynas1--that they dragged into their dens with the carcasses of long extinct animals those of the still familiar denizens of our hill-sides1 and feasted1 now on the lagomys1 and now on the common hare1--that they now fastened on the beaver or the reindeer1 and now upon the roebuck or the goat4 ,in one of these caves1 such of the bones as projected from the stiff soil have been actually worn smooth in a narrow passage where the hynas used to come in contact with them in passing out and in2 and for several feet in depth the floor beneath is composed almost exclusively of gnawed fragments1 that still exhibit the deeply indented marks of formidable teeth4 ,in the famous ,kirkdale cave alone1 parts of the skeletons of from two to three hundred hynas have been detected1 mixed with portions of the osseous framework of the cave-tiger1 the cave-bear1 the ox1 the deer1 the mammoth1 and the rhinoceros4 ,that cave must have been a den of wild creatures for many ages ere the times of the boulder clay1 during which period it was shut up from all access to the light and air by a drift deposit1 and lay covered over until again laid open by some workmen little more than thirty years ago4 ,not only were many of the wild animals of the country which still exist contemporary for a time with its extinct bears1 tigers1 and elephants1 but it seems at least highly probable that several of our domesticated breeds derived their origin from progenitors whose remains we find entombed in the bone-caves and other deposits of the same age2 though of course the changes effected by domestication in almost all the tame animals renders the question of their identity with the indigenous breeds somewhat obscure4 ,cuvier was1 however1 unable to detect any difference between the skeleton of a fossil horse1 contemporary with the elephant1 and that of our domestic breed3 a fossil goat of the same age cannot be distinguished from the domesticated animal2 and one of our two fossil oxen 7,bos longifrons7 does not differ more from some of the existing breeds than these have1 in the course of time1 been made1 chiefly by artificial means1 to differ among themselves4 ,but of one of our domestic tribes no trace has yet been found in the rocks3 like the cod family among fishes1 or the ,rosace among plants1 it seems to have preceded man by but a very brief period4 ,and certainly1 if created specially for his use1 though the pride of the herald might prevent him from selecting it as in aught typical of the human race1 it would yet not be easy to instance a family of animals that has ministered more extensively to his necessities4 ,i refer to the sheep1--that soft and harmless creature1 that clothes civilized man everywhere in the colder latitudes with its fleece1--that feeds him with its flesh1--that gives its bowels to be spun into the catgut with which he refits his musical instruments1--whose horns he has learned to fashion into a thousand useful trinkets1--and whose skin1 converted into parchment1 served to convey to later times the thinking of the first full blow of the human intellect across the dreary gulf of the middle ages4 ,at length the human period begins4 ,a creature appears upon the scene unlike all that had preceded him1 and whose nature it equally is to look back upon the events of the past1--among other matters1 on that succession of beings upon the planet which he inhabits1 with which we are this evening attempting to deal1--and to anticipate at least one succession more1 in that still future state in which he himself is again to appear1 in happier circumstances than now1 and in a worthier character4 ,we possess another history of the primeval age and subsequent chronology of the human family than that which we find inscribed in the rocks4 ,and it is well that we do so4 ,from various causes1 the geologic evidence regarding the period of man's first appearance on earth is singularly obscure4 ,that custom of burying his dead out of his sight1 which obtained1 we know1 in the patriarchal times1 and was probably in use ever since man came first under the law of death1 has had the effect of mingling his remains with those of creatures that were extinct for ages ere he began to be4 ,the cavern1 once a haunt of carnivorous animals1 that in the first simple ages of his history had furnished him with a shelter when living1 became his burying-place when dead2 and thus his bones1 and his first rude attempts in pottery and weapon-making1 have been found associated with the remains of the cave-hyna and cave-tiger1 with the teeth of the ancient hippopotamus1 and the tusks of the primeval elephant4 ,the evidence on the point1 too1--from the great paucity of human remains of a comparatively remote period1 and from the circumstance that they are rarely seen by geologists in the stratum in which they occur1--is usually very imperfect in its details4 ,further1 it is an evidence obnoxious to suspicion1 from the fact that a keen controversy has arisen on the subject of man's antiquity1 that such fragments of man himself or of his works as manifest great age have been pressed to serve as weapons in the fray1--that1 occurring always in superficial and local deposits1 their true era may be greatly antedated1 under the influence of prejudice1 by men who have no design wilfully to deceive1--and that while1 respecting the older formations1 with their abundant organisms1 the conclusions of any one geologist may be tested by all the others1 the geologist who once in a lifetime picks up in a stratified sand or clay a stone arrow-head or a human bone1 finds that the data on which he founds his conclusions may be received or rejected by his contemporaries1 but not re-examined4 ,it may be safely stated1 however1 that that ancient record in which man is represented as the lastborn of creation1 is opposed by no geologic fact2 and that if1 according to ,chalmers1 the ,mosaic writings do not fix the antiquity of the globe1 they at least do fix--making allowance1 of course1 for the varying estimates of the chronologer--the antiquity of the human species4 ,the great column of being1 with its base set in the sea1 and inscribed1 like some old triumphal pillar1 with many a strange form1--at once hieroglyphic and figure1--bears1 as the ornately sculptured capital1 which imparts beauty and finish to the whole1 reasoning1 responsible man4 ,there is surely a very wonderful harmony manifested in the proportions of that nice sequence in which the invertebrates--the fishes1 the reptiles1 the birds1 the marsupials1 the placental mammals1 and1 last of all1 man himself--are so exquisitely arranged4 ,it reminds us of the fine figure employed by ,dryden in his first ,ode for ,st4 ,cecilia's ,day1--a figure which1 viewed in the light cast on it by the modern science of ,palontology1 stands out in bolder relief than that in which it could have appeared to the poet himself3-- ,from harmony1 from heavenly harmony1 ,this universal frame began2 ,from harmony to harmony1 ,through all the compass of the notes it ran1 ,the diapason closing full in man4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #gg4 ,,asaphus ,,caudatus4 7,silurian47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #gh4 ,,orthoceras ,,laterale4 7,mountain ,limestone47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #gi4 ,,spirigerina ,,reticularis4 7,old ,red ,sandstone47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #hj4 ,a4 ,,margaritatus4 7,lias47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ha4 ,a4 ,,bisulcatus4 7,lias47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #hb4 ,,belemnitella ,,mucronata4 7,chalk47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #hc4 ,,belemnites ,,sulcatus4 7,oolite47 ,in the limits to which ,i have restricted myself1 ,i have been able to do little more than simply to chronicle the successive eras in which the various classes and divisions of the organic kingdom1 vegetable and animal1 make their appearance in creation4 ,i have produced merely a brief record of the various births1 in their order1 of that great family whose father is ,god4 ,and in pursuing such a plan1 much1 of necessity1 must have been omitted4 ,i ought perhaps to have told you1 that very rarely1 if ever1 do the master forms of a period constitute the prevailing or typical organisms of its deposits4 ,of the three great divisions of which the geologic scale consists1--,palozoic1 ,secondary1 and ,tertiary1--the first1 or ichthyic period1 is marked chiefly1 not by its great fishes1 but by the peculiar character of its brachipodous and cephalopodous mollusca1 and in its earlier stages by its three-lobed crustace2 the second or reptilian period was emphatically the period of the ammonite and belemnite2 while the third and last1 or mammalian period1 was that of gastropodous and conchiferous molluscs1 impressed1 generically at least1 by all the features of the group which still exists in our seas4 ,save in a few local deposits1 fishes do not form the prevailing organisms in the formations of the age of fishes2 nor reptiles in the formations of the age of reptiles2 nor yet mammals in the formations of the age of mammals4 ,nay1 it is not improbable that the recent or human period may be marked most prominently in the future1 when it comes to exist simply as a geologic system1 by a still humbler organism than most of these molluscs4 ,on almost all rocky shores a line of pale gray may be seen at low water1 running for mile after mile along the belt that has been laid bare at the bases of the cliffs by the fall of the tide4 ,it owes its pale color to millions of millions of a small balanus 7,b4 balanoides71 produced in such amazing abundance in the littoral zone as to cover with a rough crust every minute portion of rock and every sedentary shell4 ,other species of the same genus 7,b4 crenatus and ,b4 porcatus7 occupy the depths of the sea beyond2 and their remains1 washed ashore by the waves1 and mingled with those of the littoral species1 form often great accumulations of shell sand4 ,i have seen among the ,hebrides a shell sand accumulated along the beach to the depth of many feet1 of which fully two thirds was composed of the valves and compartments of balanid2 and a similar sand on the east coast of ,scotland1 a little to the south of ,st4 ,andrews1 formed in still larger proportions of the fragments of a single species1--,balanus crenatus4 ,now1 this genus1 so amazingly abundant at the present time in every existing sea1 and whose accumulated remains bid fair to exist as great limestone rocks in the future1 had no existence in the ,palozoic or ,secondary ages4 ,it first appears in the times of the earlier ,tertiary1 in1 however1 only a single species2 and1 becoming gradually of more and more importance as a group1 it receives its fullest numerical development in the present time4 ,and thus the remains of a sub-class of animals1 low in their standing among the articulata1 may form one of the most prominent ,palontological features of the human period4 ,but enough for the present of circumstance and detail4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #hd4 ,,murex ,,alveolatus4 7,red ,crag47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #he4 ,,astarte ,,omalii4 7,red ,crag47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #hf4 ,,balanus ,,crassus4 7,red ,crag47 ,such1 so far as the geologist has yet been able to read the records of his science1 has been the course of creation1 from the first beginnings of vitality upon our planet1 until the appearance of man4 ,and very wonderful1 surely1 has that course been6 ,how strange a procession6 ,never yet on ,egyptian obelisk or ,assyrian frieze1--where long lines of figures seem stalking across the granite1 each charged with symbol and mystery1--have our ,layards or ,rawlinsons seen aught so extraordinary as that long procession of being which1 starting out of the blank depths of the bygone eternity1 is still defiling across the stage1 and of which we ourselves form some of the passing figures4 ,who shall declare the profound meanings with which these geologic hieroglyphics are charged1 or indicate the ultimate goal at which the long procession is destined to arrive8 ,the readings already given1 the conclusions already deduced1 are as various as the hopes and fears1 the habits of thought1 and the cast of intellect1 of the several interpreters who have set themselves1--some1 alas6 with but little preparation and very imperfect knowledge1--to declare in their order the details of this marvellous1 dream-like vision1 and1 with the dream1 the interpretation thereof4 ,one class of interpreters may well remind us of the dim-eyed old man1--the genius of unbelief so poetically described by ,coleridge1--who1 sitting in his cold and dreary cave1 talked much and vehemently concerning an infinite series of causes and effects1 which he explained to be a string of blind men1 the last of whom caught hold of the skirt of the one before him1 he of the next1 and so on1 till they were all out of sight1 and that they all walked infallibly straight1 without making one false step1 though all were alike blind4 ,with these must ,i class those assertors of the development hypothesis who can see in the upward progress of being only the operations of an incomprehending and incomprehensible law1 through which1 in the course of unreckoned ages1 the lower tribes and families have risen into the higher1 and inferior into superior natures1 and in virtue of which1 in short1 the animal creation has grown1 in at least its nobler specimens1 altogether unwittingly1 without thought or care on its own part1 and without intelligence on the part of the operating law1 from irrational to rational1 and risen in the scale from the mere promptings of instinct to the highest exercise of reason1--from apes and baboons to ,bacons and ,newtons4 ,the blind lead the blind2--the unseeing law operates on the unperceiving creatures2 and they go1 not together into the ditch1 but direct onwards1 straight as an arrow1 and higher and higher at every step4 ,another class look with profound melancholy on that great city of the dead1--the burial-place of all that ever lived in the past1--which occupies with its ever-extending pavements of gravestones1 and its ever-lengthening streets of tombs and sepulchres1 every region opened up by the geologist4 ,they see the onward procession of being as if but tipped with life1 and nought but inanimate carcasses all behind1--dead individuals1 dead species1 dead genera1 dead creations1--a universe of death2 and ask whether the same annihilation which overtook in turn all the races of all the past1 shall not one day overtake our own race also1 and a time come when men and their works shall have no existence save as stone-pervaded fossils locked up in the rock forever8 ,nowhere do we find the doubts and fears of this class more admirably portrayed than in the works of perhaps the most thoughtful and suggestive of living poets3-- ,are ,god and ,nature then at strife1 ,that ,nature lends such evil dreams1 ,so careful of the type she seems1 ,so careless of the single life8 ',so careful of the type6' but no1 ,from scarped cliff and quarried stone1 ,she cries1 ',a thousand types are gone2 ,i care for nothing2 all shall go3 ,thou makest thine appeal to me2 ,i bring to life1 ,i bring to death2 ,the spirit does but mean the breath4 ,i know no more4' ,and he1--shall he1 ,man1 her last work1 who seemed so fair1 ,such splendid purpose in his eyes1 ,who rolled the psalm to wintry skies ,and built him fanes of fruitless prayer1 ,who trusted ,god was love indeed1 ,and love creation's final law1 ,though ,nature1 red in tooth and claw1 ,with ravine shrieked against his creed1-- ,who loved1 who suffered countless ills1 ,who battled for the true1 the just1-- ,be blown about the desert dust1 ,or sealed within the iron hills8 ,no more6--a monster then1 a dream1 ,a discord4 ,dragons of the prime1 ,that tore each other in their slime1 ,were mellow music matched with him4 ,o1 life1 as futile then as frail1-- ,o for thy voice to soothe and bless6 ,what hope of answer or redress1 ,behind the vail1 behind the vail6 ,the sagacity of the poet here1--that strange sagacity which seems so nearly akin to the prophetic spirit1--suggests in this noble passage the true reading of the enigma4 ,the appearance of man upon the scene of being constitutes a new era in creation2 the operations of a new instinct come into play1--that instinct which anticipates a life after the grave1 and reposes in implicit faith upon a ,god alike just and good1 who is the pledged rewarder of all who diligently seek ,him4 ,and in looking along the long line of being1--ever rising in the scale from higher to yet higher manifestations1 or abroad on the lower animals1 whom instinct never deceives1--can we hold that man1 immeasurably higher in his place1 and infinitely higher in his hopes and aspirations1 than all that ever went before him1 should be1 notwithstanding1 the one grand error in creation1--the one painful worker1 in the midst of present trouble1 for a state into which he is never to enter1--the befooled expectant of a happy future1 which he is never to see8 ,assuredly no4 ,he who keeps faith with all his humbler creatures1--who gives to even the bee and the dormouse the winter for which they prepare1--will to a certainty not break faith with man1--with man1 alike the deputed lord of the present creation1 and the chosen heir of all the future4 ,we have been looking abroad on the old geologic burying-grounds1 and deciphering the strange inscriptions on their tombs2 but there are other burying-grounds1 and other tombs1--solitary churchyards among the hills1 where the dust of the martyrs lies1 and tombs that rise over the ashes of the wise and good2 nor are there awanting1 on even the monuments of the perished races1 frequent hieroglyphics1 and symbols of high meaning1 which darkly intimate to us1 that while their burial-yards contain but the debris of the past1 we are to regard the others as charged with the sown seed of the future4 ,,lecture ,,third4 ,,the ,,two ,,records1 ,,mosaic ,,and ,,geological4 ,it is now exactly fifty years since a clergyman of the ,scottish ,church1 engaged in lecturing at ,st4 ,andrews1 took occasion in enumerating the various earths of the chemist1 to allude to the science1 then in its infancy1 that specially deals with the rocks and soils which these earths compose4 ,there is a prejudice1 he remarked1 against the speculations of the geologist1 which ,i am anxious to remove4 ,it has been said that they nurture infidel propensities4 ,it has been alleged that geology1 by referring the origin of the globe to a higher antiquity than is assigned to it by the writings of ,moses1 undermines our faith in the inspiration of the ,bible1 and in all the animating prospects of the immortality which it unfolds4 ,this is a false alarm4 ,the writings of ,moses do not fix the antiquity of the globe4 ,the bold lecturer on this occasion1--for it needed no small courage in a divine of any ,established ,church to take up1 at the beginning of the present century1 a position so determined on the geologic side1--was at the time an obscure young man1 characterized1 in the small circle in which he moved1 by the ardor of his temperament and the breadth and originality of his views2 but not yet distinguished in the science or literature of his country1 and of comparatively little weight in the theological field4 ,he was marked1 too1 by what his soberer acquaintance deemed eccentricities of thought and conduct4 ,when the opposite view was all but universal1 he held and taught that free trade would be not only a general benefit to the people of this country1 but would inflict permanent injury on no one class or portion of them2 and further1 at a time when the streets and lanes of all the great cities of the empire were lighted with oil burnt in lamps1 he held that the time was not distant when a carburetted hydrogen gas would be substituted instead2 and1 on getting his snug parsonage-house repaired1 he actually introduced into the walls a system of tubes and pipes for the passage into its various rooms of the gaseous fluid yet to be employed as the illuminating agent4 ,time and experience have since impressed their stamp on these supposed eccentricities1 and shown them to be the sagacious forecastings of a man who saw further and more clearly than his contemporaries2 and fame has since blown his name very widely1 as one of the most comprehensive and enlightened1 and1 withal1 one of the most thoroughly earnest and sincere1 of modern theologians4 ,the bold lecturer of ,st4 ,andrews was ,dr4 ,thomas ,chalmers1--a divine whose writings are now known wherever the ,english language is spoken1 and whose wonderful eloquence lives in memory as a vanished power1 which even his extraordinary writings fail adequately to represent4 ,and in the position which he took up at this early period with respect to geology and the ,divine ,record1 we have yet another instance of the great sagacity of the man1 and of his ability of correctly estimating the prevailing weight of the evidence with which1 though but partially collected at the time1 the geologist was preparing to establish the leading propositions of his science4 ,even in this late age1 when the scientific standing of geology is all but universally recognized1 and the vast periods of time which it demands fully conceded1 neither geologist nor theologian1 could1 in any new scheme of reconciliation1 shape his first proposition more skilfully than it was shaped by ,chalmers a full half century ago4 ,it has formed since that time the preliminary proposition of those ornaments of at once science and the ,english ,church1 the present venerable ,archbishop of ,canterbury1 ,dr4 ,bird ,sumner1 with ,doctors ,buckland1 ,conybeare1 and ,professor ,sedgwick2 of eminent evangelistic ,dissenters too1 such as the late ,dr4 ,pye ,smith1 ,dr4 ,john ,harris1 ,dr4 ,robert ,vaughan1 ,dr4 ,james ,hamilton1 and the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,binney1--enlightened and distinguished men1 who all came early to the conclusion1 with the lecturer of ,st4 ,andrews1 that the writings of ,moses do not fix the antiquity of the globe4 ,in #ahad1 ten years after the date of the ,st4 ,andrews' lectures1 ,dr4 ,chalmers produced his more elaborate scheme of reconciliation between the ,divine and the ,geologic ,records1 in a ,review of ,cuvier's ,theory of the ,earth2 and that scheme1 perfectly adequate to bring the ,mosaic narrative into harmony with what was known at the time of geologic history1 has been very extensively received and adopted4 ,it may1 indeed1 still be regarded as the most popular of the various existing schemes4 ,it teaches1 and teaches truly1 that between the first act of creation1 which evoked out of the previous nothing the matter of the heavens and earth1 and the first act of the first day's work recorded in ,genesis1 periods of vast duration may have intervened2 but further1 it insists that the days themselves were but natural days of twenty-four hours each2 and that1 ere they began1 the earth1 though mayhap in the previous period a fair residence of life1 had become void and formless1 and the sun1 moon1 and stars1 though mayhap they had before given light1 had been1 at least in relation to our planet1 temporarily extinguished4 ,in short1 while it teaches that the successive creations of the geologist may all have found ample room in the period preceding that creation to which man belongs1 it teaches also that the record in ,genesis bears reference to but the existing creation1 and that there lay between it and the preceding ones a chaotic period of death and darkness4 ,the scheme propounded by the late ,dr4 ,pye ,smith1 and since adopted by several writers1 differs from that of ,chalmers in but one circumstance1 though an important one4 ,dr4 ,smith held1 with the great northern divine1 that the ,mosaic days were natural days2 that they were preceded by a chaotic period2 and that the work done in them related to but that last of the creations to which the human species belongs4 ,further1 however1 he held in addition1 that the chaos of darkness and confusion out of which that creation was called was of but limited extent1 and that outside its area1 and during the period of its existence1 many of our present lands and seas may have enjoyed the light of the sun1 and been tenanted by animals and occupied by plants1 the descendants of which still continue to exist4 ,the treatise of ,dr4 ,pye ,smith was published exactly a quarter of a century posterior to the promulgation1 through the press1 of the argument of ,dr4 ,chalmers2 and this important addition1--elaborated by its author between the years #ahcg and #ahci1--seems to have been made to suit the more advanced state of geological science at the time4 ,the scheme of reconciliation perfectly adequate in #ahad was found in #ahci to be no longer so2 and this mainly through a peculiarity in the order in which geological fact has been evolved and accumulated in this country1 and the great fossiliferous systems studied and wrought out2 to which ,i must be permitted briefly to advert4 ,william ,smith1 the ,father of ,english ,geology1 as he has been well termed 7a humble engineer and mineral surveyor1 possessed of but the ordinary education of men of his class and profession71 was born upon the ,english ,oolite1--that system which1 among the five prevailing divisions of the great ,secondary class of rocks1 holds exactly the middle place4 ,the ,triassic system and the ,lias lie beneath it2 the ,cretaceous system and the ,weald rest above4 ,smith1 while yet a child1 had his attention attracted by the ,oolitic fossils2 and it was observed1 that while his youthful contemporaries had their garnered stores of marbles purchased at the toy shop1 he had collected1 instead1 a hoard of spherical fossil terebratul1 which served the purposes of the game equally well4 ,the interest which he took in organic remains1 and the deposits in which they occur1 influenced him in the choice of a profession2 and1 when supporting himself in honest independence as a skilful mineral surveyor and engineer1 he travelled over many thousand miles of country1 taking as his starting point the city of ,bath1 which stands near what is termed the ,great ,oolite3 and from that centre he carefully explored the various ,secondary formations above and below4 ,he ascertained that these always occur in a certain determinate order2 that each contains fossils peculiar to itself2 and that they run diagonally across the kingdom in nearly parallel lines from north-east to south-west4 ,and1 devoting every hour which he could snatch from his professional labors to the work1 in about a quarter of a century1 or rather more1 he completed his great stratigraphical map of ,england4 ,but1 though a truly ,herculean achievement1 regarded as that of a single man unindebted to public support1 and uncheered by even any very general sympathy in his labors1 it was found to be chiefly valuable in its tracings of the ,secondary deposits1 and strictly exact in only that ,oolitic centre from which his labors began4 ,it was remarked at an early period that he ought to have restricted his publication to the formations which lie between the ,chalk and the ,red ,marl inclusive2 or1 in other words1 to the great ,secondary division4 ,the ,coal ,measures had1 however1 been previously better known1 from their economic importance1 and the number of the workings opened among them1 than the deposits of any other system2 and ere the publication of the map of ,smith1 ,cuvier and ,brogniart had rendered famous all over the world the older ,tertiary formations of the age of the ,london ,clay4 ,but both ends of the geological scale1 comprising those ancient systems older than the ,coal1 and representative of periods in which1 so far as is yet known1 life1 animal and vegetable1 first began upon our planet1 and those systems of comparatively modern date1 representative of the periods which immediately preceded the human epoch1 were equally unknown4 ,the light fell strongly on only that middle portion of the series on which the labors of ,smith had been mainly concentrated4 ,the vast geologic bridge1 which1 like that in the exquisite allegory of ,addison1 strode across a part of the great tide of eternity1 had a black cloud hanging at each end of it4 ,and such was the state of geologic science when1 in #ahad1 ,dr4 ,chalmers framed his scheme of reconciliation4 ,since that time1 however1 a light not less strong than the one thrown by ,william ,smith on the formations of the ,lias and the ,oolite has been cast on both the older and the newer fossiliferous systems4 ,two great gaps still remain to be filled up1--that which separates the ,palozoic from the ,secondary division1 and that which separates the ,secondary from the ,tertiary one4 ,but they occur at neither end of the geological scale4 ,mainly through the labors of two distinguished geologists1 who1 finding the geologic school of their own country distracted by a fierce and fruitless controversy1 attached themselves to the geologic school of ,england1 and have since received the honor of knighthood in acknowledgment of their labors1 both ends of the geologic scale have been completed4 ,sir ,roderick ,murchison addressed himself to the formations older than the ,coal1 more especially to the ,upper and ,lower ,silurian systems1 from the ,ludlow rooks to the ,llandeilo flags4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone too1 a system which lies more immediately beneath the ,coal1 has also been explored1 and its various deposits1 with their peculiar organic remains1 enumerated and described4 ,and ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 setting himself to the other extremity of the scale1 has wrought out the ,tertiary formations1 and separated them into the four great divisions which they are now recognized as forming4 ,and of these1 the very names indicate that certain proportions of their organisms still continue to exist4 ,it is a great fact1 now fully established in the course of geological discovery1 that between the plants which in the present time cover the earth1 and the animals which inhabit it1 and the animals and plants of the later extinct creations1 there occurred no break or blank1 but that1 on the contrary1 many of the existing organisms were contemporary during the morning of their being1 with many of the extinct ones during the evening of theirs4 ,we know further1 that not a few of the shells which now live on our coasts1 and several of even the wild animals which continue to survive amid our tracts of hill and forest1 were in existence many ages ere the human age began4 ,instead of dating their beginning only a single natural day1 or at most two natural days1 in advance of man1 they must have preceded him by many thousands of years4 ,in fine1 in consequence of that comparatively recent extension of geologic fact in the direction of the later systems and formations1 through which we are led to know that the present creation was not cut off abruptly from the preceding one1 but that1 on the contrary1 it dovetailed into it at a thousand different points1 we are led also to know1 that any scheme of reconciliation which would separate between the recent and the extinct existences by a chaotic gulf of death and darkness1 is a scheme which no longer meets the necessities of the case4 ,though perfectly adequate forty years ago1 it has been greatly outgrown by the progress of geological discovery1 and is1 as ,i have said1 adequate no longer2 and it becomes a not unimportant matter to determine the special scheme that would bring into completest harmony the course of creation1 as now ascertained by the geologist1 and that brief but sublime narrative of its progress which forms a meet introduction in ,holy ,writ to the history of the human family4 ,the first question to which we must address ourselves in any such inquiry is of course a very obvious one1--,what are the facts scientifically determined which now demand a new scheme of reconciliation8 ,there runs around the shores of ,great ,britain and ,ireland a flat terrace of unequal breadth1 backed by an escarpment of varied height and character1 which is known to geologists as the old coast-line4 ,on this flat terrace most of the seaport towns of the empire are built4 ,the subsoil which underlies its covering of vegetable mould consists usually of stratified sands and gravels1 arranged after the same fashion as on the neighboring beach1 and interspersed in the same manner with sea shells4 ,the escarpment behind1 when formed of materials of no great coherency1 such as gravel or clay1 exists as a sloping1 grass-covered bank1--at one place running out into promontories that encroach upon the terrace beneath1--at another receding into picturesque1 bay-like recesses2 and where composed1 as in many localities1 of rock of an enduring quality1 we find it worn1 as if by the action of the surf1--in some parts relieved into insulated stacks1 in others hollowed into deep caverns1--in short1 presenting all the appearance of a precipitous coast-line1 subjected to the action of the waves4 ,now1 no geologist can or does doubt that this escarpment was at one time the coast-line of the island1--the line against which the waves broke at high water in some distant age1 when either the sea stood from twenty to thirty feet higher along our shores than it does now1 or the land sat from twenty to thirty feet lower4 ,nor can the geologist doubt1 that along the flat terrace beneath1 with its stratified beds of sand and gravel1 and its accumulations of sea shells1 the tides must have risen and fallen twice every day1 as they now rise and fall along the beach that at present girdles our country4 ,but1 in reference to at least human history1 the age of the old coast-line and terrace must be a very remote one4 ,though geologically recent1 it lies far beyond the reach of any written record4 ,it has been shown by ,mr4 ,smith of ,jordanhill1 one of our highest authorities on the subject1 that the wall of ,antoninus1 erected by the ,romans as a protection against the ,northern ,caledonians1 was made to terminate at the ,firths of ,forth and ,clyde1 with relation1 not to the level of the old coast-line1 but to that of the existing one4 ,and so we must infer that1 ere the year ,a4,d4 #adj 7the year during which1 according to our antiquaries1 the greater part of the wall was erected7 the old coast-line had attained to its present elevation over the sea4 ,further1 however1 we know from the history of ,diodorus the ,sicilian1 that at a period earlier by at least two hundred years1 ,st4 ,michael's ,mount1 in ,cornwall1 was connected with the mainland at low water1 just as it is now1 by a flat isthmus1 across which1 upon the falling of the tide1 the ancient ,cornish miners used to carry over their tin in carts4 ,had the relative levels of sea and land been those of the old coast-line at the time1 ,st4 ,michael's ,mount1 instead of being accessible at low ebb would have been separated from the shore by a strait from three to five fathoms in depth4 ,it would not have been then as now1 as described in the verse of ,carew1-- ,both land and island twice a day4 ,but even the incidental notice of ,diodorus ,siculus represents very inadequately the antiquity of the existing coast-line4 ,some of its caves1 hollowed in hard rock in the line of faults and shifts by the attrition of the surf1 are more than a hundred feet in depth2 and it must have required many centuries to excavate tough trap or rigid gneiss to a depth so considerable1 by a process so slow4 ,and yet1 however long the sea may have stood against the present coast-line1 it must have stood for a considerably longer period against the ancient one4 ,the latter presents generally marks of greater attrition than the modern line1 and its wave-hollowed caves are of a depth considerably more profound4 ,in determining1 on an extensive tract of coast1 the average profundity of both classes of caverns from a considerable number of each1 ,i ascertained that the proportional average depth of the modern to the ancient is as two to three4 ,for every two centuries1 then1 during which the waves have been scooping out the caves of the present coast-line1 they must have been engaged for three centuries in scooping out those of the old one4 ,but we know historically1 that for at least twenty centuries the sea has been toiling in these modern caves2 and who shall dare affirm that it has not been toiling in them for at least ten centuries more8 ,but if the sea has stood for but even two thousand six hundred years against the present coast-line 7and no geologist would dare fix his estimate lower71 then must it have stood against the old line1 ere it could have excavated caves one third deeper1 three thousand nine hundred years4 ,and both periods united 7six thousand five hundred years7 more than exhaust the ,hebrew chronology4 ,yet what a mere beginning of geologic history does not the epoch of the old coast-line form6 ,it is but a mere starting point from the recent period4 ,not a single shell seems to have become extinct during the last six thousand five hundred years6 ,the shells which lie embedded in the subsoils beneath the old coast-line are exactly those which still live in our seas4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #hg4 ,,astarte ,,arctica4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #hh4 ,,tellina ,,proxima4 ,above this ancient line of coast we find1 at various heights1 beds of shells of vastly older date than those of the low-lying terrace1 and many of which are no longer to be found living around our shores4 ,i spent some time last autumn in exploring one of these beds1 once a sea bottom1 but now raised two hundred and thirty feet over the sea1 in which there occurred great numbers of shells now not ,british1 though found in many parts of ,britain at heights varying from two hundred to nearly fourteen hundred feet over the existing sea level4 ,but though no longer ,british shells1 they are shells that still continue to live in high northern latitudes1 as on the shores of ,iceland and ,spitzbergen2 and the abundance in which they were developed on the submerged plains and hill-sides of what are now ,england and ,scotland1 during what is termed the ,pleistocene period1 shows of itself what a very protracted period that was4 ,the prevailing tellina of the bed which ,i last explored1--a bed which occurs in some places six miles inland1 in others elevated on the top of dizzy crags1--is a sub-arctic shell 7,tellina proxima71 of which only dead valves are now to be detected on our coasts1 but which may be found living at the ,north ,cape and in ,greenland4 ,the prevailing astarte1 its contemporary1 was ,astarte arctica1 now so rare as a ,british species1 that many of our most sedulous collectors have never seen a native specimen1 but which is comparatively common on the northern shores of ,iceland1 and on the eastern coasts of ,norway1 within the arctic circle4 ,in this elevated ,scottish bed of the ,pleistocene period ,i laid these boreal shells open to the light by hundreds1 on the spot evidently where the individuals had lived and died4 ,under the severe climatal conditions to which 7probably from some change in the direction of the gulf stream7 what is now ,northern ,europe had been brought1 this tellina and astarte had increased and multiplied until they became prevailing shells of the ,british area2 and this increase must have been the slow work of ages1 during which the plains1 and not a few of the table lands1 of the country1 were submerged in a sub-arctic sea1 and ,great ,britain existed as but a scattered archipelago of wintry islands4 ,but in a still earlier period1 of which there exists unequivocal evidence in the buried forests of ,happisburgh and ,cromer1 the country had not only its head above water1 as now1 but seems to have possessed oven more than its present breadth of surface4 ,during this ancient time1--more remote by many centuries than not only the times of the old coast-line1 but than even those of the partial submergence of the island1--that northern mammoth lived in great abundance1 of which the remains have been found by hundreds in ,england alone1 together with the northern hippopotamus1 and at least two northern species of rhinoceros4 ,and though they have all ceased to exist1 with their wild associates in the forests and jungles of the ,pleistocene1 the cave-hyna1 the cave-tiger1 and the cave-bear1 we know that the descendants of some of their feebler contemporaries1 such as the badger1 the fox1 the wild cat1 and the red deer1 still live amid our hills and brakes4 ,the trees1 too1 under which they roamed1 and whose remains we find buried in the same deposits as theirs1 were of species that still hold their place as aboriginal trees of the country1 or of at least the more northerly provinces of the continent4 ,the common ,scotch fir1 the common birch1 and a continental species of conifer of the far north1 the ,norwegian spruce 7,abies excelsa71 have been found underlying the ,pleistocene drift1 and rooted in the mammiferous crag2 and for many ages must the old extinct elephant have roamed amid these familiar trees4 ,from one limited tract of sea bottom on the ,norfolk coast the fishermen engaged in dredging oysters brought ashore1 in the course of thirteen years 7from #ahbj to #ahcc71 no fewer than two thousand elephants' grinders1 besides great tusks and numerous portions of skeletons4 ,it was calculated that these remains could not have belonged to fewer than five hundred individual mammoths of ,english growth2 and1 various in their states of keeping1 and belonging to animals of which only a few at a time could have found sufficient food in a limited tract of country1 the inference seems inevitable that they must have belonged1 not to one or two1 but to many succeeding generations4 ,the further fact1 that remains of this ancient elephant 7,elephas primigenius7 occur all round the globe in a broad belt1 extending from the fortieth to near the seventieth degree of north latitude1 leads to the same conclusion4 ,it must have required many ages ere an animal that breeds so slowly as the elephant could have extended itself over an area so vast4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #hi4 ,,norwegian ,,spruce4 7,abies excelsa47 ,many of the contemporaries of this northern mammoth1 especially of its molluscan contemporaries1 continue1 as ,i have said1 to live in their descendants4 ,of even a still more ancient period1 represented by the ,red ,crag1 seventy out of every hundred species of shells still exist2 and of an older period still1 represented by the ,coraline ,crag1 there survive sixty out of every hundred4 ,in the ,red ,crag1 for instance1 we find the first known ancestors of our common edible periwinkle and common edible mussel2 and in the ,coraline ,crag1 the first known ancestors of the common horse-mussel1 the common whelk1 the common oyster1 and the great pecten4 ,there then occurs a break in the geologic deposits of ,britain1 which1 however1 in other parts of ,europe we find so filled up as to render it evident that no corresponding break took place in the chain of existence2 but that1 on the contrary1 from the present time up to the times represented by the earliest ,eocene formations of the ,tertiary division1 day has succeeded day1 and season has followed season1 and that no chasm or hiatus--no age of general chaos1 darkness1 and death--has occurred1 to break the line of succession1 or check the course of life4 ,all the evidence runs counter to the supposition that immediately before the appearance of man upon earth1 there existed a chaotic period which separated the previous from the present creation4 ,up till the commencement of the ,eocene ages1 if even then1 there was no such chaotic period1 in at least what is now ,britain and the ,european continent3 the persistency from a high antiquity of some of the existing races1 of not only plants and shells1 but of even some of the mammiferous animals1 such as the badger1 the goat1 and the wild cat1 prove there was not2 and any scheme of reconciliation which takes such a period for granted must be deemed as unsuited to the present state of geologic knowledge1 as any scheme would have been forty years ago which took it for granted that the writings of ,moses do fix the antiquity of the globe4 ,the scheme of reconciliation adopted by the late ,dr4 ,pye ,smith1 though1 save in one particular1 identical1 as ,i have said1 with that of ,dr4 ,chalmers1 is made1 in virtue of its single point of difference1 to steer clear of the difficulty4 ,both schemes exhibit the creation recorded in ,genesis as an event which took place about six thousand years ago2 both describe it as begun and completed in six natural days2 and both represent it as cut off from a previously existing creation by a chaotic period of death and darkness4 ,but while1 according to the scheme of ,chalmers1 both the ,biblical creation and the previous period of death are represented as coextensive with the globe1 they are represented1 according to that of ,dr4 ,smith1 as limited and local4 ,they may have extended1 it is said1 over only a few provinces of ,central ,asia1 in which1 when all was life and light in other parts of the globe1 there reigned for a time only death and darkness amid the welterings of a chaotic sea2 which1 at the ,divine command1 was penetrated by light1 and occupied by dry land1 and ultimately1 ere the end of the creative week1 became a centre in which certain plants and animals1 and finally man himself1 were created4 ,and this scheme1 by leaving to the geologist in this country and elsewhere1 save mayhap in some unknown ,asiatic district1 his unbroken series1 certainly does not conflict with the facts educed by geologic discovery4 ,it virtually removes ,scripture altogether out of the field4 ,i must confess1 however1 that on this1 and on some other accounts1 it has failed to satisfy me4 ,i have stumbled1 too1 at the conception of a merely local and limited chaos1 in which the darkness would be so complete1 that when first penetrated by the light1 that penetration could be described as actually a making or creating of light2 and that1 while life obtained all around its precincts1 could yet be thoroughly void of life1 ,a local darkness so profound as to admit no ray of light seems to have fallen for a time on ,egypt1 as one of the ten plagues2 but the event was evidently miraculous2 and no student of natural science is entitled to have recourse1 in order to extricate himself out of a difficulty1 to supposititious1 unrecorded miracle4 ,creation cannot take place without miracle2 but it would be a strange reversal of all our previous conclusions on the subject1 should we have to hold that the dead1 dark1 blank out of which creation arose was miraculous also4 ,and if1 rejecting miracle1 we cast ourselves on the purely natural1 we find that the local darknesses dependent on known causes1 of which we have any record in history1 were always either very imperfect1 like the darkness of your ,london fogs1 or very temporary1 like the darkness described by ,pliny as occasioned by a cloud of volcanic ashes2 and so1 altogether inadequate to meet the demands of a hypothesis such as that of ,dr4 ,smith4 ,and yet further1 ,i am disposed1 ,i must add1 to look for a broader and more general meaning in that grand description of the creation of all things with which the ,divine record so appropriately opens1 than ,i could recognize it as forming1 were ,i assured it referred to but one of many existing creations1--a creation restricted to mayhap a few hundred square miles of country1 and to mayhap a few scores of animals and plants4 ,what1 then1 is the scheme of reconciliation which ,i would venture to propound8 ,let me first remark1 in reply1 that ,i come before you this evening1 not as a philologist1 but simply as a student of geological fact1 who1 believing his ,bible1 believes also1 that though theologians have at various times striven hard to pledge it to false science1 geographical1 astronomical1 and geological1 it has been pledged by its ,divine ,author to no falsehood whatever4 ,i occupy exactly the position now1 with respect to geology1 that the mere ,christian geographer would have occupied with respect to geography in the days of those doctors of ,salamanca who deemed it unscriptural to hold with ,columbus that the world is round1--not flat2 or exactly the position which the mere ,christian astronomer would have occupied with respect to astronomy in the days of that ,francis ,turrettine who deemed it unscriptural to hold with ,newton and ,galileo1 that it is the earth which moves in the heavens1 and the sun which stands still4 ,the mere geographer or astronomer might have been wholly unable to discuss with ,turrettine or the doctors the niceties of ,chaldaic punctuation1 or the various meanings of the ,hebrew verbs4 ,but this much1 notwithstanding1 he would be perfectly qualified to say3--,however great your skill as linguists1 your reading of what you term the scriptural geography or scriptural astronomy must of necessity be a false reading1 seeing that it commits ,scripture to what1 in my character as a geographer or astronomer1 ,i know to be a monstrously false geography or astronomy4 ,premising1 then1 that ,i make no pretensions to even the slightest skill in philology1 ,i remark further1 that it has been held by accomplished philologists1 that the days of the ,mosaic creation may be regarded1 without doing violence to the genius of the ,hebrew language1 as successive periods of great extent4 ,and certainly1 in looking at my ,english ,bible1 ,i find that the portion of time spoken of in the first chapter of ,genesis as six days1 is spoken of in the second chapter as one day4 ,true1 there are other philologers1 such as the late ,professor ,moses ,stuart1 who take a different view2 but then ,i find this same ,professor ,stuart striving hard to make the phraseology of ,moses fix the antiquity of the globe2 and so1 as a mere geologist1 ,i reject his philology1 on exactly the same principle on which the mere geographer would reject1 and be justified in rejecting1 the philology of the doctors of ,salamanca1 or on which the mere astronomer would reject1 and be justified in rejecting1 the philology of ,turrettine and the old ,franciscans4 ,i would1 in any such case1 at once1 and without hesitation1 cut the philological knot1 by determining that that philology cannot be sound which would commit the ,scriptures to a science that cannot be true4 ,waiving1 however1 the question as a philological one1 and simply holding with ,cuvier1 ,parkinson1 and ,silliman1 that each of the six days of the ,mosaic narrative in the first chapter were what is assuredly meant by the day referred to in the second1--not natural days1 but lengthened periods1--,i find myself called on1 as a geologist1 to account for but three of the six4 ,of the period during which light was created1--of the period during which a firmament was made to separate the waters from the waters1--or of the period during which the two great lights of the earth1 with the other heavenly bodies1 became visible from the earth's surface1--we need expect to find no record in the rocks4 ,let me1 however1 pause for a moment1 to remark the peculiar character of the language in which we are first introduced in the ,mosaic narrative to the heavenly bodies1--sun1 moon1 and stars4 ,the moon1 though absolutely one of the smallest lights of our system1 is described as secondary and subordinate to only its greatest light1 the sun4 ,it is the apparent1 then1 not the actual1 which we find in the passage1--what seemed to be1 not what was2 and as it was merely what appeared to be greatest that was described as greatest1 on what grounds are we to hold that it may not also have been what appeared at the time to be made that has been described as made8 ,the sun1 moon1 and stars may have been created long before1 though it was not until this fourth period of creation that they became visible from the earth's surface4 ,the geologist1 in his attempts to collate the ,divine with the geologic record1 has1 ,i repeat1 only three of the six periods of creation to account for1--the period of plants1 the period of great sea monsters and creeping things1 and the period of cattle and beasts of the earth4 ,he is called on to question his systems and formations regarding the remains of these three great periods1 and of these only4 ,and the question once fairly stated1 what1 ,i ask1 is the reply8 ,all geologists agree in holding that the vast geological scale naturally divides into three great parts4 ,there are many lesser divisions1--divisions into systems1 formations1 deposits1 beds1 strata2 but the master divisions1 in each of which we find a type of life so unlike that of the others1 that even the unpractised eye can detect the difference1 are simply three1--the ,palozoic1 or oldest fossiliferous division2 the ,secondary1 or middle fossiliferous division2 and the ,tertiary1 or latest fossiliferous division4 ,in the first1 or ,palozoic division1 we find corals1 crustaceans1 molluscs1 fishes1 and1 in its later formations1 a few reptiles4 ,but none of these classes of organisms give its leading character to the ,palozoic2 they do not constitute its prominent feature1 or render it more remarkable as a scene of life than any of the divisions which followed4 ,that which chiefly distinguished the ,palozoic from the ,secondary and ,tertiary periods was its gorgeous flora4 ,it was emphatically the period of plants1--of herbs yielding seed after their kind4 ,in no other age did the world ever witness such a flora3 the youth of the earth was peculiarly a green and umbrageous youth1--a youth of dusk and tangled forests1 of huge pines and stately araucarians1 of the reed-like calamite1 the tall tree-fern1 the sculptured sigillaria1 and the hirsute lepidodendron4 ,wherever dry land1 or shallow lake1 or running stream appeared1 from where ,melville ,island now spreads out its ice wastes under the star of the pole1 to where the arid plains of ,australia lie solitary beneath the bright cross of the south1 a rank and luxuriant herbage cumbered every footbreadth of the dank and steaming soil2 and even to distant planets our earth must have shone through the enveloping cloud with a green and delicate ray4 ,of this extraordinary age of plants we have our cheerful remembrancers and witnesses in the flames that roar in our chimneys when we pile up the winter fire1--in the brilliant gas that now casts its light on this great assemblage1 and that lightens up the streets and lanes of this vast city1--in the glowing furnaces that smelt our metals1 and give moving power to our ponderous engines1--in the long dusky trains that1 with shriek and snort1 speed dart-like athwart our landscapes1--and in the great cloud-enveloped vessels that darken the lower reaches of your noble river1 and rush in foam over ocean and sea4 ,the geologic evidence is so complete as to be patent to all1 that the first great period of organized being was1 as described in the ,mosaic record1 peculiarly a period of herbs and trees1 yielding seed after their kind4 ,the middle great period of the geologist--that of the ,secondary division--possessed1 like the earlier one1 its herbs and plants1 but they were of a greatly less luxuriant and conspicuous character than their predecessors1 and no longer formed the prominent trait or feature of the creation to which they belonged4 ,the period had also its corals1 its crustaceans1 its molluscs1 its fishes1 and in some one or two exceptional instances its dwarf mammals4 ,but the grand existences of the age1--the existences in which it excelled every other creation1 earlier or later1 were its huge creeping things1--its enormous monsters of the deep1--and1 as shown by the impressions of their footprints stamped upon the rocks1 its gigantic birds4 ,it was peculiarly the age of egg-bearing animals1 winged and wingless4 ,its wonderful whales1 not1 however1 as now1 of the mammalian1 but of the reptilian class1--ichthyosaurs1 plesiosaurs1 and cetiosaurs1--must have tempested the deep2 its creeping lizards and crocodiles1 such as the teliosaurus1 megalosaurus1 and iguanodon1--creatures some of which more than rivalled the existing elephant in height1 and greatly more than rivalled him in bulk1--must have crowded the plains or haunted by myriads the rivers of the period2 and we know that the footprints of at least one of its many birds are fully twice the size of those made by the horse or camel4 ,we are thus prepared to demonstrate1 that the second period of the geologist was peculiarly and characteristically a period of whale-like reptiles of the sea1 of enormous creeping reptiles of the land1 and of numerous birds1 some of them of gigantic size2 and1 in meet accordance with the fact1 we find that the second ,mosaic period with which the geologist is called on to deal was a period in which ,god created the fowl that flieth above the earth1 with moving or creeping creatures1 both in the waters and on the land1 and what our translation renders great whales1 but that ,i find rendered1 in the margin1 great sea monsters4 ,the ,tertiary period had also its prominent class of existences4 ,its flora seems to have been no more conspicuous than that of the present time2 its reptiles occupy a very subordinate place2 but its beasts of the field were by far the most wonderfully developed1 both in size and numbers1 that ever appeared upon earth4 ,its mammoths and its mastodons1 its rhinoceri and its hippopotami1 its enormous dinotherium and colossal megatherium1 greatly more than equalled in bulk the largest mammals of the present time1 and vastly exceeded them in number4 ,the remains of one of its elephants 7,elephas primigenius7 are still so abundant amid the frozen wastes of ,siberia1 that what have been not inappropriately termed ivory quarries have been wrought among their bones for more than a hundred years4 ,even in our own country1 of which1 as ,i have already shown1 this elephant was for long ages a native1 so abundant are the skeletons and tusks1 that there is scarcely a local museum in the kingdom that has not its specimens1 dug out of the ,pleistocene deposits of the neighborhood4 ,and with this ancient elephant there were meetly associated in ,britain1 as on the northern continents generally all around the globe1 many other mammals of corresponding magnitude4 ,grand indeed1 says an ,english naturalist1 was the fauna of the ,british islands in those early days4 ,tigers as large again as the biggest ,asiatic species lurked in the ancient thickets2 elephants of nearly twice the bulk of the largest individuals that now exist in ,africa or ,ceylon roamed in herds2 at least two species of rhinoceros forced their way through the primeval forest2 and the lakes and rivers were tenanted by hippopotami as bulky1 and with as great tusks1 as those of ,africa4 ,the massive cave-bear and large cave-hyna belonged to the same formidable group1 with at least two species of great oxen 7,bos longifrons and ,bos primigenius71 with a horse of smaller size1 and an elk 7,megaceros ,hibernicus7 that stood ten feet four inches in height4 ,truly this ,tertiary age--this third and last of the great geologic periods--was peculiarly the age of great beasts of the earth after their kind1 and of cattle after their kind4 ,permit me at this stage1 in addressing myself to a ,london audience1 to refer to what has been well termed one of the great sights of ,london4 ,an illustration drawn from what must be familiar to you all may impart to your conceptions1 respecting the facts on which ,i build1 a degree of tangibility which otherwise they could not possess4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ij4 ,,lepidodendron ,,sternbergii4 ,one of perhaps the most deeply interesting departments of your great ,british ,museum--the wonder of the world--is that noble gallery1 consisting of a suite of rooms1 opening in line1 the one beyond the other1 which forms its rich storehouse of organic remains4 ,you must of coarse remember the order in which the organisms of that gallery are ranged4 ,the visitor is first ushered into a spacious room devoted to fossil plants1 chiefly of the ,coal ,measures4 ,and if these organisms are in any degree less imposing in their aspect than those of the apartments which follow in the series1 it is only because that1 from the exceeding greatness of the ,coal ,measure plants1 they can be exhibited in but bits and fragments4 ,within less than an hour's walk of the ,scottish capital there are single trees of this ancient period deeply embedded in the sandstone strata1 which1 though existing as mere mutilated portions of their former selves1 would yet fail to find accommodation in that great apartment4 ,one of those fossil trees1--a noble araucarian1--which occurs in what is known as the ,granton quarry1 is a mere fragment1 for it wants both root and top1 and yet what remains is sixty-one feet in length by six feet in diameter2 and beside it there lies a smaller araucarian1 also mutilated1 for it wants top and branches1 and it measures seventy feet in length by four feet in diameter4 ,i saw lately1 in a quarry of the ,coal ,measures about two miles from my dwelling-house1 near ,edinburgh1 the stem of a plant 7,lepidodendron ,sternbergii71 allied to the dwarfish club mosses of our moors1 considerably thicker than the body of a man1 and which1 reckoning on the ordinary proportions of the plant1 must have been at least seventy feet in height4 ,and of a kind of aquatic reed 7calamites71 that more resembles the diminutive mare's tail of our marshes than aught else that now lives1 remains have been found in abundance in the same coal field1 more than a foot in diameter by thirty feet in length4 ,imposing1 then1 as are the vegetable remains of this portion of the ,national ,museum1 they would be greatly more imposing still did they more adequately represent the gigantic flora of the remote age to which they belong4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ia4 ,,calamites ,,cann,,formis4 ,passing onwards in the gallery from the great plants of the ,palozoic division to the animals of the ,secondary one1 the attention is at once arrested by the monstrous forms on the wall4 ,shapes that more than rival in strangeness the great dragons1 and griffins1 and laithly worms1 of medival legend1 or1 according to ,milton1 the gorgons1 hydras1 and chimeras dire1 of classical fable1 frown on the passing visitor2 and1 though wrapped up in their dead and stony sleep of ages1 seem not only the most strange1 but also the most terrible things on which his eye ever rested4 ,enormous jaws1 bristling with pointed teeth1 gape horrid in the stone1 under staring eye-sockets a full foot in diameter4 ,necks that half equal in length the entire body of the boa-constrictor stretch out from bodies mounted on fins like those of a fish1 and furnished with tails somewhat resembling those of the mammals4 ,here we see a winged dragon1 that1 armed with sharp teeth and strong claws1 had careered through the air on leathern wings like those of a bat2 there an enormous crocodilian whale1 that1 mounted on many-jointed paddles1 had traversed1 in quest of prey1 the green depths of the sea2 yonder a herbivorous lizard1 with a horn like that of the rhinoceros projecting from its snout1 and that1 when it browsed amid the dank meadows of the ,wealden1 must have stood about twelve feet high4 ,all is enormous1 monstrous1 vast1 amid the creeping and flying things and the great sea monsters of this division of the gallery4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ib4 ,,megatherium ,,cuvieri4 ,we pass on into the third and lower division1 and an entirely different class of existences now catch the eye4 ,the huge mastodon1 with his enormous length of body1 and his tusks projecting from both upper and under jaw1 stands erect in the middle of the floor1--a giant skeleton4 ,we see beside him the great bones of the megatherium1--thigh bones eleven inches in diameter1 and claw-armed toes more than two feet in length4 ,there1 too1 ranged species beyond species1 are the extinct elephants2 and there the ponderous skull of the dinotherium1 with the bent tusks in its lower jaw1 that give to it the appearance of a great pickaxe1 and that must have dug deeply of old amid the liliaceous roots and bulbs of the ,tertiary lakes and rivers4 ,there also are the massive heads and spreading horn-cores of the ,bos primigenius1 and the large bones and broad plank-like horns of the great ,irish elk4 ,and there too1 in the same apartment1 but leaning against its further wall1--last1 as most recent1 of all the objects of wonder in that great gallery1--is the famous human skeleton of ,guadaloupe1 standing out in bold relief from its slab of gray limestone4 ,it occurs in the series1 just as the series closes1 a little beyond the mastodon and the mammoths2 and1 in its strange character as a fossil man1 attracts the attention scarce less powerfully than the great ,palozoic plants1 the great ,secondary reptiles1 or the great ,tertiary mammals4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ic4 ,,skull ,,of ,,dinotherium ,,giganteum4 7,miocene47 ,i last passed through this wondrous gallery at the time when the attraction of the ,great ,exhibition had filled ,london with curious visitors from all parts of the empire2 and a group of intelligent mechanics1 fresh from some manufacturing town of the midland counties1 were sauntering on through its chambers immediately before me4 ,they stood amazed beneath the dragons of the ,oolite and ,lias2 and1 with more than the admiration and wonder of the disciples of old when contemplating the huge stones of the ,temple1 they turned to say1 in almost the old words1 ,lo6 master1 what manner of great beasts are these8 ,these are1 ,i replied1 the sea monsters and creeping things of the second great period of organic existence4 ,the reply seemed satisfactory1 and we passed on together to the terminal apartments of the range appropriated to the ,tertiary organisms4 ,and there1 before the enormous mammals1 the mechanics again stood in wonder1 and turned to inquire4 ,anticipating the query1 ,i said1 ,and these are the huge beasts of the earth1 and the cattle of the third great period of organic existence2 and yonder1 in the same apartment1 you see1 but at its further end1 is the famous fossil man of ,guadaloupe1 locked up by the petrifactive agencies in a slab of limestone4 ,the mechanics again seemed satisfied4 ,and1 of course1 had ,i encountered them in the first chamber of the suite1 and had they questioned me respecting the organisms with which it is occupied1 ,i would have told them that they were the remains of the herbs and trees of the first great period of organic existence4 ,but in the chamber of the mammals we parted1 and ,i saw them no more4 ,there could not be a simpler incident4 ,and yet1 rightly apprehended1 it reads its lesson4 ,you have all visited the scene of it1 and must all have been struck by the three salient points1 if ,i may so speak1 by which that noble gallery lays strongest hold of the memory1 and most powerfully impresses the imagination1--by its gigantic plants of the first period 7imperfectly as these are represented in the collection71 by its strange misproportioned sea monsters and creeping things of the second1 and by its huge mammals of the third4 ,amid many thousand various objects1 and a perplexing multiplicity of detail1 which it would require the patient study of years even partially to classify and know1 these are the great prominent features of the gallery1 that involuntarily1 on the part of the visitor1 force themselves on his attention4 ,they at once pressed themselves on the attention of the intelligent though unscientific mechanics1 and1 ,i doubt not1 still dwell vividly in their recollections2 and ,i now ask you1 when you again visit the national museum1 and verify the fact of the great prominence of these classes of objects1 to bear in mind1 that the gallery in which they occur represents1 both in the order and character of its contents1 the course of creation4 ,i ask you to remember that1 had there been human eyes on earth during the ,palozoic1 ,secondary1 and ,tertiary periods1 they would have been filled in succession by the great plants1 the great reptiles1 and the great mammals1 just as those of the mechanics were filled by them in the museum4 ,as the sun and moon1 when they first became visible in the heavens1 would have seemed to human eyes--had there been human eyes to see--not only the greatest of the celestial lights1 but peculiarly the prominent objects of the epoch in which they appeared1 so would these plants1 reptiles1 and mammals1 have seemed in succession the prominent objects of the several epochs in which they appeared4 ,and1 asking the geologist to say whether my replies to the mechanics were not1 with all their simplicity1 true to geological fact1 and the theologian to say whether the statements which they embodied were not1 with all their geology1 true to the scriptural narrative1 ,i ask further1 whether 7of course1 making due allowance for the laxity of the terms botanic and zoological of a primitive language unadapted to the niceties of botanic or zoologic science7 the ,mosaic account of creation could be rendered more essentially true1 than we actually find it1 to the history of creation geologically ascertained4 ,if1 taking the ,mosaic days as equivalent to lengthened periods1 we hold that1 in giving their brief history1 the inspired writer seized on but those salient points that1 like the two great lights of the day and night1 would have arrested most powerfully1 during these periods1 a human eye1 we shall find the harmony of the two records complete4 ,in your visit to the museum1 ,i would yet further ask you to mark the place of the human skeleton in the great gallery4 ,it stands--at least it stood only a few years ago--in the same apartment with the huge mammifers4 ,and it is surely worthy of remark1 that while in both the sacred and geologic records a strongly defined line separates between the period of plants and the succeeding periods of reptiles1 and again between the period of reptiles and the succeeding period of mammals1 no line in either record separates between this period of mammals and the human period4 ,man came into being as the lastborn of creation1 just ere the close of that sixth day--the third and terminal period of organic creation--to which the great mammals belong4 ,let me yet further remark1 that in each of these three great periods we find1 with respect to the classes of existences1 vegetable or animal1 by which they were most prominently characterized1 certain well marked culminating points together1 if ,i may so express myself1--twilight periods of morning dawn and evening decline4 ,the plants of the earlier and terminal systems of the ,palozoic division are few and small3 it was only during the protracted eons of the ,carboniferous period that they received their amazing development1 unequalled in any previous or succeeding time4#af ,in like manner1 in the earlier or ,triassic deposits of the ,secondary division1 the reptilian remains are comparatively inconsiderable2 and they are almost equally so in its ,cretaceous or later deposits4 ,it was during those middle ages of the division1 represented by its ,liassic1 ,oolitic1 and ,wealden formations1 that the class existed in that abundance which rendered it so peculiarly1 above every other age1 an age of creeping things and great sea monsters4 ,and so also1 in the ,tertiary1 regarded as but an early portion of the human division1 there was a period of increase and diminution1--a morning and evening of mammalian life4 ,the mammals of its early ,eocene ages were comparatively small in bulk and low in standing2 in its concluding ages1 too1 immediately ere the appearance of man1 or just as he had appeared1 they exhibited1 both in size and number1 a reduced and less imposing aspect4 ,it was chiefly in its middle and latter1 or ,miocene1 ,pliocene1 and ,pleistocene ages1 that the myriads of its huger giants1--its dinotheria1 mastodons1 and mammoths1--cumbered the soil4 ,i1 of course1 restrict my remarks to the three periods of organic life1 and have not inquired whether aught analogous to these mornings and evenings of increase and diminution need be sought after in any of the others4 ,such are a few of the geological facts which lead me to believe that the days of the ,mosaic account were great periods1 not natural days2 and be it remembered1 that between the scheme of lengthened periods and the scheme of a merely local chaos1 which existed no one knows how1 and of a merely local creation1 which had its scene no one knows where1 geological science leaves us now no choice whatever4 ,it has been urged1 however1 that this scheme of periods is irreconcileable with that ,divine reason for the institution of the ,sabbath which he who appointed the day of old has1 in his goodness1 vouchsafed to man4 ,i have failed to see any force in the objection4 ,god the ,creator1 who wrought during six periods1 rested during the seventh period2 and as we have no evidence whatever that he recommenced his work of creation1--as1 on the contrary1 man seems to be the last formed of creatures1--,god may be resting still4 ,the presumption is strong that his ,sabbath is an extended period1 not a natural day1 and that the work of ,redemption is his ,sabbath day's work4 ,and so ,i cannot see that it in the least interferes with the integrity of the reason rendered to read it as follows3--,work during six periods1 and rest on the seventh2 for in six periods the ,lord created the heavens and the earth1 and on the seventh period ,he rested4 ,the ,divine periods may have been very great1--the human periods very small2 just as a vast continent or the huge earth itself is very great1 and a map or geographical globe very small4 ,but if in the map or globe the proportions be faithfully maintained1 and the scale1 though a minute one1 be true in all its parts and applications1 we pronounce the map or globe1 notwithstanding the smallness of its size1 a faithful copy4 ,were man's ,sabbaths to be kept as enjoined1 and in the ,divine proportions1 it would scarcely interfere with the logic of the reason annexed to the fourth commandment1 though in this matter1 as in all others in which man can be an imitator of ,god1 the imitation should be a miniature one4 ,the work of ,redemption may1 ,i repeat1 be the work of ,god's ,sabbath day4 ,what1 ,i ask1 viewed as a whole1 is the prominent characteristic of geologic history1 or of that corresponding history of creation which forms the grandly fashioned vestibule of the sacred volume8 ,of both alike the leading characteristic is progress4 ,in both alike do we find an upward progress from dead matter to the humbler forms of vitality1 and from thence to the higher4 ,and after great cattle and beasts of the earth had1 in due order1 succeeded inanimate plants1 sea monsters1 and moving creatures that had life1 the moral agent1 man1 enters upon the scene4 ,previous to his appearance on earth1 each succeeding elevation in the long upward march had been a result of creation4 ,the creative fiat went forth1 and dead matter came into existence4 ,the creative fiat went forth1 and plants1 with the lower animal forms1 came into existence4 ,the creative fiat went forth1 and the oviparous animals1--birds and reptiles1--came into existence4 ,the creative fiat went forth1 and the mammiferous animals1--cattle and beasts of the earth1--came into existence4 ,and1 finally1 last in the series1 the creative fiat went forth1 and responsible1 immortal man1 came into existence4 ,but has the course of progress come1 in consequence1 to a close8 ,no4 ,god's work of elevating1 raising1 heightening1--of making the high in due progression succeed the low1--still goes on4 ,but man's responsibility1 his immortality1 his ,god-implanted instincts respecting an eternal future1 forbid that that work of elevation and progress should be1 as in all the other instances1 a work of creation4 ,to create would be to supersede4 ,god's work of elevation now is the work of fitting and preparing peccable1 imperfect man for a perfect1 impeccable1 future state4 ,god's seventh day's work is the work of ,redemption4 ,and1 read in this light1 his reason vouchsafed to man for the institution of the ,sabbath is found to yield a meaning of peculiar breadth and emphasis4 ,god1 it seems to say1 rests on his ,sabbath from his creative labors1 in order that by his ,sabbath day's work he may save and elevate you4 ,rest ye also on your ,sabbaths1 that through your co-operation with him in this great work ye may be elevated and saved4 ,made originally in the image of ,god1 let ,god be your pattern and example4 ,engaged in your material and temporal employments1 labor in the proportions in which he labored2 but1 in order that you may enjoy an eternal future with him1 rest also in the proportions in which he rests4 ,one other remark ere ,i conclude4 ,in the history of the earth which we inhabit1 molluscs1 fishes1 reptiles1 mammals1 had each in succession their periods of vast duration2 and then the human period began1--the period of a fellow worker with ,god1 created in ,god's own image4 ,what is to be the next advance8 ,is there to be merely a repetition of the past8--an introduction a second time of man made in the image of ,god8 ,no4 ,the geologist1 in those tables of stone which form his records1 finds no example of dynasties once passed away again returning4 ,there has been no repetition of the dynasty of the fish1 of the reptile1 of the mammal4 ,the dynasty of the future is to have glorified man for its inhabitant2 but it is to be the dynasty--the kingdom--not of glorified man made in the image of ,god1 but of ,god himself in the form of man4 ,in the doctrine of the two conjoined natures1 human and ,divine1 and in the further doctrine that the terminal dynasty is to be peculiarly the dynasty of ,,him in whom the natures are united1 we find that required progression beyond which progress cannot go4 ,we find the point of elevation never to be exceeded meetly coincident with the final period never to be terminated1--the infinite in height harmoniously associated with the eternal in duration4 ,creation and the ,creator meet at one point1 and in one person4 ,the long ascending line from dead matter to man has been a progress ,godwards1--not an asymptotical progress1 but destined from the beginning to furnish a point of union2 and occupying that point as true ,god and true man1--as ,creator and created1--we recognize the adorable ,monarch of all the future6 ,,lecture ,,fourth4 ,,the ,,mosaic ,,vision ,,of ,,creation4 ,the history of creation is introduced into the ,paradise ,lost as a piece of narrative1 and forms one of the two great episodes of the poem4 ,milton represents the common father of the race as led on by a desire to know ,what within ,eden or without was done ,before his memory2 and straightway ,raphael1 the affable archangel1 in compliance with the wish1 enters into a description of the six days' work of the ,divine ,creator1--a description in which1 as ,addison well remarks1 the whole energy of our tongue is employed1 and the several great scenes of creation rise up to view1 one after another1 in such a manner1 that the reader seems present at this wonderful work1 and to assist among the choirs of angels who are spectators of it4 ,in the other great episode of the poem1--that in which the more prominent changes which were to happen in after time upon the earth are made to pass before ,adam1 he is represented as carried by ,michael to the top of a great mountain1 lofty as that on which in a long posterior age the ,tempter placed our ,saviour1 and where the coming events are described as rising up in vision before him4 ,in the earlier episode1 as in those of the ,odyssey and neid1 in which heroes relate in the courts of princes the story of their adventures1 there is but narrative and description2 in the later1 a series of magnificent pictures1 that form and then dissolve before the spectator1 and comprise1 in their vivid tints and pregnant outlines1 the future history of a world4 ,and one of these two episodes1--that which relates to the creation of all things1--must have as certainly had a place in human history as in the master epic of ,england4 ,man would have forever remained ignorant of many of those events related in the opening chapters of ,scripture1 which took place ere there was a human eye to witness1 or a human memory to record1 had he not been permitted1 like ,adam of old1 to hold intercourse with the intelligences that had preceded him in creation1 or with the great ,creator himself1 the ,author of them all2 and the question has been asked of late1 both in our own country and on the ,continent1 ,what was the form and nature of the revelation by which the pre-,adamic history of the earth and heavens was originally conveyed to man8 ,was it conveyed1 like the sublime story of ,raphael1 as a piece of narrative1 dictated1 mayhap1 to the inspired penman1 or miraculously borne in upon his mind8 ,or was it conveyed by a succession of sublime visions like that which ,michael is represented as calling up before ,adam1 when1 purging his visual nerves with euphrasy and rue1 he enabled him to see1 in a series of scenes1 the history of his offspring from the crime of ,cain down to the destruction of the ,old ,world by a flood8 ,the passages in which the history of creation is recorded give no intimation whatever of their own history2 and so we are left to balance the probabilities regarding the mode and form in which they were originally revealed1 and to found our ultimate conclusions respecting them on evidence1 not direct1 but circumstantial4 ,the ,continental writers on this curious subject may be regarded as not inadequately represented by ,dr4 ,j4,h4 ,kurtz1 ,professor of ,theology at ,dorpat1--one of the many ingenious biblical scholars of modern ,germany4 ,we find him stating the question1 in his ,bibel und ,astronomie 7second edition1 #ahdi71 with great precision and clearness1 but in a manner1 so far at least as the form of his thinking is concerned1 strikingly characteristic of what may be termed the theological fashion of his country in the present day4 ,the source of all human history1 he says1 is eye-witness1 be it that of the reporter1 or of another whose account has been handed down4 ,only what man has himself seen or experienced can be the subject of man's historical compositions4 ,so that history1 so far as man can write it1 can begin with but the point at which he has entered into conscious existence1 and end with the moment that constitutes the present time4 ,beyond these points1 however1 lies a great province of historic development1 existing on the one side as the ,past1 on the other side as the ,future4 ,for when man begins to be an observer or actor of history1 he himself1 and the whole circumstantials of his condition1 have already come historically into being4 ,nor does the flow of development stop with what is his present4 ,millions of influences are spinning the thread still on2 but no one can tell what the compound result of all their energies is to be4 ,both these sorts of history1 then1 lie beyond the region of man's knowledge1 which is shut up in space and time1 and can only call the present its own4 ,it is ,god alone who1 standing beyond and above space and time1 sees backwards and forwards both the development which preceded the first present of men1 and that which will succeed this our latest present4 ,whatever the difference of the two kinds of history may be1 they hold the same position in relation both to the principle of the human ignorance and the principle of the human knowledge4 ,the principle of the ignorance is man's condition as a creature2 the principle of the knowledge is the ,divine knowledge2 and the medium between ignorance and knowledge is objectively ,divine revelation1 and subjectively prophetic vision by man1 in which he beholds with the eye of the mind what is shut and hid from the eye of his body4 ,from these premises ,dr4 ,kurtz goes on to argue that the pre-,adamic history of the past being theologically in the same category as the yet undeveloped history of the future1 that record of its leading events which occurs in the ,mosaic narrative is simply prophecy described backwards2 and that1 coming under the prophetic law1 it ought of consequence to be subjected to the prophetic rule of exposition4 ,there are some very ingenious reasonings employed in fortifying this point2 and1 after quoting from ,eichhorn a passage to the effect that the opening chapter in ,genesis is much rather a creative picture than a creative history1 and from ,ammon to the effect that the author of it evidently takes the position of a beholder of creation1 the learned ,german concludes his general statement by remarking1 that the scenes of the chapter are prophetic tableaux1 each containing a leading phase of the drama of creation4 ,before the eye of the seer1 he says1 scene after scene is unfolded1 until at length1 in the seven of them1 the course of creation1 in its main momenta1 has been fully represented4 ,the revelation has every characteristic of prophecy by vision1--prophecy by eye-witnessing2 and may be perhaps best understood by regarding it simply as an exhibition of the actual phenomena of creation presented to the mental eye of the prophet under the ordinary laws of perspective1 and truthfully described by him in the simple language of his time4 ,in our own country a similar view has been taken by the author of a singularly ingenious little work which issued about two years ago from the press of ,mr4 ,constable of ,edinburgh1 ,the ,mosaic ,record in ,harmony with ,geology4#ag ,the writer1 however1 exhibits1 in dealing with his subject1 the characteristic sobriety of the ,anglo-,saxon mind2 and while the leading features of his theory agree essentially with those of the ,continental one1 he does not press it so far4 ,in canvassing the form of the revelation made to ,moses in the opening of ,genesis1 he discusses the nature of the inspiration enjoyed by that great prophet2 and thus retranslates literally from the ,hebrew the passage in which the ,divine ,being is himself introduced as speaking direct on the point in the controversy raised by ,aaron and ,miriam4 ,and ,he the ,lord said1 hear now my words3 ,if he ,moses were your prophet subordinate1 or at least not superior1 to the prophetess and the high priest1 ,i1 ,jehovah1 in the vision to him would make myself known3 in the dream would ,i speak to him4 ,not so my servant ,moses ,god's prophet1 not theirs2 in all my house faithful is he4 ,mouth to mouth do ,i speak to him1 and vision1 but not in dark speeches2 and likeness of ,jehovah he beholds4 ,moses1 then1 was favored with visions without dark speeches4 ,now1 as implied in the passage thus retranslated1 there is a grand distinction between symbolic and therefore dark visions1 and visions not symbolic nor dark4 ,visions addressed1 as the word indicates1 to the eye1 may be obviously of a twofold character1--they may be either darker than words1 or a great deal clearer than words4 ,the vision1 for instance1 of future monarchies which ,daniel saw symbolized under the form of monstrous animals had to be explained in words2 the vision of ,peter1 which led to the general admission of the ,gentiles into the ,christian ,church1 had also virtually to be explained in words2 they were both visions of the dark class2 and revelation abounds in such4 ,but there were also visions greatly clearer than words4 ,such1 for instance1 was the vision of the secret chamber of imagery1 with its seventy men of the ancients of ,israel given over to idolatry1 which was seen by the prophet as he sat in his own house2 and the vision of the worshippers of the sun in the inner court of the temple1 witnessed from what was naturally the same impossible point of view2 with the vision of the ,jewish women in the western gate weeping for ,thammuz1 when1 according to ,milton's noble version1 ,the love tale ,infected ,sion's daughters with like heat1 ,whose wanton passions in the sacred porch ,ezekiel saw1 when1 by the vision led1 ,his eye surveyed the dark idolatries ,of alienated ,judah4 ,here1 then1 were there visions of scenes actually taking place at the time1 which1 greatly clearer than any merely verbal description1 substituted the seeing of the eye for the hearing of the ear4 ,and visions of this latter kind were enjoyed1 argues the writer of this ingenious treatise1 by the prophet ,moses4 ,one of the cases adduced may be best given in the author's own words4 ,moses1 he says1 received directions from ,god how to proceed in constructing the ,tabernacle and its sacred furniture2 and ,david also was instructed how the ,temple of ,solomon should be built4 ,let us hear ,scripture regarding the nature of the directions given to these men3-- ',according unto the appearance literally sight1 vision which the ,lord had showed unto ,moses1 so he made the candlestick4'--7,num4 #e3d47 ',the whole in writing1 by the hand of ,jehovah upon me1 he taught2 the whole works of the pattern4'--7#a ,chron4 #bh3ai47 ,there was thus a writing in the case of ,david2 a sight or vision of the thing to be made in that of ,moses4 ,so far the author of the ,treatise4 ,he might have added further1 that from the nature of things1 the revelation to ,moses in this instance must have been sight or vision1 if1 indeed1 what is not in the least likely1 the peculiar architecture and style of ornament used in the ,tabernacle was not a borrowed style1 already employed in the service of idolatry4 ,an old1 long established architecture can be adequately described by speech or writing2 a new1 original architecture can be adequately described only by pattern or model1 that is1 by sight or vision4 ,any intelligent cutter in stone or carver in wood could furnish to order1 though the order were merely a verbal one1 a ,corinthian or ,ionic capital2 but no such mechanic1 however skilful or ingenious1 could furnish to order1 if unprovided with a pattern or drawing1 a facsimile of one of the ornately sculptured capitals of ,gloucester ,cathedral or ,york ,minster4 ,to ensure a facsimile in any such case1 the originals1 or representations of them1 would require to be submitted to the eye1--not merely described to the ear4 ,nay1 from the example given in the text1--that of the golden candlestick1--we have an instance furnished in recent times of the utter inadequacy of mere description for the purposes of the sculptor or artist4 ,ever since copperplate engravings and illustrated ,bibles became comparatively common1 representations of the branched candlestick taken from the written description have been common also4 ,the candlestick on the arch of ,titus1 though not deemed an exact representation of the original one described in the ,pentateuch1 is now regarded1--correctly1 it cannot be doubted1--as at least the nearest approximation to it extant4 ,public attention was first drawn to this interesting piece of sculpture in comparatively modern times2 and it was then found that all the previous representations taken from the written description were widely erroneous4 ,they only served to show1 not the true outlines of the golden candlestick1 but merely that inadequacy of verbal description for artistic purposes which must have rendered vision1 or1 in other words1 optical representation1 imperative in the case of ,moses4 ,some of our most sober minded commentators take virtually the same view of this necessity of vision for ensuring the production of the true pattern of the ,tabernacle4 ,the ,lord1 says ,thomas ,scott1 not only directed ,moses by words how to build the ,tabernacle and form its sacred furniture1 but showed him a model exactly representing the form of every part1 and the proportion of each to all the rest4 ,there must have been clear optical vision in the case1--vision without dark speeches4 ,such1 too1 was the character of other of the ,mosaic visions1 besides that of the pattern seen in the ,mount4 ,the burning bush1 for instance1 was a vision addressed to the eye2 and seemed to come so palpably under the ordinary optical laws1 that the prophet drew near to examine the extraordinary phenomena which it exhibited4 ,the visual or optical character of some of the revelations made to ,moses thus established1 the writer goes on to inquire whether that special revelation which exhibits the generations of the heavens and earth in their order was not a visual revelation also4 ,were the words that ,moses wrote1 he asks1 merely impressed upon his mind8 ,did he hold the pen1 and another dictate8 ,or did he see in vision the scenes that he describes8 ,the freshness and point of the narrative1 he continues1 the freedom of the description1 and the unlikelihood that ,moses was an unthinking machine in the composition1 all indicate that he saw in vision what he has here given us in writing4 ,he is describing from actual observation4 ,the writer remarks in an earlier portion of his treatise1 that all who have adopted the theory advocated in the previous lecture1--the ,two ,records1 which was1 ,i may state1 published in a separate form1 ere the appearance of his work1 and which he does me the honor of largely quoting1--go upon the supposition that things during the ,mosaic days are described as they would appear to the eye of one placed upon earth2 and he argues that1 as no man existed in those distant ages1 a reason must be assigned for this popular view of creation which the record is rightly assumed to take4 ,and certainly1 if it was in reality a view described from actual vision1 the fact would form of itself an adequate reason4 ,what man had actually seen1 though but in dream or picture1 would of course be described as seen by man3 like all human history1 it would1 to borrow from ,kurtz1 be founded on eye-witnessing2 and the fact that the ,mosaic record of creation is apparently thus founded1 affords a strong presumption that it was in reality revealed1 not by dictation1 but by vision4 ,nor1 be it remembered1 has the recognition of a purely optical character in the revelation been restricted to the assertion of any one theory of reconciliation4 ,it was as certainly held by ,chalmers and ,dr4 ,pye ,smith1 as by ,dr4 ,kurtz and the author of this treatise2 nay1 it has been recognized by not a few of their opponents also4 ,granville ,penn1 for instance1 does not scruple to avow his belief1 in his elaborate ,estimate of the ,mineral and ,mosaic ,geologies1 that both sun and moon were created on the first day of creation1 though they did not become optically visible until the fourth4 ,in truth1 that the fourth day only rendered visible the sidereal creation of the first day1 is manifested1 he says1 by collating the transactions of the two days4 ,on the first day1 we are told generally1 ',god divided the light1 or day1 and the darkness1 or night2' but the physical agents which he employed for that division are not there declared4 ,on the fourth day1 we are told referentially1 ',god commanded the lights or luminaries for dividing day and night1 to give their light upon earth4' ,here1 then1 it is evident from the retrospective implication of the latter description1 that the lights or luminaries for dividing day and night1 which were to give their light upon the earth for the first time on the fourth day1 were the unexpressed physical agents by which ,god divided the day and night on the first day4 ,now1 whatever may be thought of ,mr4 ,penn's argument here1 there can be no doubt that it demonstrates at least his own belief in the purely optical character of the ,mosaic account of the sidereal creation4 ,it is an account1 he held1 not of what ,god wrought on the first day in the heavens1 but of what a human eye would have seen on the fourth day from the earth4 ,and ,moses ,stuart1 in his philological assault on the geologists1 is scarce less explicit in his avowal of a similar belief4 ,every one sees1 he says1 that to speak of the sun as rising and setting1 is to describe1 in common parlance1 what appears optically1 that is1 to our sensible view1 as reality4 ,but the history of creation is a different affair4 ,in ,,one ,,respect1 indeed1 there is a resemblance4 ,the historian everywhere speaks as an optical observer stationed on a point of our world1 and surveying from this the heavens and the earth1 and speaking of them as seen in this manner by his bodily eye4 ,the sun1 and moon1 and stars1 are servants of the earth1 lighted up to garnish and to cheer it1 and to be the guardians of its times and seasons4 ,other uses he knows not for them3 certainly of other uses he does not speak4 ,the distances1 magnitudes1 orbicular motions1 gravitating powers1 and projectile forces of the planets and of the stars1 are all out of the circle of his history1 and probably beyond his knowledge4 ,inspiration does not make men omniscient4 ,it does not teach them the scientific truths of astronomy1 or chemistry1 or botany1 nor any science as such4 ,inspiration is concerned with teaching religious truths1 and such facts or occurrences as are connected immediately with illustrating1 or with impressing them on the mind4 ,thus far ,dr4 ,stuart and ,mr4 ,penn1--men whose evidence on this special head must be sufficient to show that it is not merely geologists who have recognized an optical or visual character in the ,mosaic history of creation4 ,and certainly the inference deduced from the admitted fact1 that is1 the inference that the optical description must have been founded on a revelation addressed to the eye1--a revelation by vision1--does seem a fair and legitimate one4 ,the revelation must have been either a revelation in words or ideas1 or a revelation of scenes and events pictorially exhibited4 ,failing1 however1 to record its own history1 it leaves the student equally at liberty1 so far as external evidence is concerned1 to take up either view2 while1 so far as internal evidence goes1 the presumption seems all in favor of revelation by vision2 for1 while no reason can be assigned why1 in a revelation by word or idea1 appearances which took place ere there existed a human eye should be optically described1 nothing can be more natural or obvious than that they should be so described1 had they been revealed by vision as a piece of eye-witnessing4 ,it seems1 then1 at least eminently probable that such was the mode or form of the revelation in this case1 and that he who saw by vision on the ,mount the pattern of the ,tabernacle and its sacred furniture1 and in the ,wilderness of ,horeb the bush burning but not consumed1--types and symbols of the coming dispensation and of its ,divine ,author1--saw also by vision the pattern of those successive pre-,adamic creations1 animal and vegetable1 through which our world was fitted up as a place of human habitation4 ,the reason why the drama of creation has been optically described seems to be1 that it was in reality visionally revealed4 ,a further question still remains3 ,if the revelation was by vision1 that circumstance affords of itself a satisfactory reason why the description should be optical2 and1 on the other hand1 since the description is decidedly optical1 the presumption is of course strong that the revelation was by vision4 ,but why1 it may be asked1 by vision8 ,can the presumption be yet further strengthened by showing that this visual mode or form was preferable to any other8 ,can there be a reason1 in fine1 assigned for the reason1--for that revelation by vision which accounts for the optical character of the description8 ,the question is a difficult one2 but ,i think there can4 ,there seems to be a peculiar fitness in a revelation made by vision1 for conveying an account of creation to various tribes and peoples of various degrees of acquirement1 and throughout a long course of ages in which the knowledge of the heavenly bodies or of the earth's history1 that is1 the sciences of astronomy and geology1 did not at first exist1 but in which ultimately they came to be studied and known4 ,we must recognize such a mode as equally fitted for the earlier and the more modern times1--for the ages anterior to the rise of science1 and the ages posterior to its rise4 ,the prophet1 by describing what he had actually seen in language fitted to the ideas of his time1 would shock no previously existing prejudice that had been founded on the apparent evidence of the senses2 he could as safely describe the moon as the second great light of creation1 as he could the sun as its first great light1 and both1 too1 as equally subordinate to the planet which we inhabit4 ,on the other hand1 an enlightened age1 when it had come to discover this key to the description1 would find it optically true in all its details4 ,but how differently would not a revelation have fared1 in at least the earlier time1 that was strictly scientific in its details1--a revelation1 for instance1 of the great truth demonstrated by ,galileo1 that the sun rests in the centre of the heavens1 while the apparently immoveable earth sweeps with giddy velocity around it2 or of the great truth demonstrated by ,newton1 that our ponderous planet is kept from falling off into empty space by the operation of the same law that impels a descending pebble towards the ground6 ,a great miracle wrought in proof of the truth of the revelation might serve to enforce the belief of it on the generation to whom it had been given2 but the generations that followed1 to whom the miracle would exist as a piece of mere testimony1 would credit1 in preference1 the apparently surer evidence of their senses1 and become unbelievers4 ,they would act1 all unwittingly1 on the principle of ,hume's famous argument1 and prefer to rest rather on their own experience of the great phenomena of nature1 than on the doubtful testimony of their ancestors1 reduced in the lapse of ages to a dim1 attenuated tradition4 ,nor would a geological revelation have fared better1 in at least those periods intermediate between the darker and more scientific ages1 in which ingenious men1 somewhat skeptical in their leanings1 cultivate literature1 and look down rather superciliously on the ignorance and barbarism of the past4 ,what would skeptics such as ,hobbes and ,hume have said of an opening chapter in ,genesis that would describe successive periods1--first of molluscs1 star-lilies1 and crustaceans1 next of fishes1 next of reptiles and birds1 then of mammals1 and finally of man2 and that would minutely portray a period in which there were lizards bulkier than elephants1 reptilian whales furnished with necks slim and long as the bodies of great snakes1 and flying dragons1 whose spread of wing greatly more than doubled that of the largest bird8 ,the world would assuredly not receive such a revelation4 ,nor1 further1 have scientific facts or principles been revealed to man which he has been furnished with the ability of observing or discovering for himself4 ,it is according to the economy of revelation1 that the truths which it exhibits should be of a kind which1 lying beyond the reach of his ken1 he himself could never have elicited4 ,from every view of the case1 then1 a prophetic exhibition of the pre-,adamic scenes and events by vision seems to be the one best suited for the opening chapters of a revelation vouchsafed for the accomplishment of moral1 not scientific purposes1 and at once destined to be contemporary with every stage of civilization1 and to address itself to minds of every various calibre1 and every different degree of enlightenment4 ,the statement of ,dr4 ,kurtz1 that as vision of pre-,adamic history comes under the same laws as vision of history still future1 it ought therefore to be read by the same rules1 craves reflection4 ,since the source of knowledge for both kinds of history1 we find him saying1 and not only the source1 but the means1 and manner1 and way of coming to know1 is the same1 viz41 the eye-witness of the prophet's mental eye1 it follows that the historical representation which he who thus comes to know1 projects or portrays1 in virtue of this eye-witnessing of his1 holds the same relation to the reality in both the cases we speak of1 and must be subjected to the same laws of exposition4 ,we thus get this very important rule of interpretation1 viz41 that the representations of pre-human events1 which rest upon revelation1 are to be handled from the same point of view1 and expounded by the same laws1 as the prophecies and representations of future times and events1 which also rest upon revelation4 ,this1 then1 is the only proper point of view for scientific exposition of the ,mosaic history of creation2 that is to say1 if we acknowledge that it proceeded from ,divine revelation1 not from philosophic speculation or experimental investigation1 or from the ideas of reflecting men4 ,there is certainly food for thought in this striking and original view2 and there is at least one simple rule of prophetic exposition which may be applied to the pre-,adamic history1 in accordance with the principle which it suggests4 ,after all that a scientific theology has done for the right interpretation of prophecy1 we find the prediction always best read by the light of its accomplishment4 ,the event which it foretold forms its true key2 and when this key is wanting1 all is uncertainty4 ,the past is comparatively clear4 ,the hieroglyphic forms which crowd the anterior portions of the prophetic tablet are found wonderfully to harmonize 7men such as the profound ,newton being the judges7 with those great historic events1 already become matter of history1 which they foreshadowed and symbolized2 but1 on the other hand1 the hieroglyphics which occupy the tablet's posterior portion1--the hieroglyphics that symbolize events still future1--are invincibly difficult and inexplicable4 ,i have read several works on prophecy produced in the last age1 in which the writers were bold enough to quit the clue with which history furnishes the student of fulfilled prophecy1 and1 with the prophecies yet unfulfilled as their guide1 to plunge into a troubled sea of speculation regarding the history of the future4 ,and ,i have found that in every instance they were deplorably at fault regarding even the events that were nearest at hand at the time4 ,history is thus the surest interpreter of the revealed prophecies which referred to events posterior to the times of the prophet4 ,in what shall we find the surest interpretation of the revealed prophecies that referred to events anterior to his time8 ,in what light1 or on what principle1 shall we most correctly read the prophetic drama of creation8 ,in the light1 ,i reply1 of scientific discovery1--on the principle that the clear and certain must be accepted1 when attainable1 as the proper exponents of the doubtful and obscure4 ,what fully developed history is to the prophecy which of old looked forwards1 fully developed science is to the prophecy which of old looked backwards4 ,scarce any one will question whether that portion of the creation drama which deals with the heavenly bodies ought to be read in the light of established astronomic discovery or no2 for1 save by perhaps a few of ,father ,cullen's monks1 who can still hold that the sun moves round the earth1 and is only six feet in diameter1 all theologians have now received the astronomic doctrines1 and know that they rest upon a basis at least as certain as any of the historic events symbolized in fulfilled prophecy4 ,and were we to challenge for the established geologic doctrines a similar place and position with respect to those portions of the drama which deal with the two great kingdoms of nature1 plant and animal1 we might safely do so in the belief that the claim will be one day as universally recognized as the astronomic one is now4 ,on this principle there may1 of course1 be portions of the prophetic pre-,adamic past of as doubtful interpretation at the present time1 from the imperfect development of physical science1 as is any portion of the prophetic future from the imperfect development of historic events4 ,the science necessary to the interpretation of the one may be as certainly still to discover as the events necessary to the interpretation of the other may be still to take place4 ,three centuries have not yet passed since astronomic science was sufficiently developed to form a true key to the various notices of the heavenly bodies which occur in ,scripture2 among the others1 to the notice of their final appearance on the fourth day of creation4 ,little more than half a century has yet passed since geologic science was sufficiently developed to influence the interpretation given of the three other days' work4 ,and respecting the work of at least the first and second days1 more especially that of the second1 we can still but vaguely guess4 ,the science necessary to the right understanding of these portions of the prophetic record has still1 it would seem1 to be developed1 if1 indeed1 it be destined at all to exist2 and at present we can indulge in but doubtful surmises regarding them4 ,what may be termed the three geologic days1--the third1 fifth1 and sixth1--may be held to have extended over those ,carboniferous periods during which the great plants were created1--over those ,oolitic and ,cretacious periods during which the great sea monsters and birds were created1--and over those ,tertiary periods during which the great terrestrial mammals were created4 ,for the intervening or fourth day we have that wide space represented by the ,permian and ,triassic periods1 which1 less conspicuous in their floras than the period that went immediately before1 and less conspicuous in their faunas than the periods that came immediately after1 were marked by the decline1 and ultimate extinction1 of the ,palozoic forms1 and the first partially developed beginnings of the ,secondary ones4 ,and for the first and second days there remain the great ,azoic period1 during which the immensely developed gneisses1 mica schists1 and primary clay slates1 were deposited1 and the two extended periods represented by the ,silurian and ,old ,red ,sandstone systems4 ,these1 taken together1 exhaust the geologic scale1 and may be named in their order as1 first1 the ,azoic day or period2 second1 the ,silurian and ,old ,red ,sandstone day or period2 third1 the ,carboniferous day or period2 fourth1 the ,permian and ,triassic day or period2 fifth1 the ,oolitic and ,cretaceous day or period2 and sixth1 the ,tertiary day or period4 ,let us attempt conceiving how they might have appeared pictorially1 if revealed in a series of visions to ,moses1 as the successive scenes of a great air-drawn panorama4 ,during the ,azoic period1 ere life appears to have begun on our planet1 the temperature of the earth's crust seems to have been so high1 that the strata1 at first deposited apparently in water1 passed into a semi-fluid state1 became strangely waved and contorted1 and assumed in its composition a highly crystalline character4 ,such is peculiarly the case with the fundamental or gneiss deposits of the period4 ,in the overlying mica schist there is still much of contortion and disturbance2 whereas the clay slate1 which lies over all1 gives evidence1 in its more mechanical texture1 and the regularity of its strata1 that a gradual refrigeration of the general mass had been taking place1 and that the close of the ,azoic period was comparatively quiet and cool4 ,let us suppose that during the earlier part of this period of excessive heat the waters of the ocean had stood at the boiling point even at the surface1 and much higher in the profounder depths1 and further1 that the half-molten crust of the earth1 stretched out over a molten abyss1 was so thin that it could not support1 save for a short time1 after some convulsion1 even a small island above the sea level4 ,what1 in such circumstances1 would be the aspect of the scene1 optically exhibited from some point in space elevated a few hundred yards over the sea8 ,it would be simply a blank1 in which the intensest glow of fire would fail to be seen at a few yards' distance4 ,an inconsiderable escape of steam from the safety-valve of a railway engine forms so thick a screen1 that1 as it lingers for a moment1 in the passing1 opposite the carriage windows1 the passengers fail to discern through it the landscape beyond4 ,a continuous stratum of steam1 then1 that attained to the height of even our present atmosphere1 would wrap up the earth in a darkness gross and palpable as that of ,egypt of old1--a darkness through which even a single ray of light would fail to penetrate4 ,and beneath this thick canopy the unseen deep would literally boil as a pot1 wildly tempested from below2 while from time to time more deeply seated convulsion would upheave sudden to the surface vast tracts of semi-molten rock1 soon again to disappear1 and from which waves of bulk enormous would roll outwards1 to meet in wild conflict with the giant waves of other convulsions1 or return to hiss and sputter against the intensely heated and fast foundering mass1 whose violent upheaval had first elevated and sent them abroad4 ,such would be the probable state of things during the times of the earlier gneiss and mica schist deposits1--times buried deep in that chaotic night or evening which must have continued to exist for mayhap many ages after that beginning of things in which ,god created the heavens and the earth1 and which preceded the first day4 ,to a human eye stationed within the cloud1 all1 as ,i have said1 must have been thick darkness3 to eyes ,divine1 that could have looked through the enveloping haze1 the appearance would have been that described by ,milton1 as seen by angel and archangel at the beginning of creation1 when from the gates of heaven they looked down upon chaos3-- ,on heavenly ground they stood1 and from the shore ,they viewed the vast immeasurable abyss1 ,outrageous as a sea1 dark1 wasteful1 wild1 ,up from the bottom turned by furious heat ,and surging waves1 as mountains to assault ,heaven's height1 and with the centre mix the pole4 ,at length1 however1 as the earth's surface gradually cooled down1 and the enveloping waters sunk to a lower temperature1--let us suppose1 during the latter times of the mica schist1 and the earlier times of the clay slate1--the steam atmosphere would become less dense and thick1 and at length the rays of the sun would struggle through1 at first doubtfully and diffused1 forming a faint twilight1 but gradually strengthening as the latter ages of the slate formation passed away1 until1 at the close of the great primary period1 day and night1--the one still dim and gray1 the other wrapped in a pall of thickest darkness1--would succeed each other as now1 as the earth revolved on its axis1 and the unseen luminary rose high over the cloud in the east1 or sunk in the west beneath the undefined and murky horizon4 ,and here again the optical appearance would be exactly that described by ,milton3-- ',let there be light1' said ,god1 and forthwith light ,ethereal1 first of things1 quintessence pure1 ,sprung from the deep1 and from her native east ,to journey through the airy gloom began1 ,sphered in a radiant cloud1 for yet the sun ,was not3 she in a cloudy tabernacle ,sojourned the while4 ,god saw the light was good1 ,and light from darkness by the hemisphere ,divided3 light the day1 and darkness night1 ,he named4 ,this was the first day1 even and morn4 ,the second day's work has been interpreted variously1 according to the generally received science of the times of the various commentators who have dealt with it4 ,even in ,milton1 though the great poet rejected the earlier idea of a solid firmament1 we find prominence given to that of a vast hollow sphere of circumfluous waters1 which1 by encircling the atmosphere1 kept aloof the fierce extremes of chaos4 ,later commentators1 such as the late ,drs4 ,kitto and ,pye ,smith1 hold that the ,scriptural analogue of the firmament here--by the way1 a ,greek1 not a ,hebrew idea1 first introduced into the ,septuagint--was in reality simply the atmosphere with its clouds4 ,the historian ,moses1 says ,dr4 ,kitto1 speaks as things would have appeared to a spectator at the time of the creation4 ,a portion of the heavy watery vapor had flown into the upper regions1 and rested there in dense clouds1 which still obscured the sun2 while below1 the whole earth was covered with water4 ,thus we see the propriety with which the firmament is said to have divided the waters from the waters4 ,it is certainly probable that in a vision of creation the atmospheric phenomena of the second great act of the creation drama might have stood out with much greater prominence to the prophetic eye placed in the circumstances of a natural one1 than any of its other appearances4 ,the invertebrate life of the ,silurian period1 or even the ichthyic life of the earlier ,old ,bed ,sandstone period1 must have been comparatively inconspicuous from any sub-rial point of view elevated but a few hundred feet over the sea level4 ,even the few islets of the latter ages of the period1 with their ferns1 lepidodendra1 and coniferous trees1 forming1 as they did1 an exceptional feature in these ages of vast oceans1 and of organisms all but exclusively marine1 may have well been excluded from a representative diorama that exhibited optically the grand characteristics of the time4 ,further1 it seems equally probable that the introduction of organized existence on our planet was preceded by a change in the atmospheric conditions which had obtained during the previous period1 in which the earth had been a desert and empty void4 ,we know that just before the close of the ,silurian ages terrestrial plants had appeared1 and that before the close of the ,old ,red ,sandstone ages1 air-breathing animals had been produced2 and infer that the atmosphere in which both could have existed must have been considerably different from that which lay dark and heavy over the bare hot rocks1 and tenantless1 steam-emitting seas1 of the previous time4 ,under a gray1 opaque sky1 in which neither sun nor moon appear1 we are not unfrequently presented with a varied drapery of clouds1--a drapery varied in form1 though not in color3 bank often seems piled over bank1 shaded beneath and lighter above2 or the whole breaks into dappled cloudlets1 which bear--to borrow from the poetic description of ,bloomfield--the beauteous semblance of a flock at rest4 ,and if such rial draperies appeared in this early period1 with the clear space between them and the earth which we so often see in gray1 sunless days1 the optical aspect must have been widely different from that of the previous time1 in which a dense vaporous fog lay heavy upon rock and sea1 and extended from the earth's surface to the upper heights of the atmosphere4 ,the third day's vision seems to be more purely geological in its character than either of the previous two4 ,extensive tracts of dry land appear1 and there springs up over them1 at the ,divine command1 a rank vegetation4 ,and we know that what seems to be the corresponding ,carboniferous period1 unlike any of the preceding ones1 was remarkable for its great tracts of terrestrial surface1 and for its extraordinary flora4 ,for the first time dry land1 and organized bodies at once bulky enough1 and exhibited in a medium clear enough1 to render them conspicuous objects in a distant prospect1 appear in the ,mosaic drama2 and we still find at once evidence of the existence of extensive though apparently very flat lands1 and the remains of a wonderfully gigantic and abundant vegetation1 in what appear to be the rocks of this period4 ,the vision of the fourth day1 like that of the second1 pertained not to the earth1 but to the heavens2 the sun1 moon1 and stars become visible1 and form the sole subjects of the prophetic description4 ,and just as1 during the second period1 the earth would in all probability have failed to furnish any feature of mark enough to divert a human eye placed on a commanding station from the conspicuous atmospheric phenomena of the time1 so it seems equally probable that during this fourth period it would have failed to furnish any feature of mark enough to divert a human eye from the still more conspicuous celestial phenomena of the time4 ,as has been already incidentally remarked1 the ,permian and ,triassic periods were epochs--to employ the language of the late ,professor ,edward ,forbes--of great poverty of production of generic types4 ,on the other hand1 the appearance for the first time of sun1 moon1 and stars1 must have formed a scene well suited to divert the attention of the seer from every other4 ,nor 7as has been somewhat rashly argued by ,dr4 ,kitto and several others7 does it seem irrational to hold that three very extended periods should have elapsed ere the sidereal heavens became visible on earth4 ,addison's popular illustration1 drawn from one of the calculations of ,newton1 made in an age when comets were believed to be solid bodies1 rendered the reading public familiar1 considerably more than a century ago1 with the vast time which large bodies greatly heated would take in cooling4 ,according to ,sir ,isaac ,newton's calculation1 said the exquisitely classical essayist1 the comet that made its appearance in #afhj imbibed so much heat by its approaches to the sun1 that it would have been two thousand times hotter than red hot iron had it been a globe of that metal2 and that1 supposing it as big as the earth1 and at the same distance from the sun1 it would be fifty thousand years in cooling before it recovered its natural temper4 ,such was an estimate of the philosopher1 that excited no little wonder in the days of our great grandfathers1 for the vast time which it demanded2 and1 now that the data on which such a calculation ought to be founded are better known than in the age of ,newton1 yet more time would be required still4 ,it is now ascertained1 from the circumstance that no dew is deposited in our summer evenings save under a clear sky1 that even a thin covering of cloud1--serving as a robe to keep the earth warm1--prevents the surface heat of the planet from radiating into the spaces beyond4 ,and such a cloud1 thick and continuous1 as must have wrapped round the earth as with a mantle during the earlier geologic periods1 must have served to retard for many ages the radiation1 and consequently the reduction1 of that internal heat of which it was itself a consequence4 ,further1 the rocks and soils that form the surface of our globe would be much more indifferent conductors of heat than the iron superficies of ,newton's ball1 and would serve yet more to lengthen out the cooling process4 ,nor would a planet covered over for ages with a thick screen of vapor be a novelty even yet in the universe4 ,it is doubtful whether astronomers have ever yet looked on the face of ,mercury3 it is at least very generally held that hitherto only his clouds have been seen4 ,even ,jupiter1 though it is thought his mountains have been occasionally detected raising their peaks through openings in his cloudy atmosphere1 is known chiefly by the dark shifting bands that1 streaking his surface in the line of his trade winds1 belong not to his body1 but to his thick dark covering4 ,it is questionable whether a human eye on the surface of ,mercury would ever behold the sun1 notwithstanding his near proximity2 nor would he be often visible1 if at all1 from the surface of ,jupiter4 ,nor1 yet further1 would a warm steaming atmosphere muffled in clouds have been unfavorable to a rank1 flowerless vegetation like that of the ,coal ,measures4 ,there are moist1 mild1 cloudy days of spring and early ,summer that rejoice the heart of the farmer1 for he knows how conducive they are to the young growth on his fields4 ,the ,coal ,measure climate would have consisted of an unbroken series of these1 with mayhap a little more of cloud and moisture1 and a great deal more of heat4 ,the earth would have been a vast greenhouse covered with smoked glass2 and a vigorous though mayhap loosely knit and faintly colored vegetation would have luxuriated under its shade4 ,the fifth and sixth days1--that of winged fowl and great sea monsters1 and that of cattle and beasts of the earth1--,i must regard as adequately represented by those ,secondary ages1 ,oolitic and ,cretaceous1 during which birds were introduced1 and reptiles received their greatest development1 and those ,tertiary ages during which the gigantic mammals possessed the earth and occupied the largest space in creation4 ,to the close of this latter period1--the evening of the sixth day1--man belongs1--at once the last created of terrestrial creatures1 and infinitely beyond comparison the most elevated in the scale2 and with man's appearance on the scene the days of creation end1 and the ,divine ,sabbath begins1--that ,sabbath of rest from creative labor of which the proper work is the moral development and elevation of the species1 and which will terminate only with the full completion of that sublime task on the full accomplishment of which ,god's eternal purposes and the tendencies of man's progressive nature seem alike directed4 ,now1 ,i am greatly mistaken if we have not in the six geologic periods all the elements1 without misplacement or exaggeration1 of the ,mosaic drama of creation4 ,i have referred in my brief survey to extended periods4 ,it is probable1 however1 that the prophetic vision of creation1 if such was its character1 consisted of only single representative scenes1 embracing each but a point of time2 it was1 let us suppose1 a diorama1 over whose shifting pictures the curtain rose and fell six times in succession1--once during the ,azoic period1 once during the earlier or middle ,palozoic period1 once during the ,carboniferous period1 once during the ,permian or ,triassic period1 once during the ,oolitic or ,cretaceous period1 and finally1 once during the ,tertiary period4 ,dr4 ,kurtz holds1 taking the ,sabbath into the series1 that the division into seven scenes or stages may have been regulated with reference to the importance and sacredness of the mythic number seven1--the symbol of completeness or perfection2 but the suggestion will perhaps not now carry much weight among the theologians of ,britain1 whatever it might have done two centuries ago4 ,it is true1 that creation might have been exhibited1 not by seven1 but by seven hundred1 or even by seven thousand scenes2 and that the accomplished man of science1 skilled in every branch of physics1 might have found something distinct in them all4 ,but not the less do the seven1 or rather the six1 exhibited scenes appear to be not symbolic or mystical1 at least not exclusively symbolic or mystical1 but truly representative of successive periods1 strongly distinctive in their character1 and capable1 with the three geologic days as given points in the problem1 of being treated geologically4 ,another of the questions raised1 both by the ,german doctor and the writer in our own country1 must be recognized as eminently suggestive4 ,we treat the history of creation1 says ,dr4 ,kurtz1 with its six days' work1 as a connected series of so many prophetic visions4 ,the appearance and evanishing of each such vision seem to the seer as a morning and an evening1 apparently because these were presented to him as an increase and decrease of light1 like morning and evening twilight4 ,and we find the ,scottish writer taking essentially the same view4 ,each day contains1 he says1 the description of what he ,moses beheld in a single vision1 and when it faded it was twilight4 ,there is nothing forced in supposing that1 after the vision had for a time illumined the fancy of the seer1 it was withdrawn from his eyes1 in the same way that the landscape becomes dim on the approach of evening4444 ,from this point of view1 a 'day' can only mean the period during which the ,divinely enlightened fancy of the seer was active4 ,when all continued bright and manifest before his entranced but still conscious soul1 it was 'day' or 'light4' ,when the dimness of departing enlightenment fell upon the scene1 it was the evening twilight4 ,the days1 then1 are removed1 we find1 by the holders of this view1 altogether from the province of chronology to the province of prophetic vision2 they are represented simply as parts of the exhibited scenery1 or rather as forming the measures of the apparent time during which the scenery was exhibited4 ,we must also hold1 however1 that in the character of symbolic days they were as truly representative of the lapse of foregone periods of creation as the scenery itself was representative of the creative work accomplished in these periods4 ,for if the apparent days occurred in only the vision1 and were not symbolic of foregone periods1 they could not have been transferred with any logical propriety from the vision itself to that which the vision represented1 as we find done in what our ,shorter ,catechism terms the reason annexed to the ,fourth ,commandment4#ah ,the days must have been prophetic days1 introduced1 indeed1 into the panorama of creation as mayhap mere openings and droppings of the curtain1 but not the less symbolic of that series of successive periods1 each characterized by its own productions and events1 in which creation itself was comprised4 ,nothing more probable1 however1 than that even ,moses himself may have been unacquainted with the extent of the periods represented in the vision2 nay1 he may have been equally unconscious of the actual extent of the seeming days by which they were symbolized4 ,visions without dark speeches1--visions1 not of symbolic apparitions1 but of actual existences and events1 past or present1--may1 nay must1 have differed from what may be termed the dark hieroglyphic visions2 but we find in all visions an element of mere representative value introduced when they deal with time1 and that they occur as if wholly outside its pale4 ,these creation days seem1 in relation to what they typify1 to have been1 if ,i may so express myself1 the mere modules of a graduated scale4 ,such a description of the creative vision of ,moses as the one given by ,milton of that vision of the future1 which he represents as conjured up before ,adam by the archangel1 would be a task rather for the scientific poet than for the mere practical geologist or sober theologian4 ,let us suppose that it took place far from man1 in an untrodden recess of the ,midian desert1 ere yet the vision of the burning bush had been vouchsafed2 and that1 as in the vision of ,st4 ,john in ,patmos1 voices were mingled with scenes1 and the ear as certainly addressed as the eye4 ,a great darkness first falls upon the prophet1 like that which in an earlier age fell upon ,abraham1 but without the horror2 and1 as the ,divine ,spirit moves on the face of the wildly troubled waters1 as a visible aurora enveloped by the pitchy cloud1 the great doctrine is orally enunciated1 that in the beginning ,god created the heavens and the earth4 ,unreckoned ages1 condensed in the vision into a few brief moments1 pass away2 the creative voice is again heard1 ,let there be light1 and straightway a gray diffused light springs up in the east1 and1 casting its sickly gleam over a cloud-limited expanse of steaming1 vaporous sea1 journeys through the heavens towards the west4 ,one heavy1 sunless day is made the representative of myriads2 the faint light waxes fainter1--it sinks beneath the dim1 undefined horizon2 the first scene of the drama closes upon the seer2 and he sits awhile on his hill-top in darkness1 solitary but not sad1 in what seems to be a calm and starless night4 ,the light again brightens1--it is day2 and over an expanse of ocean without visible bound the horizon has become wider and sharper of outline than before4 ,there is life in that great sea1--invertebrate1 mayhap also ichthyic1 life2 but1 from the comparative distance of the point of view occupied by the prophet1 only the slow roll of its waves can be discerned1 as they rise and fall in long undulations before a gentle gale2 and what most strongly impresses the eye is the change which has taken place in the atmospheric scenery4 ,that lower stratum of the heavens occupied in the previous vision by seething steam1 or gray1 smoke-like fog1 is clear and transparent2 and only in an upper region1 where the previously invisible vapor of the tepid sea has thickened in the cold1 do the clouds appear4 ,but there1 in the higher strata of the atmosphere they lie1 thick and manifold1--an upper sea of great waves1 separated from those beneath by the transparent firmament1 and1 like them too1 impelled in rolling masses by the wind4 ,a mighty advance has taken place in creation2 but its most conspicuous optical sign is the existence of a transparent atmosphere1--of a firmament1 stretched out over the earth1 that separates the waters above from the waters below4 ,but darkness descends for the third time upon the seer1 for the evening and the morning have completed the second day4 ,yet again the light rises under a canopy of cloud2 but the scene has changed1 and there is no longer an unbroken expanse of sea4 ,the white surf breaks1 at the distant horizon1 on an insulated reef1 formed mayhap by the ,silurian or ,old ,red coral zoophytes ages before1 during the bygone yesterday2 and beats in long lines of foam1 nearer at hand1 against a low1 winding shore1 the seaward barrier of a widely spread country4 ,for at the ,divine command the land has arisen from the deep1--not inconspicuously and in scattered islets1 as at an earlier time1 but in extensive though flat and marshy continents1 little raised over the sea level2 and a yet further fiat has covered them with the great carboniferous flora4 ,the scene is one of mighty forests of cone-bearing trees1--of palms1 and tree-ferns1 and gigantic club mosses1 on the opener slopes1 and of great reeds clustering by the sides of quiet lakes and dark rolling rivers4 ,there is deep gloom in the recesses of the thicker woods1 and low thick mists creep along the dank marsh or sluggish stream4 ,but there is a general lightening of the sky over head2 as the day declines1 a redder flush than had hitherto lighted up the prospect falls athwart fern covered bank and long withdrawing glade4 ,and while the fourth evening has fallen on the prophet1 he becomes sensible1 as it wears on1 and the fourth dawn approaches1 that yet another change has taken place4 ,the ,creator has spoken1 and the stars look out from openings of deep unclouded blue2 and as day rises1 and the planet of morning pales in the east1 the broken cloudlets are transmuted from bronze into gold1 and anon the gold becomes fire1 and at length the glorious sun arises out of the sea1 and enters on his course rejoicing4 ,it is a brilliant day2 the waves1 of a deeper and softer blue than before1 dance and sparkle in the light2 the earth1 with little else to attract the gaze1 has assumed a garb of brighter green2 and as the sun declines amid even richer glories than those which had encircled his rising1 the moon appears full orbed in the east1--to the human eye the second great luminary of the heavens1--and climbs slowly to the zenith as night advances1 shedding its mild radiance on land and sea4 ,again the day breaks2 the prospect consists1 as before1 of land and ocean4 ,there are great pine woods1 reed-covered swamps1 wide plains1 winding rivers1 and broad lakes2 and a bright sun shines over all4 ,but the landscape derives its interest and novelty from a feature unmarked before4 ,gigantic birds stalk along the sands1 or wade far into the water in quest of their ichthyic food2 while birds of lesser size float upon the lakes1 or scream discordant in hovering flocks1 thick as insects in the calm of a summer evening1 over the narrower seas1 or brighten with the sunlit gleam of their wings the thick woods4 ,and ocean has its monsters3 great tanninim tempest the deep1 as they heave their huge bulk over the surface1 to inhale the life-sustaining air2 and out of their nostrils goeth smoke1 as out of a seething pot or cauldron4 ,monstrous creatures1 armed in massive scales1 haunt the rivers1 or scour the flat rank meadows2 earth1 air1 and water are charged with animal life2 and the sun sets on a busy scene1 in which unerring instinct pursues unremittingly its few simple ends1--the support and preservation of the individual1 the propagation of the species1 and the protection and maintenance of the young4 ,again the night descends1 for the fifth day has closed2 and morning breaks on the sixth and last day of creation4 ,cattle and beasts of the fields graze on the plains2 the thick-skinned rhinoceros wallows in the marshes2 the squat hippopotamus rustles among the reeds1 or plunges sullenly into the river2 great herds of elephants seek their food amid the young herbage of the woods2 while animals of fiercer nature1--the lion1 the leopard1 and the bear1--harbor in deep caves till the evening1 or lie in wait for their prey amid tangled thickets1 or beneath some broken bank4 ,at length1 as the day wanes and the shadows lengthen1 man1 the responsible lord of creation1 formed in ,god's own image1 is introduced upon the scene1 and the work of creation ceases forever upon the earth4 ,the night falls once more upon the prospect1 and there dawns yet another morrow1--the morrow of ,god's rest1--that ,divine ,sabbath in which there is no more creative labor1 and which1 blessed and sanctified beyond all the days that had gone before1 has as its special object the moral elevation and final redemption of man4 ,and over it no evening is represented in the record as falling1 for its special work is not yet complete4 ,such seems to have been the sublime panorama of creation exhibited in vision of old to ,the shepherd who first taught the chosen seed1 ,in the beginning how the heavens and earth ,rose out of chaos2 and1 rightly understood1 ,i know not a single scientific truth that militates against even the minutest or least prominent of its details4 ,,lecture ,,fifth4 ,,geology ,,in ,,its ,,bearings ,,on ,,the ,,two ,,theologies4 ,,part ,i4 ,the science of the geologist seems destined to exert a marked influence on that of the natural theologian4 ,for not only does it greatly add to the materials on which the natural theologian founds his deductions1 by adding to the organisms1 plant and animal1 of the present creation the extinct organisms of the creations of the past1 with all their extraordinary display of adaptation and design2 but it affords him1 besides1 materials peculiar to itself1 in the history which it furnishes both of the appearance of these organisms in time1 and of the wonderful order in which they were chronologically arranged4 ,not only--to borrow from ,paley's illustration--does it enable him to argue on the old grounds1 from the contrivance exhibited in the watch found on the moor1 that the watch could not have lain upon the moor forever2 but it establishes further1 on different and more direct evidence1 that there was a time when absolutely the watch was not there2 nay1 further1 so to speak1 that there was a previous time in which no watches existed at all1 but only water clocks2 yet1 further1 that there was a time in which there were not even water clocks1 but only sundials2 and further1 an earlier time still in which sundials were not1 nor any measurers of time of any kind4 ,and this is distinct ground from that urged by ,paley4 ,for1 besides holding that each of these contrivances must have had in turn an originator or contriver1 it adds historic fact to philosophic inference4 ,geology takes up the master volume of the greatest of the natural theologians1 and1 after scanning its many apt instances of palpable design1 drawn from the mechanism of existing plants and animals1 authoritatively decides that not one of these plants or animals had begun to be in the times of the ,chalk2 nay1 that they all date their origin from a period posterior to that of the ,eocene4 ,and the fact is1 of course1 corroborative of the inference4 ,that well constructed edifice1 says the natural theologian1 cannot be a mere lusus natur1 or chance combination of stones and wood2 it must have been erected by a builder4 ,yes1 remarks the geologist1 it was erected some time during the last nine years4 ,i passed the way ten years ago1 and saw only a blank space where it now stands4 ,nor does the established fact of an absolute beginning of organic being seem more pregnant with important consequences to the science of the natural theologian than the fact of the peculiar order in which they begin to be4 ,the importance of the now demonstrated fact1 that all the living organisms which exist on earth had a beginning1 and that a time was when they were not1 will be best appreciated by those who know how much1 and1 it must be added1 how unsuccessfully1 writers on the evidences have labored to convict of an absurdity1 on this special head1 the atheistic assertors of an infinite series of beings4 ,even ,robert ,hall 7in his famous ,sermon on ,modern ,infidelity7 could but play1 when he attempted grappling with the subject1 upon the words time and eternity1 and strangely argue1 that as each member of an infinite series must have begun in time1 while the succession itself was eternal1 it was palpably absurd to ask us to believe in a succession of beings that was thus infinitely earlier than any of the beings themselves which composed the succession4 ,and ,bentley1 more perversely ingenious still1 could assert1 that as each of the individuals in an infinite series must have consisted of many parts1--that as each man in such a series1 for instance1 must have had ten fingers and ten toes1--it was palpably absurd to ask us to believe in an infinity which thus comprised many infinities1--ten infinities of fingers1 for example1 and ten infinities of toes4 ,the infidels had the better in this part of the argument4 ,it was surely easy enough to show against the great preacher1 on the one hand1 that time in such a question is but a mere word that means simply a certain limited or definite period which had a beginning1 whereas eternity means an unlimited and undefinable period which had no beginning2--that his seeming argument was no argument1 but merely a sort of verbal play on this difference of signification in the words2--further1 that man could conceive of an infinite series1 whether extended in infinite space1 or subsisting in infinite time1 just as well as he could conceive of any other infinity1 and in the same way2 and that the only mode of disproving the possibility of such a series would be to show1 what of course cannot be shown1 that in conceiving of it in the progressive mode in which1 according to ,locke1 man can alone conceive of the infinite or the eternal1 there would be a point reached at which it would be impossible for him to go on adding millions on millions to the previous sum4 ,the symbolic ad infinitum could be made as adequately representative in the case of an infinite series of men or animals in unlimited time1 as of an infinite series of feet or inches in unlimited space1 or of an infinite series of hours or minutes in the past eternity4 ,and as for ,bentley1 on the other hand1 he ought surely to have known that all infinities are not equal1 seeing that ,newton had expressly told him so in the second of his four famous letters2 but that1 on the contrary1 one infinity may be not only ten times greater than another infinity1 but even infinitely greater than another infinity2 and that so the conception of an infinity of men possessed of ten infinities of fingers and toes is in no respect an absurdity4 ,of the three infinities possible in space1 the second is infinitely greater than the first1 and the third infinitely greater than the second4 ,a line infinitely produced is capable of being divided into--that is1 consists of--an infinity of given parts2 a plane infinitely extended is capable of being divided into an infinity of infinitely divisible lines2 and a cube1 that is1 a solid1 infinitely expanded1 is capable of being divided into an infinity of infinitely divisible planes4 ,in fine1 metaphysic theology furnishes no argument against the infinite series of the atheist4 ,but geology does4 ,every plant and animal that now lives upon earth began to be during the great ,tertiary period1 and had no place among the plants and animals of the great ,secondary division4 ,we can trace several of our existing quadrupeds1 such as the badger1 the hare1 the fox1 the red deer1 and the wild cat1 up till the earlier times of the ,pleistocene2 and not a few of our existing shells1 such as the great pecten1 the edible oyster1 the whelk1 and the ,pelican's-foot shell1 up till the greatly earlier times of the ,coraline ,crag4 ,but at certain definite lines in the deposits of the past1 representative of certain points in the course of time1 the existing mammals and molluscs cease to appear1 and we find their places occupied by other mammals and molluscs4 ,even such of our ,british shells as seem to have enjoyed as species the longest term of life cannot be traced beyond the times of the ,pliocene deposits4 ,we detect their remains in a perfect state of keeping in almost every shell-bearing bed1 till we reach the ,red and ,coraline ,crags1 where we find them for the last time2 and1 on passing into older and deeper lying beds1 we see their places taken by other shells1 of species altogether distinct4 ,the very common shell ,purpura lapillus1 for instance1 is found in our raised beaches1 in our ,clyde beds1 in our boulder clays and mammaliferous crags1 and1 finally1 in the ,red ,crag1 beyond which it fails to appear4 ,and such also is the history of the common edible mussel and common periwinkle2 whereas the common edible cockle1 and common edible pecten 7,p4 opercularis7 occur not only in all these successive beds1 but in the ,coral ,crag also4 ,they are older by a whole deposit than their present contemporaries1 the mussel and periwinkle2 and these1 in turn1 seem of older standing than shells such as ,murex erinaceus1 that has not been traced beyond the times of the mammaliferous crag1 or than shells such as ,scrobicularia piperata1 that has not been detected in more ancient deposits than raised sea beaches of the later periods1 and the elevated bottoms of old estuaries and lagoons4 ,we thus know1 that in certain periods1 nearer or more remote1 all our existing molluscs began to exist1 and that they had no existence during the previous periods2 which were1 however1 richer in animals of the same great molluscan group than the present time4 ,our ,british group of recent marine shells falls somewhat short of four hundred species2#ai whereas the group characteristic of the older ,miocene deposits1 largely developed in those districts of ,france which border on the ,bay of ,biscay1 and more sparingly in the south of ,england1 near ,yarmouth1 comprises more than six hundred species4 ,nearly an equal number of still older shells have been detected in a single deposit of the ,paris basin1--the ,calcaire grossier2 and a good many more in a more ancient formation still1 the ,london ,clay4 ,on entering the ,chalk1 we find a yet older group of shells1 wholly unlike any of the preceding ones2 and in the ,oolite and ,lias yet other and different groups4 ,and thus group preceded group throughout all the ,tertiary1 ,secondary1 and ,palozoic periods2 some of them remarkable for the number of species which they contained1 others for the profuse abundance of their individual specimens1 until1 deep in the rocks at the base of the ,silurian system1 we detect what seems to be the primordial group1 beneath which only a single animal organism is known to occur1--the ,oldhamia antiqua1--a plant-like zoophyte1 akin apparently to some of our recent sertularia1 7,see fig4 #e1 page #dh47 ,each of the extinct groups had1 we find1 a beginning and an end2--there is not in the wide domain of physical science a more certain fact2 and every species of the group which now exists had1 like all their predecessors on the scene1 their beginning also4 ,the infinite series of the atheists of former times can have no place in modern science3 all organic existences1 recent or extinct1 vegetable or animal1 have had their beginning2--there was a time when they were not4 ,the geologist can indicate that time1 if not by years1 at least by periods1 and show what its relations were to the periods that went before and that came after2 and as it is equally a recognized truth on both sides of the controversy1 that as something now exists1 something must have existed forever1 and as it must now be not less surely recognized1 that that something was not the race of man1 nor yet any other of the many races of man's predecessors or contemporaries1 the question1 ,what then was that something8 comes with a point and directness which it did not possess at any former time4 ,by what1 or through whom1 did these races of nicely organized plants and animals begin to be8 ,hitherto at least there has been but one reply to the question originated on the skeptical side4 ,all these races1 it is said1 have been developed1 in the long course of ages1 into what they now are1 as the young animal is developed in the womb1 or the young plant is developed from the seed4 ,topsy1 in the novel1 'spected that she was not made1 but growed2 and the only class of opponents which the geological theist finds in the field which his science has laid open to the world is a class that hold by the philosophy of ,topsy4 ,let me briefly remark regarding this development hypothesis1 with which ,i have elsewhere dealt at considerable length1 that while the facts of the geologist are demonstrably such1 that is1 truths capable of proof1 the hypothesis is a mere dream1 unsupported by a shadow of evidence4 ,a man of a lively imagination could no doubt originate many such dreams2 nay1 we know that in the dark ages dreams of the kind were actually originated4 ,the ,anser ,bernicla1 or barnacle goose1 a common winter visitant of our coasts1 was once believed to be developed out of decaying wood long submerged in sea water3 and one of our commonest cirripedes or barnacles1 ,lepas anatifera1 still bears1 in its specific name of the goose-producing lepas1 evidence that it was the creature specially recognized by our ancestors as the half-developed goose4 ,as if in memory of this old development legend1 the bird still bears the name of the barnacle1 and the barnacle of the bird2 and we know further1 that very intelligent men for their age1 such as ,gerardes the herbalist 7#aeig71 and ,hector ,boece the historian 7#aebd71 both examined these shells1 and1 knowing but little of comparative anatomy1 were satisfied that the animal within was the partially developed embryo of a fowl4 ,such was one of the fables gravely credited as a piece of natural history in ,britain about three centuries ago1 and such was the kind of evidence by which it was supported4 ,and we know that the followers of ,epicurus received from their master1 without apparent suspicion1 fables still more extravagant1 and that wanted even such a shadow of proof to support them as satisfied the herbalist and the historian4 ,the ,epicureans at least professed to believe that the earth1 after spontaneously producing herbs and trees1 began to produce in great numbers mushroom-like bodies1 that1 when they came to maturity1 burst open1 giving egress each to a young animal1 which proved the founder of a race2 and that thus1 in succession1 all the members of the animal kingdom were ushered into existence4 ,but whether the dream be that of the ,epicureans of classic times1 or that of the naturalists of the middle ages1 or that of the ,lamarckians of our own days1 it is equally a dream1 and can have no place assigned to it among either the solid facts or the sober deductions of science4 ,nay1 the dream of the ,lamarckians labors under a special disadvantage1 from which the dreams of the others are free4 ,if some modern ,boece or ,epicurus were to assert that at certain definite periods1 removed from fifteen to fifty thousand years from the present time1 all our existing animals were developed from decaying wood1 or from a wonderful kind of mushrooms that the earth produced only once every ten thousand years1 the assertion1 if incapable of proof1 would be at least equally incapable of being dis-proven4 ,but when the ,lamarckian affirms that all our recent species of plants and animals were developed out of previously existing plants and animals of species entirely different1 he affirms what1 if true1 would be capable of proof2 and so1 if it cannot be proven1 it is only because it is not true4 ,the trilobites have been extinct ever since the times of the ,mountain ,limestone2 and yet1 by series of specimens1 the individual development of certain species of this family1 almost from the extrusion of the animal from the egg until the attainment of its full size1 has been satisfactorily shown4 ,by specimen after specimen has every stage of growth and every degree of development been exemplified2 and the ,palontologist has come as thoroughly to know the creatures1 in consequence1 under their various changes from youth to age1 as if they had been his contemporaries1 and had grown up under his eye4 ,and had our existing species1 vegetable and animal1 been derived from other species of the earlier periods1 it would have been equally possible to demonstrate1 by a series of specimens1 their relationship4 ,let us again instance the ,british shells4 ,losing certain species in each of the older and yet older deposits at which we successively arrive1 we at length reach the ,red and ,coraline ,crags1 where we find1 mingled with the familiar forms1 a large per centage of forms now extinct2 then going on to the shells of the lower ,miocene1 more than six hundred species appear1 almost all of which are strange to us2 and then1 passing to the ,eocene shells of the ,calcaire grossier1 we find ourselves among well nigh as large a group of yet other and older strangers1 not one of which we are able to identify with any shell now living in the ,british area4 ,there would be thus no lack of materials for forming such a genealogy of the ,british shells1 had they been gradually developed out of the extinct species1 as that which ,m4 ,barrande has formed of the trilobites4 ,but no such genealogy can be formed4 ,we cannot link on a single recent shell to a single extinct one4 ,up to a certain point we find the recent shells exhibiting all their present specific peculiarities1 and beyond that point they cease to appear4 ,down to a certain point the extinct shells also exhibit all their specific peculiarities1 and then they disappear forever4 ,there are no intermediate species1--no connecting links1--no such connected series of specimens to be found as enables us to trace a trilobite through all its metamorphoses from youth to age4 ,all geologic history is full of the beginnings and the ends of species1--of their first and their last days2 but it exhibits no genealogies of development4 ,the ,lamarckian sets himself to grapple1 in his dream1 with the history of all creation3 we awaken him1 and ask him to grapple1 instead1 with the history of but a few individual species1--with that of the mussel or the whelk1 the clam or the oyster2 and we find from his helpless ignorance and incapacity what a mere pretender he is4 ,but while no hypothesis of development can neutralize or explain away the great geologic fact1 that every true species had a beginning independently1 apparently1 of every preceding species1 there was demonstrably a general progress1 in the course of creation1 from lower to higher forms1 which seems scarce less fraught with important consequences to the natural theologian than this fact of beginning itself4 ,for while the one fact effectually disposes of the infinite series of the atheist1 the other fact disposes scarce less effectually of those reasonings on the skeptical side which1 framed on the assumption that creation is a singular effect1--an effect without duplicate1--have been employed in urging1 that from that one effect only can we know aught regarding the producing cause4 ,knowing of the cause from but the effect1 and having experience of but one effect1 we cannot rationally hold1 it has been argued1 that the producing cause could have originated effects of a higher or more perfect kind4 ,the creation which it produced we know2 but1 having no other measure of its power1 we cannot regard it1 it has been contended1 as equal to the production of a better or nobler creation1 or of course hold that it could originate such a state of things as that perfect future state which faith delights to contemplate4 ,it has been well said of the author of this ingenious argument1--by far the most sagacious of the skeptics1--that if we admit his premises we shall find it difficult indeed to set aside his conclusions4 ,and how1 in this case1 does geology deal with his premises8 ,by opening to us the history of the remote past of our planet1 and introducing us1 through the present1 to former creations1 it breaks down that singularity of effect on which he built1 and for one creation gives us many4 ,it gives us exactly that which1 as he truly argued1 his contemporaries had not1--an experience in creations4 ,and let us mark how1 applied to each of these in succession1 his argument would tell4 ,there was a time when life1 animal or vegetable1 did not exist on our planet1 and when all creation1 from its centre to its circumference1 was but a creation of dead matter4 ,what1 in that early age1 would have been the effect of the argument of ,hume8 ,simply this1--that though the producing ,cause of all that appeared was competent to the formation of gases and earths1 metals and minerals1 it would be unphilosophic to deem him adequate to the origination of a single plant or animal1 even to that of a spore or of a monad4 ,ages pass by1 and the ,palozoic creation is ushered in1 with its tall araucarians and pines1 its highly organized fishes1 and its reptiles of comparatively low standing4 ,and how now1 and with what effect1 does the argument apply8 ,it is now rendered evident1 that in the earlier creation the producing ,cause had exerted but a portion of his power1 and that he could have done greatly more than he actually did1 seeing that we now find him adequate to the origination of vitality and organization in its two great kingdoms1 plant and animal4 ,but1 still confining ourselves with cautious skepticism within the limits of our argument1 we continue to hold that1 as fishes of a high and reptiles of a low order1 with trees of the cone-bearing family1 are the most perfect specimens of their respective classes which the producing ,cause has originated1 it would be rash to hold1 in the absence of proof1 that he could originate aught higher or more perfect4 ,and now1 as yet other ages pass away1 the creation of the great ,secondary division takes the place of that of the vanished ,palozoic2 and we find in its few dicotyledonous plants1 in its reptiles of highest standing1 in its great birds1 and in its some two or three humble marsupial mammals1 that in the previous1 as in the earlier creation1 the producing ,cause had been1 if ,i may so express myself1 working greatly under his strength1 and that in this third creation we have a still higher display of his potency4 ,with some misgivings1 however1 we again apply our argument4 ,and now yet another creation1--that of the ,tertiary period1 with its noble forests of dicotyledonous trees and its sagacious and gigantic mammals1--rises upon the scene2 and as our experience in creations has now become very considerable1 and as we have seen each in succession higher than that which preceded it1 we find that1 notwithstanding our assumed skepticism1 we had1 compelled by one of the most deeply seated instincts of our nature1 been secretly anticipating the advance which the new state of things actually realizes4 ,but applying the argument once more1 we at least assume to hold1 that as the sagacious elephant is the highest example of animal life yet produced by the originating ,cause1 it would be unphilosophic to deem him capable of producing a higher example4 ,and1 while we are thus reasoning1 man appears upon creation1--a creature immeasurably superior to all the others1 and whose very nature it is to make use of his experience of the past for his guidance in the future4 ,and if that only be solid experience or just reasoning which enables us truly to anticipate the events which are to come1 and so to make provision for them2 and if that experience be not solid1 and that reasoning not just1 which would serve but to darken our discernment1 and prevent us from correctly predicating the cast and complexion of coming events2 what ought to be our decision regarding an argument which1 had it been employed in each of the vanished creations of the past1 would have had but the effect of arresting all just anticipation regarding the immediately succeeding creation1 and which1 thus reversing the main end and object of philosophy1 would render the philosopher who clung to it less sagacious in divining the future than even the ordinary man8 ,but1 in truth1 the existing premises1 wholly altered by geologic science1 are no longer those of ,hume4 ,the footprint on the sand--to refer to his happy illustration--does not now stand alone4 ,instead of one1 we see many footprints1 each in turn in advance of the print behind it1 and on a higher level2 and1 founding at once on an acquaintance with the past1 extended throughout all the periods of the geologist1 and on that instinct of our nature whose peculiar function it is to anticipate at least one creation more1 we must regard the expectation of new heavens and a new earth1 wherein dwelleth righteousness1 as not unphilosophic1 but as1 on the contrary1 altogether rational and according to experience4 ,such is the bearing of geological science on two of the most important questions that have yet been raised in the field of natural theology4 ,nor does it bear much less directly on a controversy to which1 during the earlier half of the last century1 there was no little importance attached in ,britain1 and which engaged on its opposite sides some of the finest and most vigorous intellects of the age and country4 ,the school of infidelity represented by ,bolingbroke1 and1 in at least his earlier writings1 by ,soame ,jenyns1 and which1 in a modified form1 attained to much popularity through ,pope's famous ,essay1 assigned to man a comparatively inconsiderable space in the system of the universe4 ,it regarded him as but a single link in a chain of mutual dependency1--a chain which would be no longer an entire1 but a broken one1 were he to be struck out of it1 but as thus more important from his position than from his nature or his powers4 ,you will remember that one of the sections of ,pope's first epistle to his good ,st4 ,john is avowedly devoted to show what he terms the absurdity of man's supposing himself the final cause of the creation2 and though this great master of condensed meaning and brilliant point is now less read than he was in the days of our grandfathers1 you will all remember the elegant stanzas in which he states the usual claims of the species only to ridicule them4 ,it is human pride personified that he represents as exclaiming1-- ,for me kind ,nature wakes her genial power1 ,suckles each herb1 and spreads out every flower1 ,annual for me the grape1 the rose1 renew ,the juice nectarious and the balmy dew4 ,for me the mine a thousand treasures brings2 ,for me health gushes from a thousand springs2 ,seas roll to waft me1 suns to light me rise2 ,my footstool earth1 my canopy the skies4 ,you will further remember how the poet1 after thus reducing the claims and lowering the position of the species1 set himself to show that man1 viewed in relation to the place which he occupies1 ought not to be regarded as an imperfect being4 ,man is1 he said1 as perfect as he ought to be4 ,and1 such being the case1 the ,author of all1 looking1 it would seem1 very little after him1 has just left him to take care of himself4 ,a cold1 unfeeling abstraction1 like the gods of the old ,epicurean1 the ,great ,first ,cause of this school is a being ,who sees with equal eye1 as ,god of all1 ,a hero perish or a sparrow fall2 ,atoms or systems into ruin hurled1 ,and now a bubble burst1 and now a world4 ,such1 assuredly1 was not that ,god of the ,new ,testament whom the ,saviour of mankind revealed to his disciples as caring for all his creatures of the dust1 but as caring most for the highest of all4 ,are not two sparrows1 he said1 sold for a farthing8 and one of them shall not fall to the ground without your ,father4 ,fear ye not1 therefore2 ye are of more value than many sparrows4 ,it was the error of this ingenious but very unsolid school1 that it regarded the mere order of the universe as itself an end or final cause4 ,it reasoned respecting creation1 as if it would be true philosophy to account for the origin and existence of some great city1 such as the city of ,washington in the ,united ,states1 built1 as we know1 for purely political purposes1 by showing that1--as it was remarkable for its order1 for the rectilinear directness of its streets1 and the rectangularity of its squares1--it must have been erected simply to be a perfect embodiment of regularity2 and to urge further that1 save in their character as component parts of a perfect whole1 the ,house of ,representatives and the mansion of the ,president were of no more intrinsic importance1 or no more decidedly the end of the whole1 than any low tavern or outhouse in the lesser streets or lanes4 ,the destruction of either the outhouse or the ,house of ,representatives would equally form a void in the general plan of the city1 regarded as an admirably arranged whole4 ,and it was thus with the grand scheme of creation2 for1 ,from nature's chain whatever link we strike1 ,tenth or tenth thousand1 breaks the chain alike4 ,nor is it in other than due keeping with such a view of creation1 that its great ,author should be represented as a cold abstraction1 without love or regard1 and equally indifferent to the man and the sparrow1 to the atom and the planet4 ,order has respect to but the relations of things or of beings1--not to the things or beings themselves2 order is the figure which1 as mere etched points or strokes1 they compose1--the legend which1 as signs or characters1 they form2 and who cares anything for the component strokes or dots irrespective of the print1 or for the component letters or words apart from the writing8 ,the equal eye1 in such a scheme1 would of necessity be an indifferent one4 ,against this strange doctrine1 though in some measure countenanced by the glosses of ,warburton in his defence of ,pope1 the theologians protested1--none of them1 however1 more vigorously than ,johnson1 in his famous critique on the ,free ,inquiry of ,soame ,jenyns4 ,nor is it uninteresting to mark with what a purely instinctive feeling of the right some of the better poets1 whose lyre1 according to ,cowper1 was their heart1 protested against it too4 ,poor ,goldsmith1 when sitting a homeless vagabond on the slopes of the ,alps1 could exclaim in a greatly truer tone than that of his polished predecessor1-- ,creation's heir1 the world1 the world is mine6 ,and in ,cowper himself we find all ,goldsmith's intense feeling of appropriation1 that calls the delightful scenery all its own1 associated ,with worthy thoughts of that unvaried love ,that planned1 and built1 and still upholds1 a world ,so clothed with beauty1 for rebellious man4 ,strange to say1 however1 it is to the higher exponents of natural science1 and in especial to the geologists1 that it has been left to deal most directly with the sophistries of ,bolingbroke and ,pope4 ,oken1 a man quite as far wrong in some points as either the poet or his master1 was the first to remark1 and this in the oracular1 enigmatical style peculiar to the ,german1 that man is the sum total of all the animals4 ,gifted1 as all allow1 with a peculiarly nice eye for detecting those analogies which unite the animal world into a harmonious whole1 he remarked1 that in one existence or being all these analogies converge4 ,even the humbler students of the heavens have learned to find for themselves the star of the pole1 by following the direction indicated by what are termed the two pointer stars in the ,great ,bear4 ,and to the eye of ,oken all the groups of the animal kingdom formed a sphere of constellations1 each of which has its pointer stars1 if ,i may so speak1 turned towards man4 ,man occupies1 as it were1 the central point in the great circle of being2 so that those lines which pass singly through each of the inferior animals stationed at its circumference1 meet in him2 and thus1 as the focus in which the scattered rays unite1 he imparts by his presence a unity and completeness to creation which it would not possess were he away4 ,you will be startled1 however1 by the language in which the ,german embodies his view2 though it may be not uninstructive to refer to it in evidence of the fact that a man may be intellectually on the very verge of truth1 and yet for every moral purpose infinitely removed from it4 ,man1 he says1 is ,god manifest in the flesh4 ,and yet it may be admitted that there is a certain loose sense in which man is ,god manifest in the flesh4 ,as may be afterwards shown1 he is ,god's image manifested in the flesh2 and an image or likeness is a manifestation or making evident of that which it represents1 whether it be an image or likeness of body or of mind4 ,not less extraordinary1 but greatly more sound in their application1 are the views of ,professor ,owen1--supreme in his own special walk as a comparative anatomist4 ,we find him recognizing man as exemplifying in his structure the perfection of that type in which1 from the earliest ages1 nature had been working with reference to some future development1 and as therefore a foreordained existence4 ,the recognition of an ideal exemplar for the vertebrated animals proves1 he says1 that the knowledge of such a being as man must have existed before man appeared4 ,for the ,divine mind that planned the archetype also foreknew all its modifications4 ,the archetypal idea was manifested in the flesh under divers modifications1 upon this planet1 long prior to the existence of those animal species that actually exemplify it4 ,so far ,owen4 ,and not less wonderful is the conclusion at which ,agassiz has arrived1 after a survey of the geologic existences1 more extended and minute1 in at least the ichthyic department1 than that of any other man4 ,it is evident1 we find him saying1 in the conclusion of his recent work1 ,the ,principles of ,zoology1#bj that there is a manifest progress in the succession of beings on the surface of the earth4 ,this progress consists in an increasing similarity to the living fauna1 and among the vertebrates1 especially in their increasing resemblance to man4 ,but this connection is not the consequence of a direct lineage between the faunas of different ages4 ,there is nothing like parental descent connecting them4 ,the fishes of the ,palozoic age are in no respect the ancestors of the reptiles of the ,secondary age1 nor does man descend from the mammals which preceded him in the ,tertiary age4 ,the link by which they are connected is of a higher and immaterial nature2 and their connection is to be sought in the view of the ,creator himself1 whose aim in forming the earth1 in allowing it to undergo the successive changes which geology has pointed out1 and in creating successively all the different types of animals which have passed away1 was to introduce man upon the surface of our globe4 ,,man ,,is ,,the ,,end ,,towards ,,which ,,all ,,the ,,animal ,,creation ,,has ,,tended ,,from ,,the ,,first ,,appearance ,,of ,,the ,,first ,,pal,,ozoic ,,fishes4 ,these1 surely1 are extraordinary deductions4 ,in thy book1 says the ,psalmist1 all my members were written1 which in continuance were fashioned when as yet there was none of them4 ,and here is natural science1 by the voice of two of its most distinguished professors1 saying exactly the same thing4 ,of the earliest known vertebrates1--the placoidal fishes of the ,upper ,silurian rocks1--we possess only fragments1 which1 however1 sufficiently indicate1 from their resemblance to the corresponding parts of an existing shark1--the cestracion1--that they belonged to fishes furnished with the two pairs of fins now so generally recognized as the homologues of the fore and hinder limbs in quadrupeds4 ,with the second earliest vertebrates1--the ganoids of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1--we are more directly acquainted1 and know that they exhibited the true typical form1--a vertebral column terminating in a brain-protecting skull2 and that1 in at least the acanth1 celacanth1 and dipterian families1 they had the limb-like fins4 ,in the upper parts of the system the earliest reptiles leave the first known traces of the typical foot1 with its five digits4 ,higher still in one of the deposits of the ,trias we are startled by what seems to be the impression of a human hand of an uncouth massive shape1 but with the thumb apparently set in opposition1 as in man1 to the other fingers2 we next trace the type upwards among the wonderfully developed reptiles of the ,secondary periods2 then among the mammals of the ,tertiary ages1 higher and yet higher forms appear2 the mute prophecies of the coming being become with each approach clearer1 fuller1 more expressive1 and at length receive their fulfilment in the advent of man4 ,a double meaning attaches to the term type2 and hence some ambiguity in the writings which have appeared on this curious subject4 ,type means a prophecy embodied in symbol2 it means also what ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds well terms one of the general forms of nature1--a pattern form1 from which all others in the same class or family1 however numerous1 are recognized as mere exceptions and aberrations4 ,but in the geologic series both meanings converge and become one4 ,the form or number typical as the general form or number1 is found typical also as a prophecy of the form or number that came at length to be exemplified in the deputed lord of creation4 ,let us in our examples take typical numbers1 as more easily illustrated without diagrams than typical forms4 ,there are vertebrate animals of the second age of ichthyic existence1 that1 like the ,pterichthys and ,coccosteus1 were furnished with but two limbs4 ,the murnid of recent times have no more2 at least one of their number1 the murna proper1 wants limbs altogether2 so also do the lampreys4 ,the snakes are equally limbless1 save that the boas and pythons possess the rudiments of a single pair2 and such also is the condition1 among the amphibia1 of all the known species of ,coecilia4 ,and yet1 notwithstanding these exceptional cases1 the true typical number of limbs1 as shown by a preponderating majority of the vertebrates of all ages of the world1 is four4 ,and this typical number is the human number4 ,there is as certainly a typical number of digits too1 as of the limbs which bear them4 ,the exceptions are many4 ,all the species of the horse genus possess but a single digit2 the cattle family possess but two digits1 the rhinoceros three digits1 the hippopotamus four digits2 many animals1 such as the dog and cat1 have but four digits on one pair of limbs and five on the other2 whereas in some of the fishes the number of digits is singularly great1--from ten to twenty in most species1 and in the rays from eighty to a hundred4 ,and yet1 as shown in the rocks1 in which1 however1 the aberrations appear early1 the true typical number is five on both the fore and hinder limbs4 ,and such is the number in man4 ,there is also1 in at least the mammalia1 a typical number of vertebr in the neck4 ,the three-toed sloth has nine cervical vertebr2 the manati only six2 but seven is the typical number4 ,and seven is the human number also4 ,man1 in short1 is pre-eminently what a theologian would term the antetypical existence1--the being in whom the types meet and are fulfilled4 ,and not only do typical forms and numbers of the exemplified character meet in man1 but there are not a few parts of his framework which in the inferior animals exist as but mere symbols1 of as little importance as dugs in the male animal1 though they acquire significancy and use in him4 ,such1 for instance1 are the many-jointed but moveless and unnecessary bones of which the stiff inflexible fin of the dugong and the fore paw of the mole consist1 and which exist in his arm as essential portions1 none of which could be wanted1 of an exquisitely flexible instrument4 ,in other cases1 the old types are exemplified serially in the growth and development of certain portions of his frame4 ,such is specially the case with that all important portion of it1 the organ of thought and feeling4 ,the human brain is built up by a wonderful process1 during which it assumes in succession the form of the brain of a fish1 of a reptile1 of a bird1 of a mammiferous quadruped2 and1 finally1 it takes upon it its unique character as a human brain4 ,hence the remark of ,oken1 that man is the sum total of all the animals2 hence1 too1 a recognition of type in the history of the successive vertebral periods of the geologist1 symbolical of the history of every individual man4 ,it is not difficult to conceive how1 on a subject of such complexity1 especially if approached in an irreverent spirit1 grave mistakes and misconceptions should take place4 ,virgil knew just enough of ,hebrew prophecy to misapply1 in his ,pollio1 to his great patron ,octavius1 those ancient predictions which foretold that in that age the ,messiah was to appear4 ,and ,i am inclined to hold1 that in the more ingenious speculations of the ,lamarckians we have just a similar misapplication of what1 emboldened by the views of ,owen and ,agassiz1 ,i shall venture to term the ,geologic ,prophecies4 ,the term is new1 but the idea which it embodies1 though it at first existed rather as a nice poetic instinct than as a scientifically based thought1 is at least as old as the times of ,herder and ,coleridge4 ,in a passage quoted from the former writer by ,dr4 ,m',cosh1 in his very masterly work on typical forms1 ,i find the profound ,german remarking of the strange resemblances which pervade all nature1 and impart a general unity to its forms1 that it would seem as if on all our earth the form-abounding mother had proposed to herself but one type1--one proto-plasma1--according to which1 and for which1 she formed them all4 ,know1 then1 he continues1 what this form is4 ,it is the identical one which man also wears4 ,and the remark of ,coleridge1 in his ,aids to ,reflection1 is still more definite4 ,let us carry us back in spirit1 he says1 to the mysterious week1 the teeming work days of the ,creator 7as they rose in ,,vision before the eye of the inspired historian7 of the operations of the heavens and of the earth1 in the day that the ,lord ,god made the earth and the heavens4 ,and who that watched their ways with an understanding heart could1 as the vision evolved still advanced towards him1 contemplate the filial and loyal bee1 the home-building1 wedded1 and divorceless swallow1 and1 above all1 the manifoldly intelligent ant tribes1 with their commonwealths and confederacies1 their warriors and miners1 the husband folk that fold in their tiny flocks on the honey leaf1 and the virgin sister with the holy instincts of maternal love detached and in selfless purity1 and not say in himself1 ,behold the shadow of approaching humanity1 the sun rising from behind in the kindling morn of creation8 ,there is fancy here2 but it is that sagacious fancy1 vouchsafed to only the true poet1 which has so often proved the pioneer of scientific discovery1 and which is in reality more sober and truthful1 in the midst of its apparent extravagance1 than the gravest cogitations of ordinary men4 ,it is surely no incredible thing1 that ,he who1 in the dispensations of the human period1 spake by type and symbol1 and who1 when ,he walked the earth in the flesh1 taught in parable and allegory1 should have also spoken in the geologic ages by prophetic figures embodied in the form and structure of animals4 ,nay1 what the poet imagined1 though in a somewhat extreme form1 the philosophers seem to be on the very eve of confirming4 ,the foreknown archetypal idea of ,owen1--the immaterial link of connection of all the past with all the present1 which ,agassiz resolves into the foreordained design of the ,creator1--will be yet found1 ,i cannot doubt1 to translate themselves into one great general truth1 namely1 that the ,palozoic1 ,secondary1 and ,tertiary dispensations of creation were charged1 like the patriarchal and ,mosaic dispensations of grace1 with the shadows of better things to come4 ,the advent of man simply as such was the great event prefigured during the old geologic ages4 ,the advent of that ,divine ,man who hath abolished death1 and brought life and immortality to light1 was the great event prefigured during the historic ages4 ,it is these two grand events1 equally portions of one sublime scheme1 originated when ,god took counsel with himself in the depths of eternity1 that bind together past1 present1 and future1--the geologic with the ,patriarchal1 the ,mosaic1 and the ,christian ages1 and all together with that new heavens and new earth1 the last of many creations1 in which there shall be no more death nor curse1 but the throne of ,god and the ,lamb shall be in it1 and his servants shall serve him4 ,there is absurdity1 said ,pope1 in man's conceiting himself the final cause of creation4 ,unless1 however1 man had the entire scheme of creation before him1 with the further partially known scheme of which but a part constitutes the grand theme of revelation1 how could he pronounce on the absurdity8 ,the knowledge of the geologist ascends no higher than man4 ,he sees all nature in the pre-,adamic past1 pointing with prophetic finger towards him2 and on even the argument of ,hume1--just and solid within its proper limits1--he refuses to acquiesce in the unfounded inference of ,pope4 ,in order to prove the absurdity of man's conceiting himself the final cause of creation1 proof of an ulterior cause1--of a higher end and aim1--must he adduced2 and of aught higher than man1 the geologist1 as such1 knows nothing4 ,the long vista opened up by his science closes with the deputed lord of creation1--with man as he at present exists2 and when1 casting himself full upon revelation1 the vail is drawn aside1 and an infinitely grander vista stretches out before him into the future1 he sees man--no longer1 however1 the natural1 but the ,divine man--occupying what is at once its terminal point and its highest apex4 ,such are some of the bearings of geologic science on the science of natural theology4 ,geology has disposed effectually and forever of the oft-urged assumption of an infinite series2 it deals as no other science could have dealt with the assertion of the skeptic1 that creation is a singular effect2 it casts a flood of unexpected light on the somewhat obsolete plausibilities of ,bolingbroke and ,jenyns1 that exhibits their utterly unsolid character2 yet further1 it exhibits in a new aspect the argument founded on design1 and invests the place and standing of man in creation with a peculiar significancy and importance1 from its relation to the future4 ,but on this latter part of my subject--necessarily of considerable extent and multiplicity1 and connected rather with revealed than with natural religion--,i must not now expatiate4 ,i shall1 however1 attempt laying before you1 on some future evening1 a few thoughts on this portion of the general question1 which you may at least find suggestive of others1 and which1 if they fail to elicit new truths1 may have the effect of opening up upon an old truth or two a few fresh avenues through which to survey them4 ,the character of man as a fellow-worker with his ,creator in the material province has still to be considered in the light of geology4 ,man was the first1 and is still the only creature of whom we know anything1 who has set himself to carry on and improve the work of the world's original framer1--who is a planter of woods1 a tiller of fields1 and a keeper of gardens1--and who carries on his work of mechanical contrivance on obviously the same principles as those on which the ,divine designer wrought of old1 and on which he works still4 ,it may not be wholly unprofitable to acquaint ourselves1 through evidence furnished by the rocks1 with the remarkable fact1 that the ,creator imparted to man the ,divine image before he united to man's the ,divine nature4 ,,lecture ,,sixth4 ,,geology ,,in ,,its ,,bearings ,,on ,,the ,,two ,,theologies4 ,,part ,,ii4 ,up till the introduction of man upon our planet1 the humbler creatures1 his predecessors1 formed but mere figures in its various landscapes1 and failed to alter or affect by their works the face of nature4 ,they were conspicuous1 not from what they did1 but from what they were4 ,at a very early period reefs of coral1 the work of minute zoophytes1 whitened the shallows of the ocean1 or encircled with pale1 ever broadening frames1 solitary islands green with the shrubs and trees of extinct floras2 but1 though products of the animal world1 they were not built up under the direction of even an instinctive intelligence1 but were as entirely the results of a vegetative process of mere growth as the forests or reed brakes of the old ,carboniferous savannahs4 ,at a later time an ant hill might be here and there descried1 rearing its squat1 brown pyramid amid the recesses of some ,oolitic forest2 or1 in a period still more recent1 the dam of the gigantic beaver might be seen extending its minute eye-like circlet of blue amid the windings of some bosky ravine of the ,pliocene age2 or existing as a little mound-skirted pond1 with the rude half-submerged cottage of the creature1 its architect1 rising beside it1 on some rivulet of the ,pleistocene4 ,but how inconsiderable such works1 compared with the wide extent of prospect in which they were included6 ,how entirely inconspicuous rather1 save when placed in the immediate foreground of the pictures into whose composition they entered6 ,not until the introduction of man upon earth do we find a creature whose works sensibly affect and modify the aspects of nature4 ,but when man appears1 how mighty the change which he effects6 ,immediately on his creation he takes under his care the vegetable productions of use and show3 it becomes his business to keep and dress a garden4 ,he next becomes a tiller of fields1 then a planter of vineyards3 here he cuts down great forests2 there he rears extensive woods4 ,he makes himself places of habitation2 and busy cities spring up as the trophies of his diligence and skill4 ,his labors1 as they grow upon the waste1 affect the appearance of vast continents2 until at length1 from many a hill-top and tall spire1 scarce a rood of ground can be seen on which he has not built1 or sown1 or planted1 or around which lie has not erected his walls or reared his hedges4 ,man1 in this great department of industry1 is what none of his predecessors upon the earth ever were1--a fellow-worker with the ,creator4 ,he is a mighty improver of creation4 ,we recognize that as improvement which adapts nature more thoroughly to man's own necessities and wants1 and renders it more pleasing both to his sense of the sthetic and to his more material senses also4 ,he adds to the beauty of the flowers which he takes under his charge1--to the delicacy and fertility of the fruits2 the seeds of the wild grasses become corn beneath his care2 the green herbs grow great of root or bulb1 or bulky and succulent of top and leaf2 the wild produce of nature sports under his hand2 the rose and lily broaden their disks and multiply their petals2 the harsh green crab swells out into a delicious golden-rinded apple1 streaked with crimson2 the productions of his kitchen garden1 strangely metamorphosed to serve the uses of his table1 bear forms unknown to nature2 an occult law of change and development inherent to these organisms meets in him with the developing instinct and ability1 and they are regenerated under his surveillance4 ,nor is his influence over many of the animals less marked4 ,the habits which he imparts to the parents become nature1 in his behalf1 in their offspring4 ,the dog acquires1 under his tutelage1 the virtues of fidelity to a master and affection to a friend4 ,the ox and horse learn to assist him in the labors of the fields4 ,the udders of the cow and goat distend beneath his care far beyond the size necessary in the wild state1 and supply him with rich milk1 and the other various products of the dairy4 ,the fleece of the sheep becomes finer of texture and longer of fibre in his pens and folds2 and even the indocile silkworm spins1 in his sheltered conservatories1 and among the mulberry trees which he has planted1 a larger1 and brighter1 and more glistening cocoon4 ,man is the great creature-worker of the world1--its one created being1 that1 taking up the work of the adorable ,creator1 carries it on to higher results and nobler developments1 and finds a field for his persevering ingenuity and skill in every province in which his ,maker had expatiated before him4 ,he is evidently--to adopt and modify the remark of ,oken--,god's image manifest in the flesh4 ,surveyed from the special point of view furnished by this peculiar nature of man1 unique in creation1 all the past of our planet divides into two periods2--the period1 inclusive of every age known to the geologist1 during which only the ,creator wrought2 and the period during which man has wrought1 and to which all human history belongs4 ,in such a view we are presented with two sets of works1--those of the ,creator-worker1 and those of the creature-worker2 and the vast fund of materials on which the natural theologian frames his arguments demonstrative of design or contrivance1 assumes a new significancy and interest when employed as evidence that there exists a certain correspondence of nature and intellect between the two workers1 human and ,divine4 ,the ability of accomplishing the same ends by the same means1--in other words1 of thinking and acting in the same practical tract1--indicates a similarity1 if not identity1 of intellectual nature4 ,in the ,chinese centre of civilization1 for instance1 printing1 gunpowder1 the mariner's compass1 with the various chemical and mechanical arts of elegant life1 were originated without concert with the ,european centre of civilization1 simply because in ,china1 as in ,europe1 the same human faculties1 prompted by the same tastes and necessities1 had expatiated in the same tracts of invention1 and had1 as a consequence1 educed the same results4 ,i was much struck1 when spending half an hour in a museum illustrative of the arts in ,china1 by the identity of these with our own1 especially in the purely mechanical departments2 and again1 when similarly employed in that apartment devoted1 in the ,british ,museum1 to the domestic utensils of the ancient ,egyptians4 ,the identity of the more common contrivances which ,i witnessed1 with familiar contrivances in our own country1 ,i regarded as altogether as conclusive of an identity of mind in the individuals who had originated them1 as if ,i had actually seen human creatures at work on them all4 ,one class of productions showed me that the potter's wheel and the turning lathe had been known and employed as certainly in ,china and ancient ,egypt as in ,britain4 ,another1 that their weaving processes must have been nearly the same4 ,the ,chinese know1 for instance1 as well as ourselves1 that patterns can be delicately brought out1--as in the damasks1--without the assistance of color1 simply by exposing silken or flaxen fibre at different angles to the light2 and they have fallen1 as their work shows1 on the right methods of producing it4 ,and the ,egyptians anticipated us in even our most homely household contrivances4 ,they even fermented their bread and trussed their fowls after the same fashion2 and thus gave evidence1 in these familiar matters1 that they thought and contrived after the manner of men4 ,now1 in acquainting myself with the organisms of the geologic periods1 ,i have been similarly but more deeply impressed by what ,i must be permitted to term the human cast and character of the contrivances which they exemplified4 ,not only could ,i understand the principles on which they were constructed1 but further1 not a few of them had1 ,i found1 been actually introduced into works of human invention ages ere they were discovered in the rock4 ,what the great ,creator-worker had originated in the ,palozoic and ,secondary periods1 had been in after times originated by the little creature-worker1 wholly unaware that his contrivance had been anticipated1 and was but a repetition of a previously executed design4 ,in the later geologic ages the organization of the various extinct animals so nearly resembled that of the animals which still live1 that we may regard it as not inadequately represented by the illustrations of ,paley4 ,a few such exceptional contrivances appear among the mammals of the ,tertiary as that formed by the huge pickaxe-like tusks of the ,dinotherium1 or a few such extraordinary modifications of the ordinary mammalian framework as that exhibited in the enormously massive pelvic arches and hinder limbs of the ,mylodon and ,megatherium4 ,but not until we pass into the deposits of the ,secondary period1 and get among its cephalopoda1 do we find a mechanism altogether unlike any with which we are acquainted among living organisms4 ,as admirably shown by ,buckland1 the partitions which separate into chambers all the whorls of the ammonite except the outermost one1 were exquisitely adapted to strengthen1 by the tortuous windings of their outer edges1 a shell which had to combine great lightness with great powers of resistance4 ,itself a continuous arch throughout1 it was supported by a series of continuous arches inside1 somewhat resembling in form the groined ribs of the ,gothic roof1 but which1 unlike the ponderous stone work of the medival architects1 were as light as they were strong4 ,and to this combination of arches there was added1 in the ribs and grooves of the shell1 yet another element of strength1--that which has of late been introduced into iron roofs1 which1 by means of their corrugations1--ribs and grooves like those of the ammonite1--are made to span over wide spaces1 without the support of beams or rafters4 ,still more recently1 the same principle has been introduced into metallic boats1 which1 when corrugated1 like the old ammonites1 are found to be sufficiently strong to resist almost any degree of pressure without the wonted addition of an interior framework4 ,similar evidences of design appear in the other extinct molluscs peculiar to these geologic ages1 such as the hamite and turrilite4 ,the belemnite seems to have united the principle of the float to that of the sinker1 as we see both united in some of our modern life boats1 which are steadied on their keel by one principle1 and preserved from foundering by the other2 or as we find them united by the boy in his mimic smack1 which he hollows out and decks1 in order to render it sufficiently light1 while at the same time he furnishes it with a keel of lead1 in order to render it sufficiently steady4 ,the old articulata abound in marks of ingenious mechanical contrivance4 ,the trilobites were covered over back and head with the most exquisitely constructed plate armor3 but as their abdomens seem to have been soft and defenceless1 they had the ability of coiling themselves round on the approach of danger1 plate moving on plate with the nicest adjustment1 till the rim of the armed tail rested on that of the armed head1 and the creature presented the appearance of a ball defended at every point4 ,in some genera1 as in ,calymene1 the tail consisted of jointed segments till its termination2 in others1 as in ,illnus1 there was a great caudal shield1 that in size and form corresponded to the shield which covered the head2 the segments of ,calymene1 from the flexibility of their joints1 fitted close to the cerebral rim2 while the same effect was produced in the inflexible shields1 caudal and cephalic1 of ,illnus1 by their exact correspondence1 and the flexibility of the connecting rings1 which enabled them to fit together like two equal-sized cymbals brought into contact at every point by the hand4 ,nor were the ancient crinoids less remarkable for the amount of nice contrivance which their structures exhibited1 than the ancient molluscs or crustaceans4 ,in their calyx-like bodies1 consisting always of many parts1 we find the principle of the arch introduced in almost every possible form and modification1 and the utmost flexibility secured to their stony arms by the amazing number of the pieces of which they were composed1 and the nice disposition of the joints4 ,in the ,pentacrinites of the ,secondary period 7see ,fig4 #ig7 an immense spread of arms1 about a thousand in number1 and composed of about a hundred thousand separate pieces1 had all the flexibility1 though formed of solid lime1 of a drift of nets1 and yet were so nicely jointed1 tooth fitting into tooth in all their numerous parts1 and the whole so bound together by ligament1 that1 with all the flexibility1 they had also all the toughness and tenacity1 of pieces of thread network4 ,human ingenuity1 with the same purposes to effect1 that is1 the sweeping of shoals of swimming animals into a central receptacle1 would probably construct a somewhat similar machine2 but it would take half a lifetime to execute one equally elaborate4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #id4 ,,ammonites ,,humphriesianus4 7,oolite47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ie4 ,,encrinites ,,moniliformis4 7,trias47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #if4 ,,cupressocrinus ,,crassus4 7,old ,red ,sandstone47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ig4ba ,,pentacrinus ,,fasciculosus4 7,lias47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ih4 a1 ,,chamfered ,,scales4 7,osteolepis47 b1 ,,imbricated ,,scales4 7,glyptolepis47 7,old ,red ,sandstone47 ,in carefully examining1 for purposes of restoration1 some of the earliest ganoidal fishes1 ,i was not a little impressed by the peculiar mechanical contrivances exhibited in their largely developed dermal skeletons4 ,in some cases these contrivances were sufficiently simple1 resembling those which we find exemplified in the humbler trades1 originated in comparatively unenlightened ages2 and yet their simplicity had but the effect of rendering the peculiarly human cast of the mind exhibited in their production all the more obvious4 ,the bony scales which covered fishes such as the ,osteolepis and ,diplopterus of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 or the ,megalichthys of the ,coal ,measures1 were of considerable mass and thickness4 ,they could not1 compatibly with much nicety of finish1 be laid over each other1 like the thin horny scales of the salmon or herring2 and so we find them curiously fitted together1 not like slates on a modern roof1 but like hewn stones on an ancient one4 ,there ran on the upper surface of each1 along the anterior side and higher end1 a groove of a depth equal to half the thickness of the scale2 and along the posterior side and lower end1 on the under surface1 a sort of bevelled chamfer1 which1 fitting into the grooves of the scales immediately behind and beneath it1 brought their surfaces to the same line1 and rendered the shining coverings of these strongly armed ganoids as smooth and even as those of the most delicately coated fishes of the present day4 ,in the scales of the ,celacanth family the arrangement was different4 ,though exceedingly massive in some of the genera1 they were imbricated1 like those of the ,pangolins2 and were chiefly remarkable for the combination of contrivances which they exhibited for securing the greatest possible amount of strength from the least possible amount of thickness4 ,the scales of ,holoptychius giganteus may be selected as representative of those of the family to which it belonged4 ,it consisted of three plates1 or rather1 like the human skull1 of two solid plates1 with a diploe or spongy layer between4 ,the outer surface was curiously fretted into alternate ridges and furrows2 and hence the name of the genus1--wrinkled scale2 and these imparted to the exterior plate on which they occurred1 and which was formed of solid bone1 the strength which results from a corrugated or fluted surface4 ,cromwell1 in commissioning a friend to send him a helmet1 shrewdly stipulated that it should be a fluted pot2 and we find that the ,holoptychius had got the principle of the fluted pot exemplified in the outer plate of each of its scales1 untold ages before4 ,the spongy middle plate must1 like the diploe of the skull1 have served to deaden the vibrations of a blow dealt from the outside4 ,it was a stratum of sand bags piled up in the middle of a plank rampart4 ,their innermost table was formed1 like the outer1 of solid bone1 but had a different arrangement4 ,it was properly not one1 but several tables1 in each of which the osseous fibres1 spread out in the general plane of the scale1 lay at a diverse angle from those of the table immediately in contact with it4 ,the principle was evidently that of the double-woven cloth1 or cloth of two incorporated layers1 such as moleskin1 in which1 from the arrangement of the threads1 what a draper would term the tear of the one layer or fold lies at a different angle in the general fabric from that of the other4 ,we are thus presented1 in a single fossil scale little more than the eighth part of an inch in thickness1 with three distinct strengthening principles1--the principle of ,cromwell's fluted pot1--the principle of a rampart lined with plank1 and filled with sand bags in the centre1--and the principle of the double-woven fabrics of the moleskin manufacturer4#bb ,the contrivances exemplified in the cuirass of the ,pterichthys were scarce less remarkable4 ,it was formed of bony plates1 strongly arched above1 but comparatively flat beneath2 and along both its anterior and posterior rims a sudden thickening of the plates formed a massive band1 which served to strengthen the entire structure1 as transverse ribs of stone are found strengthening ,gothic vaults of the ,norman age4 ,the scale covered tail of the creature issued from within the posterior rim1 which formed around it a complete though irregular ring1 arched above and depressed beneath2 whereas the anterior rim1 to which the head was attached1 was incomplete when separated from it4 ,it was1 in its detached state1 an arch wanting the keystone4 ,a keystone1 however1 projected outwards from the occipital plate of the head2 and1 as it had to form at once the bond of connection between the cerebral armature of the creature and its cuirass1 and to complete the arch formed by the strengthening belt or rib of the latter1 it curiously combined the principle of both the dovetail of the carpenter and the keystone of the mason4 ,viewed from above1 it was a dovetail1 forming a strong attachment of the head to the body2 viewed in the transverse section1 it was an efficient keystone1 that gave solidity and strength to the arched belt or rib4 ,both keystone and dovetail are comparatively simple contrivances2 but ,i know not that they have been united in the same piece1 save in the very ancient instance furnished by the strong bony plate which connected the helmet of the ,pterichthys with its cuirass4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ii4 ,,scale ,,of ,,holoptychius ,,giganteus4 7,nat4 size47 7,old ,red ,sandstone47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ajj4 ,,section ,,of ,,scale ,,of ,,holoptychius4 7,mag4 eight diameters47 ,a brief anecdote1 yet further illustrative of the framework of this ancient ganoid1 may throw some additional light on what ,i have ventured to term the human cast of the contrivances exhibited in the organisms of the old geologic ages4 ,after carefully examining many specimens1 ,i published a restoration of both the upper and under side of ,pterichthys fully fifteen years ago4 ,the greatest of living ichthyologists1 however1 misled by a series of specimens much less complete than mine1 differed from me in my conclusions2 and what ,i had represented as the creature's under or abdominal side1 he represented as its upper or dorsal side2 while its actual upper side he regarded as belonging to another1 though closely allied1 genus4 ,i had no opportunity1 as he resided on the ,continent at the time1 of submitting to him the specimens on which ,i had founded2 though1 at once certain of his thorough candor and love of truth1 and of the solidity of my data1 ,i felt confident that1 in order to alter his decision1 it was but necessary that ,i should submit to him my evidence4 ,meanwhile1 however1 the case was regarded as settled against me2 and ,i found at least one popular and very ingenious writer on geology1 after referring to my description of the ,pterichthys1 going on to say that1 though graphic1 it was not correct1 and that he himself could describe it at least more truthfully1 if not more vividly1 than ,i had done4 ,and then there followed a description identical with that by which mine had been supplanted4 ,five years had passed1 when one day our greatest ,british authority on fossil fishes1 ,sir ,philip ,egerton1 was struck1 when passing an hour among the ichthyic organisms of his princely collection1 by the appearance presented by a central plate in the cuirass of the ,pterichthys4 ,it is of a lozenge form1 and1 occupying exactly such a place in the nether armature of the creature as that occupied by the lozenge shaped spot on the ace of diamonds1 it comes in contact with four other plates that lie around it1 and represent1 so to speak1 the white portions of the card4 ,and ,sir ,philip now found1 that instead of lying over1 it lay under1 the four contiguous plates3 they overlapped it1 instead of being overlapped by it4 ,this1 he at once said1 on ascertaining the fact1 cannot be the upper side of the ,pterichthys4 ,a plate so arranged would have formed no proper protection to the exposed dorsal surface of the creature's body1 as a slight blow would have at once sent it in upon the interior framework2 but a proper enough one to the under side of a heavy swimmer1 that1 like the flat fishes1 kept close to the bottom2--a character which1 as shown by the massive bulk of its body1 and its small spread of fin1 must have belonged to the ,pterichthys4 ,sir ,philip followed up his observations on the central plate by a minute examination of the other parts of the creature's armature2 and the survey terminated in a recognition of the earlier restoration1--set aside so long before1--as virtually the true one2--a recognition in which ,agassiz1 when made acquainted with the nature of the evidence1 at once acquiesced4 ,now1 here was there a question which had been raised regarding the true mechanism of one of the oldest ganoidal fishes1 and settled erroneously on wrong data1 again opened up1 to be settled anew on one of the most obvious mechanical principles exemplified in the simple art of the slater or tiler4 ,the argument of ,sir ,philip amounted simply to this3--,if the accepted restoration be a true one1 then the ,creator of the ,pterichthys must have committed a mistake in mechanics which an ordinary slater would have avoided2 but as the ,creator commits no such blunders1 the mistake probably occurs in but the restoration4 ,i may mention1 that the dorsal surface of this ancient fish had also its central plate1--a lozenge truncated at its two longer ends2 and that1 moulded to meet the necessities of its position1 it was not flat1 like the under one1 but strongly arched2 and that on four of its six sides it overrode by a squamose suture the lower plates with which it came in contact4 ,these are but humble illustrations of the designing principle1 as exhibited of old2 and yet they impress none the less strongly on that account4 ,among the many contrivances of the ,chinese ,museum1 to which ,i have already referred1 none seemed more to excite the curiosity of visitors than a set of tall-backed1 elaborately carved chairs1 exceedingly like those which were used in our own country two centuries ago1 and which ,cowper so exquisitely describes4 ,for thousands of miles in the wide tract that spreads out between ,european ,christendom and the great wall1 the inhabitants squat upon mats or carpets1 or loll on divans2 and the contrivance of the chair is unknown3 it reappears in ,china1 however1 and reappears1 not as a mere seat or stool1 but as1 in every bar and limb1 the identical chair of ,europe arrested a century or two back in its development4 ,and every corresponding tenon and mortise exhibited by the ,chinese and ,european examples of this simple piece of furniture served more forcibly to show an identity of character in the minds which had originated them in countries so far apart1 than the more elaborate contrivances which1 though illustrative of the same principles of invention1 were less easily understood4 ,it is so with the more simple and familiar instances of adaptation furnished by the works of the ,creator4 ,we infer from them1 more directly than from the complex mechanisms1 that he who wrought of old after the manner of a man must have1 in his intellectual character1 if ,i may so express myself1 certain man-like qualities and traits4 ,in all those works on ,natural ,theology that treat1 like the work of ,paley1 on the argument of design1 the assumption of a certain unity of the intellectual nature of the ,creator and creature is made1 tacitly at least1 the basis of all the reasonings2 and it is in the cases in which the design is most simple that the argument is most generally understood4 ,it is in the lower skirts of the ,divine nature that we most readily trace the resemblance to the nature of man1--an effect1 mayhap1 of the narrow reach of our faculties in their present infantile state4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aja4 ,,sigillaria ,,groeseri 7,coal ,measures47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ajb4 ,fig4 #ajc4 ,fig4 #ajd4 ,,whorled ,,shells ,,of ,,the ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone4#bc ,but the resemblance is not restricted to the constructive department4 ,both in the ,chinese collection and among the ,egyptian antiquities exhibited in the ,british ,museum1 ,i found color as certainly as mechanical contrivance4 ,and the color furnished not only a practical example from both the early and the remote peoples of the same sort of chemical science as exists at the present time among ourselves in our dyeworks and pigment manufactories1 but it also showed a certain identity with our own of their sense of beauty4 ,the ,chinese satins are gorgeous with green1 blue1 yellow1 scarlet1 crimson1 and purple1 and have fringes heavy with thread of gold4 ,gilding is as common among this distant people as among ourselves1 and at once shows a familiarity with the art of the gold beater1 and a sensibility to the beauty of a golden surface2 and in the painted ornaments ,i detected the rich tints of vermilion and crimson lake1 with the mineral blues1 yellows1 and greens4 ,in the ,egyptian department1 though the blanching influences of three thousand years had dimmed the tints and tarnished the metals1 ,i found evidence of the same regard to hue and lustre as exists still in ,china and among ourselves2 all that now pleases the eye in ,london and ,pekin had pleased it in ,thebes during the times of the earlier ,pharaohs4 ,and just as we infer from the mechanical contrivances of the ,creative-,worker that he possesses a certain identity of mind in the constructive department with his creature-workers1 and this upon the principle on which we infer an identity of mind between the creature-workers of ,china1 ancient ,egypt1 and our own country1 seeing that their works are identical1 must we not also infer1 on the same principle1 that he possesses in the sthetic department a certain identity with them also4 ,true1 this region of the beautiful1 ever surrounded by an atmosphere of obscure1 ill-settled metaphysics1 is greatly less clear than that mechanical province of whose various machines1 whether of ,divine or human contrivance1 it can be at least affirmed that machines they are1 and that they effect their purposes by contrivances of the same or of resembling kinds4 ,and yet the appearance in nature1 age after age1 of the same forms and colors of beauty which man1 in gratifying his taste for the lovely in shape and hue1 is ever reproducing for himself1 does seem to justify our inference of an identity of mind in this province also4 ,the colors of the old geologic organisms1 like those of the paintings of ancient ,egypt1 are greatly faded4 ,a few1 however1 of the ,secondary1 and even ,palozoic shells1 still retain the rich prismatic hues of the original nacre4 ,many of the ,tertiary division still bear the distinctive painted spots4 ,some of the later fossil fishes1 when first laid open in the rock1 exhibit the pearly gleam that must of old have lighted up the green depths of the water as they darted through4 ,not a few of the fossil corals preserve enough of their former color to impart much delicacy of tint to the marbles in which they occur4 ,but it is chiefly in form1 not in shade or hue1 that we find in the organisms of the geologic ages examples of that beauty in which man delights1 and which he is ever reproducing for himself4 ,there is scarce an architectural ornament of the ,gothic or ,grecian styles which may not be found existing as fossils in the rocks4 ,the ,ulodendron was sculptured into gracefully arranged rows of pointed and closely imbricated leaves1 similar to those into which the ,roman architects fretted the torus of the ,corinthian order4 ,the ,sigillaria were fluted columns ornately carved in the line of the channelled flutes2 the ,lepidodendra bore1 according to their species1 sculptured scales1 or lozenges1 or egg-like hollows1 set in a sort of frame1 and relieved into knobs and furrows2 all of them furnishing examples of a delicate diaper work1 like that so admired in our more ornate ,gothic buildings1 such as ,westminster ,abbey1 or ,canterbury and ,chichester ,cathedrals1 only greatly more exquisite in their design and finish4 ,the scroll shells1 a very numerous section of the class in the earlier ages1 such as ,maclurea1 ,euomphalus1 ,clymenia1 and the great family of the ammonites1 were volutes of varying proportions1 but not less graceful than the ornament of similar proportions so frequently introduced into ,greek and ,roman architecture1 and of which we have such prominent examples in the capitals of the ,ionic1 ,corinthian1 and composite orders4 ,in what is known as the modern ,ionic the spiral of the volute is not all on one plane2 it is a ,euomphalus3 in the central volutes of the ,corinthian the spiral is an open one2 it is a ,lituite or ,gyroceras3 in the ancient ,ionic it is either wholly flat1 as in ,planorbus or the upper side of ,maclurea1 or slightly relieved1 as in the ammonites4 ,there is no form of the volute known to the architect which may not be found in the rocks1 but there are many forms in the rocks unknown to the architect4 ,nor are the spire-like shells 7see ,fig4 #aje7 less remarkable for the rich and varied style of their ornamentation than the whorled ones4 ,they are spires1 pinnacles1 turrets1 broaches2 ornate1 in some instances1 beyond the reach of the architect1 and illustrative1 in almost all1 of his happiest forms and proportions4 ,we detect among the fossils the germs of numerous designs developed in almost every department of art2 but merely to enumerate them would require a volume4 ,one form of the old classic lamp was that of the nautilus2 another1 that of ,gypha incurva2 the zigzag mouldings of the ,norman ,gothic may be found in the carinated oysters of the ,greensand2 the more delicate frettings of similar form which roughened the pillars of a somewhat later age occur on ,conularia and the dorsal spines of ,gyracanthus4 ,the old corals1 too1 abound in ornamental patterns1 which man1 unaware of their existence at the time1 devised long after for himself4 ,in an article on calico printing1 which forms part of a recent history of ,lancashire1 there are a few of the patterns introduced1 backed by the recommendation that they were the most successful ever tried4 ,of one of these1 known as ,lane's ,net1 there sold a greater number of pieces than of any other pattern ever brought into the market4 ,it led to many imitations2 and one of the most popular of these answers line for line1 save that it is more stiff and rectilinear1 to the pattern in a recently discovered ,old ,red ,sandstone coral1 the ,smithia ,pengellyi4 ,the beautifully arranged lines which so smit the dames of ,england1 that each had to provide herself with a gown of the fabric which they adorned1 had been stamped amid the rocks eons of ages before4 ,and it must not be forgotten1 that all these forms and shades of beauty which once filled all nature1 but of which only a few fragments1 or a few faded tints1 survive1 were created1 not to gratify man's love of the sthetic1 seeing that man had no existence until long after they had disappeared1 but in meet harmony with the tastes and faculties of the ,divine ,worker1 who had in his wisdom produced them all4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aje4 ,,murchisonia ,,bigranulosa4 7,old ,red ,sandstone47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ajf4 ,,conularia ,,ornata4 7,old ,red ,sandstone47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ajg4 ,,calico ,,pattern4 7,manchester47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ajh4 ,,smithia ,,pengellyi4 7,old ,red ,sandstone47 ,you will1 ,i trust1 bear with me should ,i seek1 in depths where the light shed by science becomes obscure1 to guide my steps by light derived from another and wholly different source4 ,in an assembly such as that which ,i have now the honor of addressing1 there must be many shades of religious opinion4 ,i shall1 however1 assail no man's faith1 but simply lay before you a few deductions which1 founded on my own1 have supplied me with what ,i deem a consistent theory of the curious class of phenomena with which this evening we have been mainly dealing4 ,first1 then1 ,i must hold that we receive the true explanation of the man-like character of the ,creator's workings ere man was1 in the remarkable text in which we are told that ,god made man in his own image and likeness4 ,there is no restriction here to moral quality3 the moral image man had1 and in large measure lost2 but the intellectual image he still retains4 ,as a geometrician1 as an arithmetician1 as a chemist1 as an astronomer1--in short1 in all the departments of what are known as the strict sciences1--man differs from his ,maker1 not in kind1 but in degree1--not as matter differs from mind1 or darkness from light1 but simply as a mere portion of space or time differs from all space or all time4 ,i have already referred to mechanical contrivances as identically the same in the ,divine and human productions2 nor can ,i doubt that1 not only in the pervading sense of the beautiful in form and color which it is our privilege as men in some degree to experience and possess1 but also in that perception of harmony which constitutes the musical sense1 and in that poetic feeling of which ,scripture furnishes us with at once the earliest and the highest examples1 and which we may term the poetic sense1 we bear the stamp and impress of the ,divine image4 ,now1 if this be so1 we must look upon the schemes of ,creation1 ,revelation1 and ,providence1 not as schemes of mere adaptation to man's nature1 but as schemes also specially adapted to the nature of ,god as the pattern and original nature4 ,further1 it speaks1 ,i must hold1 of the harmony and unity of one sublime scheme1 that1 after long ages of immaturity1--after the dynasties of the fish1 the reptile1 and the mammal should in succession have terminated1--man should have at length come upon the scene in the image of ,god2 and that1 at a still later period1 ,god himself should have come upon the scene in the form of man2 and that thus all ,god's workings in creation should be indissolubly linked to ,god himself1 not by any such mere likeness or image of the ,divinity as that which the first ,adam bore1 but by ,divinity itself in the ,second ,adam2 so that on the rainbow-encircled apex of the pyramid of created being the ,son of ,god and the ,son of ,man should sit enthroned forever in one adorable person4 ,that man should have been made in the image of ,god seems to have been a meet preparation for ,god's after assumption of the form of man4 ,it was perhaps thus secured that stock and graft1 if ,i may venture on such a metaphor1 should have the necessary affinity1 and be capable of being united in a single person4 ,the false gods of the ,egyptians assumed1 it was fabled1 the forms of brutes3 it was the human form and nature that was assumed by the true ,god2--so far as we know1 the only form and nature that could have brought him into direct union with at once the matter and mind of the universe which he had created and made1--with true body and reasonable soul4 ,yet further1 ,i learn by inevitable inference from one of the more distinctive articles of my creed1 that as certainly as the dynasty of the fish was predetermined in the scheme of ,providence to be succeeded by the higher dynasty of the reptile1 and that of the reptile by the still higher dynasty of the mammal1 so it was equally predetermined that the dynasty of responsible1 fallible man should be succeeded by the dynasty of glorified1 immortal man2 and that1 in consequence1 the present mixed state of things is not a mere result1 as some theologians believe1 of a certain human act which was perpetrated about six thousand years ago1 but was1 virtually at least1 the effect of a ,god-determined decree1 old as eternity1--a decree in which that act was written as a portion of the general programme4 ,in looking abroad on that great history of life1 of which the latter portions are recorded in the pages of revelation1 and the earlier in the rocks1 ,i feel my grasp of a doctrine first taught me by our ,calvinistic ,catechism at my mother's knee1 tightening instead of relaxing4 ,the decrees of ,god are his eternal purposes1 ,i was told1 according to the counsel of his will1 whereby for his own glory he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass4 ,and what ,i was told early ,i still believe4 ,the programme of ,creation and ,providence1 in all its successive periods1 is of ,god1 not of man4 ,with the arrangements of the old geologic periods it is obvious man could have had nothing to do3 the primeval ages of wondrous plants and monster animals ran their course without counsel taken of him2 and in reading their record in the bowels of the earth1 and in learning from their strange characters that such ages there were1 and what they produced1 we are the better enabled to appreciate the impressive directness of the sublime message to ,job1 when the ,lord answered him out of the whirlwind1 and said1 ,where wast thou when ,i laid the foundations of the earth8 ,declare if thou hast understanding4 ,and ,i can as little regard the present scene of things as an ultimate consequence of what man had willed or wrought1 as even any of the pre-,adamic ages4 ,it is simply one scene in a foreordained series1--a scene intermediate in place between the age of the irresponsible mammal and of glorified man2 and to provide for the upward passage to the ultimate state1 we know that1 in reference to the purposes of the ,eternal1 he through whom the work of restoration has been effected was in reality what he is designated in the remarkable text1 ,the ,lamb slain from the foundations of the world4 ,first in the course of things1 man in the image of ,god1 and next1 in meet sequence1 ,god in the form of man1 have been equally from all eternity predetermined actors in the same great scheme4 ,i approach a profound and terrible mystery4 ,we can see how in the pre-,adamic ages higher should have succeeded lower dynasties4 ,to be low was not to be immoral2 to be low was not to be guilt-stained and miserable4 ,the sea anemone on its half-tide rock1 and the fern on its mossy hill-side1 are low in their respective kingdoms2 but they are1 notwithstanding1 worthy1 in their quiet1 unobtrusive beauty1 of the ,god who formed them4 ,it is only when the human period begins that we are startled and perplexed by the problem of a lowness not innocent1--an inferiority tantamount to moral deformity4 ,in the period of responsibility1 to be low means to be evil2 and how1 we ask1 could a lowness and inferiority resolvable into moral evil have had any place in the decrees of that ,judge who ever does what is right1 and in whom moral evil can have no place8 ,the subject is one which it seems not given to man thoroughly to comprehend4 ,permit me1 however1 to remark in reply1 that in a sense so plain1 so obvious1 so unequivocally true1 that it would lead an intelligent jury1 impannelled in the case1 conscientiously to convict1 and a wise judge righteously to condemn1 all that is evil in the present state of things man may as certainly have wrought out for himself1 as the criminals whom we see sentenced at every justiciary court work out for themselves the course of punishment to which they are justly subjected4 ,it has been well said of the ,author of all by the poet1 that1 binding nature fast in fate1 he left free the human will4 ,and it is this freedom or independency of will operating on an intellect moulded after the image and likeness of the ,divinity that has rendered men capable of being what the ,scriptures so emphatically term fellow-workers with ,god4 ,in a humble and restricted sense1 as ,i have already remarked1--humble and restricted1 but in that restricted sense obviously true1--the surface of the earth far and wide testifies to this fact of fellowship in working4 ,the deputed lord of creation1 availing himself of ,god's natural laws1 does what no mere animal of the old geologic ages ever did1 or ever could have done1--he adorns and beautifies the earth1 and adds tenfold to its original fertility and productiveness4 ,in this special sense1 then1 he is a fellow-worker with ,him who1 according to the ,psalmist1 causeth the grass to grow for the cattle1 and herb for the service of man1 and wine that maketh glad the heart of man1 and oil that maketh his face to shine1 and bread which strengtheneth man's heart4 ,but it is in a greatly higher sense1 and in reference to ,god's moral laws1 that he is fitted to be his fellow-worker in the ,scriptural sense4 ,and his proper employment in this department is the elevation and development1 moral and intellectual1 of himself and his fellow-men1 both in adaptation to the demands of the present time1 and in preparation for a future state4 ,all experience1 however1 serves to show that in this paramount department man greatly fails2 nay1 that he is infinitely less true to his proper end and destiny than the beasts that perish to their several instincts4 ,and yet it may be remarked1 that such of the lower animals as are guided by pure instinct are greatly more infallible within their proper spheres than the higher1 half-reasoning animals4 ,the mathematical bee never constructs a false angle2 the sagacious dog is not unfrequently out in his calculations4 ,the higher the animal in the scale1 the greater its liability to error4 ,but it is not the less true1 that no fish1 no reptile1 no mammal1 of the geologic or the recent ages1 ever so failed in working out the purposes it was created to serve1 as man has failed in working out his2 further1 in no creature save in man does there exist that war of the mind between appetite and duty of which the ,apostle so consciously complained4 ,and we must seek an explanation of these twin facts in that original freedom of the will which1 while it rendered man capable of being of choice ,god's fellow-worker1 also conferred on him an ability of choosing not to work with ,god4 ,and his choice of not working with him1 or of working against him1 being once freely made1 we may see how1 from man's very constitution and nature1 as an intelligence united to matter that increases his kind from generation to generation in virtue of the original law1 the ability of again working with ,god might be forever destroyed4 ,and thus man's general condition as a lapsed creature may be as unequivocally a consequence of man's own act1 as the condition of individuals born free1 but doomed to slavery in punishment of their offences1 is a consequence of their own acts4 ,a brief survey of the many-colored and variously-placed human family1 as at present distributed on the earth1 may enable us in some degree to conceive of a matter which1 involving1 as it does1 that master problem of moral science1 the origin of evil1 seems1 as ,i have said1 not to be given to man fully to comprehend4 ,the different races of mankind1 says ,humboldt1 employing1 let me remark1 the language of the distinguished ,german naturalist ,mller1 to give expression to the view which he himself adopts1--the different races of mankind are not different species of a genus1 but forms of one sole species4 ,the human species1 says ,cuvier1 appears to be single4 ,when we compare1 says ,pritchard1 all the facts and observations which have been heretofore fully established as to the specific instincts and separate psychical endowments of all the distinct tribes of sentient beings in the universe1 we are entitled to draw confidently the conclusion1 that all human races are of one species and one family4 ,god hath made of one blood1 said the ,apostle ,paul1 in addressing himself to the lite of ,athens1 all nations1 for to dwell on the face of all the earth4 ,such1 on this special head1 is the testimony of ,revelation1 and such the conclusion of our highest scientific authorities4 ,the question has1 indeed1 been raised in these latter times1 whether each species of animals may not have been originally created1 not by single pairs or in single centres1 but by several pairs and in several centres1 and1 of course1 the human species among the rest8 ,and the query1--for in reality it amounts to nothing more1--has been favorably entertained on the other side of the ,atlantic4 ,on purely scientific grounds it is of course difficult to prove a negative in the case1 just as it would be difficult to prove a negative were the question to be1 whether the planet ,venus was not composed of quartz rock1 or the planet ,mars of ,old ,red ,sandstone8 ,but the portion of the problem really solvable by science1--the identity of the human race under all its conditions1 and in all its varieties1--science has solved4 ,it has determined that all the various tribes of man are but forms of a single species4 ,and in the definition of species1--waiving the ,american doubt until it shall at least become something more1--,i am content to follow the higher authorities4 ,we unite1 says ,m4 de ,candolle1 under the designation of a species1 all those individuals that mutually bear to each other so close a resemblance as to allow of our supposing that they may have proceeded originally from a single being or a single pair4 ,a species1 says ,buffon1 is a constant succession of individuals similar to and capable of reproducing each other4 ,a species1 says ,cuvier1 is a succession of individuals which reproduces and perpetuates itself4 ,now1 all history and all tradition1 so far as they throw light on the question at all1 agree in showing that the centre in which the human species originated must have been somewhere in the temperate regions of the ,east1 not far distant from the ,caucasian group of mountains4 ,all the old seats of civilization1--that of ,nineveh1 ,babylon1 ,palestine1 ,egypt1 and ,greece1--are spread out around this centre4 ,and it is certainly a circumstance worthy of notice1 and surely not without bearing on the physical condition of primeval humanity1 that in this centre we find a variety of the species which naturalists of the highest standing regard as fundamentally typical of the highest races of the globe4 ,the natives of the ,caucasus1 says ,cuvier1 are even now considered as the handsomest on earth4 ,and wherever man has1 if ,i may so speak1 fallen least1--wherever he has retained1 at least intellectually1 the ,divine image1--this ,caucasian type of feature and figure1 with1 of course1 certain national modifications1 he also retains4 ,it was developed in a remarkable degree among the old ,greeks1 as may be seen from the busts of some of their handsomer men2 and still more remarkably in their beau ideal of beauty1 as exemplified in the statues of their gods4 ,we see it also1 though dashed with a shade of severity1 in the strong forms and stern features of monarchs that reigned of old in ,nineveh and ,babylon1 as brought to light in their impressive effigies by the excavations of ,rawlinson and ,layard4 ,and further1 though somewhat modified by the ,african dash1 we detect it in the colossal statues of ,egypt4 ,nor1 as shown by ,egyptian paintings still fresh in color and outline1 was it less traceable in the ancient ,jewish countenance and figure4 ,it is still palpable1 too1 amid all the minor peculiarities of national physiognomy1 in the various peoples of ,europe4 ,we may see it in our own country1 though1 as ,sir ,walter ,scott truly tells us1-- ,the rugged form may mark the mountain band1 ,and harsher features and a mien more grave4 ,it walks1 however1 the boards of our ,parliament ,house here in a very respectable type of ,caucasian man2 and all agree that nowhere else in modern ,europe is it to be found more true to its original contour than among the high-bred aristocracy of ,england1 especially among the female members of the class4 ,looking1 then1 at the entire evidence1--at the admitted fact that the ,circassians of the present day are an eminently handsome people1--that the old ,greeks1 ,ninevites1 ,egyptians1 ,jews1 ,romans1 and with these all the modern nations of ,europe1 are but the varieties of the central race that have retained in greatest perfection the original traits1--,i do not see how we are to avoid the conclusion that this ,caucasian type was the type of ,adamic man4 ,adam1 the father of mankind1 was no squalid savage of doubtful humanity1 but a noble specimen of man2 and ,eve a soft ,circassian beauty1 but exquisitely lovely beyond the lot of fallen humanity4 ,the loveliest pair ,that ever yet in love's embraces met3 ,adam1 the goodliest man of men since born ,his sons2 the fairest of her daughters ,eve4 ,i know not whether ,i should add what follows4 ,it has been said that ,luke1 the beloved physician1 was also a painter4 ,it has been said that that traditionary1 time-honored form1 which we at once recognize in the pictures of the old masters as that of the ,saviour of mankind1 he in reality bore when he walked this earth in the flesh4 ,i know not what degree of probability attaches to the belief4 ,i know not whether the traditionary form be in reality the true one4 ,this1 however1 ,i know1 that if such was the form which the adorable ,redeemer assumed when he took to himself a real body and a reasonable soul1 the second ,adam1 like the first1 exemplified1 when upon earth1 the perfect type of ,caucasian man4 ,let me next remark1 that the further we remove from the original centre of the race1 the more degraded and sunk do we find the several varieties of humanity4 ,we must set wholly aside1 in our survey1 the disturbing element of modern emigration4 ,caucasian man has been pressing outwards4 ,in the backwoods of ,america1 in ,southern ,africa1 in ,australia1 and in the ,polynesian islands1 the old ,adamic type has been asserting its superiority1 and annihilating before it the degraded races4 ,but taking into account merely the aboriginal varieties1 it seems to be a general rule1 that the further we remove in any direction from the ,adamic centre1 the more animalized and sunk do we find the various tribes or races4 ,contrary to the conceptions of the assertors of the development hypothesis1 we ascertain1 as we proceed outwards1 that the course is not one of progression from the low to the high1 but of descent from the high to the low4 ,passing northwards1 we meet1 where the lichen-covered land projects into the frozen ocean1 with the diminutive ,laps1 squat1 ungraceful1 with their flat features surmounted by pyramidal skulls of small capacity1 and1 as a race1 unfitted for the arts either of peace or war4 ,we meet also with the timid ,namollas1 with noses so flat as to be scarce visible in the women and children of the race2 and with the swarthy ,kamtschatkans1 with their broad faces1 protuberant bellies1 and thin1 ill-formed legs4 ,passing southwards1 we come to the negro tribes1 with their sooty skins1 broad noses1 thick lips1 projecting jawbones1 and partially-webbed fingers4 ,and then we find ourselves among the squalid ,hottentots1 repulsively ugly1 and begrimmed with filth2 or the still more miserable ,bushmen4 ,passing eastwards1 after taking leave of the ,persian and ,indian branches of the ,caucasian race1 we meet with the squat ,mongolian1 with his high cheek bones set on a broad face1 and his compressed1 unintellectual1 pig-like eyes2 or encounter1 in the ,indian ,archipelago or the ,australian interior1 the pitiably low ,alforian races1 with their narrow1 retreating foreheads1 slim1 feeble limbs1 and baboon-like faces4 ,or1 finally1 passing westward1 we find the large-jawed1 copper-colored ,indians of the ,new ,world1 vigorous in some of the northern tribes as animals1 though feeble as men1 but gradually sinking in southern ,america1 as among the wild ,caribs or spotted ,araucans2 till at the extremity of the continent we find1 naked and shivering among their snows1 the hideous1 small-eyed1 small-limbed1 flat-headed ,fuegians1 perhaps the most wretched of human creatures4 ,and all these varieties of the species1 in which we find humanity fallen1 according to the poet1 into disgrace1 are varieties that have lapsed from the original ,caucasian type4 ,they are all the descendants of man as ,god created him2 but they do not exemplify man as ,god created him4 ,they do not represent1 save in hideous caricature1 the glorious creature moulded of old by the hand of the ,divine ,worker4 ,they are fallen1--degraded2 many of them1 as races1 hopelessly lost4 ,for all experience serves to show1 that when a tribe of men falls beneath a certain level1 it cannot come into competition with civilized man1 pressing outwards from his old centres to possess the earth1 without becoming extinct before him4 ,sunk beneath a certain level1 as in the forests of ,america1 in ,van ,dieman's ,land1 in ,new ,south ,wales1 and among the ,bushmen of the ,cape1 the experience of more than a hundred years demonstrates that its destiny is extinction1--not restoration4 ,individuals may be recovered by the labors of some zealous missionary2 but it is the fate of the race1 after a few generations1 to disappear4 ,it has fallen too hopelessly low to be restored4 ,there remain curious traces in the ,new ,world of these perished tribes4 ,the ,bible1 translated into an old ,indian language1 from which the devoted ,david ,brainerd taught so successfully a nation of ,red ,men1 still exists2 but it speaks in a dead tongue1 which no one can now understand2 for the nation to whom he preached has become extinct4 ,and ,humboldt tells us1 in referring to a perished tribe of ,south ,america1 that there lived in #ahjf1 when he visited their country1 an old parrot in ,maypures1 which could not be understood1 because1 as the natives informed him1 it spoke the language of the ,atures4 ,tribes of the aborigines of ,australia have wholly disappeared during the present generation2 and ,i remember seeing it stated in a newspaper paragraph1 which appeared a few years ago1 that the last male survivor of the natives of ,tasmania was at that time in the latter stages of consumption4 ,but if man1 in at least the more degraded varieties of the race1 be so palpably not what the ,creator originally made him1 by whom1 then1 was he made the poor lost creature which in these races we find him to be8 ,he was made what he is1 ,i reply1 by man himself2 and this1 in many instances1 by a process which we may see every day taking place among ourselves in individuals and families1 though happily1 not in races4 ,man's nature again1--to employ the condensed statement of the poet1--has been bound fast in fate1 but his will has been left free4 ,he is free either to resign himself to the indolence and self-indulgence so natural to the species2 or1 spurning delights1 to live laborious days2--free either to sink into ignorant sloth1 dependent uselessness1 and self-induced imbecility1 bodily and mental1 or to assert by honest labor a noble independence1--to seek after knowledge as for hidden treasures1 and1 in the search1 to sharpen his faculties and invigorate his mind4 ,and while we see around us some men addressing themselves with stout1 brave hearts to what ,carlyle terms1 with homely vigor1 their heavy job of work1 and1 by denying themselves many an insidious indulgence1 doing it effectually and well1 and rearing up well-taught families in usefulness and comfort1 to be the stay of the future1 we see other men yielding to the ignoble solicitations of appetite or of indolence1 and becoming worse than useless themselves1 and the parents of ignorant1 immoral1 and worse than useless families4 ,the wandering vagrants of ,great ,britain at the present time have been estimated at from fifteen to twenty thousand souls2 the hereditary paupers of ,england1--a vastly more numerous class1--have become1 in a considerable degree1 a sept distinct from the general community2 and in all our large towns there are certain per centages of the population1--unhappily ever increasing per centages1--that1 darkened in mind and embruted in sentiment1 are widely recognized as emphatically the dangerous classes of the community4 ,and let us remember that we are witnessing in these instances no new thing in the history of the species3 every period since that of the vagabond ,cain has had its waifs and stragglers1 who fell behind in the general march4 ,in circumstances such as obtained in the earlier ages of the human family1 all the existing nomades and paupers of our country would have passed into distinct races of men4 ,for in the course of a few generations their forms and complexions would begin to tell of the self-induced degradation that had taken place in their minds2 and in a few ages more they would have become permanent varieties of the species4 ,there are cases in which not more than from two to three centuries have been found sufficient thoroughly to alter the original physiognomy of a race4 ,on the plantation of ,ulster in #afaa1 and afterwards1 on the success of the ,british against the rebels in #afda and #afhi1 says a shrewd writer of the present day1 himself an ,irishman1 great multitudes of the native ,irish were driven from ,armagh and the south of ,down1 into the mountainous tract extending from the ,barony of ,fleurs eastward to the sea2 on the other side of the kingdom the same race were exposed to the worst effects of hunger and ignorance1 the two great brutalizers of the human race4 ,the descendants of these exiles are now distinguished physically by great degradation4 ,they are remarkable for open1 projecting mouths1 with prominent teeth and exposed gums2 and their advancing cheek bones and depressed noses bear barbarism on their very front4 ,in ,sligo and northern ,mayo the consequences of the two centuries of degradation and hardship exhibit themselves in the whole physical condition of the people1 affecting not only the features1 but the frame4 ,five feet two inches on an average1--pot-bellied1 bow-legged1 abortively featured1 their clothing a wisp of rags1--these spectres of a people that were once well-grown1 able-bodied1 and comely1 stalk abroad into the daylight of civilization1 the annual apparition of ,irish ugliness and ,irish want4 ,such is man as man himself has made him1--not man as he came from the hand of the ,creator4 ,in many instances the degradation has been voluntary2 in others it has been forced upon families and races by the iron hand of oppression2 in almost all1--whether self-chosen by the parents or imposed upon them1--the children and the children's children have1 as a matter of inevitable necessity1 been born to it4 ,for1 whatever we may think of the ,scriptural doctrine on this special head1 it is a fact broad and palpable in the economy of nature1 that parents do occupy a federal position2 and that the lapsed progenitors1 when cut off from civilization and all external interference of a missionary character1 become the founders of a lapsed race4 ,the iniquities of the parents are visited upon the children4 ,and in all such instances it is man left to the freedom of his own will that is the deteriorator of man4 ,the doctrine of the ,fall1 in its purely theologic aspect1 is a doctrine which must be apprehended by faith2 but it is at least something to find that the analogies of science1 instead of running counter to it1 run in exactly the same line4 ,it is one of the inevitable consequences of that nature of man which the ,creator bound fast in fate1 while he left free his will1 that the free will of the parent should become the destiny of the child4 ,but the subject is one in which we can see our way as but through a glass darkly4 ,nay1 it is possible that the master problem which it involves no created intelligence can thoroughly unlock4 ,it has been well said1 that the poet's heart is informed by a terrible sagacity2 and ,i am at times disposed to regard ,milton's conception of the perplexity of the fallen spirits1 when reasoning on fixed fate1 free will1 foreknowledge absolute1 and finding no end in wandering mazes lost1 much rather as a sober truth caught from the invisible world1 than as merely an ingenious fancy4 ,the late ,robert ,montgomery has rather unhappily chosen ,satan as one of the themes of his muse2 and in his long poem1 designated in its second title ,intellect without ,god1 he has set that personage a-reasoning in a style which1 ,i fear1 more completely demonstrates the absence of ,god than the presence of intellect4 ,it has1 however1 sometimes occurred to me1 that a poet of the larger calibre1 who to the ,divine faculty and vision added such a knowledge of geologic science as that which ,virgil possessed of the ,natural ,history of his time1 or as that which ,milton possessed of the general learning of his1 might find1 in a somewhat similar subject1 the materials of a poem which posterity would not willingly let die4 ,there is one of the satirists justly severe on a class of critics ,who1 drily plain1 without invention's aid1 ,write dull receipts how poems may be made4 ,but at some risk of rendering myself obnoxious to his censure1 ,i shall attempt indicating at least the general scope and character of what the schoolmen might term a possible poem2 which1 if vivified by the genius of some of the higher masters of the lyre1 broad of faculty1 and at once great poets and great men1 might prove one precious boon more to the world1 suited1 conformably to the special demands of these latter times1 to assert ,eternal ,providence1 ,and justify the ways of ,god to man4 ,there has been war among the intelligences of ,god's spiritual creation4 ,lucifer1 son of the morning1 has fallen like fire from heaven2 and our present earth1 existing as a half-extinguished hell1 has received him and his angels4 ,dead matter exists1 and in the unembodied spirits vitality exists2 but not yet in all the universe of ,god has the vitality been united to the matter2 animal life1 to even the profound apprehension of the fallen angel1 is an inconceivable idea4 ,meanwhile1 as the scarce reckoned centuries roll by1 vacantly and dull1 like the cheerless days and nights over the head of some unhappy captive1 the miserable prisoners of our planet become aware that there is a slow change taking place in the condition of their prison-house4 ,where a low1 dark archipelago of islands raise their flat backs over the thermal waters1 the heat glows less intensely than of old2 the red fire bursts forth less frequently2 the dread earthquake shakes more rarely2 save in a few centres of intenser action1 the great deep no longer boils like a pot2 and though the heavens are still shut out by a gray ceiling of thick vapor1 through which sun or moon never yet appeared1 a less gloomy twilight struggles at noonday through the enveloping cloud1 and falls more cheerfully than heretofore upon land and sea4 ,at length there comes a morning in which great ocean and the scattered islands declare that ,god the ,creator had descended to visit the earth4 ,the hitherto verdureless land bears the green flush of vegetation2 and there are creeping things among the trees4 ,nor is the till now unexampled mystery of animal life absent from the sounds and bays4 ,it is the highest intelligences that manifest the deepest interest in the works of the ,all ,wise4 ,nor can we doubt that on that morning of creative miracle1 in which matter and vitality were first united in the bonds of a strange wedlock1 the comprehensive intellect of the great fallen spirit--profound and active beyond the lot of humanity--would have found ample employment in attempting to fathom the vast mystery1 and in vainly asking what these strange things might mean4 ,with how much of wonder1 as scene succeeded scene1 and creation followed creation1--as life sprang out of death1 and death out of life1--must not that acute ,intelligence have watched the course of the ,divine ,worker1--scornful of spirit and full of enmity1 and yet aware1 in the inner depths of his intellect1 that what he dared insultingly to depreciate1 he yet failed1 in its ultimate end and purpose1 adequately to comprehend6 ,standing in the presence of unsolved mystery1 under the chill and withering shadow of that secret of the ,lord which was not with him1 how thoroughly must he not have seen1 and with what bitter malignity felt1 that the grasp of the ,almighty was still upon him1 and that in the ever varying problem of creation1 which1 with all his powers1 he failed to unlock1 and which1 as age succeeded age1 remained an unsolved problem still1 the ,divine ,master against whom he had rebelled1 but from whose presence it was in vain to flee1 emphatically spake to him1 as in an after age to the patriarch ,job1 and1 with the quiet dignity of the ,infinite1 challenged him either to do or to know6 ,shall he that coutendeth with the ,almighty instruct him8 ,he that reproveth ,god1 let him answer4 ,knowest thou the ordinances of ,heaven8 or canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth8 ,with what wild thoughts must that restless and unhappy spirit have wandered amid the tangled mazes of the old carboniferous forests6 ,with what bitter mockeries must he have watched the fierce wars which raged in their sluggish waters1 among ravenous creatures horrid with trenchant teeth1 barbed sting1 and sharp spine1 and enveloped in glittering armor of plate and scale6 ,and how1 as generation after generation passed away1 and ever and anon the ocean rolled where the land had been1 or the land rose to possess the ancient seats of the ocean1--how1 when looking back upon myriads of ages1 and when calling up in memory what once had been1 the features of earth seemed scarce more fixed to his view than the features of the sky in a day of dappled1 breeze-borne clouds1--how must he have felt1 as he became conscious that the earth was fast ripening1 and that1 as its foundations became stable on the abyss1 it was made by the ,creator a home of higher and yet higher forms of existence1--how must he have felt1 if1 like some old augur looking into the inner mysteries of animal life1 with their strange prophecies1 the truth had at length burst upon him1 that reasoning1 accountable man was fast coming to the birth1--man1 the moral agent1--man1 the ultimate work and end of creation1--man1 a creature in whom1 as in the inferior animals1 vitality was to be united to matter1 but in whom also1 as in no inferior animal1 responsibility was to be united to vitality6 ,how must expectancy have quickened1--how must solicitude have grown1--when1 after the dynasty of the fish had been succeeded by the dynasty of the reptile1 and that of the reptile by the dynasty of the sagacious mammal1 a time had at length arrived when the earth had become fixed and stable1 and the proud waves of ocean had been stayed1--when1 after species and genera in both kingdoms had been increased tenfold beyond the precedent of any former age1 the ,creative ,hand seemed to pause in its working1 and the finished creation to demand its lord6 ,even at this late period1 how strange may not the doubts and uncertainties have been that remained to darken the mind of the lost spirit6 ,it was according to his experience1--stretched backwards to the first beginnings of organic vitality1 and coextensive1 at a still earlier period1 with ,god's spiritual universe1--that all animals should die1--that all moral agents should live4 ,how1 in this new creature1--this prodigy of creation1 who was to unite what never before had been united1--the nature of the animals that die with the standing and responsibility of the moral agents that live1--how1 in this partaker of the double nature1 was the discrepancy to be reconciled8 ,how1 in this matter1 were the opposite claims of life and death to be adjusted1 or the absolute immortality1 which cannot admit of degrees1 to be made to meet with and shade into the mortality which1 let us extend the term of previous vitality as we may1 must forever involve the antagonistic idea of final annihilation and the ceasing to be8 ,at length creation receives its deputed monarch4 ,for1 moulded by ,god's own finger1 and in ,god's own likeness1 man enters upon the scene1 an exquisite creature1 rich in native faculty1 pregnant with the yet undeveloped seeds of all wisdom and knowledge1 tender of heart and pure of spirit1 formed to hold high communion with his ,creator1 and to breathe abroad his soul in sympathy over all that the ,creator had made4 ,and yet1 left to the freedom of his own will1 there is a weakness in the flesh that betrays his earthly lineage4 ,it is into the dust of the ground that the living soul has been breathed4 ,the son of the soil1 who1 like the inferior animals1 his subjects1 sleeps and wakes1 and can feel thirst and hunger1 and the weariness of toil1 and the sweets of rest1 and who come under the general law1 increase and multiply1 promulgated of old to them1 stands less firmly than the immaterial spirits stood of old2 and yet even they rebelled against ,heaven1 and fell4 ,there awakes a grim hope in the sullen lord of the first revolt4 ,ages beyond tale or reckoning has this temple of creation been in building4 ,long have its mute prophecies in fishes and in creeping things1 in bird and in beast1 told of coming man1 its final object and end4 ,and now there needeth but one blow1 and the whole edifice is destroyed1 ,god's purposes marred and frustrated1 and this new favorite of earth dashed back to the dust out of which he was created1 and brought1 like the old1 extinct races1 under the eternal law of death4 ,armed with the experience in evil of unsummed ages1 the ,tempter plies his work3 nor is it to low or ignoble appetites that he appeals4 ,it is to the newly-formed creature's thirst for knowledge2 it is to his love stronger than death4 ,the wiles of the ,old ,serpent prevail2 man falls prostrate before him2 creation trembles2 and then from amid the trees of the garden comes the voice of ,god4 ,and lo6 in an enigma mysterious and dark a new dispensation of prophecy begins4 ,victims bleed2 altars smoke2 the tabernacle arises amid the white tents of the desert2 the temple ascends all glorious on the heights of ,mount ,zion2 prophet after prophet declares his message4 ,at length1 in the fulness of time1 the ,messiah comes2 and1 in satisfying the law1 and in fulfilling all righteousness1 and in bringing life and immortality to light1 abundantly shows forth that the terminal dynasty of all creation had been of old foreordained1 ere the foundations of the world1 to possess for its eternal lord and monarch1 not primeval man1 created in the image of ,god1 but ,god1 made manifest in the flesh1 in the form of primeval man4 ,but how breaks on the baffled ,tempter the sublime revelation8 ,wearily did he toil1--darkly did he devise1 and take1 in his great misery1 deep counsel against the ,almighty2 and yet all the while1 while striving and resisting as an enemy1 has he been wielded as a tool2 when1 glaring aloof in his proud rebellion1 the grasp of the ,omnipotent has been upon him1 and the ,eternal ,purposes have encompassed him1 and he has been working out1 all unwittingly1 the foreordained decree1 ,for our ,god maketh the wrath of the wicked to praise him1 and the remainder thereof doth he restrain4 ,but enough1 for the present1 of the poems that might be4 ,permit me1 however1 to add1 in the words of one of the most suggestive1 and certainly not least powerful1 of ,english thinkers1 that a fall of some sort or other1--the creation1 as it were1 of the non-absolute1--is the fundamental postulate of the moral history of man4 ,without this hypothesis1 he adds1 man is unintelligible1--with it every phenomenon is explicable4 ,the mystery itself is too profound for human insight4 ,such1 in this matter1 was the ultimate judgment of a man who in youth had entertained very opposite views1--the poet ,coleridge4 ,it has been said that the inferences of the geologist militate against those of the theologian4 ,nay1 not those of our higher geologists and higher theologians1--not what our ,murchisons and ,sedgwicks infer in the one field1 with what our ,chalmerses and ,isaac ,taylors infer in the other4 ,between the ,word and the ,works of ,god there can be no actual discrepancies2 and the seeming ones are discernible only by the men who see worst4 ,mote-like they flicker in unsteady eyes1 ,and weakest his who best descries4 ,the geologist1 as certainly as the theologian1 has a province exclusively his own2 and were the theologian ever to remember that the ,scriptures could not possibly have been given to us as revelations of scientific truth1 seeing that a single scientific truth they never yet revealed1 and the geologist that it must be in vain to seek in science those truths which lead to salvation1 seeing that in science these truths were never yet found1 there would be little danger even of difference among them1 and none of collision4 ,nay1 there is1 ,i doubt not1 a time coming in which the ,butlers and ,chalmerses of the future will be content to recognize the geologic field as that of their richest and most pregnant analogies4 ,it is with the history of the pre-,adamic ages that geology sets itself to deal2 and by carefully conning the ancient characters graven in the rocks1 and by deciphering the strange inscriptions which they compose1 it greatly extends the record of ,god's doings upon the earth4 ,and what more natural to expect1 or rational to hold1 than that the ,unchangeable ,one should have wrought in all time after one general type and pattern1 or than that we may seek1 in the hope of finding1 meet correspondences and striking analogies between his revealed workings during the human period1 and his previous workings of old during the geologic periods1--correspondences and analogies suited to establish the identity of the worker1 and1 of course1 from that identity to demonstrate the authenticity of the revelation8 ,permit me to bring out1 in conclusion1 what ,i have often thought on this subject1 but have not been able so tersely to express1 in a brief quotation from one of the most instructive works of the present age1 the ,method of the ,divine ,government1 by the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,m',cosh3--,science has a foundation1 says this solid thinker and accomplished writer1 and so has religion4 ,let them unite their foundations1 and the basis will be broader1 and they will be two compartments of one great fabric reared to the glory of ,god4 ,let the one be the outer and the other the inner court4 ,in the one let all look1 and admire1 and adore2 and in the other let those who have faith kneel1 and pray1 and praise4 ,let the one be the sanctuary where human learning may present its richest incense as an offering to ,god1 and the other1 the holiest of all1 separated from it by a veil now rent in twain1 and in which1 on a blood-sprinkled mercy seat1 we pour out the love of a reconciled heart1 and hear the oracles of the living ,god4 ,,lecture ,,seventh4 ,,the ,,noachian ,,deluge4 ,,part ,i4 ,there are events so striking in themselves or from their accompaniments1 that they powerfully impress the memories of children but little removed from infancy1 and are retained by them in a sort of troubled recollection ever after1 however extended their term of life4 ,samuel ,johnson was only two and a half years old when1 in accordance with the belief of the time1 he was touched by ,queen ,anne for the ,evil2 but more than seventy years after1 he could call up in memory a dream-like recollection of the lady dressed in a black hood1 and glittering with diamonds1 into whose awful presence he had been ushered on that occasion1 and who had done for the cure of his complaint all that legitimate royalty could do4 ,and an ancient lady of the north country1 who had been carried1 when a child1 in her nurse's arms1 to witness the last witch execution that took place in ,scotland1 could distinctly tell1 after the lapse of nearly a century1 that the fire was surrounded by an awe-struck crowd1 and that the smoke of the burning1 when blown about her by a cross breeze1 had a foul and suffocating odor4 ,in this respect the memory of infant tribes and nations seems to resemble that of individuals4 ,there are characters and events which impress it so strongly1 that they seem never to be forgotten1 but live as traditions1 sometimes mayhap very vague1 and much modified by the inventions of an after time1 but which1 in floating downwards to late ages1 always bear about them a certain strong impress of their pristine reality4 ,they are shadows that have become ill defined from the vast distance of the objects that cast them1--like the shadows of great birds flung1 in a summer's day1 from the blue depths of the sky to the landscape far below1--but whose very presence1 however diffused they may have become1 testifies to the existence of the remote realities from which they are thrown1 and without which they could have had no being at all4 ,the old mythologies are filled with shadowy traditions of this kind1--shadows of the world's gray fathers1--which1 like those shadows seen reflected on clouds by travellers who ascend lofty mountains1 are exaggerated into the most gigantic proportions1 and bear radiant glories around their heads4 ,there is1 however1 one special tradition which seems to be more deeply impressed and more widely spread than any of the others4 ,the destruction of well nigh the whole human race1 in an early age of the world's history1 by a great deluge1 appears to have so impressed the minds of the few survivors1 and seems to have been handed down to their children1 in consequence1 with such terror-struck impressiveness1 that their remote descendants of the present day have not even yet forgotten it4 ,it appears in almost every mythology1 and lives in the most distant countries1 and among the most barbarous tribes4 ,it was the laudable ambition of ,humboldt1--first entertained at a very early period of life1--to penetrate into distant regions1 unknown to the natives of ,europe at the time1 that he might acquaint himself1 in fields of research altogether fresh and new1 with men and with nature in their most primitive conditions4 ,in carrying out his design1 he journeyed far into the woody wilderness that surrounds the ,orinoco1 and found himself among tribes of wild ,indians whose very names were unknown to the civilized world4 ,and yet among even these forgotten races of the human family he found the tradition of the deluge still fresh and distinct2 not confined to single tribes1 but general among the scattered nations of that great region1 and intertwined with curious additions1 suggestive of the inventions of classic mythology in the ,old ,world4 ,the belief in a great deluge1 we find him saying1 is not confined to one nation singly1--the ,tamanacs3 it makes part of a system of historical tradition1 of which we find scattered notions among the ,maypures of the great cataracts2 among the ,indians of the ,rio ,erevato1 which runs into the ,caura2 and among almost all the tribes of the ,upper ,orinoco4 ,when the ,tamanacs are asked how the human race survived this great deluge1--'the age of water' of the ,mexicans1--they say1 a man and woman saved themselves on a high mountain called ,tamanacu1 situated on the banks of the ,asiveru1 and1 casting behind them over their heads the fruits of the mauritia palm-tree1 they saw the seeds contained in these fruits produce men and women1 who re-peopled the earth4 ,thus1 adds the philosophic traveller1 we find in all simplicity1 among nations now in a savage state1 a tradition which the ,greeks embellished with all the charms of imagination4 ,the resemblance is certainly very striking4 ,quit the temple1 said the ,oracle to ,deucalion and ,pyrrha1 when they had consulted it1 after the great deluge1 regarding the mode in which the earth was to be re-peopled1--vail your heads1 unloose your girdles1 and throw behind your backs the bones of your grandmother4 ,rightly interpreting what seemed darkest and most obscure in the reply1 they took stones of the earth1 and1 casting them behind them1 the stones flung by ,deucalion became men1 and those by ,pyrrha became women1 and thus the disfurnished world was peopled anew4 ,the navigator always regards himself as sure of his position when he has two landmarks to determine it by1 or when in the open ocean he can ascertain1 not only his latitude1 but his longitude also4 ,and this curious ,american tradition seems to have its two such marks1--its two bisecting lines of determination1--to identify it with the classic tradition of the ,old ,world that refers evidently to the same great event4 ,there are other portions of ,america in which the tradition of the ,flood is still more distinct than among the forests of the ,orinoco4 ,it is related by ,herrera1 one of the ,spanish historians of ,america1 that even the most barbarous of the ,brazilians had some knowledge of a general deluge2 that in ,peru the ancient ,indians reported1 that many years before there were any ,incas1 all the people were drowned by a great flood1 save six persons1 the progenitors of the existing races1 who were saved on a float2 that among the ,mechoachans it was believed that a single family was preserved1 during the outburst of the waters1 in an ark1 with a sufficient number of animals to replenish the new world2 and1 more curious still1 that it used to be told by the original inhabitants of ,cuba1 that an old man1 knowing the deluge was to come1 built a great ship1 and went into it with his family and abundance of animals2 and that1 wearying during the continuance of the flood1 he sent out a crow1 which at first did not return1 staying to feed on the dead bodies1 but afterwards returned bearing with it a green branch4 ,the resemblance borne by this last tradition to the ,mosaic narrative is so close as to awaken a doubt whether it may not have been but a mere recollection of the teaching of some early missionary4 ,nor can its genuineness now be tested1 seeing that the race which cherished it has been long since extinct4 ,it may be stated1 however1 that a similar suspicion crossed the mind of ,humboldt when he was engaged in collecting the traditions of the ,indians of the ,orinoco2 but that on further reflection and inquiry he dismissed the doubt as groundless4 ,he even set himself to examine whether the district was not a fossiliferous one1 and whether beds of sea shells1 or deposits charged with the petrified remains of corals or of fishes1 might not have originated among the aborigines some mere myth of a great inundation sufficient to account for the appearances in the rocks4 ,but he found that the region was mainly a primary one1 in which he could detect only a single patch of sedimentary rock1 existing as an unfossiliferous sandstone4 ,and so1 though little prejudiced in favor of the ,mosaic record1 he could not avoid arriving at the conclusion1 simply in his character as a philosophic inquirer1 who had no other object than to attain to the real and the true1 that the legend of the wild ,maypures and ,tamanacs regarding a great destructive deluge was simply one of the many forms of that oldest of traditions which appears to be well nigh coextensive with the human family1 and which1 in all its varied editions1 seems to point at one and the same signal event4 ,very varied some of these editions are4 ,the inhabitants of ,tahiti tell1 for instance1 that the ,supreme ,god1 a long time ago1 being angry1 dragged the earth through the sea1 but that by a happy accident their island broke off and was preserved2 the ,indians of ,terra ,firma believe1 that when the great deluge took place1 one man1 with his wife and children1 escaped in a canoe2 and the ,indians of the ,north ,american lakes hold1 that the father of all their tribes being warned in a dream that a flood was coming1 built a raft1 on which he preserved his family1 and pairs of all the animals1 and which drifted about for many months1 until at length a new earth was made for their reception by the ,mighty ,man above4 ,in that widely extended portion of the ,old ,world over which ,christianity has spread in its three great types1--,greek1 ,romish1 and ,protestant1--and in the scarce less extended portion occupied by the followers of ,mohammed1 the ,scriptural account of the deluge1 or the imperfect reflection of it borrowed by the ,koran1 has1 of course1 supplanted the old traditions4 ,but outside these regions we find the traditions existing still4 ,one of the sacred books of the ,parsees 7representatives of the ancient ,persians7 records1 that the world having been corrupted by ,ahriman the ,evil ,one1 it was thought necessary to bring over it a universal flood of waters1 that all impurity might be washed away4 ,accordingly the rain came down in drops as large as the head of a bull1 until the earth was wholly covered with water1 and all the creatures of the ,evil ,one perished4 ,and then the flood gradually subsided1 and first the mountains1 and next the plains1 appeared once more4 ,in the ,scandinavian ,edda1 between whose wild fables and those of the sacred books of the ,parsees there has been a resemblance traced by accomplished antiquaries such as ,mallet1 the tradition of the deluge takes a singularly monstrous form4 ,on the death of the great giant ,ymir1 whose flesh and bones form the rocks and soils of the earth1 and who was slain by the early gods1 his blood1 which now constitutes the ocean1 rushed so copiously out of his wounds1 that all the old race of the lesser giants1 his offspring1 were drowned in the flood which it occasioned1 save one2 and he1 by escaping on board his bark with his wife1 outlived the deluge4 ,the tradition here is evidently allegorized1 but it is by no means lost in the allegory4 ,sir ,william ,jones1 perhaps the most learned and accomplished man of his age 7such at least was the estimate of ,johnson71 and the first who fairly opened up the great storehouse of eastern antiquities1 describes the tradition of the deluge as prevalent also in the vast ,chinese empire1 with its three hundred millions of people4 ,he states that it was there believed that1 just ere the appearance of ,fohi in the mountains1 a mighty flood1 which first flowed abundantly1 and then subsided1 covered for a time the whole earth1 and separated the higher from the lower age of mankind4 ,the ,hindu tradition1 as related by ,sir ,william1 though disfigured by strange additions1 is still more explicit4 ,an evil demon having purloined the sacred books from ,brahma1 the whole race of men became corrupt except the seven ,nishis1 and in especial the holy ,satyavrata1 the prince of a maritime region1 who1 when one day bathing in a river1 was visited by the god ,vishnu in the shape of a fish1 and thus addressed by him3--,in seven days all creatures who have offended me shall be destroyed by a deluge2 but thou shalt be secured in a capacious vessel1 miraculously formed4 ,take1 therefore1 all kinds of medicinal herbs1 and esculent grain for food1 and1 together with the seven holy men1 your respective wives1 and pairs of all animals1 enter the ark without fear3 then shalt thou know ,god face to face1 and all thy questions shall be answered4 ,the god then disappeared2 and after seven days1 during which ,satyavrata had conformed in all respects to the instructions given him1 the ocean began to overflow the coasts1 and the earth to be flooded by constant rains1 when a large vessel was seen coming floating shore-wards on the rising waters2 into which the ,prince and the seven virtuous ,nishis entered1 with their wives1 all laden with plants and grain1 and accompanied by the animals4 ,during the deluge ,vishnu preserved the ark by again taking the form of a fish1 and tying it fast to himself2 and when the waters had subsided1 he communicated the contents of the sacred books to the holy ,satyavrata1 after first slaying the demon who had stolen them4 ,it is added1 however1 that the good man having1 on one occasion long after1 by the act of destiny1 drunk mead1 he became senseless1 and lay asleep naked1 and that ,charma1 one of three sons who had been born to him1 finding him in that sad state1 called on his two brothers to witness the shame of their father1 and said to them1 ,what has now befallen8 ,in what state is this our sire8 ,but by the two brothers1--more dutiful than ,charma1--he was hidden with clothes1 and recalled to his senses2 and1 having recovered his intellect1 and perfectly knowing what had passed1 he cursed ,charma1 saying1 ,thou shalt be a servant of servants4 ,it would be difficult certainly to produce a more curious legend1 or one more strikingly illustrative of the mixture of truth and fable which must ever be looked for in that tradition which some are content to accept even in religion as a trustworthy guide4 ,in ever varying tradition1 as in those difficult problems in physical science which have to be wrought out from a multitude of differing observations1 it is1 if ,i may so express myself1 the mean result of the whole that must be accepted as approximately the true one4 ,and the mean result of those dim and distorted recollections of the various tribes of men which refer to the ,flood is a result which bears simply to this effect1--that in some early age of the world a great deluge took place1 in which well nigh the whole human family was destroyed4 ,the ancient traditions which have come down to us embalmed in classic literature form but a small portion of what seems once to have existed in the wide region now overspread by ,christianity and ,mohammedanism4 ,a second deluge1 more fatal to at least the productions of the human mind than the first had been1 overspread the earth during what are known as the ,middle ,ages2 and so signal was the wreck which it occasioned1 that of seven heathen writers#bd whose testimony regarding the ,flood ,josephus cites as corroborative of his own1 not one has descended in his writings to these later times4 ,we learn1 however1 from the ,jewish historian1 that one of their number1 ,berosus1 was a ,chaldean2 that two of the others1 ,hieronymus and ,manetho1 were ,egyptians2 and that a third1 ,nicolaus1 whose history he quotes1 was a citizen of ,damascus4 ,there is1 said this latter writer1 in his perished history1 a great mountain in ,armenia1 over ,minyas1 called ,baris1 upon which it is reported that many who fled at the time of the deluge were saved2 and that one who was carried in an ark came on shore on the top of it2 and that the remains of the timber were a great while preserved4 ,this might be the man1 added this forgotten writer1 about whom ,moses1 the legislator of the ,jews1 wrote4 ,the works of the ,chaldean1 ,berosus1 have long since been lost1 all save a few extracts preserved by the ,patristic writers4 ,one of these1 however1 which embodies the ,chaldean tradition of the ,flood1 is very remarkable4 ,like the ,scandinavian legend1 it represents the antediluvians as giants1 all of whom1 save one1 became exceedingly impious and depraved4 ,but there was one among the giants1 says ,berosus1 that reverenced the gods1 and was more wise and prudent than all the rest4 ,his name was ,noa2 he dwelt in ,syria1 with his three sons1 ,sem1 ,japet1 ,chem1 and their wives1 the great ,tidea1 ,pandora1 ,noela1 and ,noegla4 ,this man1 fearing the destruction which1 he foresaw from the stars1 would come to pass1 began1 in the seventy-eighth year before the inundation1 to build a ship covered like an ark4 ,seventy-eight years from the time he began to build this ship1 the ocean of a sudden broke out1 and all the inland seas and the rivers and fountains bursting from beneath 7attended by the most violent rains from heaven for many days71 overflowed all the mountains2 so that the whole human race was buried in the waters1 except ,noa and his family1 who were saved by means of the ship1 which1 being lifted up by the waters1 rested at last upon the top of the ,gendyae or ,mountain1 on which1 it is reported1 there now remaineth some part1 and that men take away the bitumen from it1 and make use of it by way of charm or expiation1 to avoid evil4 ,a more general ,assyrian tradition1 somewhat different in its details1 also survives4#be ,the god ,chronus1 it was said1 appeared in a vision to ,xisuthrus1 the tenth king of ,babylon2 and1 warning him that on a certain day there would be a great flood upon the earth1 by which mankind would be destroyed1 he enjoined him to build a vessel1 and to bring into it his friends and relatives1 with everything necessary to sustain life1 and all the various animals1 birds1 and quadrupeds4 ,in obedience to the command1 the king built a vessel about three quarters of a mile in length and half a mile in breadth1 which he loaded with stores and the different kinds of animals2 and into which1 on the day of the flood1 he himself entered1 accompanied by his wife and children1 and all his friends4 ,the flood broke out4 ,after1 however1 accomplishing its work of destruction1 it abated2 and the king sent out birds from the vessel1 which1 at first finding no food or place of rest1 returned to him2 but which1 when1 after the lapse of some days1 he sent them forth again1 came back to him with their feet tinged with mud4 ,on a third trial they returned no more2 upon which1 judging that the surface of the earth was laid dry1 he made an opening in the vessel1 and1 looking forth1 found it stranded on a mountain of the land of ,armenia4 ,there seems to exist no such definite outline of the ,egyptian tradition referred to by ,josephus as that preserved of the ,chaldean one4 ,plato1 ,in his ,timus1 makes the ,egyptian priest whom he introduces as discoursing with ,solon1 to attribute that clear recollection of a remote antiquity which survived in ,egypt1 to its comparative freedom from those great floods which had at various times desolated ,greece1 and destroyed the memory of remote events by the destruction of the people and their records2 and ,bacon had evidently this passage in view when he poetically remarked1 in his magnificent essay on the ,vicissitude of ,things1 that the great winding sheets that bury all things in oblivion are two1--deluges and earthquakes2 from which two destructions is to be noted1 he adds1 that the remnant of people that happen to be preserved are commonly ignorant and mountainous people1 that can give no account of the time past4 ,even in ,egypt1 however1 the recollection of the deluge seems to have survived1 though it lay entangled amid what seem to be symbolized memories of unusual floodings of the river ,nile4 ,the ,noah of ,egypt1 says ,professor ,hitchcock1 in his singularly ingenious essay 7,historical and ,geological ,deluges ,compared71 appears to have been ,osiris4 ,typhon1 a personification of the ocean1 enticed him into an ark1 which1 being closed1 he was forced to sea2 and it was a curious fact1 that he embarked on the seventeenth day of the month ,athyr1--the very day1 most probably1 when ,noah entered the ark4 ,the classical tradition of ,greece1 as if the events whence it took its rise had been viewed through a multiplying glass1 appears to have been increased from one to many4 ,plutarch enumerates no fewer than five great floods2 and ,plato makes his ,egyptian priest describe the ,greek deluges as oft repeated and numerous4 ,there was the flood of ,deucalion1 the flood of ,ogyges1 and several other floods2 and no little time and learning have been wasted in attempting to fix their several periods4 ,but1 lying far within the mythologic ages1--the last of them to which any determining circumstances are attached1 in the days of that ,prometheus who stole fire from heaven1 and was chained by ,jupiter to ,mount ,caucasus1--it appears greatly more probable that the traditions respecting them should be the mere repeated and re-repeated echoes of one signal event1 than that many wide-spread and destructive floods should have taken place in the obscure1 fabulous ages of ,grecian story1 while not one such flood has happened during its two thousand five hundred years of authentic history4 ,nor is it difficult to conceive how such repetitions of the original tradition should have taken place4 ,the traditions of the same event preserved by tribes living in even the same tract of country come in course of time considerably to differ from each other in their adjuncts and circumstances2 those1 for instance1 of the various tribes of the ,orinoco do so2 and should these tribes come to be fused ultimately into one nation1 nothing seems more probable than that their varying editions1 instead of being also fused together1 should remain distinct1 as the recollections of separate and independent catastrophes4 ,and thus the several deluges of ,grecian mythology may in reality testify1 not to the occurrence of several floods1 but to the existence merely of several independent tribes1 among whom the one great tradition has been so altered and modified ere they came to possess a common literature1 that when at length they became skilful enough to place it on record1 it appeared to them not as one1 but as many4 ,the admirable reflection of ,humboldt suggested by the ,south ,american traditions seems1 incidentally at least1 to bear out this view4 ,those ancient traditions of the human race1 he says1 which we find dispersed over the whole surface of the globe1 like the relics of a vast shipwreck1 are highly interesting in the philosophical study of our own species4 ,how many different tongues belonging to branches that appear totally distinct transmit to us the same facts6 ,the traditions concerning races that have been destroyed1 and the renewal of nature1 scarcely vary in reality1 though every nation gives them a local coloring4 ,in the great continents1 as in the smallest islands of the ,pacific ,ocean1 it is always on the loftiest and nearest mountain that the remains of the human race have been saved2 and this event appears the more recent in proportion as the nations are uncultivated1 and as the knowledge they have of their own existence has no very remote date4 ,and it seems at least not improbable1 that the several traditions of apparently special deluges1--deluges each with its own set of circumstances1 and from which the progenitors of one nation were saved on a hill-top1 those of another on a raft1 and those of yet another in an ark or canoe1 and which in one instance destroyed only giants1 and had in another the loss which they occasioned repaired by date-stones1 and in yet another by stones of the earth1--should come to be regarded among a people composed of various tribes1 and but little accustomed to sift the evidence on which they founded1 rather as all diverse narratives of diverse events1 than as in reality but varied accounts of one and the same tremendous catastrophe4 ,taking it for granted1 then1 that the several ,greek traditions refer to but one great event1 let us accept that which records what is known as the flood of ,deucalion1 as more adequately representative of the general type of its class1 especially in the edition given by ,lucian 7in his work ,de ,dea ,syria71 than any of the others4 ,the present world1 says this writer1 is peopled from the sons of ,deucalion4 ,in respect to the former brood1 they were men of violence1 and lawless in their dealings2 they regarded not oaths1 nor observed the rites of hospitality1 nor showed mercy to those who sued for it4 ,on this account they were doomed to destruction2 and for this purpose there was a mighty eruption of water from the earth1 attended with heavy showers from above1 so that the rivers swelled and the sea overflowed1 till the whole earth was covered with a flood1 and all flesh drowned4 ,deucalion alone was preserved1 to people the world4 ,this mercy was shown him on account of his justice and piety4 ,his preservation was effected in this manner3--,he put all his family1 both his sons and their wives1 into a vast ark which he had provided1 and he then went into it himself4 ,at the same time1 animals of every species1--boars1 horses1 lions1 serpents1--whatever lived upon the face of the earth1--followed him by pairs2 all which he received into the ark1 and experienced no evil from them4 ,such is the tradition of ,deucalion1 as preserved by ,lucian4 ,it is added by his contemporary ,plutarch1 that ,deucalion1 as his voyage was drawing to a close1 sent out a dove1 which coming in a short time back to him1 indicated that the waters still covered the earth2 but which on a second occasion failed to return2 or1 as some say1 returned to him with mud-stained feet1 and thus intimated the abatement of the flood4 ,it cannot1 ,i think1 be rationally doubted that we have in this ancient legend one other tradition of the ,noachian ,deluge4 ,even as related by ,ovid1 with all the license of the poet1 we find in it the great leading traits that indicate its parentage4 ,i quote from the vigorous translation of ,dryden4 ,impetuous rain descends2 ,nor from his patrimonial heaven alone ,is ,jove content to pour his vengeance down2 ,but from his brother of the seas he craves ,to help him with auxiliary waves4 ,then with his mace the monarch struck the ground2 ,with inward trembling earth received the wound1 ,and rising streams a ready passage found4 ,now seas and earth were in confusion lost1-- ,a world of waters1 and without a coast4 ,a mountain of tremendous height there stands ,betwixt the ,athenian and ,boeotian lands3 ,parnassus is its name1 whose forky rise ,mounts through the clouds1 and mates the lofty skies4 ,high on the summit of this dubious cliff1 ,deucalion1 wafting1 moored his little skiff3 ,he1 with his wife1 were only left behind ,of perished man2 they two were human kind3 ,the most upright of mortal men was he1-- ,the most serene and holy woman she4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aji4 ,,apam,,an ,,medal4 ,such are some of the traditions of that great catastrophe which overtook the human family in its infancy1 and made so deep an impression on the memories of the few awe-struck survivors1 that the race never forgot it4 ,ere the dispersal of the family it would have of course existed as but one unique recollection1--a single reflection on the face of an unbroken mirror4 ,but the mirror has since been shattered into a thousand pieces2 and we now find the object1 originally but one1 pictured in each broken fragment1 with various degrees of distinctness1 according to the various degrees of injury received by the reflecting medium4 ,picture1 too1 scarce less certainly than language spoken and written1 testifies to the wide extent of the tradition4 ,its symbols are found stamped on coins of old classical ,greece2 they have been traced amid the ancient hieroglyphics of ,egypt1 recognized in the sculptured caves of ,hindustan1 and detected even in the far west1 among the picture writings of ,mexico4 ,the several glyphic representatives of the tradition bear1 like its various written or oral editions1 a considerable resemblance to each other4 ,even in the rude paintings of the old ,mexican1 the same leading idea may be traced as in the classic sculpture of the ,greek4 ,on what is known to antiquaries as the ,apaman medal1 struck during the reign of ,philip the elder1 we find the familiar name of ,noe inscribed on a floating chest or ark1 within which a man and woman are seen seated1 and to which a bird on the wing is represented as bearing a branch4#bf ,and in an ancient ,mexican painting1 figured by ,humboldt1 the man and woman who survived the age of water are shown similarly inclosed in a leaf-tufted box1 or hollow trunk of a tree2 while a gigantic female1--,matalcueje1 the goddess of water1--is seen pouring down her floods around them1 and upon an overwhelmed human figure1 representative apparently of the victims of the catastrophe4 ,all is classical in the forms of the one representation1 and uncouth in those of the other4 ,they bear the same sort of artistic relation to each other that the rude ,tamanac tradition bears1 in a literary point of view1 to the well constructed story and elegant verse of ,ovid2 but they are charged apparently with the same meaning1 and shadow forth the same event4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aaj4 ,,old ,,mexican ,,picture4 7,humboldt47 ,the tradition of the ,flood may1 ,i repeat1 be properly regarded as universal2 seeing there is scarce any considerable race of man among which1 in some of its many forms1 it is not to be found4 ,now1 it has been argued by some of the older theologians1 with a not very cogent logic1 that the universality of the tradition establishes the universality of the ,flood1--that where the tradition is to be found1 the ,flood must have been2--an argument which would have force if it could also be shown that each tribe had had its own ,noah1 saved by ark1 raft1 or canoe1 or on some tall mountain summit1 in the region in which his descendants continued to reside2 but of no force whatever if the ,noah of the race was but one1 and if the scene of his danger and deliverance was restricted1 as of necessity it must have been in that case1 to a single locality4 ,further1 if1 as we believe1 there was but one ,noah1--if1 according to the ,scriptural account1 condensed into a single sentence by the ,apostle1 only eight souls were saved in the great catastrophe of the race1--there could have existed no human testimony to determine whether the exterminating deluge that occasioned their destruction was a universal deluge1 or merely a partial one4 ,it could not be known by men shut up in an ark1 nor even though from a mast top they could have swept the horizon with a telescope1 whether the waters that spread out on every side of them1 covering the old familiar mountains1 and occupying the entire range of their vision1 extended all around the globe1 or found their limits some eight or ten hundred miles away4 ,the point is one respecting which1 as certainly as respecting the creation of the world itself1 or of the world's inhabitants1 there could have existed no human witness-bearing3 contemporary man1 left to the unassisted evidence of his senses1 must of necessity have been ignorant of the extent of the deluge4 ,true1 what man could never have known of himself1 ,god could have told him1 and in many cases has told him2 but then1 ,god's revelations have in most instances been made to effect exclusively moral purposes2 and we know that those who have perilously held that1 along with the moral facts1 definite physical facts1 geographic1 geologic1 or astronomical1 had also been imparted1 have almost invariably found themselves involved in monstrous error4 ,and in this matter of the ,flood1 though it be a fact of great moral significancy that ,god in an early period of the human history destroyed the whole race for their wickedness1--all save one just man and his family1--it is not in the least a matter of moral significancy whether or no the deluge by which the judgment was effected covered not only the parts of the earth occupied by man at the time1 but extended also to ,terra del ,fuego1 ,tahiti1 and the ,falkland ,islands4 ,in fine1 though the question whether the ,noachian deluge was universal1 or merely partial1 is an interesting question in physics1 it is in no higher degree a moral one than those questions which relate to the right figure or age of the earth1 or to the true motions of the heavenly bodies4 ,and it will be found that the only passages in ,scripture which refer to this strictly physical subject1 instead of determining the geographic extent of the ,flood1 serve only to raise a question regarding their own extent of meaning4 ,it is known to all students of the sacred writings1 that there is a numerous class of passages in both the ,old and ,new ,testaments in which1 by a sort of metonymy common in the ,east1 a considerable part is spoken of as the whole1 though in reality often greatly less than a moiety of the whole4 ,of this class are the passages in which it is said1 that on the day of ,pentecost there were ,jews assembled at ,jerusalem out of every nation under heaven2 that the gospel was preached to every creature under heaven2 that the ,queen of ,sheba came to hear the wisdom of ,solomon from the uttermost parts of the earth2 that ,god put the dread and fear of the children of ,israel upon the nations that were under the whole heaven2 and that all countries came into ,egypt to ,joseph to buy corn4 ,and of course the universally admitted existence of such a class of passages1 in which words are not to be accepted in their rigidly literal meanings1 but with certain great modifications1 renders the task of determining and distinguishing such passages from others in which the meaning is definite and strict1 not only legitimate1 but also laudable2 and justifies us in inquiring whether those passages descriptive of the ,flood or its effects1 in which it is said that the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth1 so that all the high hills that were under the whole heavens were covered1 or that all flesh died that moved upon the earth1 belong to their number or no4 ,there are some instances in which the ,scriptures themselves reveal the character and limit the meaning of the metonymic passages4 ,they do so with respect to the passage already quoted regarding the stranger ,jews assembled in ,jerusalem at the ,pentecostal feast1--out of every nation under heaven4 ,for further on we read that these ,jews had come from but the various countries extending around ,judea1 as far as ,italy on the one hand1 and the ,persian ,gulf on the other2--an area large1 indeed1 but scarce equal to a one fiftieth part of the earth's surface4 ,but there is no such explanation given to limit or restrict most of the other passages2 the modifying element must be sought for outside the sacred volume1--in ancient history or ancient geography4 ,the reader must1 for instance1 acquaint himself with the progress of discovery in early ages1 or the boundaries of the ,roman ,empire under the first ,csars1 ere he can form a probable conjecture regarding the extent of that all the earth which sought the presence of ,solomon1 or a correct estimate respecting the limits of that all the world which ,csar ,augustus could have taxed4 ,and to this last class1 which fail to explain themselves1 the passages respecting the ,flood evidently belong4 ,like the passages cited1 and1 with these1 almost all the texts of ,scripture in which questions of physical science are involved1 the limiting1 modifying1 explaining facts and circumstances must be sought for in that outside region of secular research1 historic and scientific1 from which of late years so much valuable biblical illustration has been derived1 and with which it is so imperatively the duty of the ,church to keep up an acquaintance at least as close and intimate as that maintained with it by her gainsayers and assailants4 ,that the ,noachian deluge might have been but partial1 not universal1 was held1 let me here remark1 by distinguished theologians in our own country1 at least as early as the seventeenth century4 ,it was held1 for instance1 by the learned biblical commentator1 old ,matthew ,poole1 whom we find saying1 in his ,synopsis on ,genesis1 that it is not to be supposed that the entire globe of the earth was covered with water2 for where1 he adds1 was the need of overwhelming those regions in which there were no human beings8 ,it was held also by that distinguished ,protestant churchman of the reign of ,charles ,,ii41 ,bishop ,stillingfleet1 whom ,principal ,cunningham of ,edinburgh well describes1 in his elaborate edition of the ,bishop's work1 ,the ,doctrines and ,practices of the ,church of ,rome1 as a divine of great talents and prodigious learning4 ,i cannot see1 says the ,bishop1 in his ,origines ,sacra1 any urgent necessity from the ,scriptures to assert that the ,flood did spread over all the surface of the earth4 ,that all mankind1 those in the ark excepted1 were destroyed by it1 is most certain1 according to the ,scriptures4 ,the ,flood was universal as to mankind2 but from thence follows no necessity at all of asserting the universality of it as to the globe of the earth1 unless it be sufficiently proved that the whole earth was peopled before the ,flood1 which ,i despair of ever seeing proved4 ,it was not1 however1 until the comparatively recent times in which the belief entertained by ,poole and ,stillingfleet was adopted and enforced by writers such as ,dr4 ,pye ,smith1 and ,professor ,hitchcock of the ,united ,states1 that there was any show of argument displayed against the theory of a partial deluge which would now be deemed worthy of consideration4 ,and these modern objections may be found ingeniously arrayed by the late ,dr4 ,john ,kitto1 in his ,daily ,bible ,illustrations1 published only six years ago 7in #ahej71 and by the learned ,dr4 ,william ,hamilton of ,mobile1 in his ,friend of ,moses1 published in #aheb4 ,both these writers1 however1 virtually agree with their opponents in holding that the strict meaning of the terms employed by ,moses in describing the deluge is to be determined on considerations apart from the mere philological ones4 ,after marshalling his objections to the theory of a local flood1 ,dr4 ,kitto goes on to say1 ,we yield our judgment to what appears to us the force of these arguments as to the meaning of ,scripture2 and we find ,dr4 ,hamilton prefacing his objections as follows3--,were the mere universality of some of the terms employed in the ,mosaic narrative the sole ground of objection to the hypothesis of a local inundation only in the days of ,noah1 that hypothesis might perhaps be deemed admissible4 ,but there are1 he adds1 other and more serious difficulties attending it4 ,let us1 then1 briefly examine these supposed difficulties and objections2 and as they have been better and more amply stated by ,dr4 ,kitto than by any other writer with whom ,i am acquainted1--for ,dr4 ,hamilton takes up rather the arguments in favor of a universal1 than the objections against a merely partial flood1--let us take them as they occur in his writings1 especially in the excellent work now before me1--his ,daily ,bible ,illustrations4 ,it will scarce be suspected that such an accomplished writer1 who did so much for ,biblical ,illustration1 and whose admirable ,pictorial ,bible formed1 with but four works more1 what ,chalmers used to term with peculiar emphasis his ,biblical ,library1#bg would do injustice to any cause1 or any line of argument which he adopted1 if it was in reality a good and sound one4 ,it may be well1 however1 not to test too rigidly the value of the remark1--meant to be at least of the nature of argument1--when we find him saying that a plain man sitting down to read the ,scripture account of the deluge would have no doubt of its universality4 ,perhaps not4 ,but it is at least equally certain1 that plain men who set themselves to deduce from ,scripture the figure of the planet we inhabit had as little doubt1 until corrected by the geographer1 that the earth was a great plane1--not a sphere2 that plain men who set themselves to acquire from ,scripture some notion of the planetary motions had no doubt1 in the same way1 until corrected by the astronomer1 that it was the earth that rested1 and the sun that moved round it2 and that plain men who have sought to determine from ,scripture the age of the earth have had no doubt1 until corrected by the geologist1 that it was at most not much more than six thousand years old4 ,in fine1 when plain men1 who1 according to ,cowper1 know1 and know no more1 their ,bible true1 have in perhaps every instance learned from it what it was in reality intended to teach1--the way of salvation1--it seems scarce less certain1 that in every instance in which they have sought to deduce from it what it was not intended to teach1--the truths of physical science1--they have fallen into extravagant error4 ,and as any question which1 bearing1 not on the punitory extent and ethical consequences of the ,flood1 but merely on its geographic limits and natural effects1 is not a moral1 but a purely physical question1 it would be but a fair presumption1 founded on the almost invariable experience of ages1 that the deductions from ,scripture of the plain men regarding it would be1 not true1 but false deductions4 ,of apparently not more real weight and importance is the doctor's further remark1 that there seems1 after all1 to be a marked difference between the terms in which the universality of the deluge is spoken of1 and the terms employed in those admittedly metonymic passages in which the whole is substituted for a part4 ,what limitation1 he asks1 can we assign to such a phrase as this3--'all the high hills that were ,,under ,,the ,,whole ,,heavens were covered8' ,if here the phrase had been1 'upon the face of the whole earth1' we should have been told that 'the whole earth' had sometimes the meaning of 'the whole land2' but1 as if designedly to obviate such a limitation of meaning1 we have here the largest phrase of universality which the language of man affords1--'under the whole heavens6' ,so far ,dr4 ,kitto4 ,but his argument seems to be not more valuable in this case than in the other4 ,it was upon the nations that were ,,under ,,the ,,whole ,,heavens that ,deity represented himself as putting the fear and dread of the children of ,israel2 but he would be certainly a very plain man who would infer from the universality of a passage so evidently metonymic1 that that fear extended to the people of ,japan on the one hand1 or to the ,red ,indians of the ,rocky ,mountains on the other4 ,the phrase under the whole heavens seems to be but coextensive in meaning with the phrase upon the face of the whole earth4 ,the whole earth is evidently tantamount to the whole terrestrial floor1--the whole heavens1 to the whole celestial roof that arches over it2 and on what principle the whole terrestrial floor is to be deemed less extensive than the floor under the whole celestial roof1 really does not appear4 ,further1 nothing can be more certain than that both the phrases contrasted by ,dr4 ,kitto are equally employed in the metonymic form4 ,when1 however1 the doctor passes to argument based upon natural science1 we find what he adduces worthy of our attention1 were it but for the inquiries which it suggests4 ,if the deluge were but local1 we find him saying1 what was the need of taking birds into the ark2 and among them birds so widely diffused as the raven and the dove8 ,a deluge which could overspread the region which these birds inhabit could hardly have been less than universal4 ,if the deluge were local1 and all the birds of these kinds in that district perished1--though we should think they might have fled to the uninundated regions1--it would have been useless to encumber the ark with them1 seeing that the birds of the same species which survived in the lands not overflowed would speedily replenish the inundated tract as soon as the waters subsided4 ,it will be found that the reasoning here is mainly based upon an error in natural science1 into which even naturalists of the last century1 such as ,buffon1 not unfrequently fell1 and which was almost universal among the earlier voyagers and travellers1--the error of confounding as identical the merely allied birds and beasts of distant countries1 and of thus assigning to species wide areas in creation which in reality they do not occupy4 ,the grouse1 for instance1 is a widely spread genus1 or rather family2 for it consists of more genera than one4 ,it is so extensively present over the northern hemisphere1 that ,siberia1 ,norway1 ,iceland1 and ,north ,america1 have all their grouse1--the latter continent1 indeed1 from five to eight different kinds2 and yet so restricted are some of the species of which they consist1 that1 were the ,british islands to be submerged1 one of the best known of the family1--the red grouse1 or moor-fowl 7,lagopus ,scoticus71--would disappear from creation4 ,this bird1 which1 rated at its money value1 is one of the most important in ,europe1--for the barren moors which it frequents in the ,highlands of ,scotland alone are let every season almost entirely for its sake for hundreds of thousands of pounds1--is exclusively a ,british bird2 and1 unless by miracle a new migratory instinct were given to it1 a complete submersion of the ,british islands would secure its destruction4 ,if the submergence amounted to but a few hundred miles in lateral extent1 the moor-fowl would to a certainty not seek the distant uninundated land4 ,nor is it at all to be inferred1 that in a merely local but wide spread deluge1 birds occupying a more extensive area than that overspread by the ,flood would1 according to ,dr4 ,kitto1 speedily replenish the inundated tract as soon as the waters had subsided4 ,the statement must have been hazarded in ignorance of the peculiar habits of many of the non-migratory birds4 ,up till about the middle of the last century1 the capercailzie1 or great cock of the woods1 was a native of ,scotland4 ,it was exterminated1 however1 about the time of the last ,rebellion1 or not long after3 the last specimen seen among the pine forests of ,strathspey was killed1 it is said1 in the year #agde3 the last specimen seen among the woods of ,strathglass survived till the year #agfj4 ,pennant relates that he saw in #agfi a specimen1 probably a stuffed one1 that had been killed shortly before in the neighborhood of ,inverness4 ,but from at least that time the species disappeared from the ,british islands2 and1 though it continued to exist in ,norway1 did not replenish the tracts from which it had been extirpated4 ,the late ,marquis of ,breadalbane was at no small cost and trouble in re-introducing the species1 and to some extent he succeeded2 but the capercailzie is1 ,i understand1 still restricted to the ,breadalbane woods4 ,i have seen the golden eagle annihilated as a species in move than one district of the north of ,scotland2 nor1 though it still exists in other parts of the kingdom1 and is comparatively common among the mountains of ,norway1 have ,i known it in any instance to spread anew over the tracts from which it had been extirpated4 ,so much for the general reasonings of ,dr4 ,kitto4 ,further1 we find him stating1 that a deluge which could overspread the region inhabited by birds so widely diffused as the raven and the dove1 could hardly have been less than universal4 ,the doctor1 however1 ought to have known that the dove is a family1 not a species4 ,all the ,american species of doves1 for example1 differ from the six ,european species1 three of which are to be found in ,scotland4 ,of even the ,american passenger pigeons 7,ectopistes migratoria71 which occur in such numbers in their native country as actually to eclipse1 during their migratory flights1 the light of day1 only a single straggler1--the one whose chance visit has been recorded by ,dr4 ,fleming1--seems to have been ever seen in ,britain4 ,and the ,east has also its own peculiar species1 unknown to ,europe4 ,the golden-green pigeons and the great crowned pigeons of the ,indian isles are never seen in northern and western latitudes1 save in stuffed specimens in a museum4 ,the ,vinago pigeons1 with their vividly bright plumes1 though they exist in several species1 are all restricted to the woods of the torrid zone4 ,even the collared dove of ,africa and the ,levant rarely visits1 and then only as a straggler1 the western and northern parts of ,europe4 ,the blue-capped turteline pigeon is restricted1 as a species1 to the island of ,celebes2 the blue and green turteline pigeon is a native of ,new ,guinea2 the ,cape turtle occurs in but the southern parts of ,africa2 the ,nicobar ground pigeon in but the ,indian ,archipelago2 the magnificent fruit pigeon in the eastern parts of ,australia2 and the crowned goura pigeon1 the giant of its family1 in the ,molucca ,islands4 ,no single species of dove seems to be so widely spread but that it might be exterminated in a merely partial deluge2 and of course conjecture may in vain weary itself in striving to determine what that particular species was which ,noah sent forth as a messenger from the ark1 or in inquiring what was the extent of the area which it occupied8 ,the common raven is more widely spread than any single species of pigeon4 ,even the raven1 however1 seems restricted to the northern hemisphere4 ,india and ,southern ,africa have both their ravens2 but the species differ from each other1 and from the widely spread northern one4 ,it is a question whether even the pied raven of the ,faroe ,isles be not a distinct bird from the black raven of our own country3 if not an independent species1 it is at least a very remarkable variety4 ,further1 when extirpated in a district1 it is found that1 as in the case of the capercailzie and the golden eagle1 the neighboring regions in which the raven continues to exist fail for ages to furnish a fresh supply4 ,there are counties in ,england in which the raven is now never seen2 and ,i am acquainted with a district in the north of ,scotland from which1 when a pair that were known to breed for more than a century in a tall cliff were destroyed by the fowler1 the species disappeared4#bh ,such1 when examined1 are the arguments drawn by ,dr4 ,kitto from natural science2 nor is he in any degree happier when he resorts to arguments more restrictedly physical4 ,if1 we find him saying1 the waters of the ,deluge rose fifteen cubits above all the mountains of the countries which the raven and the dove inhabit1 the level must have been high enough to give universality to the ,deluge4 ,the only point here not already dealt with1--for ,i have just shown that certain species of the dove and the raven might have of necessity been inmates of the ark1 though the ,flood had been only a partial one1--is that which refers to the submergence of the hills over at least an extensive tract1 and to the inference1 evident in the passage1 that if lofty mountains were covered in one portion of the globe1 mountains of similar altitude must have been equally covered in every other portion of it4 ,the inference here seems to be founded on a common but altogether mistaken view of some of the grandest operations of nature with which modern science has brought us acquainted4 ,it has been well remarked1 that when two opposing explanations of extraordinary natural phenomena are given1--one of a simple and seemingly common sense character1 the other complex and apparently absurd1--it is almost always safer to adopt the apparently absurd than the seemingly common sense one4 ,dr4 ,kitto's plain man1 yielding to the dictates of what he would deem common sense1--which1 of course1 in questions of natural science is tantamount to common nonsense1--would be sure to go wrong4 ,and we find the remark not inaptly illustrated by the now well established fact1 that while the medium level of the ocean is one of the most fixed lines in nature1 the level of the great continents1 with their table-lands and mountains1 is an ever fluctuating line4 ,it may seem strange that land should be less stable than water4 ,we see the tide rising and falling twice every twenty-four hours1 and the rock ever remaining in its place2--we speak of the fixed earth and the unstable sea4 ,and yet1 while we have no evidence whatever that the sea level has changed during at least the ages of the ,tertiary formations1 and absolutely know that it could not have varied more than a few yards1 or at most a few fathoms1 we have direct evidence that during that time great mountain chains1 many thousand feet in height1 such as the ,alps1 have arisen from the bottom of the ocean1 and that great continents have sunk beneath it and disappeared4 ,the larger part of northern ,europe and ,america have been covered by the sea since our present group of shells began to exist2 and it seems not improbable that the lower portion of the valley of the ,jordan was depressed to its present low level of thirteen hundred feet beneath the ,mediterranean since the times of the deluge4 ,on several parts of the coasts of ,britain and ,ireland the voyager can look down through the clear sea1 in depths to which the tide never falls1 on the remains of submerged forests2 and it is a demonstrable fact1 that even during the present age there are certain extensive tracts of land which have sunk beneath the sea level1 while certain other extensive tracts have been elevated over it4 ,in #ahai1 a wide expanse of country in the delta of the ,indus1 containing fully two thousand square miles of flat meadow1 was converted by a sudden depression of the land1 accompanied by an earthquake1 into an inland sea2 and the tower of a small fort1 which occupied nearly the middle of the sunken area1 and on which many of the inhabitants of a neighboring village succeeded in saving themselves1 may still be seen raising its shattered head over the surface1--the only object visible in a waste of waters of which the eye fails to determine the extent4 ,about three years after this event1 a tract of country1 interposed between the foot of the ,andes and the ,pacific1 more than equal in area to all ,great ,britain1 was elevated from two to seven feet over its former level1 and rocks laid bare in the sea1 which the pilots and fishermen of the coast had never before seen4 ,on the ,indian coast the sea seemed to be rising at nearly the same time when it appeared to be falling on the ,american one2 and on the latter such was the actual impression entertained by the people4 ,it is stated by ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 in his ,elements1 that he was informed by ,mr4 ,cruickshanks1 an ,english botanist who resided in ,chili at the time1 that it was the general belief of the fishermen and inhabitants1 not that the land had risen1 but that the ocean had permanently retreated4 ,but if it had retreated from the ,chilian shore1 how could it have risen on the ,indian one8 ,in like manner the sea appears to be receding from the north-eastern shores of ,sweden at the rate of nearly four vertical feet in the century2 while it seems to be advancing on the western coasts of ,greenland at apparently a rate more considerable1 though there the ratio of its rise has not been marked with equal care4 ,it seems to be rising on even the ,swedish province of ,scania2 while all the time1 however1 the actual motion1--upwards in one region1 downwards in another1--is in the solid earth1--not in the unstable water1 which merely serves as a sort of hydrostatic level1 to indicate this fact of subsidence or elevation in the land4 ,and of course all the reasoning1 founded on mere appearances1 that would reverse the process by assigning permanency to the level of the land1 and fluctuation to that of the sea1 would lead to inevitable error4 ,let us1 for the illustration's sake1 suppose that the ,british islands had been the scene of the ,deluge2 and that it had been occasioned by a gradual depression in the earth's surface of about fifteen hundred miles in length1 a thousand miles in breadth1 five thousand feet in depth in its centre1 and which gradually trended all around towards the sides4 ,such a depression would form a scarce appreciable inequality on the surface of even a three feet globe2 in a twelve inch globe it might be represented by the abrasion of a small patch of the varnish2 nor would it have in nature one sixth the depth1 or one sixteenth the area1 of the bed of the ,atlantic ,ocean4 ,let us suppose further1 that it had been produced by an equable sinking of the surface1 prolonged for forty days at the rate of one hundred and twenty-five feet per day1--a motion not equal to that of the minute-hand of a clock whose dial plate measures two feet in diameter4 ,further1 let us suppose that a thoroughly intelligent man1--let us say ,dr4 ,kitto himself1--secure from all personal danger in an ark perched on some such commanding eminence as ,arthur's ,seat1 had been a witness of the catastrophe2 and that1 instead of having merely to reason respecting it after the lapse of more than four thousand years1 he had been enabled to bear testimony regarding it from the evidence of his senses4 ,in the first place1 let me remark that the sinking or downward motion of the earth's crust would be altogether inappreciable by sense2 in the next1 that the depression1 even when it had reached its acme1 would in no sensible degree affect the contour of surrounding objects4 ,even at the end of the forty days1 when the five thousand feet of depression had been reached1 the gradient of declination across the sunken area would not exceed ten feet per mile1 and across the larger diameter would amount to but six feet eight inches per mile4 ,of course1 at the end of the twentieth day the gradients would be represented by but one half these sums1 and would be altogether inappreciable in the landscape2 the hills would seem quite as high as before1 and the valleys not more profound4 ,the only sensible sign felt or visible of what was taking place would be simply a persistent rising of the sea at somewhat less than twice its rate of flow during stream tides4 ,ocean1 as if forgetful of its ancient bounds1 would continue to encroach upon the land4 ,on the second day the greater part of what is now the site of ,edinburgh would be covered2 on the seventh day the tide would have reached the vessel perched on the top of the hill now known as ,arthur's ,seat2 on the sixteenth day the highest peak of the ,pentlands would have disappeared2 and in nine days more the distant summit of ,ben ,lomond4 ,from the roof of the slowly drifting ark nothing would then have appeared save a shoreless ocean4 ,but it would have taken yet other eleven days ere the proud crest of ,ben ,nevis1 the highest land in the ,british islands1 would have been submerged2 and the eve of the fortieth day would have seen it covered by little more than five hundred feet of water4 ,an actual witness1 in such circumstances1 however intelligent1 could have but testified to the persistent rise of the sea1 accompanied mayhap by rain and tempest2 he could but tell how that for many days together it had been flood without ebb1 as if the fountains of the great deep had been broken up2 and that at length he was encompassed by what seemed a shoreless ocean4 ,but he would certainly depart perilously from his position as a witness-bearer1 were he to argue1 that when his ark had begun to float on a hill eight hundred feet in height1 all hills upon the surface of the globe of a corresponding altitude must have been also covered2 or that1 from what was in reality but a local depression1 a universal deluge might be legitimately inferred4 ,his error would be of the same nature 7though of course immensely greater7 as that of the native of ,chili who held1 that because the ocean had retreated from the coasts of his own country1 it had of necessity also retreated from the delta of the ,indus2 or as that of the inhabitant of ,cutch who held1 that as the sea had risen high over his native districts1 it had also of necessity overflowed the coasts of ,chili and ,aracan4 ,dr4 ,kitto brings forward but one other objection to a ,flood only partial1 and that the one virtually disposed of by ,bishop ,stillingfleet in the terminal half of a short sentence4 ,the ,bishop despaired1 as he well might1 of ever seeing it proved that the whole earth had been peopled before the ,deluge4 ,it has been much urged of late1 says ,dr4 ,kitto1 that the ,deluge was not universal1 but was confined to a particular region1 which man inhabited4 ,it may be freely admitted that1 seeing the object of the ,flood was to drown mankind1 there was no need that it should extend beyond the region of man's habitation4 ,but this theory necessarily assigns to the world before the ,flood a lower population1 and a more limited extension of it1 than we are prepared to concede4 ,he then goes on to argue1 that1 as the species increased very rapidly immediately after the ,deluge1 it must have increased in a ratio at least equally rapid before that catastrophe took place4 ,but how gratuitous the assumption6 ,it would be quite as safe to infer1 that as the human race multiplied greatly in ,ireland during the first half of the present century1 it must have also multiplied greatly in ,italy1 a much finer country1 during the first half of the fifth century1 or in the wealthier portions of ,kurdistan during the first half of the thirteenth4 ,ere applying1 however1 the ,irish ratio of increase to either the ,italy of thirteen hundred years ago1 or to the ,kurdistan of five hundred years ago1 it would surely be necessary to take into account the important fact1 that these were the ages of ,zingis ,khan and of ,attila2 of ,zingis ,khan1 who1 on possessing himself of the three capitals of the one country1 coolly butchered four millions three hundred and forty-seven thousand persons1 their inhabitants2 and of that ,attila1 the scourge of ,god1 who used to say1 more especially in reference to the other country1 that whenever his horse-hoofs had once trod1 the grass never afterwards grew1 and before whose ravages the human race seemed melting away4 ,the terms in which the great wickedness of the antediluvians is described indicate a period of violence and outrage2--the age which preceded the ,flood was an age of giants and of mighty men1 and of men of renown1--forgotten ,attilas1 ,alarics1 and ,zingis ,khans1 mayhap1--giants of mighty bone and bold emprise1 who became famous for their infinite manslaughter1 and the thousands whom they destroyed4 ,such is decidedly the view which the brief ,scriptural description suggested to the poets2 and certainly1 when a question comes to be one of guess work1 no other class of persons guess half so sagaciously as they4 ,it has not unfrequently occurred to me1--and in a question of this kind one suggestion may be quite as admissible as another1--that the ,deluge may have been more a visitation of mercy to the race than of judgment4 ,even in our own times1 as happened in ,new ,zealand during the present century1 and in ,tahiti about the close of the last1 tribes restricted to one tract of country1 when seized by the madness of conquest1 have narrowly escaped extermination4 ,we know that in some instances better have been destroyed by worse races1--that the more refined have at times yielded to the more barbarous1--yielded so entirely1 that all that survived of vast populations and a comparatively high civilization have been broken temples1 and great burial mounds locked up in the solitudes of deep forests2 and further1 that whole peoples1 exhausted by their vices1 have sunk into such a state of depression and decline1 that1 unable any longer to supply the inevitable waste of nature1 they have dropt into extinction4 ,and such may have been the condition of the human race during that period of portentous evil and violence which preceded the deluge4 ,we know that the good came at length to be restricted to a single family2 and even the evil1 instead of being numbered1 as now1 by hundreds of millions1 may have been comprised in a few thousands1 or at most a few hundred thousands1 that were becoming fewer every year1 from the indulgence of fierce and evil passions1 in a time of outrage and violence4 ,the ,creator of the race may have dealt with it on this occasion of judgment1 as a florist does with some decaying plant1 which he cuts down to the ground in order to secure a fresh shoot from the root4 ,at all events1 the proof of an antediluvian population at once enormously great and very largely spread must rest with those who hold1 with ,dr4 ,kitto1 that its numbers and extent were such as to militate against the probability of a deluge merely partial2 and any such proof we may1 with the good old ,bishop of ,worcester1 well despair of ever seeing produced4 ,even admitting1 however1 for the argument's sake1 that the inhabitants of the ,old ,world may have been as numerous as those of ,china are now1--a number estimated by the recent authorities at more than three hundred and fifty millions1--and the admission is certainly greatly larger than there is argument enough on the other side to extort1--a comparatively partial deluge would have been sufficient to secure their destruction4 ,in short1 it may be fairly concluded1 that if there be a show of reason against the theory of a flood merely local1 it has not yet been exhibited4 ,even ,dr4 ,kitto1 with all his ingenuity and learning1 has failed to array against it arguments of any real weight or cogency2 and in my next address ,i may be perhaps able to show you that the objections which1 on the other hand1 bear against the antagonist hypothesis1 are at once solid and numerous4 ,i may be mistaken in my estimate2 but for some years past ,i have regarded them as altogether insurmountable4 ,,lecture ,,eighth4 ,,the ,,noachian ,,deluge4 ,,part ,,ii4 ,a century has not yet gone by since all the organic remains on which the science of ,palontology is now founded were regarded as the wrecks of a universal deluge1 and held good in evidence that the waters had prevailed in every known country1 and risen over the highest hills4 ,intelligent observers were not wanting at even an earlier time who maintained that a temporary flood could not have occasioned phenomena so extraordinary4 ,such was the view taken by several ,italian naturalists of the seventeenth century1 and in ,britain by the distinguished mathematician ,hooke1 the contemporary1 and in some matters rival1 of ,newton4 ,but the conclusions of these observers1 now so generally adopted1 were regarded both in ,popish and ,protestant countries as but little friendly to ,revelation2 and so strong was the opposite opinion1 and so generally were petrifactions regarded as so many proofs of a universal deluge1 that ,voltaire felt himself constrained1 first in his ,dissertation drawn up for the ,academy at ,bologna1 and next in his article on shells in the ,philosophical ,dictionary1 to take up the question as charged with one of the evidences of that ,revelation which it was the great design of his life to subvert4 ,and with an unfairness too characteristic of his sparkling but unsolid writings1 we find him arguing1 that all fossil shells were either those of fresh water lakes and rivers evaporated during dry seasons1 or of land snails developed in unusual abundance during wet ones2 or that they were shells which had been dropped from the hats of pilgrims on their way from the ,holy ,land to their homes2 or that they were shells that had gone astray from cabinets and museums2 or1 finally1 that they were not shells at all1 but mere shell-like forms1 produced by some occult process of nature in the bowels of the earth4 ,in fine1 in order to destroy the credibility of the ,noachian deluge1 the brilliant ,frenchman exhausted every expedient in his attempts to neutralize that ,palontologic evidence on which geologists now found some of their most legitimate conclusions4 ,but he only succeeded1 instead1 in producing compositions of which every sentence contains either an absurdity or an untruth1 and in raising a reaction against the special school of infidelity which he had founded1 that at length bore it down4 ,he wrote in the middle of the ,paris basin1 with its multitude of fossil shells and bones2 and1 when penning his article for the ,encyclopdia1 he had1 he tells us1 a boxful of the shell-charged soil of the ,faluns of ,touraine actually before him2 but the deluge had to be put down1 whatever the nature or bearing of the facts2 and so he could find in either no evidence of a time when the sea had covered the land4 ,he found1 instead1 only some mussels1 because there were ponds in the neighborhood4 ,as for the spiral petrifactions termed cornu ammonis1 of which the ,jurassic ,alps are full1 they were not nautili1 he said2 they could be nothing else than reptiles2 seeing that reptiles take almost always the form of a spiral when not in motion2 and it was surely more likely1 that when petrified they should still retain the spiral disposition1 than that the ,indian ,ocean should have long ago overflowed the mountains of ,europe4 ,were there not1 however1 real shells of the ,syrian type in ,france and ,italy8 ,perhaps so4 ,but ought we not to recollect1 he asked1 the numberless bands of pilgrims who carried their money to the ,holy ,land1 and brought back shells8 or was it preferable to think that the sea of ,joppa and ,sidon had covered ,burgundy and ,milanais8 ,as for the seeming shells of the less superficial deposits1 ,are we sure1 he inquired1 that the soil of the earth cannot produce fossils8 ,agate in some specimens contains its apparent sprigs of moss1 which1 we know1 never existed as the vegetable they resemble2 and why should not the earth have1 in like manner1 produced its apparent shells8 ,or are not many of these shells mere lake or river petrifactions8--one never sees among them true marine substances66 ,if there were any1 why have we never seen bones of sea dogs1 sharks1 and whales8666 ,and thus he ran on1 in the belief apparently that he had to deal with but an ignorant priesthood1 too little acquainted with the facts to make out a case against him in behalf of the ,mosaic narrative1 and whom at least1 should argument fail him1 he could vanquish with a joke4 ,there was1 however1 a young ,german1 who had not at the time quite made up his mind either for the ,french school or against it1 who was no uninterested reader of ,voltaire's disquisitions on fossil shells4 ,and this young man was destined to be in the coming age what the ,frenchman had been in the closing one1--the leading mind of ,europe4 ,he1 too1 had been looking at fossils2 and having no case to make out either for or against ,moses1 or any one else1 he had received in a fair and candid spirit the evidence with which they were charged4 ,and the gross dishonesty of ,voltaire in the matter formed so decided a turning point with him1 that from that time forward he employed his great influence in bearing down the ,french school of infidelity1 as a school detestably false and hollow2--a warning1 surely1 to all1 whether they stand up for ,revelation or against it1 of the danger of being1 like the witty ,frenchman1 wicked overmuch4 ,to us youths1 says ,goethe1 in his ,autobiography1 with our ,german love of truth and nature1 the factious dishonesty of ,voltaire1 and the perversion of so many worthy subjects1 became more and more annoying1 and we daily strengthened ourselves in our aversion from him4 ,he could never have done with degrading religion and the sacred books for the sake of injuring priestcraft1 as he called it2 and thus produced in me many an unpleasing sensation4 ,but when ,i now learned1 that to weaken the tradition of a ,deluge1 he had denied all petrified shells1 and only admitted them as lusus natur1 he entirely lost my confidence2 for my own eyes had on the ,baschberg plainly enough shown me that ,i stood on the bottom of an old dried-up sea1 among the exuvi of its ancient inhabitants4 ,these mountains had certainly been once covered with waves1--whether before or during the ,deluge did not concern me3 it was enough that the valley of the ,rhine had been a monstrous lake1--a bay extending beyond the reach of eyesight3 out of this ,i was not to be talked4 ,i thought much more of advancing in the knowledge of lands and mountains1 let what would be the result4 ,i know not in the whole history of opinion a more instructive passage than this4 ,little could ,voltaire have known what he was in reality doing1 or how egregiously he was overreaching himself1 when1 in laboring to bear down the evidence borne by fossils to the ancient upheavals and cataclysms1 he suffered himself to make use of assertions and arguments so palpably unfair4 ,and those who employ1 in their zeal against the geologists1 what is still exceedingly common1--the ,voltairean style of argument1--especially if they employ it in what they deem the behalf of religion1 might do well to inquire whether they are not in some little danger of producing the ,voltairean result4 ,no man acquainted with the general outlines of ,palontology1 or the true succession of the sedimentary formations1 has been able to believe1 during the last half century1 that any proof of a general deluge can be derived from the older geologic systems1--,palozoic1 ,secondary1 or ,tertiary4 ,it has been held1 however1 by accomplished geologists1 within even the last thirty years1 that such proof might be successfully sought for in what are known as the superficial deposits4 ,such was the belief of ,cuvier1--a man who1 even in geologic science1 which was certainly not his peculiar province1 exerted a mighty influence over the thinking of other men4 ,i agree with ,,mm4 ,deluc and ,dolomieu in thinking1 we find him saying1 in his widely famed ,theory of the ,earth1 that if anything in geology be established1 it is1 that the surface of our globe has undergone a great and sudden revolution1 the date of which cannot be referred to a much earlier period than five or six thousand years ago4 ,but from the same celebrated work we learn that ,cuvier held that this sudden catastrophe1--occasioned1 as he supposed1 by an elevation of the sea bottom and a submergence of the previously existing land1--had not been universal2 seeing he could entertain the belief that the three great races of the human family1--,ethiopian1 ,mongolian1 and ,caucasian1--had all escaped from it in several directions4 ,in referring to the marked peculiarities of the ,mongolian race1 so very distinct from the ,caucasian1 he merely intimates1 that he was tempted to believe their ancestors and ours had escaped the great catastrophe on different sides2 but in dwelling on the still more marked peculiarities of the ,negroes1 we find him explicitly stating1 that1 all their characters clearly show that they had escaped from the overwhelming deluge at another point than the ,caucasian and ,altaic races2 from which they had perhaps been separated1 he adds1 for a long time previous to the occurrence of that event4 ,for a season1 geologists of high standing in our own country1 such as ,buckland and ,conybeare1 followed ,cuvier so far as to hold1 that the superficial deposits bore evidence everywhere of a great cataclysm1 the last of the geologic catastrophes2 and which might be identified1 they believed1 with the ,noachian ,deluge4 ,against this view one of the most distinguished of ,scottish naturalists1 ,dr4 ,john ,fleming1 raised a vigorous protest as early as the year #ahbf1 and conclusively showed that no temporary flood could have produced the existing appearances4 ,and so thoroughly were his facts and reasonings confirmed by subsequent discovery1 that the geologists of name who had acquiesced1 wholly or in part1 in the ,cuvierian view1 read in succession their recantations3 ,dr4 ,buckland in especial1 who had written most largely on the subject1 and committed himself most thoroughly1 did so a very few years after3 nor does the hypothesis of ,cuvier appear to have been since adopted by any writer of scientific reputation4 ,instead1 therefore1 of contending with arguments or inferences which there are now no parties in the field to maintain1 ,i shall briefly refer to a few of the leading characteristics of those superficial deposits on which the abandoned conclusions were originally based1 and show1 in the passing1 that they are not such as a temporary deluge could have produced4 ,the superficial deposits include what is known as the mammaliferous crag1 the drift1 the boulder and brick clays1 the stratified sands and gravels1 the travelled rocks1 the sars1 and moraines of the higher latitudes4 ,for it is a fact very significant in its bearings on the diluvial controversy1 that it is in the higher latitudes in both hemispheres that these peculiar deposits are chiefly to be found4 ,they have been traced in ,patagonia in the one hemisphere1 from the southern limits of the country to the forty-first degree of south latitude2 and in ,europe in the other1 to the fortieth2 and in ,america to even the thirty-eighth degree of north latitude4 ,but in the great belt1 nearly eighty degrees in breadth1 which1 encircling the globe from east to west1 includes with the torrid the warmer portions of the temperate zones1 they have scarce any existence at all1 or exist at least in different forms and exceedingly reduced proportions4 ,the superficial deposits1 in their most characteristic conditions1 are deposits of the colder portions of the globe1 and in many parts indicate that there prevailed during their formation a much severer climate than now obtains in the regions in which they occur4 ,the shells which they contain in ,britain1 for instance1 though almost all of existing species1 are many of them such as are not now to be found in the ,british seas1 but in seas about ten degrees further to the north2 and there is evidence that the line of perpetual snow must have descended at the time to a lower level than that attained by our second-class hills1 and that almost every ,highland valley had its glacier4 ,they represent1 too1 vast periods of time2--earlier periods1 during which the land gradually sank1 till only its higher eminences were uncovered1 and great floats of icebergs went careering over its submerged plains and lower hills2 and later periods1 during which the land as gradually arose1 after apparently many pauses and oscillations1 until at length1 when it had reached a level scarce eighty feet higher than that which it at present maintains1 the climate softened1 and the glaciers which had formed in the later times among its hills ultimately disappeared4 ,beds of sea-shells of the boreal type1 that belong to those ice ages1 may be still found occupying the places in which they had lived and died1 many miles inland1 and hundreds of feet over the sea level4 ,boring shells1 such as the pholodadid1 may be detected far out of sight of the ocean1 still occupying the cells which they had scooped out for themselves in hard limestone or yielding shale2 and serpula and nuliporate encrustations may be seen still adhering to rocks raised to giddy elevations over the sea4 ,the group of mammals1 however1 which lived during this period1 and to whose abundant tusks and skeletons one of its older deposits 7the mammaliferous crag7 owes its name1 was marked by so peculiar a character1 that evidence of a universal deluge has been often sought for in their remains4 ,the group1--that which immediately preceded the animals of our own times1 and included not a few of the indigenous species which still inhabit our country1--was chiefly remarkable for containing many genera1 all of whose existing species are exotic4 ,it had its great elephant1 its two species of rhinoceros1 its hippopotamus1 its hyna1 its tiger1 and its monkey2 and much ingenious calculation has been employed by writers such as ,granville ,penn1 in attempting to show how these remains might have been transported from the intertropical regions during the ,flood1 not only to ,britain1 but even to the northern wastes of ,siberia1--a voyage of from four to five thousand miles4 ,there are instances on record in which the bodies of the drowned have been drifted from ninety to a hundred and fifty miles from the spot where they had been first submerged2 but they have always been found1 in these cases1 in a condition of sad mutilation and decay2 whereas the carcass of the ancient elephant which was discovered1 a little ere the commencement of the present century1 locked up in ice in ,siberia1 three thousand six hundred miles from where elephants now live1 was in such a state of excellent keeping1 that the bears and dogs fed upon its flesh4 ,it seems a significant circumstance too1 that the remains of these fossil elephants1 tigers1 and hynas1 should be associated in even our own country with those of well known northern species1--with the remains of the reindeer1 of the red deer1 of the ,lithuanian auroch1 of the ,european beaver1 of the ,european wolf1 of the wild cat1 the fox1 and the otter4 ,writers1 however1 such as ,mr4 ,penn1 got over both difficulties4 ,he showed1 for instance1 how a ship had once run across the ,atlantic under bare poles1 during an almost continued hurricane1 at the rate of two hundred and eighty-eight miles in twenty-four hours1--nearly the rate at which the great ,american steamers cross the same ocean now2 and why1 he asked1 might not the carcasses of elephants have drifted northwards at an equal rate on the tides of the deluge8 ,and as for the mixed character of the group with which these remains are found associated1 that was exactly what ,mr4 ,penn would have expected in the circumstances4 ,it was the result of a tumultuary flood1 which had brought together in our northern region the floating carcasses of the animals of all climates1 to sink in unwonted companionship1 when putrefaction had done its work1 into the same deposits4 ,he had1 however1 unluckily overlooked the fact1 that comparative anatomy is in reality a science2 and further1 that it is a science of which men such as ,cuvier and ,owen know a great deal more than the men who never studied it1 however respectable4 ,it is the recorded decision of these great anatomists1--a decision which has been many times tested and confirmed1--that the northern species of elephant1 rhinoceros1 tiger1 and hyna1 were entirely different from the intertropical species2 that they differed from them very considerably more than the ass differs from the horse1 or the dog from the wolf2 and that1 while there is a preponderating amount of evidence to show that they were natives of the countries in which their remains are now found1 there is not a shadow of evidence to show that they had ever lived1 or could have lived1 in an intertropical country4 ,of the northern elephant1 it is positively known1 from the ,siberian specimen1 that it was covered1 like many other sub-arctic animals1 with long hair1 and a thick crisp undergrowth of wool1 about three inches in length1--certainly not an intertropical provision2 and so entirely different was it in form from either of the existing species1 ,african or ,indian1 that a child could be taught in a single lesson to distinguish it by the tusks alone4 ,in fine1 the assumption that challenges the remains of the old ,pleistocene carnivora and pachydermata as those of intertropical species brought northwards by a universal deluge1 is about as well based and sound as if it challenged the bones of foxes occasionally found in our woods for the remains of dogs of ,aleppo or ,askalon brought into ,britain by the ,crusaders1 or as if it pronounced a dead ass to be one of the cavalry horses of the fatal charge of ,balaklava1 transported to ,england from the ,crimea as a relic of the fight4 ,the hypothesis confounds as a species the ,rosinante of ,quixote with the ,dapple of ,sancho ,panza1 and frames its argument on the mistake4 ,that this extinct group of animals inhabited for ages the countries in which their remains are now embedded1 is rendered evident by their great numbers in some localities1 and from their occurrence in various states of preservation1 and in beds of various ages4 ,the five hundred mammoths whose tusks and grinders were dragged up in thirteen years by the oyster dredgers of the ,norfolk coast from a tract of submerged drift1 could not all have been contemporary in a small corner of ,england1 but must have represented several generations4 ,and of course the two thousand grinders brought up from the exposed surface of the drift must have borne but a small proportion to the thousands still dispersed throughout the entire depth of the deposit4 ,any argument1 however1 founded on the mere numbers of these elephantine tusks and grinders1 and which evaded the important question of species1 might be eluded1 however unfairly1 by the assertors of a universal deluge4 ,floods certainly do at times accumulate1 in great heaps1 bodies of the same specific gravity2 and why might not a universal flood have accumulated on this special tract of drift1 the carcasses of many elephants8 ,but it will be found greatly more difficult to elude the ingenious argument on the general question of ,professor ,owen4 ,next1 perhaps1 to the extinct elephant1 one of the most numerous animals of this ancient group was the great ,irish elk1 ,megaceros ,hibernicus1 a creature that1 measured to the top of its enormous antlers1 stood ten feet four inches in height1 and exceeded in bulk and size the largest horses4 ,like all other species of the deer family1 the creature annually shed and renewed its horns2 and a male deer may be reckoned1 says ,professor ,owen1 to have left about eight pairs of antlers1 besides its bones1 to testify its former existence upon the earth4 ,but as the female has usually no antlers1 our expectations might be limited to the discovery of four times as many pairs of antlers as skeletons in the superficial deposits of the countries in which such deer have lived and died4 ,the actual proportion of the fossil antlers of the great extinct species of ,british ,pliocene deer 7which antlers are proved by the form of their base to have been shed by the living animals7 to the fossil bones of the same species1 is somewhat greater than in the above calculation4 ,although1 therefore1 it may be contended that the swollen carcass of a drowned exotic deer might be borne along a diluvial wave to a considerable distance1 and its bones ultimately deposited far from its native soil1 it is not credible that all the solid shed antlers of such species of deer could be carried by the same cause to the same distance2 or that any of them could be rolled for a short distance1 with other heavy debris of a mighty torrent1 without fracture and signs of friction4 ,but the shed antlers of the large extinct species of deer found in this island and in ,ireland have commonly their parts or branches entire as when they fell2 and the fractured specimens are generally found in caves1 and show marks of the teeth of the ossivorous hynas by which they had been gnawed2 thus at the same time revealing the mode in which they were introduced into those caves1 and proving the contemporaneous existence in this island of both kinds of mammalia4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aaa4 ,,megaceros ,,hibernicus4 7,irish ,elk47 ,but the contents of the bone caves1 consisting in large part of the extinct mammals1 ought of themselves to be decisive in this question4 ,as the opening of the ,kirkdale cavern is only about four feet each way1 a diluvial wave1 charged with the wreck of the lower latitudes1 could scarce have washed into such an orifice any considerable number of the intertropical animals4 ,and yet there has been found in this cave1--with the teeth of a very young mammoth1 of a very great tiger1 of a tiger-like animal whose genus is extinct1 of a rhinoceros1 and of a hippopotamus1--the fragmentary remains of from two to three hundred hynas4 ,further1 even supposing1 what is impossible1 that a diluvial wave had swept them all from the tropics into the four-feet hole1 on what principle is it to be explained that the bones thus washed into the cave should be all gnawed bones1 even those of the hynas themselves1 whereas the bones of the same creatures found in the mammaliferous deposits of the country bear no marks of teeth8 ,mr4 ,granville ,penn1 however1 gets over the difficulty of the cave1 which is hollowed1 ,i may mention1 in a limestone of the ,oolitic series1 inclosing the ammonite and belemnite1 by asserting that its mammaliferous contents may be somewhat older than itself6 ,the limestone existed1 he holds1 as but a mere unformed pulp at the time the intertropical animals came floating northwards3 they sank into it2 the gasses evolved during putrefaction blew up the plastic lime above them into a great oblong bubble1 somewhat as a glass-blower blows up a bottle2 and hence the ,kirkdale cavern1 with its gnawed bones and its amazing number of teeth4 ,and certainly a geologic argument of this ingenious character has one signal advantage1--it is in no danger whatever of being answered by the geologists4 ,mr4 ,penn1 in a second edition of his work1 expressed some surprise that an ,edinburgh ,reviewer should have merely stated his argument without replying to it66 ,but ,i need not dwell on the arguments for a universal deluge which have been derived from the superficial deposits4 ,they all belong to an immature age of geologic science1 and are of no value whatever4 ,let us pass rather to the consideration of the facts and arguments which militate against the universality of the catastrophe4 ,the form and dimensions of ,noah's ark are definitely given in the sacred record4 ,it seems to have been a great oblong box1 somewhat like a wooden granary1 three stories high1 and furnished with a roof apparently of the ordinary angular shape1 but with a somewhat broader ridge than common2 and it measured three hundred cubits in length1 fifty cubits in breadth1 and thirty cubits in height4 ,a good deal of controversy has1 however1 arisen regarding the cubit employed2 some holding1 with ,sir ,walter ,raleigh1 and most of the older theologians1 such as ,shuckford and ,hales1 that the ,noachian cubit was what is known as the common or natural cubit1 containing1 says ,sir ,walter1 one foot and a half1 or a length equal to that of the human fore-arm measured from the sharp of the elbow to the point of the middle finger2 others contending that it was the palm-cubit1 which taketh1 adds my authority1 one handful more than the common2 yet others1 the royal or ,persian cubit of twenty-one inches2 and so on2 for there are1 it seems1 five several kinds of cubit to choose from1 all differing each from the others4 ,the controversy is one in which there is exceeding little footing for any party4 ,i am inclined1 however1 to adopt1 with ,raleigh and ,hales1 the natural cubit1 for the following reason4 ,the given dimensions of the ark form the oldest example of measurement of which we have any record2 and all1 or almost all1 the older and simpler standards of measure bear reference to portions of the human frame4 ,there is the span1 the palm1 the hand-breadth1 the thumb-breadth 7or inch71 the hair-breadth1 and the foot4 ,the simple fisherman on our coasts still measures off his fathoms by stretching out both his arms to the full2 the village sempstress still tells off her cloth-breadths by finger-lengths and nails2 the untaught tiller of the soil still estimates the area of his little field by pacing along its sides4 ,man's first and most obvious expedient1 when he sets himself to measure1 is to employ his own person as his standard2 and the first or common cubit was a measure of this natural description equal in length to the extended fore-arm and hand4 ,all the other cubits were artificial compounds of after introduction2 and so1 in the absence of direct evidence on the point1 ,i accept the most natural and oldest cubit as in all probability the one employed in the oldest recorded piece of cubit measurement4 ,and the ark1 if measured by the common or natural cubit1 must have been a vessel four hundred and fifty feet in length1 seventy-five feet in breadth1 and forty-five feet in height4 ,dr4 ,kitto1 however1 though we find him remarking that in computations of ,scripture measures the cubit may be regarded as half a yard 7,sir ,walter's estimate71 adopts1 in his own computation of the size of the ark1 without assigning any reason why1 the palm-cubit1 or cubit of twenty-one inches and nearly nine lines 7#ba4hhh inches72 and1 waving all controversy on the question1 let us1 for the argument's sake1 admit the larger measure4 ,let us1--however much inclined to hold with ,raleigh1 ,shuckford1 and ,hales1--agree with ,dr4 ,kitto that the ark was five hundred and forty-seven feet in length1 by ninety-one feet in breadth4 ,such dimensions1 multiplied by three1 the number of stories in the vessel1 would give an area equal to about one seventh that of the great ,crystal ,palace of #ahea4 ,or1 to take a more definite illustration from the same vast building1 the area of the three floors of the ark1 taken together1 would fall short by about twenty-eight thousand square feet of that of the northern gallery of the ,palace1 which measured one thousand eight hundred and forty-eight feet in length1 by ninety-six feet in breadth4 ,and thus1 yielding to our opponents their own large measurements1 let us now see whether the non-universality of the deluge cannot be fairly predicated from the dimensions of the ark4 ,i may first remark1 however1 that measures so definite as those given by ,moses 7definite1 of course1 if we waive the doubt regarding the cubit employed7 were effectual in setting the arithmeticians to work in all ages of the ,church1 in order to determine whether all the animals in the world1 by sevens and by pairs1 with food sufficient to serve them for a twelvemonth1 could have been accommodated in the given space4 ,it was a sort of stock problem1 that required1 it was thought1 no very high attainments to solve4 ,eighty years have not yet passed since kind old ,samuel ,johnson1 in writing to little ,miss ,thrale a nice little letter1 recommending her to be a good girl1 and to mind her arithmetic1 advised her to try the ark problem4 ,if you can borrow ',wilkins' ,real ,character1' we find him saying to the young lady1 a folio which perhaps the booksellers can let you have1 you will have a very curious calculation1 which you are qualified to consider1 to show that ,noah's ark was capable of holding all the known animals of the world1 with provision for all the time in which the earth was under water4 ,unluckily1 however1 though the dimensions of the ark were known1 the animals of the world were not2 and so the question1 in at least one of its terms1 had to be very frequently restated4 ,let us take it as we find it presented 7drawn1 however1 from a much older source71 in ,sir ,walter ,raleigh's magnificent ,history of the ,world4 ,if in a ship of such greatness1 says this distinguished man1 we seek room for eighty-nine distinct species of beasts1 or1 lest any should be omitted1 for a hundred several kinds1 we shall easily find place both for them and for the birds1 which in bigness are no way answerable to them1 and for meat to sustain them all4 ,for there are three sorts of beasts whose bodies are of a quantity well known2 the beef1 the sheep1 and the wolf2 to which the rest may be reduced by saying1 according to ,aristotle1 that one elephant is equal to four beeves1 one lion to two wolves1 and so of the rest4 ,of beasts1 some feed on vegetables1 others on flesh4 ,there are one-and-thirty kinds of the greater sort feeding on vegetables1 of which number only three are clean1 according to the law of ,moses1 whereof seven of a kind entered into the ark1 namely1 three couples for breed1 and one odd one for sacrifice2 the other eight-and-twenty kinds were 'taken by two of each kind2 so that in all there were in the ark one-and-twenty great beasts clean1 and six-and-fifty unclean2 estimable for largeness as ninety-one beeves2 yet1 for a supplement 7lest1 perhaps1 any species be omitted71 lot them be valued as a hundred and twenty beeves4 ,of the lesser sort feeding on vegetables were in the ark six-and-twenty kinds1 estimable1 with good allowance for supply1 as fourscore sheep4 ,of those which devour flesh were two-and-thirty kinds1 answerable to threescore and four wolves4 ,all these two hundred and eighty beasts might be kept in one story or room of the ark1 in their several cabins2 their meat in a second2 the birds and their provision in a third1 with space to spare for ,noah and his family1 and all their necessaries4 ,such was the calculation of the great voyager ,raleigh1--a man who had a more practical acquaintance with stowage than perhaps any of the other writers who have speculated on the capabilities of the ark2 and his estimate seems sober and judicious4 ,it will be seen1 however1 that from the vast increase in our knowledge of the mammals which has taken place since the age in which the ,history of the ,world was written1 the calculation which embraced all the eighty-nine known animals of that time would embrace those of but a single centre of creation now2 and that the estimate of ,sir ,walter tells1 in consequence1 on the side1 not of a universal1 but of a partial deluge4 ,as man extended his acquaintance with the mammals1 he found their number greatly increasing on his hands4 ,button1 like ,raleigh1 though a professed naturalist1 and a writer of admirable genius1 had no very distinct notions of species4 ,he was inclined to question whether even the ass might not be merely a degraded horse2 and confounded many of the mammals of the ,new ,world with their representative congeners in the ,old4 ,and yet1 in summing up his history of the mammaliferous division1 he could state1 that though it included descriptions of a hundred and thirty-four different species of creatures that suckled their young1 many of which had not been observed or described before1 it was necessarily incomplete1 as there were still others to add to the list1 for whose history there existed no materials4 ,at the same time he remarked1 however1 that the number of quadruped animals whose existence is certain and well established does not amount to more than two hundred on the surface of the known world4 ,yet here was the extreme estimate made by ,raleigh1 with what he deemed large allowance for the unknown animals1 fairly doubled2 and under the hands of more discriminating naturalists1 and in the inevitable course of discovery1 the number has so enormously increased1 that the eighty-nine distinct species known to the great voyager have been represented during the last thirty years by the one thousand mammals of ,swainson's estimate1 the one thousand one hundred and forty-nine mammals of ,charles ,bonaparte's estimate1 the one thousand two hundred and thirty mammals of ,winding's estimate1 and the one thousand five hundred mammals of ,oken's estimate4 ,in the first edition of the admirable ,physical ,atlas of ,johnston 7published in #ahdh7 there are one thousand six hundred and twenty-six different species of mammals enumerated2 and in the second edition 7published in #ahef71 one thousand six hundred and fifty-eight species4 ,and to this very extraordinary advance on the eighty-nine mammals of ,raleigh1 and the two hundred mammals of ,buffon1 we must add the six thousand two hundred and sixty-six birds of ,lesson1 and the six hundred and fifty-seven reptiles of ,charles ,bonaparte2 or at least1--subtracting the sea snakes1 and perhaps the turtles1 as fitted to live outside the ark1--his six hundred and forty-two reptiles4#bi ,such is the number of the known vertebrates1 exclusive of the fishes1 with which in this question we have now to deal4 ,still1 however1 there are a few lingering theologians1 some of them very intelligent men1 who continue to regard the ark as quite big enough for them all4 ,dr4 ,hamilton of ,mobile1 for instance1 after fairly stating ,swainson's estimate1 namely1 one thousand mammalia1 six thousand birds1 and one thousand five hundred reptiles and amphibi1 goes on to say1 that it must not be forgotten1 that of all these1 the vastly greater proportion are small2 and that numbers of them could be placed together in the same compartment of the ark4 ,this1 however1 permit me to say with all respect1 is not meeting the real difficulty4 ,no doubt many of the birds are small1--many of the reptiles are small1--many even of the mammals are small1--many small animals were known in the days of ,raleigh1 and a much greater number of small animals are known now2 but the question proper to the case seems to be1 ,what proportions do both the large and the small animals now known bear to the large and small animals known in the days of ,raleigh or ,buffon2 and how much additional accommodation-room would they require during their supposed voyage of a twelvemonth8 ,there are two different ways in which the list of the known animals has been increased1 especially of the known mammals4 ,they have been increased in a certain appreciable proportion by discovery2 and as discovery has been made chiefly in islands1--for the great continents had been previously known1--and as the mammals of islands1 as has been well remarked by ,cuvier1 are usually small1 of this appreciable proportion the bulk is comparatively not great4 ,the great kangaroo 7,macropus giganteus71 though the inhabitant of an island which ranks among the continents1 would not much exceed in bulk1 tried by ,raleigh's quaint scale of measurement1 a sheep and a half1 or at most two sheep2 and yet ,i know not that discovery in the islands has added a larger animal to the previously known ones than the great kangaroo4 ,mr4 ,waterhouse1 when he published1 in #ahda1 his ,history of the ,marsupialia1 reckoned up one hundred and five distinct species of pouched animals2 and eighteen species more1--in all one hundred and twenty-three1--have been since added to the order4 ,with the exception of an opossum or two1 all these marsupiata may be regarded as discoveries made since the time of ,buffon2 most of them1 as ,i have said1 are small4 ,and such1 generally1 has been the nature of the revelations made during the last seventy years by positive discovery4 ,it is not1 however1 by discovery1 but by scientific scrutiny into the true nature and distinctions of species1 that the recent enormous increase in the number of the known mammals has mainly taken place4 ,and in these cases it will generally be found that the new species1 which had been previously confounded with some old ones1 so nearly resemble the latter in bulk1 as well as aspect1 as to justify in some degree the mistake4 ,let us take two of the greatest animals as examples1--the elephant and the rhinoceros4 ,buffon confounded the ,african with the ,asiatic elephant4 ,we now know that they represent two well marked species1 ,elephas ,africanus and ,elephas ,indicus2 and that an ark which contained the ancestors of all the existing animals would require to have its two pair of elephants1 not the one pair only which would have been deemed sufficient eighty years ago4 ,again1 with respect to the rhinoceros1 ,buffon was acquainted with the single horned animal1 and had heard of the animal with two horns2 and so1 though by no means certain that the variety was constant1 he yet held that two distinct species might possibly be established4 ,but we now know that there are six species of rhinoceros 7seven1 according to the ,physical ,atlas17--,rh4 ,indicus1 ,rh4 ,javanus1 ,rh4 ,sumatrensis1 ,rh4 ,africanus1 ,rh4 simus1 and ,rh4 ketloa2 and that1 instead of possibly four1 at least twelve1 or more probably fourteen1 animals of the genus would require1 on the hypothesis of a universal deluge1 to have been accommodated in the ark4 ,buffon even held that the bison of ,america might be identical with not simply the auroch of ,europe1 which it closely resembles1 but with even the ,european ox1 which it does not resemble4 ,but it is now known1 that while the ,european aurochs are provided by nature with but fourteen pairs of ribs1 the ,american bison is furnished with fifteen4 ,of each of the ruminants that divide the hoof1 there were seven introduced into the ark2 and it may be well to mark how1 even during the last few years1 our acquaintance with this order of animals has been growing1 and how greatly the known species1 in their relation to human knowledge1 have in consequence increased4 ,in #ahdh 7in the first edition of the ,physical ,atlas7 ,mr4 ,waterhouse estimated the oxen at thirteen species2 in #ahef 7in the second edition7 he estimates them at twenty4 ,in #ahdh he estimated the sheep at twenty-one species2 in #ahef he estimates them at twenty-seven4 ,in #ahdh he estimated the goats at fourteen species2 in #ahef he estimates them at twenty4 ,in #ahdf he estimated the deer at thirty-eight species2 in #ahef he estimates them at fifty-one4 ,in short1 if1 excluding the lamas and the musks as doubtfully clean1 tried by the ,mosaic test1 we but add to the sheep1 goats1 deer1 and cattle1 the forty-eight species of unequivocally clean antelopes1 and multiply the whole by seven1 we shall have as the result a sum total of one thousand one hundred and sixty-two individuals1--a number more than four times greater than that for which ,raleigh made provision in the ark1 and considerably more than twice greater than that provided for by the students of ,buffon4 ,such is the nature and amount of the increase which has taken place during the last half century in the mammaliferous fauna4 ,in so great a majority of cases has it increased its bulk in the ratio in which it has increased its numbers1 that if one ark was not deemed more than sufficient to accommodate the animal world known to the ,french naturalist of eighty years ago1 it would require at least from five to six arks to accommodate the animal world known in the present day4 ,even in the days of ,buffon1 however1 and at a still earlier period1 the ark1 regarded as a natural means of preservation from death by drowning1 was usually coupled1 in the case of at least the carnivorous animals1 with certain miraculous provisions against death by starving4 ,it seems to have been generally taken for granted1 that the flesh-eating animals1 when introduced to the shelter of the ark1 entirely changed the nature indicated by their form of teeth1 the character of their stomachs1 and the shortness of their bowels1 and fed1 for the time they remained in it1 exclusively on vegetable substances1 which1 in ordinary circumstances1 their lacteals could not have converted into chyle4 ,certain figurative expressions in ,scripture taken literally1 which refer to a class of wild animals whose real destiny is rather1 it would seem1 to be extirpated than to be changed1 coupled with the belief1 now no longer tenable1 that there was a time1 ere man had sinned1 when there was no death among the inferior creatures1 and of course no eaters of flesh1 rendered the belief easy of reception2 but it involved a miracle nowhere recorded2 and the burden of the proof that such a miracle actually took place in the circumstances lies of necessity on the assertors of a universal deluge4 ,further1 of even the creatures that live on vegetables1 many are restricted in their food to single plants1 which are themselves restricted to limited localities and remote regions of the globe4 ,dr4 ,hamilton has not referred1 in his list of animals1 to the insects1--a class which1 though they were estimated in #ahdb to consist of no fewer than five hundred and fifty thousand species1 might yet be accommodated in a comparatively limited space4 ,but how extraordinary an amount of miracle would it not require to bring them all together into any one centre1 or to preserve them there6 ,many of them1 like the myriapoda and the thysanura1 have no wings1 and but feeble locomotive powers2 many of them1 such as the ephemera and the male ants1 live after they have got their wings only a few hours1 or at most a few days2 and there are myriads of them that can live upon but single plants that grow in very limited botanic centres4 ,even supposing them all brought into the ark by miracle as eggs1 what multitudes of them would not1 without the exertion of further miracle1 require to be sent back to their proper habitats as wingless grubs1 or as insects restricted by nature to a few days of life6 ,or1 supposing the eggs all left in their several localities to lie under water for a twelvemonth amid mud and debris1--though certain of the hardier kinds might survive such treatment1 by miracle alone could the preponderating majority of the class be preserved4 ,and be it remembered1 that the expedient of having recourse to supposititious miracle in order to get over a difficulty insurmountable on every natural principle1 is not of the nature of argument1 but simply an evidence of the want of it4 ,argument is at an end when supposititious miracle is introduced4 ,but the very inadequate size of the ark1 though a conclusive proof that all1 or nearly all1 the progenitors of our existing animals could not have harbored within it from any general cataclysm1 does not furnish a stronger argument against the possibility of any such assemblage1 than the peculiar manner in which we now find these animals distributed over the earth's surface4 ,linnus held1 early in the last century1 that all creatures which now inhabit the globe had proceeded originally from some such common centre as the ark might have furnished2 but no zoologist acquainted with the distribution of species can acquiesce in any such conclusion now4 ,we now know that every great continent has its own peculiar fauna2 that the original centres of distribution must have been1 not one1 but many2 further1 that the areas or circles around these centres must have been occupied by their pristine animals in ages long anterior to that of the ,noachian ,deluge2 nay1 that in even the latter geologic ages1 they were preceded in them by animals of the same general type4 ,there are fourteen such areas or provinces enumerated by the later naturalists4 ,it may be well1 however1 instead of running any risk of losing ourselves amid the less nicely defined provinces of the ,old ,world1 to draw our illustrations from two and a half provinces of later discovery1 whose limits have been rigidly fixed by nature4 ,the great continents1 says ,cuvier1 contain species peculiar to each2 insomuch that whenever large countries of this description have been discovered1 which their situation had kept isolated from the rest of the world1 the class of quadrupeds which they contained has been found extremely different from any that had existed elsewhere4 ,thus1 when the ,spaniards first penetrated into ,south ,america1 they did not find a single species of quadruped the same as any of ,europe1 ,asia1 or ,africa4 ,the puma1 the jaguar1 the tapir1 the cabiai1 the lama1 the vicuna1 the sloths1 the armadilloes1 the opossums1 and the whole tribe of sapajous1 were to them entirely new animals1 of which they had no idea4 ,similar circumstances have recurred in our own time1 when the coasts of ,new ,holland and the adjacent islands were first explored4 ,the various species of kangaroo1 phascolomys1 dasyurus1 and perameles1 the flying phalangers1 the ornithorynchi1 and echidn1 have astonished naturalists by the strangeness of their conformations1 which presented proportions contrary to all former rules1 and were incapable of being arranged under any of the systems then in use4 ,new ,zealand1 though singularly devoid of indigenous mammals and reptiles1--for the only native mammal seems to be a peculiar species of rat1 and the only native reptile a small1 harmless lizard1--has a scarce less remarkable fauna than either of these great continents4 ,it consists almost exclusively of birds1 some of them so ill provided with wings1 that1 like the wika of the natives1 they can only run along the ground4 ,and it is a most significant fact1 that both in the two great continents and the ,new ,zealand islands there existed1 in the later geologic ages1 extinct faunas that bore the peculiar generic characters by which their recent ones are still distinguished4 ,the sloths and armadilloes of ,south ,america had their gigantic predecessors in the enormous megatherium and mylodon1 and the strongly armed glyptodon2 the kangaroos and wombats of ,australia had their extinct predecessors in a kangaroo nearly twice the size of the largest living species1 and in so huge a wombat1 that its bones have been mistaken for those of the hippopotamus2 and the ornithic inhabitants of ,new ,zealand had their predecessors in the monstrous birds1 such as the dinornis1 the aptornis1 and the palapteryx1--wingless creatures like the ostrich1 that stood from six to twelve feet in height4 ,in these several regions two generations of species of the genera peculiar to them have existed1--the recent generation by whose descendants they are still inhabited1 and the extinct gigantic generation1 whose remains we find locked up in their soils and caves4 ,but how are such facts reconcileable with the hypothesis of a universal deluge8 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aab4 ,,mylodon ,,robustus4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aac4 ,,glyptodon ,,clavipes4 ,the deluge was an event of the existing creation4 ,had it been universal1 it would either have broken up all the diverse centres1 and substituted one great general centre instead1--that in which the ark rested2 or else1 at an enormous expense of miracle1 all the animals preserved by natural means by ,noah would have had to be returned by supernatural means to the regions whence by means equally supernatural they had been brought4 ,the sloths and armadilloes1--little fitted by nature for long journeys1--would have required to be ferried across the ,atlantic to the regions in which the remains of the megatherium and glyptodon lie entombed2 the kangaroo and wombat1 to the insulated continent that contains the bones of the extinct macropus and phalcolomys2 and the ,new ,zealand birds1 including its heavy flying quails and its wingless wood-hen1 to those remote islands of the ,pacific in which the skeletons of ,palapteryx ingens and ,dinornus giganteus lie entombed4 ,nor will it avail aught to urge1 with certain assertors of a universal deluge1 that during the cataclysm1 sea and land changed their places1 and that what is now land had formed the bottom of the antediluvian ocean1 and1 vice versa1 what is now sea had been the land on which the first human inhabitants of the earth increased and multiplied4 ,no geologist who knows how very various the ages of the several table-lands and mountain chains in reality are could acquiesce in such an hypothesis2 our own ,scottish shores1--if to the term of the existing we add that of the ancient coast line1--must have formed the limits of the land from a time vastly more remote than the age of the deluge4 ,but even supposing1 for the argument's sake1 the hypothesis recognized as admissible1 what1 in the circumstances of the case1 would be gained by the admission8 ,a continuous tract of land would have stretched1--when all the oceans were continents and all the continents oceans1--between the ,south ,american and the ,asiatic coasts4 ,and it is just possible that1 during the hundred and twenty years in which the ark was in building1 a pair of sloths might have crept by inches across this continuous tract1 from where the skeletons of the great megatheria are buried1 to where the great vessel stood4 ,but after the ,flood had subsided1 and the change in sea and land had taken place1 there would remain for them no longer a roadway2 and so1 though their journey outwards might1 in all save the impulse which led to it1 have been altogether a natural one1 their voyage homewards could not be other than miraculous4 ,nor would the exertion of miracle have had to be restricted to the transport of the remoter travellers4 ,how1 we may well ask1 had the ,flood been universal1 could even such islands as ,great ,britain and ,ireland have ever been replenished with many of their original inhabitants8 ,even supposing it possible that animals1 such as the red deer and the native ox might have swam across the ,straits of ,dover or the ,irish ,channel1 to graze anew over deposits in which the bones and horns of their remote ancestors had been entombed long ages before1 the feat would have been surely far beyond the power of such feeble natives of the soil as the mole1 the hedgehog1 the shrew1 the dormouse1 and the field-vole4 ,dr4 ,pye ,smith1 in dealing with this subject1 has emphatically said1 that all land animals having their geographical regions1 to which their constitutional natures are congenial1--many of them being unable to live in any other situation1--we cannot represent to ourselves the idea of their being brought into one small spot from the polar regions1 the torrid zone1 and all the other climates of ,asia1 ,africa1 ,europe1 and ,america1 ,australia1 and the thousands of islands1--their preservation and provision1 and the final disposal of them1--without bringing up the idea of miracles more stupendous than any that are recorded in ,scripture4 ,the great decisive miracle of ,christianity1 he adds1--the resurrection of the ,lord ,jesus1--sinks down before it4 ,and let us remember that the preservation and redistribution of the land animals would demand but a portion of the amount of miracle absolutely necessary for the preservation1 in the circumstances1 of the entire fauna of the globe4 ,the fresh water fishes1 molluscs1 crustacea1 and zoophytes1 could be kept alive in a universal deluge only by miraculous means4 ,it has been urged that1 though the living individuals were to perish1 their spawn might be preserved by natural means4 ,it must be remembered1 however1 that even of some fishes whose proper habitat is the sea1 such as the salmon1 it is essential for the maintenance of the species that the spawn should be deposited in fresh water1 nay1 in running fresh water2 for in still water1 however pure1 the eggs in a few weeks addle and die4 ,the eggs of the common trout also require to be deposited in running fresh water2 while other fresh water fishes1 such as the tench and carp1 are reared most successfully in still1 reedy ponds4 ,the fresh water fishes spawn1 too1 at very different seasons1 and the young remain for very different periods in the egg4 ,the perch and grayling spawn in the end of ,april or the beginning of ,may2 the tench and roach about the middle of ,june2 the common trout and powan in ,october and ,november4 ,and while some fishes1 such as the salmon1 remain from ninety to a hundred days in the egg1 others1 such as the trout1 are extruded in five weeks4 ,without special miracle the spawn of all the fresh water fishes could not be in existence as such at one and the same time2 without special miracle it could not maintain its vitality in a universal deluge2 and without special miracle1 even did it maintain its vitality1 it could not remain in the egg state throughout an entire twelvemonth1 but would be developed into fishes of the several species to which it belonged at very different periods4 ,further1 in a universal deluge1 without special miracle vast numbers of even the salt water animals could not fail to be extirpated2 in particular1 almost all the molluscs of the littoral and laminarian zones4 ,nor would the vegetable kingdom fare greatly better than the animal one4 ,of the one hundred thousand species of known plants1 few indeed would survive submersion for a twelvemonth2 nor would the seeds of most of the others fare better than the plants themselves4 ,there are certain hardy seeds that in favorable circumstances maintain their vitality for ages2 and there are others1 strongly encased in water-tight shells or skins1 that have floated across oceans to germinate in distant islands2 but such1 as every florist knows1 is not the general character of seeds2 and not until after many unsuccessful attempts1 and many expedients had been resorted to1 have the more delicate kinds been brought uninjured1 even on shipboard1 from distant countries to our own4 ,it is not too much to hold that1 without special miracle1 at least three fourths of the terrestrial vegetation of the globe would have perished in a universal deluge that covered over the dry land for a year4 ,assuredly the various vegetable centres or regions1--estimated by ,schouw at twenty-five1--bear witness to no such catastrophe4 ,still distinct and unbroken1 as of old1 either no effacing flood has passed over them1 or they were shielded from its effects at an expense of miracle many times more considerable than that at which the ,jews were brought out of ,egypt and preserved amid the nations1 or ,christianity itself was ultimately established4#cj ,there is1 however1 a class of learned and thoroughly respectable theologians who seem disposed to accept rather of any amount of unrecorded miracle1 than to admit of a merely partial deluge1 coextensive with but the human family4 ,were the difficulty attending this subject tenfold greater1 and seemingly beyond all satisfactory explanation1 says ,dr4 ,william ,hamilton1 if ,i yet find it recorded in the ,book of ,revelation1 that in the deluge 'every living thing in which is the breath of life perished1 and ,noah only remained alive1 and they which were with him in the ark1' ,i could still believe it implicitly1 satisfied that the difficulty of explanation springs solely from the imperfection of human knowledge1 and not from any limitation in the power or the wisdom of ,god1 nor yet from any lack of trustworthiness in the document given us in a revelation from ,god1--a document given to men by the hands of ,moses1 the learned1 accomplished1 and eminently devout ,jewish legislator4 ,here again1 however1 ,dr4 ,hamilton seems to have mistaken the question actually at issue4 ,the true question is1 not whether or no ,moses is to be believed in the matter1 but whether or no we in reality understand ,moses4 ,the question is1 whether we are to regard the passages in which he describes the ,flood as universal1 as belonging to the very numerous metonymic texts of ,scripture in which a part--sometimes a not very large part--is described as the whole1 or to regard them as strictly and severely literal4 ,or1 in other words1 whether we are1 with learned and solid divines of the olden time1 such as ,poole and ,stillingfleet1 and with many ingenious and accomplished divines of the passing age1 such as the late ,dr4 ,pye ,smith and the ,rev4 ,professor ,hitchcock1 to regard these passages as merely metonymic2 or1 with ,drs4 ,hamilton and ,kitto1 to regard them as strictly literal1 and to call up in support of the literal reading an amount of supposititious miracle1 compared with which all the recorded miracles of the ,old and ,new ,testaments sink into insignificance4 ,the controversy does not lie between ,moses and the naturalists1 but between the readings of theologians such as ,matthew ,poole and ,stillingfleet on the one hand1 and the readings of theologians such as ,drs4 ,hamilton and ,kitto on the other4 ,and finding all natural science arrayed against the conclusions of the one class1 and in favor of those of the other1 and believing1 further1 that there has been always such a marked economy shown in the exercise of miraculous powers1 that there has never been more of miracle employed in any one of the dispensations than was needed1#ca ,i must hold that the theologians who believe that the deluge was but coextensive with the moral purpose which it served are more in the right1 and may be more safely followed1 than the theologians who hold that it extended greatly further than was necessary4 ,it is not with ,moses or the truth of revelation that our controversy lies1 but with the opponents of ,stillingfleet and of ,poole4 ,to only one of the other arguments employed in this controversy need ,i at all refer4 ,the cones of volcanic craters are formed of loose incoherent scori and ashes1 and1 when exposed1 as in the case of submarine volcanoes1 such as ,graham's ,island and the islands of ,nyoe and ,sabrina1 to the denuding force of waves and currents1 they have in a few weeks1 or at most a few months1 been washed completely away4 ,and yet in various parts of the world1 such as ,auvergne in central ,france1 and along the flanks of tna1 there are cones of long extinct or long slumbering volcanoes1 which1 though of at least triple the antiquity of the ,noachian deluge1 and though composed of the ordinary incoherent materials1 exhibit no marks of denudation4 ,according to the calculations of ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 no devastating flood could have passed over the forest zone of tna during the last twelve thousand years1--for such is the antiquity which he assigns to its older lateral cones1 that retain in integrity their original shape2 and the volcanic cones of ,auvergne1 which inclose in their ashes the remains of extinct animals1 and present an outline as perfect as those of tna1 are deemed older still4 ,graham ,island arose out of the sea early in ,july1 #ahca2 in the beginning of the following ,august it had attained to a circumference of three miles1 and to a height of two hundred feet2 and yet in less than three months from that time the waves had washed its immense mass down to the sea level2 and in a few weeks more it existed but as a dangerous shoal4 ,and such inevitably would have been the fate of the equally incoherent cone-like craters of tna and ,auvergne during the seven and a half months that intervened between the breaking up of the fountains of the great deep and the reappearance of the mountain-tops1 had they been included within the area of the deluge4 ,it is estimated that even the newer ,auvergne lavas are as old as the times of the ,miocene4 ,it is at least a demonstrable fact1 that the slow action of streams had hollowed them in several places into deep chasms nearly two thousand years ago2 for the remains of ,roman works of about that age survive1 to show that they had then1 as now1 to be spanned over by bridges1 and that baths had been erected in their denuded recesses2 and yet the craters out of which these lavas had flowed retain well nigh all their original sharpness of outline4 ,no wave ever dashed against their symmetrically sloping sides4 ,now1 ,i have in no instance seen the argument derivable from this class of facts fairly met4 ,the supposed mistake of the ,canonico ,recupero1 or rather of ,brydone1 who argued that the lowest of a series of seven distinct lavas of tna1 most of them covered by thick intervening beds of rich earth1 must have been fourteen thousand years old1 has been often referred to in the controversy4 ,brydone or the ,canon mistook1 it has been said1 beds of brown ashes1 each of which might have been deposited during a single shower1 for beds of rich earth1 each of which would have taken centuries to form4 ,the oldest of the series of lava beds1 therefore1 instead of being fourteen thousand1 might be scarce fourteen hundred years old4 ,and if ,brydone or the ,canon were thus mistaken in their calculations1 why may not the modern geologists be also mistaken in theirs8 ,now1 altogether waiving the question as to whether the ingenious traveller of eighty-six years ago was or was not mistaken in his estimate1--for to those acquainted with geologic fact in general1 or more particularly with the elaborate descriptions of tna given during the last thirty years by ,elie de ,beaumont1 ,hoffmann1 and ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 the facts of ,brydone1 in their bearing on either the age of the earth or the age of the mountain1 can well be spared1--waiving1 ,i say1 the question whether the traveller was in reality in mistake1 ,i must be permitted to remark1 that the concurrent testimony of geologists cannot in fairness be placed on the same level as the testimony of a man who1 though accomplished and intelligent1 was not only no geologist1 but who observed and described ere geology had any existence as a science4 ,further1 ,i must be allowed to add1 that geology is now a science2 and that individuals unacquainted with it in its character as such place themselves in positions greatly more perilous than they seem to think1 when they enter on the field of argument with men who for many years have made it a subject of special study4 ,it is not by bidding down the age of the extinct or quiescent volcanoes by a species of blind haggling1 or by presuming mistake in the calculations regarding them1 simply because mistakes are possible and have sometimes been made1 that that portion of the cumulative evidence against a universal deluge which they furnish is to be neutralized or set aside4 ,the argument on the general question is a cumulative one2 and while many of its component portions are of themselves so conclusive1 that only supposititious miracle1 and not presentable argument1 can be arrayed against them1 its aggregate force seems wholly irresistible4 ,in passing1 however1 from the facts and reasonings that bear against the hypothesis of a universal deluge1 to indicate in a few sentences both the possible mode in which a merely partial flood might have taken place1 and the probable extent of area which it covered1 ,i shall have to remove from very strong to comparatively weak ground1--from what can be maintained as argument1 to what can at best be but offered as conjecture4 ,there is a remarkable portion of the globe1 chiefly in the ,asiatic continent1 though it extends into ,europe1 and which is nearly equal to all ,europe in area1 whose rivers 7some of them1 such as the ,volga1 the ,oural1 the ,sihon1 the ,kour1 and the ,amoo1 of great size7 do not fall into the ocean1 or into any of the many seas which communicate with it4 ,they are1 on the contrary1 all turned inwards1 if ,i may so express myself2 losing themselves1 in the eastern parts of the tract1 in the lakes of a rainless district1 in which they supply but the waste of evaporation1 and falling1 in the western parts1 into seas such as the ,caspian and the ,aral4 ,in this region there are extensive districts still under the level of the ocean4 ,the shore line of the ,caspian1 for instance1 is rather more than eighty-three feet beneath that of the ,black ,sea2 and some of the great flat steppes which spread out around it1 such as what is known as the ,steppe of ,astracan1 have a mean level of about thirty feet beneath that of the ,baltic4 ,were there a trench-like strip of country that communicated between the ,caspian and the ,gulf of ,finland to be depressed beneath the level of the latter sea1 it would so open up the fountains of the great deep as to lay under water an extensive and populous region1 containing the cities of ,astracan and ,astrabad1 and many other towns and villages4 ,nor is it unworthy of remark1 surely1 that one of the depressed steppes of this peculiar region is known as the ,low ,steppe of the ,caucasus1 and forms no inconsiderable portion of the great recognized centre of the human family4 ,the ,mount ,ararat on which1 according to many of our commentators1 the ark rested1 rises immediately on the western edge of this great hollow2 the ,mount ,ararat selected as the scene of that event by ,sir ,walter ,raleigh1 certainly not without some show of reason1 lies far within it4 ,vast plains1 white with salt1 and charged with sea shells1 show that the ,caspian ,sea was at no distant period greatly more extensive than it is now4 ,in an outer region1 which includes the vast desert of ,khiva1 shells also abound2 but they seem to belong1 as a group1 rather to some of the later ,tertiary eras than to the recent period4 ,it is quite possible1 however1 that1--as on parts of the western shores of our own country1 where recent marine deposits lie over marine deposits of the ,pleistocene age1 while a terrestrial deposit1 representative of an intervening paroxysm of upheaval1 lies between1--it is possible1 ,i say1 that in this great depressed area1 the region covered of old by a ,tertiary sea1 which we know united the ,sea of ,aral with the ,caspian1 and rolled over many a wide steppe and vast plain1 may have been again covered for a brief period 7after ages of upheaval7 by the breaking in of the great deep during that season of judgment when1 with the exception of one family1 the whole human race was destroyed4 ,it seems confirmatory of this view1 that during even the historic period1 at least one of the neighboring inland seas1 though it belongs to a different system from that of the ,caspian and the ,aral1 covered a vastly greater area than it does now1--a consequence1 apparently1 of a more considerable depression in the ,caucasian region than at present exists4 ,herodotus1 as quoted by ,cuvier in his ,theory of the ,earth1 represents the ,sea of ,azoff as equal in extent to the ,euxine4 ,with the known facts1 then1 regarding this depressed ,asiatic region before us1 let us see whether we cannot originate a theory of the ,deluge free from at least the palpable monstrosities of the older ones4 ,let us suppose that the human family1 still amounting to several millions1 though greatly reduced by exterminating wars and exhausting vices1 were congregated in that tract of country which1 extending eastwards from the modern ,ararat to far beyond the ,sea of ,aral1 includes the original ,caucasian centre of the race3 let us suppose that1 the hour of judgment having at length arrived1 the land began gradually to sink1 as the tract in the run of ,cutch sank in the year #ahai1 or as the tract in the southern part of ,north ,america1 known as the sunk country1 sank in the year #ahba3 further1 let us suppose that the depression took place slowly and equably for forty days together1 at the rate of about four hundred feet per day1--a rate not twice greater than that at which the tide rises in the ,straits of ,magellan1 and which would have rendered itself apparent as but a persistent inward flowing of the sea3 let us yet further suppose1 that from mayhap some volcanic outburst coincident with the depression1 and an effect of the same deep seated cause1 the atmosphere was so affected1 that heavy drenching rains continued to descend during the whole time1 and that1 though they could contribute but little to the actual volume of the flood1--at most only some five or six inches per day1--they at least seemed to constitute one of its main causes1 and added greatly to its terrors1 by swelling the rivers1 and rushing downwards in torrents from the hills4 ,the depression1 which1 by extending to the ,euxine ,sea and the ,persian ,gulf on the one hand1 and to the ,gulf of ,finland on the other1 would open up by three separate channels the fountains of the great deep1 and which included1 let us suppose1 an area of about two thousand miles each way1 would1 at the end of the fortieth day1 be sunk in its centre to the depth of sixteen thousand feet1--a depth sufficiently profound to bury the loftiest mountains of the district2 and yet1 having a gradient of declination of but sixteen feet per mile1 the contour of its hills and plains would remain apparently what they had been before1--the doomed inhabitants would see but the water rising along the mountain sides1 and one refuge after another swept away1 till the last witness of the scene would have perished1 and the last hill-top would have disappeared4 ,and when1 after a hundred and fifty days had come and gone1 the depressed hollow would have begun slowly to rise1--and when1 after the fifth month had passed1 the ark would have grounded on the summit of ,mount ,ararat1--all that could have been seen from the upper window of the vessel would be simply a boundless sea1 roughened by tides1 now flowing outwards1 with a reversed course1 towards the distant ocean1 by the three great outlets which1 during the period of depression1 had given access to the waters4 ,noah would of course see that the fountains of the deep were stopped1 and the waters returning from off the earth continually2 but whether the ,deluge had been partial or universal1 he could neither see nor know4 ,his prospect in either case would have been equally that described by the poet ,bowles3-- ,the mighty ark ,rests upon ,ararat2 but nought around ,its inmates can behold1 save o'er the expanse ,of boundless waters the sun's orient orb ,stretching the hull's long shadow1 or the moon ,in silence through the silver-curtained clouds ,sailing1 as she herself were lost and left ,in hollow loneliness4 ,let me further remark1 that in one important sense a partial ,flood1 such as the one of which ,i have conceived as adequate to the destruction1 in an early age1 of the whole human family1 could scarce be regarded as miraculous4 ,several of our first geologists hold1 that some of the formidable cataclysms of the remote past may have been occasioned by the sudden upheaval of vast continents1 which1 by displacing great bodies of water1 and rolling them outwards in the character of enormous waves1 inundated wide regions elevated hundreds of feet over the sea level1 and strewed them over with the rock boulders1 clays1 gravels1 and organic debris of deep sea bottoms4 ,and these cataclysms they regard as perfectly natural1 though of course very unusual1 events4 ,nor would the gradual depression of a continent1 or1 as in the supposed case1 of a portion of a continent1 be in any degree less natural than the sudden upheaval of a continent4 ,it would1 on the contrary1 be much more according to experience4 ,nay1 were such a depression and elevation of the great ,asiatic basin to take place during the coming twelvemonth as that of which ,i have conceived as the probable cause of the ,deluge1 though the geologists would have to describe it as beyond comparison the most remarkable oscillation of level which had taken place within the historic period1 they would certainly regard it as no more miraculous than the great earthquake of ,lisbon1 or than that exhibition of the volcanic forces which elevated the mountain of ,jorullo in a single night sixteen hundred feet over the plain4 ,and why have recourse1 in speculating on the real event of four thousand years ago1 to supposititious miracle1 if an event of apparently the same kind would not be regarded as miraculous now8 ,may we not in this matter take our stand beside the poet1 who1 when recognizing a ,providence in the great ,calabrian earthquake1 and in the overwhelming wave by which it was accompanied1 pertinently inquired of the skeptics1-- ,has not ,god ,still wrought by means since first he made the world8 ,and did he not of old employ his means ,to drown it8 ,what is his creation less ,than a capacious reservoir of means1 ,formed for his use1 and ready at his will8 ,the revelation to ,noah1 which warned him of a coming ,flood1 and taught him how to prepare for it1 was evidently miraculous3 the ,flood itself may have been purely providential4 ,but on this part of the subject ,i need not dwell4 ,i have accomplished my purpose if ,i have shown1 as was attempted of old by divines such as ,stillingfleet and ,poole1 that there seems to be no reason why the ,deluge should be extended beyond the occasion of it1 which was the corruption of man1 but1 on the contrary1 much reason against it2 and that1 on the other hand1 a ,flood restricted and partial1 and yet sufficient to destroy the race in an early age1 while still congregating in their original centre1 cannot be regarded as by any means an incredible event4 ,the incredibility lies in the mere human glosses and misinterpretations in which its history has been enveloped4 ,divested of these1 and viewed in its connection with those wonderful traditions which still float all over the world regarding it1 it forms1 not one of the stumbling-blocks1 but one of the evidences1 of our faith2 and renders the exercise a not unprofitable one1 when1 according to the poet1-- ,back through the dusk ,of ages ,contemplation turns her view1 ,to mark1 as from its infancy1 the world ,peopled again from that mysterious shrine ,that rested on the top of ,ararat4 ,,lecture ,,ninth4 ,,the ,,discoverable ,,and ,,the ,,revealed4 ,it seems natural1 nay1 inevitable1 that false revelations1 which have descended from remote1 unscientific ages1 should be committed to a false science4 ,natural phenomena1 when of an extraordinary character1 powerfully impress the untutored mind4 ,in operating1 through the curiosity or the fears of men1 upon that instinct of humanity--never wholly inactive in even the rudest state--which cannot witness any remarkable effect without seeking to connect it with its producing cause1 they excite into activity in the search the imaginative faculty1--always of earlier development than the judgment in both peoples and individuals1 and which never fails1 when so employed1 to conduct to delusions and extravagances4 ,and this state of mind gives birth simultaneously to both false religion and false science4 ,great tempests1 inundations1 eclipses1 earthquakes1 thunder and lightning1 famine and pestilence1 the births of monsters1 or the rare visitation of strange fishes or wild animals1 come all to be included in the mythologic domain4 ,even the untutored ,indian sees ,god in clouds1 and hears him in the wind4 ,and when an order of priesthood springs up1 a portion of the leisure of the class is usually employed in speculating on these phenomena2 and to their speculations they give the form of direct revelation4 ,thus almost all the false religions of the old world--not grafted1 like ,mohammedanism1 on the true one--have their pretended revelations regarding the form1 structure1 and origin of the earth1 the mechanism of the heavens1 the electric and meteoric phenomena1 and even the arrangement of oceans and continents on the surface of our planet4 ,the old extinct forms of heathenism1--,etrurian1 ,egyptian1 ,phoenician1 and ,babylonian1--had all their cosmogonies4#cb ,in the wild mythology of ancient ,scandinavia1 of which we find such distinct traces in the languages and superstitions of northern ,europe1 and which even in our own country continues to give the names of its uncouth deities to the days of our week1 there is a strange genesis of not only the heavens and earth1 but of the gods also4 ,it has1 besides1 its scheme of the universe in its great mundane tree of three vast roots1--celestial1 terrestrial1 and infernal1--which supports the land1 the sea1 the sky1 and all things4 ,the leading religions of the ,east which still survive1 such as ,buddhism1 ,brahminism1 and ,parseeism1 have all their astronomy1 geography1 meteorology1 and geology1 existing as component parts of their several systems4 ,nor have there been wanting ingenious men who1 though little tolerant of the various attempts made to reconcile the ,mosaic account of creation with the discoveries of modern science1 have looked with a favorable eye on the wild science of the false religions1 and professed to detect in it at least striking analogies with the deductions of both the geologist and the astronomer4 ,when the skeptical wits of the last century wished to produce1 by way of foil1 a morality vastly superior1 as they said1 to that of ,christianity1 they had recourse to the ,brahmins and the ,chinese4 ,and though we hear less of the ethics of these people since we have come to know them better1 we are still occasionally reminded of the superiority of their science4 ,hinduism has been regarded as furnishing examples of the geologic doctrine of a succession of creations extended over immensely protracted geologic periods2 and ,buddhism represented as charged with both the geologic doctrine and the perhaps less certain astronomic deduction of a plurality of worlds4 ,and before entering on our general argument1 it may be well to show by specimen what mere chance hits these are1 and how enormous the amount of the nonsense and absurdity really is in which they are set4 ,when ,brahma1 wearied with the work of producing and maintaining the universe1 goes to sleep1 say the ,hindus1--an occurrence which happens at the end of every four millions of years1--a deluge of water rises high above the sun and moon1 and the worlds and their inhabitants are destroyed4 ,when he awakes1 however1 he immediately sets himself to produce anew2 and another universe springs up1 consisting1 like the former one1 of ten worlds placed over each other1 like the stories of a tall building1 and replenished with plants and animals4 ,of these our own world is the eighth in number1 reckoning from the ground floor upwards2 there are seven worlds worse than itself beneath it1 and two better ones above2 with a few worlds more higher up still1 to which the destroying flood does not reach1 save once or twice in an eternity or so2 and which1 in consequence1 have not to be re-created each time with the others4 ,the special forms which the upper and nether worlds exhibit do not seem to be very well known2 but that which man inhabits is flat1 like the flower of the water-lily1 in which the petals project beyond each other2 and it has in all1 including sea and land1 a diameter of several hundred thousand millions of miles4 ,it has its many great oceans1--one of these 7unfortunately the only one in contact with man's place of habitation7 of salt water1 one of sugar-cane juice1 one of spirituous liquor1 one of clarified butter1 and one of sour curds4 ,it has1 besides1 its very great ocean of sweet water4 ,and around all1 forming a sort of gigantic hoop or ring1 there extends a continent of pure gold4 ,of all the luminaries that rise over this huge world1 the sun is the nearest3 the distance of the moon is twice as great2 the lesser fixed stars occur immediately beyond2 then ,mercury1 then ,venus1 then ,mars1 then ,jupiter1 then ,saturn2 and finally1 the great bear and the polar star4 ,and such is that cosmogony and astronomy of the ,brahmins to which their religion1 in its character as a revelation1 stands committed1 and in which a very lenient criticism has found the geologic revolutions4 ,let me draw my next illustration from ,buddhism1 the most ancient and most widely spread religion of the ,east2 for1 though partially overlaid in the great ,indian peninsula by the more modern monstrosities of ,brahminism1 it extends in one direction from the ,persian ,gulf to ,formosa and ,japan1 and in the other from the wastes of ,siberia to the ,gulf of ,siam4 ,scarce any of the other forms of heathenism darken so large a portion of the map as ,buddhism1--a superstition which is estimated to include within its pale nearly one third of the whole human species4 ,it has been held1 ,i need scarce say1 by most astronomers since the times of ,newton1 that the universe consists of innumerable systems of worlds1 furnished each with its own sun2 and held by most geologists during the last fifty years1 that the past duration of our earth was divided into periods of vast extent1 each of which had a creation of its own4 ,and certainly in ,buddhism we find both these ideas1--the idea of the existence of separate systems1 each with its own sun2 and the idea of successive periods1 each with its own creation4 ,we ascertain on examination2 however1 that in the superstition they are not scientific ideas at all1 but mere chance guesses1 set1 like those of ,brahminism1 in a farago of wild and monstrous fable4 ,each of the many systems of which the universe is composed consists1 say the ,buddhists1 of three worlds of a circular form1 joined together at the edges1 so that there intervenes between them an angular interspace1 which constitutes their common hell2 and to each of these systems there is a sun and moon apportioned1 that take their daily journeys over them1 returning at night through a void space underneath4 ,and each of the bygone successive creations was a creation originated1 it is added1 out of chaos1 through the stored-up merits of the ,buddhas1 and the effects of a life-invigorating rain1 and which sank into chaos again when the old stock of merit1 accumulated in the previous period1 was exhausted4 ,the creatures of each period1 too1 whether brute or human1 were animated by but the souls of former creatures embodied anew4 ,in the centre of each of the three worlds of which a system or sackwala consists1 there is a vast mountain1 more than forty thousand miles in height1 surrounded by a circular sea1 which is in turn surrounded by a ring of land and rock4 ,another circular sea lies outside the ring1 and a second solid ring outside the sea2 and thus rings of land and water alternate from the centre to the circumference4 ,according to the geography of the ,buddhas1 a model of our own earth would exactly resemble that old-fashioned ornament1--a work of the turning-lathe1--which some of my auditors must have seen roughening the upper board of the ornate parlor bellows of the last century1 and which consisted of a large central knob1 surrounded by alternate circular rings and furrows4 ,and as in the old-fashioned bellows each ring flattened1 and each furrow became shallower1 in proportion as it was removed from the centre1 so in the ,buddhist earth1 the seas1 from being many thousand miles deep in the inner rings1 shallow so greatly1 that in the outer rings their depth is only an inch2 while the continents1 from being forty thousand miles high1 sink into mere plains1 almost on the level of the surrounding ocean4 ,such is the geography to which this religion pledges itself4 ,its astronomy1 on the other hand1 is not quite so bad as that to which ,father ,cullen has affixed his imprimatur1 seeing that1 though it gives the same sort of diurnal journey to the sun1 it confers upon it a diameter1 not of only six feet1 but of four hundred miles4 ,nor is its geology a great deal worse than that of many ,christians4 ,it makes the earth consist1 reckoning from its foundations upwards1 of a layer of wind1 a layer of water1 a layer of substance resembling honey1 a layer of rock1 and a layer of soil4 ,such is a small portion of the natural science of ,buddhism3 the minute details of its monstrous cosmogony1 with its descriptions of fabulous oceans1 inhabited by fishes thousands of miles in length1 and of wonderful forests abounding in trees four hundred miles high1 and haunted by singing lions that leap two miles at a bound1 occupy many chapters of the sacred volumes4 ,every form of faith has its heretics2 and there are1 it would seem1 heretics among even the ,buddhists1 who1 instead of adopting the nonsense of the priests in this physical department1 originate a nonsense equally great of their own4 ,the error of concluding that the worlds of the universe are finite in number1 say the sacred books1 is the heresy antawada2 the error of concluding that the world itself is infinite is the heresy anantawada2 the error of concluding that the world is finite vertically but infinite horizontally is the heresy anantanantawada2 and the error of concluding the world to be neither finite nor infinite is the heresy nawantanantawada4 ,a name equally formidable would be1 of course1 found for the students of modern astronomy and the other kindred sciences1 among the professed believers in ,buddh1 did not these contrive to get over the difficulty by observing1 that certain things1 as stated in the ,sastras1 must have been so formerly2 but great changes have taken place in these in latter times2 and for astronomical purposes astronomical rules must be followed4 ,believers in ,buddhism may be still found by tens of millions on the shores of the ,yellow ,sea4 ,let me select my third specimen of a universe-fashioning mythology from a faith1 long since extinct1 that had its seat on the opposite side of the ,old ,world1 along the coasts of the ,northern ,atlantic4 ,the old ,teutonic religion professed to reveal1 like that of ,buddh and of ,brahma1 how the heavens and earth were formed1 and of what4 ,ymir1 the great frost-giant1 a being mysteriously engendered out of frozen vapor1 was slain by the god ,odin and his brothers2 and1 dragging his body into the middle of the universe1 they employed the materials of which it was composed in forming the earth4 ,of his blood they made the vast ocean1 and all the lakes and rivers2 of his flesh they constructed the land1 placing it in the midst of the waters2 of his bones they built up the mountains2 his teeth and jaws they broke up into the stones and pebbles of the earth and shore2 of his great skull they fashioned the vault of the heavens2 and1 tossing his brains into the air1 they became the clouds4 ,earth1 sea1 and sky1 however1 thus made1 were supported by the great ash-tree ,yggdrasill1 which1 with its roots anchored deep in the primordial abyss1 rose up through the vast central mountains of the world1 and1 stretching forth its branches to the furthest heaven1 bore the stars as its fruit4 ,encircling the whole earth like a ring1 lay the huge snake ,midgard1--always hidden in the sea1 save when half drawn forth on one occasion by the god ,thor2 outside the snake a broader ring of ice-mountains swept round both land and ocean1 and formed the outer frame of the world1--for there lay only blank space beyond2 and over all1 the sun and moon performed their journeys1 chased through the sky by ravenous wolves1 that ever sought to devour them4 ,such was the wild dream of our ,scandinavian ancestors1--a dream1 however1 that occupied as prominent a place in their ,edda as any of their other religious beliefs1 and which1 with the first dawn of science1 would not only have fallen itself1 but would have also dragged down the others along with it4 ,now this physical department has ever proved the vulnerable portion of false religions1--the portion which1 if ,i may use the metaphor1 their originators could not dip in the infernal river4 ,the ability of drawing the line1 in the early and ignorant ages of the world1 between what man can of himself discover and what he cannot1 is an ability which man cannot possibly possess4 ,the ancient ,chaldeans1 who first watched the motions of the planets1 could not possibly have foreseen1 that while on the one hand men would be one day able of themselves to measure and weigh these bodies1 and to determine their distances from the earth and from each other1 men might never be able of themselves to demonstrate the fact of their authorship1 or to discover the true character of their author4 ,nay1 if they could have at all thought on the subject1 the latter would have seemed to them by much the simpler discovery of the two4 ,to know at such a time what was in reality discoverable and what was not1 would be to know by anticipation what is not yet known1--the limits of all human knowledge4 ,it would be to trace a line non-existent at the period1 and untraceable1 in the nature of things1 until the history of the human race shall be completed4 ,it was held by even the sagacious ,socrates1 that men cannot arrive at any certainty in questions respecting the form or motion of the earth1 or the mechanism of the heavens2 and so he set himself to elucidate what he deemed much simpler matters1--to prove1 for instance1 as we find in the ,phedon1 that human souls existed ere they came to inhabit their mortal bodies1 and retained faint recollections of great misfortunes that had overtaken them ere their embodiment as men1 and of sufferings to which they had been subjected in a primevous state4 ,and lacking this ability of distinguishing between the naturally discoverable and what cannot be naturally discovered1 the originators of the old mythologic beliefs obtruded into provinces in which ultimately the lawless nature of the obtrusion could not fail to be detected2 and thus1 by making their false science a portion of their false religion1 they created what was afterwards to prove its weakest and most vulnerable part4 ,we absolutely know that the course at present pursued by enlightened ,christian missionaries in ,india is to bring scientific truth into direct antagonism with the monstrously false science of the pretended revelations of ,parseeism1 ,brahminism1 and ,buddhism2 and that by this means the general falsity of these systems has been so plainly shown1 that it has become a matter of doubt whether a single educated native of any considerable ability in reality believes in them4 ,they seem to have lost their hold of all the minds capable of appreciating the weight and force of scientific evidence4 ,let us further remark1 that since it seems inevitable that pretended revelations of ancient date should pledge themselves to a false science1 the presumption must be strong that an ancient revelation of great multiplicity of detail1 which has not so pledged itself1 is not a false1 but a true revelation4 ,nay1 if we find in it the line drawn between what man can know of himself and what he cannot know1 and determine that this line was traced in a remote and primitive age1 we have positive evidence in the circumstance1 good so far as it extends1 of its ,divine origin4 ,now1 it will be ultimately found that this line was drawn with exquisite precision in the ,hebrew ,scriptures1--not merely the most ancient works that profess to be revelations1 but absolutely the most ancient of all writings4 ,unfortunately1 however1 what ,god seems to have done for his ,revelation1 influential theologians of both the ,romish and ,orthodox ,churches have labored hard to undo2 and1 from their mistaking1 in not a few remarkable passages1 the scope and object of the vouchsafed message1 they have at various times striven to pledge it to a science as false as even that of ,buddhist1 ,teuton1 or ,hindu4 ,and so1 not only has the argument been weakened and obscured which might be founded on the rectitude of the line drawn of old between what ought and what ought not to be the subject of revelation1 but even a positive argument has been furnished to the infidel1--ever ready to identify the glosses of the theologian with the enunciations of revelation itself1--similar to that which the ,christian missionary directs against the false religions of ,india4 ,it may be well briefly to inquire how this unlucky mistake has originated4 ,it is of first importance often to the navigator that he should have a good chronometer1 seeing that his ability of determining his exact position on wide seas1 and1 in consequence1 of determining also the exact place and bearing of the rocks and reefs which he must avoid1 and of the lands and harbors on which he must direct his course1 must very much depend upon the rectitude of his instrument4 ,but it may be of very little importance to him to know how chronometers are made4 ,and so a friend may reveal to him where the best chronometers are to be purchased1 with the name of the maker1 without at the same time revealing to him the principle on which they are constructed4 ,let us suppose1 however1 that from some peculiarity in the mode of the revelation1 the navigator has come to believe that it includes both items1--an enunciation regarding the place where and the maker from whom the best chronometers are to be had1 and a further enunciation regarding the true mechanism of chronometers4 ,let us suppose further1 that while the good faith and intelligence of his friend are unquestionable1 the supposed revelation regarding the construction of chronometers1 which he thinks he owes to him1 is altogether erroneous and absurd4 ,the chronometer mainly differs from the ordinary watch in being formed of a mixture of metals1 which preserve so nice a chemical balance1 that those changes of temperature which quicken or retard the movements of common time-pieces fail to affect it4 ,now1 let us suppose that the friend and adviser of the sailor had said to him1--using a common metonymy1--there are no chronometers anywhere constructed that so completely neutralize the temperature as the ones ,i recommend to you2 and that the sailor had at once leaped to the conclusion1 that the remark was authority enough for holding that it is the principle of chronometers1 not to be composed of such counteractive combinations of metals as that the expansion of one shall be checked by the contraction of another1 but to keep up an equal temperature within through a heat-engendering quality in the amalgamated metals4 ,such a mistake might be readily enough originated in this way2 and yet it would be a very serious mistake indeed2 seeing that it would substitute an active for a passive principle1--a principle of equalizing the temperature by acting upon it1 for a principle of inert impassibility to the temperature4 ,and of course not only would the sailor himself be in error in taking such a view1 but he might seriously compromise the intelligence or integrity of his friend in the judgment of all who held1 on his testimony1 that it was with his friend1 and not from his own misconception of his friend's meaning1 that the view had originated4 ,and how1 let us ask1 ere dismissing our lengthened illustration1 is an error such as the supposed one here to be tested1 and its erroneousness exposed8 ,there can be but one reply to such a query4 ,it might be wholly in vain to fall back upon the ipsissima verba of the revelation made by the sailor's friend4 ,though in reality but an enunciation regarding the authorship of certain chronometers1 it might possibly enough appear1 from its metonymic character1 to be also a revelation regarding the construction of chronometers4 ,the sailor's error respecting the construction of chronometers is to be tested and exposed1 not by any references to what his friend had said1 but by the art of the chronometer maker4 ,the demonstrable principles of the art1 as practised by the makers of chronometers1 must be the test of all supposed revelations regarding the principles and mechanism of chronometer making4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aad4 ,,the ,,geography ,,of ,,cosmas4#cc 7,from a reduced facsimile of the original print in the ,british ,museum47 ,now1 it will be found that those mistakes of the theologians to which ,i refer have been exactly similar to that of the navigator in the supposed case1 and that they are mistakes which must be corrected on exactly the same principle4 ,the departments in which the mistakes have been made1 have1 as in the false religious1 been chiefly three1--the geographic1 astronomic1 and geologic provinces4 ,the geographic errors are of comparatively ancient date4 ,they belong mainly to the later patristic and earlier middle ages1 when the monk ,cosmas1 as the geographer of the ,church1 represented the earth as a parallelogrammical plain1 twice longer than it was broad1 deeply indented by the inland seas1--the ,mediterranean1 the ,caspian1 the ,red ,sea1 and the ,persian ,gulf1--and encompassed by a rectangular trench occupied by the oceans4 ,some of my audience will1 however1 remember that of the council of clergymen which met in ,salamanca in #adhf to examine and test the views of ,christopher ,columbus1 a considerable portion held it to be grossly heterodox to believe that by sailing westwards the eastern parts of the world could be reached4 ,no one could entertain such a view without also believing that there were antipodes1 and that the world was round1 not flat1--errors denounced by not only great theologians of the golden age of ecclesiastical learning1 such as ,lactantius and ,st4 ,augustine1 but also directly opposed1 it was said1 to the very letter of ,scripture4 ,they observed1 says ,washington ,irving1 in his ,life of ,columbus1 that in the ,psalms the heavens are said to be extended like a hide1--that is1 according to commentators1 the curtain or covering of a tent1 which among the ancient pastoral nations was formed of the hides of animals2 and that ,st4 ,paul1 in his ,epistle to the ,hebrews1 compares the heavens to a tabernacle or tent extended over the earth1 which they thence inferred must be flat4 ,in the sectional view of ,cosmas the heavens are represented as a semicircular vault or tent raised on perpendicular walls2 a vast mountain beyond the ,great ,sea1 lofty as the innermost continent of the ,buddhist cosmogony1 rises immediately under it2 when the sun passed behind this mountain it was night1 and when it emerged from it1 it was day4 ,and certainly under the crystal box of the monk it would be in vain to attempt1 by passing westwards1 to arrive at the far east4 ,the cosmogony of ,cosmas was also that of the doctors of ,salamanca2 and the views of ,columbus were denounced as heterodox because they failed to conform to it4 ,such was one of the earlier mistakes of the theologians4 ,when merely told regarding the authorship of the chronometer1 they held that they had been told also respecting the mechanism of the chronometer4 ,attaching literal meanings to what we now recognize as merely poetic or oratorical figures1 they believed that not only was it revealed to them that ,god had created the heavens and earth1 but also that he had created the earth in the form of an extended plain1 and placed a semi-globular heavens over it1 just as one places a semi-globular case of glass over a piece of flower-plot or a miniature thicket of fern4 ,and how1 ,i ask1 was this error ultimately corrected8 ,simply by that science of the geographer which demonstrates that the earth is not flat1 but spherical1 and that the heavens have not edges1 like a skin-tent or glass-case1 to come anywhere in contact with it1 but consist mainly of a diffused atmosphere1 with illimitable space beyond4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aae4 ,,the ,,heavens ,,and ,,earth ,,of ,,cosmas4#cd 7,sectional ,view47 ,the second great error to which the theologians would fain have pledged the truth of ,scripture was an error in the astronomical province4 ,i need scarce refer to the often-adduced case of ,galileo4 ,the doctrine which the philosopher had to abjure1 curse1 and detest1 and which he was never again to teach1 because erroneous1 heretical1 and contrary to ,scripture1 was the doctrine of the earth's motion and the sun's stability4 ,but to the part taken by our ,protestant divines in the same controversy1--men still regarded as authorities in their own proper walk1--,i must be allowed to refer1 as less known1 though not less instructive1 than that enacted by the ,romish ,church in the case of ,galileo4 ,this1 we affirm1 that is1 that the earth rests1 and the sun moves daily around it1 said ,voetius1 a great ,dutch divine of the middle of the seventeenth century1 with all divines1 natural philosophers1 ,jews and ,mohammedans1 ,greeks and ,latins1 excepting one or two of the ancients1 and the modern followers of ,copernicus4 ,and we detect ,heideggeri1 a ,swiss theologian1 who flourished about half an age later1 giving expression1 a few years ere the commencement of the last century1 to a similar view1 as the one taken by himself and many others1 and as a view from which1 he states1 our pious reverence for the ,scriptures1 the word of truth1 will not allow us to depart4 ,a still more remarkable instance occurs in ,turrettine1 whom we find in one of his writings arguing in the strictly logical form1 in opposition to certain philosophers1 and in behalf of the old ,ptolemaic doctrine that the sun moves in the heavens and revolves round the earth1 while the earth itself remains at rest in the midst4 ,first1 he remarks1 the sun is said in ,scripture to move in the heavens1 and to rise and set4 ',the sun is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber1 and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race4' ',the sun knoweth his going down4' ',the sun also ariseth1 and the sun goeth down4' ,secondly1 ,the sun by a miracle stood still in the time of ,joshua2 and by a miracle it went back in the time of ,hezekiah4 ,thirdly1 ,the earth is said to be fixed immovably4 ',the earth is also established that it cannot be moved4' ',thou hast established the earth1 and it abideth4' ',they continue this day according to their ordinance4' ,fourthly1 ,neither could birds1 which often fly off through an hour's circuit1 be able to return to their nests4 ,fifthly1 ,whatever flies or is suspended in the air ought 7by this theory7 to move from west to east2 but this is proved not to be true1 from birds1 arrows shot forth1 atoms made manifest in the sun1 and down floating in the atmosphere4 ,the theologian1 after thus laying down the law1 sets himself to meet objections4 ,if it be urged that the ,scriptures in natural things speak according to the common opinion1 ,turrettine answers1 ,first1 ,the ,spirit of ,god best understands natural things4 ,secondly1 ,that in giving instruction in religion1 he meant these things should be used1 not abused4 ,thirdly1 ,that he is not the author of any error4 ,fourthly1 ,neither is he to be corrected on the pretence of our blind reason4 ,if it be further urged1 that birds1 the air1 and all things are moved with the earth1 he answers1 ,first1 ,that this is a mere fiction1 since air is a fluid body2 and secondly1 if so1 by what force would birds be able to go from east to west8 ,now this ,i must regard as a passage as instructive as it is extraordinary4 ,turrettine was one of the most accomplished theologians of his age2 nor is that age by any means a remote one4 ,tycho ,brahe1 ,kepler1 and ,galileo1 had all finished their labors long ere he published this passage2 nay1 at the time when his work issued from the ,amsterdam press 7#afie71 ,isaac ,newton had attained his fifty-third year2 and fully ten years previous1 ,professor ,david ,gregory1 nephew of the inventor of the ,gregorian telescope1 had begun to teach1 from his chair in the ,university of ,edinburgh1 the doctrine of gravitation and the true mechanism of the heavens1 as unfolded in the ,newtonian philosophy4 ,the learned theologian1 had he applied himself to astronomical science1 could have found at the time very enlightened teachers2 but falling into exactly the mistake of the sailor of my illustration1 or that into which1 two centuries before1 the doctors of ,salamanca had fallen1 he set himself1 instead1 to contend with the astronomers1 and1 to the extent of his influence1 labored to pledge revelation to an astronomy as false as that of the ,buddhist1 ,hindu1 or old ,teuton4 ,his mistake1 ,i repeat1 was exactly that of the sailor4 ,though in the ,scriptures only the fact of the authorship of the great chronometer set in the heavens to be a sign for seasons1 and for days and years1 is revealed1 he regarded himself as also informed respecting the principles on which the chronometer was constructed1 or at least respecting the true nature of its movements2 and several very important deductions may1 ,i think1 be drawn from the carefully constructed passage in which he so unwittingly records his error1 and the grounds of it4 ,in the first place1 we may safely hold that the texts of ,scripture quoted by so able a theologian are those which have most the appearance of being revelations to men respecting the motions of the heavenly bodies4 ,we may conclusively infer1 that if they do not reveal the character of those motions1 then nowhere in ,scripture is their character revealed4 ,in the second place1 it is obvious that the cited texts do not reveal the nature of the motions4 ,it would be as rational to hold that our best almanacs reveal the ,ptolemaic astronomy4 ,in the scientific portion of our almanacs there occur many phrases which are perfectly well understood1 and indicate very definitely what the writer really intends to express by them1 that yet1 taken literally1 are not scientifically true4 ,the words1 ,sun rises1 and ,sun sets1 and ,moon rises1 and ,moon sets1 occur in every page2 there are two pages--those devoted to the months of ,march and ,september--in which the phrase occurs1 ,sun crosses the equinoctial line2 and further1 in the other pages1 such phrases as ,sun enters ,aries1 ,sun enters ,taurus1 ,sun enters ,gemini1 c41 c41 are not unfrequent4 ,the phrase1 new moon1 is also of common occurrence4 ,and these phrases1 interpreted after the manner of ,turrettine1 and according to their strict grammatical meaning1 would of course imply that the sun has a motion round our planet1--that the moon moves round it every twenty-four hours1--and that the earth is provided every month with a new satellite4 ,and yet we know that none of these ideas are in the mind of the writer who1 in compiling the almanac1 employs the phrases4 ,he employs them to indicate1 not the nature of the heavenly motions1 but the exact time when1 from the several motions of the earth1 the sun and moon are brought into certain apparent positions with respect to either the earth itself or to the celestial signs2 or to indicate the time at which the moon completes its monthly revolution1 and presents a wholly darkened disk to the earth4 ,the commentator skilful enough to pledge the almanac1 in virtue of the literal meaning of the specified phrases1 to the old ,ptolemaic hypothesis1 would pledge it to a false science1 which its author never held4 ,and such1 evidently1 has been the part enacted by ,turrettine and the elder theologians4 ,the ,scriptural phrases are in no degree more express respecting the motion of the sun and the other heavenly bodies than those of the almanac1 which1 we know1 do not refer to motion at all1 but to time4 ,nor are we less justified in holding that the cited ,scriptures do not refer to motion1 but to authorship4 ,in the third place1 however1 it is not by any mere reconsideration of the adduced passages that the error1 once made1 is to be corrected4 ,in a purely astronomic question the appeal lies1 not to ,scripture1 but to astronomic science4 ,and in the fourth place1 the reasonings of ,turrettine1 when1 quitting his own proper walk1 he discourses1 not as a theologian1 but as a natural philosopher1 are such as to read a lesson not wholly unneeded in the present day4 ,they show how in a department in which it demanded the united life-long labors of a ,kepler1 ,galileo1 and ,newton to elicit the truth1 the hasty guesses of a great theologian1 rashly ventured in a polemic spirit1 gave form and body to but ludicrous error4 ,it is not after a fashion so impetuous and headlong that the elaborately wrought key must be plied which unlocks the profound mysteries of nature4 ,but of this more anon4 ,let me remark in the passing1 that while ,turrettine1 one of the greatest of theologians1 failed1 as we have seen1 to find in ,scripture the fact of astronomic construction1 ,la ,place1 one of the greatest of the astronomers1 failed in a manner equally signal to find in his science the fact of astronomic authorship4 ,the profound ,frenchman 7whom ,sir ,david ,brewster well characterizes as the philosopher to whom posterity will probably assign the place next to ,newton 71 by demonstrating that certain irregularities in the motion of the heavenly bodies1 which had been supposed to indicate a future termination to the whole1 were but mere oscillations1 subject to periodic correction1 and indicative of no such termination in consequence1 demonstrated also that1 from all that appears1 the present astronomical movements might go on forever4 ,and as he could find in the solar system no indications of an end1 so was he unable1 he said1 to find in it any trace of a beginning4 ,he failed in discovering in all astronomy the fact of authorship1 just as ,turrettine had failed in finding in all ,scripture the fact of astronomic construction4 ,and here lies1 ,i am inclined to think1 the true line between revelation and science1--a line drawn of old with a ,god-derived precision1 which can be rightly appreciated neither by mere theologians like ,turrettine1 nor by mere men of science like ,la ,place1 but which is notwithstanding fraught with an evidence direct in its bearing on the truth of ,scripture4 ,that great fact1 moral in its influence1 of the authorship of the heavens and earth1 which the science of ,la ,place failed of itself to discover1 and which was equally unknown to the ancient philosophers1 ,god has revealed4 ,it is through faith we understand that the worlds were formed by the word of ,god1 so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear4 ,and1 on the other hand1 the great truths1 physical in their bearing1 to the discovery of which science is fully competent1 ,god did not reveal1 but left them to be developed piecemeal by the unassisted human faculties4 ,and that ability of nicely drawing the line between the two classes of truths in a very remote age of the world1 which we find manifested in the oldest of the ,scriptural books1 ,i must regard as an ability which could have been derived only through inspiration1 and from ,god alone4 ,let us1 however1 pursue our argument4 ,questions of geography1 such as those entertained by the theologians of ,salamanca1 must be tested1 we conclude1 not by a revelation never intended by its ,divine ,author to teach geography1 but by the findings of geographic science4 ,questions in astronomy1 such as those which ,turrettine and the opponents of ,galileo entertained1 must be tried1 we hold1 not by a revelation never intended to teach astronomy1 but by the findings of astronomic science4 ,but how deal1 ,i next ask1 with the theologian who holds that geologic fact has been revealed to him8 ,geology is as thoroughly a physical science as either geography or astronomy4 ,its facts are equally capable of being educed and established by the unassisted human intellect4 ,it seems quite as unlikely that it should have been made a special subject of revelation1 in its character as a science1 as either of these sciences2 or that the line so nicely maintained with respect to them should have been transgressed with regard to it4 ,in short1 in order satisfactorily to answer our query1 it seems but necessary satisfactorily to answer another1 namely1 ,what1 in this special department1 are truth and fact scientifically ascertained8 ,there are1 however1 certain texts that appear to have a more direct bearing on the successive periods of the geologist than any of those that were once held to refer to the form of the earth1 or to the nature of the heavenly bodies1 are now believed to have on geography or astronomy4 ,no one now holds that there is a geography revealed in ,scripture1 or regards the cavils of the ,salamanca doctors as other than mere aberrations of the human mind4 ,nor1 save mayhap in the darker corners of the ,greek and ,romish ,churches1 are there men in the present day who hold that there is a revealed astronomy4 ,the texts so confidently quoted by ,turrettine1 such as ,the sun also ariseth and the sun goeth down1 are regarded in every ,protestant ,church as simply tantamount1 in their bearing on the question at issue1 to the ,sun rises and ,sun sets of the almanac4 ,but while the ,scriptures do not reveal the form of the earth or the motions of the planets1 they do reveal the fact that the miracle of creation was effected1 not by a single act1 but in several successive acts4 ,and it is with the organisms produced by successive acts of creation1 and the formations deposited during the periods in which these acts took place1 that the geologist is called on by his science to deal4 ,and hence1 while there are now no attempts made to reconcile geographic or astronomic fact with the ,scripture passages which refer1 in the language of the time1 to the glory of the heavens or the stability of the earth1 just because it is held that there is really nothing geographic or astronomic in the passages to conflict with the geographic or astronomic facts1 we still seek to reconcile the facts of geologic science with what is termed the ,mosaic geology4 ,we inquire whether1 in its leading features1 the ,mosaic does not correspond with the geologic record2 and whether the days of the retrospective prophecy of creation are to be regarded as coextensive with the vast periods of the geologist1 or as merely representative portions of them1 or as literal days of twenty-four hours each8 ,but though we thus seek to harmonize the two records1 we continue to regard their grounds and objects as entirely different4 ,the object of geology is simply the elucidation of the history of the earth1 and of the story of its various creations2 and its grounds are1 like those of astronomy or geography1 or of any other physical science1 facts and inferences scientifically determined or deduced2 while1 on the other hand1 the grounds of the ,mosaic record are those on which the other ,scriptures rest1 and which have been so well laid down in what we may term the higher literature of the ,evidences1 while at least some of its objects1--for who shall declare them all8--seem to be1 first1 to establish the all-important fact of the ,divine authorship of the universe1 and to show that all its various forces are not self-existent1 but owe their origin to a ,great ,first ,cause2 next1 to exhibit the progressive character of ,god's workings1--a character which equally applies to his works of creation and providence2 and1 in the third place1 to furnish a basis and precedent1 in the ,divine example1 for that institution of the ,sabbath which bears not only a prophetic reference to the great dynasty to come1--last of all the dynasties1 and of which re-created men are to be the happy subjects1 and the ,divine ,man the adorable ,monarch1--but which has also been specially established in order that right preparation may be made for the terminal state which it symbolizes and foreshadows4 ,here1 as certainly as in the other physical sciences1 the line has been drawn with perfect precision between what man could and what he could not have known of himself4 ,what he could have known1 and in part already knows1 is geologic science2 what in all probability he never could have known is the fact of the ,divine authorship of the universe1 and the true nature of the institution of the ,sabbath1 as a time of preparation for the final state1 and as alike representative of ,god's workings in the past1 and of his eternally predetermined scheme for the future4 ,is it not certain1 ,socrates is represented as inquiring1 in the first ,alcibiades1 of his gay and confident pupil1 that you know nothing but what has been told you by others1 or what you have found out for yourself8 ,there is at once exquisite simplicity and great terseness in this natural division of the only modes in which men can acquire knowledge2 and we find it wonderfully exemplified in all revelation4 ,scripture draws practically a broad line between the two modes2 and while it tells man all that is necessary to his wants and welfare as a religious creature1 it does not communicate to him a single scientific fact which he is competent to find out for himself4 ,about an age previous to the times of ,turrettine1 the danger of corrupting philosophy through an intermixed divinity was admirably shown by ,bacon in his ,novum ,organum2 and the line indicated was exactly what we now find was laid down of old with such precision in ,scripture4 ,to deify error and to adore vain things1 said the great philosopher1 may be well accounted the plague of the understanding4 ,some modern men1 guilty of much levity1 have so indulged this vanity1 that they have essayed to find natural philosophy in the first chapter of ,genesis1 the ,book of ,job1 and other places of holy writ1 seeking the living among the dead4 ,now this vanity is so much the more to be checked and restrained1 because1 by unadvised mixture of ,divine and human things1 not only a phantastical philosophy is produced1 but also an heretical religion4 ,therefore it is safe to give unto ,faith1 with a sober mind1 the things that are ,faith's4 ,the passage1 partially quoted1 has been not unfrequently misapplied1 as if it bore1 not against theologians such as ,turrettine and the ,franciscans1 but against theologians such as ,chalmers1 ,dr4 ,bird ,sumner1 and ,dr4 ,pye ,smith1--not against the men who derive a false science from ,scripture1 into which ,god never introduced natural science of any kind1 but against the men who1 having sought and acquired their science where it is alone to be found1 have striven to bring ,scripture1 in the misinterpreted passages1 into harmony with its findings4 ,taken1 however1 as a whole1 its true meaning is obvious4 ,it is the men who have essayed to find natural philosophy positively revealed in ,genesis and the other sacred books1--not the men who have merely shown that there is nothing in ,scripture which conflicts with the natural philosophy legitimately found elsewhere1--that are obnoxious to the censure conveyed in the remark4 ,it is they only1 and not the others1 that are phantastical in their philosophy and heretical in their religion4 ,i say heretical in their religion4 ,the ,ptolemaic doctrine which ascribed to the earth a central place in the universe was only scientifically false1 whereas the same doctrine in ,turrettine and the ,franciscans1 from the circumstance that they pledged the ,scripture to its falsity1 and professed to derive it direct from revelation1 was not only scientifically false1 but a heresy to boot4 ,and1 in like manner1 it is the class who term themselves the ,mosaic geologists1--men such as the ,granville ,penns1 ,moses ,stewarts1 ,eleazar ,lords1 ,dean ,cockburns1 and ,peter ,macfarlanes1--who essay to find natural philosophy in the first chapter of ,genesis1 and that too a demonstrably false natural philosophy1 who are obnoxious to the ,baconian censure now4 ,no true geologist ever professes to deduce his geology from ,scripture4 ,it is from the earth's crust1 with its numerous systems1 always invariable in their order1 and its successive groups of fossil remains1 always 7in accordance with their place and age7 of a certain determinable character1--not in a revelation never intended by its ,divine ,author to teach any natural science as such1--that he derives the materials with which he builds4 ,had there been no ,divine ,revelation1 geology would be as certainly what it now is as either geography or astronomy4 ,that it comes in the present time more in contact with revealed truth than either of these sciences1 is1 as ,i have shown1 merely a consequence of the fact that there is a history given in the opening passages of ,scripture1 for far other than geological purposes1 of the authorship of the heavens and earth1 and of the successive stages of creation2 and further1 from the circumstance that1 from various motives1 men are ever and anon inquiring how the geologic agrees with the ,scriptural record4 ,it may be well here to remind the anti-geologists1 in connection with this part of my subject1 of what at the utmost they may hope to accomplish4 ,judging from all ,i have yet seen of their writings1 they seem to be as certainly impressed by the belief that they are settling textually the geologic question of the world's antiquity1 as the doctors of ,salamanca held that they were settling textually the question of the world's form2 or ,turrettine and the ,franciscans1 that they were settling textually the question of the world's motion1 or rather want of motion4 ,but the mistake is quite as gross in their case as in that of ,turrettine and the doctors4 ,geology rests on a broad1 ever extending basis of evidence1 wholly independent of the revelation on which they profess1 very unintelligently1 in all the instances ,i have yet known1 to found their objections4 ,what they need at most promise themselves is1 to defeat those attempts to reconcile the two records which are made by geologists who respect and believe the ,scripture testimony1--not a very laudable feat1 even could it be accomplished1 and certainly worthy of being made rather a subject of condolence than of congratulation4 ,and though1 of course1 men should pursue the truth simply for its own sake1 and independently either of the consequences which it may be found to involve1 or of the company with which it may bring them acquainted1 the anti-geologists might be worse employed than in scanning the character and aims of the associates with whom they virtually league themselves when they declare war against the ,christian geologist4 ,there are three different parties in the field1 either directly opposed1 or at least little friendly1 to the men who honestly attempt reconciling the ,mosaic with the geologic record4 ,first1 there are the anti-geologists1--men who hold that geological questions are to be settled now as the ,franciscans contemporary with ,galileo held that astronomical questions were to be settled in the seventeenth century1 or as the doctors of ,salamanca contemporary with ,columbus held that geographic questions were to be settled in the fifteenth4 ,and they believe that geology1 as interpreted by the geologists1 is entirely false1 because1 as they think1 irreconcilable with ,scripture2 further1 that our planet had no existence some seven or eight thousand years ago1--that the apparent antiquity of the various sedimentary systems and organic groups of the earth's crust is wholly illusive1--and that the very oldest of them cannot be more than a few days older than the human period4 ,in fine1 just as it was held two centuries ago by ,turrettine and the ,franciscans1 that the ,bible as interpreted by them was the only legitimate authority in astronomic questions1 so this class now hold that the ,bible as interpreted by them is the only legitimate authority in geologic questions2 and further1 that the ,bible being1 as they contend1 wholly opposed to the deductions of the geologist1 these deductions must of necessity be erroneous4 ,next1 there is a class1 more largely represented in society than in literature1 who1 looking at the general bearings of the question1 the character and standing of the geologists1 and the sublime nature of their discoveries1 believe that geology ranks as certainly among the sciences as astronomy itself2 but who1 little in earnest in their religion1 are quite ready enough1 when they find theologians asserting the irreconcilability of the geologic doctrines with those of ,scripture1 to believe them2 nay1 not only so1 but to repeat the assertion4 ,it is not fashionable in the present age openly to avow infidelity1 save mayhap in some modified rationalistic or pantheistic form2 but in no age did the thing itself exist more extensively2 and the number of individuals is very great who1 while they profess an outward respect for revelation1 have no serious quarrel with the class who1 in their blind zeal in its behalf1 are in reality undermining its foundations4 ,nor are there avowed infidels awanting who also make common cause with the party so far as to assert that the results of geologic discovery conflict irreconcilably with the ,mosaic account of creation4 ,but there is yet another class1 composed of respectable and able men1 who1 from the natural influence of their acquirements and talents1 are perhaps more dangerous allies still1 and whom we find represented by writers such as ,mr4 ,babbage and the ,rev4 ,baden ,powell4 ,it is held by both these accomplished men1 that it is in vain to attempt reconciling the ,mosaic writings with the geologic discoveries3 both are intimately acquainted with the evidence adduced by the geologist1 and entertain no doubt whatever regarding what it establishes2 but though in the main friendly to at least the moral sanctions of the ,new ,testament1 both virtually set aside the ,mosaic cosmogony2 the one 7,mr4 ,babbage7 on the professed grounds that we really cannot arrive with any certainty at the meaning of that old ,hebrew introduction to the ,scriptures in which the genesis of things is described2 and the other 7,mr4 ,powell7 on the assumption that that introduction is but a mere picturesque myth or parable1 as little scientifically true as the parables of our ,saviour or of ,nathan the seer are historically so4 ,now1 ,i cannot think that the anti-geologists are quite in the place in which they either ought or intend to be when engaged virtually in making common cause with either of these latter classes4#ce ,be this as it may1 however1 it may be not uninstructive1 and perhaps not wholly unamusing1 to examine what the claims really are of some of our later anti-geologists to be recognized as the legitimate and qualified censors of geologic fact or inference4 ,it will be seen1 that in the passage which ,i have quoted from ,turrettine1 the theologian1 in three of his five divisions1 restricts himself to the theologic province1 and that when in his own proper sphere even his errors are respectable2 but that in the two concluding divisions he passes into the province of the natural philosopher1 and that there his respectability ceases for the time1 and he becomes eminently ridiculous4 ,the anti-geologists1--men of considerably smaller calibre than the massive ,dutch divine of the seventeenth century1--also enter into a field not their own4 ,passing from the theologic province1 they obtrude into that of the geologist1 and settle against him1 apparently after a few minutes' consideration1 or as mere special pleaders1 questions on which he has been concentrating the patient study and directing the laborious explorations of years4 ,and an exhibition by specimen of the nonsense to which they have in this way committed themselves in their haste1 may not be wholly uninstructive4 ,but ,i must defer the display till another evening4 ,i shall do them no injustice2 but ,i trust it will be forgiven me should ,i exhibit1 as they have exhibited themselves1 a class of writers to whose assaults ,i have submitted for the last fourteen years without provocation and without reply4 ,,lecture ,,tenth4 ,,the ,,geology ,,of ,,the ,,anti-,,geologists4 ,it has been well remarked1 that that writer would be equally in danger of error who would assign very abstruse motives for the conduct of great bodies of men1 or very obvious causes for the great phenomena of nature4 ,the motives of the masses1--on a level always with the average comprehension1--are never abstruse2 the causes of the phenomena1 on the other hand1 are never obvious4 ,and when these last are hastily sought after1 not from any devotion to scientific truth1 or any genuine love of it1 but for some purpose of controversy1 we may receive it as a sure and certain fact that they will not be found4 ,some mere plausibility will be produced instead1 bearing on its front an obviousness favorable mayhap to its reception for the time by the vulgar1 but in reality fatal to its claims in the estimate of all deep thinkers2 while truth will meanwhile lie concealed far below1 in the bottom of her well1 until patiently solicited forth by some previously unthought of process1 in the character of some wholly unanticipated result4 ,such1 in the history of science1 has been the course and character of error on the one hand1 and of actual discovery on the other3 the error has been always comparatively obvious1--the discovery unexpected and abstruse4 ,and as men descend in the scale of accomplishment or intellect1 a nearer and yet nearer approximation takes place between their conceptions of the causes of the occult processes of nature1 and the common and obvious motives which influence large masses of their fellows2 until at length the sublime contrivances of the universe sink1 in their interpretation of them1 into the clumsy expedients of a bungling mechanism4 ,tested by their reading of the phenomena on this principle1 we find curious gradations between the higher and the humbler orders of minds4 ,the vortices of ,descartes1 for instance1 involve but a simple idea1 that might have been struck out by almost any individual of a tolerably lively fancy1 who had walked by the side of a winding river1 and seen sticks and straws revolving in its eddies4 ,but no fancy1 however active1 or no reach of mere common sense1 however respectable1 could have originated1 or conducted to a successful conclusion1 that profound contemplation into which ,newton fell in the garden of ,woolsthorpe1 when he saw the loosened apple drop from the tree1 and succeeded in demonstrating that the planets are retained in their orbits by the same law which impels a falling pebble towards the ground4 ,so little obvious1 indeed1 was the ,newtonian scheme1 that most of the contemporary generation of philosophers1--some of them1 such as ,fontenelle and his brother academicians of ,france1 men of no mean standing1--died rejecting it4 ,and the objections of ,turrettine to the motion of the earth on its axis are1 we find1 still more obvious than even the idea of the vortices4 ,it does at first seem natural enough to suppose1 that if the earth's surface be speeding eastwards at the rate of several hundred miles in the hour 7a thousand miles at the equator71 the birds which flutter over it should be somewhat in danger of being left behind2 and that atoms and down flakes floating in the atmosphere in a time of calm1 instead of appearing1 as they often do1 either in a state of rest1 or moving with equal freedom in every direction1 ought to be seen hurrying westwards1 as if puffed by the breath of a tornado4 ,such an objection must for a time have appeared as just as it seems obvious1 especially in one's study on a ,saturday night1 with much of one's lecture still to write1 and the ,sabbath too near to permit of verification or experiment4 ,fontenelle1 however1 though he could not get over the difficulty of conceiving how the same gravitation which made a stone fall also kept the moon in its place1 fairly surmounted that which puzzled ,turrettine2 and in his ,plurality of ,worlds1--a publication of the same age as the ,compendium ,theologica1--he makes his ,marchioness surmount it too4 ',but ,i have a difficulty to solve1' he represents the lady as saying1 'and you must be serious4 ,as the earth moves1 the air changes every moment2 so we breathe the air of another country4' ',not at all1' replied ,i2 'for the air which encompasses the earth follows with us1 and turns with us4 ,have you not seen the labors of the silkworm8 ,the shell or cocoon which it weaves around itself with so much art is of a down very loose and soft2 and so the earth1 which is solid1 is covered1 from the surface twenty leagues upwards1 with a kind of down1 which is the air1 and1 like the shell of the silkworm1 turns along with it4' ,even ,turrettine1 however1 was as far in advance of some of our contemners of science in the present day1 as ,fontenelle was in advance of ,turrettine1 or ,newton in advance of ,fontenelle4 ,the old theologian could scarce have held1 with a living ecclesiastic of the ,romish ,church in ,ireland1 ,father ,cullen1 that the sun is possibly only a fathom in diameter2 or have asserted with a most ,protestant lecturer who addressed an audience in ,edinburgh little more than three years ago1 that1 though ,god created all the wild animals1 it was the devil who made the flesh-eaters among them fierce and carnivorous2 and1 of course1 shortened their bowels1 lengthened their teeth1 and stuck formidable claws into the points of their digits4#cf ,further1 the error of ,turrettine was but that of his age1 whereas our modern decriers of scientific fact and inference are always men greatly in the rear of theirs1 and as far inferior to the ancient assertors of the same errors as the few untutored peasants and fishermen of our own time1 located in remote parts of the country1 who still retain the old faith in witchcraft1 are inferior to the great lawyers1 poets1 and divines1--the ,fairfaxes1 ,henry ,mores1 ,judge ,haleses1 and ,sir ,george ,mackenzies1--who in the seventeenth century entertained a similar belief4 ,and so it may seem somewhat idle work to take any pains in scattering such a rear of darkness thin as this forlorn phalanx composes4 ,let them alone1 said a lunatic in the lucid fit1 to a soldier who had told him1 when asked why he carried a sword1 that it was to kill his enemies1--let them alone1 and they will all die of themselves4 ,but though very inconsiderable1 there is a comparatively large proportion of the class perilously posted1 on both sides of the ,atlantic1 in what used to be termed of old in ,scotland the chair of verity2 and there they sometimes succeed in doing harm1 all unwittingly1 not to the science which they oppose1 but to the religion which they profess to defend4 ,i was not a little struck lately by finding in a religious periodical of the ,united ,states1 a worthy ,episcopalian clergyman bitterly complaining1 that whenever his sense of duty led him to denounce from his pulpit the gross infidelity of modern geology1 he could see an unbelieving grin rising on the faces of not a few of his congregation4 ,alas6 who can doubt that such ecclesiastics as this good clergyman must virtually be powerful preachers on the skeptical side1 to all among their people who1 with intelligence enough to appreciate the geologic evidence1 are still unsettled in their minds respecting that of the ,christian faith4 ,and so on this consideration alone it may be found not uninstructive to devote the address of the present evening to an exposure of the errors and nonsense of our modern anti-geologists1--the true successors and representatives1 in the passing age1 of the ,franciscan and ,salamanca doctors of the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries4 ,let me first remark1 that no one need expect to be original simply by being absurd4 ,there is a cycle in nonsense1 as certainly as in opinion of a more solid kind1 which ever and anon brings back the delusions and errors of an earlier time3 the follies of the present day are transcripts1 unwittingly produced1 and with of course a few variations1 of follies which existed centuries ago2 and it seems to be on this principle1--a consequence1 mayhap1 of the limited range of the human mind1 not only in its elucidations of truth1 but also in its forms of error1--that scarce an explanation of geologic phenomena has been given by the anti-geologists of our own times1 that was not anticipated by writers of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries4 ,it was held1 for instance1--in opposition to the great painter1 ,leonardo da ,vinci1 who flourished early in the sixteenth century1 and was one of the first who1 after the revival of learning1 asserted the true character of organic remains1--that fossils were formed in the rocks through the planetary influences1 or a certain plastic force in nature1 and had never entered into the composition of living creatures or plants4 ,and this view obtained very generally till about the middle of the seventeenth century1 when1 save for a brief space long after1 in the times of ,voltaire1 it ceased to be regarded as any longer tenable4 ,curiously enough1 however1 it was virtually reproduced by one of the extant anti-geologists1--a clergyman of the ,english ,church1--only three years ago1 in a publication written1 he says1 to counteract the immense mischief occasioned by the infidel works of geologists1 especially among the lower classes1 and which he has termed a brief and complete refutation of their anti-scriptural theory4#cg ,fossils1 says this courageous writer1 were not necessarily animated structures3 some of them were in all probability formed of stone from the very first2 others1 of inanimate flesh and bone4 ,the mammoth found under the ice in arctic regions had not necessarily been a living creature3 it was created under the ice1 and then preserved in that peculiar form of preservation1 instead of being transmuted into stone1 like the rest of its class4 ,such was the state of keeping of this famous mammoth1 when discovered a little ere the beginning of the present century1 that1 as ,i had occasion formerly to remark1 dogs and bears fed upon its flesh2 and its bones1 and part of its skin1 covered with long red hair1 are now in the museum of ,petersburg4 ,but there is no evidence whatever1 according to this writer1 that it had ever been a living creature3 it was simply a created carcass4 ,all organisms are1 he holds1 models or archetypes1 fashioned during the first day in the depths of chaos1 to typify or foreshadow the living plants and animals that were to be called into existence a few days later4 ,what1 he asks1 do the cocoa-nuts1 melons1 and gourds1 which have been found in the strata1 show1 but that the vegetable had its perfect archetype in chaos as well as the animal8 ,nay1 further1 the geologist has but got into the apartment in which the original architect stored up his plans and models1--many of them1 however1 rejected ones4 ,for though every animal is formed after his archetype1 we find him saying1 the converse is not true1 that every chaotic structure is represented by its living facsimile4 ,but they typify1 if not living organisms1 much more important things1--they represent1 says our writer1 the land of the shadow of death2 and the strata containing them1 which geologists have opened1 are symbolical of the gates of death4 ,the state of preservation in which most fossils are1 instead of having mouldered away1 foreshadows immortality4 ,the gradation1 too1 from the organisms whose types are said to be lost or destroyed1 and confused in innumerable heaps1 up to the perfect and complete specimen1 is no fanciful representation of the resurrection2 while the isolated bones and parts of skeletons which1 though found far apart1 as they were created1 have been fitted together by the skill of the accomplished anatomist1 give assurance of the fact that our scattered dust--our membra disjecta--shall come together at the sound of the last trump4 ,and this is geology on ,scripture principles1 soberly expounded by a man who respects facts1 while he gives no place to fancy4 ,the ,english clergyman then goes on to show in his pamphlet1 that the ,coal ,measures furnish no evidence of the earth's antiquity4 ,they were formed1 he says1 by the finger of the ,creator1 immediately and at once4 ,a carboniferous tree of gigantic size has been discovered1 he adds1 in the interior of the earth1 of such a shape as entirely to prove the absurdity of a theory that of the earth's antiquity which has not a single valid argument to support it4 ,it is described as having its trunk rising from the earth perpendicularly ten feet1 and then bending over and extending horizontally sixty feet4 ,now1 what living tree thus lopsided could support such a weight in such a direction8 ,it seems to have been created on purpose to silence the ,,horrid ,,blasphemies of geologists2 for it proves to a demonstration1 that the upper1 nether1 and surrounding matter came into existence with it at the same instant2 for how else could it have been preserved in such a position8 ,the triumph secured by the carboniferous tree1 however1--though it does not seem wholly impossible that a tree might in any age of the world have been broken over some ten feet from its root1 and bent in a horizontal position1--seems in some danger of being neutralized1 as we read on1 by the circumstance that geologists find not unfrequently1 among their fossils1 the dung of the carnivorous vertebrates1 charged in many instances with the teeth1 bones1 and scales of the creatures on which they had preyed1 and strongly impressed1 in at least the coprolites of the larger ,palozoic ganoids1 and of the enaliosaurs of the ,secondary period1 by the screw-like markings of a spiral intestine1 similar in form to that now exemplified by the sharks and rays4 ,and in maintaining his hypothesis that most fossils are mere archetypes--mere plans or models--of existences to be1 the archetypal dung proves rather a stumbling-block1 and the ,english clergyman waxes exceedingly wroth against the geologists4 ,we cannot1 he says1 believe in such things as coprolites4 ,they are only a curious form of matter commanded by ,him who has made the flower to assume all shapes as well as all hues4 ,he who would not allow so much as a tool to be lifted up on the stones that composed his altar1 would certainly not allow the work of animals to compose his creation1 much less1 then1 their dung4 ,the geological assertion that the ,creator of this world formed it in some parts of coprolites savors very much of ,satan or ,beelzebub1 the god of dung4 ,geologists could scarcely have made a more unfortunate self-refuting assertion than this4 ,i question1 however1 whether the clergyman does well to be angry with the geologists here4 ,that fossils are mere models and archetypes1 is his hypothesis1 not theirs2 and so it is he himself who is answerable1 not they1 for what he deems the impiety of the archetypal dung4 ,his next statement is of a kind suited somewhat to astonish the practical geologist4 ,it is the constant language of geologists1 he says1 in giving the result of their discoveries1 that no young have been found666 while the larger fossils have been detected isolated1 or in the company of others1 all differing in kind4 ,archetypal resemblances of ova have been found1 and such things as moths2 but these are distinct and perfect in their kind4 ,the occurrence of the young1 which are imperfect1 is a fact which has not been1 and never can be1 established2 therefore it never can be proved that this world has had a longer existence than six thousand years4 ,it is the constant language of geologists that no young have been found in the fossil state4 ,amazing assertion6 ,therefore it never can be proved that this world has had a longer existence than six thousand years4 ,astonishing inference6 ,there is not a tyro in geology who ever looked over a set of fossils1 or ever spent an hour in exploring a fossiliferous deposit1 who does not know that the remains of organisms in every stage of growth may be found lying side by side in the same bed1--that almost every museum contains its series of molluscs1 crustaceans1 fishes1 and corals1 formed to illustrate species in their various stages of growth1--that1 in especial1 among the ammonites of the ,secondary ages1 and the trilobites of the ,palozoic ones1 these series have been made with great care1 in order to prevent the erroneous multiplication of species1--and that1 in short1 every richly fossiliferous stratum in the earth's crust repeats the lesson so often deduced from our churchyards1 where graves of all sizes1 from that of the infant of a day to that of the aged adult1 may be found lying side by side4 ,what the ,english clergyman represents as the constant language of geologists1 is a language which no geologist ever yet used1 or ever will4 ,and his inference is in every way worthy of his premises4 ,the flourish with which he concludes his pamphlet would be infinitely amusing had his language been just a little less solemn4 ,the writer of the above remarks has felt it his duty1 we find him saying1 to publish them1 not only to refute the arguments of the vain and puffed-lip geologist1 who fancies himself wiser than ,god1 but also to prevent1 by ,god's blessing1 the evil that must ensue from tampering with the sacred text4 ,and now1 what has ,satan to say8 ,why1 ,,the ,,tables ,,are ,,turned4 ,let men beware4 ,why did not the ,british ,association1 at their twenty-third meeting1 in ,september1 #ahec1 acknowledge their error as a body1 in applauding so loudly the assertion of one of their geological members at a previous meeting1 that this earth existed ages before man8 ,they may now have the satisfaction of thinking that1 in spite of themselves1 those impious plaudits have been turned by the wrath of ,god into hisses4 ,strange as the fact may seem1 this passage was written1 not in grave joke1 but in serious earnest4 ,the belief that fossil remains had never entered into the composition of living organisms1 but had been formed in the rocks just as we find them1 gradually gave place1 during the seventeenth century1 to the belief that they were the debris of the ,noachian ,deluge1 and evidences1 as they occurred in almost every known country1 and were found on the top of lofty hills1 of at once its universality and the height to which its waters had prevailed4 ,and this hypothesis1 like the others1 has been reproduced by some of the anti-geologists of the present day4 ,the known fact1--a result of modern science1--that the several formations 7always invariable in their order of succession7 have their groups of organisms peculiar to themselves1 has1 however1 interposed a difficulty from which the earlier cosmogonists were exempt4 ,it has become necessary to show that the ,noachian cataclysm was strangely selective1 in burying in the beds which it is held by the class to have formed1 now one group of plants and animals1 now quite another group1 and anon yet another and different group still2 and all this many times repeated with such nice care and discrimination1 that not a single organism of the lower beds is to be detected in the middle ones1 nor yet a single organism of either the middle or lower in the beds that lie above4 ,even this task1 however1 just a little lightened by here and there a suppression of the facts1 has been attempted by the redoubtable ,dean of ,york4#ch ,fire and water were1 he conceives1 equally agents in the great catastrophe that destroyed the old world1--a circumstance which1 if true1 would have furnished with an admirable apology the class of persons who1 according to the wit1 would have cried out ,fire1 fire1 at the deluge4 ,the dean conceives that at the commencement of the ,flood1 when torrents of rain were falling upon the land1 numerous submarine volcanoes began to disgorge their molten contents into the sea1 destroying the fish1 and all other marine productions1 by the intensity of the heat1 and at the same time locking them up in strata formed of the erupted matter4 ,this process took place ere the land floods1 laden with the spoils of island and continent1 and the accompanying mud and sand1 could arrive at the remoter depths2 which1 however1 they ultimately reached1 and formed a second formation1 overlying the first4 ,there were thus two formations originated1--a marine formation below1 and a terrestrial or fresh water formation above2 but as these two deposits could not be made to include all the geological phenomena with which even the dean was acquainted1 he had nicely to parcel out the work of his volcanoes on the one hand1 and that of his land floods on the other1 into separate fits or paroxysms1 each of which served to entomb a distinct class of creatures1 and originate a definite set of rocks4 ,thus1 the first work of his volcanoes was to form the ,transition series of strata4 ,as a commencement of the whole1 the internal fire blew up from the bed of the ocean1 in tremendous explosions1 vast quantities of pulverized rock mixed with clay1 which1 slowly subsiding1 and covering up1 as it sank1 shells1 stone-lilies1 and trilobites1 formed the ,silurian rocks4 ,a second explosion brought up the vents of the volcanoes to the level of the ocean2 and while the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 thus produced1 and charged with fish killed by the heat1 was settling on their flanks1 they themselves1 as if seized by black vomit1 began to disgorge in vast quantities1 coal in the liquid state4 ,very opportunely1 just ere it cooled1 enormous quantities of vegetables1 washed out to sea by the extraordinary land floods1 were precipitated immediately over it2 and1 sticking in its viscid surface1 or sinking into its substance through cracks formed in it during the cooling1 they became attached to it in such considerable masses1 as to lead long after to the very mistaken notion that coal itself was of vegetable origin4 ,then there ensued another deposit of red sand1 with salt boiled into it2 and then a deposition of lime and clay4 ,the land floods still continuing1 the great ,sauroid reptiles which had haunted the rivers and lower plains began to yield to their force1 and their carcasses1 floating out to sea1 sank amid the slowly subsiding lime and clay1 now known as the ,lias4 ,the volcanoes too were still very active2 and the lighter shells1 ammonites1 and the like1 which had been previously bobbing up and down on the boiling surface1 now sank by myriads2 for the viscid argillaceous mud thrown up by the fiery ebullitions from beneath stuck fast to them1 and dragged them down4 ,then came the formation of the ,oolite1 rolled into little egg-like pellets by the waves2 and last of all1 the ,green sand and ,chalk2 after which the waters ran off1 and sank into the deep hollow which now forms the bed of the ocean1 but which previous to the cataclysm had been the place of the land4 ,the dean1 as he went on1 fell into some little confusion regarding the true place of some of his animals1 such as the megatherium1 which arrived in his arrangement a little too soon4 ,he spoke1 too--if a newspaper report is to be credited--of a heavy creature soon overtaken and drowned by the rising waters1 which he termed the pterogactylus1 and which does not seem to have turned up1 either in the body or out of it1 since it was lost on that memorable occasion4 ,nor did he make any provision in his arrangement for the formation of the various ,tertiary deposits4 ,but then all these are slight matters1 that could be very easily woven into his hypothesis4 ,as the flood rose along the hill sides1 first such of the weightier animals would perish as could not readily climb steep acclivities2 and then the oxen1 the horses1 the deer1 and the goats1 with the lighter carnivora1 who1 as they would die last1--some of them not until the final disappearance of the hill-tops1--would of course be entombed in the upper deposits4 ,such is the hypothesis of the ,dean of ,york1--a hypothesis of which it may be justly affirmed1 that it is well nigh as ingenious as the circumstances of the case permit1 and against which little else can be urged than that it must seem rather cumbrous and fanciful to the class who do not know geology1 and1 on the whole1 somewhat inadequate to the class who do4 ,the ,flood1 however1 is not left to do the whole geologic work1 by even such of the anti-geologists as assign to it the largest share4 ,a great unrecorded convulsion which accompanied the ,fall is held by some of their number to have greatly assisted1 by laying down the older formations of the fossiliferous rocks2 and very much is said to have been done during the extended antediluvian period that succeeded it4 ,one of perhaps the most amusing though least known of the writers that take this special view is a ,scotchman1 resident in a secluded provincial town1 who for the last twelve or fifteen years has been printing ingenious little books against the infidel geologists1 and getting letters of similar character inserted in such of our country newspapers as are ambitious of rendering their science equal to their literature4 ,and from the great trouble which he has taken with the writings of the individual who now addresses you1 he seems to regard them as peculiarly unsolid and dangerous4 ,according to this profound cosmogonist1 the world before the ,fall was rather more than twice its present size1 and very artificially constructed4#ci ,it was a hollow ball1 supported inside by a framework of metal wrought into hexagonal reticulations1 somewhat like the framework of the great iron bridge over the river ,wear at ,sunderland2 and which had an open space in its centre1 occupied by a vast tubular furnace lying direct south and north1 which threw out huge volumes of flame towards the poles4 ,over the reticulated framework there rose a great1 thick firmament of metal1 which formed the inner shell of the globe2 over the metal there lay a considerably thicker shell of granite2 and over the granite1 a thinner shell of a substance not specified1 perhaps not known1 but which1 from its being completely water-tight1 served the purpose of the layer of asphalt or terra cotta which the architect spreads over his flat roofs1 or on the tops of his sloping terraces1 afterwards to be covered with soil and laid out into gardens4 ,such1 it seems1 was that portion of the framework of our great globe which corresponded to the hollow lath and plaster framework of the little globes used in schools2 while its uppermost layer1--correspondent with the slips of the map which the geographer pastes on the model and then varnishes1--was formed of earth and water1 economically laid out into most useful and tasteful configurations1--the earth into pretty little rising grounds and valleys1 and the water into seas and lakes of no great extent1 but which formed1 from their very handsome combinations1 a terraqueous surface all over ,,perfectly ,,paradisaical4 ,over this exquisitely neat earth there lay an enveloping atmosphere1 greatly thinner and less dense than the air at present is1 and incapable1 in consequence1 of being agitated by storms2 while directly over the northern and southern extremities of the world the polar auroras1 now so fitful and broken1 extended in a permanent arch1 and gave light1 during the long dark winters1 to the regions lying below4 ,and as warmth was as necessary to the paradisaical perfection of these districts as light1 they received the necessary heat from the great double-acting furnace in the interior1 which1 belching out flames at both ends1 acted powerfully against the polar portions of the metallic crust or shell1 and thus maintained the necessary glow in the absence of the sun1 on the principle on which a frying-pan or ,scotch girdle is heated when placed by the cookmaid over the fire4 ,and such1 according to this excellent world-fashioner and very zealous man1 was the construction of that unblighted and unbroken earth which was of old pronounced to be very good4 ,the ,fall1 however1 produced a most remarkable and singularly disastrous change4 ,the earth was somehow partially crushed and broken1 contemporaneously with the event1--like a strong fishing basket when it accidentally falls from a coach-top under the wheel2 and1 from a most interesting colored copperplate that illustrates one of the author's treatises 7for he draws as well as he writes71 the exact damage which it received can be minutely estimated4 ,the interior network was compressed into all sorts of irregular polygons2 the iron firmament was broken into great fragments1--some of which may be seen in the print hanging down into the hollow interior1 like patches of broken plaster dangling from a ceiling1 suspended by the hairs originally employed to give the necessary tenacity to the lime4 ,the great granitic shell was also broken1 but broken so nicely1 on the principle of the arch1 that the pieces remained in nearly their original places4 ,finally1 vast rents are seen to occur in the cement and soil of the outer crust2 and these great rents1 which must have formed enormous gulfs and deep interminable ravines1 were destined1 it would seem1 to perform a most important part in the future geology of the globe4 ,forming impassable lines of demarcation between the several portions into which they broke up the earth's surface1 they imprisoned the recently created animals in separate groups1 kept as completely from mixing together as the fallow-deer of one loftily-walled park are kept from mixing with the white oxen of another loftily-walled park1 or as the kangaroos or duck-billed quadrupeds of ,australia are kept by the surrounding ocean from mixing with the tigers of ,sumatra or the tortoises of ,madagascar4 ,i employ the writer's own happy illustration3--,in some places these fragments of the earth's crust would be piled more or less above each other1 and in others quite detached and isolated1 like fragments of ice on the bank of a river after a thaw4 ,they would of course be on very different levels1 each having1 as ,i have said1 a distinct group of animals of its own2 and when1 after the lapse of nearly two thousand years1 the great catastrophe of the ,flood came on1 it would necessarily find1 as it rose along the levels1 and submerged platform after platform in succession1 a different and yet different set of creatures to kill4 ,to borrow from the description of this ingenious cosmogonist1 those on the lower fragments would be first engulphed1 and their races completely extinguished from off the surface1 and deposited in the earth2 then those on higher and higher upwards1 till the whole became submerged4 ,and we have only to suppose that man1 with the present survivors1 were those that occupied one of the higher table-lands when the ,flood commenced 7and of course in that case ,noah could collect into the ark only out of those of his own country72 then the result would be1 that man and his present contemporaries would be among the last overwhelmed4 ,this will sufficiently account for the fact of his and their remains not being found deep in the earth4444 ,the two most interesting geological facts therefore1 namely1 that distinct organisms are to be found in distinct formations respectively2 and secondly1 that no remains of man1 and few or none of the other races at present surviving1 are to be found in any but comparatively recent formations1--these two grand facts of geology1 we say1 instead of pointing back to vast cycles of ages before the creation1 seem to point merely to the peculiar physical circumstances of the fallen planet in the interval between those two eventful stages in its history1 the ,fall and ,flood1 and the natural consequences of these circumstances in causing distinct divisions1 and some of these of different elevations1 among the organic living creatures1 during the interval4 ,one other circumstance completes this really original and beautiful hypothesis4 ,the cosmogonist holds that the ,flood1--no mere tranquil rising of the waters1 as some suppose1--was accompanied by terrible convulsions1 which reduced to utter ruin the already shattered earth4 ,the granitic dome fell inwards upon the central furnace2 and the fires1 bursting outwards under the enormous pressure1 found vent at the surface1 and made the volcanoes4 ,and this collapsed and diminished world1--scarce half the bulk of the old one1--with no heating furnace under its polar regions1 nor aught save the merest tatters of an aurora flitting occasionally over them1--greatly too dense in itself1 and surrounded by a greatly too dense atmosphere1--with its huge mountains1 vast oceans1 wide steppes1 and arid deserts1 with its snows1 its frosts1 its drenching rains1 its horrible tempests1 its terrible thunder storms1 and devastating earthquakes1--all alike frightful defects1 not in the original plan1--is not only unlike the primeval world1 not very good1 or1 unlike the antediluvian world1 tolerably good1 but not good at all4 ,on taking a bird's-eye view of the geographical and hydrographical features or superficies of the globe1 says this bold writer1 any unprejudiced person must at once admit1 that in either of these departments there is scarce a trace of that beautiful1 tasteful1 and economical design which we have a right to expect from the admitted qualities of the great ,author1 and his avowed object in the structure and report of it when newly finished4 ,it is added1 however1 that its present object1 as the ,siberia--the penal settlement--of expatriated rebels1 it is in its present state well calculated to fulfil4 ,it may be worth mentioning1 that the writer who sets himself after a fashion so peculiar to assert and justify the ways of ,providence against the geologists resides in one of the loveliest districts in ,scotland1--a district1 however1 shaggy with rock1 and overshadowed by great mountains1 and occasionally visited by earthquake tremors1 and both snow and thunder storms1 and so1 with all its wild beauty to other eyes1 merely1 ,i must suppose1 one of the rougher districts of the penal ,siberia in his4 ,he is1 indeed1 particularly severe upon mountains2 though not1 as he tells us1 wholly devoid of a lurking prejudice in their favor4 ,but what weak prejudice might palliate or plead for1 his better judgment condemns4 ,see1 says this judicious writer1 vast districts of the globe disfigured by tremendous masses of rugged and almost barren mountains4444 ,what1 cry some1 would you bury as deformities the lofty peak and rugged mountain brow1 nature's palaces1--generally the grandest and most sublime objects in natural scenery6 ,we cordially assure the reader we are by no means prejudiced against these grand objects2 for if prejudice we have on the subject1 it is rather on the other side4 ,it is therefore the force of evidence alone makes us1--reluctantly we admit1--give up these to rank among the derangements and deformities of nature4 ,she1 according to her usual taste and economy1 would never be at the expense of rearing1 and that upon ground that might have otherwise been much better occupied1 such unwieldy1 useless masses of matter1 merely for the sake of gratifying the taste for grandeur and sublimity in a few of her sons1 nor1 indeed1 for any other use we ever heard ascribed to them4444 ,according to our test1 a rich and gently undulatory surface1 intersected with rivulets and sheets of water1 in the places taken up by these elevations1 would be far better1 as combining in the highest degree the utile cum dulce4#dj ,to such of my audience as are familiar with ,dr4 ,thomas ,burnet's ,sacred ,theory of the ,earth 7#afhd71 that revolution in the cycle of hypothesis to which ,i have referred1 and through which the visionaries of the later ages return to the dreams which had occupied the visionaries of an earlier time1 must be sufficiently apparent in this passage4 ,for not only does ,burnet speak after the same manner of hills and mountains1 but also of an idle1 ill-founded prejudice entertained in their favor4 ,we find him thus summing up a general survey of the mountains of the globe3--,look upon these great ranges3 in what confusion do they lie6 ,they have neither form nor beauty1 nor shape1 nor order1 no more than the clouds in the air4 ,then1 how barren1 how desolate1 how naked are they6 ,how they stand neglected by nature6 ,neither the rains can soften them1 nor the dews from heaven make them fruitful4 ,i give this short survey of the mountains of the earth to help to remove that prejudice we are apt to have1 or that conceit that the present earth is regularly formed4444 ,there is nothing in nature1 adds this writer1 more shapeless and ill-figured than an old rock or a mountain4 ,i leave it to my audience to determine how far this depreciatory view1--whether regarded as that of ,dr4 ,burnet or of the modern anti-geologist1--agrees with the estimate of the higher minds1 or whether it manifests the proper respect for the adorable ,being who1 in his infinite wisdom1 made our world what it is4 ,let me next show that some of even the abler and more respectable anti-geologists exhibit no very profound veneration for the letter of ,scripture1 when1 instead of bearing1 as they think1 against the deductions of their opponents1 they find it directly opposed to fancies of their own4 ,it is held by not a few among them1 that at the ,deluge the sea and land changed places4 ,when the waters receded1 it was found1 they allege1 that the old land had become ocean1 and the old ocean had become land2 and as there are certain rivers which are described in ,scripture as flowing beside ,eden1 and which1 judging by the names given them1 still exist1 it has become imperative on the assertors of the hypothesis to show that the rivers which now drain tracts of what they hold was then sea1 and that fall into seas which they hold were then land1 could not by any possibility have formed the boundaries of the old ,adamic garden4 ,let us mark how ,mr4 ,granville ,penn1--certainly one of the most extensively informed of his class1--deals with this difficulty4#da ,there are1 he argues1 certain great corruptions of ,scripture4 ,what had been at first written as marginal notes by uninspired men1 and were in some cases very erroneous and absurd1 came in the course of transcription to be transferred1 wholly by mistake1 from the side of the page into the body of the text2 and thus1 in at least a few places1 the ,scriptures were vitiated1 and now declare1 instead of ,divine truth1 what is neither sense nor fact4 ,and on this very general1 and certainly most perilous ground1 he goes on to argue1 unsupported by a single ancient manuscript1 and solely on what he terms internal evidence1 that the verses in ,genesis which conflict with his hypothesis must be regarded as mere idle glosses1 ignorantly or surreptitiously introduced into the text by the ancient copyists4 ,in the second chapter of ,genesis1 we find him saying1 there appears an internal critical evidence of an insertion of the #aath1 #abth1 #acth1 and #adth verses1 similar to that of the #dth verse of the #eth chapter of ,st4 ,john1 and constituting1 in a similar manner1 a parenthesis intersecting the thread of the narrative1 and introduced solely for a similar purpose of illustration4 ,it does not wear the character of the simple narrative in which it appears1 but of the surcharge of the gloss or note of a later age1 founded upon the fanciful traditions then prevailing with respect to the situation of the ancient ,paradise4 ,this certainly is cutting the knot2 and1 if erected into a precedent by the geologist1 would no doubt greatly facilitate the labor of reconciliation4 ,it would1 however1 be perilous work for him4 ,a wolf1 says ,plutarch1 peeping into a hut where a company of shepherds were assembled1 saw them regaling themselves with a joint of mutton4 ',ye gods6' he exclaimed1 'what a clamor these men would have raised if they had caught me at such a banquet4' ,i need scarcely add1 that the hypothesis in whose behalf ,scripture is thus divested of its authority1 and recklessly cast aside1 is entirely a worthless one2 and that the various continents of the globe1 instead of all dating from one period little more than four thousand years back1 are of very various ages1--some of them comparatively modern1 though absolutely old in relation to human history2 and some of so hoar an antiquity1 that the term since man appeared upon earth might be employed as a mere unit to measure it by4 ,it need not surprise us that a writer who takes such strange liberties with a book which he professes to respect1 and which he must have had many opportunities of knowing1 should take still greater liberties with a science for which he entertains no respect whatever1 and of whose first principles he is palpably ignorant4 ,and yet the wild recklessness of some of his explanations of geological phenomena must somewhat astonish all sufficiently acquainted with the science to know that the place and relations of its various formations have been long since determined1 and now as certainly form the regulating data of the practical miner1 as the places and relations long since determined by the geographer form the regulating data of the practical navigator or engineer4 ,it is as certain1 for instance1 that the ,oolitic system underlies the ,green ,sand and the ,chalk1 with all the various formations of the ,tertiary division1--,eocene ,miocene1 ,pliocene1 and ,pleistocene1--as that ,york is situated to the south of ,edinburgh1 or that both these cities lie very considerably to the north of ,london and ,paris4 ,and the anti-geologist who would argue1 in the heat of controversy1 that the ,oolite and the ,pleistocene were contemporaneous deposits1 would be no more worthy of reply than the anti-geographer who would assert1 in order to serve some argumentative purpose1 that the ,north ,cape lies in the same latitudinal parallel as ,south ,california1 or that ,terra del ,fuego is but a day's sailing from ,iceland4 ,and yet such1 as ,i intimated on a former evening1 is the line taken up by ,mr4 ,granville ,penn1 in dealing with the difficulties of the ,kirkdale ,cave1 so remarkable for its accumulations of gnawed bones of the ,pleistocene ages1--especially for its bones of hynas1 tigers1 bears1 wolves1 rhinoceroses1 and elephants4 ,the cave occurs in the moorlands of ,yorkshire1 in a limestone rock of that ,oolitic division to which the ,oxford ,clay and the ,coral ,rag belong1 and contains corals and shells that had passed into extinction long even ere the ,tertiary period began2 while in the cave itself1 mixed with bones of the extinct mammals of the geologic age in immediate advance of the present one1 there have been found the contemporary remains of animals that still live in our fields and woods1 such as the hare1 the rabbit1 the weasel1 and the water rat4 ,and we find ,mr4 ,penn assigning both the ,oolitic rock in which the cave is hollowed1 and the mammalian remains of the cave itself1 equally to the period of the deluge4 ,the limestone existed at that time1 it would seem1 as a soft calcareous paste1 into which the animal remains1 floated northwards from intertropical regions on the waters of the ,flood1 were precipitated in vast quantities1 and sank1 and then1 fermenting under the putrefactive influences1 the gas which they formed blow up the yielding lime and mud around them into a long narrow cave1 just as a glass-blower blows up a bottle1 or as a little yeast blows up into similar but greatly smaller cavities a bit of leaven4 ,and the stalactites and stalagmites which encrust the ,kirkdale ,cave are1 ,mr4 ,penn holds1 simply the last runnings of the lime that exuded after the general mass had begun to set4 ,certainly any one disposed to take such liberties with the ,bible on the one hand1 and with geologic science on the other1 as those taken in the given instances by this most formidable of the anti-geologists1 could have but little difficulty in making either ,scripture as geological or geology as ,scriptural as he had a mind4 ,his chief danger would be that of making the sounder theologians just a little angry1 and of escaping1 unless quoted for the joke's sake1 the notice of the geologists altogether4 ,in truth1 the extreme absurdity of our later anti-geologists in virtually contending1 in the controversy1 that their ignorance of an interesting science1 founded on millions of determined facts1 ought to be permitted to weigh against the knowledge of the men who have studied it most thoroughly1 forms their best defence4 ,it secures them against all save neglect4 ,as1 however1 some of their number are well meaning men1 who would not be ridiculous if they could help it1 and only oppose themselves to the geologists because they deem them mischievous and in error1 it may be worth while showing them1 by an example or two1 the ludicrous nature of the positions which in their honest ignorance they permit themselves to occupy1 and the real scope and bearing of the arguments which they unwittingly permit themselves to use4 ,i shall adduce two several instances of reasoning1 directed by the anti-geologists against their antagonists 7as they themselves believed71 but which1 from their ignorance of the true state of the argument1 and of the bearing of the facts with which they dealt1 in reality made out for these antagonists as strong a case as they could possibly have made out for themselves4 ,and ,i am sure that1 rather than be found siding with their opponents1 the anti-geologists would be content even to acquire a little geology4 ,i shall select my first instance from the records of the annual controversy which used to rage some ten or fifteen years ago1 in sermons1 newspapers1 and magazines1 immediately after every meeting of the ,british ,association4 ,a religious ,dublin newspaper1--the ,statesman and ,record1--since extinct1 took always an active part in these discussions on the anti-geological side1 and boldly affirmed1 as in a number now before me1 that geology had the devil for its author4 ,a learned correspondent of the paper1 who was1 however1 somewhat more charitable1 thought that at least the facts of the science might be exempted from a condemnation so sweeping2 nay1 that1 well interpreted1 they might be found decidedly opposed to at least the more mischievous deductions of the geologists2 and in illustrating the point1 we find him thus arguing1 from certain appearances in the valley of the ,nile1 that the globe which we inhabit cannot possibly be more than six thousand years old4#db ,the valley of the ,nile1 says this writer1 is known to be covered with a bed of slime which the river has deposited in its periodical inundations1 and which rests on a foundation of sand1 like that of the adjacent desert4 ,the ,french savans who accompanied ,bonaparte in his ,egyptian expedition made several experiments to ascertain the thickness and depth of this superincumbent bed4 ,they dug about two hundred pits1 and carefully measured the thickness in the transversal section of the valley1 where the deposit had been free from obstacles1 and had not been materially increased or lessened by local causes4 ,they found the mean of all these measurements to be six and a half metres1 or rather more than twenty feet4 ,m4 ,gironde endeavored to determine the quantity of slime deposited in a century2 and he found that the elevation of soil in that period was rather less than four inches and a half6 ,dividing the total thickness of the bed by the centenary elevation1 he found the quotient #ef4ej2 whence it followed that the inundations had commenced #efej years before the year #ahjj1 when the experiments were made1--a number which only differed #aei years from the ,mosaic date4 ,the difference is not very important1 when it is considered that the most trifling error1 whether in the measure of the entire superincumbent bed1 or in the valuation of the quantity of slime deposited in a century1 affects the final results4 ,notwithstanding this1 the coincidence between the sacred historian and the computations of science is remarkable1 and furnishes one proof more of the harmony existing between nature and revelation4 ,an honest experimentalist was constrained to arrive at this conclusion at a period when the infidel school of our continental neighbors was in high feather4 ,i am sorry to add1 that the result of his own calculation had not that effect on the philosopher himself1 or his free-thinking associates1 which1 for their own sakes1 was desirable2 but it is no less valuable to us on that account2 for we know that an unwilling witness to the truth is worth a score of evidences already prejudiced in its favor4 ,now1 this is clear1 distinct statement2 and nothing can be more evident than that the theologian who makes it holds he is reasoning with conclusive effect in behalf of what may be termed the short chronology1--not in its legitimate connection with the recent introduction of the human species1 but in its supposed bearing on the age of the earth4 ,and in doing so he commits himself to the apparent positive fact1 determined on what may be regarded as geologic data1 that the river ,nile has been flowing over its bed for about as many years as have elapsed1 according to the ,hebrew chronology adopted by ,usher1 since the creation of man1 and no more4 ,to the integrity of this inference he pledges himself1 as an inference to which the infidel ought to have yielded1 as conclusive in its bearing on the question of the earth's age1 and as of singular value to the believer who sets himself to deal with the evidences of his faith4 ,now1 without referring to the circumstance that the data on which the ,french savans under ,napoleon founded have since been challenged by geologists1 such as ,lieutenant ,newbold and ,sir ,g4 ,wilkinson1 who have carefully surveyed the rocks and soils of ,egypt with the assistance of clearer light than existed at the commencement of the century1 let us1 for the argument's sake1 hold the inference to be quite as good as this theologian regards it4 ,and see1 we urge upon him1 that you yourself do not suffer it to drop should you find that it commits you to the other side of the argument4 ,be at least as fair and honest as you say the infidels ought to have been4 ,the six and a half metres of silt and slime1--representative1 let us hold1 of from five to six thousand years1--rest1 you say1 on a foundation of sand like that of the adjacent desert4 ,but have you ascertained on what the sand rests8 ,i know nothing of that1 replies the theologian2 ,i had not even thought of that4 ,but the geologist has thought of it1 we reply2 and has spent much time under the hot sun in ascertaining the point4 ,for nearly three hundred miles1--from the inner boundaries of the delta to within a few hours' journey of the cataracts1--the silt and sand rest on what is known as the marine or nummulitic limestone1--a formation of great extent1 for it runs into the ,nubian desert on the one hand1 and into the ,libyan desert on the other2 and which1 though it abounds in the animalcules of the ,european chalk1 is held to belong1 in at least its upper beds1 which are charged with nummulites1 to the earlier ,eocene4 ,over this marine limestone there rests a newer formation1 of later ,tertiary age1 which contains the casts of sea shells1 and whole forests of dicotyledonous trees1 converted into a flint-like chert2 and over all repose the sands and gravels of the desert4 ,underneath the silt of the river1 then1 and the sand of the desert1 lie these two formations of the ,tertiary division4 ,the lower1 which is of great thickness1 must have been of slow formation4 ,it is composed almost exclusively1 in many parts1 of microscopic animals1 and abounds in others in fossil shells1--nautili1 ostread1 turritella1 and nummulites1 with corals1 sponges1 the remains of crustacea1 and the teeth of fishes4 ,and between the period of its deposition and that of the formation which rests upon it the surface of what is now ,egypt must have been elevated over the surface of the sea1 to be covered1 in the course of ages1 by great forests1 which1 ere the land assumed its present form and level1 were submerged by another oscillation of the surface1 and petrified amid beds of a siliceous sand at the bottom of the ocean4 ,nor is the underlying marine limestone by any means the oldest of the sedimentary rocks of ,egypt4 ,it rests on a sandstone of ,permian or ,triassic age2 the sandstone rests1 in turn1 on the famous ,breccia de ,verde of ,egypt2 and the ,breccia on a group of ,azoic rocks1 gneisses1 quartzes1 mica schists1 and clay slates1 that wrap round the granitic nucleus of ,syene4 ,the formations of ,egypt constitute a well-determined part of that great series of systems which compose the upper portion of the earth's crust3 its silt is by far the most inconsiderable of its deposits2 and if five thousand six hundred and fifty years were exhausted in laying down layer after layer of the twenty feet which form its average thickness1 what enormous periods must we not demand in addition for the laying down of the forest formation1 of the marine limestone formation1 of the ,new ,red ,sandstone formation1 of the ,breccia de ,verde formation1 and1 in short1 for the some ten miles of fossiliferous rock of which those deposits form such definite1 well-determined portions2 besides the time necessary for the production of the enormously developed ,azoic rocks which lie under all6 ,the theologian1 in this instance1 instead of reasoning1 as he himself supposed1 in behalf of the short chronology1 has been making out a very formidable case for the long one2 and all that the geologist can have to urge upon him in the circumstances is simply that he should act as he holds the infidel ought to have done1 and yield to the force of evidence4 ,i may mention in the passing1 that some of the most ancient buildings of ,egypt are formed of the ,tertiary marine limestones of the country2 the stones of the pyramids are charged with nummulites1 known to the ,arabs as ,pharaoh's beans2 and these organisms stand out in high relief on the weathered portions of the ,great ,sphinx4 ,some of the oldest things in the world in their relation to human history1--erections1 many of which had survived the memory of their founders even in the days of ,herodotus1--are formed of materials so modern in their relation to the geologic epochs1 that they had no existence as rock until after the ,palozoic and ,secondary ages had gone by4 ,not only the ,carboniferous sandstone of the ,high ,church and ,parliament ,house of ,edinburgh1 but even the ,oolitic 7that is1 ,portland stone7 of ,somerset ,house and ,st4 ,paul's1 are of an antiquity incalculably vast compared with the stone out of which the oldest of the pyramids were fashioned4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aaf4 ,,nummulites ,l,,vigata4 7,pharaoh's ,beans47 ,the second example which ,i shall adduce is one with which many of my auditors must be already familiar4 ,the ,falls of ,niagara are gradually eating their way through an elevated tract of table-land1 upwards towards ,lake ,erie1 at the rate of about fifty yards in forty years2 and it has been argued by ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 that as they are now seven miles distant from ,queenston1 where the elevation of the plateaux begins1 they must have taken about ten thousand years to scoop out their present deep channel through that space4#dc ,ten thousand years ago the ,falls were1 he infers1 at ,queenston2 and the grounds on which he reasons are exactly those on which one would infer that a laborer who had cut a ditch two hundred yards long at the rate of ten yards per day1 and was still at work without pause or intermission1 had begun to cut it just twenty days previous4 ,a reverend anti-geologist takes up ,sir ,charles2#dd and1 after denouncing the calculation as a stab at the ,christian religion1 seeing it involves the assertion that the ,falls were actually at ,queenston four thousand years before the creation of the world according to ,moses1 he brings certain facts1 adduced both by other writers and ,sir ,charles himself1 to bear on the calculation1 such as the fact that the deep trench through which the ,niagara runs is much narrower in its lower than in its upper reaches1 and that the river must have performed its work of excavation1 when the breadth was less1 at a greatly quicker rate than now4 ,and thus the work of excavating the trench is brought fairly within six thousand years4 ,nor is the principle of the reasoning bad4 ,in our illustration of the ditch excavated by the laborer we of course take it for granted that it is a ditch of the same depth and breadth throughout1 and excavated in the same sort of soil2 for if greatly narrower and shallower at one place than at another1 or dug in a greatly softer mould1 the rate of its excavation at different times might be very different indeed1 and the general calculation widely erroneous1 if based on the ratio of progress when it went on most slowly1 taken as an average ratio for the whole4 ,but the anti-geologist provokes only a smile when1 in his triumph1 he exultingly exclaims1 ,it is on grounds such as these that the most learned and voluminous among ,english geologists disputes the ,mosaic history of the ,creation and ,deluge1--a strong proof that even men of argument on other subjects often reason in the most childish and ridiculous manner1 and on grounds totally false1 when they undertake to deny the truth of the ,holy ,scriptures4 ,now1 it must be wholly unnecessary to remark here1 that it is surely one thing to undertake to deny the truth of the ,holy ,scriptures1 and quite another and different thing to hold that the ,niagara ,falls may have been at ,queenston ten thousand years ago2 or further1 that it seems not in the least wise to stake the truth of ,revelation on any such issue4 ,let me request you1 however1 to observe1 that in one important respect this writer resembles the former one4 ,the former1 ignorant of the various phenomena exhibited by the great deposits of ,egypt1 exhausted all his five thousand six hundred years of available time in accounting for the formation of one of the least of them1--the silt of the ,nile2 and the latter1 though he bids down ,sir ,charles some four thousand four hundred years or so in the one item of scooping out the bed of the ,st4 ,lawrence1 at least expends the remainder of the ten thousand1--his five thousand six hundred years1--in that work of excavation alone1 and leaves himself no further sums to set off against the various geologic processes that may have preceded it4 ,in this case1 as in the other1 let us grant1 for the argument's sake1 all the facts4 ,let us admit that the trench through which the ,st4 ,lawrence now flows has been cut by the river in somewhat less than six thousand years4 ,but through what1 let us ask1 has it been cut8 ,there can exist no doubt on the subject3 it has been cut through an ancient graveyard of the ,upper ,silurian system1 charged with the peculiar fossils characteristic of what are known as the ,clinton and ,niagara groups1 and common1 many of them1 to the ,upper ,silurian of our own country and of the ,european continent4 ,leptna depressa and ,pentamerus oblongus1 two of the most frequent shells of the deposit1 occur also in equal abundance in the ,dudley and ,caradoc formations of ,england2 its prevailing encrinite1 ,ichthyocrinus lvis1 is scarce distinguishable from an encrinite which ,i have often picked up in the quarries of the ,wren's ,nest 7,ichthyocrinus pyriformis72 while its prevailing trilobite1 ,phacops limulurus1 seems to be but a transatlantic variety of our well known ,asaphus 7,phacops7 caudatus4 ,further1 the sequence of the various formations both above and below the ,niagara group1 is shown with remarkable distinctness in that part of the world along the shores of the great lakes4 ,they may be traced downward1 on the one hand1 along the ,lower ,silurian deposits1 to the non-fossiliferous base on which the system rests1 and upwards1 on the other1 through the ,old ,red ,sandstone and the ,carboniferous ,limestone1 to the workable ,coal ,measures4 ,both stratigraphically and palontologically the place in the scale of the ,niagara graveyard can be definitely determined2 and a superficial deposit on the heights in its immediate neighborhood shows that the river did not begin its work of excavation among its long extinct shells1 trilobites1 and corals1 until after not only the great ,palozoic1 but also the ,secondary and ,tertiary divisions had been laid down1 and the recent period ushered in4 ,the superficial shells of the adjacent heights belong to the ,pleistocene age1 and show that in even that comparatively modern time the lower lands of ,upper ,canada were submerged beneath the level of the ocean1 and that a series of deep seas1 connected by broad sounds1 occupied the place of the great lakes4 ,not until the last upheaval of the land was the river now known as the ,st4 ,lawrence called into existence1 to begin its work of excavation2 and ere that event took place1 fully ten miles of fossiliferous rock had been deposited on the earth's surface1 charged with the remains of many succeeding creations4 ,the deposit through which the ,st4 ,lawrence is slowly mining its way is older than the river itself by the vast breadth of the four ,tertiary periods1 by that of all the ,secondary ages1--,cretaceous1 ,oolitic1 and ,triassic1--by the periods1 too1 of the ,permian system1 of the ,carboniferous system1 of the ,old ,red system1 and of the uppermost beds of the ,upper ,silurian system4 ,but a simple illustration may better serve to show the true character of the conclusion urged here by the opponent of ,sir ,charles1 than any such line of statement as that which ,i employ1 however clear to the geologist4 ,in the year #ahag1 ,prince's ,street1 in ,edinburgh1 was opened up to the ,calton ,hill1 and the ,calton burying-ground cut through to the depth of many feet by the roadway4 ,let us suppose that when the excavation has been carried a hundred yards into the cemetery1 a geologist1 finding the laborers cutting on the average about a yard per day1 simply intimates as his opinion that the laborers have been a hundred days at work4 ,no1 replies a controversialist on the anti-geological side2 for the first fifty yards1 so soft was the subsoil1 and so shallow the covering of mould1 that the laborers must have cut at the rate of two yards a day2 it has been merely for the last fifty yards that they have been excavating at the present slow rate3 they cannot have been more than seventy-five days at work4 ,i marvel exceedingly at the absurdity of geological reasoners3 palpably the burying-ground of the ,calton is only seventy-five days old4 ,now1 such1 in no exaggerated1 but1 on the contrary1 greatly modified form1 is the argument that would limit the age of the earth to the period during which the ,st4 ,lawrence has been scooping out a channel for itself1 from ,queenston to ,niagara1 through an ancient ,silurian burying-ground4 ,both arguments alike confound the age of the ancient burying-grounds with the date of the modern excavations opened up through them2 but in order to render the argument of my illustration equally absurd with the other1 it would be not only necessary to infer that the ,calton cemetery was only seventy-five days old1 but also that the rock on which it rested was no older4 ,but enough of follies such as these6 ,i had marked a good many other passages of similar character in the writings of the recent anti-geologists1 and would have little difficulty in filling a volume with such2 but it would be a useless1 though mayhap curious work1 and is much better exhibited by specimen than as a whole4 ,a little folly is amusing1 but much of it fatigues4 ,there is a time coming1 and now not very distant1 when the vagaries of the anti-geologists will be as obsolete as those of the geographers of ,salamanca1 or as those of the astronomers who upheld the orthodoxy of ,ptolemy against ,galileo and ,newton2 and when they will be regarded as a sort of curious fossils1 very monstrous and bizarre1 and altogether of an extinct type1 but which had once not only life1 but were formidable4 ,it will then be seen by all what a noble vestibule the old geologic ages form to that human period in which moral responsibility first began upon earth1 and a creature destined to immortality anticipated an eternal hereafter4 ,there is always much of the mean and the little in the worlds which man creates for himself1 and in the history which he gives them4 ,of all the abortions of the middle ages which have come down to us1 ,i know not a more miserable one1--at once ludicrous and sad1--than that heavens and earth of ,cosmas ,indicopleustes1 the monk1 which ,i illustrated by diagrams in my last lecture 7,figs4 #aad1 #aae74 ,they are just such heavens and earth as a monk might have made1 and made too at a sitting4 ,the heavens1 represented as a solid arch raised on tall walls1 resemble1 as a whole1 the arch which figures in the middle of a freemason's apron1 or1 more homely still1 the section of a wine cellar2 while the earth lies beneath as a great plain or floor1 with a huge hill in the distance1 behind which the sun passes when it is night4 ,and yet this scheme gave law to the world for more than six centuries1 and lay like a nightmare on physical discovery1 astronomic and geographical4 ,the anti-geologists have been less mischievous1 for they live in a more enlightened age2 and we already see but the straggling remains of the body1 and know that the time cannot be far distant when it will be as completely extinct as any of the old faunas4 ,the great globe1 ever revolving on itself1 and journeying in space round the sun1 in obedience to laws which it immortalized a ,newton to discover and demonstrate1 is an infinitely more sublime and noble object than the earth of ,cosmas the monk1 with its conical mountain and its crypt-like firmament2 nor can ,i doubt that its history throughout the long geologic ages1--its strange story of successive creations1 each placed in advance of that which had gone before1 and its succeeding organisms1 vegetable and animal1 ranged according to their appearance in time1 on principles which our profounder students of natural science have but of late determined1--will be found in an equal degree more worthy of its ,divine ,author than that which would huddle the whole into a few literal days1 and convert the incalculably ancient universe which we inhabit into a hastily run-up erection of yesterday4 ,,lecture ,,eleventh4 ,,on ,,the ,,less ,,known ,,fossil ,,floras ,,of ,,scotland4#de ,,part ,i4 ,scotland has its four fossil floras1--its flora of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 its ,carboniferous flora1 its ,oolitic flora1 and that flora of apparently ,tertiary age of which his ,grace the ,duke of ,argyll found so interesting a fragment overflown by the thick basalt beds and trap tuffs of ,mull4 ,of these1 the only one adequately known to the geologist is the gorgeous flora of the ,coal ,measures1--probably the richest1 in at least individual plants1 which the world has yet seen4 ,the others are all but wholly unknown2 and the ,association may be the more disposed to tolerate the comparative meagreness of the few brief remarks which ,i purpose making on two of their number1--the floras of the ,old ,red ,sandstone and the ,oolite1--from the consideration that that meagreness is only too truly representative of the present state of our knowledge regarding them2 and that if my descriptions be scanty and inadequate1 it is only because the facts are still few4 ,how much of the lost may yet be recovered ,i know not2 but the circumstance that two great floras1--remote predecessors of the existing one1--which once covered with their continuous mantle of green the dry land of what is now ,scotland1 should be represented by but a few coniferous fossils1 a few cycadaceous fronds1 a few ferns and club mosses1 must serve to show what mere fragments of the past history of our country we have yet been able to recover from the rocks1 and how very much in the work of exploration and discovery still remains for us to do4 ,we stand on the further edge of the great floras of by-past creations1 and have gathered but a few handfuls of faded leaves1 a few broken branches1 a few decayed cones4 ,the ,silurian deposits of our country have not yet furnished us with any unequivocal traces of a terrestrial vegetation4 ,professor ,nicol of ,aberdeen1 on subjecting to the microscope the ashes of a ,silurian anthracite which occurs in ,peeblesshire1 detected in it minute tubular fibres1 which seem1 he says1 to indicate a higher class of vegetation than the alg2 but these may have belonged to a marine vegetation notwithstanding4 ,i detected some years ago1 in the ,trilobite-bearing schists of ,girvan1 associated with graptolites of the ,lower ,silurian type1 a vegetable organism somewhat resembling the leaf of one of the pond weeds1--an order of plants1 some of whose species1 such as ,zostera1 find their proper habitats in salt water4 ,i have placed beside this specimen a fragment of the same graptolite-bearing rock1 across which ,i have pasted part of a leaf of ,zostera marina1 the only plant of our ,scottish seas which is furnished with true roots1 bears real flowers inclosed in herbaceous spathes1 and produces a well formed farinaceous seed4 ,it will be seen1 that in the few points of comparison which can be instituted between forms so exceedingly simple1 the ancient very closely resembles the recent organism4 ,it is not impossible1 therefore1 that the ,silurian vegetable may have belonged to some tribe of plants allied to ,zostera2 and if so1 we can easily conceive how the ,silurian anthracite of our country may be altogether of marine origin1 and may yet exhibit in its microscopic tubular fibres vestiges of a vegetation higher than the alg4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aag4 a1 ,,silurian ,,organism4 b1 ,,graptolite4 c1 ,,portion ,,of ,,the ,,leaf ,,of ,,zostera ,,marina4 ,it were well1 in dealing with the very ancient floras1 in which equivocal forms occur that might have belonged to either the land or the sea1 to keep in view those curious plants of the present time1 the habitats of which are decidedly marine1 but which are marked by many of the peculiarities of the seed-bearing plants of the land4 ,the superiority of ,zostera to the common sea weeds of our coasts appears to have struck in the north of ,scotland eyes very little practised in such matters1 and seems to have given rise1 in consequence1 to a popular myth4 ,zostera marina abounds on a series of sand banks1 partially uncovered by the larger stream tides1 which lie directly opposite the town of ,cromarty1 near the spot pointed out by tradition as the site of an earlier town1 which was swept away some two or three hundred years ago by the encroachments of the sea4 ,and these banks1 with their thick covering of green ,zostera1 used to be pointed out by the fishermen of the place1 in my younger days1 as the meadows of the old town1 still bearing their original coverings of vegetation1--a vegetation altered no doubt by the sea change that had come over it1 but still essentially the same1 it was said1 as that which had smiled around the old burgh1 and not at all akin to the brown kelp or tangle that every storm from the boisterous north-east heaps along the shore4 ,it was virtually affirmed that the luxuriant terrestrial grasses of ancient ,cromarty had made a virtue of necessity in their altered circumstances2 and that1 settling down into grasses of the sea1 they remained to testify that an ancient ,cromarty there had once been4 ,zostera marina1 like most plants of the land1 ripens its seeds towards the close of autumn2 and ,i have seen a smart night's frost at this season1 when coincident with a stream tide that laid bare the beds1 nip its seed-bearing stems by thousands2 and have found them strewed along the beach a few days after1 with all their grass-like spikes fully developed1 and their grain-like seeds charged with a farinaceous substance1 which one would scarce expect to find developed in the sea4 ,in the higher reaches of the ,cromarty ,firth1 the ,zostera beds1 which are of great extent1 are much frequented1 during the more protracted frosts of a severe winter1 by wild geese and swans1 that dig up and feed upon the saccharine roots of the plant4 ,the ,zostera of the warmer latitudes attain to a larger size than those of our ,scottish seas4 ,a southern species1 says ,loudon1 ,zostera oceanica1 has leaves a foot long and an inch broad4 ,it is used as a thatch1 which is said to last a century2 bleaches white with exposure2 and furnishes the rush-like material from which the envelops of ,italian liquor flasks are prepared4 ,the simple rectilinear venation of ribbon-like fronds1 usually much broken1 that occurs in the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 has often reminded me of that exhibited by this exotic species of ,zostera4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aah4 ,,fucoid4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aai4 ,,fucoids4 ,associated with the earliest ichthyic remains of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 we find vegetable organisms in such abundance1 that they communicate often a fissile character to the stone in which they occur4 ,but1 existing as mere carbonaceous markings1 their state of keeping is usually so bad1 that they tell us little else than that the antiquely-formed fishes of this remote period swam over sea bottoms darkened by forests of alg4 ,the prevailing plant was one furnished with a long1 smooth stem1 which1 though it threw off1 in the alternate order1 numerous branches at least half as stout as itself1 preserved its thickness for considerable distances without diminution1--a common fucoidal characteristic4 ,we find its remains mixed in the rock1 though sparingly1 with those of a rough-edged plant1 knobbed somewhat like the thong-like receptacles of ,himanthalia lorea1 which also threw off branches like the other1 but diminished more rapidly4 ,a greatly more minute vegetable organism of the same beds1 characterized by its bifid partings1 which strike off at angles of about sixty1 somewhat resembles the small-fronded variety of ,dictyota dichotoma1 save that the slim terminations of the frond are usually bent into little hooks1 like the tendrils of the pea just as their points begin to turn4 ,another rather rare plant of the period1 existing as a broad1 irregularly cleft frond1 somewhat resembling that of a modern ,cutleria or ,nitophyllum1 betrays at once1 in its outline and general appearance1 its marine origin2 as does also an equally rare contemporary1 which1 judging from its appearance1 seems to have been a true fucus4 ,it exists in the rock as if simply drawn in ,indian ink2 for it exhibits no structure1 though1 as in some of the ferns of the ,coal ,measures1 what were once the curls of its leaflets continue to exist as sensible hollows on the surface4 ,it broadens and divides atop into three or four lobes1 and these1 in turn1 broaden and divide into minor lobes1 double or ternate1 and usually rounded at their terminations4 ,in general appearance the plant not a little resembles those specimens of ,fucus vesiculosus which we find existing in a diminutive form1 and divested of both the receptacles and the air vessels1 at the mouth of rivers4 ,of two other kinds of plants ,i have seen only confused masses1 in which the individuals were so crowded together1 and withal so fragmentary and broken1 that their separate forms could not be traced4 ,in the one the general appearance was such as might be produced by compressed and tangled masses of ,chorda filium1 in which the linear and even tubular character of the plant could be determined1 but not its continuous1 cord-like aspect2 in the other1 the fragments seemed well nigh as slim as hairs1 and the appearance was such as might be produced by branches of that common ectocarpus1 ,e4 littoralis1 which may be seen on our rocky coasts roughening at low water the stems of laminaria4 ,when highly magnified1 a mesial groove might be detected running along each of the hair-like lines4 ,with these marine plants we occasionally find large rectilinear stems1 resolved into a true coal1 but retaining no organic character by which to distinguish them4 ,as ,i have seen some of these more than three inches in diameter1 and1 though existing as mere fragments1 several feet in length1 they must1 if they were also plants of the sea1 have exceeded in size our largest laminaria4#df ,and such are the few vegetable organisms1 of apparently aquatic origin1 which ,i have hitherto succeeded in detecting in the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,scotland4#dg ,their individual numbers1 however1 must have been very great1 though1 from the destructible character of their tissues1 their forms have perished in the stone4 ,the immensely developed flagstones of ,caithness seem to owe their dark color to organic matter mainly of vegetable origin4 ,so strongly bituminous1 indeed1 are some of the beds of dingier tint1 that they flame in the fire like slates steeped in oil4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abj4 ,the remains of a terrestrial vegetation in this deposit are greatly scantier than those of its marine plants2 but they must be regarded as possessing a peculiar interest1 as1 with the exception of the spore cases of the ,ludlow rocks1 the oldest of their class1 in at least the ,british islands1 whose true place in the scale can be satisfactorily established4 ,in the flagstones of ,orkney there occurs1 though very rarely1 a minute vegetable organism1 which ,i have elsewhere described as having much the appearance of one of our smaller ferns1 such as the maidenhair-spleenwort1 or dwarf moonwort4 ,it consists of a minute stem1 partially covered by what seems to be a small sheath or hollow bract1 and bifurcates into two fronds or pinn1 fringed by from ten to twelve leaflets1 that nearly impinge on each other1 and somewhat resemble in their mode of arrangement the leaflets of one of our commonest ,aspleniums1--,asplenium trichomanes4 ,one of our highest authorities1 however1 in such matters 7,professor ,balfour of ,edinburgh7 questions whether this organism be in reality a fern1 and describes it from the specimen on the table1 in the ,palontological chapter of his admirable ,class ,book1 simply as a remarkable pinnate frond4 7,fig4 #ac1 p4 #ef47 ,we find it associated with the remains of a terrestrial plant allied to lepidodendron1 and which in size and general appearance not a little resembles one of our commonest club mosses1--,lycopodium clavatum4#dh ,it sends out its branches in exactly the same style1--some short and simple1 others branched like the parent stem1--in an arrangement approximately alternate2 and is everywhere covered1 stem and branch1 by thickly set scale-like leaflets1 that1 suddenly narrowing1 terminate in exceedingly slim points4 ,it has1 however1 proportionally a stouter stem than ,lycopodium2 its leaves1 when seen in profile1 seem more rectilinear and thin2 and none of its branches yet found bear the fructiferous stalk or spike4 ,its resemblance1 however1 to this commonest of the ,lycopodia1--a plant that may be gathered by handfuls on the moors by which the flagstones are covered1--is close enough to suggest a new reading of the familiar adage on the meeting of extremes4 ,between the times of this ancient fossil1--one of the oldest of land plants yet known1--and those of the existing club moss that now scatters its light spores by millions over the dead and blackened remains of its remote predecessor1 many creations must have intervened1 and many a prodigy of the vegetable world appeared1 especially in the earlier and middle periods1--,sigillaria1 ,favularia1 ,knorria1 and ,ulodendron1--that have had no representatives in the floras of latter times2 and yet here1 flanking the immense scale at both its ends1 do we find plants of so nearly the same form and type1 that it demands a careful survey to distinguish their points of difference4 ,here1 for instance1 to illustrate the fact1 is there a specimen of ,lycopodium clavatum1 from one of these ,caithness moors1 that agrees branch for branch1 and both in the disposition of its scales and in general outline1 with the specimen in the stone4 ,what seems to be an early representative of the ,calamites occurs in the same beds4 ,some of the specimens are of large size1--at least from nine inches to a foot in circumference1--and retain their thickness1 though existing as fragments several feet in length1 with but little diminution throughout4 ,they resembled the interior casts of ,calamites in being longitudinally furrowed2 but the furrows are flatter1 and are themselves minutely striated lengthwise by lines as fine as hairs2 and1 instead of presenting any appearance of joints1 there run diagonally across the stems1 interrupted and very irregular lines of knobs4 ,these ,i find referred to by ,dr4 ,joseph ,hooker1 in describing a set of massive but ill preserved remains of the same organism detected in ,south ,ness quarry1 near ,lerwick1 by the ,hon4 ,mr4 ,tuffnell1 as taking1 in two of the specimens1 the appearance of transverse knobs and bars 7mayhap spirally arranged7 that cross the stri obliquely4 ,but though the knobs1 he adds1 may perhaps indicate a peculiar character of the plants1 they have more probably been caused by pressure during silicification4 ,as1 however1 they also occur in the best preserved fragment of the plant which ,i have yet seen1--a ,thurso specimen which ,i owe to my friend ,mr4 ,dick1--,i deem it best to regard them1 provisionally at least1 as one of the characteristics of the plant4 ,i may mention1 that while ,i disinterred one of my specimens from the ,thurso flagstones1 where it occurred among remains of ,dipterus and ,asterolepis1 ,i derived another specimen from the great overlying formation of pale ,red ,sandstone to which the lofty hills of ,hoy and the tall mural precipices of ,dunnet ,head belong2 and that this plant is the only organism which has yet been found in this uppermost member of the ,lower ,old ,red1 to at least the north of the ,moray ,firth4 ,another apparently terrestrial organism of the lower formation1 of1 however1 rare occurrence1 very much resembles a sheathing bract or spathe4 ,it is of considerable size1--from four to six inches in length1 by from two to three inches in breadth1--of a broadly elliptical and yet somewhat lanceolate form1 deeply but irregularly corrugated1 the rug exhibiting a tendency to converge towards both its lower and upper terminations1 and with1 in some instances1 what seems to be the fragment of a second spathe springing from its base4 ,another and much smaller vegetable organism of the same beds presents the form of a spathe-enveloped bud or unblown flower wrapped up in its calyx2 but all the specimens which ,i have yet seen are too obscure to admit of certain determination4 ,i may here mention1 that curious markings1 which have been regarded as impressions made by vegetables that had themselves disappeared1 have been detected during the last twelvemonth in a quarry of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone near ,huntly1 by the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,mackay of ,rhynie4 ,they are very curious and very puzzling2 but though some of the specimens present the appearance of a continuous midrib1 that throws off1 with a certain degree of regularity1 apparent leaflets1 ,i am inclined to regard them rather as lying within the province of the ichnologist than of the fossil botanist4 ,they bear the same sort of resemblance to a long1 thickly-leaved frond1 like that of the hard fern1 that the cast of a many-legged annelid does to a club moss2 and ,i was struck1 on my first walk along the ,portobello beach1 after examining a specimen kindly sent me by ,mr4 ,mackay1 to see how nearly the tract of a small shore crab 7,carcinus ,mnas7 along the wet sand resembled them1 in exhibiting what seemed to be an obscure midrib fringed with leaflets4 ,but the genuine vegetable organism of the formation1 indicative of the highest rank of any yet found in it1 is a true wood of the cone-bearing order4 ,i laid open the nodule which contains this specimen1 in one of the ichthyolite beds of ,cromarty1 rather more than eighteen years ago2 but though ,i described it1 in the first edition of my little work on the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 in #ahda1 as exhibiting the woody fibre1 it was not until #ahde that1 with the assistance of the optical lapidary1 ,i subjected its structure to the test of the microscope4 ,it turned out1 as ,i had anticipated1 to be the portion of a tree2 and on my submitting the prepared specimen to one of our highest authorities1--the late ,mr4 ,william ,nicol1--he at once decided that the reticulated texture of the transverse section1 though somewhat compressed1 clearly indicated a coniferous origin4 ,i may add1 that this most ancient of ,scottish lignites presents several peculiarities of structure4 ,like some of the ,araucarians of the warmer latitudes1 it exhibits no lines of yearly growth2 its medullary rays are slender1 and comparatively inconspicuous2 and the discs which mottle the sides of its sap-chambers1 when viewed in the longitudinal section1 are exceedingly minute1 and are ranged1 so far as can be judged in their imperfect state of keeping1 in the alternate order peculiar to the ,araucarians4 ,on what perished land of the early ,palozoic ages did this venerably antique tree cast root and flourish1 when the extinct genera ,pterichthys and ,coccosteus were enjoying life by millions in the surrounding seas1 long ere the flora or fauna of the ,coal ,measures had begun to be8 ,i may be here permitted to mention1 that in a little volume1 written in reply to a widely known and very ingenious work on the ,development hypothesis1 ,i described and figured this unequivocally genuine lignite1 in order to show that a true wood takes its place among the earliest terrestrial plants known to the geologist4 ,i at the same time mentioned1--desirous1 of course1 that the facts of the question should be fairly stated1 whatever their bearing1--that the nodule in which it occurred had been partially washed out of the fish bed in which ,i found it1 by the action of the surf2 and my opponent1 fixing on the circumstance1 insinuated1 in the answer with which he honored me1 that it had not belonged to the bed at all1 but had been derived from some other formation of later date4 ,he ought1 however1 to have taken into account my further statement1 namely1 that the same nodule which enclosed the lignite contained part of another fossil1 the well marked scales of ,diplacanthus striatus1 an ichthyolite restricted1 like the ,coccosteus 7a specimen of which occurred in a neighboring nodule71 to the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone exclusively4 ,if there be any value whatever in palontological evidence1 this ,cromarty lignite must have been deposited in a sea inhabited by the ,coccosteus and ,diplacanthus4 ,it is demonstrable that1 while yet in the recent state1 a ,diplacanthus lay down and died beside it2 and the evidence in the case is unequivocally this1 that in the oldest portion of the oldest terrestrial flora yet known1 there occurs the fragment of a tree quite as high in the scale as the stately ,norfolk ,island pine1 or the noble cedar of ,lebanon4 ,i have failed hitherto in finding any remains of terrestrial plant-covered surfaces in the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,scotland1 though decided traces of desiccated sub-rial ones are not rare4 ,shallows and banks seem to have been numerous during the period of at least the ,lower formation4 ,the flagstones of ,caithness and ,orkney1 and the argillaceous fish beds of ,cromarty and ,ross1 not only abound in the ripple-marked surfaces of a shallow sea1 but also in cracked and flawed planes that must have dried and split into polygonal partings in the air and the sun4 ,the appearance of these in the neighborhood of the town of ,thurso1 about half a mile to the east of the river1 is not a little curious4 ,bearing throughout the general dingy hue of the flagstones1 they yet consist of alternating beds of two distinct characters and qualities4 ,the one kind1 fissile1 finely grained1 and sharply ripple-marked1 seems to have been deposited in shallow water2 the other1 not fissile1 but1 if ,i may so speak1 felted together so as to yield with difficulty to the hammer in any direction1 and traversed by polygonal partings1 filled up usually by the substance of the overlying stratum1 appears to have had a different origin4 ,the state of keeping1 too1 in which the ichthyic remains of these alternating beds occur is always very different4 ,the smaller and more delicately organized fishes are never found entire1 save in the fissile1 finely grained beds2 in the others we detect only scattered fragments2 and even these1 unless they belonged to the robust ,asterolepis or his congeners1--which1 however1 in these beds they usually do1--much broken4 ,the polygonal partings seem to indicate that these toughly-felted beds1 whose very style of weathering--rough1 gnarled1 fretted into globose protuberances and irregular hollows--shows that it had not been formed by quiet deposition1 must have had their broad backs raised for a time above the surface of the water1 to be desiccated in the hot sun4 ,and the fragmentary state of the fossils which they contain seems to point1 with the roughnesses of their weathered surfaces1 to some peculiarity in their origin4 ,the recollection which they awoke in my mind with each visit ,i paid them for three years together1 may probably indicate what that origin was4 ,i had a relation who died more than a quarter of a century ago1 who passed many years in ,british ,guiana1 in the colony of ,berbice1 and whose graphic descriptions of that part of ,south ,america made a strong impression upon me when a boy1 and still dwells in my memory4 ,he was settled on a cotton plantation near the coast side2 and so exceedingly flat was the surrounding country1 that the house in which he dwelt1 though nearly two miles distant from the shore1 stood little more than five feet above its level4 ,the soil consisted of a dark gray consolidated mud2 and in looking seawards from the margin of the land1 there was nothing to be seen1 when the tide fell1 save dreary mud flats whole miles in extent1 with the line of blue water beyond stretching along the distant horizon4 ,these mud flats were much frequented by birds of the wader family1 that used to come and fish in the shallow pools for the small fry that had lingered behind when the tide fell2 and my cousin1 a keen sportsman in his day1 has told me that he used to steal upon them in his mud shoes1--flat boards attached to the soles1 like the snow shoes of the higher latitudes1--and enjoy rare sport in knocking down magnificent game1 such as the roseate spoonbill and gorgeous flamingo4 ,there were times1 however1 when the mud shoe proved of no avail1 and the flat expanse remained impassable for weeks1-- ,a boggy syrtis1 neither sea ,nor good dry land4 ,the coast1--directly impinged on by the drift current1 and beaten by the long roll of waves which had first begun to rise under the impulsions of the trade winds on the ,african coast two thousand miles away1--was much exposed to tempests2 and after every fresh storm from the east1 a huge bank of mud used to come rolling in from the sea1 three or four feet abreast1 and remain wholly impassable until1 during some two or three neap tides1 its surface had been exposed to a tropical sun1 and partially consolidated by the heat4 ,and then the waste would become passable as before1 and the chopped and broken surface1 exposed to the ordinary action of the sea1 and to gradual depositions during flood1 would begin to be smoothed over1 and the birds would find themselves no longer safe4 ,now1 ,i am inclined to think that we have here the conditions necessary to the formation of the ,thurso deposits4 ,let us suppose1 near where ,thurso now stands1 a wide tract of flat mud banks in a sea so shallow as to be laid dry at ebb for miles together4 ,let us further suppose periods of tranquil deposition or re-arrangement1 during which one ripple-marked stratum is laid quietly down over another1 and the fish1 killed by accident1 or left stranded by the evaporation of the little pools1 are covered up1 like the plants in a botanist's drying-book1 in a state of complete entireness4 ,let us yet further suppose great mud banks driven by occasional tempests from the deeper water beyond1 and so heaped up over these sedimentary beds as to be exposed during even the flood of neap tides to the desiccating influences of the atmosphere and the sun1 until the surface has become hard as a sun-burned brick1 and has chopped into polygonal partings1 with wide rents between4 ,and finally1 let us suppose the whole in this state laid under water at the return of stream tides1 and exposed to the ordinary sedimentary action4 ,does it not seem probable that the alternating beds in all their conditions would be given us by such a process8 ,in the stratum represented by the mud bank1 the stone would be of what ,i have termed a felted1 not a fissile character2 its organic remains would exist in a fragmentary and scattered state1--for1 torn up from their places of original deposition1 and rolled onwards in the storm-impelled mud1 they could not fail to be broken up and dispersed2 and further1 they would be in large part those of bulky deep-sea fishes4 ,and lastly1 the surface of these beds would be polygonally cracked and flawed1 and the wider cracks filled up by the substance of the overlying strata4 ,and these overlying strata1 on the other hand1--the result of a period of quiet deposition in shallow water1--would be regularly bedded1 and their ichthyic remains1 consisting mainly of small littoral fishes1 would be preserved in a state of comparative entireness4 ,for1 however1 such numerous repetitions of alternately felted and fissile ripple-marked strata as we find in the neighborhood of ,thurso1--repetitions carried on for hundreds of feet in vertical extent1--we require yet another condition1--that condition of gradual subsidence in the general crust which can alone account for the fact so often pressed upon the geologist in exploring the ,coal ,measures1 that in deposits thousands of feet in thickness1 each stratum in succession had been laid down in a shallow sea4 ,it is a curious circumstance1 that the ,old ,red flagstones which lie along the southern flanks of the ,grampians1 and are represented by the gray stone known in commerce as the ,arbroath ,pavement1 have not1 so far as is yet known1 an organism in common with the ,old ,red flagstones of the north4 ,i at one time supposed that the rectilinear1 smooth-stemmed fucoid1 already described1 occurred in both series1 as the gray stones have also their smooth-stemmed1 rectilinear1 tape-like organism2 but the points of resemblance were too few and simple to justify the conclusion that they were identical1 and ,i have since ascertained that they were entirely different plants4 ,the fucoid of the ,caithness flagstones threw off1 as ,i have shown1 in the alternate order1 numerous ribbon-like branches or fronds2 whereas the ribbon-like fronds or branches of the ,forfarshire plant rose by dozens from a common root1 like the fronds of ,zostera1 and somewhat resembled a scourge of cords fastened to a handle4 ,contemporary with this organism of the gray flagstone formation1 and thickly occupying the planes on which it rests1 there occur fragments of twisted stems1 some of them from three to four inches in diameter 7though represented by but mere films of carbonaceous matter71 and irregularly streaked1 or rather wrinkled1 longitudinally1 like the bark of some of our forest trees1 though on a smaller scale4 ,with these we find in considerable abundance irregularly-shaped patches1 also of carbonaceous matter1 reticulated into the semblance of polygonal1 or1 in some instances1 egg-shaped meshes1 and which remind one of pieces of ill woven lace4 ,when first laid open1 these meshes are filled each with a carbonaceous speck2 and1 from their supposed resemblance1 in the aggregated form1 to the eggs of the frog in their albuminous envelop1 the quarriers term them puddock frog spawn4 ,the slabs in which they occur1 thickly covered over with their vegetable impressions1 did certainly remind me1 when ,i first examined them some fifteen years ago1 of the bottom of some stagnant ditch beside some decaying hedge1 as it appears in middle spring1 when paved with fragments of dead branches and withered grass1 and mottled with its life-impregnated patches of the gelid substance regarding which a provincial poet tells his readers1 in classical ,scotch1 that ,puddock-spue is fu' o' e'en1 ,an' every e'e 's a pu-head4#di ,higher authorities than the quarriers1--among the rest1 the late ,dr4 ,mantell1--have been disposed to regard these polygonal markings as the fossilized spawn of ancient ,batrachians2 but there now seems to be evidence enough from which to conclude that they are the remains1 not of the eggs of an animal1 but of the seed of a plant4 ,such was the view taken many years ago by ,dr4 ,fleming1--the original discoverer1 let me add1 of fossils both in those ,upper and ,middle ,old ,red ,sandstone deposits that lie in ,scotland to the south of the ,grampians4 ,these organisms1 we find him saying1 in a paper published in ,cheek's ,edinburgh ,journal 7#ahca71 occur in the form of circular flat patches1 not equalling an inch in diameter1 and composed of numerous smaller contiguous pieces4 ,they are not unlike what might be expected to result from a compressed berry1 such as the bramble or the rasp4 ,as1 however1 they are found adjacent to the narrow leaves of gramineous looking vegetables1 and chiefly in clay slate1 originally lacustrine silt1 it is probable that they constituted the conglobate panicles of extinct species of the genus ,junicus or ,sparzanium4 ,from specimens subsequently found by ,dr4 ,fleming1 and on which he has erected his species ,parka decipiens1 it seems evident that the nearly circular bodies 7which in all the better preserved instances circumscribe the small polygonal ones7 were set in receptacles somewhat resembling the receptacle or calyx of the strawberry or rasp4 ,judging from one of the specimens1 this calyx appears to have consisted of five pieces1 which united in a central stem1 and were traversed by broad irregularly diverging stri4 ,and the spawn-like patches of ,carmylie appear to be simply ill preserved specimens of this fruit1 whatever its true character1 in which the minute circular portions1 divested of the receptacle and stem1 had been thrown into irregular forms by the joint agency of pressure and decay4 ,the great abundance of these organisms1--for so abundant are they1 that visitors to the ,carmylie quarries find they can carry away with them as many specimens as they please1--may be regarded as of itself indicative of a vegetable origin4#ej ,it is not in the least strange1 however1 that they should have been taken for patches of spawn4 ,the large-grained spawn of fishes1 such as the lump-fish1 salmon1 or sturgeon1 might be readily enough mistaken1 in even the recent state1 for the detached spherical-seed vessels of fruit1 such as the bramble-berry1 the stone-bramble1 or the rasp4 ,hang it6 ,i once heard a countryman exclaim1 on helping himself at table to a spoonful of ,caviare1 which he had mistaken for a sweet-meat1 and instantly1 according to ,milton1 with sputtering noise rejected1--,hang it for nasty stuff6--,i took it for bramble berry jam4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aba4 ,,parka ,,decipiens4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abb4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abc4 ,along with these curious remains ,dr4 ,fleming found an organism which in form somewhat resembles the spike of one of the grasses1 save that the better preserved bracts terminate in fan or kidney-shaped leaflets1 with a simple venation radiating from the base4 ,it is probably a fern1 more minute in its pinnules than even our smallest specimens of true maidenhair4 ,its stipes1 however1 seems proportionally stouter than that of any of the smaller ferns with which ,i am acquainted4 ,but the state of keeping of the specimen is not good1 nor do ,i know that another has yet been found4 ,further1 in the same beds ,dr4 ,fleming found a curious nondescript vegetable1 or rather part of a vegetable1 with smooth narrow stems1 resembling those of the smooth-stemmed organism of the ,caithness flagstones1 but unlike it in the circumstance that its detached nearly parallel stalks anastomose with each other by means of cross branches1 that unite them in the middle1 somewhat in the style of the ,siamese twins4 ,i have heard the doctor suggest1 but know not whether he has placed the remark on record1 that these parallel stems may have been but the internal fibres of some larger plant1 whose more succulent portions have disappeared2 and certainly1 while such instances of anastomosis are rare among the stems of plants1 they are common enough among their internal fibres1 as all who have examined the macerated debris of a kitchen-garden or a turnip-field must have had occasion to remark4 ,we sometimes1 however1 find cases of anastomosis among the stems of even the higher plants4 ,i have seen oftener than once1 in neglected hawthorn hedges1 the branch of one plant entering into the stem of another1 and becoming incorporated with its substance2 and we are told by ,professor ,balfour1 that this kind of chance adhesion is often seen in the branches of the ivy2 and that not unfrequently1 by a similar process1 the roots of contiguous trees are united4 ,nor does it seem improbable1 that what occasionally takes place among the higher plants of the present time may have been common among some of the comparatively low plants of so ancient a period as that of the ,middle ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,this formation of the gray tilestones has furnished one vegetable organism apparently higher in the scale than those just described1 in a well marked ,lepidodendron1 which exhibits1 like the ,araucarian of the ,lower ,old ,red1 though less distinctly1 the internal structure4 ,it was found about sixteen years ago in a pavement quarry near ,clockbriggs1--the last station on the ,aberdeen and ,forfar ,railway as the traveller approaches the town of ,forfar from the north4 ,i owe my specimen of this ancient ,lepidodendron to ,mr4 ,william ,miller1 banker1 ,dundee1 an accomplished geologist1 who has taken no little trouble in determining its true history4 ,he has ascertained that it occurred deep in the rock1 seventy-one feet from the surface2 that the beds which rested over it were composed1 in the descending order1 first1 of a conglomerate thirty feet thick2 secondly1 of a red rock four feet thick2 thirdly1 of twenty-eight feet of the soft shaly substance known to the quarriers as caulm2 and fourthly1 of more than nine feet of gray pavement1 immediately under which1 in a soft1 argillaceous stratum1 lay the organism4 ,it was about four feet in length1 bulged out at the lower end into a bulb-like protuberance1 which may have been1 however1 merely an accidental result of its state of keeping2 and threw off1 at an acute angle1 two branches about a foot from the top4 ,it was covered with a bark of brittle coal1 which is1 however1 wanting in all the fragments that have been preserved2 and was resolved internally into a brown calcareous substance of about the hardness of ordinary marble1 and very much resembling that into which the petrifactive agencies have consolidated the fossil trees of ,granton and ,craigleith4 ,from the decorticated condition of the surviving fragments1 and the imperfect preservation of the interior structure1 in all save the central portions of its transverse sections1 it yields no specific marks by which to distinguish it2 but enough remains in its irregular network of cells1 devoid of linear arrangement1 and untraversed by medullary rays1 to demonstrate its generic standing as a ,lepidodendron4 ,it has been questioned whether the lower place in the ,old ,red ,system should be assigned to the flagstones of ,caithness and ,ross1 with their characteristic ,dipterus and ,coccosteus beds1 or to the gray tilestones of ,forfar and ,kincardineshires1 with their equally characteristic ,cephalaspis4 ,the evidence on the point is certainly not so conclusive as ,i deemed it fifteen years ago1 when our highest authority on the subject not only regarded the tilestone of the ,silurian regions of ,england as a member of the ,old ,red ,sandstone 7an arrangement which ,i am still disposed to deem the true one71 but also held further1 that there had been detected in this formation near ,downtown ,castle1 ,herefordshire1 broken remains of ,dipterus macrolepidotus1 one of the best marked ichthyolites of the flagstones of ,caithness and ,orkney4 ,a great and unbroken series of fossiliferous rocks1 with ,dipterus at its base1 ,cephalaspis in its medial spaces1 and ,holoptychius at its top1 might well be regarded as the analogue of the ,old ,red of ,scotland1 with the ,caithness flagstones ranged at its bottom1 the ,cephalaspis beds of ,forfarshire placed in its middle1 and the ,holoptychius beds of ,scot-,crag and ,clashbinnie on its upper horizon2 but since that time the tilestones have been transferred to the ,upper ,silurian division of rocks1 and the evidence furnished by their supposed ,dipterus has not been confirmed4 ,and as the ,old ,red ,sandstones of ,scotland have no true fossiliferous base1 but rest on primary rocks both to the south and north of the ,grampians1 it may be regarded as in some degree a moot point whether the lowest fossiliferous beds to the north be older or newer than those to the south1 or1 what is quite possible1 of the same age4 ,provisionally1 however1 ,i have arranged my paper on the supposition that the ,coccostean formation of the north is the lowest and oldest of the three2 and this from the following considerations4 ,in the first place1 the ,coccosteus and its contemporaries appear in the north at a very short distance above the base of the system4 ,i have disinterred an ,osteolepis from a fish bed near ,cromarty only thirty-three feet over the great conglomerate1 and only a hundred and twenty-nine feet over the granitic gneiss beneath2 whereas the ,cephalaspis beds occur high above the primary base of the system in the south1--at some distance over even the thick conglomerate of ,stonehaven and ,dunnottar2 and under this conglomerate1 as shown in the section furnished by the valley of the ,north ,esk1 there lies a pale red sandstone member of the system1 estimated by ,colonel ,imrie at seven hundred and eighty feet in thickness4 ,the conglomerate itself he estimates at twelve hundred feet4 ,adopting as correct ,colonel ,imrie's section1 taken along the banks of the ,north ,esk1--and the colonel was unquestionably a truthful observer1--the ,cephalaspis beds of the south lie nearly two thousand 7nineteen hundred and eighty7 feet above the ,azoic slates on which the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,forfarshire rests1 whereas the ,coccosteus and ,osteolepis beds of the north lie only one hundred and twenty-nine feet over the ,azoic gneiss on which the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,cromarty rests4 ,there is thus at least room in the south for an underlying fossiliferous formation between that of the ,cephalaspis and the base of the system1 but none in the north beneath that of the ,coccosteus and its base4 ,in the north we find the room lying above1 between the ,coccostean and ,holoptychian formations1 and represented by that great unfossiliferous deposit of pale sandstone to which the hills of ,hoy and the rocks of ,duncansbay ,head and of ,tarbet ,ness belong4 ,further1 in the second place1 while the upper or ,holoptychian formation is found directly overlying that of the ,coccosteus in only one locality1--,moray1--we find it directly overlying that of the ,cephalaspis in two widely separated localities2--in the vast band of ,old ,red which runs diagonally across the island from sea to sea1 parallel to the ,grampian chain1 and in the immensely developed ,red ,sandstones of ,england and ,wales4 ,and it is of course more probable that the two corroborative instances should represent the natural succession of the formations1 and the single instance the accidental gap in the scale consequent on the missing formation1 than that1 vice versa1 the solitary instance should represent the natural succession1 while the two mutually corroborative ones should represent1 in localities widely apart1 the mere accident of the gap4 ,but1 in the third place1 ,i attach more weight to a conclusion founded on the positive character of the groups of organic remains by which the three great formations of the ,old ,red ,system are characterized1 than ,i do to either of these considerations4 ,the organisms of the ,cephalaspian deposits differ generically1 and in their whole aspect1 from both those of the ,coccostean and ,holoptychian formations2 whereas the organisms of the ,coccostean formations1 while they resemble generically and in the group those of the ,holoptychian one1 mainly differ from them specifically4 ,the extreme generic difference in the one case argues evidently a great difference in condition1--the lesser specific difference in the other1 a great difference in point of time4 ,the ,cephalaspian formation might1 as a fresh water formation1 be nearly contemporary with either of the other two1 or1 as seems more probable1 interposed between them2 while they themselves1 on the other hand1 generically similar and decidedly marine in their character1 must have been so widely separated in time1 that all the species of the lower group became extinct ere those of the upper one had been ushered into being4 ,and such are some of the considerations that still lead me1 notwithstanding the failure of previous evidence1 to hold1 at least1 provisionally1 that our ,scottish flagstones to the north of the ,grampians occupy a lower horizon than our ,scottish tilestones to the south4 ,it must1 however1 be stated1 on the other hand1 that the crustaceans of the gray tilestones of ,forfar and ,kincardine not a little resemble those of the ,upper ,silurian and red tilestone beds of ,england2 and that1 judging from the ichthyodorulites found in both1 their fishes must have been at least generically allied4 ,the crustaceans of the upper ,silurian of ,lesmahagow1 too1 seem certainly much akin to those of the ,forfarshire tilestones4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abd4 ,,cyclopterus ,,hibernicus4 ,above this gray tilestone formation lies the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone1 with its peculiar group of ichthyic organisms1 none of which seem specially identical with those of either the ,caithness or the ,forfarshire beds4 ,for it is an interesting circumstance1 suggestive surely of the vast periods which must have elapsed during its deposition1 that the great ,old ,red ,system has1 as ,i have just said1 its three distinct platforms of organic existence1 each wholly different from the others4 ,generically and in the group1 however1 the ,upper fishes much more closely resemble1 ,i repeat1 the fishes of the ,lower or ,caithness and ,cromarty platform1 than they do those of the ,forfarshire and ,kincardine one4 ,the vegetable remains of the ,upper formation in ,scotland are both rare and ill preserved4 ,i have seen what ,i deemed fucoidal markings dimly impressed on the planes of some of the strata1 not in the carbonaceous form so common in the other two formations1 but as mere colored films of a deeper red than the surrounding matrix4 ,further1 ,i have detected in the same beds1 and existing in the same state1 fragments of a striated organism1 which may have formed part of either a true calamite1 like those of the ,coal ,measures1 or of some such striated but jointless vegetable as that of the ,lower ,old ,red of ,thurso and ,lerwick4#ea ,with these markings ferns are occasionally found2 and to one of these1 from the light which it throws on the true place in the scale of a series of deposits in a sister country1 there attaches no little interest4 ,i owe my specimen to ,mr4 ,john ,stewart of ,edinburgh1 who laid it open in a micaceous red sandstone in the quarry of ,prestonhaugh1 near ,dunse1 where it is associated with some of the better known ichthyic organisms of the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone1 such as ,pterichthys major and ,holoptychius ,nobilissimus4 ,existing as but a deep red film in the rock1 with a tolerably well defined outline1 but without trace of the characteristic venation on which the fossil botanist1 in dealing with the ferns1 founds his generic distinctions1 ,i could only determine that it was either a ,cyclopterus or ,neuropterus4 ,my collection was visited1 however1 by the late lamented ,edward ,forbes1 only a few weeks before his death2 and he at once recognized in my ,berwickshire fern1 so unequivocally an organism of the ,upper ,old ,red1 the ,cyclopterus ,hibernicus of those largely developed beds of yellow sandstone which form so marked a feature in the geology of the south of ,ireland1 and whose true place1 whether as ,upper ,old ,red or ,lower ,carboniferous1 has been the subject of so much controversy4 ,i had been previously introduced by ,professor ,forbes1 in the ,museum of ,economic ,geology in ,jermyn ,street1 ,london1 to an interesting collection of plants from these yellow beds1 and had an opportunity afforded me of examining the only ichthyic organism hitherto found associated with them2 and was struck1 though ,i could not identify its species1 with its peculiarly ,old ,red aspect2 but the evidence of the ,cyclopterus is of course more conclusive than that of the fish2 and we may1 ,i think1 legitimately conclude1 that in ,ireland1 as in our own country1 it was a contemporary of the great ,pterichthys 7,p4 major71--the hugest1 and at least one of the last1 of his race1--and gave its rich green to the hill sides of what is still the ,emerald ,island during the latter ages of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and ere the ,carboniferous period had yet begun4 ,the ,cyclopterus ,hibernicus1 as shown both by the ,prestonhaugh specimen and those of ,ireland1 was a bipinnate fern of very considerable size1--probably a tree fern4 ,its pinn1 opposite in the lower part of the frond1 are alternate in the upper2 while its leaflets1 which are of a sub-rhomboidal form1 and so closely ranged as to impinge on each other1 are at least generally alternate in their arrangement throughout4 ,among living plants it seems most nearly represented by a ,south ,american species1--,didymocloena pulcherrima1--one of the smaller tree ferns4 ,the leaves of this graceful species are bipinnate1 like those of the fossil2 and the pinn 7thickly set with simple1 alternately arranged leaflets7 are opposite in the lower part of the frond1 and alternate in the upper4 ,widely as they are separated in time1 the recent ,south ,american ,didymocloena and the ,old ,red ,sandstone ,cyclopterus1 that passed into extinction ere the times of the ,coal1 might be ranged together1 so far at least as appears from their forms1 as kindred species4 ,it were very desirable that we had a good monograph of the ,irish ,old ,red plants1 the contemporaries of the latter1 as the completest and best preserved representatives of the ,middle ,palozoic flora yet found4 ,sir ,roderick ,murchison has figured a single pinn of this ,cyclopterus in his recently published ,siluria2 and ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 both that and one of its contemporary ,lepidodendra1 in the last edition of his ,elements4 ,these interesting fragments1 however1 serve but to excite our curiosity for more4 ,when urging ,professor ,edward ,forbes on the subject1 ere parting from him for1 alas6 what proved to be the last time1 he intimated an intention of soon taking it up2 but ,i fear his purposed monograph represents only one of many works1 important to science1 which his untimely death has arrested for mayhap long years to come4 ,in the uppermost beds of the ,upper ,old ,red formation in ,scotland1 which are usually of a pale or light yellow color1 the vegetable remains again become strongly carbonaceous1 but their state of preservation continues bad1--too bad to admit of the determination of either species or genera2 and not until we rise a very little beyond the system do we find the remains of a flora either rich or well preserved4 ,but very remarkable is the change which at this stage at once occurs4 ,we pass at a single stride from great poverty to great wealth4 ,the suddenness of the change seems suited to remind one of that experienced by the voyager1 when1--after traversing for many days some wide expanse of ocean1 unvaried save by its banks of floating sea weed1 or1 where occasionally and at wide intervals1 he picks up some leaf-bearing bough1 or marks some fragment of drift weed go floating past1--he enters at length the sheltered lagoon of some coral island1 and sees all around the deep green of a tropical vegetation descending in tangled luxuriance to the water's edge1--tall1 erect ferns1 and creeping lycopodiace1 and the pandanus1 with its rial roots and its screw-like clusters of narrow leaves1 and1 high over all1 tall palms1 with their huge pinnate fronds1 and their curiously aggregated groups of massive fruit4 ,and yet the more meagre vegetation of the earlier time is not without its special interest4 ,the land plants of the ,old ,red ,sandstone seem to compose1 all over the world1 the most ancient of the terrestrial floras4 ,it was held only a few years ago1 that the ,silurians of the ,united ,states had their plants allied to the ,lepidodendron4 ,but the group in which these occur has since been transferred from the ,upper ,silurian to the ,old ,red ,system2 and we find it expressly stated by ,professor ,h4 ,d4 ,rogers1 in his valuable contribution to the ,physical ,atlas 7second edition1 #ahef71 that the ,cadent or ,lower ,old ,red strata are the oldest ,american formations in which remains of a true terrestrial vegetation have yet been discovered4 ,it has been shown1 too1 by ,sir ,roderick ,murchison1 that the supposed ,silurian plants of ,oporto are in reality ,carboniferous1 and owe their apparent position to a reverse folding of the strata4 ,i have already referred to the solitary spore-cases of the ,ludlow ,rocks2 and beneath these rocks1 says ,sir ,roderick 7#ahed71 no remains of plants have been discovered which are recognizably of terrestrial origin4 ,scanty1 too1 as the terrestrial flora of the ,old ,red ,sandstone everywhere is1 we find it exhibiting very definitely the leading ,palozoic features4 ,its prevailing plants are the ferns and their apparent allies4 ,it has in our own country1 as has been just shown1 its ferns1 its lepidodendra1 its striated plants allied to the calamites1 and its decided araucanite2 in ,america1 in the ,cadent series1 it had its plants allied to ferns and lepidodendra2 and in the ,devonian basin of ,sabero in ,spain1 its characteristic organisms are1 a lepidodendron 7,l4 ,chemungensis71 and a very peculiar fern 7,sphenopteris laxus74#eb ,but while in its main features it resembled the succeeding flora of the ,carboniferous period1 it seems in all its forms to have been specifically distinct4 ,it was the independent flora of an earlier creation than that to which we owe the coal4 ,for the meagreness of the paper in which ,i have attempted to describe it as it occurs in ,scotland1 ,i have but one apology to offer4 ,my lecture contains but little2 but then1 such is the scantiness of the materials on which ,i had to work1 that it could not have contained much3 if1 according to the dramatist1 the amount be beggarly1 it is because the boxes are empty4 ,partly1 apparently1 from the circumstance that the organisms of this flora were ill suited for preservation in the rocks1 and partly because1 judging from what appears1 the most ancient lands of the globe were widely scattered and of narrow extent1 this oldest of the floras is everywhere the most meagre4 ,,lecture ,,twelfth4 ,,on ,,the ,,less ,,known ,,fossil ,,floras ,,of ,,scotland4 ,,part ,,ii4 ,in the noble flora of the ,coal ,measures much still remains to be done in ,scotland4 ,our ,lower ,carboniferous rocks are of immense development2 the ,limestones of ,burdiehouse1 with their numerous terrestrial plants1 occur many hundred feet beneath our ,mountain ,limestones2 and our list of vegetable species peculiar to these lower deposits is still very incomplete4 ,even in those higher ,carboniferous rocks with which the many coal workings of the country have rendered us comparatively familiar1 there appears to be still a good deal of the new and the unknown to repay the labor of future exploration4 ,it was only last year that ,mr4 ,gourlay#ec of this city 7,glasgow7 added to our fossil flora a new ,volkmannia from the coal field of ,carluke2 and ,i detected very recently in a neighboring locality 7the ,airdrie coal field71 though in but an indifferent state of keeping1 what seems to be a new and very peculiar fern4 ,it presents at first sight more the appearance of a ,cycadaceous frond than any other vegetable organism of the ,carboniferous age which ,i have yet seen4 ,from a mid stem there proceed at right angles1 and in alternate order1 a series of sessile1 lanceolate1 acute leaflets1 nearly two inches in length by about an eighth part of an inch in breadth1 and about three lines apart4 ,each is furnished with a slender midrib2 and1 what seems a singular1 though not entirely unique1 feature in a fern1 their edges are densely hirsute1 and bristle with thick1 short hair1 nearly as stiff as prickles4 ,the venation is not distinctly preserved2 but enough remains to show that it must have been peculiar1--apparently radiating outwards from a series of centres ranged along the midrib4 ,nay1 the apparent hairs seem to be but prolongations of the nerves carried beyond the edges of the leaflets4 ,there is a ,stigmaria1 too1 on the table1 very ornate in its sculpture1 of which ,i have now found three specimens in a quarry of the ,lower ,coal ,measures near ,portobello1 that has still to be figured and described4 ,in this richly ornamented ,stigmaria the characteristic areol present the ordinary aspect4 ,each1 however1 forms the centre of a sculptured star1 consisting of from eighteen to twenty rays1 or rather the centre of a sculptured flower of the composite order1 resembling a meadow daisy or sea-aster4 ,the minute petals1--if we are to accept the latter comparison1--are of an irregularly lenticular form1 generally entire1 but in some instances ranged in two1 or even three1 concentric lines round the depressed centre of the areol2 while the interspaces outside are occupied by numerous fretted markings1 resembling broken fragments of petals1 which1 though less regularly ranged than the others1 are effective in imparting a richly ornate aspect to the whole4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abe4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abf4 ,,stigmaria4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abg4 ,,the ,,same1 ,,magnified4 ,ever since the appearance1 in #ahdf1 of ,mr4 ,binney's paper on the relations of stigmaria to sigillaria as roots and stems1 ,i have been looking for distinguishing specific marks among the former2 and1 failing for a time to find any1 ,i concluded that1 though the stems of the sigillarian genus were variously sculptured1 their roots might in all the species have been the same4 ,the present rich specimen does seem1 however1 to bear the specific stamp2 and1 from the peculiar character of the termination of another specimen on the table1 ,i am inclined to hold that the stigmaria may have borne the appearance rather of underground stems than of proper roots4 ,this specimen suddenly terminates1 at a thickness of two and a half inches1 in a rounded point1 abrupt as that of one of the massier cacti2 and every part of the blunt sudden termination is thickly fretted over with the characteristic areol4 ,the slim tubular rootlets must have stuck out on every side from the obtuse rounded termination of this underground stem1 as we see1 on a small scale1 the leaflets of our larger club mosses sticking out from what are comparatively the scarce less abrupt terminations of their creeping stems and branches4 ,in at least certain stages of growth the sub-rial stems of ,lepidodendron also terminated abruptly 7see ,fig4 #bd72 and the only terminal point of ,ulodendron ,i ever saw was nearly as obtuse as that of ,stigmaria4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abh4 ,,stigmaria4 ,i have been long desirous of acquainting myself with the true character of this latter plant 7,ulodendron71 but hitherto my labors have not been very successful4 ,a specimen of ,ulodendron minus1 however1 now on the table1 which ,i disinterred several years ago from out a bed of ferruginous shale in the ,water of ,leith1 a little above the village of ,colinton1 exhibits several peculiarities which1 so far as ,i know1 have not yet been described4 ,though rather less than ten inches in length by about three inches in breadth1 it exhibits no fewer than seven of those round1 beautifully sculptured scars1 ranged rectilinearly along the trunk1 by which this ancient genus is so remarkably characterized4 ,it is covered with small1 sharply relieved1 obovate scales1 most of them furnished with an apparent midrib1 and with their edges slightly turned up2 from which peculiarities1 and their great beauty1 they seem suited to remind the architect of that style of sculpture adopted by ,palladio from his master ,vitruvius1 when1 in ornamenting the ,corinthian and composite torus1 lie fretted it into closely imbricated obovate leaves4 ,these scales are ranged in elegant curves1 not unlike those ornamental curves1--a feat of the turning-lathe1--which one sees roughening the backs of ladies' watches of ,french manufacture4 ,my fossil exhibited1 as it lay in the rock1 what ,i never saw in any other specimen1--a true branch sticking out at an acute angle from the stem1 and fretted with scales of a peculiar form1 which in one little corner appear also on the main stem1 but which differ so considerably from those of the obovate1 apparently imbricated type1 that1 if found on a separate specimen1 they might be held to indicate difference of species4 ,it has been shown by ,messrs4 ,lindley and ,hutton1 on the evidence of one of the specimens figured in the ,fossil ,flora1 that the line of circular scars so remarkable in this genus1 and which is held to be the impressions made by a rectilinear range of almost sessile cones1 existed in duplicate on each stem1--a row occurring on two of the sides of the plant directly opposite each other4 ,the branch in my specimen struck off from one of the intermediate sides at right angles with the cones4 ,we already know that these were ranged in one plane2 nor1 if the branches were ranged in one plane also1--certainly the disposition of branch which would consort best with such a disposition of cone1--would the arrangement be without example in the vegetable kingdom as it even now exists4 ,our host1 says the late ,captain ,basil ,hall1 in his brief description of the island of ,java1 carried us to see a singular tree1 which had been brought from ,madagascar1 called familiarly the ,traveller's ,friend1 ,urania being1 ,i believe1 its botanic name4 ,we found it to differ from most other trees in having all its branches in one plane1 like the sticks of a fan or the feathers of a peacock's tail4 ,i may further mention1 that the specimen which showed me the abrupt cactus-like terminations of ,ulodendron repeated the evidence of ,messrs4 ,lindley and ,hutton's specimen regarding the arrangement of the cone scars on opposite sides1 and showed also that these scars ascended to within little more than an inch of the top of the plant4 ,as there are cases in which the position of a fossil plant may add1 from its bearing on geologic history1 a threefold interest to the fossil itself1 regarded simply as an organism1 ,i may be permitted to refer to a circumstance already recorded1 that there was a well marked ,bechera detected about two years ago by ,dr4 ,macbean of ,edinburgh1 an accomplished naturalist and careful observer1 in a thin argillaceous stratum1 interposed1 in the ,queen's ,park1 between a bed of columnar basalt and a bed of trap-tuff1 in the side of the eminence occupied atop by the ruins of ,st4 ,anthony's ,chapel4 ,the stratified bed in which it occurs seems1 from its texture and color1 to be composed mainly of trappean materials1 but deposited and arranged in water2 and abounds in carbonaceous markings1 usually in so imperfect a state of keeping that1 though long known to some of the ,edinburgh geologists1 not a single species1 or even genus1 were they able to determine4 ,all that could be said was1 that they seemed fucoidal1 and might of course belong to any age4 ,the ,bechera1 however1 shows that the deposit is one of the ,lower ,coal ,measures4 ,there was found associated with it a tooth of a ,carboniferous ,holoptychius1 whose evidence bore out the same conclusion2 and both fossils derive an importance from the light which they throw on the age of the bed of tuff which underlies the stratum in which they occur4 ,at least this trap-rock must be as old as the fossiliferous layer which rests upon it1 or rather1 as shown by its underlying position1 a little older3 it must be a trap of the earlier ,carboniferous period4 ,further1 it must have been1 not injected among the strata1 but poured out over the surface1--in all probability covered at the time by water2 and there must have formed over it1 ere another overflow of trap took place1 a thin sedimentary bed charged with fragments of the plants of the period1 and visited1 when in the course of deposition1 by some of its fishes4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #abi4 ,,sphenopteris ,,bifida4 7,burdiehouse47 ,even among the vegetable organisms of our ,coal ,measures1 already partially described and figured1 much remains to be accomplished in the way of restoration4 ,portions of ,sphenopteris bifida1 for instance1 a fern of the ,lower ,carboniferous rocks have been repeatedly figured2 but a beautiful specimen on the table1 which exhibits what seems to be the complete frond of the plant1 will give1 ,i doubt not1 fresh ideas respecting the general framework1 if ,i may so speak1 of this skeleton fern1 to even those best acquainted with the figures2 and an elaborate restoration of its contemporary1 ,sphenopteris affinis 7see frontispiece7 which ,i completed from a fine series of specimens in my collection1 will be new1 as a whole1 to those most familiar with this commonest of the ,burdiehouse fossils4 ,from comparisons instituted between minute portions of this ,sphenopteris and a recent fern1 it has been held considerably to resemble a ,davallia of the ,west ,indies2 whereas it will be seen from the entire frond that it was characterized by very striking peculiarities1 exemplified1 say some of our higher botanical authorities1 to whom ,i have submitted my restoration1 by no fern that now lives4 ,the frond of ,davallia ,canariensis1 though unlike in its venation1 greatly resembles in general outline one of the larger pinn of ,sphenopteris affinis2 but these pinn form only a small part of the entire frond of this ,sphenopteris4 ,it was furnished with a stout leafless rachis1 or leaf-stalk1 exceedingly similar in form to that of our common brake 7,pteris aquilina74 ,so completely1 indeed1 did it exhibit the same club-like1 slightly bent termination1 the same gradual diminution in thickness1 and the same smooth surface1 that one accustomed to see this part of the bracken used as a thatch can scarce doubt that the stipes of ,sphenopteris would have served the purpose equally well2 nay1 that were it still in existence to be so employed1 a roof thatched with it1 on which the pinn and leaflets were concealed1 and only the club-like stems exposed1 row above row1 in the style of the fern-thatcher1 could not be distinguished1 so far as form and size went1 from a roof thatched with brake4 ,high above the club-like termination of the rachis the stem divided into two parts1 each of which1 a little higher up1 also divided into two2 these in turn1 in at least the larger fronds1 also bifurcated2 and this law of bifurcation1--a marked1 mayhap unique1 peculiarity in a fern1--regulated all the larger divisions of the frond1 though its smaller pinn and leaflets were alternate4 ,it was a further peculiarity of the plant that1 unlike the brake1 it threw off1 ere the main divisions of its rachis took place1 two pinn placed in the alternate order1 and of comparatively small size4 ,the frond of ,sphenopteris bifida was of a more simple form than that of its larger congener1 and not a little resembled a living fern of ,new ,zealand1 ,coenopteris vivipara4 ,it was tripinnate2 its secondary stems were placed directly opposite on the midrib1 but its tertiary ones in the alternate arrangement2 and its leaflets which were also alternate1 were as rectilinear and slim as mere veins1 or as the thread-like leaflets of asparagus4 ,like the fronds of ,coenopteris when not in seed1 it must have presented the appearance of the mere macerated framework of a fern4 ,i need scarce remark that1 independently of the scientific interest which must attach to restorations of these early plants1 they speak powerfully to the imagination1 and supply it with materials from which to construct the vanished landscapes of the ,carboniferous ages4 ,from one such restored fern as the two now submitted to the ,association1 it is not difficult to pass in fancy to the dank slopes of the ancient land of the ,lower ,coal ,measures1 when they waved as thickly with graceful ,sphenopteres as our existing hill sides with the common brake2 and when every breeze that rustled through the old forests bent in mimic waves their slim flexible stems and light and graceful foliage4 ,in #ahdd1 when ,professor ,nicol1 of ,marischal ,college1 ,aberdeen1 appended to his interesting ,guide to the ,geology of ,scotland1 a list of the ,scottish fossils known at the time1 he enumerated only two vegetable species of the ,scotch ,oolitic system1--,equisetum columnare and ,pinites or ,peuce ,eiggensis2 the former one of the early discoveries of our distinguished ,president1 ,sir ,roderick ,murchison2 the latter1 of the late ,mr4 ,william ,nicol of ,edinburgh4 ,chiefly from researches in the ,lias of ,eathie1 near ,cromarty1 and in the ,oolites of ,sutherland and the ,hebrides1 ,i have been enabled to increase the list from two to rather more than fifty species1--not a great number1 certainly1 regarded as the sole representative of a flora2 and yet it may be deemed comparatively not a very small one by such as may remember1 that in #ahcg1 when ,dr4 ,buckland published the second edition of his ,bridgewater ,treatise1 ,adolphe ,brogniart had enumerated only seventy species of plants as occurring in all the ,secondary formations of ,europe1 from the ,chalk to the ,trias inclusive4 ,in a paper such as the present ,i can of course do little more than just indicate a few of the more striking features of the ,scottish flora of the middle ,secondary ages4 ,like that of the period of the true ,coal1 it had its numerous coniferous trees4 ,as shown by the fossil woods of ,helmsdale and ,eigg1 old ,oolitic ,scotland1 like the ,scotland of three centuries ago1 must have had its mighty forests of pine2#ed and in one respect these trees seem to have more nearly resembled those of the recent pine forests of our country than the trees of the coniferous forests of the remote ,carboniferous era4 ,for while we scarce ever find a cone associated with the coniferous woods of the ,coal ,measures1--,lindley and ,hatton never saw but one from all the ,english coal fields1 and ,mr4 ,alexander ,bryson of ,edinburgh1 only one from all the coal fields of ,scotland1--tree-cones of at least four different species1 more probably of five1 are not rare in our ,scottish deposits of the ,lias and ,oolite4 ,it seems not improbable that in the ,carboniferous genera ,pinites1 ,pitus1 and ,anabathra1 which approach but remotely to aught that now exists1 the place of the ligneous scaly cone may have been taken1 as in the junipers and the yews1 by a perishable berry2 while the ,pines and ,araucarians of the ,oolite were1 like their congeners in recent times1 in reality coniferous1 that is1 cone-bearing trees4 ,it is another characteristic of these ,secondary conifers1 that while the woods of the ,palozoic periods exhibit often1 like those of the tropics1 none of the dense concentric lines of annual growth which mark the reign of winter1 these annual lines are scarce less strongly impressed on the ,oolitic woods than on those of ,norway or of our own country in the present day4 ,in some of the fossil trees these yearly rings are of great breadth2 they seem to have sprung up in the rich soil of sheltered hollows and plains1 and to have increased in diameter from half an inch to three quarters of an inch yearly2 while in other trees of the same species the yearly zones of growth are singularly narrow1--in some instances little more than half a line in thickness4 ,rooted on some exposed hill side1 in a shallow and meagre soil1 they increased their diameter during the twelvemonth little more than a line in the severer seasons1 and little more than an eighth part of an inch even when the seasons were most favorable4 ,further1 whether the rings be large or small1 we ordinarily find them occurring in the same specimens in groups of larger and smaller4 ,in one of my ,helmsdale specimens1 indicative generally of rapid growth1 there are four contiguous annual rings1 which measure in all an inch and two twelfths across1 while the four contiguous rings immediately beside them measure only half an inch4 ,if1 at the present day1 says a distinguished fossil botanist1 a warm and moist summer produces a broader annual layer than a cold and dry one1 and if fossil plants exhibit such appearances as we refer in recent plants to a diversity of summers1 then it is reasonable to suppose that a similar diversity formerly prevailed4 ,the same reasoning is of course as applicable to groups of annual layers as to single annual layers2 and may we not venture to infer from the almost invariable occurrence of such groups in the woods of this ancient system1 that that ill-understood law of the weather which gives us in irregular succession groups of colder and warmer seasons1 and whose operation1 as ,bacon tells us1 was first remarked in the provinces of the ,netherlands1 was as certainly in existence during the ages of the ,oolite as at the present time8 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #acj4 ,,conifers8 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aca4 ,,conifer ,,twigs4 ,twigs which exhibit the foliage of these ancient conifers seem to be less rare in our ,scotch deposits than in those of ,england of the same age4 ,my collection contains fossil sprigs1 with the slim needle-like leaves attached1 of what seem to be from six to seven different species2 and it is worthy of notice1 that they resemble in the group rather the conifer of the southern than those of the northern hemisphere4 ,one sprig in my collection seems scarcely distinguishable from that of the recent ,altingia excelsa2 another1 from that of the recent ,altingia cunninghami4 ,lindley and ,hutton figure in their fossil flora a minute branch of ,dacrydium cupressinum1 in order to show how nearly the twigs of a large tree1 from fifty to a hundred feet high1 may resemble some of the fossils referable to ,lycopodiace4 ,more than one of the ,oolitic twigs in my collection are of a resembling character1 and may have belonged either to cone-bearing trees or to club mosses4 ,respecting1 however1 the real character of at least one of the specimens1--a minute branch from the ,lias of ,eathie1 with the leaflets attached1--there can be no mistake4 ,the thicker part of the stem is in such a state of keeping1 that it presents to the microscope1 in a sliced preparation1 the internal structure1 and exhibits1 as in recent coniferous twigs of a year's growth1 a central pith1 a single ring of reticulated tissue arranged in lines that radiate outwards1 and a thin layer of enveloping bark4 ,nothing1 then1 can be more certain than that this ancient twig1 which must be accepted as representative of the foliage of whole forests of the ,secondary ages in ,scotland1 formed part of a conifer of the ,lias2 and the foliage of several of the other twigs1 its contemporaries1 though ,i have failed to demonstrate their true character in the same way1 bear a scarce less coniferous aspect4 ,the cones of the period1 from the circumstance that they are locked up in a hard limestone that clings closely around their scales1 and from the further circumstance that the semi-calcareous lignite into which they are resolved is softer and less tenacious than the enclosing matrix1 present1 when laid open1 not their outer surfaces1 but mere sections of their interior2 and give1 in consequence1 save in their general proportions and outline1 but few specific marks by which to distinguish them4 ,we see1 however1 in some cases in these sections what would be otherwise unseen1--the flat naked seeds lying embedded in their hollow receptacles between the scales1 and in as perfect a state of keeping as the seeds of recent pines that had ripened only a twelvemonth ago4 ,had not the vitality of seeds its limits in time1 like life of all other kinds1 one might commit these perfect fossil germs to the soil1 in the hope of seeing the old extinct forests called1 through their agency1 a second time into existence4 ,of three apparent species of cones which occur in the ,eathie ,lias1 the smallest seems to have resembled in size and appearance that of the ,scotch fir2 the largest1 which consisted from bottom to top1 as seen in section1 of from nine to ten scales1 appears to have been more in the proportions of the oblong oval cones of the spruce family2 while a cone of intermediate length1 but of considerably greater breadth1 assumed the rounded form of the cones of the cedar4 ,i have found in the same deposit what seems to be the sprig of a conifer1 with four apparently embryo cones attached to it in the alternate order4 ,these are rather more sessile than the young cones of the larch2 but the aspect of the whole is that of a larch twig in early summer1 when the minute and tender cones1 possessed of all the beauty of flowers1 first appear along its sides4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #acb4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #acc4 ,,zamia4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #acd4 ,,zamia4 ,among conifers of the ,pine and ,araucarian type we mark the first appearance in this system1 in at least ,scotland1 of the genus ,thuja4 ,one of the ,helmsdale plants of this genus closely resembles the common ,arbor ,vit 7,thuja occidentalis7 of our gardens and shrubberies4 ,it exhibits the same numerous slim1 thick-clustered branchlets1 covered over by the same minute1 sessile1 scale-like leaves2 and so entirely reminds one of the recent ,thuja1 that it seems difficult to conceive of it as the member of a flora so ancient as that of the ,oolite4 ,but not a few of the ,oolitic plants in ,scotland bear this modern aspect4 ,the great development of its ,cycadace1--an order unknown in our ,coal ,measures1--also forms a prominent feature of the ,oolitic flora4 ,one of the first known genera of this curious order1--the genus ,pterophyllum1--appears in the ,trias4 ,it distinctively marks the commencement of the ,secondary flora1 and intimates that the once great ,palozoic flora1 after gradually waning throughout the ,permian ages1 and becoming extinct at their close1 had been succeeded by a vegetation altogether new4 ,at least one of the ,helmsdale forms of this family is identical with a ,yorkshire species already named and figured1--,zamia pectinata3 a well marked ,zamia which occurs in the ,lias of ,eathie appears to be new4 ,its pinnate leaves were furnished with a strong woody midrib1 so well preserved in the rock1 that it yields its internal structure to the microscope4 ,the ribbon-like pinn or leaflets were rectilinear1 retaining their full breadth until they united to the stem at right angles1 but set somewhat awry2 and1 like several of the recent ,zami1 they were striped longitudinally with cord-like lines4 7,fig4 #acc47 ,even the mode of decay of this ,zamia1 as shown by the abrupt termination of its leaflets1 exactly resembled that of its existing congeners4 7,fig4 #acd47 ,the withered points of the pinn of recent ,zami drop off as if clipped across with a pair of scissors2 and in fossil fronds of this ,zamia of the ,lias we find exactly the same clipped-like appearance4 7,fig4 #ace47 ,another ,scotch ,zamia 7,fig4 #acf71 which occurs in the ,lower ,oolite of ,helmsdale1 resembles the ,eathie one in the breadth of its leaflets1 but they are not wholly so rectilinear1 diminishing slightly towards their base of attachment2 they are ranged1 too1 along the stem or midrib1 not at a right angle1 but at an acute one2 the line of attachment is not set awry1 but on the general plane of the leaf2 and the midrib itself is considerably less massive and round4 ,a third species from the same locality bears a general resemblance to the latter2 but the leaflets are narrower at the base1 and1 as the print indicates 7,fig4 #acf71 so differently attached to the stem1 that from the pressure in the rock most of them have become detached2 while yet a fourth species 7,fig4 #acg71 very closely resembles a ,zamia of the ,scarborough ,oolite1--,z4 lanceolata4 ,the leaflets1 however1 contract much more suddenly from their greatest breadth than those of lanceolata1 into a pseudo-footstalk2 and the contraction takes place not almost equally on both sides1 as in that species1 but almost exclusively on the upper side4 ,and so1 provisionally at least1 this ,helmsdale ,zamia may be regarded as specifically new4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ace4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #acf4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #acg4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ach4 ,,cone4 ,with the leaves of the ,eathie ,zamia1 we find1 in this northern outlier of the ,lias1 cones of a peculiar form1 which1 like the leaves themselves1 are still unfigured and undescribed1 and some of which could scarce have belonged to any coniferous tree4 ,in one of these 7,fig4 #ach71 the ligneous bracts or scales1 narrow and long1 and gradually tapering till they assume nearly the awl-shaped form1 cluster out thick from the base and middle portions of the cone1 and1 like the involucral appendages of the hazel-nut1 or the sepals of the yet unfolded rose-bud1 sweep gracefully upwards to the top1 where they present at their margins minute denticulations4 ,in another species the bracts are broader1 thinner1 and more leaf-like3 they rise1 too1 more from the base of the cone1 and less from its middle portions2 so that the whole must have resembled an enormous bud1 with strong woody scales1 some of which extended from base to apex4 ,the first described of these two species seems to have been more decidedly a cone than the other2 but it is probable that they were both connecting links between such leathern seed-bearing flowers as we find developed in ,cycas revoluta1 and such seed-bearing cones as we find exemplified in ,zamia pungens4 ,the bud-like cone1 however1 does not seem to have been that of a ,cycadaceous plant1 as it occupied evidently not a terminal position on the plant that bore it1 like the cones of ,zamia or the flowers of ,cycas1 but a lateral one1 like the lateral flowers of some of the ,cactus tribe4 ,another class of vegetable forms1 of occasional occurrence in the ,helmsdale beds1 seems intermediate between the ,cycadace and the ferns3 at least1 so near is the approach to the ordinary fern outline1 while retaining the stiff ligneous character of ,zamia1 that it is scarce less difficult to determine to which of the two orders of plants such organisms belonged1 than to decide whether some of the slim graceful sprigs of foliage that occur in the rocks beside them belonged to the conifers or the club mosses4 ,and ,i am informed by ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 that 7as some of the existing conifers bear a foliage scarce distinguishable from that of ,lycopodiace71 so a recently discovered ,zamia is furnished with fronds that scarce differ from those of a fern4 ,even ,zamia pectinata may1 as ,sternberg remarks1 have been a fern4 ,lindley and ,hutton place it merely provisionally among the ,cycadace1 in deference to the judgment of ,adolphe ,brogniart1 and point out its resemblance to ,polypodium pectinatum2 and a small ,helmsdale frond which ,i have placed beside it bears the impress of a character scarce less equivocal4 ,the flora of the ,oolite was peculiarly a flora of intermediate forms4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aci4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #adj4 ,we recognize another characteristic of our ,oolitic flora in its simple-leaved fronds1 in some of the species not a little resembling those of the recent ,scolopendrium1 or ,hart's-,tongue fern1--a form regarded by ,adolphe ,brogniart as peculiarly characteristic of his third period of vegetation4 ,these simple ferns are1 in the ,helmsdale deposits1 of three distinct types4 ,there is first a lanceolate leaf1 from two and a half to three inches in length1 of not unfrequent occurrence1 which may have formed1 however1 only one of the four leaflets1 united by their pseudo-footstalks1 which compose the frond of ,glossopteris1--a distinctive ,oolitic genus4 ,there is next a simple ovate lanceolate leaf1 from four to five and a half inches in length1 which in form and venation1 and all save its thrice greater size1 not a little resembles the leaflets of a ,coal ,measure neuropteris1--,n4 acuminata4 ,and1 in the third place1 there are the simple leaves that in general outline resemble1 as ,i have said1 the fronds of the recent ,hart's-,tongue fern 7,scolopendrium vulgare71 except that their base is lanceolate1 not cordate4 ,of these last there are two kinds in the beds1 representative of two several species1 or1 as their difference in general aspect and detail is very great1 mayhap two several genera4 ,the smaller of the two has a slender midrib1 depressed on its upper side1 and flanked on each side by a row of minute1 slightly elongated protuberances1 but elevated on the under side1 and flanked by rows of small but well marked grooves1 that curve outwards to the edges of the leaf4 ,the larger resemble a ,tniopteris of the ,english and ,continental ,oolites1 save that its midrib is more massive1 its venation less at right angles with the stem1 its base more elongated1 and its size much greater4 ,some of the ,helmsdale specimens are of gigantic proportions4 ,from1 however1 a description and figure of a plant of evidently the same genus1--a ,tniopteris of the ,virginian ,oolite1 given by ,professor ,w4,b4 ,rogers of the ,united ,states1--,i find that some of the ,american fronds are larger still4 ,my largest leaf from ,helmsdale must have been nearly five inches in breadth2 and if its proportions were those of some of the smaller ones of apparently the same species from the same locality1 it must have measured about thirty inches in length4 ,but fragments of ,american leaves have been found more than six inches in breadth1 and whose length cannot have fallen short of forty inches4 ,the ,tniopteris1 as its name bears1 is regarded as a fern4 ,from1 however1 the leathern-like thickness of some of the ,sutherland specimens1--from the great massiveness of their midrib1--from the rectilinear simplicity of their fibres1--and1 withal1 from1 in some instances1 their great size1--,i am much disposed to believe that in our ,scotch1 mayhap also in the ,american species1 it may have been the frond of some simple-leaved ,cycas or ,zamia4 ,but the point is one which it must be left for the future satisfactorily to settle2 though provisionally ,i may be permitted to regard these leaves as belonging to some ,cycadaceous plant1 whose fronds1 in their venation and form1 resembled the simple fronds of ,scolopendrium1 just as the leaves of some of its congeners resembled the fronds of the pinnate ferns4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ada4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #adb4 ,i have already referred to the close resemblance which certain ,cycadaceous genera bear to certain of the fern family4 ,in at least two species of ,pterophyllum1--,p4 comptum and ,p4 minus1--the divisions of the leaflets seem little else than accidental rents in a simple frond2 in ,p4 ,nelsoni they are apparently nothing more2 and similar divisions1 evidently1 however1 the effect of accident1 and less rounded at their extremities than in at least ,p4 comptum1 we find exhibited by some of the ,helmsdale specimens of ,tniopteris 7,see ,fig4 #adb1 p4 #dhh47 ,but whatever the nature of these simple fronds1 they seem to impart much of its peculiar character1 all the world over1 to the flora of the ,oolitic ages4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #adc4 ,,pecopteris ,,obtusifolia4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #add4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #ade4 ,,pachypteris4 ,the compound ferns of the formation are numerous1 and at least proportionally a considerable part of them seem identical in species with those of the ,oolite of ,england4 7,see ,fig4 #adc47 ,among these there occur ,pecopteris ,whitbiensis1 ,pecopteris obtusifolia1 ,pecopteris insignis1--all well marked ,english species2 with several others4 ,it has1 besides1 its apparent ferns1 that seem to be new--7,fig4 #add7--that are at least not figured in any of the fossil floras to which ,i have access1--7,fig4 #ade71--such as a well defined ,pachypteris1 with leaflets broader and rounder than the typical ,p4 lanceolata1 and a much stouter midrib2 a minute ,sphenopteris too1 and what seems to be a ,phlebopteris1 somewhat resembling ,p4 propinqua1 but greatly more massive in its general proportions4 ,the equisetacea we find represented in the ,brora deposits by ,equisetum columnare1--a plant the broken remains of which occur in great abundance1 and which1 as was remarked by our ,president many years ago1 in his paper on the ,sutherlandshire ,oolite1 must have entered largely into the composition of the bed of lignite known as the ,brora ,coal4 ,we find associated with it what seems to be the last of the ,calamites1--,calamites arenaceus1--a name1 however1 which seems to have been bestowed both on this ,oolitic plant and a resembling ,carboniferous species4 ,the deposit has also its ,lycopodites1 though1 from their resemblance in foliage to the conifers1 there exists that difficulty in drawing the line between them to which ,i have already adverted4 ,one of these1 however1 so exactly resembles a lycopodite of both the ,virginian and ,yorkshire ,oolite1--,l4 uncifolius1--that ,i cannot avoid regarding it as specifically identical2 and it seems more than doubtful whether the stem which ,i have placed among the conifers is not a lycopodite also4 ,it exhibits not only the general outline of the true club moss1 but1 like the fossil club mosses too1 it wants that degree of ligniferous body in the rock which the coniferous fossils almost always possess4 ,yet another of the organisms of the deposit seems to have been either a lycopodite or a fern4 ,its leaflets are exceedingly minute1 and set alternately on a stem slender as a hair1--circumstances in which it resembles some of the tiny lycopodites of the tropics1 such as ,lycopodium apodium4 ,i must mention1 however1 that the larger plant of the same beds which ,i have placed beside it1 and which resembles it so closely that my engraver finds it difficult to indicate any other difference between them than that of size1 appears to be a true fern1 not a lycopodium4 ,to yet another vegetable organism of the system1--an organism which must be regarded1 if ,i do not mistake its character1 as at once very interesting and extraordinary1 occurring as it does so low in the scale1 and bearing an antiquity so high1--,i shall advert1 after a preliminary remark on a general characteristic of the flora to which it belongs1 but to which it seems to furnish a striking exception4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #adf4 ,,phlebopteris4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #adg4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #adh4 ,from the disappearance of many of those anomalous types of the ,coal ,measures which so puzzle the botanist1 and the extensive introduction of types that still exist1 we can better conceive of the general features and relations of the flora of the ,oolite than of those of the earlier floras4 ,and yet the general result at which we arrive may be found not without its bearing on the older vegetations also4 ,throughout almost all the families of this ,oolitic flora1 there seems to have run a curious bond of relationship1 which1 like those ties which bound together some of the old clans of our country1 united them1 high and low1 into one great sept1 and conferred upon them a certain wonderful unity of character and appearance4 ,let us assume the ferns as our central group4 ,though less abundant than in the earlier creation of the ,carboniferous system1 they seem to have occupied1 judging from their remains1 very considerable space in the ,oolitic vegetation2 and with the ferns there were associated in great abundance the two prevailing families of the ,pterides1--,equiseta and ,lycopodia1--plants which1 in most of our modern treatises on the ferns proper1 take their place as the fern allies4 7,see ,fig4 #adh47 ,let us place these along two of the sides of a pentagon1--the ,lycopodia on the right side of the ferns1 the ,equiseta on the left2 further1 let us occupy the two remaining sides of the figure by the ,conifer and the ,cycadace1--placing the ,conifer on the side next the ,lycopodia1 and the ,cycadace1 as the last added keystone of the erection1 between these and the ,equiseta4 ,and now1 let us consider how very curious the links are which give a wonderful unity to the whole4 ,we still find great difficulty in distinguishing between the foliage of some of even the existing club mosses and the conifers2 and the ancient ,lepidodendra are very generally recognized as of a type intermediate between the two4 ,similar intermediate types1 exemplified by extinct families1 united the conifers and the ferns4 ,the analogy of ,kirchneria with the ,thinnfeldia1 says ,dr4 ,braun1 is very remarkable1 notwithstanding that the former is a fern1 and that the latter is ranked among conifers4 ,the points of resemblance borne by the conifers to the huge ,equiseta of the ,oolitic period seem to have been equally striking4 ,the pores which traverse longitudinally the channelled grooves by which the stems of our recent ,equiseta are so delicately fluted1 are said considerably more to resemble the discs of pines and araucarians than ordinary stomata4 ,mr4 ,francis does not hesitate to say1 in his work on ,british ,ferns1 that the relation of this special family to the ,conifer is so strong1 both in external and internal structure1 that it is not without some hesitation he places them among the fern allies2 and it has been ascertained by ,mr4 ,dawes1 in his researches regarding the calamite1 that in its internal structure this apparent representative of ,equiseta in the earlier ages of the world united a network of quadrangular tissue similar to that of ,conifer to other quadrangular cells arranged in perpendicular series1 like the cells of plants of a humbler order4 ,the relations of the ,cycadacean order to ferns on the one hand1 and to the ,conifer on the other1 are equally well marked4 ,as in the ferns1 the venation of its fronds is circinate1 or scroll-like1--they have in several respects a resembling structure1--in at least one recent species they have a nearly identical form2 and fronds of this fern-like type seem to have been comparatively common during the times of the ,oolite4 ,on the other hand1 the ,cycadace manifest close relations to the conifers4 ,both have their seeds originally naked2 both are cone-bearing2 both possess discs on the sides of their cellules2 and in both1 in the transverse section1 these cellules are subhexagonal1 and radiate from a centre4 ,such were the very curious relations that united into one great sept the prevailing members of the ,oolitic flora2 and similar bonds of connection seem to have existed in the floras of the still earlier ages4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #adi4 ,,imbricated ,,stem4 7,helmsdale47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aej4 7,helmsdale47 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aea4 ,in the ,oolite of ,scotland ,i have1 however1 at length found trace of a vegetable organism that seems to have lain1 if ,i may so express myself1 outside the pentagon1 and was not a member of any of the great families which it comprised4 7,see ,fig4 #aea47 ,i succeeded about four years ago in disinterring from the limestone of ,helmsdale what appears to be a true dicotyledonous leaf1 with the fragment of another leaf1 which ,i at first supposed might have belonged to a plant of the same great class1 but which ,i now find might have been a portion of a fern4 ,when ,phlebopteris ,phillipsii was first detected in the ,oolite of ,yorkshire1 ,lindley and ,hatton1 regarding it as dicotyledonous1 originated their term ,dictyophillum as a general one for all such leaves4 ,but it has since been assigned to a greatly lower order1--the ferns2 and ,sir ,charles ,lyell has kindly shown me that an exotic fern of the present day exhibits exactly such a reticulated style of venation as my ,helmsdale fragment4 7,see ,fig4 #aeb1 p4 #dig47 ,the other leaf1 however1 though also fragmentary1 and but indifferently preserved1 seems to be decidedly marked by the dicotyledonous character2 and so ,i continue to regard it1 provisionally at least1 as one of the first precursors in ,scotland of our great forest trees1 and of so many of our flowering and fruit-bearing plants1 and as apparently occupying the same relative place in advance of its contemporaries as that occupied by the conifer of the ,old ,red ,sandstone in advance of the ferns and ,lycopodace with which ,i found it associated4 ,in the arrangement of its larger veins the better preserved ,oolitic leaf somewhat resembles that of the buckthorn2 but its state of keeping is such that it has failed to leave its exterior outline in the stone4 ,illustration3 ,fig4 #aeb4 ,one or two general remarks1 in conclusion1 on the ,oolite flora of ,scotland may be permitted me by the ,association4 ,in its aspect as a whole it greatly resembles the ,oolite flora of ,virginia1 though separated in space from the locality in which the latter occurs by a distance of nearly four thousand miles4 ,there are several species of plants common to both1 such as ,equisetum columnare1 ,calamites arenaceus1 ,pecopteris ,whitbiensis1 ,lycopodites uncifolius1 and apparently ,tniopteris magnifolia2 both1 too1 manifest the great abundance in which they were developed of old by the beds of coal into which their remains have been converted4 ,the coal of the ,virginia ,oolite has been profitably wrought for many years3 it is stated by ,sir ,charles ,lyell1 who carefully examined the deposit1 and has given as the results of his observation in his second series of ,travels in the ,united ,states1 that the annual quantity taken from the ,oolitic pits by ,philadelphia alone amounted to ten thousand tons2 and though1 on the other hand1 the ,sutherlandshire deposit has never been profitably wrought1 it has been at least wrought more extensively than any other in the ,british ,oolite4 ,the seam of ,brora1 varying from three feet three to three feet eight inches in thickness1 furnished1 says ,sir ,roderick ,murchison1 between the years #ahad and #ahbf1 no less than seventy thousand tons of coal4 ,such is its extent1 too1 that nearly thirty miles from the pit's mouth 7in ,ross-shire under the ,northern ,sutor7 ,i have found it still existing1 though in diminished proportions1 as a decided coal seam1 which it must have taken no small amount of vegetable matter to form4 ,and almost on the other side of the world1 nearly five thousand miles from the ,sutherland beds1 and more than eight thousand miles from the ,carolina ones1 the same ,oolitic flora again appears1 associated with beds of coal4 ,at ,nagpur in ,central ,india the ,oolitic ,sandstones abound in simple fronded ferns1 such us ,tniopteris and ,glossopteris1 and has its ,zamites1 its coniferous leaves1 and its equisetace4 ,compared with existing floras1 that of our ,scottish ,oolite seems to have most nearly resembled the flora of ,new ,zealand1--a flora remarkable for the great abundance of its ferns1 and its vast forests of coniferous trees1 that retain at all seasons their coverings of acicular spiky leaves4 ,it is to this flora that ,dacrydium cupressinum1--so like a club moss in its foliage1--belongs2 and ,podocarpus ferrugineus1--a tree which more closely resembles in its foliage the ,eathie conifer1 save that its spiky leaves are somewhat narrower and longer than any other with which ,i am acquainted4 ,about two thirds of the plants which cover the plains1 or rise on the hill-sides of that country1 are cryptogamic1 consisting mainly of ferns and their allies2 and it is a curious circumstance1--which was1 however1 not without precedent in the merely physical conditions of the ,oolitic flora of ,scotland1--that so shallow is the soil even where its greatest forests have sprung up1 and so immediately does the rock lie below1 that the central axes of the trees do not elongate downwards into a tap1 but throw out horizontally on every side a thick network of roots1 which rises so high over the surface as to render walking through the woods a difficult and very fatiguing exercise4 ,the flora of the ,oolite1 like that of ,new ,zealand1 seems to have been in large part cryptogamic1 consisting of ferns and the allied horse-tail and club moss families4 ,its forests seem to have contained only cone-bearing trees2 at least among the many thousand specimens of its fossil woods which have been examined1 no tissue of the true1 dicotyledonous character has yet been found2 and with the exception of the leaves just described1 all those yet found in the ,system1 which could have belonged to true trees1 are of the acicular form common to the ,conifer1 and show in their dense ligneous structure that they were persistent1 not deciduous4 ,nor is there evidence wanting that many of the ,conifer of the period grew in so shallow a soil1 that their tap-roots were flattened and bent backwards1 and they were left to derive their sole support1 like the trees of the ,new ,zealand forests1 from such of their roots as shot out horizontally4 ,we even know the nature of the rock upon which they rested4 ,as shown by fragments still locked up among the interstices of their petrified roots1 it was an ,old ,red flagstone similar to that of ,caithness in the neighborhood of ,wick and ,thurso1 and containing the same fossil remains4 ,in the water-rolled pebbles of the ,conglomerate of ,helmsdale and ,port ,gower1--pebbles encrusted by ,oolitic corals1 and enclosed in a calcareous paste1 containing ,oolitic belemnites and astre1--,i have found the well marked fishes and fucoids of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,as shown by the appearance of the rounded masses in which these lay1 they must have presented as ancient an appearance in the times of the ,lower ,oolite as they do now2 and the glimpse which they lent of so remote an antiquity1 through the medium of an antiquity which1 save for the comparison which they furnished the means of instituting1 might be well deemed superlatively remote1 ,i have felt singularly awe-inspiring and impressive4 ,macaulay anticipates a time when the traveller from some distant land shall take his stand on a broken arch of ,london ,bridge to survey the ruins of ,st4 ,paul's4 ,in disinterring from amid the antique remains of the ,oolite the immensely more antique remains of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 ,i have felt as such a traveller would feel if1 on setting himself to dig among the scattered heaps for memorials of the ruined city1 he had fallen on what had been once the ,assyrian ,gallery of the ,british ,museum1 and had found mingling with the antiquities of perished ,london the greatly older and more venerable antiquities of ,nineveh or of ,babylon4 ,the land of the ,oolite in this northern locality must have been covered by a soil which1--except that from a lack of the boulder clays it must have been poorer and shallower1--must have not a little resembled that of the lower plains of ,cromarty1 ,caithness1 and ,eastern ,ross4 ,and on this ,palozoic platform1 long exposed1 as the ,oolitic ,conglomerates abundantly testify1 to denuding and disintegrating agencies1--a platform beaten by the surf where it descended to the sea level1 and washed in the interior by rivers1 with here a tall hill or abrupt precipice1 and there a flat plain or sluggish morass1--there grew vast forests of cone-bearing trees1 tangled thickets of gigantic equisetace1 numerous forms of ,cycas and ,zamia1 and wide-rolling seas of fern1 amid whose open spaces club mosses of extinct tribes sent forth their long1 creeping stems1 spiky and dry1 and thickly mottled with pseudo-spore-bearing catkins4 ,the curtain drops over this ancient flora of the ,oolite in ,scotland2 and when1 long after1 there is a corner of the thick enveloping screen withdrawn1 and we catch a partial glimpse of one of the old ,tertiary forests of our country1 all is new4 ,trees of the high dicotyledonous class1 allied to the plane and the buckthorn1 prevail in the landscape1 intermingled1 however1 with dingy funereal yews2 and the ferns and equiset that rise in the darker openings of the wood approach to the existing type4 ,and yet1 though eons of the past eternity have elapsed since we looked out upon ,cycas and ,zamia1 and the last of the ,calamites1 the time is still early1 and long ages must lapse ere man shall arise out of the dust1 to keep and to dress fields waving with the productions of yet another and different flora1 and to busy himself with all the labor which he taketh under the sun4 ,our country1 in this ,tertiary time1 has still its great outbursts of molten matter1 that bury in fiery deluges many feet in depth1 and many square miles in extent1 the debris of wide tracts of woodland and marsh2 and the basaltic columns still form in its great lava bed2 and ever and anon1 as the volcanic agencies awake1 clouds of ashes darken the heavens1 and cover up the landscape as if with accumulated drifts of a protracted snow storm4 ,who shall declare what1 throughout those long ages1 the history of creation has been8 ,we see at wide intervals the mere fragments of successive floras2 but know not how what seem the blank interspaces were filled1 or how1 as extinction overtook in succession one tribe of existences after another1 and species1 like individuals1 yielded to the great law of death1 yet other species were brought to the birth1 and ushered upon the scene1 and the chain of being was maintained unbroken4 ,we see only detached bits of that green web which has covered our earth ever since the dry land first appeared2 but the web itself seems to have been continuous throughout all time2 though ever as breadth after breadth issued from the creative loom1 the pattern has altered1 and the sculpturesque and graceful forms that illustrated its first beginnings and its middle spaces have yielded to flowers of richer color and blow1 and fruits of fairer shade and outline2 and for gigantic club mosses stretching forth their hirsute arms1 goodly trees of the ,lord have expanded their great boughs2 and for the barren fern and the calamite1 clustering in thickets beside the waters1 or spreading on flowerless hill slopes1 luxuriant orchards have yielded their ruddy flush1 and rich harvests their golden gleam4 ,,the ,,end4 ,,footnotes3 #a ,the ,prayer will be found at the end of these ,memorials4 #b ,the same revolver proved to be the instrument of death to another person1 two days after4 ,the circumstances are thus related in the ,edinburgh ,witness of ,december #bg3-- ,a most melancholy event1 arising out of the following circumstances1 occurred yesterday in the shop of ,mr4 ,thomson1 gunmaker4 ,in the beginning of ,july1 last year1 ,mr4 ,hugh ,miller bought a six-shot revolving chamber pistol1 size of ball ninety-two to the pound1 from the late firm of ,messrs4 ,alexander ,thomson ,son1 gunmakers1 #af ,union ,place4 ,a few days after1 he called and said he thought it a little stiff in its workings1 and got it made to revolve more readily4 ,the pistol has not been seen by ,mr4 ,thomson since then2 but in his absence a few minutes at dinner yesterday1 ,professor ,miller called about twenty minutes from two1 and asked ,mr4 ,thomson's foreman how many of the six shots had been fired4 ,he added1 ',mind1 it is loaded4' ,the foreman1 instead of removing the breech or chamber to examine it1 bad incautiously turned the pistol entire towards his own person1 and lifting up the hammer with his fingers1 while he counted the remaining loaded chambers1 he must have slipped his fingers while the pistol was turned to his own head4 ,it exploded1 and the ball lodging in the angle of his right eye1 he fell back a lifeless corpse4 ,the pistol is a bolted one1 which permits of being carried loaded with perfect safety4 ,having been wet internally1 rust may have stopped the action of the bolt4 ,it is a singular fact that ,hugh ,miller dropped the pistol into the bath1 where it remained for several hours4 ,this may account for the apparent incaution of ,mr4 ,thomson's foreman4 #c ,see ante1 p4 #i4 #d ,the horizontal lines in this diagram indicate the divisions of the various geologic systems2 the vertical lines the sweep of the various classes or sub-classes of plants across the geologic scale1 with1 so far as has yet been ascertained1 the place of their first appearance in creation2 while the double line of type below shows in what degree the order of their occurrence agrees with the arrangement of the botanist4 ,the single point of difference indicated by the diagram between the order of occurrence and that of arrangement1 viz41 the transposition of the gymnogenous and monocotyledonous classes1 must be regarded as purely provisional4 ,it is definitely ascertained that the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone has its coniferous wood1 but not yet definitely ascertained that it has its true monocotyledonous plants2 though indications are not awanting that the latter were introduced upon the scene at least as early as the pines or araucarians2 and the chance discovery of some fossil in a sufficiently good state of keeping to determine the point may1 of course1 at once retranspose the transposition1 and bring into complete correspondence the geologic and botanic arrangements4 #e ,the horizontal lines of the diagram here indicate1 as in ,fig4 #a1 the divisions of the several geologic systems2 the vertical lines represent the leading divisions and classes of animals1 and1 as shown by the formations in which their earliest known remains occur1 the probable period of their first appearance in creation2 while the double line of text below exhibits the complete correspondence which obtains between their occurrence1 in nature and the ,cuvierian arrangement4 ,the line representative of the ,radiata ought perhaps to have been elevated a little higher than either of its two neighbors4 #f ,fig4 #ad1 ,neuropteris ,loshii4 ,fig4 #ae1 ,neuropteris gigantea4 ,fig4 #af1 ,neuropteris acuminata4 ,fig4 #ag1 ,sphenopteris affinis4 ,fig4 #ah1 ,pecopteris heterophylla4 ,fig4 #ai1 ,sphenopteris dilitata4 #g ,fig4 #ba1 r a1 ,rachis1 greatly thickened towards its base by numerous rial roots1 shot downwards to the soil1 and which closely cover the stem4 #h ,fig4 #bb1 m1 ,cellular tissue of the centre of rachis2 d1 similar tissue of the circumference2 f1 v1 darkly-colored woody fibres of great strength1 the internal buttresses of the illustration2 e1 the outer cortical portion formed by the bases of the leaves4 #i ,fig4 #bc1 ,branching stem1 with bark and leaves4 ,fig4 #bd4 ,extremity of branch4 ,fig4 #be1 ,extremity of another branch1 with indication of cone-like receptacle of spores or seed4 #aj ,no true fossil palms have yet been detected in the great ,oolitic and ,wealden systems1 though they certainly occur in the ,carboniferous and ,permian rocks1 and are comparatively common in the earlier and middle ,tertiary formations4 ,much cannot be founded on merely negative evidence2 but it would be certainly a curious circumstance should it be found that this graceful family1 first ushered into being some time in the later ,palozoic periods1 was withdrawn from creation during the ,middle ages of the earth's history1 to be again introduced in greatly more than the earlier proportions during the ,tertiary and recent periods4 #aa ,leaf of a tree allied to the maple4 #ab ,leaf of a tree allied to the elm4 #ac ,here1 as in the former diagrams 7,figs4 #a and #d71 the horizontal lines represent the divisions of the great geologic systems2 while the vertical lines indicate the sweep of the several orders of fishes across the scale1 and the periods1 so far as has yet been determined1 of their first occurrence in creation4 #ad ,some of these dragons of the ,secondary ages were of very considerable size4 ,the wings of a ,pterodactyle of the ,chalk1 in the possession of ,mr4 ,bowerbank1 must have had a spread of about eighteen feet2 those of a recently discovered ,pterodactyle of the ,greensand1 a spread of not less than twenty-seven feet4 ,the ,lammer-geyer of the ,alps has an extent of wing of but from ten to eleven feet2 while that of the great ,condor of the ,andes1 the largest of flying birds1 does not exceed twelve feet4 #ae a1 ,palotherium magnum4 b1 ,palotherium minus4 c1 ,anoplotherium commune4 #af ,it will be seen that there is no attempt made in this lecture to represent the great ,palozoic division as characterized throughout its entire extent by a luxuriant flora4 ,it is1 on the contrary1 expressly stated here1 that the plants of its earlier and terminal formations 7i4e4 those of the ,silurian1 ,old ,red1 and ,permian ,systems7 were few and small1 and that it was only during the protracted eons of the carboniferous period that they received their amazing development1 unequalled in any previous or succeeding time4 ,being thus express in my limitation1 ,i think ,i have just cause of complaint against any one who represents me us unfairly laboring1 in this very composition1 to make it be believed that the whole ,palozoic period was characterized by a gorgeous flora2 and as thus sophistically generalizing in the first instance1 in order to make a fallacious use of the generalization in the second1 with the intention of misleading non-geologic readers4 ,such1 however1 as may be seen from the following extracts from the ,proceedings of the ,academy of ,natural ,science at ,philadelphia1 is the charge preferred against me by a citizen of the ,united ,states4 ,mr4 ,william ,parker ,foulke asked the attention of the ,society to a lecture by ,mr4 ,hugh ,miller1 recently republished in the ,united ,states under the title of ',the ,two ,records1 ,mosaic and ,geological1' and made some remarks upon the importance of maintaining a careful scrutiny of the logic of the natural sciences4444 ,mr4 ,miller teaches that1 in the attempt to reconcile the two 'records1' there are only three periods to be accounted for by the geologist1 viz4 'the period of plants2 the period of great sea monsters and creeping things2 and the period of cattle and beasts of the earth2' and that the first of these periods is represented by the rocks grouped under the term ,palozoic1 and is distinguished from the ,secondary and ,tertiary chiefly by its gorgeous flora2 and that the geological evidence is so complete as to be patent to all1 that the first great period of organized being was1 as described in the ,mosaic record1 peculiarly a period of herbs and trees1 yielding seed after their kind4 ,the general reader1 not familiar with the details of geological arrangement1 could not fail to infer from such a statement1 used for such a purpose1 that the ,palozoic rocks are regarded by geologists as forming one group representative of one period1 which can properly be said to be distinguished as a whole by its gorgeous flora2 and that it is properly so distinguished for the argument in question4 ,it was familiar to the ,academy1 as well as to ,mr4 ,miller1 that from the carboniferous rocks downward 7backward in order of time71 there have been discriminated a large number of periods1 differing from one another in mineral and in organic remains2 and that the proportion of the carboniferous era to the whole series is small1 whether we regard the thickness of its deposits or its conjectural chronology4 ,it in only of this carboniferous era1 the latest of this series1 that the author's remarks could be true2 and even of this1 if taken for the entire surface of the earth1 it could not be truly asserted that 'the evidence is so complete as to be patent to all1' that the quantity of its vegetable products distinguishes it from the earth's surface during the era in which we live4 ,to confound by implication all this periods termed ,palozoic1 so as to apply to them as a whole what could be true1 if at all1 only of the carboniferous period1 is a fallacious use of a generalization made for a purpose1 and upon a principle not properly available for the writer's argument1 c4 ,so far the ,proceedings of the ,academy4 ,this1 surely1 is very much the reverse of fair4 ,i1 however1 refer the matter1 without note or comment 7so far at least as it involves the question whether ,mr4 ,foulke has not1 in the face of the most express statement on my part1 wholly misrepresented me71 to the judgment of candid and intelligent readers on both sides of the ,atlantic4 ,i know not that ,i should recognize ,mr4 ,foulke as entitled1 after such a display1 to be dealt with simply as the member of a learned society who differs from me on a scientific question2 nor does his reference to the carboniferous era as the latest of the ,palozoic series1 and his apparent unacquaintance with that ,permian period1 in reality the terminal one of the division during which the ,palozoic forms seem to have gradually died away1 in order to give place to those of the ,secondary division1 inspire any very high respect for his acquirements as a geologist4 ,waiving1 however1 the legitimacy of his claim1 ,i may be permitted to repeat1 for the further information of the non-geological reader1 that the carboniferous formations1 wherever they have yet been detected1 justify1 in the amazing abundance of their carbonized vegetable organisms1 the name which they bear4 ,mr4 ,foulke1 in three short sentences1 uses the terms carboniferous era1 carboniferous rocks1 carboniferous period1 four several times2 and these terms are derived from the predominating amount of carbon 7elaborated of old by the plants of the period7 which occurs in its several formations4 ,the very language which he has to employ is of itself a confirmation of the statement which he challenges4 ,for so patent is this carboniferous character of the system1 that it has given to it its universally accepted designation1--the verbal sign by which it is represented wherever it is known4 ,mr4 ,f4 states1 that if taken for the entire surface of the earth1 it cannot be truly asserted that the carboniferous flora preponderated over that of the present time1 or1 at least1 that its preponderance could not be regarded as patent to all1 ,the statement admits of so many different meanings1 that ,i know not whether ,i shall succeed in replying to the special meaning intended by ,mr4 ,foulke4 ,there are no doubt carboniferous deposits on the earth's surface still unknown to the geologist1 the evidence of which on the point must be regarded1 in consequence1 not as patent to all1 but as nil4 ,they are witnesses absent from court1 whose testimony has not yet been tendered4 ,but equally certain it is1 ,i repeat1 that wherever carboniferous formations have been discovered and examined1 they have been found to bear the unique characteristic to which the system owes its name1--they have been found charged with the carbon1 existing usually as great beds of coal1 which was elaborated of old by its unrivalled flora from the elements4 ,and as this evidence is certain and positive1 no one would be entitled to set off against it1 as of equal weight1 the merely negative evidence of some one or two deposits of the carboniferous age that did not bear the carboniferous character1 even were such known to exist2 far less is anyone entitled to set off against it the possibly negative evidence of deposits of the carboniferous age not yet discovered nor examined2 for that would be simply to set off against good positive evidence1 what is no evidence at all4 ,it would be to set off the possible evidence of the absent witnesses1 not yet precognosced in the case1 against the express declarations of the witnesses already examined1 and strong on the positive side4 ,surely an ,american1 before appealing1 in a question of this kind1 to the bare possibility of the existence somewhere or other of barely negative evidence1 ought to have bethought him of the very extraordinary positive evidence furnished by the carboniferous deposits of his own great country4 ,the coal fields of ,britain and the ,european continent had been wrought for ages ere those of ,north ,america were known1 and for ages more after it had been but ascertained that the ,new1 like the ,old ,world1 has its ,coal ,measures4 ,and during the latter period the argument of ,mr4 ,foulke might have been employed1 just as now1 and some member of a learned society might have urged that1 though the coal fields of ,europe bore evidence to the former existence of a singularly luxuriant flora1 beyond comparison more vast than the ,european one of the present day1 the same could not be predicated of the ,american coal fields1 whose carbonized remains might be found representative of a flora which had been at least not more largely developed than that existing ,american flora to which the great western forests belong4 ,now1 however1 the time for any such argument has gone by2 the ,american coal fields have been carefully explored2 and what is the result8 ,the geologist has come to know1 that even the mighty forests of ,america are inconsiderable1 compared with its deposits of coal2 nay1 that all its forests gathered into one heap would fail to furnish the materials of a single coal seam equal to that of ,pittsburg2 and that centuries after all its thick woods shall have disappeared before the axe1 and it shall have come to present the comparatively bare1 unwooded aspect of the long civilized countries of ,southern ,europe1 it will continue to derive the elements of its commercial greatness1 and the cheerful blaze of its many millions of domestic hearths1 from the unprecedentedly luxurious flora of the old carboniferous ages4 ,truly1 very wonderful are the coal fields of ,northern ,america6 ,if geologists inferred1 as they well might1 that the extinct flora which had originated the ,european coal vastly outrivalled in luxuriance that of the existing time1 what shall be said of that flora of the same age which originated the coal deposits of ,nova ,scotia and the ,united ,states1--deposits twenty times as great as all those of all ,europe put together6 #ag ,such is also the view taken by the author of a recently published work1 ,the ,genesis of the ,earth and of ,man4 ,christian philosophers have been compelled to acknowledge1 says this writer1 that the ,mosaic account of creation is only reconcileable with demonstrated facts1 by its being regarded as a record of appearances2 and if so1 to vindicate the truth of ,god1 we must consider it1 so far as the acts are concerned1 as the relation of a revelation to the sight1 which was sufficient for all its purposes1 rather than as one in words2 though the words are perfectly true as describing the revelation itself1 and the revelation is equally true as showing man the principal phenomena which he would have seen had it been possible for him to be a witness of the events4 ,further1 if we view the narrative as the description of a series of visions1 while we find it to be perfectly reconcileable with the statement in other parts of ,scripture1 that in six days the ,lord made heaven and earth1 we remove1 with other difficulties1 the only strong objection to the opinion of those who regard the 'six days' as periods of undeflnable duration1 and who may even believe that we are now in the 'seventh day1'--the day of rest or of cessation from the work of creation4 ,certainly1 'the day of ,god1' and 'the day of the ,lord1' and the 'thousand two hundred and threescore days1' of the ,revelation of ,st4 ,john1 and the 'seventy weeks' in the ,prophecy of ,daniel1 are not to be understood in their primary and natural senses1 c41 c4 #ah ,for in six days the ,lord made heaven and earth1 the sea1 and all that in them is1 and rested the seventh day3 wherefore the ,lord blessed the ,sabbath day1 and hallowed it4 #ai ,forbes and ,hanley enumerate one hundred and sixty bivalves1 and two hundred and thirty-two univalves1--in all three hundred and ninety-two species1 as the only known shell-bearing molluscs of the existing ,british seas4 #bj ,principles of ,zoology3 touching the ,structure1 ,development1 ,distribution1 and ,natural ,arrangement of the ,races of ,animals1 living and extinct4 ,with numerous ,illustrations4 ,for the ,use of ,schools and ,colleges4 ,part ,i41 ,comparative ,physiology4 ,by ,louis ,agassiz and ,augustus ,a4 ,gould4 ,boston3 ,gould ,lincoln4 #ba a1 ,articulating surface of joint4 b1 ,fragment of column1 exhibiting laterally the tooth processes1 so fitted into each other as to admit of flexure without risk of dislocation4 ,the uppermost joint shows two lateral cavities for the articulation of auxiliary arms4 #bb ,perhaps one strengthening principle more might be enumerated as occurring in this curious piece of mechanism4 ,in the layer of the nether plate1 the fibres1 instead of being laid in parallel lines1 like the threads in the moleskin of my illustration1 seem to be felted together1--an arrangement which must have added considerably to their coherency and powers of resistance4 #bc ,fig4 #ajb1 ,clymenia ,sedwicki2 ,fig4 #ajc1 ,gyroceras ,eifelensis2 ,fig4 #ajd1 ,cirrus ,goldfussii4 #bd ,berosus1 ,hieronymus1 ,mnaseas1 ,nicolaus1 ,manetho1 ,mochus1 and ,hestus4 #be ,see ,cory's ,ancient ,fragments4 #bf ,as was common in ,bible illustrations published in our own country a century and a half ago1 the old ,greek artist has introduced into his medal two points of time4 ,two of the figures represent ,noe and his wife quitting the ark2 while the other two exhibit them as seated within it4 ,an ,english print of the death of ,abel1 now before me1 which dates a little after the times of the ,revolution1 shows1 on the same principle1 the two brothers1 represented by four figures1--two of these quietly offering up their respective sacrifices in the background1 and the other two grappling in deadly warfare in front4 #bg ,in preparing the ',hor ,biblic ,quotidian1' he ,dr4 ,chalmers had beside him1 for use and reference1 the ,concordance1 the ,pictorial ,bible1 ,poole's ,synopsis1 ,henry's ,commentary1 and ,robertson's ,researches in ,palestine4 ,these constituted what he called his ,biblical ,library4 ',there1' said he to a friend1 pointing1 as he spoke1 to the above named volumes as they lay together on his library table1 with a volume of the ',quotidian1' in which he had just been writing1 lying open beside them1--'these are the books ,i use3 all that is ,biblical is there4'--,dr4 ,hanna's ,preface to ,daily ,scripture ,readings4 #bh ,the raven is said to live for more than a hundred years4 ,i am1 however1 not prepared to say that it was the same pair of birds that used1 year after year1 to build on the same rock-shelf among the precipices of ,navity1 from the times of my great-grandfather's boyhood to those of my own4 #bi ,the following estimate of the air-breathing vertebrates 7that of the ,physical ,atlas1 second edition1 #ahef7 may be regarded as the latest4 ,it will he seen that it does not include the cetacea or the seals3-- ,,species4 ,quadrumana #agj ,marsupialia #abc ,edentata #bh ,pachydermata #ci ,terrestrial ,carnivora #ead ,rodentia #fjd ,ruminantia #ahj ---- #afeh ,birds #fbff ,reptiles #feg ,turtles #h ,sea ,snakes #g #ae ---- #fdb ,great as is this number of animals1 compared with those known a century ago1 there are indications that the list is to be increased rather than diminished4 ,even by the latest ,european authorities the reindeer is represented as consisting of but a single species1 common to the sub-arctic regions of both the ,old and ,new ,worlds2 whereas in the ,canadian ,naturalist for #ahef ,i find it stated1 on what seems to be competent authority1 that ,america has its two species of reindeer1 and that they both differ from the ,european species4 #cj ,if ,i do not introduce here the argument founded on the great age of certain gigantic trees1 such as the ,baobab of intertropical ,africa1 or the ,taxodium of ,south ,america1 it is not because ,i have any reason to challenge the estimates of ,adamson or ,candolle4 ,the one tree may have lived its five thousand1 the other its six thousand1 years2 but as the grounds have been disputed on which the calculations respecting their vast age have been founded1 and as they cannot be rexamined anew by the reader1 ,i wholly omit the evidence1 in the general question1 which they have been supposed to furnish4 #ca ,the following excellent remarks on the economy of miracle1 by ,chalmers1 bear very directly on this subject3--,it is remarkable that ,god is sparing of miracles1 and seems to prefer the ordinary processes of nature1 if equally effectual for the accomplishment of his purposes4 ,he might have saved ,noah and his family by miracles2 but he is not prodigal of these1 and so he appointed that an ark should be made to bear up the living cargo which was to be kept alive on the surface of the waters2 and not only so1 but he respects the laws of the animal physiology1 as he did those of hydrostatics1 in that he put them by pairs into the ark1 male and female1 to secure their transmission to after ages1 and food was stored up to sustain them during their long confinement4 ,in short1 he dispenses with miracles when these are not requisite for the fulfilment of his ends2 and he never dispenses with the ordinary means when these are fitted1 and at the same time sufficient1 for the occasion4--,daily ,scripture ,readings1 vol4 i4 p4 #aj4 #cb ,for a brief but masterly view of these ancient cosmogonies1 see the ,rev4 ,d4 ,macdonald's ,creation and the ,fall4 ,edinburgh3 ,constable ,co4 #cc #a4 ,the great surrounding oceans4 #b4 ,caspian ,sea4 #c4 ,river ,phison4 #d-d4 ,points of the ,compass4 #e4 ,mediterranean ,sea4 #f4 ,red ,sea4 #g-h4 ,persian ,gulf1 with the rivers ,tigris and ,euphrates4 #i4 ,river ,gihon4 #cd #a4 ,the sun ,occident4 #b4 ,the sun orient4 #c4 ,the ,heavens4 #d4 ,great mountain behind which the sun is hidden when it is night4 #e4 ,the ,mediterranean ,sea4 #f4 ,red ,sea4 #g4 ,persian ,gulf4 #h4 ,garden of ,eden4 #i4 ,great surrounding ocean #aj4 ,the ,creator looking down upon his work1 and seeing that all was good4 #ce ,the very different terms which ,mr4 ,powell employs in characterizing the anti-geologists1 from those which he makes use of in denouncing the men honestly bent on reconciling the enunciations of revelation with the findings of geologic science1--a class which included in the past1 divines such as ,chalmers1 ,buckland1 and ,pye ,smith1 and comprises divines such as ,hitchcock and the ,archbishop of ,canterbury now1--is worthy of being noted4 ,in two sermons1 ,christianity without ,judaism1 written by this clergyman of the ,church of ,england1 to show that all days of the week are alike1 and the ,christian ,sabbath a mere blunder1 ,i find the following passage3--,some divines have consistently rejected all geology and all science as profane and carnal2 and some even1 when pretending to call themselves men of science1 have stooped to the miserable policy1 of tampering with the truth1 investing the real facts in false disguises1 to cringe to the prejudices of the many1 and to pervert science into a seeming accordance with popular prepossessions4 ,i cannot believe that this will be regarded as justifiable language3 it seems scarce worthy of a man of science2 and will1 ,i fear1 only be accepted as good in evidence that the odium theologicum is not restricted to what is termed the orthodox side of the ,church4 #cf ,the gentleman here referred to lectured no later than ,october1 #ahec1 against the doctrines of the geologists2 and modestly chose as the scene of his labors the city of ,hutton and ,playfair4 ,what he set himself specially to demonstrate was1 as he said1 that the geologic theories as to antiquity of the earth1 successive eras1 c41 were not only fallacious and unphilosophical1 but rendered nugatory the authority of the sacred ,scriptures4 ,not only1 however1 did he exert himself in demolishing the geologists as infidel1 but he denounced also as unsound the theology of good old ,isaac ,watts4 ,the lines taught us in our infancy1-- ,let dogs delight to bark and bite1 ,for ,god hath made them so1 were1 he remarked1 decidedly heterodox4 ,they ought to have run instead1-- ,let dogs delight to bark and bite1 ,satan hath made them so666 #cg ,a ,brief and ,complete ,refutation of the ,anti-,scriptural ,theory of ,geologists4 ,by a ,clergyman of the ,church of ,england4 ,london3 ,wertheim ,macintosh4 #ahec4 #ch ,newspaper ,report of ,meeting of the ,british ,association held at ,york in ,september1 #ahdd4 #ci ,see ,primary and ,present ,state of the ,solar ,system1 particularly of our own ,planet2 and ,exposure of the ,principles of ,modern ,geology4 ,by ,p4 ,m',farlane1 ,author of the ,primary and ,present ,state of the ,solar ,system4 ,edinburgh3 ,thomas ,grant4 #dj ,one of the more brilliant writers of the present day1--a native of the picturesque village in which this anti-geologist resides1--describes in a recent work1 with the enthusiasm of the poet1 the noble mountains which rise around it4 ,i know not1 however1 whether my admiration of the passage was not in some degree dashed by a few comic notions suggestive of an imaginary conversation1 in the style of ,landor1 between this popular author and his anti-geologic townsman1 on the merits of hills in general1 and in especial on the claims of those which encircle ,comrie as the mountains are round about ,jerusalem4 ,the two gentlemen would1 ,i suspect1 experience considerable difficulty in laying down1 in such a discussion1 their common principles4 #da ,comparative ,estimate of the ,mineral and ,mosaical ,geologies4 ,by ,granville ,penn1 ,esq4 ,london1 #ahbe4 #db ,statesman and ,record1 ,october #fth1 #ahdf4 #dc ,sir ,charles ,lyell's statement is by no means so express or definite as it is represented to be in this passage1 in which ,i have taken the evidence of his opponents regarding it4 ,what he really says 7see his ,principles1 second edition1 #ahcb7 is what follows3--,if the ratio of recession had never exceeded fifty yards in forty years1 it must have required nearly ten thousand years for the excavation of the whole ravine2 but no probable conjecture can be offered as to the quantity of time consumed in such an operation1 because the retrograde movement may have been much more rapid when the whole current was confined within a space not exceeding a fourth or fifth of that which the ,falls now occupy4 ,in the eighth edition of the same work1 however1 published in #ahej1 after he had examined the ,falls1 there occurs the following re-statement of the case3--,after the most careful inquiries ,i was able to make during my visit to the spot in #ahda-db1 ,i came to the conclusion that the average recession of one foot a year would be a much more probable conjecture than that of one and a quarter yards4 ,in that case it would have required thirty-five thousand years for the retreat of the ,falls from the escarpment of ,queenston to their present site4 ,it seems by no means improbable that such a result would be no exaggeration of the truth1 although we cannot assume that the retrograde movement has been uniform4 ,at some points it may have receded much faster than at present2 but in general its progress was probably slower1 because the cataract1 when it began to recede1 must have been nearly twice its present height4 #dd ,scottish ,christian ,herald1 #ahch1 vol4 iii41 p4 #gff4 #de ,the substance of this and the following lecture was originally given in a single paper1 before the ,geological ,section of the ,british ,association1 held at ,glasgow in ,september #ahee4 ,so considerable have been the additions1 however1 that the one paper has swelled into two lectures4 ,most of the added matter was at first thrown into the form of ,notes2 but it was found1 that from their length and frequency1 they would have embarrassed the printer1 mayhap the reader also2 and so most of the larger ones have been introduced into the text within brackets4 #df ,a curious set of these1 with specimens of the smooth-stemmed fucoid collected by ,mr4 ,john ,miller of ,thurso1--a meritorious laborer in the geologic field1--were exhibited at ,glasgow to the ,association4 ,the larger stems were thickly traversed in ,mr4 ,j4 ,miller's specimens by diagonal lines1 which seemed1 however1 to be merely lines of rhomboidal fracture in the glassy coal into which the plants were converted1 and not one of their original characters4 #dg ,i must1 however1 add1 that there was found in the neighborhood of ,stromness about fifteen years ago1 by ,dr4 ,john ,fleming1 a curious nondescript vegetable organism1 which1 though equivocal in character and appearance1 was in all probability a plant of the sea4 ,it consisted of a flattened cylinder1 in some of the specimens exceeding a foot in length by an inch in breadth1 and traversed on both the upper and under sides by a mesial groove extending to the extremities4 ,it bore no external markings1 and the section exhibited but an indistinct fibrous structure1 sufficient1 however1 to indicate its vegetable origin4 ,i have not hitherto succeeded in finding for myself specimens of this organism1 which has been named provisionally1 by ,dr4 ,fleming1 ,stroma obscura2 but it seems not improbable that certain supposed fragments of wood1 detected by ,mr4 ,charles ,peach in the ,caithness ,flagstones1 but which do not exhibit the woody structure1 may have belonged to it4 #dh ,i figured this species from an imperfect ,cromarty specimen fifteen years ago4 7,see ,old ,red ,sandstone1 first edition1 #ahda1 ,plate ,,vii4 ,fig4 #d74 ,of the greatly better specimens now figured ,i owe the larger one 7,fig4 #abj7 to ,mrs4 ,mill1 ,thurso1 who detected it in the richly fossiliferous flagstones of the locality in which she resides1 and kindly made it over to me2 and the specimen of which ,i have given a magnificent representation 7,fig4 #ab1 p4 #ee7 to my friend ,mr4 ,robert ,dick4 ,i have1 besides1 seen several specimens of the same organism1 in a better or worse state of keeping1 in the interesting collection of the ,rev4 ,charles ,clouston1 ,sandwick1 near ,stromness4 #di ,frogspawn is full of eyes that is1 black eye-like points1 and every eye is a tadpole4 #ej ,mr4 ,page figures1 in his ,advanced ,text ,book of ,geology 7p4 #abg71 a few circular markings from the ,forfarshire beds1 which he still regards as spawn1 probably that of a ,crustacean1 and which certainly differ greatly in appearance from the markings found enclosed in the apparent spathes4 #ea ,since these sentences were written ,i have seen a description of both the plants of the ,upper ,old ,red to which they refer1 in an interesting sketch of the geology of ,roxburgshire by the ,rev4 ,james ,duncan1 which forms part of a recent publication devoted to the history and antiquities of the shire4 ,in the red quarry of ,denholm ,hill there occurs1 says ,mr4 ,duncan1 a stratum of soft yellowish sandstone1 which contains impressions of an apparent fucoid in considerable quantity4 ,one or several linear stems diverge from a point1 and throw off at acute angles1 as they grow upwards1 branches or leaves very similar to the stem1 which are in turn subdivided into others4 ,the width of the stalks is generally about a quarter of an inch1 the length often a foot4 ,the color is brown1 blackish-brown1 or grayish4 ,the same plant also occurs in the whitestone quarry an overlying bed in the form of ,carbonaceous impressions4 ,there can be little doubt that it is a fucoid4 ,the general mode of growth greatly resembles that of certain seaweeds2 and in some specimens we have seen the branches dilated a little at the extremities1 like those of such of the living fuci as expand in order to afford space for the fructification4 ,it is deserving of remark1 that the plant is seldom observed lying horizontally on the rock in a direction parallel to its stratification1 but rising up through the layers1 so as only to be seen when the stone is broken across2 as if it had been standing erect1 or kept buoyant in water1 while the stony matter to which it owes its preservation was deposited around it4 ,mr4 ,duncan1 after next referring to the remains of what he deems a land plant1 derived from the same deposit1 and which1 though sadly mutilated1 presents not a little of the appearance of the naked framework of a frond of ,cyclopterus ,hibernicus divested of the leaflets1 goes on to describe the apparent calamite of the formation4 ,the best preserved vegetable remain yet found in ,denholm ,hill quarry1 he says1 is the radical portion of what we cannot hesitate to call a species of calamite4 ,the lower part is regularly and beautifully rounded1 bulging and prominent1 nearly four inches in diameter4 ,about an inch from the bottom it contracts somewhat suddenly in two separate stages1 and1 from the uppermost sends up a stem about an inch in diameter1 and nearly of the same length1 where it is broken across4 ,at the origin of this stem the small longitudinal ridges are distinctly marked2 and the whole outline of the figure1 though converted into stone1 is as well defined as it could have been in the living plant4 ,mr4 ,duncan accompanies his description with a figure of the organism described1 which1 however1 rather resembles the bulb of a liliaceous plant than the root of a calamite1 which in all the better preserved1 specimens contracts1 instead of expanding1 as it descends4 ,the apparent expansion1 however1 in the ,old ,red specimen may be simply a result of compression in its upper part3 the under part certainly much resembles1 in the dome-like symmetry of its outline1 the radical termination of a solitary calamite4 #eb ,though the coal of ,sabero is apparently included in ,devonian rocks1 says ,sir ,roderick ,murchison1 ,m4 ,casiano de ,prado thinks that this appearance may be do to inverted folds of the strata4 ,on the other hand1 ,m4 ,alcide ,d',orbigny regards it us decidedly ,old ,red2 and certainly its ,sphenopteris and ,lepidodendron bent much more the aspect of ,devonian than of ,carboniferous plants4 #ec ,now1 alas6 no more4 ,in ,mr4 ,gourlay the energy and shrewd business habits of the accomplished merchant were added to an enlightened zeal for general science1 and no inconsiderable knowledge in both the geologic and botanic provinces4 ,the marked success1 in several respects1 of the brilliant meeting of the ,british ,association which held in ,glasgow in ,september #ahee1 was owing in no small measure to the indefatigable exertions and well calculated arrangements of ,mr4 ,gourlay4 #ed ,trees must have been very abundant in what is now ,scotland in these ,secondary ages4 ,trunks of the common ,scotch fir are of scarce more frequent occurrence in our mosses than the trunks of somewhat resembling trees among the shales of the ,lower ,oolite of ,helmsdale4 ,on examining in that neighborhood1 about ten years since1 a huge heap of materials which had been collected along the sea shore for burning into lime in a temporary kiln1 ,i found that more than three fourths of the whole consisted of fragments of coniferous wood washed out of the shale beds by the surf1 and the remainder of a massive ,isastrea4 ,and only two years ago1 after many kilnfuls had been gathered and burnt1 his grace the ,duke of ,argyll found that fossil wood could still he collected by cartloads along the shore of ,helmsdale4 ,the same woods also occur at ,port ,gower1 ,kintradwell1 ,shandwick1 and ,eathie4 ,in the ,island of ,eigg1 too1 in an ,oolite deposit1 locked up in trap1 and whose stratigraphical relations cannot in consequence be exactly traced1 great fragments of ,pinites ,eiggensis are so abundant1 that1 armed with a mattock1 ,i have dug out of the rock1 in a few minutes1 specimens enough to supply a dozen of museums4 ,in short1 judging from its fossiliferous remains1 it seems not improbable that old ,oolitic ,scotland was as densely covered with coniferous trees as the ,scotland of ,roman times1 when the great ,caledonian forest stretched northwards from the wall of ,antoninus to the furthest ,thule4 ,,important ,,literary ,,and ,,scientific ,,works1 ,,published ,,by ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 #ei ,,washington ,,street1 ,,boston4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,annual ,,of ,,scientific ,,discovery2 ,or1 ,year ,book of ,facts in ,science and ,art4 ,by ,,david ,a4 ,,wells1 ,a4,m4 #ab mo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,this work1 commenced in the year #ahej1 and issued in the month of ,january1 annually1 embraces an enumeration and description of every ,important ,invention1 ,discovery1 or ,scientific ,theory1 reported during the year4 ,each volume is distinct in itself1 and contains ,,entirely ,,new ,,matter1 with a fine portrait of some person distinguished for his attainments in science and art4 ,,lake ,,superior2 ,its ,physical ,character1 ,vegetation1 and ,animals4 ,by ,l4 ,,agassiz1 and others4 ,one volume1 octavo1 elegantly ,illustrated4 ,cloth4 #c4ej4 ,,the ,,plurality ,,of ,,worlds4 ,new ,edition4 ,with a ,,supplementary ,,dialogue1 in which the author's reviewers are reviewed4 #abmo4 cloth1 #a4jj ,this masterly production1 which has excited so much ,interest in this country and in ,europe1 will now have increased attraction in the ,,supplement1 in which the author's reviewers are triumphantly reviewed4 ,,comparative ,,anatomy ,,of ,,the ,,animal ,,kingdom4 ,by ,prof4 ,c4 ,,th4 ,,von ,,siebold and ,h4 ,,stannius4 ,translated1 with ,notes1 ,additions1 c41 ,by ,,waldo ,j4 ,,burnett1 ,m4,d4 ,one vol41 octavo1 cloth1 #c4jj4 ,this is unquestionably the best and most complete work of its class ever yet published4 ,,works ,,by ,,hugh ,,miller4 ,,the ,,footprints ,,of ,,the ,,creator2 or1 ,the ,asterolepis of ,stromness4 ,with ,illustrations4 ,memoir of the ,author by ,,louis ,,agassiz4 #abmo4 cloth1 #a4jj4 ,,my ,,schools and ,,schoolmasters2 or1 ,the ,story of my ,education4 ,with an elegant ,likeness4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,this is a personal narrative of a deeply interesting and instructive character1 concerning one of the most remarkable men of the age4 ,,the ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone2 ,or1 ,new ,with ,walks in an ,old ,field4 ,illustrated with ,plates and ,geological ,sections4 #ab mo1 cloth1 #a4jj4 ,,first ,,impressions ,,of ,,england ,,and ,,its ,,people4 ,with a fine ,engraving of the ,author4 #abmo1 cl41 #a4jj4 ,a thrillingly interesting and very instructive book of travels2 presenting the most perfectly life-like views of ,england and its people1 to be found in the language4 ,,dr4 ,,buckland said1 ,he would give his left hand to possess such powers of description as this man4 ,,the ,,natural ,,history ,,of ,,the ,,human ,,species4 ,its ,typical ,forms and ,primeval ,distribution4 ,by ,,charles ,,hamilton ,,smith1 ,with an ,introduction1 containing an ,abstract of the ,views of ,blumenbach1 ,prichard1 ,bachman1 ,agassiz1 and other writers of repute4 ,by ,,samuel ,,kneeland1 ,jr41 ,m4,d4 ,with elegant ,illustrations4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,it is a book of learning1 and full of interest1 and may be regarded as among the comparatively few real contributions to science--,christian ,witness4 ,,thesaurus ,,of ,,english ,,words ,,and ,,phrases4 ,so classified and arranged as to facilitate the expression of ideas1 and assist in literary composition4 ,by ,,peter ,,mark ,,roget4 ,revised and ,edited1 with a ,list of ,foreign ,words ,defined in ,english1 and other additions1 by ,,barnas ,,sears1 ,d4,d41 ,president of ,brown ,university4 ,a ,new ,american1 from the late stereotype ,london edition1 with ,,additions ,,and ,,improvements4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4ej4 ,this edition contains ,important additions of words and phrases ,,not ,,in ,,the ,,english ,,edition1 making it in all respects ,,more ,,full ,,and ,,perfect ,,than ,,the ,,author',s ,,edition4 ,the work has already become one of standard authority1 both in this country and in ,great ,britain4 ,,the ,,elements ,,of ,,geology4 ,adapted to ,schools and ,colleges4 ,with numerous ,illustrations4 ,by ,j4,r4 ,,loomis4 ,lewisburg ,university1 ,pa4 #abmo1 cloth1 #ge cts4 ,it is surpassed by no work before the ,american public4 ,we hope that every teacher among our readers will examine the work and put the justness of our remarks to the test of his judgment and experience4--,m4,b4 ,,anderson1 ,,ll4 ,d4--,pres4 of ,rochester ,university1 ,n4,y4 ,this is just such a work as is needed for all our schools4 ,it should take its place as a text-book in all the schools of the land4--,n4,y4 ,observer4 ,,the ,,earth ,,and ,,man4 ,by ,prof4 ,,arnold ,,guyot4 ,with ,illustrations4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,,influence ,,of ,,the ,,history ,,ot ,,science ,,upon ,,intellectual ,,education4 ,by ,,william ,,whewell1 ,d4,d4 #afmo1 cloth1 #be cents4 ,,principles ,,of ,,zo,,logy4 ,with illustrations4 ,by ,,louis ,,agassiz and ,,augustus ,a4 ,,gould4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4 ,this work places us in possession of information half a century in advance of all our elementary works on this subject4--,,prof4 ,,james ,,hall4 ,a work emanating from so high a source hardly requires commendation to give it currency4 ,simple and elementary in its style1 full in its illustrations1 comprehensive in its range4--,silliman's ,journal4 ,the best book of the kind in our language4--,christian ,examiner4 ,zoology is an interesting science1 and is here treated with a masterly hand4--,scientific ,american4 ,,the ,,landing ,,at ,,cape ,,anne2 ,or1 ,the ,charter of the ,first ,permanent ,colony on the ,territory of the ,massachusetts ,company4 ,now discovered and first published from the original manuscript4 ,by ,,john ,,wingate ,,thornton4 ,octavo1 ,cloth1 #a4ej4 ,,geological ,,map ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,,and ,,british ,,provinces4 ,with an ,explanatory ,text1 ,geological ,sections1 and ,plates of the ,fossils which characterize the ,formations4 ,by ,,jules ,,marcou4 ,two volumes4 ,octavo1 cloth1 #c4jj4 -- ,the ,map is elegantly colored1 and done up with linen cloth back1 and folded in octavo form1 with thick cloth covers4 ,,knowledge ,,is ,,power4 ,a view of the ,productive ,forces of ,modern ,society1 and the ,results of ,labor1 ,capital and ,skill4 ,by ,,charles ,,knight4 ,with numerous ,illustrations4 ,american edition4 ,revised1 with ,additions1 by ,,david ,a4 ,,wells1 editor of the ,annual of ,scientific ,discovery4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,,cyclop,,dia ,,of ,,anecdotes ,,of ,,literature ,,and ,,the ,,fine ,,arts4 ,a choice selection of ,anecdotes of the various forms of ,literature1 of the ,arts1 of ,architecture1 ,engravings1 ,music1 ,poetry1 ,painting and ,sculpture1 and of the most celebrated ,literary ,characters and ,artists of different ,countries and ,ages1 c4 ,by ,,kazlitt ,,arvine1 ,a4,m4 ,with numerous ,illustrations4 #gbe pages1 octavo1 cloth1 #c4jj4 ,this is unquestionably the choicest collection of ,,anecdotes ever published4 ,it contains ,,three ,,thousand ,,and ,,forty ,,anecdotes1 and more than ,,one ,,hundred ,,and ,,fifty ,,illustrations4 ,it is admirably adapted to literary and scientific men1 to artists1 mechanics1 and others1 as a ,,dictionary ,,for ,,reference1 in relation to facts on the numberless subjects and characters introduced4 ,,kitto',s ,,popular ,,cyclop,,dia ,,of ,,biblical ,,literature4 ,condensed from the larger work1 by the author1 ,,john ,,kitto1 ,d4,d4 ,assisted by ,,james ,,taylor1 ,d4,d4 ,with over #ejj ,illustrations4 ,octavo1 #hab pp41 cloth1 #c4jj4 ,this work answers the purpose of a commentary1 while at the same time it furnishes a complete ,,dictionary ,,of ,,the ,,bible1 embodying the products of the best and most recent researches in biblical literature1 in which the scholars of ,europe and ,america have been engaged4 ,it is not only intended for ministers and theological students1 but is also particularly adapted to parents1 ,sabbath-school teachers1 and the great body of the religious public4 ,,history ,,of ,,palestine4 ,with the ,geography and ,natural ,history of the ,country1 the ,customs and ,institutions of the ,hebrews1 etc4 ,by ,,john ,,kitto1 ,d4,d4 ,with upwards of #bjj ,illustrations4 #abmo1 cloth4 #a4be4 ,beyond all dispute this is the best historical compendium of the ,holy ,land1 from the days of ,abraham1 to those of the late ,pasha of ,egypt1 ,mehemet ,ali4--,edinburgh ,review4 -- ,in the numerous notices and reviews1 the work has been strongly recommended1 as not only admirably adapted to the ,,family1 but also as a text-book for ,,sabbath and ,,week ,,day ,,schools4 ,,chambers',s ,,cyclop,,dia ,,of ,,english ,,literature4 ,two large imperial octavo volumes of #adjj pages2 with upwards of #cjj elegant ,illustrations4 ,by ,,robert ,,chambers4 ,embossed cloth1 #e4jj4 ,this work embraces about ,,one ,,thousand ,,authors1 chronologically arranged and classed as ,poets1 ,historians1 ,dramatists1 ,philosophers1 ,metaphysicians1 ,divines1 etc41 with choice selections from their writings1 connected by a ,biographical1 ,historical1 and ,critical ,narrative2 thus presenting a complete view of ,english literature from the earliest to the present time4 ,let the reader open where he will1 he cannot fail to find matter for profit and delight4 ,the selections are gems--infinite riches in a little room2 in the language of another1 ,a ,,whole ,,english ,,library ,,fused ,,down ,,into ,,one ,,cheap ,,book6 ,,chambers',s ,,miscellany ,,of ,,useful ,,and ,,entertaining ,,knowledge4 ,by ,,william ,,chambers4 ,with ,illustrations4 ,ten vols41 #afmo1 cloth1 #g4jj4 ,,chambers',s ,,home ,,book ,,and ,,pocket ,,miscellany4 ,a choice ,selection of ,interesting and ,instructive ,reading for the ,old and the ,young4 ,six vols4 #afmo1 cloth1 #c4jj4 ,this work is fully equal1 if not superior1 to either of the ,chamber's other works in interest1 containing a vast fund of valuable information1 furnishing ample variety for every class of readers4 ,,chambers',s ,,repository ,,of ,,instructive ,,and ,,amusing ,,papers4 ,with ,illustrations4 #afmo1 cloth1 bound4 #d vols4 in two1 #a4ge2 and #d vols4 in one1 #a4ej4 ,,the ,,cruise ,,of ,,the ,,north ,,star2 ,a ,narrative of the ,excursion of ,mr4 ,vanderbilt's ,party1 in her ,voyage to ,england1 ,russia1 ,denmark1 ,france1 ,spain1 ,italy1 ,malta1 ,turkey1 ,madeira1 etc4 ,by ,rev4 ,,john ,,overton ,,choules1 ,d4,d4 ,with elegant ,illustrations1 etc4 #abmo1 cloth1 gilt back and sides1 #a4ej4 ,,visits ,,to ,,european ,,celebrities4 ,by the ,rev4 ,,william ,b4 ,,sprague1 ,d4,d4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4jj4 ,a series of graphic and life-like ,personal ,sketches of many of the most distinguished men and women of ,europe1 with whom the author became acquainted in the course of several ,european tours1 where he saw them in their own homes and under the most advantageous circumstances4 ,it was my uniform custom1 after every such interview1 to take copious memoranda of the converation1 including an account of the individual's appearance and manners2 in short1 defining as well as ,i could1 the whole impression which his physical1 intellectual1 and moral man had made upon me4 ,from the memoranda thus made1 the material for the present instructive and exceedingly interesting volume is derived4 ,besides these pen and ink sketches1 the work contains the novel attraction of a ,,fac ,,simile ,,of ,,the ,,signature of each of the persons introduced4 ,,pilgrimage ,,to ,,egypt2 ,,explorations ,,of ,,the ,,nile4 ,with ,observations1 illustrative of the ,manners1 ,customs1 etc4 ,by ,hon4 ,j4,v4,c4 ,,smith1 ,m4,d4 ,with numerous elegant ,engravings1 #abmo2 cloth1 #a4be4 ,,the ,,story ,,of ,,the ,,campaign4 ,a complete ,narrative of the ,war in ,southern ,russia4 ,written in a ,tent in the ,crimea4 ,by ,major ,e4 ,,bruce ,,hamley1 author of ,lady ,lee's ,widowhood4 ,with a new and complete ,map of the ,seat of ,war4 #abmo4 paper covers1 #cg-a_/b cts4 ,,poetical ,,works4 ,,milton',s ,,poetical ,,works4 ,with ,life and ,elegant ,illustrations4 #afmo1 cloth1 #a4jj2 fine cloth1 gilt1 #a4be4 ,,poetical ,,works ,,of ,,sir ,,walter ,,scott4 ,with ,life1 and ,illustrations on ,steel4 #afmo1 cl41 #a2 fine cl41 gilt1 #a4be4 ,,complete ,,poetical ,,works ,,of ,,william ,,cowper4 ,with a ,life1 and ,critical ,notices of his ,writings4 ,with new and elegant ,illustrations on ,steel4 #afmo4 cloth1 #a4jj2 fine cloth1 gilt1 #a4be4 -- ,the above ,poetical ,works1 by standard authors1 are all of uniform size and style1 printed on fine paper1 from clear1 distinct type1 with new and elegant illustrations1 richly bound in full gilt1 and plain2 thus rendering them1 in connection with the exceedingly ,,low ,,price at which they are offered1 the cheapest and most desirable of any of the numerous editions of these author's works now in the market4 ,,life ,,and ,,correspondence ,,of ,,john ,,foster4 ,edited by ,j4,e4 ,,ryland1 with ,notices of ,mr4 ,foster as a ,preacher and a ,companion4 ,by ,,john ,,sheppard4 ,two volumes in one1 #gjj pages4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,in simplicity of language1 in majesty of conception1 in the eloquence of that conciseness which conveys in a short sentence more meaning than the mind dares at once admit1--his writings are unmatched4--,north ,british ,review4 ,,guido ,,and ,,julius4 ,tho ,doctrine of ,sin and the ,propitiator2 or1 the ,true ,consecration of the ,doubter4 ,exhibited in the ,correspondence of two ,friends4 ,by ,,frederick ,,augustus ,o4 ,,tholuch1 ,d4,d4 ,translated by ,,jonathan ,,edwards ,,ryland4 ,with an ,introduction by ,,john ,,pye ,,smith1 ,d4,d4 #afmo1 cloth1 #fj cents4 ,,new ,,and ,,complete ,,condensed ,,concordance ,to the ,holy ,scriptures4 ,by ,,alexander ,,cruden4 ,revised and re-edited by ,rev4 ,,david ,,king1 ,l4,l4,d4 ,octavo1 cloth backs1 #a4be1 sheep1 #a4ej4 ,,valuable ,,works ,,published ,,by ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 #ei ,,washington ,,street1 ,,boston4 ,,the ,,christian',s ,,daily ,,treasury4 ,a ,religious ,exercise for ,every ,day in the ,year4 ,by ,e4 ,,temple4 ,a new and improved edition4 #abmo4 cloth1 #a4jj4 ,a work for every ,christian4 ,it is indeed a ,treasury of good things4 ,,the ,,school ,,of ,,christ2 ,or1 ,christianity ,viewed in its ,leading ,aspects4 ,by the ,rev4 ,a4,l4,r4 ,,foote1 author of ,incidents in the ,life of our ,saviour1 etc4 #afmo1 cloth1 #ej cents4 ,,the ,,christian ,,life4 ,social and ,individual4 ,by ,,peter ,,bayne1 ,m4,a4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,the demand for this extraordinary work1 commencing before its publication1 is still eager and constant4 ,there is but one voice respecting it2 men of all denominations agree in pronouncing it one of the most admirable works of the age4 ,,god ,,revealed ,,in ,,the ,,process ,,of ,,creation4 ,and by the ,manifestation of ,jesus ,christ4 ,including an ,examination of the ,development ,theory contained in the ,vestiges of the ,natural ,history of ,creation1 ,by ,,james ,b4 ,,walker1 author of ,philosophy of the ,plan of ,salvation4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4jj4 ,,philosophy ,,of ,,the ,,plan ,,of ,,salvation4 ,by an ,,american ,,citizen4 ,an ,introductory ,essay1 by ,,calvin ,e4 ,,stowe1 ,d4,d4 ,new improved edition1 with a ,,supplementary ,,chapter4 #abmo1 cloth1 #ge cts4 ,this book is generally admitted to be one of the best in the ,english language4 ,the work has been translated into several different languages in ,europe4 ,a capital book to circulate among young men4 ,a ,,wreath ,,around ,,the ,,cross2 ,or1 ,scripture ,truths ,illustrated4 ,by ,a4 ,,morton ,,brown1 ,d4,d4 ,recommendatory ,preface1 by ,,john ,,angell ,,james4 ,beautiful ,frontispiece4 #afmo1 cloth1 #fj cents4 ,,the ,,better ,,land2 ,or1 ,the ,believer's ,journey and ,future ,home4 ,by ,,rev4 ,a4,c4 ,,thompson4 #abmo1 cloth1 #he cents4 ,a most charming and instructive book for all now journeying to the ,better ,land1 and especially for those who have friends already entered upon its never-ending joys4 ,,the ,,mission ,,of ,,the ,,comforter4 ,with copious ,notes4 ,by ,,julius ,,charles ,,hare4 ,with the ,notes translated for the ,american edition4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,,dr4 ,,wayland',s ,,university ,,sermon ,delivered in the ,chapel of ,brown ,university4 #abmo1 cloth1 ,s#a4jj4 ,,the ,,religions ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,and their ,relations to ,christianity4 ,by ,,frederick ,,denison ,,maurice1 ,a4,m41 ,professor of ,divinity1 ,king's ,college1 ,london4 #afmo1 cloth1 #fj cts4 ,,sacred ,,rhetoric2 ,or1 ,composition and ,delivery of ,sermons4 ,by ,,henry4 ,j4 ,,ripley1 ,professor in ,newton ,theological ,institution1 ,including ,professor ,ware's ,hints on ,extemporaneous ,preaching4 #abmo1 #ge cts4 ,,the ,,preacher ,,and ,,the ,,king2 ,or1 ,bourdalone in the ,court of ,louis ,,xiv4 ,an ,account of that distinguished ,era1 ,translated from the ,french of ,l4,f4 ,,bungener4 ,with an ,introduction by the ,rev4 ,,george ,,potts1 ,d4,d4 ,new edition1 with a fine ,likeness1 and a ,sketch of the ,author's ,life4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,it combines substantial history with the highest charm of romance4 ,its attractions are so various that it can hardly fail to find readers of almost every description4--,puritan ,recorder4 ,,the ,,priest ,,and ,,the ,,huguenot2 ,or1 ,persecution in the ,age of ,louis ,,xv4 ,translated from the ,french of ,l4,f4 ,,bungener4 #b vols41 #abmo1 cloth1 #b4be4 -- ,this is truly a masterly production1 full of interest1 and may be set down as one of the greatest ,protestant works of the age4 ,,footsteps ,,of ,,our ,,forefathers4 ,what they ,suffered and what they ,sought4 ,describing ,localities and portraying ,personages and ,events conspicuous in the ,struggles for ,religious ,liberty4 ,by ,,james ,g4 ,,miall4 ,thirty-six fine ,illustrations4 #abmo1 #a4jj4 ,an exceedingly entertaining work4 ,the reader soon becomes so deeply entertained that he finds it difficult to lay aside the book till finished1--,ch4 ,parlor ,mag4 ,a work absorbingly interesting1 and very instructive4--,western ,lit4 ,magazine4 ,,memorials ,,of ,,early ,,christianity4 ,presenting1 in a graphic1 compact1 and popular form1 ,memorable ,events of ,early ,ecclesiastical ,history1 etc4 ,by ,,james ,g4 ,,miall4 ,with numerous elegant ,illustrations4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4jj4 -- ,this1 like the ,footsteps of our ,forefathers1 will be found a work of uncommon interest4 ,,works ,,by ,,john ,,harris1 ,d4,d4 ,,the ,,pre-,,adamite ,,earth4 ,contributions to ,theological ,science4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4jj4 ,,man ,,primeval2 or1 the ,constitution and ,primitive ,condition of the ,human ,being4 ,with a fine ,portrait of the ,author4 #abmo4 cloth1 #a4be ,,patriarchy2 or1 ,,the ,,family4 ,its ,constitution and ,probation2 being the third volume of ,contributions to ,theological ,science4 #a4be4 ,,the ,,great ,,teacher2 or1 ,characteristics of our ,lord's ,ministry4 ,with an ,introductory ,essay4 ,by ,h4 ,,humphrey1 ,d4,d4 #abmo1 cloth1 #he cts4 ,,the ,,great ,,commission2 or1 the ,christian ,church constituted and charged to convey the ,gospel to the ,world4 ,introductory ,essay by ,w4,r4 ,,williams1 ,d4,d4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4jj4 ,,zebulon2 ,or1 the ,moral ,claims of ,seamen4 #ahmo1 cloth1 #be cts4 ,,philip ,,doddridge4 ,his ,life and ,labors4 ,by ,,john ,,stoughton1 ,d4,d41 with beautiful ,illuminated ,title-page and ,frontispiece1 #afmo1 cloth1 #fj cents4 ,,the ,,evidences ,,of ,,christianity4 ,as exhibited in the writings of its apologists1 down to ,augustine4 ,by ,w4,j4 ,,bolton1 of ,gonville and ,caius ,college1 ,cambridge4 #abmo4 cloth1 #hj cents4 ,,works ,,by ,,dr4 ,,tweedie4 ,,glad ,,tidings2 or1 ,the ,gospel of ,peace4 ,a series of ,daily ,meditations for ,christian ,disciples4 ,by ,rev4 ,w4,k4 ,,tweedie1 ,d4,d4 ,with elegant ,illustrated ,title-page4 #afmo1 cloth1 #fc cts4 ,,the ,,morn ,,of ,,life2 or1 ,examples of ,female ,excellence4 ,a ,book for ,young ,ladies4 #afmo1 cloth4 ,in press4 ,a ,,lamp ,,to ,,the ,,path2 or1 the ,bible in the ,heart1 the ,home1 and the ,market ,place4 ,with an elegant ,illustrated ,title-page4 #afmo1 cloth4 #fc cts4 ,,seed ,,time ,,and ,,harvest2 or1 ,sow ,well and ,reap ,well4 ,a ,book for the ,young4 ,with an elegant ,illustrated ,title-page4 #afmo1 cloth1 #fc cts4 -- ,the above works1 by ,dr4 ,tweedie1 are of uniform size and style4 ,they are most charming1 pious1 and instructive works1 beautifully gotten up1 and well adapted for gift-books4 ,,works ,,by ,,john ,,angell ,,james4 ,,the ,,church ,,member',s ,,guide2 ,edited by ,j4,o4 ,,choules1 ,d4,d4 ,new edition4 ,with an ,introductory ,essay by ,rev4 ,,hubbard ,,winslow4 ,cloth1 #cc;c4 ,,christian ,,progress4 ,a ,sequel to the ,anxious ,inquirer4 #ahmo1 cloth1 #ca;c4 -- ,one of the best and most useful works of this popular author4 ,,the ,,church ,,in ,,earnest4 ,seventh thousand4 #ahmo1 cloth1 #dj cents ,,mothers ,,of ,,the ,,wise ,,and ,,good4 ,by ,,jabez ,,burns1 ,d4,d4 #afmo1 cloth1 #ge cents4 ,we wish it were in every family1 and read by every mother in the land4--,lutheran ,observer4 ,,my ,,mother2 ,or1 ,recollections of ,maternal ,influence4 ,by a ,new ,england ,clergyman1 ,with a beautiful ,frontispiece4 #abmo1 cloth1 #ge cents4 ,this is one of the most charming books that have issued from the press for a long period4 ,it is1 says a distinguished author1 one of those rare pictures painted from life with the exquisite skill of one of the ',old ,masters1' which no seldom present themselves to the amateur4 ,,the ,,excellent ,,woman4 ,with an ,introduction by ,rev4 ,w4,b4 ,,sprague1 ,d4,d4 ,containing twenty-four splendid ,illustrations4 #abmo4 cloth1 #a4jj2 cloth1 gilt1 #a4ge2 extra ,turkey1 #b4ej4 -- ,this elegant volume is an appropriate and valuable gift book for the husband to present the wife1 or the child the mother4 ,,memories ,,of ,a ,,grandmother4 ,by a ,lady of ,massachusetts4 l#fmo1 cloth1 #ej cents4 ,,the ,,marriage ,,ring2 ,or1 ,how to make ,home ,happy4 ,by ,,john ,,angell ,,james4 ,beautiful illustrated edition #afmo1 cloth1 gilt1 #ge cents4 ,a beautiful volume1 and a very suitable present to a newly-married couple4--,n4,v4 ,christian ,intelligencer ,,works ,,by ,,william ,r4 ,,williams1 ,d4,d4 ,,religious ,,progress2 ,discourses on the ,development of the ,christian ,character4 #abmo1 cloth1 #he cts4 ,this work is from the pen of one of the brightest lights of the ,american pulpit4 ,we scarcely know of any living writer who has a finer command of powerful thought and glowing1 impressive language than he4--,,dr4 ,,sprague1 ,alb4 ,atl4 ,,lectures ,,on ,,the ,,lord',s ,,prayer ,third edition4 #abmo1 cloth1 #he cts4 ,their breadth of view1 strength of logic1 and stirring eloquence place them among the very best homilitical efforts of the age4 ,every page is full of suggestions as well as eloquence4--,ch4 ,parlor ,mag4 ,,miscellanies4 ,new improved edition4 ,price reduced4 #abmo1 #a4be4 ,,valuable ,,works4 ,,the ,,hallig2 ,,or1 ,,the ,,sheepfold ,,in ,,the ,,waters4 ,a ,tale of ,humble ,life on the ,coast of ,schleswig4 ,translated from the ,german of ,biernatzski1 by ,mrs4 ,,george ,p4 ,,marsh4 ,with a ,biographical ,sketch of the ,author4 #abmo4 cloth4 #a4jj4 ,the author of this work was the grandson of an exiled ,polish nobleman4 ,his own portrait is understood to be drawn in one of the characters of the ,tale1 and indeed the whole work has a substantial foundation in fact4 ,in ,germany it has passed through several editions1 and is there regarded as the chef-d'oeuvre of the author4 ,as a revelation of an entire new phase of human society1 it will strongly remind the reader of ,miss ,bremer's tales4 ,in originality and brilliancy of imagination1 it is not inferior those2--its aim is far higher4 ,the elegance of ,mrs4 ,marsh's translation will at once arrest the attention of every competent judge4 ,,hon4 ,,robert ,c4 ,,winthrop4 ,i have read it with deep interest4 ,mrs4 ,marsh has given us an admirable version of a most striking and powerful work4 ,,from ,,prof4 ,f4,d4 ,,huntington1 ,d4,d41 ,,in ,,the ,,religious ,,magazine4 ,wherever the work goes it fascinates the cultivated and the illiterate1 the young and the old1 the devout and the careless4 ,our own copy is in brisk circulation4 ,the vivid and eloquent description of the strange scenery1 the thrilling accounts of the mysterious action of the waters and vapors of the ,schleswig coast1 c41 all form a story of uncommon attractions and unmingled excellence4 ,,dr4 ,,sprague ,,in ,,albany ,,spectator4 ,a rare and beautiful work4 ,it is an interesting contribution to the physical geography of a part of ,europe lying quite beyond the reach of ordinary observation1 and as a genial and faithful sketch of human life under conditions which are hardly paralleled elsewhere4 ,the tale is a novel one1 containing thrilling scenes1 as well as religious teachings4--,,presbyterian4 ,a beautiful and exquisite natural tale4 ,in novelty of life and customs1 as well as in nicely drawn shades of local and personal character the ,hallig1 is equalled by very few works of fiction4--,,boston ,,atlas4 ,the story1 which is deeply thrilling1 is exclusively religious4--,,ch4 ,,secretary4 ,here we have another such book as makes the reading of it a luxury1 even in hot summer weather4 ,it takes us to an island home1 in the chill regions of the ,north ,sea1 and introduces us to pastoral scenes as lively and as edifying as those of ,oberlin1 in the ,ban de la ,roche4--,,southern ,,bap4 ,,the ,,camel3 ,his ,organization1 ,habits and ,uses1 considered with reference to his ,introduction into the ,united ,states4 ,,by ,,george ,p4 ,,marsh1 late ,u4 ,s4 ,minister at ,constantinople4 #afmo1 cloth4 #ge cents4 ,this book treats of a subject of great interest1 especially at the present time4 ,it furnishes the only complete and reliable account of the ,camel in the language4 ,it is the result of extensive research and personal observation1 and it has been prepared with special reference to the experiment now being made by our ,government1 of domesticating the ,camel in this country4 ,a repository of interesting information respecting the ,camel4 ,the author collected the principal materials for his work during his residence and travels for some years in the ,east4 ,he describes the species1 size1 color1 temper1 longevity1 useful products1 diet1 powers1 training and speed of the ,camel1 and treats of his introduction into the ,united ,states4--,,phil4 ,,christian ,,observer4 ,this is a most interesting book1 on several accounts4 ,the subject is full of romance and information2 the treatment is able and thorough4--,,texas ,,ch4 ,,advocate4 ,our ,government have taken measures for introducing the ,camel into this country1 and an appropriation of #cj1jjj has been made by ,congress4 ,it becomes a matter of practical importance1 therefore1 to obtain the fullest and most reliable information possible respecting the animal and his adaptation to this country4 ,his advent among us will stimulate general curiosity1 and raise a thousand questions respecting his character and habits of life1 his powers of endurance1 his food1 his speed1 his length of life1 his fecundity1 the methods of managing and using him1 the cost of keeping him1 the value of his carcass after death1 c4 ,this work furnishes1 in a small compass1 all the desired information4--,,boston ,,atlas4 ,a complete sketch of the habits and nature of the ,camel is given1 which has great interest4 ,the value of the camel as a beast of burden is abundantly confirmed4--,n4,y4 ,,evangelist4 ,,important ,,works4 ,,analytical ,,concordance ,,of ,,the ,,holy ,,scriptures2 or1 ,the ,bible presented under ,distinct and ,classified ,heads or ,topics4 ,by ,,john ,,eadie1 ,d4,d41 ,,ll4 ,d41 ,author of ,biblical ,cyclopdia1 ,dictionary of the ,bible1 c41 c4 ,one volume1 royal octavo1 #hcf pp4 ,cloth4 #c4jj2 sheep1 #c4ej4 ,just published4 ,the publishers would call the special attention of clergymen and others to some of the peculiar features of this great work4 #a4 ,it is a concordance of subjects1 not of words4 ,in this it differs from the common concordance1 which1 of course1 it does not supersede4 ,both are necessary to the ,biblical student4 #b4 ,it embraces all the topics1 both secular and religious1 which are naturally suggested by the entire contents of the ,bible4 ,in this it differs from ,scripture ,manuals and ,topical ,text-books1 which are confined to religious or doctrinal topics4 #c4 ,it contains the whole of the ,bible without abridgment1 differing in no respect from the ,bible in common use1 except in the classification of its contents4 #d4 ,it contains a synopsis1 separate from the concordance1 presenting within the compass of a few pages a bird's-eye view of the whole contents4 #e4 ,it contains a table of contents1 embracing nearly two thousand heads1 arranged in alphabetical order4 #f4 ,it is much superior to the only other work in the language prepared on the same general plan1 and is offered to the public at much less cost4 ,the purchaser gets not only a ,concordance1 but also a ,bible1 in this volume4 ,the superior convenience arising out of this fact1--saving1 as it does1 the necessity of having two books at hand and of making two references1 instead of one1--will be readily apparent4 ,the general subjects 7under each of which there are a vast number of sub-divisions7 are arranged as follows1 viz43 ,agriculture1 ,animals1 ,architecture1 ,army1 ,arms1 ,body1 ,canaan1 ,covenant1 ,diet and ,dress1 ,disease and ,death1 ,earth1 ,family1 ,genealogy1 ,god1 ,heaven1 ,idolatry1 ,idols1 ,jesus ,christ1 ,jews1 ,laws1 ,magistrates1 ,man1 ,marriage1 ,metals and ,minerals1 ,ministers of ,religion1 ,miracles1 ,occupations1 ,ordinances1 ,parables and ,emblems1 ,persecution1 ,praise and ,prayer1 ,prophecy1 ,providence1 ,redemption1 ,sabbaths and ,holy ,days1 ,sacrifice1 ,scriptures1 ,speech1 ,spirits1 ,tabernacle and ,temple1 ,vineyard and ,orchard1 ,visions and ,dreams1 ,war1 ,water4 ,that such a work as this is of exceeding great convenience is matter of obvious remark4 ,but it is much more than that2 it is also an instructive work4 ,it is adapted not only to assist the student in prosecuting the investigation of preconceived ideas1 but also to impart ideas which the most careful reading of the ,bible in its ordinary arrangement might not suggest4 ,let him take up any one of the subjects--,agriculture1 for example--and see if such be not the case4 ,this feature places the work in a higher grade than that of the common ,concordance4 ,it shows it to be1 so to speak1 a work of more mind4 ,no ,biblical student would willingly dispense with this ,concordance when once possessed4 ,it is adapted to the necessities of all classes1--clergymen and theological students2 ,sabbath-school superintendents and teachers2 authors engaged in the composition of religious and even secular works2 and1 in fine1 common readers of the ,bible1 intent only on their own improvement4 ,a ,,commentary ,,on ,,the ,,original ,,text ,,of ,,the ,,acts ,,of ,,the ,,apostles4 ,by ,,horatio ,b4 ,,hackett1 ,d4,d41 ,professor of ,biblical ,literature and ,interpretation1 in the ,newton ,theological ,institution4 -- ,a new1 revised1 and enlarged edition4 ,in ,press4 -- ,this most important and very popular work1 has been thoroughly revised 7some parts being entirely rewritten71 and considerably enlarged by the introduction of important new matter1 the result of the ,author's continued1 laborious investigations since the publication of the first edition1 aided by the more recent published criticisms on this portion of the ,divine ,word1 by other distinguished ,biblical ,scholars1 in this country and in ,europe4 ,,amos ,,lawrence4 ,,diary ,,and ,,correspondence ,,of ,,the ,,late ,,amos ,,lawrence2 with a brief account of some ,incidents in his ,life4 ,edited by his son1 ,,william ,r4 ,,lawrence1 ,m4,d4 ,with fine steel ,portraits of ,,amos and ,,abbott ,,lawrence1 an ,engraving of their ,birth-place1 a ,fac-simile page of ,mr4 ,lawrence's ,hand-writing1 and a copious ,index4 ,octavo edition1 cloth1 #a4ej4 ,royal duodecimo edition1 #a4jj4 ,this work was first published in an elegant octavo volume1 and sold at the unusually low price of #a4ej4 ,at the solicitation of numerous benevolent individuals who were desirous of circulating the work--so remarkably adapted to do good1 especially to young men--gratuitously1 and of giving those of moderate means1 of every class1 an opportunity of possessing it1 the royal duodecimo1 or cheap edition1 was issued1 varying from the other edition1 only in a reduction in the size 7allowing less margin71 and the thickness of the paper4 ,within six months after the first publication of this work1 twenty-two thousand copies had been sold4 ,this extraordinary sale is to be accounted for by the character of the man and the merits of the book4 ,it is the memoir of a ,boston merchant1 who became distinguished for his great wealth1 but more distinguished for the manner in which he used it4 ,it is the memoir of a man1 who1 commencing business with only #bj1 gave away in public and private charities1 during his lifetime more1 probably1 than any other person in ,america4 ,it is substantially an autobiography1 containing a full account of ,mr4 ,lawrence's career as a merchant1 of his various multiplied charities1 and of his domestic life4 ,we have by us another work1 the ',life of ,amos ,lawrence4' ,we heard it once said in the pulpit1 ',there is no work of art like a noble life1' and for that reason he who has achieved one1 takes rank with the great artists and becomes the world's property4 ,,we ,,are ,,proud ,,of ,,this ,,book4 ,,we ,,are ,,willing ,,to ,,let ,,it ,,go ,,forth ,,to ,,other ,,lands ,,as ,a ,,specimen ,,of ,,what ,,america ,,can ,,produce4 ,in the old world1 reviewers have called ,barnum ,,the characteristic ,american man4 ,we are willing enough to admit that he is a characteristic ,american man2 he is ,,one fruit of our soil1 but ,amos ,lawrence is another4 ,let our country have credit for him also4 ,,the ,,good ,,effect ,,which ,,this ,,life ,,may ,,have ,,in ,,determining ,,the ,,course ,,of ,,young ,,men ,,to ,,honor ,,and ,,virtue ,,is ,,incalculable4--,,mrs4 ,,stowe1 ,,in ,n4,y4 ,,independent4 ,we are glad to know that our large business houses are purchasing copies of this work for each of their numerous clerks4 ,its influence on young men cannot be otherwise than highly salutary4 ,as a business man1 ,mr4 ,lawrence was a pattern for the young clerk4--,,boston ,,traveller4 ,we are thankful for the volume before us4 ,it carries us back to the farm-house of ,mr4 ,lawrence's birth1 and the village store of his first apprenticeship4 ,it exhibits a charity noble and active1 while the young merchant was still poor4 ,and above all1 it reveals to us a beautiful cluster of sister graces1 a keen sense of honor1 integrity which never knew the shadow of suspicion1 candor in the estimate of character1 filial piety1 rigid fidelity in every domestic relation1 and all these connected with and flowing from steadfast religious principle1 profound sentiments of devotion1 and a vivid realization of spiritual truth4--,,north ,,american ,,review4 ,we are glad that ,american ,biography has been enriched by such a contribution to its treasures4 ,in all that composes the career of 'the good man1' and the practical ,christian1 we have read few memoirs more full of instruction1 or richer in lessons of wisdom and virtue4 ,we cordially unite in the opinion that the publication of this memoir was a duty owed to ,society4--,,national ,,intelligence4 ,with the intention of placing it within the reach of a large number1 the mere cost price is charged1 and a more beautifully printed volume1 or one calculated to do more good1 has not been issued from the press of late years4--,,evening ,,gazette4 ,this book1 besides being of a different class from most biographies1 has another peculiar charm4 ,it shows the inside life of the man4 ,you have1 as it were1 a peep behind the curtain1 and see ,mr4 ,lawrence as he went in and out among business men1 as he appeared on change1 as he received his friends1 as he poured out1 'with liberal hand and generous heart1' his wealth for the benefit of others1 as he received the greetings and salutations of children1 and as he appeared in the bosom of his family at his own hearth stone4--,,brunswick ,,telegraph4 ,it is printed on new type1 the best paper1 and is illustrated by four beautiful plates4 ,how it can be sold for the price named is a marvel4--,,norfolk ,,co4 ,,journal4 ,it was first privately printed1 and a limited number of copies were distributed among the relatives and near friends of the deceased4 ,this volume was read with the deepest interest by those who were so favored as to obtain a copy1 and it passed from friend to friend as rapidly as it could be read4 ,dr4 ,lawrence has yielded to the general wish1 and made public the volume4 ,it will now be widely circulated1 will certainly prove a standard work1 and be read over and over again4--,,boston ,,daily ,,advertiser4 ,,modern ,,atheism4 ,,modern ,,atheism1 under its ,forms of ,pantheism1 ,materialism1 ,secularism1 ,development1 and ,natural ,laws4 ,by ,,james ,,buchanan1 ,d4,d41 ,,ll4 ,d4 #abmo1 cloth1 #a4be4 ,the ,author of this work is the successor of ,dr4 ,chalmers in the ,chair of ,divinity in the ,new ,college1 ,edinburgh1 and the intellectual leader of the ,scottish ,free ,church4 ,,from ,,hugh ,,miller1 ,,author ,,of ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone1 c41 c41--,the work before us is one of at once the most readable and solid which we have ever perused4 ,,from ,,the ,,news ,,of ,,the ,,churches4--,it is a work of which nothing less can be said1 than that1 both in spirit and substance1 style and argument1 it fixes irreversibly the name of the author as a leading classic in the ,christian literature of ,britain4 ,,from ,,howard ,,malcom1 ,d4,d41 ,,president ,,of ,,lewisburg ,,university4--,no work has come into my hands1 for a long time1 so helpful to me as a teacher of metaphysics and morals4 ,i know of nothing which will answer for a substitute4 ,the public specially needs such a book at this time1 when the covert atheism of ,fichte1 ,wolfe1 ,hegel1 ,kant1 ,schelling1 ,d',holbach1 ,comte1 ,crousse1 ,atkinson1 ,martineau1 ,leroux1 ,mackay1 ,holyoake1 and others1 is being spread abroad with all earnestness1 supported1 at least in some places1 both by church influence and university honors4 ,i cannot but hope that a work so timely1 scholarly1 and complete1 will do much good4 ,it is one of the most solid and remarkable books in its department of literature2 one of the most scholarly and profound inductions of modern ,christian literature4--,,worcester ,,transcript4 ,dr4 ,buchanan has earned a high and well-deserved reputation as a classical writer and close logical reasoner4 ,he deals heavy1 deadly blows on atheism in all its various forms2 and wherever the work is read it cannot fail to do good4--,,christian ,,secretary4 ,it is a work which places its author at once in the highest rank of modern religious authors4 ,his analyses of the doctrines held by the various schools of modern atheism are admirable1 and his criticism original and profound2 while his arguments in defence of the ,christian ,faith are powerful and convincing4 ,it is an attractive as well as a solid book2 and he who peruses a few of its pages is1 as it were1 irresistibly drawn on to a thorough reading of the book4--,,boston ,,portfolio4 ,the style is very felicitous1 and the reasoning clear and cogent4 ,the opposing theories are fairly stated and combated with remarkable case and skill4 ,even when the argument falls within the range of science1 it is so happily stated that no intelligent reader can fail to understand it4 ,such a profound1 dispassionate work is particularly called for at the present time4--,,boston ,,journal4 ,it is justly described as a great argument1 magnificent in its strength1 order1 and beauty1 in defence of truth1 and against the variant theories of atheism4 ,it reviews the doctrines of the different schools of modern ,atheism1 gives a fair statement of their theories1 answers and refutes them1 never evading1 but meeting and crushing their arguments4--,,phila4 ,,christian ,,observer4 ,dr4 ,buchanan is candid and impartial1 too1 as a strong a man can afford to be1 evades no argument1 undertakes no opposing view1 but meets his antagonists with the quiet and unswerving confidence of a locomotive on iron tracks1 pretty sure to crush them4--,,christian ,,register4 ,we hail this production of a master mind as a lucid1 vigorous1 discriminating1 and satisfactory refutation of the various false philosophies which have appeared in modern times to allure ingenuous youth to their destruction4 ,dr4 ,buchanan has studied them thoroughly1 weighed them dispassionately1 and exposed their falsity and emptiness4 ,his refutation is a clear stream of light from beginning to end4--,,phila4 ,,presbyterian4 ,we recommend ,modern ,atheism as a book for the times1 and as having special claims on theological students4--,,universalist ,,quarterly4 ,it is remarkable for the clearness with which it apprehends and the fairness with which it states1 not less than for the ability with which it replies to1 the schemes of unbelief in its various modern forms4 ,it will be found easy to read--though not light reading--and very quickening to thought1 while it clears away1 one by one1 the mists which the ,devil has conjured around the great doctrines of our ,faith1 by the help of some of his ingenious modern coadjutors1 and leaves the truth of ,god standing in its serene and pristine majesty1 as if the breath of hatred never had been breathed forth against it4--,,congregationalist4 ,dr4 ,buchanan has here gone into the enemy's camp1 and defeated him on his own ground4 ,the work is a masterly defence of faith against dogmatic unbelief on the one hand1 and that universal skepticism on the other1 which neither affirms nor denies1 on the ground of an assumed deficiency of evidence as to the reality of ,god and religion4--,n4,y4 ,,christian ,,chronicle4 ,it is a clearly and vigorously written book4 ,it is particularly valuable for its clear statement and masterly refutation of the ,pantheism of ,spinoza and his ,school4--,,christian ,,herald4