,transcriber ,note ,text emphasis denoted as ,italics and ,bold4 ,illustration3 ,sections ,,the ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone2 ,,or1 ,,new ,,walks ,,in ,,an ,,old ,,field4 ,,by ,,hugh ,,miller1 ,,author ,,of ,,foot-,,prints ,,of ,,the ,,creator1 ,,etc4 ,,illustrated ,,with ,,numerous ,,engravings4 ,,from ,,the ,,fourth ,,london ,,edition4 ,,boston3 ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 #ei ,,washington ,,street4 #ahea4 ,,stereotyped ,,at ,,the ,,boston ,,stereotype ,,foundry4 ,printed by ,g4 ,c4 ,rand ,co4 ,no4 #c ,cornhill4 ,,dedication4 ,,to ,,roderick ,,impey ,,murchison1 ,esq41 ,f4 ,r4 ,s41 ,etc41 ,,president ,,of ,,the ,,geological ,,society4 ,in the autumn of last year1 ,i sat down to write a few geological sketches for a newspaper2 the accumulated facts of twenty years crowded upon me as ,i wrote1 and the few sketches have expanded into a volume4 ,permit me1 honored ,sir1 to dedicate this volume to you4 ,its imperfections are doubtless many1 for it has been produced under many disadvantages2 but it is not the men best qualified to decide regarding it whose criticisms ,i fear most2 and ,i am especially desirous to bring it under your notice1 as of all geologists the most thoroughly acquainted with those ancient formations which it professes partially to describe4 ,i am1 besides1 desirous it should be known1 and this1 ,i trust1 from other motives than those of vanity1 that1 when prosecuting my humble researches in obscurity and solitude1 the present ,president of the ,geological ,society did not deem it beneath him to evince an interest in the results to which they led1 and to encourage and assist the inquirer with his advice4 ,accept1 honored ,sir1 my sincere thanks for your kindness4 ,smith1 the father of ,english ,geology1 loved to remark that he had been born upon the ,oolite--the formation whose various deposits he was the first to distinguish and describe1 and from which1 as from the meridian line of the geographer1 the geological scale has been graduated on both sides4 ,i have thought of the circumstance when1 on visiting in my native district the birthplace of the author of the ,silurian ,system1 ,i found it situated among the more ancient fossiliferous rocks of the north of ,scotland--the ,lower ,formation of the ,old ,red ,sandstone spreading out beneath and around it1 and the first-formed deposit of the system1 the ,great ,conglomerate1 rising high on the neighboring hills4 ,it is unquestionably no slight advantage to be placed1 at that early stage of life1 when the mind collects its facts with greatest avidity1 and the curiosity is most active1 in localities where there is much to attract observation that has escaped the notice of others4 ,like the gentleman whom ,i have now the honor of addressing1 ,i too was born on the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and first broke ground as an inquirer into geological fact in a formation scarce at all known to the geologist1 and in which there still remains much for future discoverers to examine and describe4 ,hence an acquaintance1 ,i am afraid all too slight1 with phenomena which1 if intrinsically of interest1 may be found to have also the interest of novelty to recommend them1 and with organisms which1 though among the most ancient of things in their relation to the world's history1 will be pronounced new by the geological reader in their relation to human knowledge4 ,hence1 too1 my present opportunity of subscribing myself1 as the writer of a volume on the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 ,honored ,sir1 ,with sincere gratitude and respect1 ,your obedient humble ,servant1 ,,hugh ,,miller4 ,edinburgh1 ,may #a1 #ahda4 ,,preface4 ,nearly one third of the present volume appeared a few months ago in the form of a series of sketches in the ,witness newspaper4 ,a portion of the first chapter was submitted to the public a year or two earlier1 in ,chambers's ,edinburgh ,journal4 ,the rest1 amounting to about two thirds of the whole1 appears for the first time4 ,every such work has its defects4 ,the faults of the present volume--faults all too obvious1 ,i am afraid--would have been probably fewer had the writer enjoyed greater leisure4 ,some of them1 however1 seem scarce separable from the nature of the subject3 there are others for which1 from their opposite character1 ,i shall have to apologize in turn to opposite classes of readers4 ,my facts would1 in most instances1 have lain closer had ,i written for geologists exclusively1 and there would have been less reference to familiar phenomena4 ,and had ,i written for only general readers1 my descriptions of hitherto undescribed organisms1 and the deposits of little-known localities1 would have occupied fewer pages1 and would have been thrown off with1 perhaps1 less regard to minute detail than to pictorial effect4 ,may ,i crave1 while addressing myself1 now to the one class1 and now to the other1 the alternate forbearance of each8 ,such is the state of progression in geological science1 that the geologist who stands still for but a very little1 must be content to find himself left behind4 ,nay1 so rapid is the progress1 that scarce a geological work passes through the press in which some of the statements of the earlier pages have not to be modified1 restricted1 or extended in the concluding ones4 ,the present volume shares1 in this respect1 in what seems the common lot4 ,in describing the ,coccosteus1 the reader will find it stated that the creature1 unlike its contemporary the ,pterichthys1 was unfurnished with arms4 ,ere arriving at such a conclusion1 ,i had carefully examined at least a hundred different ,coccostei2 but the positive evidence of one specimen outweighs the negative evidence of a hundred2 and ,i have just learned from a friend in the north1 7,mr4 ,patrick ,duff1 of ,elgin17 that a ,coccosteus lately found at ,lethen-bar1 and now in the possession of ,lady ,gordon ,gumming1 of ,altyre1 is furnished with what seem uncouth1 paddle-shaped arms1 that project from the head4,a ,all that ,i have given of the creature1 however1 will be found true to the actual type2 and that parts should have been omitted will surprise no one who remembers that many hundred belemnites had been figured and described ere a specimen turned up in which the horny prolongation1 with its enclosed ink-bag1 was found attached to the calcareous spindle2 and that even yet1 after many thousand trilobites have been carefully examined1 it remains a question with the oryctologist1 whether this crustacean of the earliest periods was furnished with legs1 or creeped on an abdominal foot1 like the snail4 ,footnote ,a3 ,as these paddle-shaped arms have not been introduced by ,agassiz into his restoration of the ,coccosteus1 their existence1 at least as arms1 must still be regarded as problematical4 ,there can be no doubt1 however1 that they existed as plates of very peculiar form1 and greatly resembling paddles1 and that they served in the economy of the animal some still unaccounted for purpose4 ,i owe to the kindness of ,mr4 ,robertson1 ,inverugie1 the specimen figured in ,plate ,v41 fig4 #g1 containing shells of the only species yet discovered in the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,scotland4 ,they occur in the ,lower ,formation of the system1 in a quarry near ,kirkwald1 in which the specimen figured1 with several others of the same kind1 was found by ,mr4 ,robertson1 in the year #ahcd4 ,in referring to this shell1 page #ii1;,b ,i have spoken of it as a delicate bivalve1 much resembling a ,venus2 drawing my illustration1 naturally enough1 when describing the shell of an ocean deposit1 rather from among marine1 than fluviatile testacea4 ,i have since submitted it to ,mr4 ,murchison1 who has obligingly written me that he can find no one to say more regarding it than that it is very like a ,cyclas4 ,he adds1 however1 that it must be an ocean production notwithstanding1 seeing that all its contemporaries in ,england1 ,scotland1 and ,russia1 whether shells or fish1 are unequivocally marine4 ,footnote ,b3 ,page #ij of the present edition4 ,with the exception of two of the figures in ,plate ,,ix41 the figures of the ,cephalaspis and the ,holoptychius1 and one of the sections in the ,frontispiece1 section #b1 all the prints of the volume are originals4 ,to ,mr4 ,daniel ,alexander1 of ,edinburgh1--a gentleman1 who to the skill and taste of the superior artist1 adds no small portion of the knowledge of the practical geologist1--,i am indebted for several of the drawings2 that of fig4 #b in ,plate ,v41 fig4 #a in ,plate ,,vi41 fig4 #b in ,plate ,,viii41 and figs4 #c and #d in plate ,,ix4 ,i am indebted to another friend for fig4 #a1 in ,plate ,,vii4 ,whatever defects may be discovered in any of the others1 must be attributed to the untaught efforts of the writer1 all unfamiliar1 hitherto1 with the pencil1 and with by much too little leisure to acquaint himself with it now4 ,,american ,,publishers' ,,notice4 ,the publishers take pleasure in presenting to the ,american reader this interesting work of ,hugh ,miller1 in which are restored to our view some of the phenomena which occurred in the earlier formations of the crust of the earth1 belonging to those inconceivably remote ages when living things first appeared2--a work so scientific1 and yet so illustrated with familiar objects and scenes1 as to be well understood by those little versed in ,geology4 ,the grand conclusions which the author deduces from apparently trifling circumstances that every one has noticed a hundred times1 without being the wiser1 illustrate the difference between the philosopher and the common observer2 and the simple and pictorial style in which they are delineated renders the work peculiarly fascinating4 ,this is a reprint of the fourth ,english edition1 without additions or alterations1 excepting the omission of the prefatory ,notes to the second and third editions4 ,in the first of these1 the author states that he had added about fifteen pages to the first edition1 chiefly relating to that middle formation of the system to which the organisms of ,balruddery and ,carmylie belong1 the representative of the ,cornstones in ,england4 ,some matters there given as merely conjectural were also replaced by ascertained facts4 ,in the latter1 he announces that the somewhat bold prediction made by him in the first edition1 in #ahda1 that the ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone would be found at least equal to those of all the geological formations united1 at the death of ,cuvier1 was already more than fulfilled4 ,cuvier enumerated ninety-two species of fossil fishes2 ,agassiz1 in #ahdf1 enumerated one hundred and five in the ,old ,red ,sandstone alone1 a formation which had been regarded as poorer in organisms than any other4 ,in this edition was given the list of species1 as determined and arranged by ,professor ,agassiz4 ,many additions in the shape of notes were also made4 ,in the first two editions it was stated that there was a gradual increase of size observable in the progress of ichthyolic life1 and that the ,old ,red ,system exhibited1 in its successive formations1 this gradation of bulk1 beginning with an age of dwarfs1 and ending with an age of giants4 ,since then1 it has been ascertained that there were giants among the dwarfs4 ,the remains of one of the largest fish found any where1 has been discovered in its lowest formation2 whereby he was convinced that the theory of a gradual progression in size1 from the earlier to the later ,palozoic formations1 though based originally on no inconsiderable amount of negative evidence1 must be permitted to drop4 ,on this fact he has based his incontrovertible argument against the development theory in his more recent work1 already given to the ,american ,public1 ,foot-,prints of the ,creator4 ,boston1 ,january1 #ahea4 ,,contents4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,page ,the ,working-man's true ,policy4--,his only ,mode of acquiring ,power4--,the ,exercise of the ,faculties essential to ,enjoyment4--,no necessary ,connection between ,labor and ,unhappiness4--,narrative4--,scenes in a ,quarry4--,the two dead ,birds4--,landscape4--,ripple ,markings on a ,sandstone ,slab4--,boulder ,stones4--,inferences derived from their water-worn ,appearance4--,sea-coast ,section4--,my first discovered ,fossil4--,lias ,deposit on the ,shores of the ,moray ,frith4--,belemnite4--,result of the ,experience of half a ,lifetime of ,toil4--,advantages of a ,wandering ,profession in ,connection with the ,geology of a ,country4--,geological ,opportunities of the ,stone-,mason4--,design of the present ,work1 #a-ad ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,till very lately its ,existence as a distinct ,formation disputed4--,still little known4--,its great ,importance in the ,geological ,scale4--,illustration4--,the ,north of ,scotland girdled by an immense ,belt of ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,line of the ,girdle along the ,coast4--,marks of vast ,denudation4--,its ,extent partially indicated by ,hills on the western ,coast of ,ross-shire4--,the ,system of great ,depth in the ,north of ,scotland4--,difficulties in the ,way of estimating the ,thickness of ,deposits4--,peculiar ,formation of ,hill4--,illustrated by ,ben ,nevis4--,caution to the ,geological ,critic4--,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone immensely developed in ,caithness4--,sketch of the ,geology of that ,county4--,its strange ,group of ,fossils4--their present ,place of ,sepulture4--,their ancient ,habitat4--,agassiz4--,amazing ,progress of ,fossil ,ichthyology during the last few ,years4--,its ,nomenclature4--,learned ,names repel unlearned ,readers4--,not a great deal in them1 #ae-cd ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,lamarck's ,theory of ,progression illustrated4--,class of ,facts which give ,color to it4--,the ,credulity of ,unbelief4--,m4 ,maillet and his ,fish-birds4--,gradation not ,progress4--,geological ,argument4--,the ,present incomplete without the ,past4--,intermediate ,links of ,creation4--,organisms of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,the ,pterichthys4--,its first ,discovery4--,mr4 ,murchison's ,decision regarding it4--,confirmed by that of ,agassiz4--,description4--,the several ,varieties of the ,fossil yet discovered4--,evidence of violent ,death in the ,attitudes in which they are found4--,the ,coccosteus of the ,lower ,old ,red4--,description4--,gradations from ,crustacea to ,fishes4--,habits of the ,coccosteus4--,scarcely any ,conception too extravagant for ,nature to realize1 #ce-ed ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,the ,elfin-fish of ,gawin ,douglas4--,the ,fish of the ,old ,red ,sandstone scarcely less curious4--,place which they occupied indicated in the present ,creation by a mere ,gap4--,fish divided into two great ,series1 the ,osseous and ,cartilaginous4--,their distinctive ,peculiarities4--,geological ,illustration of ,dr4 ,johnson's shrewd ,objection to the ,theory of ,soame ,jenyns4--,proofs of the intermediate ,character of the ,ichthyolites of the ,old lied ,sandstone4--,appearances which first led the ,writer to deem it intermediate4--,confirmation by ,agassiz4--,the ,osteolepis4--,order to which1 this ,ichthyolite belonged4--,description4--,dipterus4--,d iplopierus4-- ,cheirolepis4--,glyptolepis1 #ee-gh ,,chapter ,v4 ,the ,classifying ,principle and its ,uses4--,three ,groups of ,ichthyolites among the ,organisms of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,peculiarities of the ,third ,group4--,its ,varieties4--,description of the ,cheiracanthus4--,of two unnamed ,fossils of the same ,order4--,microscopic ,beauty of these ancient ,fish4--,various ,styles of ,ornament which obtain among them4--,the ,molluscs of the ,formation4--,remarkable chiefly for the ,union of modern with ancient ,forms which they exhibit4--,its ,vegetables4--,importance and ,interest of the ,record which it furnishes1 #gi-id ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,the ,lines of the ,geographer rarely right ,lines4--,these last1 however1 always worth looking at when they occur4--,striking ,instance in the ,line of the ,great ,caledonian ,valley4--,indicative of the ,direction in which the ,volcanic ,agencies have operated4--,sections of the ,old ,red ,sandstone furnished by the granitic ,eminences of the ,line4--,illustration4--,lias of the ,moray ,frith4--,surmisings regarding its original ,extent4--,these lead to an exploratory ,ramble4--,narrative4--,phenomena exhibited in the ,course of half an ,hour's ,walk4--,the little ,bay4--,its ,strata and their ,organisms1 #ie-ajh ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,further ,discoveries of the ,ichthyolite ,beds4--,found in one ,locality under a ,bed of ,peat4--,discovered in another beneath an ancient ,burying-ground4--,in a third underlying the ,lias ,formation4--,in a fourth overtopped by a still older ,sandstone ,deposit4--,difficulties in ascertaining the true ,place of a newly-discovered ,formation4--,caution against drawing too hasty ,inferences from the mere ,circumstance of ,neighborhood4--,the ,writer receives his first ,assistance from without4--,geological ,appendix of the ,messrs4 ,anderson1 of ,inverness4--,further ,assistance from the ,researches of ,agassiz4--,suggestion4--,dr4 ,john ,malcolmson4--,his extensive ,discoveries in ,moray4--,he submits to ,agassiz a ,drawing of the ,pterichthys4--,place of the ,ichthyolites in the ,scale at length determined4--,two distinct ,platforms of ,being in the ,formation to which they belong1 #aji-abd ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,upper ,formations of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,room enough1 for each and to spare4--,middle1 or ,cornstone ,formation4--,the ,cephalaspis its most characteristic ,organism4--,description4--,the ,den of ,balruddery richer in the ,fossils of this middle ,formation than any other ,locality yet discovered4--,various ,contemporaries of the ,cephalaspis4--,vegetable ,impressions4--,gigantic ,crustacean4--,seraphim4--,ichthyodoruli tes4--,sketch of the ,geology of ,forfarshire4--,its older ,deposits of the ,cornstone ,formation4--,the ,quarries of ,carmylie4--,their ,vegetable and ,animal ,remains4--,the ,upper ,formation4--,wide ,extent of the ,fauna and ,flora of the earlier ,formations4--,probable ,cause1 #abe-aej ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,fossils of the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone much more imperfectly preserved than those of the ,lower4--,the ,causes obvious4--,difference between the two ,groups1 which first strikes the ,observer1 a difference in size4--,the ,holoptychius a characteristic ,ichthyolite of the ,formation4--,description of its huge ,scales4--,of its ,occipital ,bones1 ,fins1 ,teeth1 and general ,appearance4--,contemporaries of the ,holoptychius4--,sponge-like ,bodies4--,plates resembling those of the ,sturgeon4--,teeth of various forms1 but all evidently the teeth of fishes4--,limestone ,band and its probable ,origin4--,fossils of the ,yellow ,sandstone4--the ,pterichthys of ,dura ,den4--,member of a ,family peculiarly characteristic of the ,system4--,no intervening ,formation between the ,old ,red ,sandstone and the ,coal ,measures4--,the ,holoptychius contemporary for a time with the ,megalichthys1--,the ,columns of ,tubal-,cain1 #aea-agb ,,chapter ,x4 ,speculations in the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and their ,character4--,george1 first ,earl of ,cromarty4--,his ,sagacity as a ,naturalist at fault in one instance4--,sets himself to dig for ,coal in the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,discovers a fine ,artesian ,well4--,value of ,geological ,knowledge in an economic view4--,scarce a ,secondary ,formation in the ,kingdom in which ,coal has not been sought for4--,mineral ,springs of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,strathpeffer4--,its ,peculiarities whence derived4--,chalybeate ,springs of ,easter ,ross and the ,black ,isle4--,petrifying ,springs4--,building-,stone and ,lime of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,its various ,soils1 #agc-ahi ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,geological ,physiognomy4--,scenery of the ,primary ,formations2 ,gneiss1 ,mica ,schist1 ,quartz ,rock4--,of the ,secondary2 the ,chalk ,formations1 the ,oolite1 the ,new ,red ,sandstone1 the ,coal ,measures4--,scenery in the ,neighborhood of ,edinburgh4--,aspect of the ,trap ,rocks4--,the ,disturbing and ,denuding ,agencies4--,distinctive ,features of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,of the ,great ,conglomerate4--,of the ,ichthyolite ,beds4--,the ,burn of ,eathie4--,the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstones4--,scene in ,moray1 #aij-baj ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,the two ,aspects in which ,matter can be viewed2 ,space and ,time4--,geological ,history of the ,earlier ,periods4--,the ,cambrian ,system4--,its ,annelids4--,the ,silurian ,system4--,its ,corals1 ,encrinites1 ,molluscs1 and ,trilobites4--,its ,fish4--,these of a high ,order1 and called into ,existence apparently by ,myriads4--,opening ,scene in the ,history of the ,old ,red ,sandstone a ,scene of ,tempest4--,represented by the ,great ,conglomerate4--,red a prevailing ,color among the ,ancient ,rocks contained in this ,deposit4--,amazing ,abundance of ,animal ,life4--,exemplified by a ,scene in the ,herring ,fishery4--,platform of ,death4--,probable ,cause of the ,catastrophe which rendered it such1 #baa-bbe ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,successors of the exterminated ,tribes4--,the ,gap slowly filled4--,proof that the ,vegetation of a ,formation may long survive its ,animal ,tribes4--,probable ,cause4--,immensely extended ,period during which ,fishes were the ,master-existences of our ,planet4--,extreme ,folly of an ,infidel ,objection illustrated by the ,fact4--,singular ,analogy between the ,history of ,fishes as ,individuals and as a ,class4--,chemistry of the ,lower ,formation4--,principles on which the ,fish-enclosing ,nodules were probably formed4--,chemical ,effect of ,animal ,matter in discharging the ,color from ,red ,sandstone4--,origin of the prevailing tint to which the ,system owes its ,name4--,successive ,modes in which a ,metal may exist4--,the ,restorations of the ,geologist void of ,color4--,very different ,appearance of the ,ichthyolites of ,cromarty and ,moray1 #bbf-bdb ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,the ,cornstone ,formation and its ,organisms4--,dwarf ,vegetation4--,cephalaspides4--,huge ,lobster4--,habitats of the existing ,crustacea4--,no unapt representation of the ,deposit of ,balruddery1 furnished by a land-locked ,bay in the neighborhood of ,cromarty4--,vast ,space occupied by the ,geological ,formations4--,contrasted with the half-formed ,deposits which represent the existing ,creation4--,inference4--,the formation of the ,holoptychius4--,probable origin of its ,siliceous ,limestone4--,marked increase in the ,bulk of the ,existences of the ,system4--,conjectural ,cause4--,the ,coal ,measures4--,the ,limestone of ,burdie ,house ,conclusion1 #bdc-bei ,ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone--from ,agassiz's ,poissons ,fossiles1 #bfa-bhh ,,explanations ,,of ,,the ,,sections ,,and ,,plates4 ,,section ,i4 ,represents the ,old ,red ,system of ,scotland from its upper beds of ,yellow ,quartzose ,sandstone to its ,great ,conglomerate base4 a4 ,quartzose ,yellow ,sandstone1 b4 ,impure concretionary limestone enclosing masses of chert1 c4 ,red and variegated sandstones and conglomerate4 ,these three deposits constitute an upper formation of the system1 characterized by its peculiar group of fossils4 7,see ,chapter ,,ix47 d4 ,deposit of gray fissile sandstone which constitutes the middle formation of the system1 characterized also by its peculiar organic group4 7,see ,chapter ,,viii47 e4 ,red and variegated sandstones1 undistinguishable often in their mineral character from the upper sandstones1 c1 but in general less gritty1 and containing fewer pebbles1 f4 ,bituminous schists1 g4 ,coarse gritty sandstone4 h4 ,great ,conglomerate4 ,these four beds compose a lower formation of the system1 more strikingly marked by its peculiar organisms than even the other two4 7,see ,chapters ,,ii4 ,,iii4 ,,iv4 and ,v47 ,in the section this lower formation is represented as we find it developed in ,caithness and ,orkney4 ,in fig4 #e it is represented as developed in ,cromarty1 where1 though the fossils are identical with those of the more northern localities1 at least one of the deposits1 f1 is mineralogically different--alternating beds of sandstone and clay1 these last enclosing limestone nodules1 taking the place of the bituminous schists4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,the ,old ,red ,system of ,england and ,wales1 as given in the general ,section of ,mr4 ,murchison1 with the ,silurian ,rocks beneath and the carboniferous limestone above4 i4 ,the point in the geological scale at which vertebrated existences first appear4 ,the three ,old ,red ,sandstone formations of this section correspond in their characteristic fossils with those of ,scotland1 but the proportions in which they are developed are widely different4 ,the tilestones seem a comparatively narrow stripe in the system in ,england2 the answering formation in ,scotland1 e1 f1 g1 h1 is of such enormous thickness1 that it has been held by very superior geologists to contain three distinct formations--e1 the ,new ,red ,sandstone1 f1 a representative of the ,coal ,measures1 and g1 h1 the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,,section ,,iii4 ,interesting case of extensive denudation from existing causes on the northern shore of the ,moray ,frith4 7,see pages #aig and #aih47 ,the figures and letters which mark the various beds correspond with those of fig4 #e1 and of the following section4 ,the fish-bed1 ,no4 #a1 represents what the reader will find described in pp4 #bba-bbe as the platform of sudden death4 ,,section ,,iv4 ,illustration of a fault in the ,burn of ,eathie1 ,cromartyshire4 7,see pages #bjd and #bje47 ,,explanations ,,of ,,the ,,plates4 ,plate ,i4--,fig4 #a1 ,restoration of upper side of the elongated species of ,pterichthys 7,p4 oblongus17 referred to in page #dg4 ,fig4 #b1 ,pterichthys ,milleri4 ,fig4 #c1 ,part of tail of elongated species1 showing portions of the original covering of rhomboidal scales4 ,fig4 #d1 ,tubercles of ,pterichthys magnified4 ,plate ,,ii4--,fig4 #b1 ,restoration of under side of ,pterichthys oblongus4 ,fig4 #a1 ,a second specimen of ,pterichthys ,milleri4 ,fig4 #c1 ,portion of wing1 natural size4 ,plate ,,iii4--,fig4 #a1 ,coccosteus cuspidatus4 ,fig4 #b1 ,impression of inner surface of large dorsal plate4 ,fig4 #c1 ,abdominal lozenge-shaped plate4 ,fig4 #d1 ,portion of jaw1 with teeth4 ,plate ,,iv4--,fig4 #a1 ,restoration of ,osteolepis major4 ,fig4 #b1 ,scales from the upper part of the body magnified4 ,fig4 #c1 ,large defensive scale which runs laterally along all the single fins4 ,fig4 #d1 ,under side of scale1 showing the attaching bar4 ,fig4 #e1 ,enamelled and punctulated jaw of the creature4 ,fig4 #f1 ,magnified portion of fin1 showing the enamelled and punctulated rays4 ,plate ,v4--,fig4 #a1 ,dipterus macrolepidotus4 ,this figure serves merely to show the place of the fins and the general outline of the ichthyolite4 ,all the specimens the writer has hitherto examined fail to show the minuter details4 ,fig4 #b1 ,glyptolepis leptopterus4 ,fig4 #c1 ,single scale of the creature1 showing its rustic style of ornament4 ,fig4 #d1 ,scale with a nail-like attachment4 ,fig4 #e1 ,under side of scale4 ,fig4 #f1 ,magnified portion of fin4 ,fig4 #g1 ,shells of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,plate ,,vi4--,fig4 #a1 ,cheirolepis ,cummingi4 ,fig4 #b1 ,magnified scales4 ,fig4 #c1 ,magnified portion of fin4 ,plate ,,vii4--,fig4 #a1 ,cheiracanthus microlepidotus4 ,fig4 #b1 ,magnified scales4 ,figs4 #c1 #d1 #e1 #f1 #g1 #h1 ,vegetable impressions of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,plate ,,viii4--,fig4 #a1 ,diplacanthus longispinus4 ,fig4 #b1 ,diplacanthus striatus4 ,fig4 #c1 ,magnified scales of fig4 #a4 ,fig4 #d1 ,spine of fig4 #b1 slightly magnified4 ,plate ,,ix4--,fig4 #a1 ,one of the tail flaps of the gigantic ,crustacean of ,forfarshire4 ,fig4 #b1 ,reticulated markings of ,carmylie4 ,plate ,x4--,fig4 #a1 ,cephalaspis ,lyellii1 copied from ,lyell's ,elements of ,geology1 ,fig4 #b1 ,holoptychius nobilissimus1 copied on a greatly reduced scale from ,murchison's ,silurian ,system1 ,fig4 #c1 ,scale of ,holoptychius1 natural size4 ,fig1 #d1 ,tooth of ditto1 also natural size4 ,these last drawn from specimens in the collection of ,mr4 ,patrick ,duff1 of ,elgin4 ,,directions ,,to ,,the ,,binder4 ,sheet of ,sections to front ,title-,page4 ,plate ,i4 to front page #dd ,,ii4 #df ,,iii4 #dh ,,iv4 #ff ,v4 #gb ,,vi4 #gh ,,vii4 #hb ,,viii4 #hd ,,ix4 #acf ,x4 #aed ,,new ,,walks ,,in ,,an ,,old ,,field2 ,,or1 ,,the ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,the ,working-man's ,true ,policy4--,his only ,mode of acquiring ,power4--,the ,exercise of the ,faculties essential to ,enjoyment4--,no necessary ,connection between ,labor and ,unhappiness4--,narrative4--,scenes in a ,quarry4--,the two dead ,birds4--,landscape4--,ripple ,markings on a ,sandstone ,slab4--,boulder ,stones4--,inference derived from their water-worn ,appearance4--,sea-coast ,section4--,my first discovered ,fossil1--,lias ,deposit on the ,shores of the ,moray ,frith4--,belemnite4--,result of the ,experience of half a ,lifetime of ,toil4--,advantages of a ,wandering ,profession in ,connection with the ,geology of a ,country4--,geological ,opportunities of the ,stone-,mason4--,design of the present ,work4 ,my advice to young working-men1 desirous of bettering their circumstances1 and adding to the amount of their enjoyment1 is a very simple one4 ,do not seek happiness in what is misnamed pleasure2 seek it rather in what is termed study4 ,keep your consciences clear1 your curiosity fresh1 and embrace every opportunity of cultivating your minds4 ,you will gain nothing by attending ,chartist meetings4 ,the fellows who speak nonsense with fluency at these assemblies1 and deem their nonsense eloquence1 are totally unable to help either you or themselves2 or1 if they do succeed in helping themselves1 it will be all at your expense4 ,leave them to harangue unheeded1 and set yourselves to occupy your leisure hours in making yourselves wiser men4 ,learn to make a right use of your eyes3 the commonest things are worth looking at--even stones and weeds1 and the most familiar animals4 ,head good books1 not forgetting the best of all3 there is more true philosophy in the ,bible than in every work of every sceptic that ever wrote2 and we would be all miserable creatures without it1 and none more miserable than you4 ,you are jealous of the upper classes2 and perhaps it is too true that1 with some good1 you have received much evil at their hands4 ,it must be confessed they have hitherto been doing comparatively little for you1 and a great deal for themselves4 ,but upper and lower classes there must be1 so long as the world lasts2 and there is only one way in which your jealousy of them can be well directed4 ,do not let them get ahead of you in intelligence4 ,it would be alike unwise and unjust to attempt casting them down to your own level1 and no class would suffer more in the attempt than yourselves2 for you would only be clearing the way1 at an immense expense of blood1 and under a tremendous pressure of misery1 for another and perhaps worse aristocracy1 with some second ,cromwell or ,napoleon at their head4 ,society1 however1 is in a state of continual flux3 some in the upper classes are from time to time going down1 and some of you from time to time mounting up to take their places--always the more steady and intelligent among you1 remember2 and if all your minds were cultivated1 not merely intellectually1 but morally also1 you would find yourselves1 as a body1 in the possession of a power which every charter in the world could not confer upon you1 and which all the tyranny or injustice of the world could not withstand4 ,i intended1 however1 to speak rather of the pleasure to be derived1 by even the humblest1 in the pursuit of knowledge1 than of the power with which knowledge in the masses is invariably accompanied4 ,for it is surely of greater importance that men should receive accessions to their own happiness1 than to the influence which they exert over other men4 ,there is none of the intellectual1 and none of the moral faculties1 the exercise of which does not lead to enjoyment2 nay1 it is chiefly in the active employment of these that all enjoyment consists2 and hence it is that happiness bears so little reference to station4 ,it is a truth which has been often told1 but very little heeded or little calculated upon1 that though one nobleman may be happier than another1 and one laborer happier than another1 yet it cannot be at all premised of their respective orders1 that the one is in any degree happier than the other4 ,simple as the fact may seem1 if universally recognized1 it would save a great deal of useless discontent1 and a great deal of envy4 ,will my humbler readers permit me at once to illustrate this subject1 and to introduce the chapters which follow1 by a piece of simple narrative8 ,i wish to show them how possible it is to enjoy much happiness in very mean employments4 ,cowper tells us that labor1 though the primal curse1 has been softened into mercy2 and ,i think that1 even had he not done so1 ,i would have found out the fact for myself4 ,it was twenty years1 last ,february1 since ,i set out a little before sunrise to make my first acquaintance with a life of labor and restraint1 and ,i have rarely had a heavier heart than on that morning4 ,i was but a slim1 loose-jointed boy at the time--fond of the pretty intangibilities of romance1 and of dreaming when broad awake2 and1 woeful change6 ,i was now going to work at what ,burns has instanced in his ,twa ,dogs as one of the most disagreeable of all employments--to work in a quarry4 ,bating the passing uneasiness occasioned by a few gloomy anticipations1 the portion of my life which had already gone by had been happy beyond the common lot4 ,i had been a wanderer among rocks and woods--a reader of curious books when ,i could get them--a gleaner of old traditionary stories2 and now ,i was going to exchange all my day-dreams1 and all my amusements1 for the kind of life in which men toil every day that they may be enabled to eat1 and eat every day that they may be enabled to toil6 ,the quarry in which ,i wrought lay on the southern shore of a noble inland bay1 or frith1 rather1 with a little clear stream on the one side1 and a thick fir wood on the other4 ,it had been opened in the ,old ,red ,sandstone of the district1 and was overtopped by a huge bank of diluvial clay1 which rose over it in some places to the height of nearly thirty feet1 and which at this time was rent and shivered1 wherever it presented an open front to the weather1 by a recent frost4 ,a heap of loose fragments1 which had fallen from above1 blocked up the face of the quarry1 and my first employment was to clear them away4 ,the friction of the shovel soon blistered my hands2 but the pain was by no means very severe1 and ,i wrought hard and willingly1 that ,i might see how the huge strata below1 which presented so firm and unbroken a frontage1 were to be torn up and removed4 ,picks1 and wedges1 and levers were applied by my brother-workmen2 and simple and rude as ,i had been accustomed to regard these implements1 ,i found ,i had much to learn in the way of using them4 ,they all proved inefficient1 however2 and the workmen had to bore into one of the inferior strata1 and employ gunpowder4 ,the process was new to me1 and ,i deemed it a highly amusing one3 it had the merit1 too1 of being attended with some such degree of danger as a boating or rock excursion1 and had thus an interest independent of its novelty4 ,we had a few capital shots3 the fragments flew in every direction2 and an immense mass of the diluvium came toppling down1 bearing with it two dead birds1 that in a recent storm had crept into one of the deeper fissures1 to die in the shelter4 ,i felt a new interest in examining them4 ,the one was a pretty cock goldfinch1 with its hood of vermilion1 and its wings inlaid with the gold to which it owes its name1 as unsoiled and smooth as if it had been preserved for a museum4 ,the other1 a somewhat rarer bird1 of the woodpecker tribe1 was variegated with light blue and a grayish yellow4 ,i was engaged in admiring the poor little things1 more disposed to be sentimental1 perhaps1 than if ,i had been ten years older1 and thinking of the contrast between the warmth and jollity of their green summer haunts1 and the cold and darkness of their last retreat1 when ,i heard our employer bidding the workmen lay by their tools4 ,i looked up1 and saw the sun sinking behind the thick fir wood beside us1 and the long1 dark shadows of the trees stretching downwards towards the shore4 ,this was no very formidable beginning of the course of life ,i had so much dreaded4 ,to be sure1 my hands were a little sore1 and ,i felt nearly as much fatigued as if ,i had been climbing among the rocks2 but ,i had wrought and been useful1 and had yet enjoyed the day fully as much as usual4 ,it was no small matter1 too1 that the evening1 converted1 by a rare transmutation1 into the delicious blink of rest which ,burns so truthfully describes1 was all my own4 ,i was as light of heart next morning as any of my brother-workmen4 ,there had been a smart frost during the night1 and the rime lay white on the grass as we passed onwards through the fields2 but the sun rose in a clear atmosphere1 and the day mellowed1 as it advanced1 into one of those delightful days of early spring1 which give so pleasing an earnest of whatever is mild and genial in the better half of the year4 ,all the workmen rested at midday1 and ,i went to enjoy my half-hour alone on a mossy knoll in the neighboring wood1 which commands through the trees a wide prospect of the bay and the opposite shore4 ,there was not a wrinkle on the water1 nor a cloud in the sky1 and the branches were as moveless in the calm as if they had been traced on canvas4 ,from a wooded promontory that stretched half way across the frith1 there ascended a thin column of smoke4 ,it rose straight as the line of a plummet for more than a thousand yards1 and then1 on reaching a thinner stratum of air1 spread out equally on every side1 like the foliage of a stately tree4 ,ben ,nevis rose to the west1 white with the yet unwasted snows of winter1 and as sharply defined in the clear atmosphere1 as if all its sunny slopes and blue retiring hollows had been chiselled in marble4 ,a line of snow ran along the opposite hills2 all above was white1 and all below was purple4 ,they reminded me of the pretty ,french story1 in which an old artist is described as tasking the ingenuity of his future son-in-law1 by giving him1 as a subject for his pencil1 a flower-piece composed of only white flowers1 of which the one half were to bear their proper color1 the other half a deep purple hue1 and yet all be perfectly natural2 and how the young man resolved the riddle1 and gained his mistress1 by introducing a transparent purple vase into the picture1 and making the light pass through it on the flowers that were drooping over the edge4 ,i returned to the quarry1 convinced that a very exquisite pleasure may be a very cheap one1 and that the busiest employments may afford leisure enough to enjoy it4 ,the gunpowder had loosened a large mass in one of the inferior strata1 and our first employment1 on resuming our labors1 was to raise it from its bed4 ,i assisted the other workmen in placing it on edge1 and was much struck by the appearance of the platform on which it had rested4 ,the entire surface was ridged and furrowed like a bank of sand that had been left by the tide an hour before4 ,i could trace every bend and curvature1 every cross hollow and counter ridge of the corresponding phenomena2 for the resemblance was no half resemblance--it was the thing itself2 and ,i had observed it a hundred and a hundred times1 when sailing my little schooner in the shallows left by the ebb4 ,but what had become of the waves that had thus fretted the solid rock1 or of what element had they been composed8 ,i felt as completely at fault as ,robinson ,crusoe did on his discovering the print of the man's foot on the sand4 ,the evening furnished me with still further cause of wonder4 ,we raised another block in a different part of the quarry1 and found that the area of a circular depression in the stratum below was broken and flawed in every direction1 as if it had been the bottom of a pool recently dried up1 which had shrunk and split in the hardening4 ,several large stones came rolling clown from the diluvium in the course of the afternoon4 ,they were of different qualities from the ,sandstone below1 and from one another2 and1 what was more wonderful still1 they were all rounded and water-worn1 as if they had been tossed about in the sea1 or the bed of a river1 for hundreds of years4 ,there could not1 surely1 be a more conclusive proof that the bank which had enclosed them so long could not have been created on the rock on which it rested4 ,no workman ever manufactures a half-worn article1 and the stones were all half-worn6 ,and if not the bank1 why then the sandstone underneath8 ,i was lost in conjecture1 and found ,i had food enough for thought that evening1 without once thinking of the unhappiness of a life of labor4 ,the immense masses of diluvium which we had to clear away rendered the working of the quarry laborious and expensive1 and all the party quitted it in a few days1 to make trial of another that seemed to promise better4 ,the one we left is situated1 as ,i have said1 on the southern shore of an inland bay--the ,bay of ,cromarty2 the one to which we removed has been opened in a lofty wall of cliffs that overhangs the northern shore of the ,moray ,frith4 ,i soon found ,i was to be no loser by the change4 ,not the united labors of a thousand men for more than a thousand years could have furnished a better section of the geology of the district than this range of cliffs4 ,it may be regarded as a sort of chance dissection on the earth's crust4 ,we see in one place the primary rock1 with its veins of granite and quartz1 its dizzy precipices of gneiss1 and its huge masses of hornblende2 we find the secondary rock in another1 with its beds of sandstone and shale1 its spars1 its clays1 and its nodular limestones4 ,we discover the still little known but highly interesting fossils of the ,old ,red ,sandstone in one deposition2 we find the beautifully preserved shells and lignites of the ,lias in another4 ,there are the remains of two several creations at once before us4 ,the shore1 too1 is heaped with rolled fragments of almost every variety of rock1--basalts1 ironstones1 hypersthenes1 porphyries1 bituminous shales1 and micaceous schists4 ,in short1 the young geologist1 had he all ,europe before him1 could hardly choose for himself a better field4 ,i had1 however1 no one to tell me so at the time1 for geology had not yet travelled so far north2 and so1 without guide or vocabulary1 ,i had to grope my way as ,i best might1 and find out all its wonders for myself4 ,but so slow ,t was the process1 and so much was ,i a seeker in the dark1 that the facts contained in these few sentences were the patient gatherings of years4 ,in the course of the first day's employment1 ,i picked up a nodular mass of blue limestone1 and laid it open by a stroke of the hammer4 ,wonderful to relate1 it contained inside a beautifully finished piece of sculpture--one of the volutes apparently of an ,ionic capital2 and not the far-famed walnut of the fairy tale1 had ,i broken the shell and found the little dog lying within1 could have surprised me more4 ,was there another such curiosity in the whole world8 ,i broke open a few other nodules of similar appearance1--for they lay pretty thickly on the shore1--and found that there might4 ,in one of these there were what seemed to be the scales of fishes1 and the impressions of a few minute bivalves1 prettily striated2 in the centre of another there was actually a piece of decayed wood4 ,of all ,nature's riddles these seemed to me to be at once the most interesting1 and the most difficult to expound4 ,i treasured them carefully up1 and was told by one of the workmen to whom ,i showed them1 that there was a part of the shore about two miles farther to the west1 where curiously shaped stones1 somewhat like the heads of boarding-pikes1 were occasionally picked up2 and that in his father's days the country people called them thunderbolts1 and deemed them of sovereign efficacy in curing bewitched cattle4 ,our employer1 on quitting the quarry for the building on which we were to be engaged1 gave all the workmen a half-holiday4 ,i employed it in visiting the place where the thunderbolts had fallen so thickly1 and found it a richer scene of wonder than ,i could have fancied in even my dreams4 ,what first attracted my notice was a detached group of low lying skerries1 wholly different in form and color from the sandstone cliffs above1 or the primary rocks a little farther to the west4 ,i found them composed of thin strata of limestone1 alternating with thicker beds of a black slaty substance1 which1 as ,i ascertained in the course of the evening1 burns with a powerful flame1 and emits a strong bituminous odor4 ,the layers into which the beds readily separate are hardly an eighth part of an inch in thickness1 and yet on every layer there are the impressions of thousands and tens of thousands of the various fossils peculiar to the ,lias4 ,we may turn over these wonderful leaves one after one1 like the leaves of a herbarium1 and find the pictorial records of a former creation in every page4 ,scallops1 and gryphites1 and ammonites1 of almost every variety peculiar to the formation1 and at least some eight or ten varieties of belemnite2 twigs of wood1 leaves of plants1 cones of an extinct species of pine1 bits of charcoal1 and the scales of fishes2 and1 as if to render their pictorial appearance more striking1 though the leaves of this interesting volume are of a deep black1 most of the impressions are of a chalky whiteness4 ,i was lost in admiration and astonishment1 and found my very imagination paralyzed by an assemblage of wonders1 that seemed to outrival1 in the fantastic and the extravagant1 even its wildest conceptions4 ,i passed on from ledge to ledge1 like the traveller of the tale through the city of statues1 and at length found one of the supposed aerolites ,i had come in quest of1 firmly imbedded in a mass of shale4 ,but ,i had skill enough to determine that it was other than what it had been deemed4 ,a very near relative1 who had been a sailor in his time on almost every ocean1 and had visited almost every quarter of the globe1 had brought home one of these meteoric stones with him from the coast of ,java4 ,it was of a cylindrical shape and vitreous texture1 and it seemed to have parted in the middle when in a half-molten state1 and to have united again1 somewhat awry1 ere it had cooled enough to have lost the adhesive quality4 ,but there was nothing organic in its structure1 whereas the stone ,i had now found was organized very curiously indeed4 ,it was of a conical form and filamentary texture1 the filaments radiating in straight lines from the centre to the circumference4 ,finely-marked veins like white threads ran transversely through these in its upper half to the point1 while the space below was occupied by an internal cone1 formed of plates that lay parallel to the base1 and which1 like watch-glasses1 were concave on the under side1 and convex on the upper4 ,i learned in time to call this stone a belemnite1 and became acquainted with enough of its history to know that it once formed part of a variety of cuttle-fish1 long since extinct4 ,my first year of labor came to a close1 and ,i found that the amount of my happiness had not been less than in the last of my boyhood4 ,my knowledge1 too1 had increased in more than the ratio of former seasons2 and as ,i had acquired the skill of at least the common mechanic1 ,i had fitted myself for independence4 ,the additional experience of twenty years has not shown me that there is any necessary connection between a life of toil and a life of wretchedness2 and when ,i have found good men anticipating a better and a happier time than either the present or the past1 the conviction that in every period of the world's history the great bulk of mankind must pass their days in labor1 has not in the least inclined me to scepticism4 ,my curiosity1 once fully awakened1 remained awake1 and my opportunities of gratifying it have been tolerably ample4 ,i have been an explorer of caves and ravines--a loiterer along sea-shores--a climber among rocks--a laborer in quarries4 ,my profession was a wandering one4 ,i remember passing direct1 on one occasion1 from the wild western coast of ,ross-shire1 where the ,old ,red ,sandstone leans at a high angle against the prevailing ,quartz ,rock of the district1 to where1 on the southern skirts of ,mid-,lothian1 the ,mountain ,limestone rises amid the coal4 ,i have resided one season on a raised beach of the ,moray ,frith4 ,i have spent the season immediately following amid the ancient granites and contorted schists of the central ,highlands4 ,in the north ,i have laid open by thousands the shells and lignites of the ,oolite2 in the south ,i have disinterred from their matrices of stone or of shale the huge reeds and tree ferns of the ,carboniferous period4 ,i have been taught by experience1 too1 how necessary an acquaintance with geology of both extremes of the kingdom is to the right understanding of the formations of either4 ,in the north1 there occurs a vast gap in the scale4 ,the ,lias leans unconformably against the ,old ,red ,sandstone2 there is no ,mountain ,limestone1 no ,coal ,measures1 none of the ,new ,red ,marls or ,sandstones1 ,under or ,upper4 ,there are at least three entire systems omitted4 ,but the upper portion of the scale is well nigh complete4 ,in one locality we may pass from the ,lower to the ,upper ,lias1 in another from the ,inferior to the ,great ,oolite1 and onward to the ,oxford ,clay and the ,coral ,rag4 ,we may explore1 in a third locality1 beds identical in their organisms with the ,wealden of ,sussex4 ,in a fourth we find the flints and fossils of the ,chalk4 ,the lower part of the scale is also well nigh complete4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone is amply developed in ,moray1 ,caithness1 and ,ross2 and the ,grauwacke1 in its more ancient unfossiliferous type1 rather extensively in ,banffshire4 ,but to acquaint one's self with the three missing formations1--to complete one's knowledge of the entire scale by filling up the hiatus1--it is necessary to remove to the south4 ,the geology of the ,lothians is the geology of at least two thirds of the gap1 and perhaps a little more2--the geology of ,arran wants1 it is supposed1 only the ,upper ,new lied ,sandstone to fill it entirely4 ,one important truth ,i would fain press on the attention of my lowlier readers4 ,there are few professions1 however humble1 that do not present their peculiar advantages of observation2 there are none1 ,i repeat1 in which the exercise of the faculties does not lead to enjoyment4 ,i advise the stone-mason1 for instance1 to acquaint himself with ,geology4 ,much of his time must be spent amid the rocks and quarries of widely separated localities4 ,the bridge or harbor is no sooner completed in one district1 than he has to remove to where the gentleman's seat1 or farm-steading is to be erected in another2 and so1 in the course of a few years1 he may pass over the whole geological scale1 even when restricted to ,scotland1 from the ,grauwacke of the ,lammermuirs1 to the ,wealden of ,moray1 or the ,chalk-flints of ,banffshire and ,aberdeen2 and this1 too1 with opportunities of observation1 at every stage1 which can be shared with him by only the gentleman of fortune1 who devotes his whole time to the study4 ,nay1 in some respects1 his advantages are superior to those of the amateur himself4 ,the latter must often pronounce a formation unfossiliferous when1 after the examination of at most a few days1 he discovers in it nothing organic2 and it will be found that half the mistakes of geologists have arisen from conclusions thus hastily formed4 ,but the working-man1 whose employments have to be carried on in the same formation for months1 perhaps years1 together1 enjoys better opportunities for arriving at just decisions4 ,there are1 besides1 a thousand varieties of accident which lead to discovery--floods1 storms1 landslips1 tides of unusual height1 ebbs of extraordinary fall3 and the man who plies his labor at all seasons in the open air has by much the best1 chance of profiting by these4 ,there are formations which yield their organisms slowly to the discoverer1 and the proofs which establish their place in the geological scale more tardily still4 ,i was acquainted with the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,ross and ,cromarty for nearly ten years ere ,i had ascertained that it is richly fossiliferous--a discovery which1 in exploring this formation in those localities1 some of our first geologists had failed to anticipate4 ,i was acquainted with it for nearly ten years more ere ,i could assign to its fossils their exact place in the scale4 ,in the following chapters ,i shall confine my observations chiefly to this system and its organisms4 ,to none of the others1 perhaps1 excepting the ,lias of the north of ,scotland1 have ,i devoted an equal degree of attention2 nor is there a formation among them which1 up to the present time1 has remained so much a terra incognita to the geologist4 ,the space on both sides has been carefully explored to its upper and lower boundary2 the space between has been suffered to remain well nigh a chasm4 ,should my facts regarding it--facts constituting the slow gatherings of years--serve as stepping-stones laid across1 until such time as geologists of greater skill1 and more extended research1 shall have bridged over the gap1 ,i shall have completed half my design4 ,should the working-man be encouraged by my modicum of success to improve his opportunities of observation1 ,i shall have accomplished the whole of it4 ,it cannot be too extensively known1 that nature is vast and knowledge limited2 and that no individual1 however humble in place or acquirement1 need despair of adding to the general fund4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,till very lately its ,existence as a distinct ,formation disputed4--,still little known4--,its great ,importance in the ,geological ,scale4--,illustration4--,the ,north of ,scotland girdled by an immense ,belt of ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,line of the ,girdle along the ,coast4--,marks of vast ,denudation4--,its ,extent partially indicated by ,hills on the ,western ,coast of ,ross-shire4--,the ,system of ,great ,depth in the ,north of ,scotland4--,difficulties in the way of estimating the ,thickness of ,deposits4--,peculiar ,formation of ,hill4--,illustrated by ,ben ,nevis4--,caution to the ,geological ,critic4--,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone immensely developed in ,caithness4--,sketch of the ,geology of that ,county4--,its strange ,group of ,fossils4--,their present place of ,sepulture4--,their ancient ,habitat4--,agassiz4--,amazing ,progress of ,fossil ,ichthyology during the last few ,years4--,its ,nomenclature4--,learned ,names repel unlearned ,readers4--,not a great deal in them4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 says a ,scottish geologist1 in a digest of some recent geological discoveries1 which appeared a short time ago in an ,edinburgh newspaper1 has been hitherto considered as remarkably barren of fossils4 ,the remark is expressive of a pretty general opinion among geologists of even the present time1 and ,i quote it on this account4 ,only a few years have gone by since men of no low standing in the science disputed the very existence of this formation--system rather1 for it contains at least three distinct formations2 and but for the influence of one accomplished geologist1 the celebrated author of the ,silurian ,system1 it would have been probably degraded from its place in the scale altogether4 ,you must inevitably give up the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 said an ingenious foreigner to ,mr4 ,murchison1 when on a visit to ,england about four years ago1 and whose celebrity among his own countrymen rested chiefly on his researches in the more ancient formations1--you must inevitably give up the ,old ,red ,sandstone3 it is a mere local deposit1 a doubtful accumulation huddled up in a corner1 and has no type or representative abroad4 ,i would willingly give it up if nature would1 was the reply2 but it assuredly exists1 and ,i cannot4 ,in a recently published tabular exhibition of the geological scale by a continental geologist1 ,i could not distinguish this system at all4 ,there are some of our ,british geologists1 too1 who still regard it as a sort of debatable tract1 entitled to no independent status4 ,they find1 in what they deem its upper beds1 the fossils of the ,coal ,measures1 and the lower graduating apparently into the ,silurian ,system2 and regard the whole as a sort of common1 which should be divided as proprietors used to divide commons in ,scotland half a century ago1 by giving a portion to each of the bordering territories4 ,even the better informed geologists1 who assign to it its proper place as an independent formation1 furnished with its own organisms1 contrive to say all they know regarding it in a very few paragraphs4 ,lyell1 in the first edition of his admirable elementary work1 published only two years ago1 devotes more than thirty pages to his description of the ,coal ,measures1 and but two and a half to his notice of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4,c ,footnote ,c3 ,as the succinct notice of this distinguished geologist may serve as a sort of pocket map to the reader in indicating the position of the system1 its three great deposits1 and its extent1 ,i take the liberty of transferring it entire4 ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone4 ,it was stated that the ,carboniferous formation was surmounted by one called the ',new lied ,sandstone1' and underlaid by another called the ,old ,red1 which last was formerly merged in the ,carboniferous ,system1 but is now found to be distinguishable by its fossils4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone is of enormous thickness in ,herefordshire1 ,worcestershire1 ,shropshire1 and ,south ,wales1 where it is seen to crop out beneath the ,coal ,measures1 and to repose on the ,silurian ,rocks4 ,in that region1 its thickness has been estimated by ,mr4 ,murchison at no less than ten thousand feet4 ,it consists there of-- #ast4 ,a quartzose conglomerate1 passing downwards into chocolate-red and green sandstone and marl4 #b;d4 ,cornstone and marl1 7red and green argillaceous spotted marls1 with irregular courses of impure concretionary limestone1 provincially called ,cornstone1 mottled red and green2 remains of fishes47 #c;d4 ,tilestone1 7finely laminated hard reddish or green micaceous or quartzose sandstones1 which split into tiles2 remains of mollusca and fishes47 ,i have already observed that fossils are rare in marls and sandstones in which the red oxide of iron prevails4 ,in the ,cornstone1 however1 of the counties above mentioned1 fishes of the genera ,cephalaspis and ,onchus have been discovered4 ,in the ,tilestone1 also1 ,ichthyodorulites of the genus ,onchus have been obtained1 and a species of ,dipterus1 with mollusca of the genera ,avicula1 ,area1 ,cuculla1 ,terebratula1 ,lingula1 ,turbo1 ,trochus1 ,turritella1 ,bellerophon1 ,orthoceras1 and others4 ,by consulting geological maps1 the reader will perceive that1 from ,wales to the north of ,scotland1 the ,old ,red ,sandstone appears in patches1 and often in large tracts4 ,many fishes have been found in it at ,caithness1 and various organic remains in the northern part of ,fifeshire1 where it crops out from beneath the ,coal formation1 and spreads into the adjoining northern half of ,forfarshire2 forming1 together with trap1 the ,sidlaw ,hills and valley of ,strathmore4 ,a large belt of this formation skirts the northern borders of the ,grampians1 from the sea-coast at ,stonehaven and the ,frith of ,tay to the opposite western coast of the ,frith of ,clyde4 ,in ,forfarshire1 where1 as in ,herefordshire1 it is many thousand feet thick1 it may be divided into three principal masses--#ast4 ,red and mottled marls1 cornstone1 and sandstone2 #b;d4 ,conglomerate1 often of vast thickness2 #c;d4 ,tilestones1 and paving-stone1 highly micaceous1 and containing a slight admixture of carbonate of lime4 ,in the uppermost of these divisions1 but chiefly in the lowest1 the remains of fish have been found1 of the genus named by ,m4 ,agassiz ,cephalaspis1 or buckler-headed1 from the extraordinary shield which covers the head1 and which1 has often been mistaken for that of a trilobite of the division ,asaphus4 ,a gigantic species of fish1 of the genus ,holoptychius1 has also been found by ,dr4 ,fleming in the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,fifeshire4--,lyell's ,elements1 pp4 #deb-d4 ,it will be found1 however1 that this hitherto neglected system yields in importance to none of the others1 whether we take into account its amazing depth1 the great extent to which it is developed both at home and abroad1 the interesting links which it furnishes in the zological scale1 or the vast period of time which it represents4 ,there are localities in which the depth of the ,old ,red ,sandstone fully equals the elevation of ,mount tna over the level of the sea1 and in which it contains three distinct groups of organic remains1 the one rising in beautiful progression over the other4 ,let the reader imagine a digest of ,english history1 complete from the times of the invasion of ,julius ,csar to the reign of that ,harold who was slain at ,hastings1 and from the times of ,edward ,,iii4 down to the present day1 but bearing no record of the ,williams1 the ,henrys1 the ,edwards1 the ,john1 ,stephen1 and ,richard1 that reigned during the omitted period1 or of the striking and important events by which their several reigns were distinguished4 ,a chronicle thus mutilated and incomplete would be no unapt representation of a geological history of the earth in which the period of the ,upper ,silurian would be connected with that of the ,mountain ,limestone1 or of the limestone of ,burdie ,house1 and the period of the ,old ,red ,sandstone omitted4 ,the eastern and western coasts of ,scotland1 which lie to the north of the ,friths of ,forth and ,clyde1 together with the southern flank of the ,grampians and the northern coast of ,sutherland and ,caithness1 appear to have been girdled at some early period by immense continuous beds of ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,at a still earlier time1 the girdle seems to have formed an entire mantle1 which covered the enclosed tract from side to side4 ,the interior is composed of what1 after the elder geologists1 ,i shall term primary rocks--porphyries1 granites1 gneisses1 and micaceous schists2 and this central nucleus1 as it now exists1 seems set in a sandstone frame4 ,the southern bar of the frame is still entire3 it stretches along the ,grampians from ,stonehaven to the ,frith of ,clyde4 ,the northern bar is also well nigh entire3 it runs unbroken along the whole northern coast of ,caithness1 and studs1 in three several localities1 the northern coast of ,sutherland1 leaving breaches of no very considerable extent between4 ,on the east1 there are considerable gaps1 as along the shores of ,aberdeenshire4,d ,the sandstone1 however1 appears at ,gamrie1 in the county of ,banff1 in a line parallel to the coast1 and1 after another interruption1 follows the coast of the ,moray ,frith far into the interior of the great ,caledonian valley1 and then running northward along the shores of ,cromarty1 ,ross1 and ,sutherland1 joins1 after another brief interruption1 the northern bar at ,caithness4 ,footnote ,d3 ,the progress of discovery has shown1 since this passage was written1 that these gaps are not quite so considerable as ,i had supposed4 ,the following paragraph1 which appeared in ,july1 #ahdc1 in an ,aberdeen paper1 bears directly on the point1 and is worthy of being preserved3-- ,,artesian ,,well4 ,the greatest of these interesting works yet existing in ,aberdeen has just been successfully completed at the tape-works of ,messrs4 ,milne1 ,low1 and ,co41 ,woolmanhill4 ,the bore is #h inches in diameter1 and #bej feet #i inches deep4 ,it required nearly eleven months' working to complete the excavation4 ,in its progress1 the following strata were cut through in succession3-- #f feet vegetable mould4 #ah gray or bluish clay4 #bj sand and shingle1 enclosing rolled stones of various sizes4 #f light blue clay4 #c rough sand and shingle4 #aae ,old ,red ,sandstone conglomerate1 composed of red clay1 quartz1 mica1 and rolled stones4 #gd alternating strata of compact1 fine-grained ,red ,sandstone1 varying in thickness from #a to #g feet1 and clay1 varying from #f inches to #ab feet thick4 #h #i inches1 mica-slate formation1 the first two feet of which were chiefly a hard1 brown quartzose substance1 containing iron1 manganese1 and carbonate of lime4 ----------- #bej feet1 #i inches4 ,the temperature of the water at the bottom of the well1 when completed1 was found to be within a fraction of #ej ,fahrenheit1 and the average temperature of the locality1 deduced from twenty-three years' observation1 by the late ,george limes1 ,f4 ,r4 ,s41 is #dg #a3 hence1 nearly #c degrees of increase appear as the effects of central heat4 ,the supply of water obtained is excellent in quality1 and sufficient in quantity for all the purposes of the works4 ,such an opportunity of investigating the geology of the locality can but rarely occur2 and1 in the present instance1 the proprietor and managers afforded every facility to scientific inquirers for conducting examinations4 ,to make the bearings of the case clear and simple1 the following is quoted from ,mr4 ,miller's work on the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,the writer here quotes the above passage1 and then proceeds4 ,mr4 ,miller will be glad to learn1 that though the convulsions of nature have shattered the 'frame' along the shores of ,aberdeenshire1 yet the fragments are not lost1 as will be seen from the section above described2 they are here reposing in situ under the accumulated debris of uncounted ages--chiefly the 'boulder clay1' and sedimentary deposits of the ,dee and ,don1 during a period when they mingled their waters in the basin in which ,aberdeen now stands4 ,the primary rocks--the settings--our granites1 of matchless beauty stand out in bold relief a mile or two westward from the sea-coast4 ,within this year or two1 the ',old ,red' has been discovered at ,devanha1 ,union ,grove1 ,huntly ,street1 ,glenburnie1 ,balgownie1 and various other localities to the northward4 ,hence it may reasonably be inferred1 that our fragment of the 'frame' envelops the primary rocks under our city1 and along the coast for a considerable distance between the ,dee and the ,buchaness4--,aberdeen ,constitutional4 ,the western bar has also its breaches towards the south2 but it stretches1 almost without interruption1 for about a hundred miles1 from the near neighborhood of ,cape ,wrath to the southern extremity of ,applecross2 and though greatly disturbed and overflown by the traps of the inner ,hebrides1 it can be traced by occasional patches on towards the southern bar4 ,it appears on the northern shore of ,loch ,alsh1 on the eastern shore of ,loch ,eichart1 on the southern shore of ,loch ,eil1 on the coast and islands near ,oban1 and on the east coast of ,arran4 ,detached hills and island-like patches of the same formation occur in several parts of the interior1 far within the frame or girdle4 ,it caps some of the higher summits in ,sutherlandshire2 it forms an oasis of sandstone among the primary districts of ,strathspey2 it rises on the northern shores of ,loch ,ness in an immense mass of conglomerate1 based on a small-grained1 red granite1 to a height of about three thousand feet over the level2 and on the north-western coast of ,ross-shire it forms three immense insulated hills1 of at least no lower altitude1 that rest unconformably on a base of gneiss4 ,there appear every where in connection with these patches and eminences1 and with the surrounding girdle1 marks of vast denudation4 ,i have often stood fronting the three ,ross-shire hills,e at sunset in the finer summer evenings1 when the clear light threw the shadows of their gigantic1 cone-like forms far over the lower tract1 and lighted up the lines of their horizontal strata1 till they showed like courses of masonry in a pyramid4 ,they seem at such times as if colored by the geologist1 to distinguish them from the surrounding tract1 and from the base on which they rest as on a common pedestal4 ,the prevailing gneiss of the district reflects a cold1 bluish hue1 here and there speckled with white1 where the weathered and lichened crags of intermingled quartz rock jut out on the hill-sides from among the heath4 ,the three huge pyramids1 on the contrary1 from the deep red of the stone1 seem flaming in purple4 ,there spreads all around a wild and desolate landscape of broken and shattered hills1 separated by deep and gloomy ravines1 that seem the rents and fissures of a planet in ruins1 and that speak distinctly of a period of convulsion1 when upheaving fires from the abyss1 and ocean currents above1 had contended in sublime antagonism1 the one slowly elevating the entire tract1 the other grinding it down and sweeping it away4 ,i entertain little doubt that1 when this loftier portion of ,scotland1 including the entire ,highlands1 first presented its broad back over the waves1 the upper surface consisted exclusively1 from the one extremity to the other--from ,benlomond to the ,maidenpaps of ,caithness--of a continuous tract of ,old ,red ,sandstone2 though1 ere the land finally emerged1 the ocean currents of ages had swept it away1 all except in the lower and last-raised borders1 and in the detached localities1 where it still remains1 as in the pyramidal hills of western ,ross-shire1 to show the amazing depth to which it had once overlaid the inferior rocks4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,morvheim1 in ,caithness1 overlooks all the primary hills of the district1 from an elevation of three thousand five hundred feet4 ,footnote ,e3 ,suil ,veinn1 ,coul ,beg1 and ,coul ,more4 ,the depth of the system1 on both the eastern and western coasts of ,scotland1 is amazingly great--how great1 ,i shall not venture to say4 ,there are no calculations more doubtful than those of the geologist4 ,the hill just instanced 7,morvheim7 is apparently composed from top to bottom of what in ,scotland forms the lowest member of the system--a coarse conglomerate2 and yet ,i have nowhere observed this inferior member1 when ,i succeeded in finding a section of it directly vertical1 more than a hundred yards in thickness--less than one tenth the height of the hill4 ,it would be well nigh as unsafe to infer that the three thousand five hundred feet of altitude formed the real thickness of the conglomerate1 as to infer that the thickness of the lead which covers the dome of ,st4 ,paul's is equal to the height of the dome4 ,it is always perilous to estimate the depth of a deposit by the height of a hill that seems externally composed of it1 unless1 indeed1 like the pyramidal hills of ,ross-shire1 it be unequivocally a hill dug out by denudation1 as the sculptor digs his eminences out of the mass4 ,in most of our hills1 the upheaving agency has been actively at work1 and the space within is occupied by an immense nucleus of inferior rock1 around which the upper formation is wrapped like a caul1 just as the vegetable mould or the diluvium wraps up this superior covering in turn4 ,one of our best known ,scottish mountains--the gigantic ,ben ,nevis--furnishes an admirable illustration of this latter construction of hill4 ,it is composed of three zones or rings of rock1 the one rising over and out of the other1 like the cases of an opera-glass drawn out4 ,the lower zone is composed of gneiss and mica-slate1 the middle zone of granite1 the terminating zone of porphyry4 ,the elevating power appears to have acted in the centre1 as in the well-known case of ,jorullo1 in the neighborhood of the city of ,mexico1 where a level tract four square miles in extent rose1 about the middle of the last century1 into a high dome of more than double the height of ,arthur's ,seat4,f ,in the formation of our ,scottish mountain1 the gneiss and mica-slate of the district seem to have been upheaved1 during the first period of ,plutonic action in the locality1 into a rounded hill of moderate altitude1 but of huge base4 ,the upheaving power continued to operate--the gneiss and mica-slate gave way a-top--and out of this lower dome there arose a higher dome of granite1 which1 in an after and terminating period of the internal activity1 gave way in turn to yet a third and last dome of porphyry4 ,now1 had the elevating forces ceased to operate just ere the gneiss and mica-slate had given way1 we would have known nothing of the interior nucleus of granite--had they ceased just ere the granite had given way1 we would have known nothing of the yet deeper nucleus of porphyry2 and yet the granite and the porphyry would assuredly have been there4 ,nor could any application of the measuring rule to the side of the hill have ascertained the thickness of its outer covering--the gneiss and the mica schist4 ,the geologists of the school of ,werner used to illustrate what we may term the anatomy of the earth1 as seen through the spectacles of their system1 by an onion and its coats3 they represented the globe as a central nucleus1 encircled by concentric coverings1 each covering constituting a geological formation4 ,the onion1 through the introduction of a better school1 has become obsolete as an illustration2 but to restore it again1 though for another purpose1 we have merely to cut it through the middle1 and turn downwards the planes formed by the knife4 ,it then represents1 with its coats1 hills such as we describe--hills such as ,ben ,nevis1 ere the granite had perforated the gneiss1 or the porphyry broken through the granite4 ,footnote ,f3 ,it is rarely that the geologist catches a hill in the act of forming1 and hence the interest of this well-attested instance4 ,from the period of the discovery of ,america to the middle of the last century1 the plains of ,jorullo had undergone no change of surface1 and the seat of the present hill was covered by plantations of indigo and sugar-cane1 when1 in ,june1 #agei1 hollow sounds were heard1 and a succession of earthquakes continued for sixty days1 to the great consternation of the inhabitants4 ,after the cessation of these1 and in a period of tranquillity1 on the #bhth and #bith of ,september1 a horrible subterranean noise was again heard1 and a tract four square miles in extent rose up in the shape of a dome or bladder1 to the height of sixteen hundred and seventy feet above the original level of the plain4 ,the affrighted ,indians fled to the mountains2 and from thence looking down on the phenomenon1 saw flames issuing from the earth for miles around the newly-elevated hill1 and the softened surface rising and falling like that of an agitated sea1 and opening into numerous rents and fissures4 ,two brooks which had watered the plantations precipitated themselves into the burning chasms4 ,the scene of this singular event was visited by ,humboldt about the beginning of the present century4 ,at that period1 the volcanic agencies had become comparatively quiescent2 the hill1 however1 retained its original altitude2 a number of smaller hills had sprung up around it2 and the traveller found the waters of the engulfed rivulets escaping at a high temperature from caverns charged with sulphureous vapors and carbonic acid gas4 ,there wore inhabitants of the country living at the time who were more than twenty years older than the hill of ,jorullo1 and who had witnessed its rise4 ,if it be thus unsafe1 however1 to calculate on the depth of deposits by the altitude of hills1 it is quite as unsafe for the geologist1 who has studied a formation in one district1 to set himself to criticise the calculations of a brother geologist by whom it has been studied in a different and widely-separated district4 ,a deposit in one locality may be found to possess many times the thickness of the same deposit in another4 ,there are exposed1 beside the ,northern and ,southern ,sutors of ,cromarty1 two nearly vertical sections of the coarse conglomerate bed1 which forms1 as ,i have said1 in the north of ,scotland1 the base of the ,old ,red ,system1 and which rises to so great an elevation in the mountain of ,morvheim4 ,the sections are little more than a mile apart2 and yet1 while the thickness of this bed in the one does not exceed one hundred feet1 that of the same bed in the other somewhat exceeds two hundred feet4 ,more striking still--under the ,northern ,sutor1 the entire ,geology of ,caithness1 with all its vast beds1 and all its numerous fossils1 from the granitic rock of the ,ord hill1 the southern boundary of the county1 to the uppermost sandstones of ,dunnet-head1 its extreme northern corner1 is exhibited in a vertical section not more than three hundred yards in extent4 ,and yet so enormous is the depth of the deposit in ,caithness1 that it has been deemed by a very superior geologist to represent three entire formations--the ,old ,red ,system1 by its unfossiliferous1 arenaceous1 and conglomerate beds2 the ,carboniferous ,system1 by its dark-colored middle schists1 abounding in bitumen and ichthyolites2 and the ,new ,red ,sandstone1 by the mottled marls and mouldering sandstones that overlie the whole4,g ,a slight sketch of the ,geology of ,caithness may not be deemed uninteresting4 ,this county includes1 in the state of greatest development any where yet known1 that fossiliferous portion of the ,old ,red ,sandstone which ,i purpose first to describe1 and which will yet come to be generally regarded as an independent formation1 as unequivocally characterized by its organic remains as the formations either above or below it4 ,footnote ,g3 ,dr4 ,hibbert1 whose researches among the limestones of ,burdie ,house have been of such importance to ,geology1 was of this opinion4 ,i find it also expressed in the admirable geological appendix affixed by the ,messrs4 ,anderson to their ,guide to the ,highlands and ,islands of ,scotland4 ,no beds of real coal1 say these gentlemen1 have been discovered in ,caithness2 and it would thus appear that the middle schistose system of the county1 containing the fossil fish1 is in geological character and position intermediate between the ,old and ,new ,red ,sandstone formations1 but not identical with the ,carboniferous ,limestone1 or the true ,coal ,measures1 although probably occupying the place of one or other of them4--p4 #aih4 ,the county of ,sutherland stretches across the island from the ,german to the ,atlantic ,ocean1 and presents1 throughout its entire extent1--except where a narrow strip of the ,oolitic formation runs along its eastern coast1 and a broken belt of ,old ,red ,sandstone tips its capes and promontories on the west1--a broken and tumultuous sea of primary hills4 ,scarce any of our other ,scottish counties are so exclusively ,highland1 nor are there any of them in which the precipices are more abrupt1 the valleys more deep1 the rivers more rapid1 or the mountains piled into more fantastic groups and masses4 ,the traveller passes into ,caithness1 and finds himself surrounded by scenery of an aspect so entirely dissimilar1 that no examination of the rocks is necessary to convince him of a geological difference of structure4 ,an elevated and uneven plain spreads around and before him1 league beyond league1 in tame and unvaried uniformity1--its many hollows darkened by morasses1 over which the intervening eminences rise in the form rather of low moory swellings1 than of hills1--its coasts walled round by cliffs of gigantic altitude1 that elevate the district at one huge stride from the level of the sea1 and skirted by vast stacks and columns of rock1 that stand out like the advanced pickets of the land amid the ceaseless turmoil of the breakers4 ,the district1 as shown on the map1 presents nearly a triangular form--the ,pentland ,frith and the ,german ,ocean describing two of its sides1 while the base is formed by the line of boundary which separates it from the county of ,sutherland4 ,now1 in a geological point of view1 this angle may be regarded as a vast pyramid1 rising perpendicularly from the basis furnished by the primary rocks of the latter county1 and presenting newer beds and strata as we ascend1 until we reach the apex4 ,the line from south to north in the angle--from ,morvheim to ,dunnet-head--corresponds to the line of ascent from the top to the bottom of the pyramid4 ,the first bed1 reckoning from the base upwards1--the ground tier of the masonry1 if ,i may so speak1--is the great conglomerate4 ,it runs along the line of boundary from sea to sea1--from the ,ord of ,caithness on the east1 to ,portskerry on the north2 and rises1 as it approaches the primary hills of ,sutherland1 into a lofty mountain chain of bold and serrated outline1 which attains its greatest elevation in the hill of ,morvheim4 ,this great conglomerate bed1 the base of the system1 is represented in the ,cromarty section1 under the ,northern ,sutor1 by a bed two hundred and fifteen feet in thickness4 ,the second tier of masonry in the pyramid1 and which also runs in a nearly parallel line from sea to sea1 is composed mostly of a coarse red and yellowish sandstone1 with here and there beds of pebbles enclosed1 and here and there deposits of green earth and red marl4 ,it has its representative in the ,cromarty section1 in a bed of red and yellow arenaceous stone1 one hundred and fourteen feet six inches in thickness4 ,these two inferior beds possess but one character1--they are composed of the same materials1 with merely this difference1 that the rocks which have been broken into pebbles for the construction of the one1 have been ground into sand for the composition of the other4 ,directly over them1 the middle portion of the pyramid is occupied by an enormous deposit of dark-colored bituminous schist1 slightly micaceous1 calcareous1 or semi-calcareous1--here and there interlaced with veins of carbonate of lime1--here and there compact and highly siliceous1--and bearing in many places a mineralogical character difficult to be distinguished from that at one time deemed peculiar to the harder grauwacke schists4 ,the ,caithness flagstones1 so extensively employed in paving the footways of our larger towns1 are furnished by this immense middle tier or belt1 and represent its general appearance4 ,from its lowest to its highest beds it is charged with fossil fish and obscure vegetable impressions2 and we find it represented in the ,cromarty section by alternating bands of sandstones1 stratified clays1 and bituminous and nodular limestones1 which form altogether a bed three hundred and fifty-five feet in thickness2 nor does this bed lack its organisms1 animal and vegetable1 generically identical with those of ,caithness4 ,the apex of the pyramid is formed of red mouldering sandstones and mottled marls1 which exhibit their uppermost strata high over the eddies of the ,pentland ,frith1 in the huge precipices of ,dunnet-head1 and which are partially represented in the ,cromarty section by an unfossiliferous sandstone bed of unascertained thickness2 but which can be traced for about eighty feet from the upper limestones and stratified clays of the middle member1 until lost in overlying beds of sand and shingle4 ,i am particular1 at the risk1 ,i am afraid1 of being tedious1 in thus describing the ,geology of this northern county1 and of the ,cromarty section1 which represents and elucidates it4 ,they illustrate more than the formations of two insulated districts3 they represent also a vast period of time in the history of the globe4 ,the pyramid1 with its three huge bars1 its foundations of granitic rock1 its base of red conglomerate1 its central band of dark-colored schist1 and its lighter tinted apex of sandstone1 is inscribed from bottom to top1 like an ,egyptian obelisk1 with a historical record4 ,the upper and lower sections treat of tempests and currents--the middle is written within and without with wonderful narratives of animal life2 and yet the whole1 taken together1 comprises but an earlier portion of that chronicle of existences and events furnished by the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,it is1 however1 with this earlier portion that my acquaintance is most minute4 ,my first statement regarding it must be much the reverse of the borrowed one with which this chapter begins4 ,the fossils are remarkably numerous1 and in a state of high preservation4 ,i have a hundred solid proofs by which to establish the truth of the assertion1 within less than a yard of me4 ,half my closet walls are covered with the peculiar fossils of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone2 and certainly a stranger assemblage of forms have rarely been grouped together2--creatures whose very type is lost1 fantastic and uncouth1 and which puzzle the naturalist to assign them even their class2--boat-like animals1 furnished with oars and a rudder2--fish plated over1 like the tortoise1 above and below1 with a strong armor of bone1 and furnished with but one solitary rudder-like fin2 other fish less equivocal in their form1 but with the membranes of their fins thickly covered with scales2--creatures bristling over with thorns2 others glistening in an enamelled coat1 as if beautifully japanned--the tail1 in every instance among the less equivocal shapes1 formed not equally1 as in existing fish1 on each side the central vertebral column1 but chiefly on the lower side--the column sending out its diminished vertebr to the extreme termination of the fin4 ,all the forms testify of a remote antiquity--of a period whose fashions have passed away4 ,the figures on a ,chinese vase or an ,egyptian obelisk are scarce more unlike what now exists in nature1 than the fossils of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,geology1 of all the sciences1 addresses itself most powerfully to the imagination1 and hence one main cause of the interest which it excites4 ,ere setting ourselves minutely to examine the peculiarities of these creatures1 it would be perhaps well that the reader should attempt realizing the place of their existence1 and relatively the time--not of course with regard to dates and eras1 for the geologist has none to reckon by1 but with respect to formations4 ,they were the denizens of the same portion of the globe which we ourselves inhabit1 regarded not as a tract of country1 but as a piece of ocean crossed by the same geographical lines of latitude and longitude4 ,their present place of sepulture in some localities1 had there been no denudation1 would have been raised high over the tops of our loftiest hills--at least a hundred feet over the conglomerates which form the summit of ,morvheim1 and more than a thousand feet over the snow-capped ,ben ,wyvis4 ,geology has still greater wonders4 ,i have seen belemnites of the ,oolite--comparatively a modern formation--which had been dug out of the sides of the ,himalaya mountains1 seventeen thousand feet over the level of the sea4 ,but let us strive to carry our minds back1 not to the place of sepulture of these creatures1 high in the rocks1--though that ,i shall afterwards attempt minutely to describe1--but to the place in which they lived1 long ere the sauroid fishes of ,burdie ,house had begun to exist1 or the corallines of the mountain limestone had spread out their multitudinous arms in a sea gradually shallowing1 and out of which the land had already partially emerged4 ,a continuous ocean spreads over the space now occupied by the ,british islands3 in the tract covered by the green fields and brown moors of our own country1 the bottom1 for a hundred yards downwards1 is composed of the debris of rolled pebbles and coarse sand intermingled1 long since consolidated into the lower member of the ,old ,red ,sandstone2 the upper surface is composed of banks of sand1 mud1 and clay2 and the sea1 swarming with animal life1 flows over all4 ,my present object is to describe the inhabitants of that sea4 ,of these1 the greater part yet discovered have been named by ,agassiz1 the highest authority as an ichthyologist in ,europe or the world1 and in whom the scarcely more celebrated ,cuvier recognized a naturalist in every respect worthy to succeed him4 ,the comparative amount of the labors of these two great men in fossil ichthyology1 and the amazing acceleration which has taken place within the last few years in the progress of geological science1 are illustrated together1 and that very strikingly1 by the following interesting fact--a fact derived directly from ,agassiz himself1 and which must be new to the great bulk of my readers4 ,when ,cuvier closed his researches in this department1 he had named and described1 for the guidance of the geologist1 ninety-two distinct species of fossil fish2 nor was it then known that the entire geological scale1 from the ,upper ,tertiary to the ,grauwacke inclusive1 contained more4 ,agassiz commenced his labors2 and1 in a period of time little exceeding fourteen years1 he has raised the number of species from ninety-two to sixteen hundred4 ,and this number1 great as it is1 is receiving accessions almost every day4 ,in his late visit to ,scotland1 he found eleven new species1 and one new genus1 in the collection of ,lady ,gumming of ,altyre1 all from the upper beds of that lower member of the ,old ,red ,sandstone represented by the dark-colored schists and inferior sandstones of ,caithness4 ,he found forty-two new species more in a single collection in ,ireland1 furnished by the ,mountain ,limestone of ,armagh4 ,some of my humbler readers may possibly be repelled by his names2 they are1 like all names in science1 unfamiliar in their respect to mere ,english readers1 just because they are names not for ,england alone1 but for ,england and the world4 ,i am assured1 however1 that they are all composed of very good ,greek1 and picturesquely descriptive of some peculiarity in the fossils they designate4 ,one of his ichthyolites1 with a thorn or spine in each fin1 bears the name of ,acanthodes1 or thorn-like2 another with a similar mechanism of spines attached to the upper part of the body1 and in which the pectoral or hand-fins are involved1 has been designated the ,cheiracanthus1 or thorn-hand2 a third covered with curiously-fretted scales1 has been named the ,glyptolepis1 or carved-scale2 and a fourth1 roughened over with berry-like tubercles1 that rise from strong osseous plates1 is known as the ,coccosteus1 or berry-on-bone4 ,and such has been his principle of nomenclature4 ,the name is a condensed description4 ,but though all his names mean something1 they cannot mean a great deal2 and as learned words repel unlearned readers1 ,i shall just take the liberty of reminding mine of the humbler class1 that there is no legitimate connection between ,geology and the dead languages4 ,the existences of the ,old ,red ,sandstone had lived for ages1 and had been dead for myriads of ages1 ere there was ,greek enough in the world to furnish them with names4 ,there is no working-man1 if he be a person of intelligence and information1 however unlearned1 in the vulgar acceptation of the phrase1 who may not derive as much pleasure and enlargement of idea from the study of ,geology1 and acquaint himself as minutely with its truths1 as if possessed of all the learning of ,bentley4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,lamarck's ,theory of ,progression illustrated4--,class of ,facts which give ,color to it4--,the ,credulity of ,unbelief4--,m4 ,maillet and his ,fish-birds4--,gradation not ,progress4--,geological ,argument4--,the ,present incomplete without the ,past4--,intermediate ,links of ,creation4--,organisms of the ,lower ,old lied ,sandstone4--,the ,pterichthys4--,its first ,discovery4--,mr4 ,murchison's ,decision regarding it4--,confirmed by that of ,agassiz4--,description4--,the several ,varieties of the ,fossil yet discovered4--,evidence of ,violent ,death in the ,attitudes in which they are found4--,the ,coccosteus of the ,lower ,old ,red4--,description4--,gradations from ,crustacea to ,fishes4--,habits of the ,coccosteus4--,scarcely any ,conception too extravagant for ,nature to realize4 ,mr4 ,lyell's brilliant and popular work1 ,the ,principles of ,geology1 must have introduced to the knowledge of most of my readers the strange theories of ,lamarck4 ,the ingenious foreigner1 on the strength of a few striking facts1 which prove that1 to a certain extent1 the instincts of species may be improved and heightened1 and their forms changed from a lower to a higher degree of adaptation to their circumstances1 has concluded that there is a natural progress from the inferior orders of being towards the superior2 and that the offspring of creatures low in the scale in the present time1 may hold a much higher place in it1 and belong to different and nobler species1 a few thousand years hence4 ,the descendants of the ourang-outang1 for instance1 may be employed in some future age in writing treatises on ,geology1 in which they shall have to describe the remains of the quadrumana as belonging to an extinct order4 ,lamarck himself1 when bearing home in triumph with him the skeleton of some huge salamander or crocodile of the ,lias1 might indulge1 consistently with his theory1 in the pleasing belief that he had possessed himself of the bones of his grandfather--a grandfather removed1 of course1 to a remote degree of consanguinity1 by the intervention of a few hundred thousand great-greats4 ,never yet was there a fancy so wild and extravagant but there have been men bold enough to dignify it with the name of philosophy1 and ingenious enough to find reasons for the propriety of the name4 ,the setting-dog is taught to set2 he squats down and points at the game2 but the habit is an acquired one--a mere trick of education4 ,what1 however1 is merely acquired habit in the progenitor1 is found to pass into instinct in the descendant3 the puppy of the setting-dog squats down and sets untaught--the educational trick of the parent is mysteriously transmuted into an original principle in the offspring4 ,the adaptation which takes place in the forms and constitution of plants and animals1 when placed in circumstances different from their ordinary ones1 is equally striking4 ,the woody plant of a warmer climate1 when transplanted into a colder1 frequently exchanges its ligneous stem for a herbaceous one1 as if in anticipation of the killing frosts of winter2 and1 dying to the ground at the close of autumn1 shoots up again in spring4 ,the dog1 transported from a temperate into a frigid region1 exchanges his covering of hair for a covering of wool2 when brought back again to his former habitat1 the wool is displaced by the original hair4 ,and hence1 and from similar instances1 the derivation of an argument1 good so far as it goes1 for changes in adaptation to altered circumstances of the organization of plants and animals1 and for the unprovability of instinct4 ,but it is easy driving a principle too far4 ,the elasticity of a common bow1 and the strength of an ordinary arm1 are fully adequate to the transmission of an arrow from one point of space to another point a hundred yards removed2 but he would be a philosopher worth looking at1 who would assert that they were equally adequate for the transmission of the same arrow from points removed1 not by a hundred yards1 but by a hundred miles4 ,and such1 but still more glaring1 has been the error of ,lamarck4 ,fie has argued on this principle of improvement and adaptation--which1 carry it as far as we rationally may1 still leaves the vegetable a vegetable1 and the dog a dog--that1 in the vast course of ages1 inferior have risen into superior natures1 and lower into higher races2 that molluscs and zophytes have passed into fish and reptiles1 and fish and reptiles into birds and quadrupeds2 that unformed1 gelatinous bodies1 with an organization scarcely traceable1 have been metamorphosed into oaks and cedars2 and that monkeys and apes have been transformed into human creatures1 capable of understanding and admiring the theories of ,lamarck4 ,assuredly there is no lack of faith among infidels2 their vaulting credulity o'erleaps revelation1 and falls on the other side4 ,one of the first geological works ,i ever read was a philosophical romance1 entitled ,telliamed1 by a ,m4 ,maillet1 an ingenious ,frenchman of the days of ,louis ,,xv4 ,this ,maillet was by much too great a philosopher to credit the scriptural account of ,noah's flood2 and yet he could believe1 like ,lamarck1 that the whole family of birds had existed at one time as fishes1 which1 on being thrown ashore by the waves1 had got feathers by accident2 and that men themselves are but the descendants of a tribe of sea-monsters1 who1 tiring of their proper element1 crawled up the beach one sunny morning1 and1 taking a fancy to the land1 forgot to return4,h ,footnote ,h3 ,few men could describe better than ,maillet4 ,his extravagances are as amusing as those of a fairy tale1 and quite as extreme4 ,take the following extract as an instance3-- ,winged or flying fish1 stimulated by the desire of prey1 or the fear of death1 or pushed near the shore by the billows1 have fallen among reeds or herbage1 whence it was not possible for them to resume their flight to the sea1 by means of which they had contracted their first facility of flying4 ,then their fins1 being no longer bathed in the sea-water1 were split1 and became warped by their dryness4 ,while they found1 among the reeds and herbage among which they fell1 any aliments to support them1 the vessels of their fins1 being separated1 were lengthened and clothed with beards1 or1 to speak more justly1 the membranes1 which before kept them adherent to each other1 were metamorphosed4 ,the beard formed of these warped membranes was lengthened4 ,the skin of these animals was insensibly covered with a down of the same color with the skin1 and this down gradually increased4 ,the little wings they had under their belly1 and which1 like their wings1 helped them to walk in the sea1 became feet1 and served them to walk on land4 ,there were also other small changes in their figure4 ,the beak and neck of some were lengthened1 and those of others shortened4 ,the conformity1 however1 of the first figure subsists in the whole1 and it will be always easy to know it4 ,examine all the species of fowls1 large and small1 even those of the ,indies1 those which are tufted or not1 those whose feathers are reversed1 such as we see at ,damietta--that is to say1 whose plumage runs from the tail to the head--and you will find species of fish quite similar1 scaly or without scales4 ,all species of parrots1 whose plumages are so different1 the rarest and the most singular-marked birds1 are1 conformable to fact1 painted like them with black1 brown1 gray1 yellow1 green1 red1 violet color1 and those of gold and azure2 and all this precisely in the same parts where the plumages of those birds are diversified in so curious a manner4--,telliamed1 p4 #bbd1 ed4 #agej4 ,how easy1 says this fanciful writer1 is it to conceive the change of a winged fish1 flying at times through the water1 at times through the air1 into a bird flying always through the air6 ,it is a law of nature1 that the chain of being1 from the lowest to the highest form of life1 should be1 in some degree1 a continuous chain2 that the various classes of existence should shade into one another1 so that it often proves a matter of no little difficulty to point out the exact line of demarcation where one class or family ends1 and another class or family begins4 ,the naturalist passes from the vegetable to the animal tribes1 scarcely aware1 amid the perplexing forms of intermediate existence1 at what point he quits the precincts of the one to enter on those of the other4 ,all the animal families have1 in like manner1 their connecting links2 and it is chiefly out of these that writers such as ,lamarck and ,maillet construct their system4 ,they confound gradation with progress4 ,geoffrey ,hudson was a very short man1 and ,goliath of ,gath a very tall one1 and the gradations of the human stature lie between4 ,but gradation is not progress2 and though we find full-grown men of five feet1 five feet six inches1 six feet1 and six feet and a half1 the fact gives us no earnest whatever that the race is rising in stature1 and that at some future period the average height of the human family will be somewhat between ten and eleven feet4 ,and equally unsolid is the argument1 that from a principle of gradation in races would deduce a principle of progress in races4 ,the tall man of six feet need entertain quite as little hope of rising into eleven feet as the short man of five2 nor has the fish that occasionally flies any better chance of passing into a bird than the fish that only swims4 ,geology abounds with creatures of the intermediate class3 there are none of its links more numerous than its connecting links2 and hence its interest1 as a field of speculation1 to the assertors of the transmutation of races4 ,but there is a fatal incompleteness in the evidence1 that destroys its character as such4 ,it supplies in abundance those links of generic connection1 which1 as it were1 marry together dissimilar races2 but it furnishes no genealogical link to show that the existences of one race derive their lineage from the existences of another4 ,the scene shifts1 as we pass from formation to formation2 we are introduced in each to a new dramatis person2 and there exist no such proofs of their being at once different and yet the same1 as those produced in the ,winter's ,tale1 to show that the grown shepherdess of the one scene is identical with the exposed infant of the scene that went before4 ,nay1 the reverse is well nigh as strikingly the case1 as if the grown shepherdess had been introduced into the earlier scenes of the drama1 and the child into its concluding scenes4 ,the argument is a very simple one4 ,of all the vertebrata1 fishes rank lowest1 and in geological history appear first4 ,we find their remains in the ,upper and ,lower ,silurians1 in the ,lower1 ,middle1 and ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone1 in the ,mountain ,limestone1 and in the ,coal ,measures2 and in the latter formation the first reptiles appear4 ,fishes seem to have been the master existences of two great systems1 mayhap of three1 ere the age of reptiles began4 ,now fishes differ very much among themselves3 some rank nearly as low as worms1 some nearly as high as reptiles2 and if fish could have risen into reptiles1 and reptiles into mammalia1 we would necessarily expect to find lower orders of fish passing into higher1 and taking precedence of the higher in their appearance in point of time1 just as in the ,winter's ,tale we see the infant preceding the adult4 ,if such be not the case--if fish made their first appearance1 not in their least perfect1 but in their most perfect state--not in their nearest approximation to the worm1 but in their nearest approximation to the reptile--there is no room for progression1 and the argument falls4 ,now it is a geological fact1 that it is fish of the higher orders that appear first on the stage1 and that they are found to occupy exactly the same level during the vast period represented by five succeeding formations4 ,there is no progression4 ,if fish rose into reptiles1 it must have been by sudden transformation--it must have been as if a man who had stood still for half a lifetime should bestir himself all at once1 and take seven leagues at a stride4 ,there is no getting rid of miracle in the case--there is no alternative between creation and metamorphosis4 ,the infidel substitutes progression for ,deity2 ,geology robs him of his god4 ,but no man who enters the geological field in quest of the wonderful1 need pass in pursuit of his object from the true to the fictitious4 ,does the reader remember how1 in ,milton's sublime figure1 the body of ,truth is represented as hewn in pieces1 and her limbs scattered over distant regions1 and how her friends and disciples have to go wandering all over the world in quest of them8 ,there is surely something very wonderful in the fact1 that1 in uniting the links of the chain of creation into an unbroken whole1 we have in like manner to seek for them all along the scale of the geologist2--some we discover among the tribes first annihilated--some among the tribes that perished at a later period--some among the existences of the passing time4 ,we find the present incomplete without the past--the recent without the extinct4 ,there are marvellous analogies which pervade the scheme of ,providence1 and unite1 as it were1 its lower with its higher parts4 ,the perfection of the works of ,deity is a perfection entire in its components2 and yet these are not contemporaneous1 but successive3 it is a perfection which includes the dead as well as the living1 and bears relation1 in its completeness1 not to time1 but to eternity4 ,we find the organisms of the ,old ,red ,sandstone supplying an important link1 or1 rather1 series of links1 in the ichthyological scale1 which are wanting in the present creation1 and the absence of which evidently occasions a wide gap between the two grand divisions or series of fishes--the bony and the cartilaginous4 ,of this1 however1 more anon4 ,of all the organisms of the system1 one of the most extraordinary1 and the one in which ,lamarck would have most delighted1 is the ,pterichthys1 or winged fish1 an ichthyolite which the writer had the pleasure of introducing to the acquaintance of geologists nearly three years ago1 but which he first laid open to the light about seven years earlier4 ,had ,lamarck been the discoverer1 he would unquestionably have held that he had caught a fish almost in the act of wishing itself into a bird4 ,there are wings which want only feathers1 a body which seems to have been as well adapted for passing through the air as the water1 and a tail by which to steer4 ,and yet there are none of the fossils of the ,old ,red ,sandstone which less resemble any thing that now exists than its ,pterichthys4 ,i fain wish ,i could communicate to the reader the feeling with which ,i contemplated my first-found specimen4 ,it opened with a single blow of the hammer2 and there1 on a ground of light-colored limestone1 lay the effigy of a creature fashioned apparently out of jet1 with a body covered with plates1 two powerful looking arms1 articulated at the shoulders1 a head as entirely lost in the trunk as that of the ray or the sun-fish1 and a long1 angular tail4 ,my first-formed idea regarding it was1 that ,i had discovered a connecting link between the tortoise and the fish--the body much resembles that of a small turtle2 and why1 ,i asked1 if one formation gives us sauroid fishes1 may not another give us chelonian ones8 or if in the ,lias we find the body of the lizard mounted on the paddles of the whale1 why not find in the ,old ,red ,sandstone the body of the tortoise mounted in a somewhat similar manner8 ,the idea originated in error2 but as it was an error which not many naturalists could have corrected at the time1 it may be deemed an excusable one1 more especially by such of my readers as may have seen well-preserved specimens of the creature1 or who examine the subjoined prints4 7,nos4 ,i4 and ,,ii47 ,i submitted some of my specimens to ,mr4 ,murchison1 at a time when that gentleman was engaged among the fossils of the ,silurian ,system1 and employed on his great work1 which has so largely served to extend geological knowledge regarding those earlier periods in which animal life first began4 ,he was much interested in the discovery3 it furnished the geologist with additional data by which to regulate and construct his calculations1 and added a new and very singular link to the chain of existence in its relation to human knowledge4 ,deferring to ,agassiz1 as the highest authority1 he yet anticipated the decision of that naturalist regarding it1 in almost every particular4 ,i had inquired1 under the influence of my first impression1 whether it might not be considered as a sort of intermediate existence between the fish and the chelonian4 ,he stated1 in reply1 that he could not deem it referrible to any family of reptiles2 that1 if not a fish1 it approached more closely to the ,crustacea than to any other class2 and that he had little doubt ,agassiz would pronounce it to be an ichthyolite of that ancient order to which the ,cephalaspis belongs1 and which seems to have formed a connecting link between crustacea and fishes4,i ,the specimens submitted to ,mr4 ,murchison were forwarded to ,agassiz4 ,they were much more imperfect than some which ,i have since disinterred2 and to restore the entire animal from them would require powers such as those possessed by ,cuvier in the past age1 and by the naturalist of ,neufchatel in the present4 ,broken as they were1 however1 ,agassiz at once decided from them that the creature must have been a fish4 ,footnote ,i3 ,the aborigines of ,south4 ,america deemed it wonderful that the ,europeans who first visited them should1 without previous concert1 agree in reading after the same manner the same scrap of manuscript1 and in deriving the same piece of information from it4 ,the writer experienced on this occasion a somewhat similar feeling4 ,his specimens seemed written in a character cramp enough to suggest those doubts regarding original meaning which lead to various readings2 but the geologist and the naturalist agreed in perusing them after exactly the same fashion--the one in ,london1 the other in ,neufchatel4 ,such instances give confidence in the findings of science4 ,the decision of ,mr4 ,murchison ,i subjoin in his own words--his numbers refer to various specimens of ,pterichthys3 ,as to your fossils #a1 #b1 #c1 we know nothing of them here1 7,london17 except that they remind me of the occipital fragments of some of the ,caithness fishes4 ,i do not conceive they can be referrible to any reptile2 for1 if not fishes1 they more closely approach to crustaceans than to any other class4 ,i conceive1 however1 that ,agassiz will pronounce them to be fishes1 which1 together with the curious genus ,cephalaspis of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 form the connecting links between crustaceans and fishes4 ,your specimens remind one in several respects of the ,cephalaspis4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,i4 ,i have placed one of the specimens before me4 ,imagine the figure of a man rudely drawn in black on a gray ground1 the head cut off at the shoulders1 the arms spread at full1 as in the attitude of swimming1 the body rather long than otherwise1 and narrowing from the chest downwards1 one of the legs cut away at the hip-joint1 and the other1 as if to preserve the balance1 placed directly under the centre of the figure1 which it seems to support4 ,such1 at a first glance1 is the appearance of the fossil4 ,the body was of very considerable depth1 perhaps little less deep proportionally from back to breast than the body of the tortoise2 the under part was flat2 the upper rose towards the centre into a roof-like ridge2 and both under and upper were covered with a strong armor of bony plates1 which1 resembling more the plates of the tortoise than those of the crustacean1 received their accessions of growth at the edges or sutures4 ,the plates on the under side are divided by two lines of suture1 which run1 the one longitudinally through the centre of the body1 the other transversely1 also through the centre2 and they would cut one another at right angles1 were there not a lozenge-shaped plate inserted at the point where they would otherwise meet4 ,there are thus five plates on the lower or belly part of the animal4 ,they are all thickly tubercled outside with wart-like prominences1 7see ,plate ,i41 fig4 #d27 the inner present appearances indicative of a bony structure4 ,the plates on the upper side are more numerous and more difficult to describe1 just as it would be difficult to describe the forms of the various stones which compose the ribbed and pointed roof of a ,gothic cathedral1 the arched ridge or hump of the back requiring1 in a somewhat similar way1 a peculiar form and arrangement of plates4 ,the apex of the ridge is covered by a strong hexagonal plate1 fitted upon it like a cap or helmet1 and which nearly corresponds in place to the flat central plate of the under side4 ,there runs around it a border of variously formed plates1 that diminish in size and increase in number towards the head1 and which are separated1 like the pieces of a dissected map1 by deep sutures4 ,they all present the tubercled surface4 ,the eyes are placed in front1 on a prominence considerably lower than the roof-like ridge of the back2 the mouth seems to have opened1 as in many fishes1 in the edge of the creature's snout1 where a line running along the back would bisect a line running along the belly2 but this part is less perfectly shown by my specimens than any other4 ,the two arms1 or paddles1 are placed so far forward as to give the body a disproportionate and decapitated appearance4 ,from the shoulder to the elbow1 if ,i may employ the terms1 there is a swelling1 muscular appearance1 as in the human arm2 the part below is flattened1 so as to resemble the blade of an oar1 and terminates in a strong1 sharp point4 ,the tail--the one leg on which1 as exhibited in one of my specimens1 the creature seems to stand--is of considerable length1 more than equal to a third of the entire figure1 and of an angular form1 the base representing the part attached to the body1 and the apex its termination4 ,it was covered with small tubercled1 rhomboidal plates1 like scales1 7see ,plate ,i41 fig4 #c27 and where the internal structure is shown1 there are appearances of a vertebral column1 with rib-like processes standing out at a sharp angle4 ,the ichthyolite1 in my larger specimens1 does not much exceed seven inches in length2 and ,i despatched one to ,agassiz1 rather more than two years ago1 whose extreme length did not exceed an inch4 ,such is a brief1 and1 ,i am afraid1 imperfect sketch of a creature whose very type seems no longer to exist4 ,but for the purposes of the geologist1 the descriptions of the graver far exceed those of the pen1 and the accompanying prints will serve to supply all that may be found wanting in the text4 ,fig4 #a1 in ,plate ,i41 and fig4 #b1 in ,plate ,,ii41 are both restorations--the first of the upper1 and the second of the under1 part of the creature4 ,it may1 however1 encourage the confidence of the naturalist1 who for the first time looks upon forms so strange1 to be informed that ,plate ,i41 with its two figures1 was submitted to ,agassiz during his recent brief stay in ,edinburgh1 and that he as readily recognized in it the species of the two kinds which it exhibits1 as he had previously recognized the species of the originals in the limestone4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,ii4 ,agassiz1 in the course of his late visit to ,scotland1 found six species of the ,pterichthys,j--three of these1 and the wings of a fourth1 in the collection of the writer4 ,the differences by which they are distinguished may be marked by even an unpractised eye1 especially in the form of the bodies and wings4 ,some are of a fuller1 some of a more elongated1 form2 in some the body resembles a heraldic shield1 of nearly the ordinary shape and proportions2 in others the shield stretches into a form not very unlike that of a ,norway skiff1 from the midships forward4 ,in some of the varieties1 too1 the wings are long and comparatively slender2 in others shorter1 and of greater breadth3 in some there is an inflection resembling the bend of an elbow2 in others there is a continuous swelling from the termination to the shoulder1 where a sudden narrowing takes place immediately over the articulation4 ,i had inferred somewhat too hurriedly1 though perhaps naturally enough1 that these wings1 or arms1 with their strong sharp points and oar-like blades1 had been at once paddles and spears--instruments of motion and weapons of defence2 and hence the mistake of connecting the creature with the ,chelonia4 ,i am informed by ,agassiz1 however1 that they were weapons of defence only1 which1 like the occipital spines of the river bull-head1 were erected in moments of danger or alarm1 and at other times lay close by the creature's side2 and that the sole instrument of motion was the tail1 which1 when covered by its coat of scales1 was proportionally of a somewhat larger size than the tail shown in the print1 which1 as in the specimens from whence it was taken1 exhibits but the obscure and uncertain lineaments of the skeleton4 ,the river bull-head1 when attacked by an enemy1 or immediately as it feels the hook in its jaws1 erects its two spines at nearly right angles with the plates of the head1 as if to render itself as difficult of being swallowed as possible4 ,the attitude is one of danger and alarm2 and it is a curious fact1 to which ,i shall afterwards have occasion to advert1 that in this attitude nine tenths of the ,pterichthys of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone are to be found4 ,we read in the stone a singularly preserved story of the strong instinctive love of life1 and of the mingled fear and anger implanted for its preservation--,the champions in distorted postures threat4 ,it presents us1 too1 with a wonderful record of violent death falling at once1 not on a few individuals1 but on whole tribes4 ,footnote ,j3 ,agassiz now reckons ten distinct species of ,pterichthys--,p4 arenatus1 ,p4 cancriformis1 ,p4 cornutus1 ,p4 major1 ,p4 ,milleri1 ,p4 latus1 ,p4 oblongus1 ,p4 productus1 ,p4 testudinarius1 and ,p4 hydrophilus2 of these1 nine species belong to the ,lower1 and one--the ,pterichthys hydrophilus--to the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,iii4 ,next to the ,pterichthys of the ,lower ,old ,red ,i shall place its contemporary the ,coccosteus of ,agassiz1 a fish which1 in some respects1 must have somewhat resembled it4 ,both were covered with an armor of thickly tubercled bony plates1 and both furnished with a vertebrated tail4 ,the plates of the one1 when found lying detached in the rock1 can scarcely be distinguished from those of the other3 there are the same marks1 as in the plates of the tortoise1 of accessions of growth at the edges--the same cancellated bony structure within1 the same kind of tubercles without4 ,the forms of the creatures themselves1 however1 were essentially different4 ,i have compared the figure of the ,pterichthys1 as shown in some of my better specimens1 to that of a man with the head cut off at the shoulders1 one of the legs also wanting1 and the arms spread to the full4 ,the figure of the ,coccosteus ,i would compare to a boy's kite4 7,see ,plate ,,iii41 fig4 #a47 ,there is a rounded head1 a triangular body1 a long tail attached to the apex of the triangle1 and arms thin and rounded where they attach to the body1 and spreading out towards their termination like the ancient one-sided shovel which we see sculptured on old tombstones1 or the rudder of an ancient galley4,k ,the manner in which the plates are arranged on the head is peculiarly beautiful2 but ,i am afraid ,i cannot adequately describe them4 ,a ring of plates1 like the ring-stones of an arch1 runs along what may be called the hoop of the kite2 the form of the keystone-plate is perfect2 the shapes of the others are elegantly varied1 as if for ornament2 and what would be otherwise the opening of the arch1 is filled up with one large plate1 of an outline singularly elegant4 ,a single plate1 still larger than any of the others1 covers the greater part of the creature's triangular body1 to the shape of which it nearly conforms4 ,it rises saddle-wise towards the centre3 on the ridge there is a longitudinal groove ending in a perforation1 a little over the apex1 7,plate ,,iii41 fig4 #b27 two small lateral plates on either side fill up the base of the angle2 and the long tail1 with its numerous vertebral joints1 terminates the figure4 ,footnote ,k3 ,i have since ascertained that these seeming arms or paddles were simply plates of a peculiar form4 ,does the reader possess a copy of ,lyell's lately published elementary work1 edition #ahch8 ,if so1 let him first turn up the description of the ,upper ,silurian rocks1 from ,murchison1 which occurs in page #dei1 and mark the form of the trilobite ,asaphus caudatus1 a fossil of the ,wenlock formation4 7,see ,sil4 ,sys41 ,plate ,,vii47 ,the upper part1 or head1 forms a crescent2 the body rises out of the concave with a sweep somewhat resembling that of a ,gothic arch2 the outline of the whole approximates to that of an egg1 the smaller end terminating in a sharp point4 ,let him remark1 further1 that this creature was a crustaceous animal1 of the crab or lobster class1 and then turn up the brief description of the ,old ,red ,sandstone in the same volume1 page #ded1 and mark the form of the ,cephalaspis1 or buckler-head--a fish of a formation immediately over that in which the remains of the trilobite most abound4 ,he will find that the fish and the crustacean are wonderfully alike4 ,the fish is more elongated1 but both possess the crescent-shaped head1 and both the angular and apparently jointed body4,l ,they illustrate admirably how two distinct orders may meet4 ,they exhibit the points1 if ,i may so speak1 at which the plated fish is linked to the shelled crustacean4 ,now1 the ,coccosteus is a stage further on2 it is more unequivocally a fish4 ,it is a ,cephalaspis with an articulated tail attached to the angular body1 and the horns of the crescent-shaped head cut off4 ,footnote ,l3 ,really jointed in the case of the trilobite2 only apparently so in that of the ,cephalaspis4 ,the body of the trilobite1 like that of the lobster1 was barred by transverse1 oblong1 overlapping plates1 and between every two plates there was a joint2 the body of the ,cephalaspis1 in like manner1 was barred by transverse1 oblong1 overlapping scales1 between which there existed no such joints4 ,it is interesting to observe how nature1 in thus bringing two such different classes as fishes and crustacea together1 gives to the higher animal a sort of pictorial resemblance to the lower1 in parts where the construction could not be identical without interfering with the grand distinctions of the classes4 ,some of the specimens which exhibit this creature are exceedingly curious4 ,in one1 a coprolite still rests in the abdomen2 and a common botanist's microscope shows it thickly speckled over with minute scales1 the indigestible exuvi of fish on which the animal had preyed4 ,in the abdomen of another we find a few minute pebbles--just as pebbles are occasionally found in the stomach of the cod--which had been swallowed by the creature attached to its food4 ,is there nothing wonderful in the fact1 that men should be learning at this time of day how the fishes of the ,old ,red ,sandstone lived1 and that there were some of them rapacious enough not to be over nice in their eating8 ,the under part of the creature is still very imperfectly known3 it had its central lozenge-shaped plate1 like that on the under side of the ,pterichthys1 but of greater elegance1 7see ,plate ,,iii41 fig4 #c17 round which the other plates were ranged4 ,what an appropriate ornament1 if set in gold6 said ,dr4 ,buckland1 on seeing a very beautiful specimen of this central lozenge in the interesting collection of ,professor ,traill of ,edinburgh1--,what an appropriate ornament for a lady geologist6 ,there are two marked peculiarities in the jaws of the ,coccosteus1 as shown in most of the specimens1 illustrative of the lower part of the creature1 which ,i have yet seen4 ,the teeth1 instead of being fixed in sockets1 like those of quadrupeds and reptiles1 or merely placed on the bone1 like those of fish of the common varieties1 seem to have been cut out of the solid1 like the teeth of a saw or the teeth in the mandibles of the beetle1 or in the nippers of the lobster1 7,plate ,,iii41 fig4 #d27 and there appears to have been something strangely anomalous in the position of the jaws--something too anomalous1 perhaps1 to be regarded as proven by the evidence of the specimens yet found1 but which may be mentioned with the view of directing attention to it4 ,do not be deterred1 said ,agassiz1 in the course of one of the interviews in which he obligingly indulged the writer of these chapters1 who had mentioned to him that one of his opinions1 just confirmed by the naturalist1 had seemed so extraordinary that he had been almost afraid to communicate it1--,do not be deterred1 if you have examined minutely1 by any dread of being deemed extravagant4 ,the possibilities of existence run so deeply into the extravagant1 that there is scarcely any conception too extraordinary for nature to realize4 ,in all the more complete specimens which ,i have yet seen1 the position of the jaws is vertical1 not horizontal2 and yet the creature1 as shown by the tail1 belonged unquestionably to the vertebrata4 ,now1 though the mouths of the crustaceous animals1 such as the crab and lobster1 open vertically1 and a similar arrangement obtains among the insect tribes1 it has been remarked by naturalists1 as an invariable condition of that higher order of animals distinguished by vertebral columns1 that their mouths open horizontally4 ,what ,i would remark as very extraordinary in the ,coccosteus--not1 however1 in the way of directly asserting the fact1 but merely by way of soliciting inquiry regarding it--is1 that it seems to unite to a vertebral column a vertical mouth1 thus forming a connecting link between two orders of existences1 by conjoining what is at once their most characteristic and most dissimilar traits4,m ,footnote ,m3 ,these statements regarding the character of the teeth and the position of the jaws of the ,coccosteus have been challenged by very high authorities4 ,i retain them1 however1 in this edition in their original form1 as first made nearly six years ago4 ,in at least two of my specimens of ,coccosteus the teeth and jaw form unequivocally but one bone--a result1 it is not improbable1 of some after anchylosing process1 but which still solicits inquiry as not yet definitely accounted for4 ,the matter of fact in the case is certainly one which should be determined1 not analogically1 but on its own proper evidence1 as furnished by good specimens4 ,as for the remark regarding the probable position of the creature's jaws1 it was ventured on at first1 as the reader may perceive1 with much hesitation1 and must now be regarded as more doubtful than ever4 ,its repetition here1 however1 will1 ,i trust1 be regarded as simply indicative of a wish on the part of the writer1 that the question be kept open just a little longer1 and that further examination be made4 ,there is certainly something very peculiar about the mouth of the ,coccosteus not yet understood1 and singularly formed plates1 connected with it1 which have not been introduced into any restoration1 and the use of which in the economy of the animal seem wholly unknown4 #ahej4--;,i have at length found a very perfect specimen of the nether jaw of ,coccosteus1 and am prepared to show that it was of a character altogether unique4 ,it had its two groups of from six to eight teeth1 7exactly where1 in the human subject1 the molars are placed17 that seem to have acted on corresponding groups in the intermaxllaries1 and two other groups of from three to five teeth placed at right angles with these1 direct in the symphysis1 and that seem to have acted on each other4 ,but though these unique teeth of the symphysis formed a vertical line of mouth1 it joined on at right angles to a transverse line of the ordinary type1 as the upright stroke of the letter ,t joins on to the horizontal line a-top4 ,fourth ,edition4 ,i am acquainted with four species of ,coccosteus--,c4 decipiens1 ,c4 cuspidatas1 ,c4 oblongus1 and a variety not yet named2 and many more species may yet be discovered4,n ,of all the existences of the formation1 this curious fish seems to have been one of the most abundant4 ,in a few square yards of rock ,i have laid open portions of the remains of a dozen different individuals belonging to two of the four species1 the ,c4 decipiens and ,c4 cuspidatus1 in the course of a single evening4 ,none of the other kinds have yet been found at ,cromarty4 ,these two differed from each other in the proportions which their general bulk bore to their length--slightly1 too1 in the arrangement of their occipital plates4 ,the ,coccosteus latus1 as the name implies1 must have been by much a massier fish than the other2 and we find the arch-like form of the plates which covered its head more complete3 the plate representing the keystone rests on the saddle-shaped plate in the centre1 and the plates representing the spring-stones of the arch exhibit a broader base4 ,the accompanying print 7,plate ,,iii47 represents the ,coccosteus cuspidatus4 ,the average length of the creature1 including the tail1 as shown in most of the ,cromarty specimens1 somewhat exceeded a foot4 ,a few detached plates from ,orkney1 in the collection of ,dr4 ,traill1 must have belonged to an individual of fully twice that length4 ,footnote ,n3 ,a fifth species has been named ,c4 maximus4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,the ,elfin-fish of ,gawin ,douglas4--,the ,fish of the ,old ,red ,sandstone scarcely less curious4--,place which they occupied indicated in the present ,creation by a mere ,gap4--,fish divided into two great ,series1 the ,osseous and ,cartilaginous4--,their distinctive ,peculiarities4--,geological ,illustration of ,dr4 ,johnson's shrewd ,objection to the ,theory of ,soame ,jenyns4--,proofs of the intermediate ,character of the ,ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,appearances which first led the ,writer to deem it intermediate4--,confirmation by ,agassiz4--,the ,osteolepis4--,order to which this ,ichthyolite belonged4--,description4--,dipterus4--,d iplopterus4--,cheirolepis4 --,glyptolepis4 ,has the reader ever heard of the griesly fisch and the laithlie flood1 described by that minstrel ,bishop of ,dunkeld who gave rude ,scotland ,virgil's page8 ,both fish and flood are the extravagances of a poet's dream4 ,the flood came rolling through a wilderness of bogs and quagmires1 under banks dark as rocks the whilk the sey upcast4 ,a skeleton forest stretched around1 doddered and leafless2 and through the unblomit and barrant trees ,the quhissling wind blew mony bitter blast2 the whitened branches clashed and clattered2 the vile water rinnand o'erheid1 and routing as thonder1 made hideous trubil2 and to augment the uproar1 the griesly fisch1 like the fish of eastern story1 raised their heads amid the foam1 and shrieked and yelled as they passed4 ,the grim monsters fordeafit the heiring with their sellouts2--they were both fish and elves1 and strangely noisy in the latter capacity2 and the longer the poet listened1 the more frightened he became4 ,the description concludes1 like a terrific dream1 with his wanderings through the labyrinths of the dead forest1 where all was dry and sapless above1 and mud and marsh below1 and with his exclamations of grief and terror at finding himself hopelessly lost in a scene of prodigies and evil spirits4 ,and such was one of the wilder fancies in which a youthful ,scottish poet of the days of ,flodden indulged1 ere taste had arisen to restrain and regulate invention4 ,shall ,i venture to say1 that the ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone have sometimes reminded me of the fisch of the laithlie flood8 ,they were hardly less curious4 ,we find them surrounded1 like these1 by a wilderness of dead vegetation1 and of rocks upcast from the sea2 and there are the foot-prints of storm and tempest around and under them4 ,true1 they must have been less noisy4 ,like the griesly fisch1 however1 they exhibit a strange union of opposite natures4 ,one of their families--that of the ,cephalaspis--seems almost to constitute a connecting link1 says ,agassiz1 between fishes and crustaceans4 ,they had1 also1 their families of sauroid1 or reptile fishes--and their still more numerous families that unite the cartilaginous fishes to the osseous4 ,and to these last the explorer of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone finds himself mainly restricted4 ,the links of the system are all connecting links1 separated by untold ages from that which they connect2 so that1 in searching for their representatives amid the existences of the present time1 we find but the gaps which they should have occupied4 ,and it is essentially necessary from this circumstance1 in acquainting one's self with their peculiarities1 to examine1 if ,i may so express myself1 the sides of these gaps1--the existing links at both ends to which the broken links should have pieced1--in short1 all those more striking peculiarities of the existing disparted families which we find united in the intermediate families that no longer exist4 ,without some such preparation1 the inquirer would inevitably share the fate of the poetical dreamer of ,dunkeld1 by losing his way in a labyrinth4 ,in passing1 therefore1 with this object from the extinct to the recent1 ,i venture to solicit1 for a few paragraphs1 the attention of the reader4 ,fishes1 the fourth great class in point of rank in the animal kingdom1 and1 in extent of territory1 decidedly the first1 are divided1 as they exist in the present creation1 into two distinct series--the osseous and the cartilaginous4 ,the osseous embraces that vast assemblage which naturalists describe as fishes properly so called1 and whose skeletons1 like those of mammalia1 birds1 and reptiles1 are composed chiefly of a calcareous earth pervading an organic base4 ,hence the durability of their remains4 ,in the cartilaginous series1 on the contrary1 the skeleton contains scarce any of this earth3 it is a framework of indurated animal matter1 elastic1 semi-transparent1 yielding easily to the knife1 and1 like all mere animal substances1 inevitably subject to decay4 ,i have seen the huge cartilaginous skeleton of a shark lost in a mass of putrefaction in less than a fortnight4 ,i have found the minutest bones of the osseous ichthyolites of the ,lias entire after the lapse of unnumbered centuries4 ,the two series do not seem to precede or follow one another in any such natural sequence as that in which the great classes of the animal kingdom are arranged4 ,the mammifer takes precedence of the bird1 the bird of the reptile1 the reptile of the fish2 there is progression in the scale--the arrangement of the classes is consecutive1 not parallel4 ,but in this great division there is no such progression2 the osseous fish takes no precedence of the cartilaginous fish1 or the cartilaginous1 as a series1 of the osseous4 ,the arrangement is parallel1 not consecutive2 but the parallelism1 if ,i may so express myself1 seems to be that of a longer with a shorter line2--the cartilaginous fishes1 though much less numerous in their orders and families than the other1 stretch farther along the scale in opposite directions1 at once rising higher and sinking lower than the osseous fishes4 ,the cartilaginous order of the sturgeons1--a roe-depositing tribe1 devoid alike of affection for their young1 or of those attachments which give the wild beasts of the forest partners in their dens1--may be regarded as fully abreast of by much the greater part of the osseous fishes1 in both their instincts and their organization4 ,the family of the sharks1 on the other hand1 and some of the rays1 rise higher1 as if to connect the class of fish with the class immediately above it--that of reptiles4 ,many of them are viviparous1 like the mammalia--attached1 it is said1 to their young1 and fully equal even to birds in the strength of their connubial attachments4 ,the male1 in some instances1 has been known to pine away and die when deprived of his female companion4,o ,but then1 on the other hand1 the cartilaginous fishes1 in some of their tribes1 sink as low beneath the osseous as they rise above them in others4 ,the suckers1 for instance1 a cartilaginous family1 are the most imperfect of all vertebral animals2 some of them want even the sense of sight2 they seem mere worms1 furnished with fins and gills1 and were so classed by ,linnus2 but though now ascertained to be in reality fishes1 they must be regarded as the lowest link in the scale--as connecting the class with the class ,vermes1 just as the superior cartilaginous fishes may be regarded as connecting it with the class ,reptilia4 ,footnote ,o3 ,some of the osseous fishes are also viviparous--the viviparous blenny1 for instance4 ,the evidence from which the supposed affection of the higher fishes for their offspring has been inferred1 is1 ,i am afraid1 of a somewhat equivocal character4 ,the love of the sow for her litter hovers1 at times1 between that of the parent and that of the epicure2 nor have we proof enough1 in the present state of ichthyological knowledge1 to conclude to which side the parental love of the fish inclines4 ,the connubial affections of some of the higher families seem better established4 ,of a pair of gigantic rays 7,cephaloptera giorna7 taken in the ,mediterranean1 and described by ,risso1 the female was captured by some fishermen2 and the male continued constantly about the boat1 as if bewailing the fate of his companion1 and was then found floating dead4--,see ,wilson's article ,ichthyology1 ,encyc4 ,brit41 seventh edition4 ,between the osseous and the cartilaginous fishes there exist some very striking dissimilarities4 ,the skull of the osseous fish is divided into a greater number of distinct bones1 and possesses more movable parts1 than the skulls of mammiferous animals3 the skull of the cartilaginous fish1 on the contrary1 consists of but a single piece1 without joint or suture4 ,there is another marked distinction4 ,the bony fish1 if it approaches in form to that general type which we recognize amid all the varieties of the class as proper to fishes1 and to which1 in all their families1 nature is continually inclining1 will be found to have a tail branching out1 as in the perch and herring1 from the bone in which the vertebral column terminates2 whereas the cartilaginous fish1 if it also approach the general type1 will be found to have a tail formed1 as in the sturgeon and dog-fish1 on both sides of the hinder portion of the spine1 but developed much more largely on the under than on the upper side4 ,in some instances1 it is wanting on the upper side altogether4 ,it may be as impossible to assign reasons for such relations as for those which exist between the digestive organs and the hoofs of the ruminant animals2 but it is of importance that they should be noted4,p ,it may be remarked1 further1 that the great bulk of fishes whose skeletons consist of cartilage have yet an ability of secreting the calcareous earth which composes bone1 and that they are furnished with bony coverings1 either partial or entire4 ,their bones lie outside4 ,the thorn-back derives its name from the multitudinous hooks and spikes of bone that bristle over its body2 the head1 back1 and operculum of the sturgeon are covered with bony plates2 the thorns and prickles of the shark are composed of the same material4 ,the framework within is a framework of mere animal matter2 but it was no lack of the osseous ingredient that led to the arrangement--an arrangement which we can alone refer to the will of that all-potent ,creator1 who can transpose his materials at pleasure1 without interfering with the perfection of his work4 ,it is a curious enough circumstance1 that some of the osseous fishes1 as if entirely to reverse the condition of the cartilaginous ones1 are partially covered with plates of cartilage4 ,they are bone within1 and cartilage without1 just as others are bone without and cartilage within4 ,footnote ,p3 ,dr4 ,buckland1 in his ,bridgewater ,treatise1 assigns satisfactory reasons for this construction of tail in sharks and sturgeons4 ,of the fishes of these two orders1 he states1 the former perform the office of scavengers1 to clear the water of impurities1 and have no teeth1 but feed1 by means of a soft1 leather-like mouth1 capable of protrusion and contraction1 on putrid vegetables and animal substances at the bottom2 and hence they have constantly to keep their bodies in an inclined position4 ,the sharks employ their tail in another peculiar manner--to turn their body1 in order to bring their mouth1 which is placed downwards beneath the head1 into contact with their prey4 ,we find an important provision in every animal1 to give a position of ease and activity to the head during the operation of feeding4--,bridgewater ,treatise1 p4 #bgi1 vol4 i41 first ed4 ,but how apply all this to the ,geology of the ,old ,red ,sandstone8 ,very directly4 ,the ichthyolites of this ancient formation hold1 as has been said1 an intermediate place1 unoccupied among present existences1 between the two series1 and in some respects resemble the osseous1 and in some the cartilaginous tribes4 ,the fact reminds one of ,dr4 ,johnson's shrewd objection to the theory embraced by ,soame ,jenyns in his ,free ,inquiry1 and which was the theory also of ,pope and ,bolingbroke4 ,the metaphysician held1 with the poet and his friend1 that there exists a vast and finely graduated chain of being from ,infinity to nonentity--from ,god to nothing2 and that to strike out a single link would be to mar the perfection of the whole4,q ,the moralist demonstrated1 on the contrary1 that this chain1 in the very nature of things1 must be incomplete at both ends--that between that which does1 and that which does not exist1 there must be an infinite difference--that the chain1 therefore1 cannot lay hold on nothing4 ,he showed1 further1 that between the greatest of finite existences and the adorable ,infinite there must exist another illimitable void--that the boundless and the bounded are as widely separated in their natures and qualities as the existent and the non-existent--that the chain1 in short1 cannot lay hold on ,deity4 ,he asserted1 however1 that not only is it thus incomplete at both ends1 but that we must regard it as well nigh as incomplete in many of its intermediate links as at its terminal ones2 that it is already a broken chain1 seeing that between its various classes of existence myriads of intermediate existences might be introduced1 by graduating more minutely what must necessarily be capable of infinite gradation2 and that1 to base an infidel theory on the supposed completeness of what is demonstrably incomplete1 and on the impossibility of a gap existing in what is already filled with gaps1 is just to base one absurdity on another4,r ,now1 we find the ,geology of what may be termed the second age of vertebrated existence 7for the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone was such7 coming curiously in to confirm the reasonings of ,johnson4 ,it shows us the greater part of the fish of an entire creation thus insinuated between two of the links of our own4 ,footnote ,q3 ,see1 through this air1 this ocean1 and this earth1 ,all matter quick1 and bursting into birth2 ,above1 how high progressive life may go6 ,around1 how wide6 how deep extend below6 ,vast chain of being6 which from ,god began-- ,nature's ethereal1 human angel1 man1 ,beast1 bird1 fish1 insect--what no eye can see1 ,no glass can reach2 from ,infinite to thee-- ,from thee to nothing4 ,on superior powers ,were we to press1 inferior might on ours2 ,or in the full creation leave a void1 ,where1 one step broken1 the great scale's destroyed3 ,from ,nature's chain1 whatever link you strike1 ,tenth1 or ten thousandth1 breaks the chain alike4 ,essay on ,man4 ,footnote ,r3 ,the following are the well-stated reasonings of ,dr4 ,johnson1 a writer who never did injustice to an argument for want of words to express it in3-- ,the scale of existence from ,infinity to nothing cannot possibly have being4 ,the highest being not infinite must be at an infinite distance from ,infinity4 ,cheyne1 who1 with the desire inherent in mathematicians to reduce every thing to mathematical images1 considers all existence as a cone1 allows that the basis is at an infinite distance from the body1 and in this distance between finite and infinite there will be room forever for an infinite series of indefinable existence4 ,between the lowest positive existence and nothing1 whenever we suppose positive existence to cease1 is another chasm infinitely deep1 where there is room again for endless orders of subordinate nature1 continued forever and ever1 and yet infinitely superior to nonexistence4 ,to these meditations humanity is unequal4 ,but yet we may ask1 not of our ,maker1 but of each other1 since on the one side creation1 whenever it stops1 must stop infinitely below infinity1 and on the other infinitely above nothing1 what necessity there is that it should proceed so far either way--that being so high or so low should ever have existed4 ,we may ask1 but ,i believe no created wisdom can give an adequate answer4 ,nor is this all4 ,in the scale1 wherever it begins or ends1 are infinite vacuities4 ,at whatever distance we suppose the next order of beings to be above man1 there is room for an intermediate order of beings between them2 and if for one order1 then for infinite orders1 since every thing that admits of more or less1 and consequently all the parts of that which admits them1 may be infinitely divided2 so that1 as far as we can judge1 there may be room in the vacuity between any two steps of the scale1 or between any two points of the cone of being1 for infinite exertion of infinite power4--,review of ,a ,free ,inquiry4 ,it is now several years since ,i was first led to suspect that the condition of the ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone was intermediate4 ,i have alluded to the comparative indestructibility of the osseous skeleton1 and the extreme liability to decay characteristic of the cartilaginous one4 ,of a skeleton in part osseous and in part cartilaginous1 we must1 of course1 expect1 when it occurs in a fossil state1 to find the indestructible portions only4 ,and when1 in every instance1 we find the fossil skeletons of a formation complete in some of their parts1 and incomplete in others--the entire portions invariably agreeing1 and the wanting portions invariably agreeing also--it seems but natural to conclude that an original difference must have obtained1 and that the existing parts1 which we can at once recognize as bone1 must have been united to parts now wanting1 which were composed of cartilage4 ,the naturalist never doubts that the shark's teeth1 which he finds detached on the shore1 or buried in some ancient formation1 were united originally to cartilaginous jaws4 ,now1 in breaking open all the ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 with the exception of those of the two families already described1 we find that some of the parts are invariably wanting1 however excellent the state of preservation maintained by the rest4 ,i have seen every scale preserved and in its place--one set of both the larger and smaller bones occupying their original position--jaws thickly set with teeth still undetached from the head--the massy bones of the skull still unseparated--the larger shoulder-bone1 on which the operculum rests1 lying in its proper bed--the operculum itself entire--and all the external rays which support the fins1 though frequently fine as hairs1 spreading out distinct as the fibres in the wing of the dragon-fly1 or the woody nerves in an oak-leaf4 ,in no case1 however1 have ,i succeeded in finding a single joint of the vertebral column1 or the trace of a single internal ray4 ,no part of the internal skeleton survives1 nor does its disappearance seem to have had any connection with the greater mass of putrescent matter which must have surrounded it1 seeing that the external rays of the fins show quite as entire when turned over upon the body1 as sometimes occurs1 as when spread out from it in profile4 ,besides1 in the ichthyolites of the chalk1 no parts of the skeleton are better preserved than the internal parts--the vertebral joints1 and the internal rays4 ,the reader must have observed1 in the cases of a museum of ,natural ,history1 preparations of fish of two several kinds--preparations of the skeleton1 in which only the osseous parts are exhibited1 and preparations of the external form1 in which the whole body is shown in profile1 with the fins spread to the full1 and at least half the bones of the head covered by the skin but in which the vertebral column and internal rays are wanting4 ,now1 in the fossils of the chalk1 with those of the other later formations1 down to the ,new ,red ,sandstone1 we find that the skeleton style of preparation obtains2 whereas1 in at least three fourths of the ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red1 we find only what we may term the external style4 ,i had marked1 besides1 another circumstance in the ichthyolites1 which seemed1 like a nice point of circumstantial evidence1 to give testimony in the same line4 ,the tails of all the ichthyolites1 whose vertebral columns and internal rays are wanting1 are unequally lobed1 like those of the dog-fish and sturgeon1 7both cartilaginous fishes17 and the body runs on to nearly the termination of the surrounding rays4 ,the one-sided condition of tail exists1 says ,cuvier1 in no recent osseous fish known to naturalists1 except in the bony pike--a sauroid fish of the warmer rivers of ,america4 ,with deference1 however1 to so high an authority1 it is questionable whether1 the tail of the bony pike should not rather be described as a tail set on somewhat awry1 than as a one-sided tail4 ,all these peculiarities ,i could but note as they turned up before me1 and express1 in pointing them out to a few friends1 a sort of vague1 because hopeless1 desire1 that good fortune might throw me in the way of the one man of all the world best qualified to explain the principle on which they occurred1 and to decide whether fishes may be at once bony and cartilaginous4 ,but that meeting was a contingency rather to be wished than hoped for--a circumstance within the bounds of the possible1 but beyond those of the probable4 ,could the working-man of the north of ,scotland have so much as dreamed that he was yet to enjoy an opportunity of comparing his observations with those of the naturalist of ,neufchatel1 and of having his inferences tested and confirmed8 ,the opportunity did occur4 ,the working-man did meet with ,agassiz2 and many a query had he to put to him2 and never1 surely1 was inquirer more courteously entreated1 or his doubts more satisfactorily resolved4 ,the reply to almost my first question solved the enigma of nearly ten years' standing4 ,and finely characteristic was that reply of the frankness and candor of a great mind1 that can afford to make it no secret1 that1 in its onward advances on knowledge1 it may know to-day what it did not know yesterday1 and that it is content to gain by degrees upon the darkness4 ,had you asked me the question a fortnight ago1 said ,agassiz1 ,i could not have replied to it4 ,since then1 however1 ,i have examined an ichthyolite of the ,old ,red ,sandstone in which the vertebral joints are fortunately impressed on the stone1 though the joints themselves have disappeared1 and which1 exactly resembling the vertebra8 of the shark1 must have been cartilaginous4 ,in a subsequent conversation1 the writer was gratified by finding most of his other facts and inferences authenticated and confirmed by those of the naturalist4 ,i shall attempt introducing to the reader the peculiarities1 general and specific1 of the ichthyolites to which these facts and observations mainly referred1 by describing such of the families as are most abundant in the formation1 and the points in which they either resemble or differ from the existing fish of our seas4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,iv4 ,of these ancient families1 the ,osteolepis1 or bony-scale1 7see ,plate ,,iv41 fig4 #a17 may be regarded as illustrative of the general type4 ,it was one of the first discovered of the ,caithness fishes1 and received its name in the days of ,cuvier1 from the osseous character of its scales1 ere it was ascertained that it had numerous contemporaries1 and that to all and each of these the same description applied4 ,the scales of the fishes of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 like the plates and detached prickles of the purely cartilaginous fishes1 were composed of a bony1 not of a horny1 substance1 and were all coated externally with enamel4 ,the circumstance is one of interest4 ,agassiz1 in his system of classification1 has divided fishes into four orders1 according to the form of their scales2 and his principle of division1 though apparently arbitrary and trivial1 is yet found to separate the class into great natural families1 distinguished from one another by other and very striking peculiarities4 ,one kind of scale1 for instance1 the placoid or broad-plated scale1 is found to characterize all the cartilaginous fishes of ,cuvier except the sturgeon2--it is the characteristic of an otherwise well-marked series1 whose families are furnished with skeletons composed of mere animal matter1 and whose gills open to the water by spiracles4 ,the fish of another order are covered by ctenoid or comb-shaped scales1 the posterior margin of each scale being toothed somewhat like the edge of a saw or comb2 and the order1 thus distinguished1 is found wonderfully to agree with an order formed previously on another principle of classification1 the ,acanthopterygii1 or thorny-finned order of ,cuvier1 excluding only the smooth-scaled families of this previously formed division1 and including1 in addition to it1 the flat fish4 ,a third order1 the ,cycloidean1 is marked by simple marginated scales1 like those of the cod1 haddock1 whiting1 herring1 salmon1 c42 and this order is found to embrace chiefly the ,malacopterygii1 or soft-finned order of ,cuvier--an order to which all these well-known fish1 with an immense multitude of others1 belong4 ,thus the results of the principle of classification adopted by ,agassiz wonderfully agree with the results of the less simple principles adopted by ,cuvier and the other masters in this department of ,natural ,history4 ,now1 it is peculiar to yet a fourth order1 the ,ganoidean1 or shining-scaled order1 that by much the greater number of the genera which it comprises exist only in the fossil state4 ,at least five sixths of the whole were ascertained to be extinct several years ago1 at a time when the knowledge of fossil ,ichthyology was much more limited than at present3 the proportions are now found to be immensely greater on the side of the dead4 ,and this order seems to have included all the semi-osseous1 semi-cartilaginous ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone3 the enamelled scale is the characteristic1 according to ,agassiz's principle of classification1 of the existences that filled the gap so often alluded to as existing in the present creation4 ,all their scales glitter with enamel3 they bore to this order the relation that the cartilaginous fish bear to the ,placoidean order1 the thorny-finned fish to the ,ctenoidean order1 and the soft-finned fish to the ,cycloidean order4 ,it also included1 with the semi-cartilaginous1 the sauroid fish--those master existences and tyrants of the earlier vertebrata2 and both classes find their representatives among the comparatively few ganoid fishes of the present creation2 the one in the sturgeon family1 which of all existing families approaches nearest in other respects to the extinct semi-cartilaginous fishes2 the other in the sauroid genus ,lepidosteus1 to which the bony pike belongs4 ,the head1 back1 and sides of the sturgeon are defended1 as has been already remarked1 by longitudinal rows of hard osseous bosses--the bony pike is armed with enamelled osseous scales1 of a stony hardness4 ,it seems a somewhat curious circumstance1 that fishes so unlike each other in their internal framework should thus resemble one another in their bony coverings1 and in some slight degree in their structure of tail4 ,one of the characteristics of sauroid fishes is the extreme compactness and hardness of their skeleton4,s ,footnote ,s3 ,the sauroid or lizard-like fishes1 says ,dr4 ,buckland1 combine in the structure1 both of the bones and some of the soft parts1 characters which are common to the class of reptiles4 ,the bones of the skull are united by closer sutures than those of common fishes4 ,the vertebr articulate with the spinous processes of sutures1 like the vertebr of saurians2 the ribs also articulate with the extremities of the spinous process4 ,the caudal vertebr have distinct chevron bones1 and the general condition of the skeleton is stronger and more solid than in other fishes3 the air bladder also is bifid and cellular1 approaching to the character of lungs2 and in the throat there is a glottis1 as in sirens and salamanders1 and many saurians4--,note to ,bridgewater ,treatise1 p4 #bgd1 first edit4 ,it requires skill such as that possessed by ,agassiz1 to determine that the uncouth ,coccosteus1 or the equally uncouth ,pterichthys1 of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 with their long articulated tails and tortoise-like plates1 were bona fide fishes2 but there is no possibility of mistaking the ,osteolepis3 it is obvious to the least practised eye that it must have been a fish1 and a handsome one4 ,even a cursory examination1 however1 shows very striking peculiarities1 which are found1 on further examination1 to characterize not this family alone1 but at least one half the contemporary families besides4 ,we are accustomed to see vertebrated animals with the bone uncovered in one part only1--that part the teeth1--and with the rest of the skeleton wrapped up in flesh and skin4 ,among the reptiles1 we find a few exceptions2 but a creature with a skull as naked as its teeth1--the bone being merely covered1 as in these1 by a hard1 shining enamel1--and with toes also of bare enamelled bone1 would be deemed an anomaly in creation4 ,and yet such was the condition of the ,osteolepis1 and many of its contemporaries4 ,the enamelled teeth were placed in jaws which presented outside a surface as naked and as finely enamelled as their own4 7,see ,plate ,,iv41 fig4 #e47 ,the entire head was covered with enamelled osseous plates1 furnished inside like other bones1 as shown by their cellular construction1 with their nourishing blood vessels1 and perhaps their oil1 and which rested apparently on the cartilaginous box1 which must have enclosed the brain1 and connected it with the vertebral column4 ,i cannot better illustrate the peculiar condition of the fins of this ichthyolite than by the webbed foot of a water-fowl4 ,the web or membrane in all the aquatic birds with which we are acquainted not only connects1 but also covers the toes4 ,the web or membrane in the fins of existing fishes accomplishes a similar purpose2 it both connects and covers the supporting bones or rays4 ,imagine1 however1 a webbed foot in which the toes--connected1 but not covered--present1 as in skeletons1 an upper and under surface of naked bone2 and a very correct idea may be formed1 from such a foot1 of the condition of fin which obtained among at least one half the ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,the supporting bones or rays seem to have been connected laterally by the membrane2 but on both sides they presented bony and finely enamelled surfaces4 7,see ,plate ,,iv41 fig4 #f47 ,in this singular class of fish1 all was bone without1 and all was cartilage within2 and the bone in every instance1 whether in the form of jaws or of plates1 of scales or of rays1 presented an external surface of enamel4 ,the fins are quite a study4 ,i have alluded to the connecting membrane4 ,in existing fish this membrane is the principal agent in propelling the creature2 it strikes against the water1 as the membrane of the bat's wing strikes against the air2 and the internal skeleton serves but to support and stiffen it for this purpose4 ,but in the fin of the ,osteolepis1 as in those of many of its contemporaries1 we find the condition reversed4 ,the rays were so numerous1 and lay so thickly1 side by side1 like feathers in the wing of a bird1 that they presented to the water a surface of bone1 and the continuous membrane only served to support and bind them together4 ,in the fins of existing fish we find a sort of bat-wing construction2 in those of the ,osteolepis a sort of bird-wing construction4 ,the rays1 to give flexibility to the organ which they compose1 were all jointed1 as in the soft-finned fish--as in the herring1 salmon1 and cod1 for example2 and we find in all the fins the anterior ray rising from the body in the form of an angular scale3 it is a strong1 bony scale in one of its joints1 and a bony ray in the rest4 ,the characteristic is a curious one4 ,it is again necessary1 in pursuing our description1 to refer for illustration to the purely cartilaginous fishes4 ,in at least all the higher orders of these1 furnished with movable jaws1 such as the sturgeon1 the ray1 and the shark1 the mouth is placed far below the snout4 ,the dog-fish and thorn-back are familiar instances4 ,further1 the mouth in bony fishes is movable on both the upper and under side1 like the beak of the parrot2 in the higher cartilaginous fishes it is movable1 as in quadrupeds1 on the under side only4 ,in all their orders1 too1 except in that of the sturgeon1 the gills open to the water by detached spiracles1 or breathing-holes2 but in the sturgeon1 as in the osseous fishes1 there is a continuous linear opening1 shielded by an operculum1 or gill-cover4 ,in the ,osteolepis the mouth opened below the snout1 but not so far below it as in the purely cartilaginous fishes--not farther below it than in many of the osseous ones--than in the genus ,aspro1 for instance1 or than in the genus ,polynemus1 or in even the haddock or cod4 ,it was thickly furnished with slender and sharply-pointed teeth4 ,i have hitherto been unable fully to determine whether1 like the mouths of the osseous fishes1 it was movable on both sides2 though1 from the perfect form of what seems to be the intermaxillary bone1 ,i cannot avoid thinking it was4 ,the gills opened1 as in the osseous fishes1 in continuous lines1 and were covered by large bony opercules--that on the enamelled side somewhat resemble round japanned shields4 ,but while the head of the ,osteolepis1 with its appendages1 thus resembled1 in some points1 the heads of the bony fishes1 the tail1 like those of most of its contemporaries1 differed in no respect from the tails of cartilaginous ones1 such as the sturgeon4 ,the vertebral column seems to have run on to well nigh the extremity of the caudal fin1 which we find developed chiefly on the under side4 ,the tail was a one-sided tail4 ,take into account with these peculiarities--peculiarities such as the naked skull1 jaws1 and operculum1 the naked and thickly-set rays1 and the unequally lobed condition of tail--a body covered with scales1 that glitter like sheets of mica1 and assume1 according to their position1 the parallelogramical1 rhomboidal1 angular1 or polygonal form--a lateral line raised1 not depressed--a raised bar on the inner or bony side of the scales1 which1 like the doubled-up end of a tile1 seems to have served the purpose of fastening them in their places--a general clustering of alternate fins towards the tail--and the tout ensemble must surely impart to the reader the idea of a very singular little fish4 ,the ventral fins front the space which occurs between the two dorsals1 and the anal fin the space which intervenes between the posterior dorsal fin and the tail4 ,the length of the ,osteolepis1 in my larger specimens1 somewhat exceeds a foot2 in the smaller1 it falls short of six inches4 ,there exist at least three species of this ichthyolite1 distinguished chiefly1 in two of the instances1 by the smaller and larger size of their scales1 compared with the bulk of their bodies1 and by punctulated markings on the enamel in the case of the third4 ,this last1 however1 is no specific difference1 but common to the entire genus1 and to several other genera besides4 ,the names are1 ,osteolepis macrolepidotus1 ,o4 microlepidotus1 and ,o4 arenatus4,t ,footnote ,t3 ,to these there have since been added ,osteolepis major1 ,o4 intermedius1 and ,o4 nanus2 the two latter1 however1 ,agassiz regards as doubtful4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,v4 ,next to the ,osteolepis we may place the ,dipterus1 or double-wing1 of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 an ichthyolite first introduced to the knowledge of geologists by ,mr4 ,murchison1 who1 with his friend1 ,mr4 ,sedgwick1 figured and described it in a masterly paper on the older sedimentary formations of the north of ,scotland1 which appeared in the ,transactions of the ,geological ,society of ,london for #ahbh4 ,the name1 derived from its two dorsals1 would suit equally well1 like that of the ,osteolepis1 many of its more recently discovered contemporaries4 ,from the latter ichthyolite it differed chiefly in the position of its fins1 which were opposite1 not alternate2 the double dorsals exactly fronting the anal and ventral fins4 7,see ,plate ,v41 fig4 #a47 ,the ,diplopterus1 a nearly resembling ichthyolite of the same formation1 also owes its name to the order and arrangement of its fins1 which1 like those of the ,dipterus1 were placed fronting each other1 and in pairs4 ,but the head1 in proportion to the body1 was in greater size than in either the ,dipterus or ,osteolepis2 and the mouth1 as indicated by the creature's length of jaw1 must have been of much greater width4 ,in their more striking characteristics1 however1 the three genera seem to have nearly agreed4 ,in all alike1 scales of bone glisten with enamel2 their jaws1 enamel without and bone within1 bristle thick with sharp-pointed teeth2 closely-jointed plates1 burnished like ancient helmets1 cover their heads1 and seem to have formed a kind of outer table to skulls externally of bone and internally of cartilage2 their gill-covers consist each of a single piece1 like the gill-cover of the sturgeon2 their tails were formed chiefly on the lower side of their bodies2 and the rays of their fins1 enamelled like their plates and their scales1 stand up over the connecting membrane1 like the steel or brass in that peculiar armor of the middle ages1 whose multitudinous pieces of metal were fastened together on a groundwork of cloth or of leather4 ,all their scales1 plates1 and rays present a similar style of ornament4 ,the shining and polished enamel is mottled with thickly-set punctures1 or1 rather1 punctulated markings2 so that a scale or plate1 when viewed through a microscope1 reminds one of the cover of a saddle4 ,some of the ganoid scales of ,burdie ,house present surfaces similarly punctulated4,u ,footnote ,u3 ,there exists1 according to ,agassiz1 only a single species of ,dipterus--,d4 macrelepidotus2 whereas four species of ,diplopterus have been enumerated--,d4 affinis1 ,d4 borealis1 ,d4 macrocephalus1 and ,d4 ,agassizii4 ,the existence of the last named1 however1 as a distinct species1 is regarded as problematical by the distinguished naturalist whose name has been affixed to it4 ,the ,glyptolepis1 or carved scale1 may be regarded as the representative of a family of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 which1 differing very materially from the genera described1 had yet many traits in common with them1 such as the bare1 bony skull1 the bony scales1 the naked rays1 and the unequally sided condition of tail4 ,the fins1 which were of considerable length in proportion to their breadth of base1 and present in some of the specimens a pendulous-like appearance1 cluster thick together towards the creature's lower extremities1 leaving the upper portion bare4 ,there are two dorsals placed as in the ,dipterus and ,diplopterus--the anterior directly opposite the ventral fin1 the posterior directly opposite the anal4 ,the tail is long and spreading2--the rays1 long and numerously articulated1 are comparatively stout at their base1 and slender as hairs where they terminate4 ,the shoulder-bones are of huge dimensions1 the teeth extremely minute4 ,but the most characteristic parts of the creature are the scales4 ,they are of great size1 compared with the size of the animal4 ,an individual not more than half a foot in length1 the specimen figured1 7see ,plate ,v41 fig4 #b17 exhibits scales fully three eighth parts of an inch in diameter4 ,in another more broken specimen there are scales a full inch across1 and yet the length of the ichthyolite to which they belonged seems not to have much exceeded a foot and a half4 ,each scale consists of a double plate1 an inner and an outer4 ,the structure of the inner is not peculiar to the family or the formation3 it is formed of a number of minute concentric circles1 crossed by still minuter radiating lines--the one described1 and the other proceeding from a common centre4 7,see ,plate ,v41 fig4 #e47 ,all scales that receive their accessions of growth equally at their edges exhibit1 internally1 a corresponding character4 ,the outer plate presents an appearance less common4 ,it seems relieved into ridges that drop adown it like sculptured threads1 some of them entire1 some broken1 some straight1 some slightly waved1 7see ,plate ,v41 fig4 #c27 and hence the name of the ichthyolite4 ,the plates of the head were ornamented in a similar style1 but their threads are so broken as to present the appearance of dotted lines1 the dots all standing out in bold relief4 ,my collection contains three varieties of this family2 one of them disinterred from out the ,cromarty beds about seven years ago1 and the others only a little later1 though partly from the inadequacy of a written description1 through which ,i was led to confound the ,osteolepis with the ,diplopterus1 and to regard the ,glyptolepis as the ,osteolepis1 ,i was not aware until lately that the discovery was really such2 and under the latter name ,i described the creature in the ,witness newspaper several weeks ere it had received the name which it now bears4 ,it was first introduced to the notice of ,agassiz1 in ,autumn last1 by ,lady ,cumming of ,altyre4 ,the species1 however1 was a different one from any yet found at ,cromarty4,v ,footnote ,v3 ,there are three species of ,glyptolepis--,g4 elegans1 ,g4 ,leptopterus1 and ,g4 microlepidotus4 ,the ,cheirolepis1 or scaly pectoral1 forms the representative of yet another family of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and one which any eye1 however unpractised1 could at once distinguish from the families just described4 ,professor ,traill of the ,university of ,edinburgh1 a gentleman whose researches in ,natural ,history have materially extended the boundaries of knowledge1 and whose frankness in communicating information is only equalled by his facility in acquiring it1 was the first discoverer of this family1 one variety of which1 the ,cheirolepis ,traillii1 bears his name4 ,the figured specimen 7,plate ,,vi41 fig4 #a7 ,agassiz has pronounced a new species1 the discovery of the writer4 ,in all the remains of this curious fish which ,i have hitherto seen1 the union of the osseous with the cartilaginous1 in the general framework of the creature1 is strikingly apparent4 ,the external skull1 the great shoulder-bone1 and the rays of the fins1 are all unequivocally osseous2 the occipital and shoulder-bones1 in particular1 seem of great strength and massiveness1 and are invariably preserved1 however imperfect the specimen in other respects2 whereas1 even in specimens the most complete1 and which exhibit every scale and every ray1 however minute1 and show unchanged the entire outline of the animal1 not a fragment of the internal skeleton appears4 ,the ,cheirolepis seems to have varied from fourteen to four inches in length4 ,when seen in profile1 the under line1 as in the figured variety1 seems thickly covered with fins1 and the upper line well nigh naked4 ,the large pectorals almost encroach on the ventral fins1 and the ventrals on the anal fin2 whereas the back1 for two thirds the entire length of the creature1 presents a bare rectilinear ridge1 and the single dorsal1 which rises but a little way over the tail1 immediately opposite the posterior portion of the anal fin1 is comparatively of small size4 ,the tail1 which1 in the general condition of being developed chiefly on the lower side1 resembles the tails of all the creature's contemporaries1 is elegantly lobed4 ,the scales1 in proportion to the bulk of the body which they cover1 are not more than one twentieth the size of those of the ,osteolepis4 ,they are richly enamelled1 and range diagonally from the shoulder to the belly in waving lines2 and so fretted is each individual scale by longitudinal grooves and ridges1 that1 on first bringing it under the glass1 it seems a little bunch of glittering thorns1 though1 when more minutely examined1 it is found to be present somewhat the appearance of the outer side of the deep-sea cockle1 with its strongly marked ribs and channels1 the point in which the posterior point terminates representing the hinge4 7,see ,plate ,,vi41 fig4 #b47 ,the bones of the head1 enamelled like the scales1 are carved into jagged inequalities1 somewhat resembling those on the skin of the shark1 but more irregular4 ,the sculpturings seem intended evidently for effect4 ,to produce harmony of appearance between the scaly coat and the enamelled occipital plates of bone1 the surfaces of the latter are relieved1 where they border on the shoulders1 into what seem scales1 just as the dead walls of a building are sometimes1 for the sake of uniformity1 wrought into blind windows4 ,the enamelled rays of the fins are finished1 if ,i may so speak1 after the same style4 ,they lie thick upon one another as the fibres of a quill1 and like these1 too1 they are imbricated on the sides1 so that the edge of each seems jagged into a row of prickles4 7,see ,plate ,,vi41 fig4 #c47 ,the jaws of the ,cheirolepis were armed with thickly-set sharp teeth1 like those of its contemporaries1 the ,osteolepis and ,diplopterus4,w ,footnote ,w3 ,there have been five species of ,cheirolepis enumerated--,c4 ,cummingi1 ,c4 splendens1 ,c4 ,traillii1 ,c4 unilateralis and ,c4 ,uragus4 ,the ,cheirolepis splendens and ,c4 unilateralis ,agassiz regards as doubtful4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,vi4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,the ,classifying ,principle1 and its ,uses4--,three groups of ,ichthyolites among the ,organisms of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,peculiarities of the ,third ,group4--,its ,varieties4--,description of the ,cheiracanthus4--,of two unnamed ,fossils of the same ,order4--,microscopic ,beauty of these ,ancient ,fish4--,various ,styles of ,ornament which obtain among them4--,the ,molluscs of the ,formation4--,remarkable chiefly for the ,union of ,modern with ,ancient ,forms which they exhibit4--,its ,vegetables4--,importance and ,interest of the ,record which it furnishes4 ,there rests in the neighborhood of ,cromarty1 on the upper stratum of one of the richest ichthyolite beds ,i have yet seen1 a huge water-rolled boulder of granitic gneiss1 which must have been a traveller1 in some of the later periods of geological change1 from a mountain range in the interior highlands of ,ross-shire1 more than sixty miles away4 ,it is an uncouth looking mass1 several tons in weight1 with a flat upper surface1 like that of a table2 and as a table1 when engaged in collecting my specimens1 ,i have often found occasion to employ it4 ,i have covered it over1 times without number1 with fragments of fossil fish--with plates1 and scales1 and jaws1 and fins1 and1 when the search proved successful1 with entire ichthyolites4 ,why did ,i always arrange them1 almost without thinking of the matter1 into three groups8 ,why1 even when the mind was otherwise employed1 did the fragments of the ,coccosteus and ,pterichthys come to occupy one corner of the stone1 and those of the various fish just described another corner1 and the equally well-marked remains of a yet different division a third corner8 ,the process seemed almost mechanical1 so little did it employ the attention1 and so invariable were the results4 ,the fossils of the surrounding bed always found their places on the huge stone in three groups1 and at times there was yet a fourth group added--a group whose organisms belonged not to the animal1 but the vegetable kingdom4 ,what led to the arrangement1 or in what did it originate8 ,in a principle inherent in the human mind--that principle of classification which we find pervading all science--which gives to each of the many cells of recollection its appropriate facts--and without which all knowledge would exist as a disorderly and shapeless mass1 too huge for the memory to grasp1 and too heterogeneous for the understanding to employ4 ,i have described but two of the groups1 and must now say a very little about the principle on which1 justly or otherwise1 ,i used to separate the third1 and on the distinctive differences which rendered the separation so easy4 ,the recent bony fishes are divided1 according to the ,cuvierian system of classification1 into two great orders1 the soft-finned and the thorny-finned order--the ,malacopterygii and the ,acanthopterygii4 ,in the former the rays of the fins are thin1 flexible1 articulated1 branched3 each ray somewhat resembles a jointed bamboo2 with this difference1 however1 that what seems a single ray at bottom1 branches out into three or four rays a-top4 ,in the latter1 7the thorny-finned order17--especially in their anterior dorsal1 and perhaps anal fins1--the rays are stiff continuous spikes of bone1 and each stands detached as a spear1 without joint or branch4 ,the perch may be instanced as a familiar illustration of this order--the gold-fish of the other4 ,now1 between the fins of two sets--shall ,i venture to say orders8--of the ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 an equally striking difference obtains4 ,the fin of the ,osteolepis1 with its surface of enamelled and minutely jointed bones1 ,i have already described as a sort of bird-wing fin4 ,the naked rays1 with their flattened surfaces1 lay thick together as feathers in the wing of a bird--so thick as to conceal the connecting membrane2 and fins of similar construction characterized the families of the ,dipterus1 ,diplopterus1 ,glyptolepis1 ,cheirolepis1 ,holoptychius1 and1 ,i doubt not1 many other families of the same period1 which await the researches of future discoverers4 ,but the fins of another set of ichthyolites1 their contemporaries1 may be described as bat-wing fins3 they presented to the water a broad expanse of membrane2 and the solitary ray which survives in each was not a jointed1 but a continuous spear-like ray4 ,the fins of this set1 or order1 are thorny-fins1 like those of the ,acanthopterygii2 the anterior edge of each1 with the exception of1 perhaps1 the caudal fin1 which differs in construction from the others1 is composed of a strong1 bony spike4 ,such1 with some tacit reference1 perhaps1 to the similar ,cuvierian principle of classification1 were the distinctive differences1 on the strength of which ,i used to arrange two of my groups of fossils on the granitic boulder2 and the influence of the same principle1 almost instinctively exerted1--for1 in writing the previous pages1 ,i scarce thought of its existence1--has1 ,i find1 given to each group its own chapter4 ,of the membranous-finned and thorny-rayed order of ichthyolites1 the ,cheiracanthus1 or thorny-hand1 7i4 e4 pectoral17 may be regarded as an adequate representative4 7,see ,plate ,,vii41 fig4 #a47 ,the ,cheiracanthus must have been an eminently handsome little fish--slim1 tapering1 and described in all its outlines1 whether of the body or the fins1 by gracefully waved lines4 ,it is1 however1 a rare matter to find it presenting its original profile in the stone2--none of the other ichthyolites are so frequently distorted as the ,cheiracanthus4 ,it seems to have been more a cartilaginous and less an osseous fish than most of its contemporaries4 ,however perfect the specimen1 no part of the internal skeleton is ever found1 not even when scales as minute as the point of a pin are preserved1 and every spine stands up in its original place4 ,and hence1 perhaps1 a greater degree of flexibility1 and consequent distortion4 ,the body was covered with small angular scales1 brightly enamelled1 and delicately fretted into parallel ridges1 that run longitudinally along the upper half of the scale1 and leave the posterior portion of it a smooth1 glittering surface4 7,see ,plate ,,vii41 fig4 #b47 ,they diminish in size towards the head1 which1 from the faint stain left on the stone1 seems to have been composed of cartilage exclusively1 and either covered with skin1 or with scales of extreme minuteness4 ,the lower edge of the operculum bears a tagged fringe1 like that of a curtain4 ,the tail1 a fin of considerable power1 had the unequal sided character common to the formation2 and the slender and numerous rays on both sides are separated by so many articulations as to present the appearance of parallelogramical scales4 ,the other fins are comparatively of small size4 ,there is a single dorsal placed about two thirds the entire length of the creature adown the back2 and exactly opposite its posterior edge is the anterior edge of the anal fin4 ,the ventral fins are placed high upon the belly1 somewhat like those of the perch2 the pectorals only a little higher4 ,but it is rather in the construction of the fins1 than their position1 that the peculiarities of the ,cheiracanthus are most marked4 ,the anterior edge of each1 as in the pectorals of the existing genera ,cestracion and ,chimra1 is formed of a strong1 large spine4 ,in the ,chimra borealis1 a cartilaginous fish of the ,northern ,ocean1 the spine seems placed in front of the weaker rays1 just1 if ,i may be allowed the comparison1 as1 in a line of mountaineers engaged in crossing a swollen torrent1 the strongest man in the party is placed on the upper side of the line1 to break off the force of the current from the rest4 ,in the ,cheiracanthus1 however1 each fin seems to consist of but a single spine1 with an angular membrane fixed to it by one of its sides1 and attached to the creature's body on the other4 ,its fins are masts and sails--the spine representing the mast1 and the membrane the sail2 and it is a curious characteristic of the order1 that the membrane1 like the body1 of the ichthyolite1 is thickly covered with minute scales4 ,the mouth seems to have opened a very little under the snout1 as in the haddock2 and there are no indications of its having been furnished with teeth4,x ,footnote ,x3 ,there have been three species of ,cheiracanthus determined--,c4 microlepidotus1 ,c4 minor1 and ,c4 ,murchisoni4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,vii4 ,an ichthyolite first discovered by the writer about three years ago1 and introduced by him to the notice of ,agassiz during his recent visit to ,edinburgh1 but still unfurnished with a name1,y is a still more striking representative of this order than even the ,cheiracanthus4 ,it must have been proportionally thick and short1 like some of the tropical fishes1 though rather handsome than otherwise4 7,see ,plate ,,viii41 fig4 #a47 ,the scales1 minute1 but considerably larger than those of the ,cheiracanthus1 are of a rhomboidal form1 and so regularly striated--the stri converging to a point at the posterior termination of each scale--that1 when examined with a glass1 the body appears as if covered with scallops4 7,see ,plate ,,viii41 fig4 #c47 ,it seems a piece of exquisite shell-work1 such as we sometimes see on the walls of a grotto4 ,there are two dorsals--the posterior1 immediately over the tail1 and directly opposite the anal fin2 the anterior1 somewhat higher up than the ventrals2 and all the fins are of great size4 ,the anterior edge of each is formed of a strong spine1 round as the handle of a halbert1 and diminishing gradually and symmetrically to a sharp point4 ,though formed externally of solid bone1 it seems to have been composed internally of cartilage1 like the bones of some of the osseous fishes--those of the halibut1 for instance2 and the place of the cartilage is generally occupied in the stone by carbonate of lime4 ,the membrane which formed the body of the fin was covered1 like that of the ,cheiracanthus1 with minute scales1 of the same scallop-like pattern with the rest1 but of not more than one sixth the size of those which cover the creature's sides and back4 ,imagine two lug-sails stiffly extended between the deck of a brigantine and her two masts1 the latter raking as far aft as to form an angle of sixty degrees with the horizon1 and some idea may be formed of the dorsals of this singular fish4 ,they were lug-sails1 formed not to be acted upon by the air1 but to act upon the water4 ,none of my specimens show the head2 but1 judging from analogies furnished by the other families of the group1 ,i entertain little doubt that it will be found to be covered1 not by bony plates1 but by minute scales1 diminishing1 as they approach the snout1 into mere points4 ,in none of the specimens does any part of the internal skeleton survive4 ,footnote ,y3 ,now determined to be a species of ,diplacanthus--,d4 longispinus4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,viii4 ,my collection contains the remains of yet another fish of this group1 which was unfurnished with a name only a few months ago1 but which ,i first discovered about five years since4 7,see ,plate ,,viii41 fig4 #b47 ,it is now designated the ,diplacanthus2 and1 though the smallest ichthyolite of the formation yet known1 it is by no means the least curious4 ,the length from head to tail1 in some of my specimens1 does not exceed three inches2 the largest fall a little short of five4 ,the scales1 which are of such extreme minuteness that their peculiarities can be detected by only a powerful glass1 resemble those of the ,cheiracanthus2 but the ridges are more waved1 and seem1 instead of running in nearly parallel lines1 to converge towards the apex4 ,there are two dorsals1 the one rising immediately from the shoulder1 a little below the nape1 the other directly opposite the anal fin4 ,the ventrals are placed near the middle of the belly4 ,there is a curious mechanism of shoulder-bone involved with a lateral spine and with the pectorals4 ,the creature1 unlike the ,cheiracanthus1 seems to have been furnished with jaws of bone3 there are fragments of bone upon the head1 tubercled apparently on the outer surface2 and minute cylinders of carbonate of lime running along all the larger bones1 where we find them accidentally laid open1 show that they were formed on internal bases of cartilage4 ,but the best marked characteristic of the creature is furnished by the spines of its fins1 which are of singular beauty4 ,each spine resembles a bundle of rods1 or1 rather1 like a ,gothic column1 the sculptured semblance of a bundle of rods1 which finely diminish towards a point1 sharp and tapering as that of a rush4 7,see ,plate ,,viii41 fig4 #d47,z ,the rest of the fin presents the appearance of a mere scaly membrane1 and no part of the internal skeleton appears4 ,perhaps this last circumstance1 common to all the ichthyolites of the formation1 if we except the families of the ,coccosteus and ,pterichthys1 may throw some light on the apparently membranous condition of fin peculiar to the families of this order4 ,what appears in the fossil a mere scaly membrane attached to a single spine of bone1 may have had in the living animal a cartilaginous framework1 like the fins of the dog-fish and thorn-back1 that are amply furnished with rays of cartilage--though1 of course1 all such rays must have disappeared in the stone1 like the rest of the internal skeleton4 ,unquestionably1 the caudal fin of the two last described fossils must have been strengthened by some such internal framework2 for1 as they differ from the other fins1 in being unprovided with osseous spines1 they would have formed1 without an internal skeleton1 mere pendulous attachments1 altogether unfitted to serve the purposes of instruments of motion4 ,there may be found in the bony spines of all this order direct proof that1 had there been an internal skeleton of bone1 it would have survived4 ,the spines run deep into the body1 as a ship's masts run deep into her hulk2 and we can see them standing up among the scales to their termination1 in such bold relief1 that1 from a sort of pictorial illusion1 they seem as if fixed to the creature's sides1 and foreshortened1 instead of rising in profile from its back or belly4 7,see ,plate ,,viii41 fig4 #a47 ,the observer will of course remember1 that1 in the living animal1 the view of the spine must have terminated with the line of the profile1 just as the view of a vessel's mast terminates with the deck1 though the mast itself penetrates to the interior keel4 ,now1 it must be deemed equally obvious1 that1 had the vertebral column been of bone1 not of cartilage1 instead of exhibiting no trace1 even the faintest1 of having ever existed1 it would have stood out in as high relief as the internal buts or stocks of the spines4 ,and such are the general characteristics of a few of the ichthyolites of this lower formation of the ,old ,red ,sandstone--a few of the more striking forms1 sculptured1 if ,i may so speak1 on the middle compartment of the ,caithness pyramid4 ,it would be easy rendering the list more complete at even the present stage1 when the field is still so new that almost every laborer in it can exhibit genera and species unknown to his brother laborers4 ,the remains of a species of ,holoptychius have been discovered low in the formation1 at ,orkney1 by ,dr4 ,traill2 similar remains have been found in it at ,gamrie4 ,in its upper beds the specimens seem so different from those in the lower1 that1 in extensive collections made from the inferior strata of one locality1 ,agassiz has been unable to identify a single specimen with the specimens of collections made from the superior strata of another1 though the genera are the same4 ,meanwhile there are heads and hands at work on the subject2 ,geology has become a ,briareus2 and ,i have little doubt that1 in five years hence1 this third portion of the ,old ,red ,sandstone will be found to contain as many distinct varieties of fossil fish as the whole geological scale was known to contain fifteen years ago4,,aa ,footnote ,z3 ,agassiz reckons four species of ,diplacanthus--,d4 crassispinus1 ,d4 longispinus1 ,d4 striatulus1 and ,d4 striatus4 ,footnote ,,aa3 ,this prediction has been already more than accomplished4 ,at the death of ,cuvier1 in #ahcb1 there were but ninety-two species of fossil fish known to the geologist2 ,agassiz now enumerates one hundred and five species that belong to the ,old ,red ,sandstone alone2 and if we include doubtful species1 on which he has not authoritatively decided--some of which1 however1 were included in the list of ,cuvier--one hundred and fifty-one4 ,there is something very admirable in the consistency of style which obtains among the ichthyolites of this formation4 ,in no single fish of either group do we find two styles of ornament--in scarce any two fishes do we find exactly the same style4 ,i pass fine buildings almost every day4 ,in some there is a discordant jumbling--an ,egyptian ,sphinx1 for instance1 placed over a ,doric portico2 in all there prevails a vast amount of timid imitation4 ,the one repeats the other1 either in general outline or in the subordinate parts4 ,but the case is otherwise among the ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone2 nor does it lessen the wonder1 that their nicer ornaments should yield their beauty only to the microscope4 ,there is unity of character in every scale1 plate1 and fin--unity such as all men of taste have learned to admire in those three ,grecian orders from which the ingenuity of ,rome was content to borrow1 when it professed to invent--in the masculine ,doric1 the chaste and graceful ,ionic1 the exquisitely elegant ,corinthian2 and yet the unassisted eye fails to discover the finer evidences of this unity3 it would seem as if the adorable ,architect had wrought it out in secret with reference to the ,divine idea alone4 ,the artist who sculptured the cherry-stone consigned it to a cabinet1 and placed a microscope beside it2 the microscopic beauty of these ancient fish was consigned to the twilight depths of a primeval ocean4 ,there is a feeling which at times grows upon the painter and the statuary1 as if the perception and love of the beautiful had been sublimed into a kind of moral sense4 ,art comes to be pursued for its own sake2 the exquisite conception in the mind1 or the elegant and elaborate model1 becomes all in all to the worker1 and the dread of criticism or the appetite of praise almost nothing4 ,and thus1 through the influence of a power somewhat akin to conscience1 but whose province is not the just and the good1 but the fair1 the refined1 the exquisite1 have works prosecuted in solitude1 and never intended for the world1 been found fraught with loveliness4 ,sir ,thomas ,lawrence1 when finishing1 with the most consummate care1 a picture intended for a semi-barbarous1 foreign court1 was asked why he took so much pains with a piece destined1 perhaps1 never to come under the eye of a connoisseur4 ,i cannot help it1 he replied2 ,i do the best ,i can1 unable1 through a tyrant feeling1 that will not brook offence1 to do any thing less4 ,it would be perhaps over bold to attribute any such overmastering feeling to the ,creator2 yet certain it is1 that among his creatures well nigh all approximations towards perfection1 in the province in which it expatiates1 owe their origin to it1 and that ,deity in all his works is his own rule4 ,the ,osteolepis was cased1 ,i have said1 from head to tail1 in complete armor4 ,the head had its plaited mail1 the body its scaly mail1 the fins their mail of parallel and jointed bars2 the entire suit glittered with enamel2 and every plate1 bar1 and scale was dotted with microscopic points4 ,every ray had its double or treble punctulated row1 every scale or plate its punctulated group2 the markings lie as thickly in proportion to the fields they cover1 as the circular perforations in a lace veil2 and the effect1 viewed through the glass1 is one of lightness and beauty4 ,in the ,cheirolepis an entirely different style obtains4 ,the enamelled scales and plates glitter with minute ridges1 that show like thorns in a ,december morning varnished with ice4 ,every ray of the fins presents its serrated edge1 every occipital plate and bone its sculptured prominences1 every scale its bunch of prickle-like ridges4 ,a more rustic style characterized the ,glyptolepis4 ,the enamel of the scales and plates is less bright2 the sculpturings are executed on a larger scale1 and more rudely finished4 ,the relieved ridges1 waved enough to give them a pendulous appearance1 drop adown the head and body4 ,the rays of the fins1 of great length1 present also a pendulous appearance4 ,the bones and scales seem disproportionately large4 ,there is a general rudeness in the finish of the creature1 if ,i may so speak1 that reminds one of the tattooings of a savage1 or the corresponding style of art in which he ornaments the handle of his stone-hatchet or his war-club4 ,in the ,cheiracanthus1 on the contrary1 there is much of a minute and cabinet-like elegance4 ,the silvery smoothness of the fins1 dotted with scarcely visible scales1 harmonized with a similar appearance of head2 a style of sculpture resembling the parallel etchings of the line-engraver fretted the scales2 the fins were small1 and the contour elegant4 ,i have already described the appearance of the unnamed fossils--the seeming shell-work that covered the sides of the one--its mast-like spines and sail-like fins2 and the ,gothic-like peculiarities that characterized the other--its rodded1 obelisk-like spines1 and the external framework of bone that stretched along its pectorals4 ,till very lately1 it was held that the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,scotland contained no mollusca4 ,it seemed difficult1 however1 to imagine a sea abounding in fish1 and yet devoid of shells4 ,in all my explorations1 therefore1 ,i had an eye to the discovery of the latter1 and on two several occasions ,i disinterred what ,i supposed might have formed portions of a cardium or terebratula4 ,on applying the glass1 however1 the punctulated character of the surface showed that the supposed shells were but parts of the concave helmet-like plate that covered the snout of the ,osteolepis4 ,in the ichthyolite beds of ,cromarty and ,ross1 of ,moray1 ,banff1 ,perth1 ,forfar1 ,fife1 and ,berwickshire1 not a single shell has yet been found2 but there have been discovered of late1 in the upper beds of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone in ,orkney1 the remains of a small1 delicate bivalve1 not yet described or figured1 but which very much resembles a ,venus4 7,see ,plate ,v41 fig4 #g47 ,in the ,tilestones of ,england1 so carefully described by ,mr4 ,murchison in his ,silurian ,system1 shells are very abundant2 and the fact may now be regarded as established1 that the ,tilestones of ,england belong to a deposit contemporaneous with the ichthyolite beds of ,caithness and ,cromarty4 ,they occupy the same place low in the base of the ,old ,red2 and there is at least one ichthyolite common to both1,,ab and which does not occur in the superior strata of the system in either country--the ,dipterus macrolepidotus4 ,the evidence that the fish and shells lived in the same period1 and represent1 therefore1 the same formation1 may be summed up in a single sentence4 ,we learn from the ,geology of ,caithness that this species of ,dipterus was unquestionably contemporary with all the other ichthyolites described2--we learn from the ,geology of ,herefordshire that the shells were as unquestionably contemporary with it4,,ac ,these--the shells--are of a singularly mixed character1 regarded as a group1 uniting1 says ,mr4 ,murchison1 forms at one time deemed characteristic of the more modern formations1--of the latter secondary1 and even tertiary periods1--with forms the most ancient1 and which characterize the molluscous remains of the transition rocks4 ,turbinated shells and bivalves of well nigh the recent type may be found lying side by side with chambered ,orthoceratites and ,terebratula4,,ad ,footnote ,,ab3 ,silurian ,system1 part ii4 p4 #eii4 ,footnote ,,ac3 ,in ,russia1 too1 as shown by the recent discoveries of ,murchison1 the ,old ,red fishes of ,caithness1 and the ,old ,red shells of ,devonshire1 may be found lying embedded in the same strata4 ,footnote ,,ad3 ,silurian ,system1 part i4 p4 #ahc4 ,the vegetable remains of the formation are numerous1 but obscure1 consisting mostly of carbonaceous markings1 such as might be formed by comminuted sea-weed4 7,see ,plate ,,vii47 ,some of the impressions fork into branches at acute angles1 7see figs4 #d1 #e1 and #f27 some affect a waved outline1 7see figs4 #g and #h27 most of them1 however1 are straight and undivided4 ,they lie in some places so thickly in layers as to give the stone in which they occur a slaty character4 ,one of my specimens shows minute markings1 somewhat resembling the bird-like eyes of the ,stigmaria ,ficoides of the ,coal ,measures2--the branches of another terminate in minute hooks1 that remind one of the hooks of the young tendrils of the pea when they first begin to turn4 7,see fig4 #c47 ,in yet another there are marks of the ligneous fibre2 when examined by the glass1 it resembles a bundle of horse-hairs lying stretched in parallel lines2 and in this specimen alone have ,i found aught approaching to proof of a terrestrial origin4 ,the deposition seems to have taken place far from land2 and this lignite1 if in reality such1 had probably drifted far ere it at length became weightier than the supporting fluid1 and sank4,,ae ,it is by no means rare to find fragments of wood that have been borne out to sea by the gulf stream from the shores of ,mexico or the ,west ,indian ,islands1 stranded on the rocky coasts of ,orkney and ,shetland4 ,footnote ,,ae3 ,the organism here referred to has been since slit by the lapidary1 and the sections carefully examined4 ,it proves to be unequivocally a true wood of the coniferous class4 ,the following is the decision regarding it of ,mr4 ,william ,nicol1 of ,edinburgh1 confessedly one of our highest living authorities in that division of fossil botany which takes cognizance of the internal structure cf lignites1 and decides from their anatomy their race and family3-- ,edinburgh1 #aith ,july1 #ahae4 ,dear ,sir3--,i have examined the structure of the fossil wood which you found in the ,old ,red ,sandstone at ,cromarty1 and have no hesitation in stating1 that the reticulated texture of the transverse sections1 though somewhat compressed1 clearly indicates a coniferous origin2 but as there is not the slightest trace of a disk to be seen in the longitudinal sections parallel to the medullary rays1 it is impossible to say whether it belongs to the ,pine or ,araucarian division4 ,i am1 c41 ,william ,nicol4 ,the dissimilarity which obtains between the fossils of the contemporary formations of this system in ,england and ,scotland1 is instructive4 ,the group in the one consists mainly of molluscous animals2 in the other1 almost entirely of ichthyolites1 and what seems to have been alg4 ,other localities may present us with yet different groups of the same period--with the productions of its coasts1 its lakes1 and its rivers4 ,at present1 we are but beginning to know just a little of its littoral shells1 and of the fish of its profounder depths4 ,these last are surely curious subjects of inquiry4 ,we cannot catechise our stony ichthyolites1 as the necromantic lady of the ,arabian ,nights did the colored fish of the lake1 which had once been a city1 when she touched their dead bodies with her wand1 and they straightway raised their heads and replied to her queries4 ,we would have many a question to ask them if we could--questions never to be solved4 ,but even the contemplation of their remains is a powerful stimulant to thought4 ,the wonders of ,geology exercise every faculty of the mind--reason2 memory1 imagination2 and though we cannot put our fossils to the question1 it is something to be so aroused as to be made to put questions to one's self4 ,i have referred to the consistency of style which obtained among these ancient fishes--the unity of character which marked every scale1 plate1 and fin of every various family1 and which distinguished it from the rest2 and who can doubt that the same shades of variety existed in their habits and their instincts8 ,we speak of the infinity of ,deity--of his inexhaustible variety of mind2 but we speak of it until the idea becomes a piece of mere common-place in our mouths4 ,it is well to be brought to feel1 if not to conceive of it--to be made to know that we ourselves are barren-minded1 and that in ,him all fulness dwelleth4 ,succeeding creations1 each with its myriads of existences1 do not exhaust ,him4 ,he never repeats ,himself4 ,the curtain drops1 at his command1 over one scene of existence full of wisdom and beauty2 it rises again1 and all is glorious1 wise1 and beautiful as before1 and all is new1 ,who can sum up the amount of wisdom whose record ,he has written in the rocks--wisdom exhibited in the succeeding creations of earth1 ere man was1 but which was exhibited surely not in vain8 ,may we not say with ,milton1-- ,think not1 though men were none1 ,that heaven could want spectators1 ,god want praise2 ,millions of spiritual creatures walked the earth1 ,and these with ceaseless praise his works beheld8 ,it is well to return on the record1 and to read in its unequivocal characters the lessons which it was intended to teach4 ,infidelity has often misinterpreted its meaning1 but not the less on that account has it been inscribed for purposes alike wise and benevolent4 ,is it nothing to be taught1 with a demonstrative evidence which the metaphysician cannot supply1 that races are not eternal--that every family had its beginning1 and that whole creations have come to an end8 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,the ,lines of the ,geographer rarely right ,lines4--,these last1 however1 always worth looking at when they occur4--,striking ,instance in the ,line of the ,great ,caledonian ,valley4--,indicative of the ,direction in which the ,volcanic ,agencies have operated4--,sections of the ,old ,red ,sandstone furnished by the ,granitic ,eminences of the ,line4--,illustration4--,lias of the ,moray ,frith4--,surmisings regarding its ,original ,extent4--,these lead to an ,exploratory ,ramble4--,narrative4--,phenomena exhibited in the course of half an hour's ,walk4--,the little ,bay4--,its ,strata and their ,organisms4 ,the natural boundaries of the geographer are rarely described by right lines4 ,whenever these occur1 however1 the geologist may look for something remarkable4 ,there is one very striking example furnished by the north of ,scotland4 ,the reader1 in consulting a map of the kingdom1 will find that the edge of a ruler1 laid athwart the country in a direction from south-west to north-east1 touches the whole northern side of the great ,caledonian ,valley1 with its long1 straight line of lakes2 and onwards1 beyond the valley's termination at both ends1 the whole northern side of ,loch ,eil and ,loch ,linnhe1 and the whole of the abrupt and precipitous northern shores of the ,moray ,frith1 to the extreme point of ,tarbat ,ness--a right line of considerably more than a hundred miles4 ,nor does the geography of the globe furnish a line better defined by natural marks4 ,there is both rampart and fosse4 ,on the one hand we have the rectilinear lochs and lakes1 with an average profundity of depth more than equal to that of the ,german ,ocean1 and1 added to these1 the rectilinear lines of frith2 on the other hand1 with but few interruptions1 there is an inclined wall of rock1 which rises at a steep angle in the interior to nearly two thousand feet over the level of the ,great ,canal1 and overhangs the sea towards its northern termination1 in precipices of more than a hundred yards4,,af ,footnote ,,af3 ,the valley of the ,jordan1 from the village of ,laish to the southern extremity of the ,dead ,sea1 furnishes another very remarkable instance of a geographical right line4 ,the direction of this rampart and fosse--this ,roman wall of ,scottish geological history--seems to have been that in which the volcanic agencies chiefly operated in upheaving the entire island from the abyss4 ,the line survives as a sort of foot-track1 hollowed by the frequent tread of earthquakes1 to mark the course in which they journeyed4 ,like one of the great lines in a trigonometrical survey1 it enables us1 too1 to describe the lesser lines1 and to determine their average bearing4 ,the volcanic agencies must have extended athwart the country from south-west to north-east4 ,mark in a map of the island--all the better if it be a geological one--the line in which most of our mountain ranges stretch across from the ,german ,ocean to the ,atlantic1--the line1 too1 in which our friths1 lochs1 and bays1 on both the eastern and western coasts1 and especially those of the latter1 run into the interior4 ,mark1 also1 the line of the geological formations1 where least broken by insulated groups of hills--the line1 for instance1 of the ,old ,red ,sandstone belt1 which flanks the southern base of the ,grampians--the nearly parallel line of our ,scottish ,coal-field1 in its course from sea to sea--the line of the ,grauwacke1 which forms so large a portion of the south of ,scotland--the line of the ,english ,coal-field1 of the ,lias1 of the ,oolite1 of the ,chalk--and how in this process of diagonal lining1 if ,i may so speak1 the south-eastern portion of ,england comes to be cut off from the secondary formations altogether1 and1 but for the denudation of the valley of the ,weald1 would have exhibited only tertiary depositions4 ,in all these lines1 whether of mountains1 lakes1 friths1 or formations1 there is an approximation to parallelism with the line of the great ,caledonian valley--proofs that the upheaving agency from beneath must have acted in this direction from some unknown cause1 during all the immensely extended term of its operations1 and along the entire length of the island4 ,it is a fact not unworthy of remark1 that the profound depths of ,loch ,ness undulated in strange sympathy with the reeling towers and crashing walls of ,lisbon1 during the great earthquake of #agee2 and that the impulse1 true to its ancient direction1 sent the waves in huge furrows to the north-east and the south-west4 ,the north-eastern portion of this rectilinear wall or chain runs1 for about thirty miles1 through an ,old ,red ,sandstone district4 ,the materials which compose it are as unlike those of the plain out of which it arises1 as the materials of a stone dike1 running half-way into a field1 are unlike the vegetable mould which forms the field's surface4 ,the ridge itself is of a granitic texture--a true gneiss4 ,at its base we find only conglomerates1 sandstones1 shales1 and stratified clays1 and these lying against it in very high angles4 ,hence the geological interest of this lower portion of the wall4 ,as has been shrewdly remarked by ,mr4 ,murchison1,,ag in one of his earlier papers1 the gneiss seems to have been forced through the sandstone from beneath1 in a solid1 not a fluid form2 and as the ridge a-top is a narrow one1 and the sides remarkably abrupt--an excellent wedge1 both in consistency and form--instead of having acted on the surrounding depositions1 as most of the south country traps have done that have merely issued from a vent1 and overlaid the upper strata1 it has torn up the entire formation from the very bottom4 ,imagine a large wedge forced from below through a sheet of thick ice on a river or pond4 ,first the ice rises in an angle1 that becomes sharper and higher as the wedge rises2 then it cracks and opens1 presenting its upturned edges on both sides1 and through comes the wedge4 ,and this is a very different process1 be it observed1 from what takes place when the ice merely cracks1 and the water issues through the crack4 ,in the one case there is a rent1 and water diffused over the surface2 in the other1 there is the projecting wedge1 flanked by the upturned edges of the ice2 and these edges1 of course1 serve as indices to decide regarding the ice's thickness1 and the various layers of which it is composed4 ,now1 such are the phenomena exhibited by the wedge-like granitic ridge4 ,the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 tilted up against it on both sides1 at an angle of about eighty1 exhibits in some parts a section of well nigh two thousand feet1 stretching from the lower conglomerate to the soft1 unfossiliferous sandstone1 which forms in ,ross and ,cromarty the upper beds of the formation4 ,there is a mighty advantage to the geologist in this arrangement4 ,when books are packed up in a deep box or chest1 we have to raise the upper tier ere we can see the tier below1 and this second tier ere we can arrive at a third1 and so on to the bottom4 ,but when well arranged on the shelves of a library1 we have merely to run the eye along their lettered backs1 and we can thus form an acquaintance with them at a glance1 which in the other case would have cost us a good deal of trouble4 ,now1 in the neighborhood of this granitic wedge1 or wall1 the strata are arranged1 not like books in a box1--such was their original position1--but like books on the shelves of a library4 ,they have been unpacked and arranged by the uptilting agent2 and the knowledge of them1 which could only have been attained in their first circumstances by perforating them with a shaft of immense depth1 may now be acquired simply by passing over their edges4 ,a morning's saunter gives us what would have cost1 but for the upheaving granite1 the labor of a hundred miners for five years4 ,footnote ,,ag3 ,see ,transactions of the ,london ,geological ,society for #ahbh1 p4 #ced4 ,by far the greater portion of the life of the writer was spent within less than half an hour's walk of one of these upturned edges4 ,i have described the granitic rock1 with reference to the disturbance it has occasioned as a wedge forced from below1 and with reference to its rectilinear position in the sandstone district which it traverses1 as a stone wall running half-way into a field4 ,it may communicate a still corrector and livelier idea to think of it as a row of wedges1 such as one sometimes sees in a quarry when the workmen are engaged in cutting out from the mass some immense block1 intended to form a stately column or huge architrave4 ,the eminences1 like the wedges1 are separated2 in some places the sandstone lies between--in others there occur huge chasms filled by the sea4 ,the ,friths of ,cromarty and ,beauly1 for instance1 and the ,bay of ,munlochy1 open into the interior between these wedge-like eminences2--the well-known ,sutors of ,cromarty represent two of the wedges2 and it was the section furnished by the ,southern ,sutor that lay so immediately in the writer's neighborhood4 ,the line of the ,cromarty ,frith forms an angle of about thirty-five degrees with that of the granitic line of wedge-like hills which it bisects2 and hence the peculiar shape of that tongue of land which forms the lower portion of the ,black ,isle1 and which1 washed by the ,moray ,frith on the one side1 and by the ,frith of ,cromarty on the other1 has its apex occupied by the ,southern ,sutor4 ,imagine a lofty promontory somewhat resembling a huge spear thrust horizontally into the sea--a ponderous mass of granitic gneiss1 of about a mile in length1 forming the head1 and a rectilinear line of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 more than ten miles in length1 forming the shaft2 and such is the appearance which this tongue of land presents1 when viewed from its north-western boundary1 the ,cromarty ,frith4 ,when viewed from the ,moray ,frith1--its south-western boundary1--we see the same granitic spear-head1 but find the line of the shaft knobbed by the other granitic eminences of the chain4 ,now on this tongue of land ,i first broke ground as a geologist4 ,the quarry described in my introductory chapter1 as that in which my notice was first attracted by the ripple markings1 opens on the ,cromarty ,frith side of this huge spear-shaft2 the quarry to which ,i removed immediately after1 and beside which ,i found the fossils of the ,lias1 opens on its ,moray ,frith side4 ,the uptilted section of sandstone occurs on both sides1 where the shaft joins to the granitic spear-head1 but the ,lias ,i found on the ,moray ,frith side alone4 ,it studs the coast in detached patches1 sorely worn by the incessant lashings of the ,frith2 and each patch bears an evident relation1 in the place it occupies1 to a corresponding knob or wedge in the granitic line4 ,the ,northern ,sutor1 as has been just said1 is one of these knobs or wedges4 ,it has its accompanying patch of ,lias upheaved at its base1 and lying unconformably1 not only to its granitic strata1 but also to its subordinate sandstones4 ,the ,southern ,sutor1 another of these knobs1 has also its accompanying patch of ,lias1 which1 though lying beyond the fall of the tide1 strews the beach1 after every storm from the east1 with its shales and its fossils4 ,the hill of ,eathie is yet another knob of the series1 and it1 too1 has its ,lias patch4 ,the granitic wedges have not only uptilted the sandstone1 but they have also upheaved the superincumbent ,lias1 which1 but for their agency1 would have remained buried under the waters of the ,frith1 and its ever accumulating banks of sand and gravel4 ,i had remarked at an early period the correspondence of the granitic knobs with the ,lias patches1 and striven to realize the original place and position of the latter ere the disturbing agent had upcast them to the light4 ,what1 ,i have asked1 was the extent of this comparatively modern formation in this part of the world1 ere the line of wedges were forced through from below8 ,a wedge struck through the ice of a pond towards the centre breaks its continuity1 and we find the ice on both sides the wedge2 whereas1 when struck through at the pond edge1 it merely raises the ice from the bank1 and we find it1 in consequence1 on but one side the wedge4 ,whether1 have ,i often inquired1 w ,t ere the granitic wedges of this line forced through the ,lias at one of its edges1 or at a comparatively central point8 and about ten years ago ,i set myself to ascertain whether ,i could not solve the question4 ,the ,southern ,sutor is a wedge open to examination on both its sides2--the ,moray ,frith washes it upon one side1 the ,cromarty ,frith on the other4 ,was the ,lias to be found on both its sides8 ,if so1 the wedge must have been forced through the formation1 not merely beside it4 ,it occurs1 as ,i have said1 on the ,moray ,frith side of the wedge2 and ,i resolved1 on carefully exploring the ,frith of ,cromarty1 to try whether it did not occur on that side too4 ,with this object ,i set out on an exploratory excursion1 on a delightful morning of ,august1 #ahcj4 ,the tide was falling2 it had already reached the line of half ebb2 and from the ,southern ,sutor to the low1 long promontory on which the town of ,cromarty is built1 there extended a broad belt of mingled sand-banks and pools1 accumulations of boulders1 and shingle1 and large tracts darkened with alg4 ,i passed direct by a grassy pathway to the ,sutor1 the granitic spear-head of a late illustration1--and turned1 when ,i reached the curved and contorted gneiss1 to trace through the broad belt left by the retiring waters1 and in a line parallel to what ,i have described as the shaft of the huge spear1 the beds and strata of the ,old ,red ,sandstone in their ascending succession4 ,i first crossed the conglomerate base of the system1 here little more than a hundred feet in thickness4 ,the ceaseless dash of the waves1 which smooth most other rocks1 has a contrary effect on this bed1 except in a few localities1 where its arenaceous cement of base is much indurated4 ,under both the ,northern and ,southern ,sutors the softer cement yields to the incessant action1 while the harder pebbles stand out in bold relief2 so that1 wherever it presents a mural front to the breakers1 we are reminded1 by its appearance1 of the artificial rock work of the architect4 ,it roughens as the rocks around it polish4 ,quitting the conglomerate1 ,i next passed over a thick bed of coarse reel and yellow sandstone1 with here and there a few pebbles sticking from its surface1 and here and there a stratum of finer-grained fissile sandstone inserted between the rougher strata3 ,i then crossed over a strata of an impure grayish limestone1 and a slaty clay1 abounding1 as ,i long afterwards ascertained1 in ichthyolites and vegetable remains4 ,there are minute veins in the limestone 7apparently cracks filled up7 of a jet black bituminous substance1 resembling anthracite2 the stratified clay is mottled by layers of semi-aluminous1 semi-calcareous nodules1 arranged like layers of flint in the upper ,chalk4 ,these nodules1 when cut up and polished1 present very agreeable combinations of color2 there is generally an outer ring of reddish brown1 an inner ring of pale yellow1 and a central patch of red1 and the whole is prettily veined with dark-colored carbonate of lime4,,ah ,passing onwards and upwards in the line of the strata1 ,i next crossed over a series of alternate beds of coarse sandstone and stratified clay1 and then lost sight of the rock altogether1 in a wide waste of shingle and boulder-stones1 resting on a dark blue argillaceous diluvium1 sometimes employed in that part of the country1 from its tenacious and impermeable character1 for lining ponds and dams1 and as mortar for the foundations of low-lying houses1 exposed in wet weather to the sudden rise of water4 ,the numerous boulders of this tract have their story to tell1 and it is a curious one4 ,the ,southern ,sutor1 with its multitudinous fragments of gneiss1 torn from its sides by the sea1 or loosened by the action of frosts and storms1 and rolled down its precipices1 is only a few hundred yards away2--its base1 where these lie thickest1 has been swept by tempests1 chiefly from the east1 for thousands and thousands of years2 and the direct effect of these tempests1 regarded as transporting agents1 would have been to strew this stony tract with those detached fragments4 ,the same billow that sends its long roll from the ,german ,ocean to sweep the base of the ,sutor1 and to leap up against its precipices to the height of eighty and a hundred feet1 breaks in foam1 only a minute after1 over this stony tract2 which has1 in consequence1 its sprinkling of fragments of gneiss1 transported by an agency so obvious4 ,but for every one such fragment which it bears1 we find at least ten boulders that have been borne for forty and fifty miles in the opposite direction from the interior of the country--a direction in which no transporting agency now exists4 ,the tempests of thousands of years have conveyed for but a few hundred yards not more than a tithe of the materials of this tract2 nine tenths of the whole have been conveyed by an older agency over spaces of forty and fifty miles4 ,how immensely more powerful1 then1 or how immensely protracted in its operation1 must that older agency have been6 ,footnote ,,ah3 ,a concretionary limestone of the ,old ,red system in ,england1 variegated with purple and green1 was at one time wrought as a marble4--,silurian ,system1 ,part i4 p4 #agf4 ,i passed onwards1 and reached a little bay1 or1 rather1 angular indentation of the coast1 in the neighborhood of the town4 ,it was laid bare by the tide1 this morning1 far beyond its outer opening2 and the huge1 table-like boulder1 which occupies nearly its centre1 and to which1 in a former chapter1 ,i have had occasion to refer1 held but a middle place between the still darkened flood-line that ran high along the beach1 and the brown line of ebb that bristled far below with forests of the rough-stemmed tangle4 ,this little bay1 or inflection of the coast1 serves as a sort of natural wear in detaining floating drift-weed1 and is often found piled1 after violent storms from the east1 with accumulations1 many yards in extent1 and several feet in depth1 of kelp and tangle1 mixed with zophytes and mollusca1 and the remains of fish killed among the shallows by the tempest4 ,early in the last century1 a large body of herrings1 pursued by whales and porpoises1 were stranded in it1 to the amount of several hundred barrels2 and it is said that salt and cask failed the packers when but comparatively a small portion of the shoal were cured1 and that by much the greatest part of them were carried away by the neighboring farmers for manure4 ,ever since the formation of the present coast-line1 this natural wear has been arresting1 tide after tide1 its heaps of organic matter1 but the circumstances favorable to their preservation have been wanting3 they ferment and decay when driven high on the beach2 and the next spring-tide1 accompanied by a gale from the west1 sweeps every vestige of them away2 and so1 after the lapse of many centuries1 we find no other organisms among the rounded pebbles that form the beach of this little bay1 than merely a few broken shells1 and occasionally a mouldering fish-bone4 ,thus very barren formations may belong to periods singularly rich in organic existences4 ,when what is now the little bay was the bottom of a profound ocean1 and far from any shore1 the circumstances for the preservation of its organisms must have been much more favorable4 ,in no locality in the ,old ,red ,sandstone with which ,i am acquainted have such beautifully preserved fossils been found4 ,but ,i anticipate4 ,in the middle of the little bay1 and throughout the greater part of its area1 ,i found the rock exposed--a circumstance which ,i had marked many years before1 when a mere boy1 without afterwards recurring to it as one of interest4 ,but ,i had now learned to look at rocks with another eye2 and the thought which first suggested itself to me regarding the rock of the little bay was1 that ,i had found the especial object of my search--the ,lias4 ,the appearances are in some respects not dissimilar4 ,the ,lias of the north of ,scotland is represented in some localities by dark-colored1 unctuous clays1 in others by grayish black sandstones1 that look like indurated mud1 and in others by beds of black fissile shale1 alternating with bands of coarse1 impure limestone1 and studded between the bands with limestone nodules of richer quality and finer grain4 ,the rock laid bare in the little bay is a stratified clay1 of a gray color tinged with olive1 and occurring in beds separated by indurated bands of gray1 micaceous sandstone4 ,they also abound in calcareous nodules4 ,the dip of the strata1 too1 is very different from that of the beds which lean against the gneiss of the ,sutor4 ,instead of an angle of eighty1 it presents an angle of less than eight4 ,the rocks of the little bay must have lain beyond the disturbing1 uptilting influence of the granitic wedge4 ,so thickly are the nodules spread over the surface of some of the beds1 that they reminded me of floats of broken ice on the windward side of a lake after a few days' thaw1 when the edges of the fragments are smoothed and rounded1 and they press upon one another1 so as to cover1 except in the angular interstices1 the entire surface4 ,i set myself carefully to examine4 ,the first nodule ,i laid open contained a bituminous looking mass1 in which ,i could trace a few pointed bones and a few minute scales4 ,the next abounded in rhomboidal and finely enamelled scales1 of much larger size and more distinct character4 ,i wrought on with the eagerness of a discoverer entering for the first time in a terra incognita of wonders4 ,almost every fragment of clay1 every splinter of sandstone1 every limestone nodule1 contained its organism--scales1 spines1 plates1 bones1 entire fish2 but not one organism of the ,lias could ,i find--no ammonites1 no belemnites1 no gryphites1 no shells of any kind3 the vegetable impressions were entirely different2 and not a single scale1 plate1 or ichthyodorulite could ,i identify with those of the newer formation4 ,i had got into a different world1 and among the remains of a different creation2 but where was its proper place in the scale8 ,the beds of the little bay are encircled by thick accumulations of diluvium and debris1 nor could ,i trace their relation to a single known rock4 ,i was struck1 as ,i well might1 by the utter strangeness of the forms--the oar-like arms of the ,pterichthys and its tortoise-like plates--the strange1 buckler-looking head of the ,coccosteus1 which1 ,i suppose1 might possibly be the back of a small tortoise1 though the tubercles reminded me rather of the skin of the shark--the polished scales and plates of the ,osteolepis--the spined and scaled fins of the ,cheiracanthus--above all1 the one-sided tail of at least eight out of the ten or twelve varieties of fossil which the deposit contained4 ,all together excited and astonished me4 ,but some time elapsed ere ,i learned to distinguish the nicer generic differences of the various organisms of the formation4 ,i found fragments of the ,pterichthys on this morning2 but ,i date its discovery1 in relation to the mind of the discoverer1 more than a twelvemonth later4,,ai ,i confounded the ,cheiracanthus1 too1 with its single-spined1 membranous dorsal1 with ,diplacanthus ichthyolite1 furnished with two such dorsals2 and the ,diplopterus with the ,osteolepis4 ,still1 however1 ,i saw enough to exhilarate and interest3 ,i wrought on till the advancing tide came splashing over the nodules1 and a powerful ,august sun had risen towards the middle sky2 and were ,i to sum up all my happier hours1 the hour would not be forgotten in which ,i sat down on a rounded boulder of granite1 by the edge of the sea1 when the last bed was covered1 and spread out on the beach before me the spoils of the morning4 ,footnote ,,ai3 ,i find1 by some notes1 which had escaped my notice when drawing up for the ,witness newspaper the sketches now expanded into a volume1 that in the year #ahcd ,i furnished the collection of a geological friend1 the ,rev4 ,john ,swanson1 minister of the parish of ,small ,isles1 in the ,outer ,hebrides1 with a well-marked specimen of the ,pterichthys ,milleri4 ,the circumstance pleasingly reminds me of the first of all my early acquaintance1 who learned to deem the time not idly squandered that was spent in exploring the wonders of bygone creations4 ,does the minister of ,small ,isles still remember the boy who led him in quest of petrifactions--himself a little boy at the time--to a deep1 solitary cave on the ,moray ,frith1 where they lingered amidst stalactites and mosses till the wild sea had surrounded them unmarked1 barring all chance of retreat1 and the dark night came on8 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,further ,discoveries of the ,ichthyolite ,beds4--,found in one ,locality under a ,bed of ,peat4--,discovered in another beneath an ancient ,burying-ground4--,in a third underlying the ,lias ,formation4--,in a fourth overtopped by a still older ,sandstone ,deposit4--,difficulties in ascertaining the true ,place of a newly-discovered ,formation4--,caution against drawing too hasty ,inferences from the mere circumstance of ,neighborhood4--,the ,writer receives his first ,assistance from without4--,geological ,appendix of the ,messrs4 ,anderson1 of ,inverness4--,further ,assistance from the ,researches of ,agassiz4--,suggestions4--,dr4 ,john ,malcolmson4--,his ,extensive ,discoveries in ,moray4--,he submits to ,agassiz a ,drawing of the ,pterichthys4--,place of the ,ichthyolites in the ,scale at length determined4--,two distinct ,platforms of ,being in the ,formation to which they belong4 ,i commenced forming a small collection1 and set myself carefully to examine the neighboring rocks for organisms of a similar character4 ,the eye becomes practised in such researches1 and my labors were soon repaid4 ,directly above the little bay there is a corn-field1 and beyond the field a wood of forest trees2 and in this wood1 in the bottom of a water-course1 scooped out of the rock through a bed of peat1 ,i found the stratified clay charged with scales4 ,a few hundred yards farther to the west there is a deep1 wooded ravine cut through a thick bed of red diluvial clay4 ,the top of the bank directly above is occupied by the ruins of an ancient chapel1 and a group of moss-grown tombstones2 and in the gorge of this ravine1 underlying the little field of graves by about sixty feet1 ,i discovered a still more ancient place of sepulture--that of the ichthyolites4 ,i explored every bank1 rock1 and ravine on the northern or ,cromarty ,frith side of the tongue of land1 with its terminal point of granitic gneiss1 to which ,i have had such frequent occasion to refer1 and then turned to explore the southern1 or ,moray ,frith side1 in the rectilinear line of the great valley4 ,and here ,i was successful on a larger scale4 ,a range of lofty sandstone cliffs1 hollowed by the sea1 extends for a distance of about two miles between two of the granitic knobs or wedges of the line--the ,southern ,sutor and the hill of ,eathie4 ,and along well nigh the entire length of this range of cliffs1 ,i succeeded in tracing a continuous ichthyolite bed1 abounding in remains1 and lying far below the ,lias1 and unconformable to it4 ,i pursued my researches1 and in the sides of a romantic precipitous dell1 through which the ,burn of ,eathie--a small1 mossy stream--finds its way to the ,moray ,frith1 ,i again discovered the fish-beds running deep into the interior of the country1 with immense strata of a pale yellow sandstone resting over them1 and strata of a chocolate red lying below4 ,but their place in the geological scale was still to fix4 ,i had seen enough to convince me that they form a continuous convex stratum in the sandstone spear-shaft1 covering it saddle-wise from side to side1 dipping towards the ,moray ,frith on the south1 and to the ,cromarty ,frith on the north--that1 as in a bona fide spear-shaft1 the annual ring or layer of growth of one season is overlaid by the annual rings of succeeding seasons1 and underlaid by those of preceding ones2 so this huge semi-ring of fossiliferous clays and limestones had its underlying semi-ring of ,red ,sandstone1 and its overlying semi-rings of yellow1 of red1 and of gray sandstone4 ,i knew1 besides1 that beneath there was a semi-ring of conglomerate1 the base of the system2 and that1 for more than two hundred yards upwards1 ring followed ring in unbroken succession--now sandstone1 now limestone1 now stratified clay4 ,but though intimately acquainted with these lower rocks for more than a hundred fathoms from their base upwards1 and with the upper rocks on both sides the ichthyolitic bed for more than a hundred feet1 there was an intervening hiatus1 whose extent at this period ,i found it impossible to ascertain4 ,and hence my uncertainty regarding the place of the ichthyolites1 seeing that whole formations might be represented by the occurring gap4 ,on the ,moray ,frith side1 where the sections are of huge extent1 a doubtful repeat in the strata at one point of junction1 and an abrupt fault at another1 cuts off the upper series of beds to which the organisms belong1 from the lower to which the great conglomerate belongs4 ,on the ,cromarty ,frith side the sections are mere detached patches1 obscured at every point by diluvium and soil2 and1 in conceiving of the whole as a continuous line1 with the ,lias a-top and the granite group at the bottom1 ,i was ever reminded of those coast-lines of the ancient geographers1 where a few uncertain dots1 a few deeper markings1 and here and there a blank space or two1 showed the blended results of conjecture and discovery--whether they give a ,terra ,incognita ,australia to the one hemisphere1 or a ,north-,western passage to the other4 ,the ichthyolites in a section so doubtful might be regarded as belonging to either the ,old or the ,new ,red ,sandstone--to the ,coal ,measures1 or to the ,mountain ,limestone4 ,all was uncertainty4 ,one remark in the passing3 it may teach the young geologist to be cautious in his inferences1 and illustrate1 besides1 those gaps which occur in the geological scale4 ,i had now discovered the ichthyolite beds in five different localities2 in one of these--the first discovered--there is no overlying stratum2 it seems as if the bed formed the top of the formation3 in all the others the overlying stratum is different1 and belongs to distant and widely separated ages4 ,we cut in one locality through a peat moss--part of the ruins1 perhaps1 of one of those forests which covered1 about the commencement of the ,christian era1 well nigh the entire surface of the island1 and sheltered the naked inhabitants from the legions of ,agricola4 ,we find1 as we dig1 huge trunks of oak and elm1 cones of the ,scotch fir1 handfuls of hazel-nuts1 and bones and horns of the roe and the red deer4 ,the writer1 when a boy1 found among the peat the horn of a gigantic elk4 ,and1 forming the bottom of this recent deposit1 and lying conformably to it1 we find the ichthyolite beds1 with their antique organisms4 ,the remains of oak and elm leaves1 and of the spikes and cones of the pine1 lie within half a foot of the remains of the ,coccosteus and ,diplopterus4 ,we dig in another locality through an ancient burying-ground2 we pass through a superior stratum of skulls and coffins1 and an inferior stratum1 barren in organic remains1 and then arrive at the stratified clays1 with their ichthyolites4 ,in a third locality we find these in junction with the ,lias1 and underlying its lignites1 ammonites1 and belemnites1 just as we see them underlying1 in the other two1 the human bones and the peat moss4 ,and in yet a fourth locality we see them overlaid by immense arenaceous beds1 that belong evidently1 as their mineralogical character testifies1 to either the ,old or the ,new ,red ,sandstone4 ,the convulsions and revolutions of the geological world1 like those of the political1 are sad confounders of place and station1 and bring into close fellowship the high and the low2 nor is it safe in either world1--such have been the effects of the disturbing agencies1--to judge of ancient relations by existing neighborhoods1 or of original situations by present places of occupancy4 ,misery1 says ,shakspeare1 makes strange bedfellows4 ,the changes and convulsions of the geological world have made strange bedfellows too4 ,i have seen fossils of the ,upper ,lias and of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone washed together by the same wave1 out of what might be taken1 on a cursory survey1 for the same bed1 and then mingled with recent shells1 alg1 branches of trees1 and fragments of wrecks on the same sea-beach4 ,years passed1 and in #ahcd ,i received my first assistance from without1 through the kindness of the ,messrs4 ,anderson1 of ,inverness1 who this year published their ,guide to the ,highlands and ,islands of ,scotland--a work which has never received half its due measure of praise4 ,it contains1 in a condensed and very pleasing form1 the accumulated gleanings1 for half a lifetime1 of two very superior men1 skilled in science1 and of highly cultivated taste and literary ability2 whose remarks1 from their intimate acquaintance with every foot-breadth of country which they describe1 invariably exhibit that freshness of actual observation1 recorded on the spot1 which ,gray regarded as worth whole cart-loads of recollection4 ,but what chiefly interested me in their work was its dissertative appendices--admirable digests of the ,natural ,history1 ,antiquities1 and ,geology of the country4 ,the appendix devoted to ,geology1 consisting of fifty closely printed pages1--abridged in part from the highest geological authorities1 and in much greater part the result of original observation1--contains1 beyond comparison1 the completest description of the rocks1 fossils1 and formations of the ,northern and ,western ,highlands1 which has yet been given to the public in a popular form4 ,i perused it with intense interest1 and learned from it1 for the first time1 of the fossil fishes of ,caithness and ,gamrie4 ,there was almost nothing known1 at the period1 of the oryctology of the older rocks--little1 indeed1 of that of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 in its proper character as such2 and with no such guiding clew as has since been furnished by ,agassiz1 and the later researches of ,mr4 ,murchison1 the writer of the appendix had recorded as his ultimate conclusion1 that the middle schistoze system of ,caithness1 containing the fossil fish1 was intermediate in geological character and position between the ,old and ,new ,red ,sandstone formations4 ,the ichthyolites of ,gamrie he described as resembling those of ,caithness2 and ,i at once recognized1 in his minute descriptions of both1 the fossil fish of ,cromarty4 ,the mineralogical accompaniments1 too1 seemed nearly the same4 ,in ,caithness1 the animal remains are mixed up in some places with a black bituminous matter like tar4 ,i had but lately found among the beds of the little bay a mass of soft adhesive bitumen1 hermetically sealed up in the limestone1 which1 when broken open1 reminded me1 from the powerful odor it cast1 and which filled for several days the room in which ,i kept it1 of the old ,gaulish mummy of which we find so minute account in the ,natural ,history of ,goldsmith4 ,the nodules which enclosed the organisms at ,gamrie were described as of a sub-crystalline1 radiating1 fibrous structure4 ,so much was this the case with some of the nodules at ,cromarty1 that they had often reminded me1 when freshly broken1 though composed of pure carbonate of lime1 of masses of asbestos4 ,the scales and bones of the ,caithness ichthyolites were blended1 it was stated1 with the fragments of a supposed tortoise nearly allied to trionyx2 one of the ichthyolites1 a ,dipterus1 was characterized by large scales1 a double dorsal1 and a one-sided tail2 the entire lack of shells and zophytes was remarked1 and the abundance of obscure vegetable impressions4 ,in short1 had the accomplished writer of the appendix been briefly describing the beds at ,cromarty1 instead of those of ,caithness and ,gamrie1 he might have employed the same terms1 and remarked the same circumstances--the striated nodules1 the mineral tar1 the vegetable impressions1 the absence of shells and zophytes1 the large-scaled1 and double-finned ichthyolites--the peculiarities of which applied equally to the ,dipterus and ,diplopterus--and the supposed tortoise1 in which ,i once recognized the ,coccosteus4 ,it was much to know1 that this doubtful formation--for as doubtful ,i still regarded it--was of such considerable extent1 and occurred in localities so widely separated4 ,i corresponded with the courteous author of the appendix1 at that time ,general ,secretary to the ,northern ,institution for the ,promotion of ,science and ,literature1 and ,conservator of its ,museum2 and1 forwarding to him duplicates of some of my better specimens1 had1 as ,i had anticipated1 the generic identity of the ,cromarty ichthyolites with those of ,caithness and ,gamrie fully confirmed4 ,my narrative is1 ,i am afraid1 becoming tedious2 but it embodies somewhat more than the mere history of a sort of ,robinson ,crusoe in ,geology1 cut off for years from all intercourse with his kind4 ,it contains1 also1 the history of a formation in its connection with science2 and the reader will1 ,i trust1 bear with me for a few pages more4 ,seasons passed2 and ,i received new light from the researches of ,agassiz1 which1 if it did not show me my way more clearly1 rendered it at least more interesting1 by associating with it one of those wonderful truths1 stranger that fictions1 which rise ever and anon from the profounder depths of science1 and whose use1 in their connection with the human intellect1 seems to be to stimulate the faculties4 ,i have often had occasion to refer to the one-sided condition of tail characteristic of the ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,it characterizes1 says ,agassiz1 the fish of all the more ancient formations4 ,at one certain point in the descending scale ,nature entirely alters her plan in the formation of the tail4 ,all the ichthyolites above are fashioned after one particular type--all below after another and different type4 ,the bibliographer can tell at what periods in the history of letters one character ceased to be employed and another came into use4 ,black letter1 for instance1 in our own country1 was scarce ever resorted to for purposes of general literature after the reign of ,james ,,vi42 and in manuscript writing the ,italian hand superseded the ,saxon about the close of the seventeenth century4 ,now1 is it not truly wonderful to find an analogous change of character in that pictorial history of the past which ,geology furnishes8 ,from the first appearance of vertebrated existences to the middle beds of the ,new ,red ,sandstone1--a space including the ,upper ,ludlow rocks1 the ,old ,red ,sandstone in all its members1 the ,mountain ,limestone1 with the ,limestone of ,burdie ,house1 the ,coal ,measures1 the ,lower ,new ,red1 and the ,magnesian ,limestone1--we find only the ancient or unequally lobed type of tail4 ,in all the formations above1 including the ,lias1 the ,oolite1 ,middle1 ,upper1 and ,lower1 the ,wealden1 the ,green-,sand1 the ,chalk1 and the ,tertiary1 we find only the equally-lobed condition of tail4 ,and it is more than probable1 that1 with the tail1 the character of the skeleton also changed2 that the more ancient type characterized1 throughout1 the semi-cartilaginous order of fishes1 just as the more modern type characterizes the osseous fishes2 and that the upper line of the ,magnesian ,limestone marks the period at which the order became extinct4 ,conjecture lacks footing in grappling with a revolution so extensive and so wonderful4 ,shall ,i venture to throw out a suggestion on the subject1 in connection with another suggestion which has emanated from one of the first of living geologists8 ,fish1 of all existing creatures1 seem the most capable of sustaining high degrees of heat1 and are to be found in some of the hot springs of ,continental ,europe1 where it is supposed scarce any other animal could live4 ,now1 all the fish of the ancient type are thickly covered by a defensive armor of bone1 arranged in plates1 bars1 or scales1 or all the three modes together1 as in the ,osteolepis and one half its contemporaries4 ,the one-sided tail is united invariably to a strong cuirass4 ,and it has been suggested by ,dr4 ,buckland1 that this strong cuirass may have formed a sort of defence against the injurious effects of a highly heated surrounding medium4 ,the suggestion is1 of course1 based purely on hypothesis4 ,it may be stated1 in direct connection with it1 however1 that in the ,lias--the first richly fossiliferous formation overlying that in which the change occurred--we find1 for the first time in the geological system1 decided indications of a change of seasons4 ,the foot-prints of winter are left impressed amid the lignites of the ,cromarty ,lias4 ,in a specimen now before me1 the alternations of summer heat and winter cold are as distinctly marked in the annual rings as in the pines or larches of our present forests2 whereas in the earlier lignites1 contemporary with ichthyolites of the ancient type1 either no annual rings appear1 or the markings1 if present1 are both faint and unfrequent4 ,just ere winter began to take its place among the seasons1 the fish fitted for living in a highly heated medium disappeared3 they were created to inhabit a thermal ocean1 and died away as it cooled down4 ,fish of a similar type may now inhabit the seas of ,venus1 or even of ,jupiter1 which1 from its enormous bulk1 though greatly more distant from the sun than our earth1 may still powerfully retain the internal heat4 ,i still pursued my inquiries1 and received a valuable auxiliary in a gentleman from ,india1 ,dr4 ,john ,malcolmson1 of ,madras--a member of the ,london ,geological ,society1 and a man of high scientific attainments and great general knowledge4 ,above all1 ,i found him to possess1 in a remarkable degree1 that spirit of research1 almost amounting to a passion1 which invariably marks the superior man4 ,he had spent month after month under the burning sun of ,india1 amid fever marshes and tiger jungles1 acquainting himself with the unexplored geological field which1 only a few years ago1 that vast continent presented1 and in collecting fossils hitherto unnamed and undescribed4 ,he had pursued his inquiries1 too1 along the coasts of the ,red ,sea1 and far upwards on the banks of the ,nile2 and now1 in returning for a time to his own country1 he had brought with him the determination of knowing it thoroughly as a man of science and a geologist4 ,i had the pleasure of first introducing him to the ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 by bringing him to my first-discovered bed1 and laying open1 by a blow of the hammer1 a beautiful ,osteolepis4 ,he was much interested in the fossils of my little collection1 and at once decided that the formation which contained them could be no representative of the ,coal ,measures4 ,after ranging over the various beds on both sides the rectilinear ridge1 and acquainting himself thoroughly with their organisms1 he set out to explore the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstones of ,moray and ,banff1 hitherto deemed peculiarly barren1 but whose character too much resembled that of the rocks which he had now ascertained to be so abundant in fossils1 not to be held worthy of further examination4 ,he explored the banks of the ,spey1 and found the ichthyolite beds extensively developed at ,dipple1 in the middle of an ,old ,red ,sandstone district4 ,he pursued his researches1 and traced the formation in ravines and the beds of rivers1 from the village of ,buckie to near the field of ,culloden2 he found it exposed in the banks of the ,nairn1 in the ravines above ,cawdor ,castle1 on the eastern side of the hill of ,rait1 at ,clune1 ,lethen-bar1 and in the vale of ,rothes--and in every instance low in the ,old ,reel ,sandstone4 ,the formation hitherto deemed so barren in remains proved one of the richest of them all1 if not in tribes and families1 at least in individual fossils2 and the reader may form some idea of the extent in which it has already been proved fossiliferous1 when he remembers that the tract includes as its extremes ,orkney1 ,gamrie1 and the north-eastern gorge of the great ,caledonian ,valley4 ,the ichthyolites were discovered in the latter locality in the quarry of ,inches1 three miles beyond ,inverness1 by ,mr4 ,george ,anderson1 the gentleman to whose geological attainments1 as one of the authors of the ,guide ,book1 ,i have lately had occasion to refer4 ,i had now corresponded for several years with a little circle of geological friends1 and had described in my letters1 and in some instances had attempted to figure in them1 my newly-found fossils4 ,a letter which ,i wrote early in #ahch to ,dr4 ,malcolmson1 then at ,paris1 and which contained a rude drawing of the ,pterichthys1 was submitted to ,agassiz1 and the curiosity of the naturalist was excited4 ,he examined the figure1 rather1 however1 with interest than surprise1 and read the accompanying description1 not in the least inclined to scepticism by the singularity of its details4 ,he had looked on too many wonders of a similar cast to believe that he had exhausted them1 or to evince any astonishment that ,geology should be found to contain one wonder more4 ,some months after1 ,i sent a restored drawing of the same fossil to the ,elgin ,scientific ,society4 ,i must state1 however1 that the restoration was by no means complete4 ,the paddle-like arms were placed further below the shoulders than in any actual species2 and ,i had transferred1 by mistake1 to the creature's upper side1 some of the plates of the ,coccosteus4 ,still the type was unequivocally that of the ,pterichthys4 ,the secretary of the ,society1 ,mr4 ,patrick ,duff1 an excellent geologist1 to whose labors1 in an upper formation of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 ,i shall have afterwards occasion to refer1 questioned1 as he well might1 some of the details of the figure1 and we corresponded for several weeks regarding it1 somewhat in the style of ,jonathan ,oldbuck and his antiquarian friend1 who succeeded in settling the meaning of two whole words1 in an antique inscription1 in little more than two years4 ,most of the other members looked upon the entire drawing1 so strange did the appearance seem1 as embodying a fiction of the same class with those embodied in the pictured griffins and unicorns of mythologic ,zology2 and1 in amusing themselves with it1 they bestowed on its betailed and bepaddled figure1 as if in anticipation of ,agassiz1 the name of the draughtsman4 ,not many months after1 however1 a bona fide ,pterichthys turned up in one of the newly discovered beds of ,nairnshire1 and the ,association ceased to joke1 and began to wonder4 ,t merely mention the circumstance in connection with a right challenged1 at the late meeting of the ,british ,association at ,glasgow1 by a gentleman of ,elgin1 to be regarded as the original discoverer of the ,pterichthys4 ,i am1 of course1 far from supposing that the discovery was not actually made1 but regret that it should have been kept so close a secret at a time when it might have stood the other discoverer of the creature in such stead4 ,the exact place of the ichthyolites in the system was still to fix4 ,i was spending a day1 early in the winter of #ahci1 among the nearly vertical strata that lean against the ,northern ,sutor4 ,the section there presented is washed by the tide for nearly three hundred yards from where it rests on the granitic gneiss2 and each succeeding stratum in the ascending order may be as clearly traced as the alternate white and black squares in a marble pavement4 ,first there is a bed of conglomerate two hundred and fifteen feet in thickness1 identical in structure1 say ,professor ,sedgwick and ,mr4 ,murchison1 u with the older red conglomerates of ,cumberland and the ,island of ,arran1,,aj and which cannot be distinguished from those conglomerates which lean against the southern flank of the ,grampians1 and on which ,dunnottar ,castle is built4 ,immediately above the conglomerate there is a hundred and fourteen feet more of coarse sandstone strata1 of a reddish yellow hue1 with occasionally a few pebbles enclosed1 and then twenty-seven feet additional of limestone and stratified clay4 ,there are no breaks1 no faults1 no thinning out of strata--all the beds lie parallel1 showing regular deposition4 ,i had passed over the section twenty times before1 and had carefully examined the limestone and the clay1 but in vain4 ,on this occasion1 however1 ,i was more fortunate4 ,i struck off a fragment4 ,it contained a vegetable impression of the same character with those of the ichthyolite beds2 and after an hour's diligent search1 ,i had turned out from the heart of the stratum plates and scales enough to fill a shelf in a museum--the helmet-like snout of an ,osteolepis1 the thorn-like spine of a ,cheiracanthus1 and a ,coccosteus well nigh entire4 ,i had at length1 after a search of nearly ten years1 found the true place of the ichthyolite bed4 ,the reader may smile1 but ,i hope the smile will be a good-natured one2 a simple pleasure may be not the less sincere on account of its simplicity2 and little things are great to little men4 ,i passed over and over the strata1 and found there could be no mistake4 ,the place of the fossil fish in the scale is little more than a hundred feet above the top1 and not much more than a hundred yards above the base of the great conglomerate2 and there lie over it in this section about five hundred feet of soft1 arenaceous stone1 with here and there alternating bands of limestone and beds of clay studded with nodules--all belonging to the inferior ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,footnote ,,aj3 ,different in one respect from the conglomerates of ,arran4 ,it abounds in rolled fragments of granite1 whereas in those of ,arran there occur no pebbles of this rock4 ,arran has now its granite in abundance2 the northern locality has none2 though1 when the conglomerates of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone were in the course of forming1 the case was exactly the reverse4 ,the enormous depth of the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,england has been divided by ,mr4 ,murchison into three members1 or formations--the division adopted in his ,elements by ,mr4 ,lyell1 as quoted in an early chapter4 ,these are1 the lowest1 or ,tilestone formation1 the middle1 or ,cornstone formation1 and the uppermost1 or ,quartzose conglomerate formation4 ,the terms are derived from mineralogical characters1 and inadequate as designations1 therefore1 like that of the ,old ,red ,sandstone itself1 which1 in many of its deposits1 is not sandstone1 and is not red4 ,but they serve to express great natural divisions4 ,now the ,tilestone member of ,england represents1 as ,i have already stated1 this ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone formation of ,scotland2 but its extent of vertical development1 compared with that of the other two members of the system1 is strikingly different in the two countries4 ,the ,tilestones compose the least of the three divisions in ,england2 their representative in ,scotland forms by much the greatest of the three2 and there seems to be zological as well as lithological evidence that its formation must have occupied no brief period4 ,the same genera occur in its upper as in its lower beds1 but the species appear to be different4 ,i shall briefly state the evidence of this very curious fact4 ,the seat of ,sir ,william ,gordon ,camming1 of ,altyre1 is in the neighborhood of one of the ,morayshire deposits discovered by ,mr4 ,malcolmson2 and for the greater part of the last two years ,lady ,gordon ,gumming has been engaged in making a collection of its peculiar fossils1 which already fills an entire apartment4 ,the object of her ,ladyship was the illustration of the ,geology of the district1 and all she sought in it on her own behalf was congenial employment for a singularly elegant and comprehensive mind4 ,but her labors have rendered her a benefactor to science4 ,her collection was visited1 shortly after the late meeting of the ,british ,association in ,glasgow1 by ,agassiz and ,dr4 ,buckland2 and great was the surprise and delight of the philosophers to find that the whole was new to ,geology4 ,all the species1 amounting to eleven1 and at least one of the genera1 that of the ,glyptolepis1 were different from any ,agassiz had ever seen or described before4 ,the deposit so successfully explored by her ,ladyship occurs high in the lower formation4 ,agassiz1 shortly after1 in comparing the collection of ,dr4 ,traill 7a collection formed at ,orkney7 with that of the writer1 7a collection made at ,cromarty17 was struck by the specific identity of the specimens4 ,in the instances in which the genera agreed1 he found that the species agreed also1 though the ichthyolites of both differed specifically from the ichthyolites of ,caithness1 which occur chiefly in the upper beds of the formation1 and from those also of ,lady ,cumming of ,altyre1 which occur1 as ,i have said1 at the top4 ,and in examining into the cause1 it was found that the two collections1 though furnished by localities more than a hundred miles apart1 were yet derived1 if ,i may so express myself1 from the same low platform1 both alike representing the fossiliferous base of the system1 and both removed but by a single stage from the great unfossiliferous conglomerate below4 ,thus there seem to be what may be termed two stories of being in this lower formation--stories in which the groups1 though generically identical1 are specifically dissimilar4,,ak ,footnote ,,ak3 ,since this period1 however1 several species identical with those of ,cromarty have been found in the ,morayshire deposits4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,upper ,formations of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,room1 enough for each and to spare4--,middle1 or ,cornstone ,formation4--,the ,cephalaspis its most characteristic ,organism4--,description4--,the ,den of ,balruddery richer in the ,fossils of this middle ,formation than any other ,locality yet discovered4--,various ,contemporaries of the ,cephalaspis4--,vegetable ,impressions4--,gigantic ,crustacean4--,seraphim4--,ichthyodoruli tes4--,sketch of the ,geology of ,forfarshire4--,its older ,deposits of the ,cornstone ,formation4--,the ,quarries of ,carmylie4--,their ,vegetable and ,animal ,remains4--,the ,upper ,formation4--,wide ,extent of the ,fauna and ,flora of the earlier ,formations4--,probable ,cause4 ,hitherto ,i have dwelt almost exclusively on the fossils of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and the history of their discovery3 ,i shall now ascend to the organisms of its higher platforms4 ,the system in ,scotland1 as in the sister kingdom1 has its middle and upper groups1 and these are in no degree less curious than the inferior group already described1 nor do they more resemble the existences of the present time4 ,does the reader remember the illustration of the pyramid employed in an early chapter--its three parallel bars1 and the strange hieroglyphics of the middle bar8 ,let him now imagine another pyramid1 inscribed with the remaining and later history of the system4 ,we read1 as before1 from the base upwards1 but find the broken and half-defaced characters of the second erection descending into the very soil1 as in those obelisks of ,egypt round which the sands of the desert have been accumulating for ages4 ,hence a hiatus in our history for future excavators to fill2 and it contains many such blanks1 every unfossiliferous bar in either pyramid representing a gap in the record4 ,three distinct formations the group undoubtedly contains--perhaps more2 nor will the fact appear strange to the reader who remembers how numerous the formations are that lie over and under it1 and that its vast depth of ten thousand feet equals that of the whole secondary system from top to bottom4 ,eight such formations as the ,oolite1 or ten such formations as the ,chalk1 could rest1 the one over the other1 in the space occupied by a group so enormous4 ,to the evidence of its three distant formations1 which is of a very simple character1 ,i shall advert as ,i go along4 ,the central or ,cornstone division of the system in ,england is characterized throughout its vast depth by a peculiar family of ichthyolites1 which occur in none of the other divisions4 ,i have already had occasion to refer to the ,cephalaspis4 ,four species of this fish have been discovered in the ,cornstones of ,hereford1 ,salop1 ,worcester1 ,monmouth1 and ,brecon2,,al and as they are always found1 says ,mr4 ,murchison1 in the same division of the ,old ,red ,system1 they have become valuable auxiliaries in enabling the geologist to identify its subdivisions through ,england and ,wales1 and also to institute direct comparisons between the different strata of the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,england and ,scotland4 ,the ,cephalaspis is one of the most curious ichthyolites of the system4 7,see ,plate ,x41 fig4 #a47 ,has the reader ever seen a saddler's cutting knife8--a tool with a crescent-shaped blade1 and the handle fixed transversely in the centre of its concave side4 ,in general outline the ,cephalaspis resembled this tool--the crescent-shaped blade representing the head1 the transverse handle the body4 ,we have but to give the handle an angular1 instead of a rounded shape1 and to press together the pointed horns of the crescent1 till they incline towards each other1 and the convex1 or sharpened edge1 is elongated into a semi-ellipse1 cut in the line of its shortest diameter1 in order to produce the complete form of the ,cephalaspis4 ,the head1 compared with the body1 was of great size--comprising fully one third the creature's entire length4 ,in the centre1 and placed closely together1 as in many of the flat fish1 were the eyes4 ,some of the specimens show two dorsals1 and an anal and caudal fin4 ,the thin and angular body presents a jointed appearance1 somewhat like that of a lobster or trilobite4 ,like the bodies of most of the ichthyolites of the system1 it was covered with variously formed scales of bone2 the creature's head was cased in strong plates of the same material1 the whole upper side lying under one huge buckler--and hence the name ,cephalaspis1 or buckler-head4 ,in proportion to its strength and size1 it seems to have been amply furnished with weapons of defence4 ,such was the strength and massiveness of its covering1 that its remains are found comparatively entire in arenaceous rocks impregnated with iron1 in which few other fossils could have survived4 ,its various species1 as they occur in the ,welsh and ,english ,cornstones1 says ,mr4 ,murchison1 seem not to have been suddenly killed and entombed1 but to have been long exposed to submarine agencies1 such as the attacks of animals1 currents1 concretionary action1 c42 and yet1 though much dismembered1 the geologist has little difficulty in recognizing even the smallest portions of them4 ,nor does it seem to have been quite unfurnished with offensive weapons4 ,the sword-fish1 with its strong and pointed spear1 has been known to perforate the oaken ribs of the firmest built vessels2 and1 poised and directed by its lesser fins1 and impelled by its powerful tail1 it may be regarded either as an arrow or javelin flung with tremendous force1 or as a knight speeding to the encounter with his lance in rest4 ,now there are missiles employed in ,eastern warfare1 which1 instead of being pointed like the arrow or javelin1 are edged somewhat like the crooked falchion or saddler's cutting-knife1 and which are capable of being cast with such force1 that they have been known to sever a horse's leg through the bone2 and if the sword-fish may be properly compared to an arrow or javelin1 the combative powers of the ,cephalaspis may be illustrated1 it is probable1 by a weapon of this kind--the head all around its elliptical margin presenting a sharp edge1 like that of a cutting-knife1 or falchion4 ,its impetus1 however1 must have been comparatively small1 for its organs of motion were so3 it was a bolt carefully fashioned1 but a bolt cast from a feeble bow4 ,but if weak in the assault1 it must have been formidable when assailed4 ,the pointed horns of the crescent1 said ,agassiz to the writer1 seem to have served a similar purpose with the spear-like wings of the ,pterichthys1--the sole difference consisting in the circumstance1 that the spears of the one could be elevated or depressed at pleasure1 whereas those of the other were ever fixed in the warlike attitude4 ,and such was the ,cephalaspis of the ,cornstones--not only the most characteristic1 but in ,england and ,wales almost the sole organism of the formation4 ,footnote ,,al3 ,cephalaspis ,lewisii1 ,c4 ,lloydii1 ,c4 ,lyellii1 and ,c4 rostratus4 ,now of this curious ichthyolite we find no trace among the fossils of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,it occurs neither in ,orkney nor ,cromarty1 ,caithness nor ,gamrie1 ,nairnshire nor the inferior ichthyolite beds of ,moray4 ,neither in ,england nor in ,scotland is it to be found in the ,tilestone formation1 or its equivalent4 ,it is common1 however1 in the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,forfarshire2 and it occurs at ,balruddery1 in the ,gray ,sandstones which form on both sides the ,tay1 where the ,tilestone formation seems wanting1 the apparent base of the system4 ,it is exclusively a medal of the middle empire4 ,in the last-mentioned locality1 in a beautifully wooded dell1 known as the ,den of ,balruddery1 the ,cephalaspis is found associated with an entire group of other fossils1 the recent discovery of ,mr4 ,webster1 the proprietor1 who1 with a zeal through which geological knowledge promises to be materially extended1 and at an expense of much labor1 has made a collection of all the organisms of the ,den yet discovered4 ,these the writer had the pleasure of examining in the company of ,mr4 ,murchison and ,dr4 ,buckland3 he was afterwards present when they were examined by ,agassiz2 and not a single organism of the group could be identified on either occasion1 by any member of the party1 with those of the lower or upper formations4 ,even the genera are dissimilar4 ,the fossils of the ,lias scarce differ more from those of the ,coal ,measures1 than the fossils of the ,middle ,old ,red ,sandstone from the fossils of the formations that rest over and under them4 ,each formation has its distinct group--a fact so important to the geologist1 that he may feel an interest in its further verification through the decision of yet another high authority4 ,the superior ,old ,red ,sandstones of ,scotland were first ascertained to be fossiliferous by ,professor ,fleming1 of ,king's ,college1 ,aberdeen1,,am confessedly one of the first naturalists of the age1 and who1 to his minute acquaintance with existing forms of being1 adds an acquaintance scarcely less minute with those forms of primeval life that no longer exist4 ,he it was who first discovered1 in the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstones of ,fifeshire1 the large scales and plates of that strikingly characteristic ichthyolite of the higher formation1 now known as the ,holoptychius--of which more anon2 and1 unquestionably1 no one acquainted with his writings1 or the character of his mind1 can doubt that he examined carefully4 ,footnote ,,am3 ,the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstones of ,moray were ascertained to be fossiliferous at nearly the same time by ,mr4 ,martin1 of the ,anderson ,institution1 ,elgin4 ,there is a mouldering conglomerate precipice termed the ,scat-,craig1 about four miles to the south of the town1 more abundant in remains than perhaps any of the other deposits of the formation yet discovered2 and in this precipice ,mr4 ,martin first commenced his labors in the lied ,sandstone of the district1 and found it a mine of wonders4 ,it is a place of singular interest--a rock of sepulchres2 and its teeth1 scales1 and single bones occur in a state of great entireness2 though1 ere the deposit was formed1 the various ichthyolites whose remains it contains seem to have been broken up1 and their fragments scattered4 ,accumulations of larger and smaller pebbles alternate in the strata2 and the bulkier bones and teeth are found invariably among the bulkier pebbles1 thus showing that they were operated upon by the same laws of motion which operated on the inorganic contents of the deposit4 ,at a considerably later period the fossils of the upper group were detected in the precipitous and romantic banks of the ,findhorn1 by ,dr4 ,malcolmson1 of ,madras1 when prosecuting his discoveries of the organisms of the lower formation4 ,he found them1 also1 though in less abundance1 in a splendid section exhibited in the ,burn of ,lethen1 a rivulet of ,moray1 and yet again in the neighborhood of ,altyre4 ,the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,gordon1 of ,birnie1 and ,mr4 ,robertson1 of ,inverugie1 have been also discoverers in the district4 ,to the geological labors of ,mr4 ,patrick ,duff1 of ,elgin1 in the same field1 ,i have already had occasion incidentally to refer4 ,the patient inquiries of this gentleman have been prosecuted for years in all the formations of the province1 from the ,weald of ,linksfield1 with its peculiar lacustrine remains--lignites1 minute fresh-water shells1 and the teeth1 spines1 and vertebr of fish and saurians--down to the base of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 with its ,coccostei1 ,dipteri1 and ,pterichthyes4 ,his acquaintance with the organisms of the ,scat-,craig is at once more extensive and minute than that of1 perhaps1 any other geologist2 and his collection of them very valuable1 representing1 as it does1 a formation of much interest1 still little known4 ,mr4 ,duff is at present engaged on a volume descriptive of the ,geology of the province of ,moray1 a district extensively explored of late years1 and abundant in its distinct groups of organisms1 but of which general readers have still much to learn2 and from no one could they learn more regarding it than from ,mr4 ,duff4 ,it is still only a few months since the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstones of the southern districts of ,scotland were found to be fossiliferous2 and the writer is chiefly indebted for his acquaintance with their organisms to a tradesman of ,berwickshire1 ,mr4 ,william ,stevenson1 of ,dunse1 who1 on perusing some of the geological articles which appeared in the ,witness newspaper during the course of the last autumn1 sent him a parcel of fossils disinterred from out the deep belt of ,red ,sandstone which leans to the south in that locality1 against the grauwacke of the ,lammermuirs4 ,mr4 ,stevenson had recently discovered them1 he stated1 near ,preston-haugh1 about two miles north of ,dunse1 in a fine section of alternating ,sandstone and conglomerate strata that lie unconformably on the grauwacke4 ,they consist of scales and occipital plates of the ,holoptychius1 with the remains of a bulky1 but very imperfectly preserved ichthyodorulite2 and the coarse1 arenaceous matrices which surround them seem identical with the red gritty ,sandstones of the ,findhorn and the ,scat-,craig1 ,now1 a few years since1 ,i had the pleasure of introducing ,professor ,fleming to the ,organisms of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 as they occur in the neighborhood of ,cromarty2 and1 notwithstanding his extensive acquaintance with the upper fossils of the system1 he found himself1 among the lower1 in an entirely new field4 ,his knowledge of the one group served but to show him how very different it was from the other4 ,with the organisms of the lower he minutely acquainted himself2 he collected specimens from ,gamrie1 ,caithness1 and ,cromarty1 and studied their peculiarities2 and yet1 on being introduced last year to the discoveries of ,mr4 ,webster at ,balruddery1 he found his acquaintance with both the upper and lower groups stand him in but the same stead that his first acquired knowledge of the upper group had stood him a few years before4 ,he agreed with ,agassiz in pronouncing the group at ,balruddery essentially a new group4 ,add to this evidence the well weighed testimony of ,mr4 ,murchison regarding the three formations which the ,old ,red ,sandstone contains in ,england1 where the entire system is found continuous1 the ,cornstone overlying the ,tilestone1 and the ,quartzose conglomerate the ,cornstone2 take into account the fact that1 there1 each formation has its characteristic fossil1 identical with some characteristic fossil of the corresponding formation of ,scotland--that the ,tilestones of the one1 and the lower group of the other1 have their ,dipterus in common--that the ,cornstones of the one1 and the middle group of the other1 have their ,cephalaspis in common--that the ,quartzose conglomerate of the one1 and the upper group of the other1 have their ,holoptychius in common2 and then say whether the proofs of distinct succeeding formations can be more surely established4 ,if1 however1 the reader still entertain a doubt1 let him consult the singularly instructive section of the entire system1 from the ,carboniferous ,limestone to the ,upper ,silurian1 given by ,mr4 ,murchison1 in his ,silurian ,system1 7,part ,,ii41 ,plate ,,xxxi41 fig4 #a17 and he will find the doubt vanish4 ,but to return to the fossils of the ,cornstone group4 ,the characteristic fossil of this deposit1 the ,cephalaspis1 occurs in considerable abundance in ,forfarshire1 and in a much more entire state than in the ,cornstones of ,england and ,wales4 ,the rocks to which it belongs are also developed1 though more sparingly1 in the northern extremity of ,fife1 in a line parallel to the southern shores of the ,tay4 ,but of all the localities yet known1 the ,den of ,balruddery is that in which the peculiar organisms of the formation may be studied with best effect4 ,the oryctology of the ,cornstones of ,england seems restricted to four species of the ,cephalaspis4 ,in ,fife1 all the organisms of the formation yet discovered are exclusively vegetable--darkened impressions of stems like those of the inferior ichthyolite beds1 confusedly mixed with what seem slender and pointed leaflets drawn in black1 and numerous circular forms1 which have been deemed the remains of the seed-vessels of some unknown sub-aerial plant4 ,these last occur1 says ,professor ,fleming1 the original discoverer1 in the form of circular flat patches1 not equalling an inch in diameter1 and composed of numerous smaller contiguous circular pieces2 the tout ensemble resembling what might be expected to result from a compressed berry1 such as the bramble or the rasp4 ,in ,forfarshire1 the remains of the ,cephalaspis are found associated with impressions of a different character1 though equally obscure--impressions of polished surfaces carved into seeming scales2 but in ,balruddery alone are the vegetable impressions of the one locality1 and the scaly impressions of the other1 together with the characteristic ichthyolites of ,england and ,forfarshire1 found associated with numerous fossils besides1 many of them obscure1 but all of them of interest1 and all of them new to ,geology4 ,one of the strangest organisms of the formation is a fossil lobster1 of such huge proportions1 that one of the average sized lobsters1 common in our markets1 might stretch its entire length across the continuous tail-flap in which the creature terminated4 ,and it is a marked characteristic of the fossil1 that the terminal flap should be continuous2 in all the existing varieties with which ,i am acquainted1 it is divided into angular sections4 ,the claws nearly resembled those of the common lobster2 their outline is similar2 there is the same hawk-bill curvature outside1 and the inner sides of the pincers are armed with similar teeth-like tubercles4 ,the immense shield which covered the upper part of the creature's body is more angular than in the existing varieties1 and resembles1 both in form and size1 one of those lozenge-shaped shields worn by knights of the middle ages on gala days1 rather for ornament than use1 and on which the herald still inscribes the armorial bearing of ladies who bear title in their own right4 ,as shown in some of the larger specimens1 the length of this gigantic crustacean must have exceeded four feet4 ,its shelly armor was delicately fretted with the forms of circular or elliptical scales4 ,on all the many plates of which it was composed we see these described by gracefully waved lines1 and rising apparently from under one another1 row beyond row4 ,they were1 however1 as much the mere semblance of scales as those relieved by the sculptor on the corslet of a warrior's effigy on a ,gothic tomb--mere sculpturings on the surface of the shell4 ,this peculiarity may be regarded as throwing light on the hitherto doubtful impressions of the sandstone of ,forfarshire--impressions1 as has been said1 of smooth surfaces carved into seeming scales4 ,they occur as impressions merely1 the sandstone retaining no more of the original substance of the organism than the impressed wax does of the substance of the seal2 and the workmen in the quarries in which they occur1 finding form without body1 and struck by the resemblance which the delicately waved scales bear to the sculptured markings on the wings of cherubs--of all subjects of the chisel the most common--fancifully termed them ,seraphim4 ,they have turned out1 as was anticipated1 to be the detached plates of some such crustacean as the lobster of ,balruddery4 ,the ability displayed by ,cuvier in restoring1 from a few broken fragments of bone1 the skeleton of the entire animal to which the fragments had belonged1 astonished the world ,he had learned to interpret signs as incomprehensible to every one else as the mysterious handwriting on the wall had been to the courtiers of ,belshazzar4 ,the condyle of a jaw became in his hands a key to the character of the original possessor2 and in a few mouldering vertebr1 or in the dilapidated bones of a fore-arm or a foot1 he could read a curious history of habits and instincts4 ,in common with several gentlemen of ,edinburgh1 all men known to science1 ,i was as much struck with the skill displayed by ,agassiz in piecing together the fragments of the huge crustacean of ,balruddery1 and in demonstrating its nature as such4 ,the numerous specimens of ,mr4 ,webster were opened out before us4 ,on a previous morning ,i had examined them1 as ,i have said1 in the company of ,mr4 ,murchison and ,dr4 ,buckland2 they had been seen also by ,lord ,greenock1 ,dr4 ,traill1 and ,mr4 ,charles ,m',laren2 and their fragments of new and undescribed fishes had been at once recognized with reference to at least their class4 ,but the collection contained organisms of a different kind1 which seemed inexplicable to all--forms of various design1 but so regularly mathematical in their outlines that they might be all described by a ruler and a pair of compasses1 and yet the whole were covered by seeming scales4 ,there were the fragments of scaly rhombs1 of scaly crescents1 of scaly circles1 with scaly parallelograms attached to them1 and of several other regular compound figures besides4 ,mr4 ,murchison1 familiar with the older fossils1 remarked the close resemblance of the seeming scales to those of the ,seraphim of ,forfarshire1 but deferred the whole to the judgment of ,agassiz2 no one else hazarded a conjecture4 ,agassiz glanced over the collection4 ,one specimen especially caught his attention--an elegantly symmetrical one4 ,it seemed a combination of the parallelogram and the crescent3 there were pointed horns at each end2 but the convex and concave lines of the opposite sides passed into almost parallel right lines towards the centre4 ,his eye brightened as he contemplated it4 ,i will tell you1 he said1 turning to the company--,i will tell you what these are--the remains of a huge lobster4 ,he arranged the specimens in the group before him with as much apparent ease as ,i have seen a young girl arranging the pieces of ivory or mother-of-pearl in an ,indian puzzle4 ,a few broken pieces completed the lozenge-shaped shield2 two detached specimens1 placed on its opposite sides1 furnished the claws2 two or three semi-rings1 with serrated edges1 composed the jointed body2 the compound figure1 which but a minute before had so strongly attracted his attention1 furnished the terminal flap2 and there lay the huge lobster before us1 palpable to all4 ,there is homage due to supereminent genius1 which nature spontaneously pays when there are no low feelings of envy or jealousy to interfere with her operations2 and the reader may well believe that it was willingly rendered on this occasion to the genius of ,agassiz4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,ix4 ,the terminal flap of this gigantic crustacean was1 as ,i have said1 continuous4 ,the creature1 however1 seems to have had contemporaries of the same family1 whose construction in the divisions of the flap resembled more the lobsters of the present day2 and the reader may see in the subjoined print the representation of a very characteristic fragment of an animal of this commoner type1 from the ,middle ,sandstones of ,forfarshire4 7,see ,plate ,,ix41 fig4 #a47 ,it is a terminal flap--one of several divisions--curiously fretted by scale-like markings1 and bearing on its lower edge a fringe1 cut into angular points1 somewhat in the style of the ,vandyke edgings of a ruff or the lacings of a dead-dress4 ,it may be remarked1 in passing1 that our commoner lobsters bear1 on the corresponding edge1 fringes of strong1 reddish-colored hair4 ,the form altogether1 from its wing-like appearance1 its feathery markings1 and its angular points1 will suggest to the reader the origin of the name given it by the ,forfarshire workmen4 ,with another such flap spreading out in the contrary direction1 and a periwigged head between them1 we would have one of the sandstone cherubs of our country churchyards complete4 ,there occur among the other organisms of ,balruddery numerous ichthyodorulites--fin-spines1 such as those to which ,i have called the attention of the reader in describing the thorny-finned fish of the lower formation4 ,but the ichthyodorulites of ,balruddery differ essentially from those of ,caithness1 ,moray1 and ,cromarty4 ,these last are described on both sides1 in every instance1 by either straight1 or slightly curved lines2 whereas one of the describing lines in a ,balruddery variety is broken by projecting prickles1 that resemble sharp1 hooked teeth set in a jaw1 or1 rather1 the entire ichthyodorulite resembles the sprig of a wild rose-bush1 bearing its peculiar aquiline shaped thorns on one of its sides4 ,buckland1 in his ,bridgewater ,treatise1 and ,lyell1 in his ,elements1 refer to this peculiarity of structure in ichthyodorulites of the latter formations4 ,the hooks are invariably ranged on the concave or posterior edge of the spine1 and were employed1 it is supposed1 in elevating the fin4 ,another ichthyodorulite of the formation resembles1 in the ,gothic cast of its roddings1 those of the ,diplacanthus of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone described in pages #abe and #abf of the present volume1 and figured in ,plate ,,viii41 fig4 #b1 except that it was proportionally stouter1 and traversed at its base by lines running counter to the stri that furrow it longitudinally4 ,of the other organisms of ,balruddery ,i cannot pretend to speak with any degree of certainty4 ,some of them seem to have belonged to the ,radiata2 some are of so doubtful a character that it can scarce be determined whether they took their place among the forms of the vegetable or animal kingdoms4 ,one organism in particular1 which was at first deemed the jointed stem of some plant resembling a calamite of the ,coal ,measures1 was found by ,agassiz to be the slender limb of a crustacean4 ,a minute description of this interesting deposit1 with illustrative prints1 would be of importance to science3 it would serve to fill a gap in the scale4 ,the geological pathway1 which leads upwards to the present time from those ancient formations in which organic existence first began1 has been the work of well nigh as many hands as some of our longer railroads3 each contractor has taken his part2 very extended parts have fallen to the share of some1 and admirably have they executed them2 but the pathway is not yet complete1 and the completion of a highly curious portion of it awaits the further labors of ,mr4 ,webster1 of ,balruddery4 ,a considerable portion of the rocks of this middle formation in ,scotland are of a bluish-gray color3 in ,balruddery1 they resemble the mudstones of the ,silurian ,system2 they form at ,carmylie the fissile1 bluish-gray pavement1 so well known in commerce as the pavement of ,arbroath2 they occur as a hard1 micaceous building-stone in some parts of ,fifeshire2 in others they exist as beds of friable1 stratified clay1 that dissolve into unctuous masses where washed by the sea4 ,in ,england1 the formation consists1 throughout its entire depth1 of beds of red and green marl1 with alternating beds of the nodular limestones1 to which it owes its name1 and with here and there an interposing band of indurated sandstone4 ,the ,cornstone formation is more extensively developed in ,forfarshire than in any other district in ,scotland2 and from this circumstance the result of the writer's observations regarding it1 during the course of a recent visit1 may be of some little interest to the reader4 ,about two thirds the entire area of this county is composed of ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,it forms a portion of that great belt of the system which1 extending across the island from the ,german ,ocean to the ,frith of ,clyde1 represents the southern bar of the huge sandstone frame in which the ,highlands of ,scotland is set4 ,the ,grampians run along its inner edge--composing part of the primary nucleus which the frame encloses3 the ,sidlaw ,hills run through its centre in a line nearly parallel to these1 and separated from them by ,strathmore1 the great valley of ,angus4 ,the valley and the hills thus form1 if ,i may so express myself1 the mouldings of the frame--mouldings somewhat resembling the semi-recta of the architect4 ,there is first1 reckoning from the mountains downwards1 an immense concave curve--the valley2 then an immense convex one--the hills2 and then a half curve bounded by the sea4 ,the illustration may further serve to show the present condition of the formation3 it is a frame much worn by denudation1 and--just as in a bona fide frame--it is the higher mouldings that have suffered most4 ,layer after layer has been worn down on the ridges1 exactly as on a raised moulding we may see the gold leaf1 the red pigment1 and the whiting1 all ground down to the wood2 while in the hollow moulding beside it1 on the contrary1 the gilt is still fresh and entire4 ,we find in the hollows the superior layers of the frame still overlying the inferior ones1 and on the heights the inferior ones laid bare4 ,to descend in the system1 therefore1 we have to climb a hill--to rise in it1 we have to descend into a valley4 ,we find the lowest beds of the system any where yet discovered in the county on the moory heights of ,carmylie2 its newer deposits may be found on the sea-shore1 beside the limeworks of ,hedderwick1 and in the central hollows of ,strathmore4 ,the most ancient beds in the county yet known belong1 as unequivocally shown by their fossils1 to but the middle formation of the system4 ,they have been quarried for many years in the parish of ,carmylie2 and the quarries1 as may be supposed1 are very extensive1 stretching along a moory hill-side for considerably more than a mile1 and furnishing employment to from sixty to a hundred workmen4 ,the eye is first caught1 in approaching them1 as we surmount a long1 flat ridge1 which shuts them out from the view of the distant sea1 by what seems a line of miniature windmills1 the sails flaring with red lead1 and revolving with the lightest breeze at more than double the rate of the sails of ordinary mills4 ,these are employed--a lesson probably borrowed from the ,dutch--in draining the quarries1 and throw up a very considerable body of water4 ,the line of the excavations resembles a huge drain1 with nearly perpendicular sides--a consequence of the regular and well-determined character of the joints with which the strata are bisected4 ,the stone itself is a gray1 close-grained fissile sandstone1 of unequal hardness1 and so very tough and coherent--qualities which it seems to owe in part to the vast abundance of mica which it contains--that it is quite possible to strike a small hammer through some of the larger flags1 without shattering the edges of the perforation4 ,hence its value for various purposes which common sandstone is too brittle and incoherent to serve4 ,it is extensively used in the neighborhood as a roofing slate2 it is employed1 too1 in the making of water cisterns1 grooved and jointed as if wrought out of wood1 and for the tops of lobby and billiard tables4 ,i have even seen snuff-boxes fashioned out of it1 as a sort of mechanical feat by the workmen1--a purpose1 however1 which it seems to serve only indifferently well1--and single slabs of it cut into tolerably neat window frames for cottages4 ,it is most extensively used1 however1 merely as a paving-stone for lobbies and lower floors1 and the footways of streets4 ,when first deposited1 and when the creatures whose organic remains it still preserves careered over its numerous platforms1 it seems to have existed as a fine1 muddy sand1 formed apparently of disintegrated grauwacke rocks1 analogous in their mineral character to the similarly colored grauwacke of the ,lammermuirs1 or of primary slates ground down by attrition into mud1 and mixed up with the pulverized fragments of schistose gneiss and mica schist4 ,i was first struck1 on descending among the workmen1 by the comparative abundance of the vegetable remains4 ,in some parts of the quarries almost every layer of the strata is covered by carbonaceous markings--irregularly grooved stems1 branching oat into boughs at acute angles1 and that at the first glance seem the miniature semblances of the trunks of gnarled oaks and elms1 blackened in a morass1 and still retaining the rough bark1 chapped into furrows3 oblong1 leaf-like impressions1 too1 and impressions of more slender form1 that resemble the narrow1 parallel edged leaves of the sea-grass weed4 ,i observed1 in particular1 one large bunch of riband-like leaflets converging into a short stem1 so that the whole resembled a scourge of cords2 and ,i would fain have detached it from the rock1 but it lay on a mouldering film of clay1 and broke up with my first attempt to remove it4 ,a stalk of sea-grass weed plucked up by the roots1 and compressed in a herbarium1 would present a somewhat similar appearance4 ,among the impressions there occur irregularly shaped patches1 reticulated into the semblance of polygonal meshes4 ,they remind one of pieces of ill-woven lace2 for the meshes are unequal in size1 and the polygons irregular4 7,see ,plate ,,ix41 fig4 #b47 ,when first laid open1 every mesh is filled with a carbonaceous speck2 and from their supposed resemblance to the eggs of the frog1 the workmen term them puddock spawn4 ,they are supposed by ,mr4 ,lyell to form the remains of the eggs of some gasteropodous mollusc of the period4 ,i saw one flagstone1 in particular1 so covered with these reticulated patches1 and so abundant1 besides1 in vegetable impressions of both the irregularly furrowed and grass-weed-looking class1 that ,i could compare it to only the bottom of a ditch beside a hedge1 matted with withered grass1 strewed with blackened twigs of the hawthorn1 and mottled with detached masses of the eggs of the frog4 ,all the larger vegetables are resolved into as pure a coal as the plants of the ,coal ,measures themselves--the kind of data1 doubtless1 on which unfortunate coal speculators have often earned disappointment at large expense4 ,none of the vegetables themselves1 however1 in the least resemble those of the carboniferous period4 ,the animal remains1 though less numerous1 are more interesting4 ,they are identical with those of the ,den of ,balruddery4 ,i saw1 in the possession of the superintendent of the quarries1 a well-preserved head of the ,cephalaspis ,lyellii4 ,the crescent-shaped horns were wanting1 and the outline a little obscure2 but the eyes were better marked than in almost any other specimen ,i have yet seen1 and the circular star-like tubercles which roughen the large occipital buckler1 to which the creature owes its name1 were tolerably well defined4 ,i was shown the head of another individual of the same species in the centre of a large slab1 and nothing could be more entire than the outline4 ,the osseous plate still retained the original brownish-white hue of the bone1 and its radiated porous texture2 and the sharp crescent-shaped horns were as sharply defined as during the lifetime of the strangely organized creature which they had defended4 ,in both specimens the thin angular body was wanting4 ,like almost all the other fish of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 the bony skeleton of the ,cephalaspis was external--as much so as the shell of the crab or lobster3 it presented at all points an armor of bone1 as complete as if it had been carved by the ivory-turner out of a solid block2 while the internal skeleton1 which in every instance has disappeared1 seems to have been composed of cartilage4 ,i have compared its general appearance to a saddler's cutting-knife2--,i should1 perhaps1 have said a saddler's cutting-knife divested of the wooden handle--the broad1 bony head representing the blade1 and the thin angular body the iron stem usually fixed in the wood4 ,no existence of the present creation at all resembles the ,cephalaspis4 ,were we introduced to the living creatures which now inhabit the oceans and rivers of ,mars and ,venus1 we could find nothing among them more strange in appearance1 or more unlike our living acquaintances of the friths and streams1 than the ,cephalaspides of ,carmylie4 ,i observed1 besides1 in the quarry1 remains of the huge crustacean of ,balruddery4 ,the plates of the ,cephalaspis retain the color of the original bone2 the plates of the crustacean1 on the contrary1 are of a deep red tint1 which contrasts strongly with the cold gray of the stone4 ,they remind one1 both in shape and hue1 of pieces of ancient iron armor1 fretted into semi-elliptical scales1 and red with rust4 ,i saw with one of the workmen what seemed to have been the continuous tail-flap of an individual of very considerable size4 ,it seemed curiously puckered where it had joined to the body1 much in the manner that a gown or ,highlander's kilt is puckered where it joins to the waistband2 and the outline of the whole plate was marked by what ,i may venture to term architectural elegance4 ,the mathematician could have described it with his ruler and compasses4 ,the superintendent pointed out to me another plate in a slab dressed for a piece of common pavement4 ,it was a regularly formed parallelogram1 and had obviously composed one of the jointed plates which had covered the creature's body4 ,i could not so easily assign its place to yet a third plate in the possession of the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,wilson1 of ,carmylie4 ,it is colored1 like the others1 and like them1 too1 fretted into minute scales1 but the form is exactly that of a heart--not such a heart as the anatomist would draw1 but such a heart1 rather1 as we see at times on valentines of the humbler order1 or on the ace of hearts in a pack of cards4 ,possibly enough it may have been the breastplate of this antique crustacean of the ,cornstones4 ,the spawn of our common blue lobster is composed of spherical black grains1 of nearly the size of mustard-seed4 ,it struck me as not very improbable that the reticulated markings of the flagstones of ,carmylie may have been produced by the minute eggs of this fossil crustacean1 covered up by some hastily deposited layer of mingled mud and sand1 and forced into the polygonal form by pressing against each other1 and by the weight from above4 ,the gray fissile bed in which these organisms occur was perforated to its base on two several occasions1 and in different parts of the quarries--in one instance1 merely to ascertain its depth2 in the other1 in the course of excavating a tunnel4 ,in the one case it was found to rest on a bed of trap1 which seemed to have insinuated itself among the strata with as little disturbance1 and which lay nearly as conformably to them as the greenstone bed of ,salisbury ,crags does to the alternating sandstones and clays which both underlie and overtop it4 ,in the other instance the excavators arrived at a red1 aluminous sandstone1 veined by a purplish-colored oxide of iron4 ,the upper strata of the quarry are overlaid by a thick bed of grayish-red conglomerate4 ,leaving behind us the quarries of ,carmylie1 we descend the hill-side1 and rise in the system as we lower our level and advance upon the sea4 ,for a very considerable distance we find the rock covered up by a deep-red diluvial clay1 largely charged with water-worn boulders1 chiefly of the older primary rocks1 and of the sandstone underneath4 ,the soil on the higher grounds is moory and barren--a consequence1 in great part1 of a hard1 ferruginous pan1 which interposes like a paved floor between the diluvium and the upper mould1 and which prevents the roots of the vegetation from striking downwards into the tenacious subsoil4 ,from its impervious character1 too1 it has the effect of rendering the surface a bog for one half the year1 and an arid1 sun-baked waste for the other4 ,it seems not improbable that the heaths which must have grown and decayed on these heights for many ages1 may have been main agents in the formation of this pavement of barrenness4 ,of all plants1 they are said to contain most iron4 ,according to ,fourcroy1 a full twelfth part of the weight of oak1 when dried1 is owing to the presence of this almost universally diffused metal2 and the proportion in our common heaths is still larger4 ,it seems easy to conceive how that1 as generation after generation withered on these heights1 and were slowly resolved into a little mossy dust1 the minute metallic particles which they had contained would be carried downwards by the rains through the lighter stratum of soil1 till1 reaching the impermeable platform of tenacious clay beneath1 they would gradually accumulate there1 and at length bind its upper layer1 as is the nature of ferruginous oxide1 into a continuous stony crust4 ,bog iron1 and the clay ironstone1 so abundant in the ,coal ,measures1 and so extensively employed in our iron-works1 seem to have owed their accumulation in layers and nodules to a somewhat similar process1 through the agency of vegetation4 ,but ,i digress4 ,the rock appears in the course of the ,elliot1 a few hundred yards above the pastoral village of ,arbirlot4 ,we find it uptilted on a mass of claystone amygdaloid1 that has here raised its broad back to the surface amid the middle shales and sandstones of the system4 ,the stream runs over the intruded mass2 and where the latter terminates1 and the sandstones lean against it1 the waters leap from the harder to the softer rock1 immediately beside the quiet parish burying-ground1 in a cascade of some eight or ten feet4 ,from this point1 for a full mile downwards1 we find an almost continuous section of the sandstone--stratum leaning against stratum--in an angle of about thirty4 ,the portion of the system thus exhibited must amount to many hundred yards in vertical extent2 but as ,i could discover no data by which to determine regarding the space which may intervene between its lowest stratum and the still lower beds of ,carmylie1 ,i could form no guess respecting the thickness of the whole4 ,in a bed of shale1 about a quarter of a mile below the village1 ,i detected several of the vegetable impressions of ,carmylie1 especially those of the grass-weed looking class1 and an imperfectly preserved organism resembling the parallelogramical scale of a ,cephalaspis4 ,the same plants and animals seem to have existed on this high platform as on the ,carmylie platform far beneath4 ,a little farther down the course of the stream1 and in the immediate neighborhood of the old weather-worn tower of the ,ouchterlonies1 there occurs what seems a break in the strata4 ,the newer sandstones seem to rest unconformably on the older sandstones which they overlie4 ,the evening on which ,i explored the course of the ,elliot was drizzly and unpleasant1 and the stream swollen by a day of continuous rain1 and so ,i could not examine so minutely as in other circumstances ,i would have done1 or as was necessary to establish the fact4 ,in since turning over the ,elements of ,lyell1 however1 ,i find1 in his section of ,forfarshire1 that a newer deposit of nearly horizontal strata of sandstone and conglomerate lies unconformably1 in the neighborhood of the sea1 on the older sandstones of the district2 and the appearances observed near the old tower mark1 it is probable1 one of the points of junction--a point of junction also1 if ,i may be so bold as venture the suggestion1 of the formation of the ,holoptychius nobilissimus with the formation of the ,cephalaspis--of the quartzose conglomerate with the ,cornstones4 ,in my hurried survey1 however1 ,i could find none of the scales or plates of the newer ichthyolite in this upper deposit1 though the numerous spherical markings of white1 with their centrical points of darker color1 show that at one time the organisms of these upper beds must have been very abundant4 ,we pass to the upper formation of the system4 ,over the belt of mingled gray and red there occurs in the pyramid a second deep belt of red conglomerate and variegated sandstone1 with a band of lime a-top1 and over the band a thick belt of yellow sandstone1 with which the system terminates4,,an ,thus the second pyramid consists mineralogically1 like the first1 of three great divisions1 or bands2 its two upper belts belonging1 like the three belts of the other1 to but one formation--the formation known in ,england as the ,quartzose ,conglomerate4 ,it is largely developed in ,scotland4 ,we find it spread over extensive areas in ,moray1 ,fife1 ,roxburgh1 and ,berwick shires4 ,in ,england1 it is comparatively barren in fossils2 the only animal organic remains yet detected in it being a single scale of the ,holoptychius found by ,mr4 ,murchison2 and though it contains vegetable organisms in more abundance1 so imperfectly are they preserved1 that little else can be ascertained regarding them than that they were land plants1 but not identical with the plants of the ,coal ,measures4 ,in ,scotland1 the formation is richly fossiliferous1 and the remains belong chiefly to the animal kingdom4 ,it is richly fossiliferous1 too1 in ,russia1 where it was discovered by ,mr4 ,murchison1 during the summer of last year1 spread over areas many thousand square miles in extent4 ,and there1 as in ,scotland1 the ,holoptychius seems its most characteristic fossil4 ,footnote ,,an3 ,there still exists some uncertainty regarding the order in which the upper beds occur4 ,mr4 ,duff1 of ,elgin1 places the limestone band above the yellow sandstone2 ,messrs4 ,sedgwick and ,murchison assign it an intermediate position between the red and yellow4 ,the respective places of the gray and red sandstones are also disputed1 and by very high authorities2 ,dr4 ,fleming holding that the gray sandstones overlie the red1 7see ,cheek's ,edinburgh ,journal for ,february1 #ahca17 and ,mr4 ,lyell1 that the red sandstones overlie the gray1 7see ,elements of ,geology1 first edit41 pp4 #ii-ajj47 ,the order adopted above consorts best with the results of the writer's observations1 which have1 however1 been restricted chiefly to the north country4 ,he assigns to the limestone band the middle place assigned to it by ,messrs4 ,sedgwick and ,murchison1 and to the gray sandstone the inferior position assigned to it by ,mr4 ,lyell2 aware1 however1 that the latter deposit has not only a coping1 but also a basement1 of red sandstone--the basement forming the upper member of the lower formation4 ,the fact seems especially worthy of remark4 ,the organisms of some of the newer formations differ entirely1 in widely separated localities1 from their contemporary organisms1 just as1 in the existing state of things1 the plants and animals of ,great ,britain differ from the plants and animals of ,lapland or of ,sierra ,leone4 ,a geologist who has acquainted himself with the belemnites1 baculites1 turrilites1 and sea-urchins of the ,cretaceous group in ,england and the north of ,france1 would discover that he had got into an entirely new field among the hippurites1 sphrulites1 and nummulites of the same formations1 in ,greece1 ,italy1 and ,spain2 nor1 in passing the tertiary deposits1 would he find less striking dissimilarities between the gigantic1 mail-clad megatherium and huge mastodon of the ,ohio and the ,la ,plate1 and the monsters1 their contemporaries1 the hairy mammoth of ,siberia1 and the hippopotamus and rhinoceros of ,england and the ,continent4 ,in the more ancient geological periods1 ere the seasons began1 the case is essentially different2 the contemporary formations1 when widely separated1 are often very unlike in mineralogical character1 but in their fossil contents they are almost always identical4 ,in these earlier ages1 the atmospheric temperature seems to have depended more on the internal heat of the earth1 only partially cooled down from its original state1 than on the earth's configuration or the influence of the sun4 ,hence a widely spread equality of climate--a greenhouse equalization of heat1 if ,i may so speak2 and hence1 too1 it would seem1 a widely spread ,fauna and ,flora4 ,the greenhouses of ,scotland and ,sweden produce the same plants with the greenhouses of ,spain and ,italy2 and when the world was one vast greenhouse1 heated from below1 the same families of plants1 and the same tribes of animals1 seem to have ranged over spaces immensely more extended than those geographical circles in which1 in the present time1 the same plants are found indigenous1 and the same animals native4 ,the fossil remains of the true ,coal ,measures are the same to the westward of the ,alleghany ,mountains as in ,new ,holland1 ,india1 ,southern ,africa1 the neighborhood of ,newcastle1 and the vicinity of ,edinburgh4 ,and ,i entertain little doubt that1 on a similar principle1 the still more ancient organisms of the ,old ,red ,sandstone will be found to bear the same character all over the world4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,fossils of the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone much more imperfectly preserved than those of the ,lower4--,the ,causes obvious4--,difference between the two ,groups1 which first strikes the ,observer1 a ,difference in ,size4--,the ,holoptychius a characteristic ,ichthyolite of the ,formation4--,description of its huge ,scales4--,of its ,occipital ,bones1 ,fins1 ,teeth1 and ,general ,appearance4--,contemporaries of the ,holoptychius4--,sponge-like ,bodies4--,plates resembling those of the ,sturgeon4--,teeth of various ,forms1 but all evidently the ,teeth of ,fishes4--,limestone ,band1 and its probable ,origin4--,fossils of the ,yellow ,sandstone4--,the ,pterichthys of ,dura ,den4--,member of a ,family peculiarly characteristic of the ,system4--,no intervening ,formation between the ,old ,red ,sandstone and the ,coal ,measures4--,the ,holoptychius contemporary for a time with the ,megalichthys4--,the ,columns of ,tubal ,cain4 ,the different degrees of entireness in which the geologist finds his organic remains1 depend much less on their age than on the nature of the rock in which they occur2 and as the arenaceous matrices of the ,upper and ,middle ,old ,red ,sandstones have been less favorable to the preservation of their peculiar fossils than the calcareous and aluminous matrices of the ,lower1 we frequently find the older organisms of the system fresh and unbroken1 and the more modern existing as mere fragments4 ,a fish thrown into a heap of salt would be found entire after the lapse of many years2 a fish thrown into a heap of sand would disappear in a mass of putrefaction in a few weeks2 and only the less destructible parts1 such as the teeth1 the harder bones1 and perhaps a few of the scales1 would survive4 ,now1 limestone1 if ,i may so speak1 is the preserving salt of the geological world2 and the conservative qualities of the shales and stratified clays of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone are not much inferior to those of lime itself2 while1 in the ,upper ,old ,red1 we have merely beds of consolidated sand1 and these1 in most instances1 rendered less conservative of organic remains than even the common sand of our shores1 by a mixture of the red oxide of iron4 ,the older fossils1 therefore1 like the mummies of ,egypt1 can be described well nigh as minutely as the existences of the present creation2 the newer1 like the comparatively modern remains of our churchyards1 exist1 except in a few rare cases1 as mere fragments1 and demand powers such as those of a ,cuvier or an ,agassiz to restore them to their original combinations4 ,but cases1 though few and rare1 do occur in which1 through some favorable accident connected with the death or sepulture of some individual existence of the period1 its remains have been preserved almost entire2 and one such specimen serves to throw light on whole heaps of the broken remains of its contemporaries4 ,the single elephant1 preserved in an iceberg beside the ,arctic ,ocean1 illustrated the peculiarities of the numerous extinct family to which it belonged1 whose bones and huge tusks whiten the wastes of ,siberia4 ,the human body found in an ,irish bog1 with the ancient sandals of the country still attached to its feet by thongs1 and clothed in a garment of coarse hair1 gave evidence that bore generally on the degree of civilization attained by the inhabitants of an entire district in a remote age4 ,in all such instances1 the character and appearance of the individual bear on those of the tribe4 ,in attempting to describe the organisms of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 where the fossils lie as thickly in some localities as herrings on our coasts in the fishing season1 ,i felt as if ,i had whole tribes before me4 ,in describing the fossils of the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone1 ,i shall have to draw mostly from single specimens4 ,but the evidence may be equally sound so far as it goes4 ,the difference between the superior and inferior groups of the system which first strikes an observer1 is a difference in the size of the fossils of which these groups are composed4 ,the characteristic organisms of the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone are of much greater bulk than those of the ,lower1 which seem to have been characterized by a mediocrity of size throughout the entire extent of the formation4 ,the largest ichthyolites of the group do not seem to have much exceeded two feet or two feet and a half in length2 its smaller average from an inch to three inches4 ,a jaw in the possession of ,dr4 ,traill--that of an ,orkney species of ,platygnathus1 and by much the largest in his collection--does not exceed in bulk the jaw of a full-grown coal-fish or cod2 his largest ,coccosteus must have been a considerably smaller fish than an ordinary-sized turbot2 the largest ichthyolite found by the writer was a ,diplopterus1 of1 however1 smaller dimensions than the ichthyolite to which the jaw in the possession of ,dr4 ,traill must have belonged2 the remains of another ,diplopterus from ,gamrie1 the most massy yet discovered in that locality1 seem to have composed the upper parts of an individual about two feet and a half in length4 ,the fish1 in short1 of the lower ocean of the ,old ,red ,sandstone--and ,i can speak of it throughout an area which comprises ,orkney and ,inverness1 ,cromarty1 and ,gamrie1 and which must have included about ten thousand square miles--ranged in size between the stickleback and the cod2 whereas some of the fish of its upper ocean were covered by scales as large as oyster-shells1 and armed with teeth that rivalled in bulk those of the crocodile4 ,they must have been fish on an immensely larger scale than those with which the system began4 ,there have been scales of the ,holoptychius found in ,clashbennie which measure three inches in length by two and a half in breadth1 and a full eighth part of an inch in thickness4 ,there occur occipital plates of fishes in the same formation in ,moray1 a full foot in length by half a foot in breadth4 ,the fragment of a tooth still attached to a piece of the jaw1 found in the sandstone cliffs that overhang the ,findhorn1 measures an inch in diameter at the base4 ,a second tooth of the same formation1 of a still larger size1 disinterred by ,mr4 ,patrick ,duff from out the conglomerates of the ,scat-,craig1 near ,elgin1 and now in his possession1 measures two inches in length by rather more than an inch in diameter4 7,see ,plate ,x41 fig4 #d47 ,there occasionally turn up in the sandstones of ,perthshire ichthyodorulites that in bulk and appearance resemble the teeth of a harrow rounded at the edges by a few months' wear1 and which must have been attached to fins not inferior in general bulk to the dorsal fin of an ordinary-sized porpoise4 ,in short1 the remains of a ,patagonian burying-ground would scarcely contrast more strongly with the remains of that battle-field described by ,addison1 in which the pygmies were annihilated by the cranes1 than the organisms of the upper formation of the ,old ,red ,sandstone contrast with those of the lower4,,ao ,footnote ,,ao3 ,i have permitted this paragraph to remain as originally written1 though the comparatively recent discovery of a gigantic ,holoptychius 787 in the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,thurso1 by ,mr4 ,robert ,dick of that place1 7see introductory note17 bears shrewdly against its general line of statement4 ,but it will1 at least1 serve to show how large an amount of negative evidence may be dissipated by a single positive fact1 and to inculcate on the geologist the necessity of cautious induction4 ,an individual ,holoptychius of ,thurso must have been at least thrice the size of the ,holoptychius of the ,upper ,old ,red formation1 as exhibited in the specimen of ,mr4 ,noble1 of ,st4 ,madoes4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,x4 ,of this upper formation the most characteristic and most abundant ichthyolite1 as has been already said1 is the ,holoptychius4 ,the large scales and plates1 and the huge teeth1 belong to this genus4 ,it was first introduced to the notice of geologists in a paper read before the ,wernerian ,society in ,may1 #ahcj1 by ,professor ,fleming1 and published by him in the ,february of the following year1 in ,cheek's ,edinburgh ,journal4 ,only detached scales and the fragment of a tooth had as yet been found2 and these he minutely described as such1 without venturing to hazard a conjecture regarding the character or family of the animal to which they had belonged4 ,they were submitted some years after to ,agassiz1 by whom they were referred1 though not without considerable hesitation1 to the genus ,gyrolepis2 and the doubts of both naturalists serve to show how very uncertain a guide mere analogy proves to even men of the first order1 when brought to bear on organisms of so strange a type as the ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,at this stage1 however1 an almost entire specimen of the creature was discovered in the sandstones of ,clashbennie1 by the ,rev4 ,james ,noble1 of ,st4 ,madoes1 a gentleman who1 by devoting his leisure hours to ,geology1 has extended the knowledge of this upper formation1 and whose name has been attached by ,agassiz to its characteristic fossil1 now designated the ,holoptychius nobilissimus4 ,his specimen at once decided that the creature had been no ,gyrolepis1 but the representative of a new genus not less strangely organized1 and quite as unlike the existences of the present times as any existence of all the past4 ,so marked are the peculiarities of the ,holoptychius1 that they strike the commonest observer4 ,the scales are very characteristic4 ,they are massy elliptical plates1 scarcely less bulky in proportion to their extent of surface than our smaller copper coin1 composed internally of bone1 and externally of enamel1 and presenting on the one side a porous structure1 and on the other1 when well preserved1 a bright1 glossy surface4 ,the upper1 or glossy side1 is the more characteristic of the two4 ,i have placed one of them before me4 ,imagine an elliptical ivory counter1 an inch and a half in length by an inch in breadth1 and nearly an eighth part of an inch in thickness1 the larger diameter forming a line which1 if extended1 would pass longitudinally from head to tail through the animal which the scale covered4 ,on the upper or anterior margin of this elliptical counter1 imagine a smooth selvedge or border three eighth parts of an inch in breadth4 ,beneath this border there is an inner border of detached tubercles1 and beneath the tubercles large undulating furrows1 which stretch longitudinally towards the lower end of the ellipsis4 ,some of these waved furrows run unbroken and separate to the bottom1 some merge into their neighboring furrows at acute angles1 some branch out and again unite1 like streams which enclose islands1 and some break into chains of detached tubercles4 7,see ,plate ,x41 fig4 #c47 ,no two scales exactly resemble one another in the minuter peculiarities of their sculpture1 if ,i may so speak1 just as no two pieces of lake or sea may be roughened after exactly the same pattern during a gale2 and yet in general appearance they are all wonderfully alike4 ,their style of sculpture is the same--a style which has sometimes reminded me of the ,runic knots of our ancient north country obelisks4 ,such was the scale of the creature4 ,the head1 which was small1 compared with the size of the body1 was covered with bony plates1 roughened after a pattern somewhat different from that of the scales1 being tubercled rather than ridged2 but the tubercles present a confluent appearance1 just as chains of hills may be described as confluent1 the base of one hill running into the base of another4 ,the operculum seems to have been covered by one entire plate--a peculiarity observable1 as has been remarked1 among some of the ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 such as the ,diplopterus1 ,dipterus1 and ,osteolepis4 ,and it1 too1 has its fields of tubercles1 and its smooth marginal selvedge1 or border1 on which the lower edges of the upper occipital plates seem to have rested1 just as1 in the roof of a slated building1 part of the lower tier of slates is overtopped and covered by the tier above4 ,the scales towards the tail suddenly diminish at the ventral fins to about one fourth the size of those on the upper part of the body2 the fins themselves are covered at their bases1 which seem to have been thick and fleshy like the base of the pectoral fin in the cod or haddock1 with scales still more minute2 and from the scaly base the rays diverge like the radii of a circle1 and terminate in a semicircular outline4 ,the ventrals are placed nearer the tail1 says ,agassiz1 than in any other ganoid fish4 7,see ,plate ,x41 fig4 #b47 ,but no such description can communicate an adequate conception to the reader of the strikingly picturesque appearance of the ,holoptychius1 as shown in ,mr4 ,noble's splendid specimen4 ,there is a general massiveness about the separate portions of the creature1 that imparts ideas of the gigantic1 independently of its bulk as a whole2 just as a building of moderate size1 when composed of very ponderous stones1 has a more imposing effect than much larger buildings in which the stones are smaller4 ,the body measures a foot across1 by two feet and a half in length1 exclusive of the tail1 which is wanting2 but the armor in which it is cased might have served a crocodile or alligator of five times the size4 ,it lies on its back1 on a mass of red sandstone2 and the scales and plates still retain their bony color1 slightly tinged with red1 like the skeleton of some animal that had lain for years in a bed of ferruginous marl or clay4 ,the outline of the occipital portion of the specimen forms a low ,gothic arch1 of an intermediate style between the round ,saxon and the pointed ,norman4 ,this arch is filled by two angular1 pane-like plates1 separated by a vertical line1 that represents1 if ,i may use the figure1 the-dividing astragal of the window2 and the under jaw1 with its two sweeping arcs1 or branches1 constitutes the frame4 ,all of the head which appears is that under portion of it which extends from the upper part of the belly to the snout4 ,the belly itself is thickly covered by huge carved scales1 that1 from their massiveness and regular arrangement1 remind one of the flags of an ancient stone roof4 ,the carving varies1 as they descend towards the tail1 being more in the ridged style below1 and more in the tubercled style above4 ,so fairly does the creature lie on its back1 that the ventral fins have fallen equally1 one on each side1 and1 from their semicircular form1 remind one of the two pouch holes in a lady's apron1 with their laced flaps4 ,the entire outline of the fossil is that of an elongated ellipsis1 or rather spindle1 a little drawn out towards the caudal extremity4 ,the places of all the fins are not indicated1 but1 as shown by other specimens1 they seem to have been crowded together towards the lower extremity1 like those of the ,glyptolepis1 an ichthyolite which1 in more than one respect1 the ,holoptychius must have resembled1 and which1 from this peculiarity1 presents a brush-like appearance--the head and shoulders representing the handle1 and the large and thickly clustered fins the spreading bristles4,,ap ,footnote ,,ap3 ,there are now six species of ,holoptychius enumerated--,h4 ,andersoni1 ,h4 ,flemingii1 ,h4 giganteus1 ,h4 ,murchisoni1 ,h4 nobilissimus1 and ,h4 ,omaliusii4 ,some of the occipital bones of the ,holoptychius are very curious and very puzzling4 ,there are pieces rounded at one of the ends1 somewhat in the manner of the neck joints of our better known quadrupeds1 and which have been mistaken for vertebr2 but which present evidently1 at the apparent joint1 the enamel peculiar to the outer surface of all the plates and scales of the creature1 and which belonged1 it is probable1 to the snout4 ,there are saddle-shaped bones1 too1 which have been regarded as the central occipital plates of a new species of ,coccosteus1 but whose style of confluent tubercle belongs evidently to the ,holoptychius4 ,the jaws are exceedingly curious4 ,they are composed of as solid bone as we usually find in the jaws of mammalia2 and the outer surface1 which is covered in animals of commoner structure with portions of the facial integuments1 we find polished and japanned1 and fretted into tubercles4 ,the jaws of the creature1 like those of the ,osteolepis of the lower formation1 were naked jaws2 it is1 indeed1 more than probable that all its real bones were so1 and that the internal skeleton was cartilaginous4 ,a row of thickly-set1 pointed teeth ran along the japanned edges of the mouth--what1 in fish of the ordinary construction1 would be the lips2 and inside this row there was a second and widely-set row of at least twenty times the bulk of the other1 and which stood up over and beyond it1 like spires in a city over the rows of lower buildings in front4 ,a nearly similar disposition of teeth seems also to have characterized the ,holoptychius of the ,coal ,measures1 but the contrast in size was somewhat less marked4 ,one of the most singularly-formed bones of the formation will be found1 ,i doubt not1 when perfect specimens of the upper part of the creature shall be procured1 to have belonged to the ,holoptychius4 ,it is a huge ichthyodorulite1 formed1 box-like1 of four nearly rectangular planes1 terminating in a point1 and ornamented on two of the sides by what1 in a work of art1 the reader would at once term a species of ,chinese fretwork4 ,along the centre there runs a line of lozenges1 slightly truncated where they unite1 just as1 in plants that exhibit the cellular texture1 the lozenge-shaped cells may be said to be truncated4 ,at the sides of the central line1 there run lines of half lozenges1 which occupy the space to the edges4 ,each lozenge is marked by lines parallel to the lines which describe it1 somewhat in the manner of the plates of the tortoise4 ,the centre of each is thickly tubercled2 and what seems to have been the anterior plane of the ichthyodorulite is thickly tubercled also1 both in the style of the occipital plates and jaws of the ,holoptychius4 ,this curious bone1 which seems to have been either hollow inside1 or1 what is more probable1 filled with cartilage1 measures1 in some of the larger specimens1 an inch and a half across at the base on its broader planes1 and rather more than half an inch on its two narrower ones4,,aq ,footnote ,,aq3 ,this bone has been since assigned by ,agassiz to a new genus1 of which no other fragments have yet been found1 but which has been named provisionally ,placothorax paradoxus4 ,geologists have still a great deal to learn regarding the contemporaries of the ,holoptychius nobilissimus4 ,the lower portion of that upper formation to which it more especially belongs--the portion represented in our second pyramid by the conglomerate and sandstone bar--though unfavorable to the preservation of animal remains1 represents assuredly no barren period4 ,it has been found to contain bodies apparently organic1 that vary in shape like the sponges of our existing seas1 which in general appearance they somewhat resemble1 but whose class1 and even kingdom1 are yet to fix4,,ar ,footnote ,,ar3 ,these organisms1 if in reality such1 are at once very curious and very puzzling4 ,they occur in some localities in great abundance4 ,a piece of ,clashbennie flagstone1 somewhat more than two feet in length1 by fifteen inches in breadth1 kindly sent me for examination by the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,noble1 of ,st4 ,madoes1 bears no fewer than twelve of them on its upper surface1 and presents the appearance of a piece of rude sculpture1 not very unlike those we sometimes see in country churchyards1 on the tombstones of the times of the ,revolution4 ,all the twelve vary in appearance4 ,some of them are of a pear shape--some are irregularly oval--some resemble short cuts of the bole of a tree--some are spread out like ancient manuscripts1 partially unrolled--one of the number seems a huge1 though not over neatly formed acorn1 an apprentice mason's first attempt--the others are of a shape so irregular as to set comparison and description at defiance4 ,they almost all agree1 however1 when cut transversely1 in presenting flat1 elliptical arcs as their sectional lines--in having an upper surface comparatively smooth1 and an under surface nearly parallel to it1 thickly corrugated--and in being all coated with a greasy1 shining clay1 of a deeper red than the surrounding stone4 ,i was perhaps rather more confident of their organic character after ,i had examined a few merely detached specimens1 than now that ,i have seen a dozen of them together4 ,it seems at least a circumstance to awaken doubt1 that though they occur in various positions on the slab--some extending across it1 some lying diagonally1 some running lengthwise--the corrugations of their under surfaces should run lengthwise in all--furrowing them in every possible angle1 and giving evidence1 not apparently to the influences of an organic law1 internal to each1 but of the operation of some external cause1 acting on the whole in one direction4 ,it contains1 besides1 in considerable abundance1 though in a state of very imperfect preservation1 scales that differ from those of the ,holoptychius1 and from one another4 ,one of these1 figured and described by ,professor ,fleming in ,cheek's ,edinburgh ,journal1 bearing on its upper surface a mark like a ,st4 ,andrew's cross1 surrounded by tubercled dottings1 and closely resembling in external appearance some of the scales of the common sturgeon1 may be referred with some probability1 says the ,professor1 to an extinct species of the genus ,accipenser4,,as ,footnote ,,as3 ,may ,i crave the attention of the reader to a brief statement of fact8 ,i have said that ,professor ,fleming1 when he minutely described the scales of the ,holoptychius1 hazarded no conjecture regarding the generic character of the creature to which they had belonged2 he merely introduced them to the notice of the public as the scales of some vertebrated animal1 probably those of a fish4 ,i now state that he described the scales of a contemporary ichthyolite as bearing1 in external appearance1 a close resemblance to some of the scales of the common sturgeon4 ,it has been asserted1 that it was the scales of the ,holoptychius which he thus described1 referring them to an extinct species of the genus ,accipenser2 and the assertion has been extensively credited1 and by some of our highest geological authorities4 ,agassiz himself1 evidently in the belief that the professor had fallen into a palpable error1 deems it necessary to prove that the ,holoptychius could have borne no relation to the ,accipenser or sturgeon4 ,mr4 ,murchison1 in his ,silurian ,system1 refers also to the supposed mistake4 ,the person with whom the misunderstanding seems to have originated is the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,anderson1 of ,newburgh4 ,about a twelvemonth after the discovery of ,professor ,fleming in the sandstones of ,drumdryan1 a similar discovery was made in the sandstones of ,clashbennie by a geologist of ,perth1 who1 on submitting his new found scales to ,dr4 ,anderson1 concluded1 with the ,doctor1 that they could be no other than oyster shells2 though eventually1 on becoming acquainted with the decision of ,professor ,fleming regarding them1 both gentlemen were content to alter their opinion1 and to regard them as scales4 ,the ,professor1 in his paper on the ,old ,red ,sandstone in ,cheek's ,journal1 referred incidentally to the oyster shells of ,clashbennie--a somewhat delicate subject of allusion2 and in ,dr4 ,anderson's paper on the same formation1 which appeared about seven years after1 in the ,new ,journal of ,professor ,jameson1 the geological world was told1 for the first time1 that ,professor ,fleming had described a scale of ,clashbennie similar to those of ,drumdryan1 7i4 e41 those of the ,holoptychius17 as bearing a close resemblance to some of the scales on the common sturgeon1 and as probably referable to some extinct species of the genus ,accipenser4 ,now1 ,professor ,fleming1 instead of stating that the scales were at all similar1 had stated very pointedly that they were entirely different2 and not only had he described them as different1 but he had also figured them as different1 and had placed the figures side by side1 that the difference might be the better seen4 ,to the paper of the ,professor1 which contained this statement1 and to which these figures were attached1 ,dr4 ,anderson referred1 as read before the ,wernerian ,society2--he quoted from it in the ,professor's words--he drew some of the more important facts of his own paper from it--in his late ,essay on the ,geology of ,fife he has availed himself of it still more largely1 though with no acknowledgment2 it has constituted1 in short1 by far the most valuable of all his discoveries in connection with the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and apparently the most minutely examined2 and yet1 so completely did he fail to detect ,professor ,fleming's carefully drawn distinction between the scales of the ,holoptychius and those of its contemporary1 that when ,agassiz1 misled apparently by the ,doctor's own statement1 had set himself to show that the scaly giant of the formation could have been no sturgeon1 the ,doctor had the passage in which the naturalist established the fact transferred into a ,fife newspaper1 with1 of course1 the laudable intention of preventing the ,fife public from falling into the absurd mistake of ,professor ,fleming4 ,there seems to be something rather inexplicable in all this2 but there can be little doubt ,dr4 ,anderson could satisfactorily explain the whole matter without once referring to the oyster shells of ,clashbennie4 ,it is improbable that he could have wished or intended to injure the reputation of a gentleman to whose freely-imparted instructions he is indebted for much the greater portion of his geological skill--whose remarks1 written and spoken1 he has so extensively appropriated in his several papers and essays--and whose character is known far beyond the limits of his country1 for untiring research1 philosophic discrimination1 and all the qualities which constitute a naturalist of the highest order4 ,dr4 ,johnston1 of ,berwick1 in his ,history of ,british ,zophytes1 7a work of an eminently scientific character17 justly ascribes to the labors and writings of ,professor ,fleming no small share in diffusing that taste for ,natural ,history which is now abroad4 ,and as an interesting corroboration of the fact1 ,i may state1 that ,dr4 ,malcolmson1 of ,madras1 lately found an elegant ,italian translation of ,fleming's ,philosophy of ,zology1 high in repute among the elite of ,rome4 ,lest it should be supposed ,i do ,dr4 ,anderson injustice in these remarks1 ,i subjoin the grounds of them in the following extracts from professor ,fleming's paper in ,cheek's ,journal1 and from the paper in ,jameson's ,new ,edinburgh ,journal1 in which the ,doctor purports to give a digest of the former1 without once referring1 however1 to the periodical in which it is to be found3-- ,in the summer of #ahbg1 says ,dr4 ,fleming1 ,i obtained from ,drumdryan quarry1 to the south of ,cupar1 situate in the higher strata of yellow sandstone1 certain organisms1 which ,i readily referred to the scales of vertebrated animals1 probably those of a fish4 ,the largest 7see ,plate ,,ii41 fig4 #a1 'figure of a scale of the ,holoptychius'7 was one inch and one tenth in length1 about one inch and two tenths in breadth1 and not exceeding the fiftieth of an inch in thickness4 ,the part which1 when in its natural position1 had been imbedded in the cuticle1 is comparatively smooth1 exhibiting1 however1 in a very distinct manner1 the semicircularly parallel layers of growth with obsolete diverging stri1 giving to the surface1 when under a lens1 a reticulated aspect4 ,the part naturally exposed is marked with longitudinal1 waved1 rounded1 anastomosing ridges1 which are smooth and glossy4 ,the whole of the inside of the scale is smooth1 though exhibiting with tolerable distinctness the layers of growth4 ,the form and structure of the object indicated plainly enough that it had been a scale1 a conclusion confirmed by the detection of the phosphate of lime in its composition4 ,at this period ,i inserted a short notice of the occurrence of these scales in our provincial newspaper1 the ,fife ,herald1 for the purpose of attracting the attention of the workmen and others in the neighborhood1 in order to secure the preservation of any other specimens which might occur4 ,nearly a year after these scales had been discovered1 not only in the upper1 but even in some of the lower beds of the ,yellow ,sandstone1 ,i was informed that oyster shells had been found in a quarry in the ,old ,red ,sandstone at ,clashbennie1 near ,errol1 in ,perthshire1 and that specimens were in the possession of a gentleman in ,perth4 ,interested in the intelligence1 ,i lost no time in visiting ,perth1 and was gratified to find that the supposed oyster shells were1 in fact1 similar to those which ,i had ascertained to occur in a higher part of the series4 ,the scales were1 however1 of a larger size1 some of them exceeding three inches in length1 and one eighth of an inch in thickness4 ,upon my visit to the quarry1 ,i found the scales1 as in the ,yellow ,sandstone1 most abundant in those parts of the rock which exhibited a brecciated aspect4 ,many patches a foot in length1 full of scales1 have occurred2 but as yet no entire impression of a fish has been obtained4 ,another scale1 differing from those already noticed1 7see ,plate ,,ii41 fig4 #c1 'figure of an oblong tubercle plate traversed diagonally by lines1 which1 bisecting one another a little above the centre1 resembles a ,st4 ,andrew's cross1 and marked on the edges by faintly radiating lines1'7 is about an inch and a quarter in length1 and an inch in breadth4 ,in external appearance it bears a very close resemblance to some of the scales on the common sturgeon1 and may1 with some probability1 be referred to an extinct species of the genus ,accipenser4--7,cheek's ,edinburgh ,journal1 ,feb4 #ahca1 p4 #he47 ,dr4 ,fleming1 in #ahcj1 says ,dr4 ,anderson1 read before the ,wernerian ,society a notice 'on the occurrence of scales of vertebrated animals in the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,fifeshire4' ,these organisms1 as described by him1 occurred in the ,yellow ,sandstone of ,drumdryan and the ,gray ,sandstone of ,parkhill4 ,from the former locality scales of a fish were obtained4444 ,the same paper 7,professor ,fleming's7 contains a notice of similar scales in the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,clashbennie1 near ,errol1 in ,perthshire1 one of which is described as bearing 'a very close resemblance to some of the scales on the common sturgeon1 and may with some probability be referred to an extinct species of the genus ,accipenser4'--7,professor ,jameson's ,edin4 ,new ,phil4 ,journal1 ,oct4 #ahcg1 p4 #ach47 ,the deposit1 too1 abounds in teeth1 various enough in their forms to indicate a corresponding variety of families and genera among the ichthyolites to which they belonged4 ,some are nearly straight1 like those of the ,holoptychius of the ,coal ,measures2 some are bent1 like the beak of a hawk or eagle1 into a hook-form2 some incline first in one direction1 and then in the opposite one1 like nails that have been drawn out of a board by the carpenter at two several wrenches1 and bent in opposite angles at each wrench2 some are bulky and squat1 some long and slender2 and in almost all the varieties1 whether curved or straight1 squat or slim1 the base is elegantly striated like the flutings of the column4 ,in the splendid specimen found in the sandstones of the ,findhorn1 the tooth is still attached to a portion of the jaw1 and shows1 from the nature of the attachment1 that the creature to which it belonged must have been a true fish1 not a reptile4 ,the same peculiarity is observable in two other very fine specimens in the collection of ,mr4 ,patrick ,duff1 of ,elgin4 ,both in saurians and in toothed cetace1 such as the porpoise1 the teeth are inserted in sockets4 ,in the ichthyolites of this formation1 so far as these are illustrated by its better specimens1 the teeth1 as in existing fish1 are merely placed flat upon the jaw1 or in shallow pits1 which seem almost to indicate that the contrivance of sockets might be afterwards resorted to4 ,immediately over the sandstone and conglomerate belt in which these organisms occur1 there rests1 as has been said1 a band of limestone1 and over the limestone a thick bed of yellow sandstone1 in which the system terminates1 and which is overlaid in turn by the lower beds of the carboniferous group4 ,the limestone band is unfossiliferous1 and resembling1 in mineralogical character1 the ,cornstones of ,england and ,wales1 it has been described as the ,cornstone of ,scotland2 but the fact merely furnishes one illustration of many1 of the inadequacy of a mineralogical nomenclature for the purposes of the geologist4 ,in the neighborhood of ,cromarty the lower formation abounds in beds of nodular limestone1 identical in appearance with the ,cornstone2--in ,england similar beds occur so abundantly in the middle formation1 that it derives its name from them2--in ,fife they occur in the upper formation exclusively4 ,thus the formation of the ,coccosteus and ,dipterus is a cornstone formation in the first locality2 that of the ,cephalaspis and the gigantic lobster in the second2 that of the ,holoptychius nobilissimus in the third4 ,we have but to vary our field of observation to find all the formations of the system ,cornstone formations in turn4 ,the limestone band of the upper member presents exactly similar appearances in ,moray as in ,fife4 ,it is in both of a yellowish green or gray color1 and a concretionary structure1 consisting of softer and harder portions1 that yield so unequally to the weather1 as to exhibit in exposed cliffs and boulders a brecciated aspect1 as if it had been a mechanical1 not a chemical deposit2 though its origin must unquestionably have been chemical4 ,it contains minute crystals of galena1 and abounds in masses of a cherty1 siliceous substance that strikes fire with steel1 and which1 from the manner in which they are incorporated with the rock1 show that they must have been formed along with it4 ,from this circumstance1 and from the general resemblance it bears to the deposits of the thermal waters of volcanic districts which precipitate siliceous mixed with calcareous matter1 it has been suggested1 and by no mean authority1 that it must have derived its origin from hot springs4 ,the bed is several yards in thickness2 and as it appears both in ,moray and in ,fife1 in localities at least a hundred and twenty miles apart1 it must have been formed1 if formed at all1 in this manner1 at a period when the volcanic agencies were in a state of activity at no great distance from the surface4 ,the upper belt of yellow stone1 the terminal layer of the pyramid1 is fossiliferous both in ,moray and ,fife--more richly so in the latter county than even the conglomerate belt that underlies it1 and its organisms are better preserved4 ,it was in this upper layer1 in ,drumdryan quarry1 to the south of ,cupar1 that ,professor ,fleming found the first-discovered scales of the ,holoptychius4 ,at ,dura ,den1 in the same neighborhood1 a singularly rich deposit of animal remains was laid open a few years ago1 by some workmen1 when employed in excavating a water-course for a mill4 ,the organisms lay crowded together1 a single slab containing no fewer than thirty specimens1 and all in a singularly perfect state of preservation4 ,the whole space excavated did not exceed forty square yards in extent1 and yet in these forty yards there were found several genera of fishes new to ,geology1 and not yet figured nor described--a conclusive proof in itself that we have still very much to learn regarding the fossils of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,by much the greater portion of the remains disinterred on this occasion were preserved by a lady in the neighborhood2 and the news of the discovery spreading over the district1 the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,anderson1 of ,newburgh1 was fortunately led to discover them anew in her possession4 ,the most abundant organism of the group was a variety of ,pterichthys--the sixth species of this very curious genus now discovered in the ,old ,red ,sandstones of ,scotland2 and as the ,doctor had been lucky enough to find out for himself1 some years before1 that the scales of the ,holoptychius were oyster shells1 he now ascertained1 with quite as little assistance from without1 that the ,pterichthys must have been surely a huge beetle4 ,as a beetle1 therefore1 he figured and described it in the pages of a ,glasgow topographical publication--,fife ,illustrated4 ,true1 the characteristic elytra were wanting1 and some six or seven tubercle plates substituted in their room2 nor could the artist1 with all his skill1 supply the creature with more than two legs2 but ingenuity did much for it1 notwithstanding2 and by lengthening the snout1 insect-like1 into a point--by projecting an eye1 insect-like1 on what had mysteriously grown into a head--by rounding the body1 insect-like1 until it exactly resembled that of the large twilight shard--by exaggerating the tubercles seen in profile on the paddles until they stretched out1 insect-like1 into bristles--and by carefully sinking the tail1 which was not insect-like1 and for which no possible use could be discovered at the time--the ,doctor succeeded in making the ,pterichthys of ,dura ,den a very respectable beetle indeed4 ,in a later publication1 an ,essay on the ,geology of ,fifeshire1 which appeared in ,september last in the ,quarterly ,journal of ,agriculture1 he states1 after referring to his former description1 that among the higher geological authorities some were disposed to regard the creature as an extinct crustaceous animal1 and some as belonging to a tribe closely allied to the ,chelonia4 ,agassiz1 as the writer of these chapters ventured some months ago to predict1 has since pronounced it a fish--a ,pterichthys specifically different from the five varieties of this ichthyolite which occur in the lower formation of the system1 but generically the same4 ,i very lately enjoyed the pleasure of examining the bona fide ichthyolite itself--one of the specimens of ,dura ,den1 and apparently one of the more entire--in the collection of ,professor ,fleming4 ,its character as a ,pterichthys ,i found very obvious2 but neither the ,professor nor myself was ingenious enough to discover in it any trace of the beetle of ,dr4 ,anderson4,,at ,footnote ,,at3 ,this interesting ichthyolite has since been regarded by ,agassiz as the representative of a distinct genus1 to which he gives the name ,pamphractus4 ,as exhibited in his restoration1 however1 it seems to differ little1 if at all1 7if ,i may venture the suggestion17 from a ,pterichthys viewed on the upper side4 ,in ,agassiz's beautiful restoration of ,pterichthys1 and his accompanying prints of the fossils illustrative of that genus1 it is1 with but one doubtful exception1 the under side of the animal that is presented2 and hence a striking difference apparent between his representations of the two genera1 which would scarce obtain had the upper1 not the under side of ,pterichthys been exhibited4 ,in verification of this remark1 let the reader who has access to the ,monographic ,poissons ,fossiles compare the restoration of ,pamphractus 7,old ,red1 ,tab4 ,,vi41 fig4 #b7 with the upper side of ,pterichthys1 as figured in this volume1 ,plate ,i41 fig4 #a1 making1 of course1 the due allowance for a difference of species4 ,is it not interesting to find this very curious genus in both the lowest and highest fossiliferous beds of the system1 and constituting1 like the ,trilobite genus of the ,silurian group1 its most characteristic organism8 ,the ,trilobite has a wide geological range1 extending from the upper ,cambrian rocks to the upper ,coal ,measures4 ,but though the range of the genus is wide1 that of every individual species of which it consists is very limited4 ,the ,trilobites of the upper ,coal ,measures differ from those of the ,mountain ,limestone2 these again1 with but one exception1 from the ,trilobites of the upper ,silurian strata2 these yet again from the ,trilobites of the underlying middle beds2 and these from the ,trilobites that occur in the base of the system4 ,like the coins and medals of the antiquary1 each represents its own limited period2 and the whole taken together yield a consecutive record4 ,but while we find them merely scattered over the later formations in which they occur1 and that very sparingly1 in the ,silurian ,system we find them congregated in such vast crowds1 that their remains enter largely into the composition of many of the rocks which compose it4 ,the ,trilobite is the distinguishing organism of the group1 marrying1 if ,i may so express myself1 its upper and lower beds2 and what the ,trilobite is to the ,silurian formations1 the ,pterichthys seems to be to the formations of the ,old ,red ,sandstone2 with this difference1 that1 so far as is yet known1 it is restricted to this system alone1 occurring in neither the ,silurian ,system below1 nor in the ,coal ,measures above4 ,i am but imperfectly acquainted with the localities in which the upper beds of the ,old ,red ,sandstone underlie the lower beds of the ,coal ,measures1 or where any gradation of character appears4 ,the upper yellow sandstone belt is extensively developed in ,moray1 but it contains no trace of carbonaceous matter in even its higher strata1 and no other remains than those of the ,holoptychius and its contemporaries4 ,the system in the north of ,scotland differs as much from the carboniferous group in its upper as in its lower rocks2 and a similar difference has been remarked in ,fife1 where the groups appear in contact a few miles to the west of ,st4 ,andrew's4 ,in ,england1 in repeated instances1 the junction1 as shown by ,mr4 ,murchison1 in singularly instructive sections1 is well marked1 the carboniferous limestones resting conformably on the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,no other system interposed between them4 ,there is a ,rabbinical tradition that the sons of ,tubal-,cain1 taught by a prophet of the coming deluge1 and unwilling that their father's arts should be lost in it to posterity1 erected two obelisks of brass1 on which they inscribed a record of his discoveries1 and that thus the learning of the family survived the cataclysm4 ,the flood subsided1 and the obelisks1 sculptured from pinnacle to base1 were found fast fixed in the rock4 ,now1 the twin pyramids of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 with their party-colored bars1 and their thickly crowded inscriptions1 belong to a period immensely more remote than that of the columns of the antediluvians1 and they bear a more certain record4 ,i have1 perhaps1 dwelt too long on their various compartments2 but the ,artist by whom they have been erected1 and who has preserved in them so wonderful a chronicle of his earlier works1 has willed surely that they should be read1 and ,i have perused but a small portion of the whole4 ,years must pass ere the entire record can be deciphered2 but1 of all its curiously inscribed sentences1 the result will prove the same--they will all be found to testify of the ,infinite ,mind4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,speculations in the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and their ,character4--,george1 first ,earl of ,cromarty4--,his ,sagacity as a ,naturalist at fault in one ,instance4--,sets himself to dig for ,coal in the ,lower ,old lied ,sandstone4--,discovers a fine ,artesian ,well4--,value of ,geological ,knowledge in an economic ,view4--,scarce a ,secondary ,formation in the ,kingdom in which ,coal has not been sought for4--,mineral ,springs of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,strathpeffer4--,its ,peculiarities whence derived4--,chalybeate ,springs of ,easter ,ross and the ,black ,isle4--,petrifying ,springs4--,building-,stone and ,lime of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,its various ,soils4 ,there has been much money lost1 and a good deal won1 in speculations connected with the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,the speculations in which money has been won have consorted1 if ,i may so speak1 with the character of the system1 and those in which money has been lost have not4 ,instead1 however1 of producing a formal chapter on the economic uses to which its various deposits have been applied1 or the unfortunate undertakings which an acquaintance with its geology would have prevented1 ,i shall throw together1 as they occur to me1 a few simple facts illustrative of both4 ,george1 first ,earl of ,cromarty1 seems1 like his namesake and contemporary1 the too celebrated ,sir ,george ,m',kenzie1 of ,roseavoch1 to have been a man of an eminently active and inquiring mind4 ,he found leisure1 in the course of a very busy life1 to write several historical dissertations of great research1 and a very elaborate ,synopsis ,apocalyptica4 ,he is the author1 too1 of an exceedingly curious letter on the ,second ,sight1 addressed to the philosophic ,boyle1 which contains a large amount of amusing and extraordinary fact2 and his description of the formation of a peat-moss in the central ,highlands of ,ross-shire has been quoted by almost every naturalist who1 since the days of the sagacious1 nobleman1 has written on the formation of peat4 ,his life was extended to extreme old age2 and as his literary ardor remained undiminished till the last1 some of his writings were produced at a period when most other men are sunk in the incurious indifferency and languor of old age4 ,and among these later productions are his remarks on peat4 ,he relates that1 when a very young man1 he had marked1 in passing on a journey through the central ,highlands of ,ross-shire1 a wood of very ancient trees1 doddered and moss-grown1 and evidently passing into a state of death through the last stages of decay4 ,he had been led by business into the same district many years after1 when in middle life1 and found that the wood had entirely disappeared1 and that the heathy hollow which it had covered was now occupied by a green1 stagnant morass1 unvaried in its tame and level extent by either bush or tree4 ,in his old age he again visited the locality1 and saw the green surface roughened with dingy-colored hollows1 and several ,highlanders engaged in it in cutting peat in a stratum several feet in depth4 ,what he had once seen an aged forest had now become an extensive peat-moss4 ,some time towards the close of the seventeenth century he purchased the lands of ,cromarty1 where his turn for minute observation seems to have anticipated--little1 however1 to his own profit--some of the later geological discoveries4 ,there is a deep1 wooded ravine in the neighborhood of the town1 traversed by a small stream1 which has laid bare1 for the space of about forty yards in the opening of the hollow1 the gray sandstone and stratified clays of the inferior fish bed4 ,the locality is rather poor in ichthyolites1 though ,i have found in it1 after minute search1 a few scales of the ,osteolepis1 and on one occasion one of the better marked plates of the ,coccosteus2 but in the vegetable impressions peculiar to the formation it is very abundant4 ,these are invariably carbonaceous1 and are not unfrequently associated with minute patches of bitumen1 which1 in the harder specimens1 present a coal-like appearance2 and the vegetable impressions and the bitumen seem to have misled the sagacious nobleman into the belief that coal might be found on his new property4 ,he accordingly brought miners from the south1 and set them to bore for coal in the gorge of the ravine4 ,though there was probably a register kept of the various strata through which they passed1 it must have long since been lost2 but from my acquaintance with this portion of the formation1 as shown in the neighboring sections1 where it lies uplifted against the granitic gneiss of the ,sutors1 ,i think ,i could pretty nearly restore it4 ,they would first have had to pass for about thirty feet through the stratified clays and shales of the ichthyolite bed1 with here and there a thin band of gray sandstone1 and here and there a stratum of lime2 they would next have had to penetrate through from eighty to a hundred feet of coarse red and yellow sandstone1 the red greatly predominating4 ,they would then have entered the great conglomerate1 the lowest member of the formation2 and in time1 if they continued to urge their fruitless labors1 they would arrive at the primary rock1 with its belts of granite1 and its veins and huge masses of hornblende4 ,in short1 there might be some possibility of their penetrating to the central fire1 but none whatever of their ever reaching a vein of coal4 ,from a curious circumstance1 however1 they were prevented from ascertaining1 by actual experience1 the utter barrenness of the formation4 ,directly in the gorge of the ravine1 where we may see the partially wooded banks receding as they ascend from the base to the centre1 and then bellying over from the centre to the summit1 there is a fine chalybeate spring1 surmounted by a dome of hewn stone4 ,it was discovered by the miners when in quest of the mineral which they did not and could not discover1 and forms one of the finest specimens of a true ,artesian well which ,i have any where seen4 ,they had bored to a considerable depth1 when1 on withdrawing the kind of auger used for the purpose1 a bolt of water1 which occupied the whole diameter of the bore1 came rushing after1 like the jet of a fountain1 and the work was prosecuted no further2 for1 as steam-engines were not yet invented1 no pit could have been wrought with so large a stream issuing into it2 and as the volume was evidently restricted by the size of the bore1 it was impossible to say how much greater a stream the source might have supplied4 ,the spring still continues to flow towards the sea1 between its double row of cresses1 at the rate of about a hogshead per minute--a rate considerably diminished1 it is said1 from its earlier volume1 by some obstruction in the bore4 ,the waters are not strongly tinctured--a consequence1 perhaps1 of their great abundance2 but we may see every pebble and stock in their course enveloped by a ferruginous coagulum1 resembling burnt sienna1 that has probably been disengaged from the dark red sandstone below1 which is known to owe its color to the oxide of iron4 ,a ,greek poet would probably have described the incident as the birth of the ,naiad2 in the north1 however1 which1 in an earlier age1 had also its ,naiads1 though1 like the fish of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 they have long since become extinct1 the recollection of it is merely preserved by tradition1 as a curious1 though by no means poetical fact1 and by the name of the well1 which is still known as the well of the coal-heugh--the old ,scotch name for a coal-pit4 ,calderwood tells us1 in his description of a violent tempest which burst out immediately as his persecutor1 ,james ,,vi41 breathed his last1 that in ,scotland the sea rose high upon the land1 and that many coal-heughs were drowned4 ,there is no science whose value can be adequately estimated by economists and utilitarians of the lower order4 ,its true quantities cannot be represented by arithmetical figures or monetary tables2 for its effects on mind must be as surely taken into account as its operations on matter1 and what it has accomplished for the human intellect as certainly as what it has done for the comforts of society or the interests of commerce4 ,who can attach a marketable value to the discoveries of ,newton8 ,i need hardly refer to the often-quoted remark of ,johnson2 the beauty of the language in which it is couched has rendered patent to all the truth which it conveys4 ,whatever withdraws us from the power of the senses1 says the moralist--whatever makes the past1 the distant1 or the future1 predominate over the present1 advances us in the dignity of thinking beings4 ,and ,geology1 in a peculiar manner1 supplies to the intellect an exercise of this ennobling character4 ,but it has1 also1 its cash value4 ,the time and money squandered in ,great ,britain alone in searching for coal in districts where the well-informed geologist could have at once pronounced the search hopeless1 would much more than cover the expense at which geological research has been prosecuted throughout the world4 ,there are few districts in ,britain occupied by the secondary deposits1 in which1 at one time or another1 the attempt has not been made4 ,it has been the occasion of enormous expenditure in the south of ,england among the newer formations1 where the coal1 if it at all occurs1 7for we occasionally meet with wide gaps in the scale17 must be buried at an unapproachable depth4 ,it led in ,scotland--in the northern county of ,sutherland--to an unprofitable working for many years of a sulphureous lignite of the inferior ,oolite1 far above the true ,coal ,measures4 ,the attempt ,i have just been describing was made in a locality as far beneath them4 ,there is the scene of another and more modern attempt in the same district1 on the shores of the ,moray ,frith1 in a detached patch of ,lias1 where a fossilized wood would no doubt be found in considerable abundance1 but no continuous vein even of lignite4 ,and it is related by ,dr4 ,anderson1 of ,newburgh1 that a fruitless and expensive search after coal has lately been instituted in the ,old ,red ,sandstone beds which traverse ,strathearn and the ,carse of ,gowrie1 in the belief that they belong not to the ,old1 but to the ,new ,red ,sandstone--a formation which has been successfully perforated in prosecuting a similar search in various parts of ,england4 ,all these instances--and there are hundreds such--show the economic importance of the study of fossils4 ,the ,oolite has its veins of apparent coal on the coast of ,yorkshire1 and its still more amply developed veins--one of them nearly four feet in thickness--on the eastern coast of ,sutherlandshire2 the ,lias has its coniferous fossils in great abundance1 some of them converted into a lignite which can scarce be distinguished from a true coal2 and the bituminous masses of the ,lower ,old ,red1 and its carbonaceous markings1 appear identical1 to an unpractised eye1 with the impressions on the carboniferous sandstones1 and the bituminous masses which they1 too1 are occasionally found to enclose4 ,nor does the mineralogical character of its middle beds differ in many cases from that of the lower members of the ,new ,red ,sandstone4 ,i have seen the older rock in the north of ,scotland as strongly saliferous as any of the newer sandstones1 of well nigh as bright a brick-red tint1 of as friable and mouldering a texture1 and variegated as thickly with its specks and streaks of green and buff-color4 ,but in all these instances there are strongly characterized groups of fossils1 which1 like the landmarks of the navigator1 or the findings of his quadrant1 establish the true place of the formations to which they belong4 ,like the patches of leather1 of scarlet1 and of blue1 which mark the line attached to the deep-sea lead1 they show the various depths at which we arrive4 ,the ,earls of ,sutherland set themselves to establish a coal-work among the chambered univalves of the ,oolite1 and a vast abundance of its peculiar bivalves4 ,the coal-borers who perforated the ,lias near ,cromarty passed every day to and from their work over one of the richest deposits of animal remains in the kingdom--a deposit full of the most characteristic fossils2 and drove their auger through a thousand belemnites and ammonites of the upper and inferior ,lias1 and through gryphites and ichthyodorulites innumerable4 ,the sandstones of ,strathearn and the ,carse of ,gowrie yield their plates and scales of the ,holoptychius1 the most abundant fossil of the ,upper ,old ,red2 and the shale of the little dell in which the first ,earl of ,cromarty set his miners to work1 contains1 as ,i have said1 plates of the ,coccosteus and scales of the ,osteolepis--fossils found only in the ,lower ,old ,red4 ,nature1 in all these localities1 furnished the index1 but men lacked the skill necessary to decipher it4,,au ,i may mention that1 independently of their well-marked organisms1 there is a simple test through which the lignites of the newer formations may be distinguished from the true coal of the carboniferous system4 ,coal1 though ground into an impalpable powder1 retains its deep black color1 and may be used as a black pigment2 lignite1 on the contrary1 when fully levigated1 assumes a reddish1 or1 rather1 umbry hue4 ,footnote ,,au3 ,there occurs in ,mr4 ,murchison's ,silurian ,system a singularly amusing account of one of the most unfortunate of all coal-boring enterprises2 the unlucky projector1 a ,welsh farmer1 having set himself to dig for coal in the lowest member of the system1 at least six formations beneath the only one at which the object of his search could have been found4 ,mr4 ,murchison thus relates the story3-- ,at ,tin-y-coed ,i found a credulous farmer ruining himself in excavating a horizontal gallery in search of coal1 an ignorant miner being his engineer4 ,the case may serve as a striking example of the coal-boring mania in districts which cannot by possibility contain that mineral2 and a few words concerning it may1 therefore1 prove a salutary warning to those who speculate for coal in the ,silurian ,rocks4 ,the farmhouse of ,tin-y-coed is situated on the sloping sides of a hill of trap1 which throw off1 upon its north-western flank1 thin beds of black grauwacke shale1 dipping to the west-north-west at a high angle4 ,the color of the shale1 and of the water that flowed down its sides1 the pyritous veins1 and other vulgar symptoms of coal-bearing strata1 had long convinced the farmer that he possessed a large hidden mass of coal1 and1 unfortunately1 a small fragment of real anthracite was discovered1 which burnt like the best coal4 ,miners were sent for1 and operations commenced4 ,to sink a shaft was impracticable1 both from the want of means1 and the large volume of water4 ,a slightly inclined gallery was therefore commenced1 the mouth of which was opened at the bottom of the hill1 on the side of the little brook which waters the dell4 ,i have already stated that1 in many cases1 where the intrusive trap throws off the shale1 the latter preserves its natural and unaltered condition to within a certain distance of the trap2 and so it was at ,tin-y-coed1 for the level proceeded for #aee feet with little or no obstacle4 ,mounds of soft black shale attested the rapid progress of the adventurers1 when suddenly they came to a 'change of metal4' ,they were now approaching the nucleus of the little ridge2 and the rock they encountered was1 as the men informed me1 'as hard as iron1' viz41 of lydianized schist1 precisely analogous to that which is exposed naturally in ravines where all the phenomena are laid bare4 ,the deluded people1 however1 endeavored to penetrate the hardened mass1 but the vast expense of blasting it put a stop to the undertaking1 not1 however1 without a thorough conviction on the part of the farmer1 that1 could he but have got through that hard stuff1 he would most surely have been well recompensed1 for it was just thereabouts that they began to find 'small veins of coal4' ,it has been before shown1 that portions of anthracite are not unfrequent in the altered shale1 where it is in contact with the intrusive rock4 ,and the occurrence of the smallest portion of anthracite is always sufficient to lead the ,radnorshire farmer to suppose that he is very near ',el ,dorado4' ,amid all their failures1 ,i never met with an individual who was really disheartened2 a frequent exclamation being1 ',o1 if our squires were only men of spirit1 we should have as fine coal as any in the world6'--7,silurian ,system1 ,part ,i41 p4 #cbh47 ,i have said that the waters of the well of the coal-heugh are chalybeate--a probable consequence of their infiltration through the iron oxides of the superior beds of the formation1 and their subsequent passage through the deep red strata of the inferior bed4 ,there could be very curious chapters written on mineral springs1 in their connection with the formations through which they pass4 ,smollett's masterpiece1 honest old ,matthew ,bramble1 became thoroughly disgusted with the ,bath waters on discovering that they filtered through an ancient burying-ground belonging to the ,abbey1 and that much of their peculiar taste and odor might probably be owing to the rotten bones and mouldering carcasses through which they were strained4 ,some of the springs of the ,old ,red ,sandstone have also the churchyard taste1 but the bones and carcasses through which they strain are much older than those of the ,abbey burying-ground at ,bath4 ,the bitumen of the strongly impregnated rocks and clay-beds of this formation1 like the bitumen of the still more strongly impregnated limestones and shales of the ,lias1 seems to have had rather an animal than vegetable origin4 ,the shales of the ,eathie ,lias burn like turf soaked in oil1 and yet they hardly contain one per cent1 of vegetable matter4 ,in a single cubic inch1 however1 ,i have counted about eighty molluscous organisms1 mostly ammonites1 and minute striated scallops2 and the mass1 when struck with the hammer1 still yields the heavy odor of animal matter in a state of decay4 ,the lower fish-beds of the ,old ,red are1 in some localities1 scarcely less bituminous4 ,the fossil scales and plates1 which they enclose1 burn at the candle2 they contain small cavities filled with a strongly scented1 semi-fluid bitumen1 as adhesive as tar1 and as inflammable2 and for many square miles together the bed is composed almost exclusively of a dark-colored1 semi-calcareous1 semi-aluminous schist1 scarcely less fetid1 from the great quantity of this substance which it contains1 than the swine-stones of ,england4 ,its vegetable remains bear but a small proportion to its animal organisms2 and from huge accumulations of these last decomposing amid the mud of a still sea1 little disturbed by tempests or currents1 and then suddenly interred by some widely spread catastrophe1 to ferment and consolidate under vast beds of sand and conglomerate1 the bitumen,,av seems to have been elaborated4 ,these bituminous schists1 largely charged with sulphuret of iron1 run far into the interior1 along the flanks of the gigantic ,ben ,nevis1 and through the exquisitely pastoral valley of ,strathpeffer4 ,the higher hills which rise over the valley are formed mostly of the great conglomerate--,knockferril1 with its vitrified fort--the wooded and precipitous ridge over ,brahan--and the middle eminences of the gigantic mountain on the north2 but the bottom and the lower slopes of the valley are occupied by the bituminous and sulphureous schists of the fish-bed1 and in these1 largely impregnated with the peculiar ingredients of the formation1 the famous medicinal springs of the ,strath have their rise4 ,they contain1 as shown by chemical analysis1 the sulphates of soda1 of lime1 of magnesia1 common salt1 and1 above all1 sulphuretted hydrogen gas--elements which masses of sea-mud1 charged with animal matter1 would yield as readily to the chemist as the medicinal springs of ,strathpeffer4 ,is it not a curious reflection1 that the commercial greatness of ,britain1 in the present day1 should be closely connected with the towering and thickly spread forests of arboraceous ferns and gigantic reeds--vegetables of strange form and uncouth names--which flourished and decayed on its surface1 age after age1 during the vastly extended term of the carboniferous period1 ere the mountains were yet upheaved1 and when there was as yet no man to till the ground8 ,is it not a reflection equally curious1 that the invalids of the present summer should be drinking health1 amid the recesses of ,strathpeffer1 from the still more ancient mineral and animal debris of the lower ocean of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 strangely elaborated for vast but unreckoned periods in the bowels of the earth8 ,the fact may remind us of one of the specifics of a now obsolete school of medicine1 which flourished in this country about two centuries ago1 and which included in its materia medica portions of the human frame4 ,among these was the flesh of ,egyptian mummies1 impregnated with the embalming drugs--the dried muscles and sinews of human creatures who had walked in the streets of ,thebes or of ,luxor three thousand years ago4 ,footnote ,,av3 ,in the slaty schists of ,seefeld1 in the ,tyrol1 say ,messrs4 ,sedgwick and ,murchison1 there is such an abundance of a similar bitumen1 that it is largely extracted for medicinal purposes4--7,geol4 ,trans4 for #ahbi1 p4 #acd47 ,the commoner mineral springs of the formation1 as might be anticipated1 from the very general diffusion of the oxide to which it owes its color1 are chalybeate4 ,there are districts in ,easter-,ross and the ,black ,isle in which the traveller scarcely sees a runnel by the way-side that is not half choked up by its fox-colored coagulum of oxide4 ,two of the most strongly impregnated chalybeates with which ,i am acquainted gush out of a sandstone bed1 a few yards apart1 among the woods of ,tarbat ,house1 on the northern shore of the ,frith of ,cromarty4 ,they splash among the pebbles with a half-gurgling1 half-tinkling sound1 in a solitary but not unpleasing recess1 darkened by alders and willows2 and their waters1 after uniting in the same runnel1 form a little1 melancholy looking lochan1 matted over with weeds1 and edged with flags and rushes1 and which swarms in early summer with the young of the frog in its tadpole state1 and in the after months with the black water-beetle and the newt4 ,the circumstance is a somewhat curious one1 as the presence of iron as an oxide has been held so unfavorable to both animal and vegetable life1 that the supposed poverty of the ,old ,red ,sandstone in fossil remains has been attributed to its almost universal diffusion at the period the deposition was taking place4 ,were the system as poor as has been alleged1 however1 it might be questioned1 on the strength of a fact such as this1 whether the iron militated so much against the living existences of the formation1 as against the preservation of their remains when dead4 ,some of the springs which issue from the ichthyolite beds along the shores of the ,moray ,frith are largely charged1 not with iron1 like the well of the coal-heugh1 or the springs of ,tarbat ,house1 nor yet with hydrogen and soda1 like the spa of ,strathpeffer1 but with carbonate of lime4 ,when employed for domestic purposes1 they choke up1 in a few years1 with a stony deposition1 the spouts of tea-kettles4 ,on a similar principle1 they plug up their older channels1 and then burst out in new ones2 nor is it uncommon to find among the cliffs little hollow recesses1 long since divested of their waters by this process1 that are still thickly surrounded by coral-like incrustations of moss and lichens1 grass and nettle-stalks1 and roofed with marble-like stalactites4 ,i am acquainted with at least one of these springs of very considerable volume1 and dedicated of old to an obscure ,roman ,catholic saint1 whose name it still bears1 7,st4 ,bennet17 which presents phenomena not unworthy the attention of the young geologist4 ,it comes gushing from out the ichthyolite bed1 where the latter extends1 in the neighborhood of ,cromarty1 along the shores of the ,moray ,frith2 and after depositing in a stagnant morass an accumulation of a grayish-colored and partially consolidated travertin1 escapes by two openings to the shore1 where it is absorbed among the sand and gravel4 ,a storm about three years ago swept the beach several feet beneath its ordinary level1 and two little moles of conglomerate and sandstone1 the work of the spring1 were found to occupy the two openings4 ,each had its fossils--comminuted sea-shells1 and stalks of hardened moss2 and in one of the moles ,i found imbedded a few of the vertebral joints of a sheep4 ,it was a recent formation on a small scale1 bound together by a calcareous cement furnished by the fish-beds of the inferior ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and composed of sand and pebbles1 mostly from the granitic gneiss of the neighboring hill1 and organisms1 vegetable and animal1 from both the land and the sea4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone of ,scotland has been extensively employed for the purposes of the architect1 and its limestones occasionally applied to those of the agriculturist4 ,as might be anticipated in reference to a deposit so widely spread1 the quality of both its sandstones and its lime is found to vary exceedingly in even the same beds when examined in different localities4 ,its inferior conglomerate1 for instance1 in the neighborhood of ,cromarty1 weathers so rapidly1 that a fence built of stones furnished by it little more than half a century ago1 has mouldered in some places into a mere grass-covered mound4 ,the same bed in the neighborhood of ,inverness is composed of a stone nearly as hard and quite as durable as granite1 and which has been employed in paving the streets of the place--a purpose which it serves as well as any of the igneous or primary rocks could have done4 ,at ,redcastle1 on the northern shore of the ,frith of ,beauly1 the same conglomerate assumes an intermediate character1 and forms1 though coarse1 an excellent building stone1 which1 in some of the older ruins of the district1 presents the marks of the tool as sharply indented as when under the hands of the workman4 ,some of the sandstone beds of the system are strongly saliferous2 and these1 however coherent they may appear1 never resist the weather until first divested of their salt4 ,the main ichthyolite bed on the northern shore of the ,moray ,frith is overlaid by a thick deposit of a finely-tinted yellow sandstone of this character1 which1 unlike most sandstones of a mouldering quality1 resists the frosts and storms of winter1 and wastes only when the weather becomes warm and dry4 ,a few days of sunshine affect it more than whole months of high winds and showers4 ,the heat crystallizes at the surface the salt which it contains2 the crystals1 acting as wedges1 throw off minute particles of the stone2 and thus1 mechanically at least1 the degrading process is the same as that to which sandstones of a different but equally inferior quality are exposed during severe frosts4 ,in the course of years1 however1 this sandstone1 when employed in building1 loses its salt2 crust after crust is formed on the surface1 and either forced off by the crystals underneath1 or washed away by the rains2 and then the stone ceases to waste1 and gathers on its weathered inequalities a protecting mantle of lichens4,,aw ,the most valuable quarries in the ,old ,red ,system of ,scotland yet discovered1 are the flagstone quarries of ,caithness and ,carmylie4 ,the former have been opened in the middle schists of the lower1 or ,tilestone formation of the system2 the latter1 as ,i have had occasion to remark oftener than once1 in the ,cornstone1 or middle formation4 ,the quarries of both ,carmylie and ,caithness employ hundreds of workmen1 and their flagstones form an article of commerce4 ,the best building-stone of the north of ,scotland--best both for beauty and durability--is a pure ,quartzose ,sandstone furnished by the upper beds of the system4 ,these are extensively quarried in ,moray1 near the village of ,burghead1 and exported to all parts of the kingdom4 ,the famous obelisk of ,forres1 so interesting to the antiquary--which has been described by some writers as formed of a species of stone unknown in the district1 and which1 according to a popular tradition1 was transported from the ,continent--is evidently composed of this ,quartzose ,sandstone1 and must have been dug out of one of the neighboring quarries4 ,and so coherent is its texture1 that the storms of1 perhaps1 ten centuries have failed to obliterate its rude but impressive sculptures4 ,footnote ,,aw3 ,when left to time the process is a tedious one1 and1 ere its accomplishment1 the beauty of the masonry is always in some degree destroyed4 ,the following passage1 from a popular work1 points out a mode by which it might possibly be anticipated1 and the waste of surface prevented3--,a hall of which the walls were constantly damp1 though every means were employed to keep them dry1 was about to be pulled down1 when ,m4 ,schmithall recommended1 as a last resource1 that the walls should be washed with sulphuric acid1 7vitriol47 ,it w ,t as done1 and the deliquescent salts being decomposed by acid1 the walls dried1 and the hall was afterwards free from dampness4--7,recreations in ,science47 ,the limestones of both the upper and lower formations of the system have been wrought in ,moray with tolerable success4 ,in both1 however1 they contain a considerable per centage of siliceous and argillaceous earth4 ,the system1 though occupying an intermediate place between two metalliferous deposits1--the grauwacke and the carboniferous limestone1--has not been found to contain workable veins any where in ,britain1 and in ,scotland no metallic veins of any kind1 with the exception of here and there a few slender threads of ironstone1 and here and there a few detached crystals of galena4 ,its wealth consists exclusively in building and paving stone1 and in lime4 ,some of the richest tracts of corn land in the kingdom rest on the ,old ,red ,sandstone--the agricultural valley of ,strathmore1 for instance1 and the fertile plains of ,easter-,ross3 ,caithness has also its deep1 corn-bearing soils1 and ,moray has been well known for centuries as the granary of ,scotland4 ,but in all these localities the fertility seems derived rather from an intervening subsoil of tenacious diluvial clay1 than from the rocks of the system4 ,wherever the clay is wanting1 the soil is barren4 ,in the moor of the ,milbuy1--a tract about fifty square miles in extent1 and lying within an hour's walk of the ,friths of ,cromarty and ,beauly1--a thin covering of soil rests on the sandstones of the lower formation4 ,and so extreme is the barrenness of this moor1 that notwithstanding the advantages of its semi-insular situation1 it was suffered to lie as an unclaimed common until about twenty-five years ago1 when it was parcelled out among the neighboring proprietors4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,geological ,physiognomy4--,scenery of the ,primary ,formations2 ,gneiss1 ,mica ,schist1 ,quartz ,rock4--,of the ,secondary2 the ,chalk ,formations1 the ,oolite1 the ,new ,red ,sandstone1 the ,coal ,measures4--,scenery in the ,neighborhood of ,edinburgh4--,aspect of the ,trap ,rocks4--,the ,disturbing and ,denuding ,agencies4--,distinctive ,features of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4--,of the ,great ,conglomerate4--,of the ,ichthyolite ,beds4--,the ,burn of ,eathie4--,the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstones4--,scene in ,moray4 ,physiognomy is no idle or doubtful science in connection with ,geology4 ,the physiognomy of a country indicates1 almost invariably1 its geological character4 ,there is scarce a rock among the more ancient groups that does not affect its peculiar form of hill and valley4 ,each has its style of landscape2 and as the vegetation of a district depends often on the nature of the underlying deposits1 not only are the main outlines regulated by the mineralogy of the formations which they define1 but also in many cases the manner in which these outlines are filled up4 ,the coloring of the landscape is well nigh as intimately connected with its ,geology as the drawing4 ,the traveller passes through a mountainous region of gneiss4 ,the hills1 which1 though bulky1 are shapeless1 raise their huge backs so high over the brown1 dreary moors1 which1 unvaried by precipice or ravine1 stretch away for miles from their feet1 that even amid the heats of midsummer the snow gleams in streaks and patches from their summits4 ,and yet so vast is their extent of base1 and their tops so truncated1 that they seem but half-finished hills notwithstanding--hills interdicted somehow in the forming1 and the work stopped ere the upper stories had been added4 ,he pursues his journey1 and enters a district of micaceous schist4 ,the hills are no longer truncated1 or the t moors unbroken2 the heavy ground-swell of the former landscape has become a tempestuous sea1 agitated by powerful winds and conflicting tides4 ,the picturesque and somewhat fantastic outline is composed of high1 sharp peaks1 bold1 craggy domes1 steep1 broken acclivities1 and deeply serrated ridges2 and the higher hills seem as if set round with a framework of props and buttresses1 that stretch out on every side like the roots of an ancient oak4 ,he passes on1 and the landscape varies2 the surrounding hills1 though lofty1 pyramidal1 and abrupt1 are less rugged than before2 and the ravines1 though still deep and narrow1 are walled by ridges no longer serrated and angular1 but comparatively rectilinear and smooth4 ,but the vegetation is even more scanty than formerly2 the steeper slopes are covered with streams of debris1 on which scarce a moss or lichen finds root2 and the conoidal hills1 bare of soil from their summits half way down1 seem so many naked skeletons1 that speak of the decay and death of nature4 ,all is solitude and sterility4 ,the territory is one of ,quartz rock4 ,still the traveller passes on3 the mountains sink into low swellings2 long rectilinear ridges run out towards the distant sea1 and terminate in bluff1 precipitous headlands4 ,the valleys1 soft and pastoral1 widen into plains1 or incline in long-drawn slopes of gentlest declivity4 ,the streams1 hitherto so headlong and broken1 linger beside their banks1 and then widen into friths and estuaries4 ,the deep soil is covered by a thick mantle of vegetation--by forest trees of largest growth1 and rich fields of corn2 and the solitude of the mountains has given place to a busy population4 ,he has left behind him the primary regions1 and entered on one of the secondary districts4 ,and these less rugged formations have also their respective styles--marred and obliterated often by the ,plutonic agency1 which imparts to them in some instances its own character1 and in some an intermediate one1 but in general distinctly marked1 and easily recognized4 ,the ,chalk presents its long inland lines of apparent coast1 that send out their rounded headlands1 cape beyond cape1 into the wooded or corn-covered plains below4 ,here and there1 there juts up at the base of the escarpement a white1 obelisk-like stack2 here and there1 there opens into the interior a narrow1 grassy bay1 in which noble beeches have cast anchor4 ,there are valleys without streams2 and the landscape a-top is a scene of arid and uneven downs1 that seem to rise and fall like the sea after a storm4 ,we pass on to the ,oolite3 the slopes are more gentle1 the lines of rising ground less continuous1 and less coast-like2 the valleys have their rivulets1 and the undulating surface is covered by a richer vegetation4 ,we enter on a district of ,new ,red ,sandstone4 ,deep1 narrow ravines intersect elevated platforms4 ,there are lines of low precipices1 so perpendicular and so red1 that they seem as if walled over with new brick2 and here and there1 amid the speckled and mouldering sandstones1 that gather no covering of lichen1 there stands up a huge1 altar-like mass of lime1 mossy and gray1 as if it represented a remoter antiquity than the rocks around it4 ,the ,coal ,measures present often the appearance of vast lakes frozen over during a high wind1 partially broken afterwards by a sudden thaw1 and then frozen again4 ,their shores stand up around them in the form of ridges and mountain chains of the older rocks2 and their surfaces are grooved into flat valleys and long lines of elevation4 ,take1 as an instance1 the scenery about ,edinburgh4 ,the ,ochil ,hills and the ,grampians form the distant shores of the seeming lake or basin on the one side1 the range of the ,lammermuirs and the ,pentland group on the other2 the space between is ridged and furrowed in long lines1 that run in nearly the same direction from north-east to south-west1 as if1 when the binding frost w r as first setting in1 the wind had blown from off the northern or southern shore4 ,but whence these abrupt1 precipitous hills that stud the landscape1 and form1 in the immediate neighborhood of the city1 its more striking features8 ,they belong--to return to the illustration of the twice-frozen lake--to the middle period of thaw1 when the ice broke up2 and1 as they are composed chiefly of matter ejected from the abyss1 might have characterized equally any of the other formations4 ,their very striking forms1 however1 illustrate happily the operations of the great agencies on which1 in the secondary and transition deposits1 all the peculiarities of scenery depend4 ,the molten matter from beneath seems to have been injected1 in the first instance1 through rents and fissures among the carboniferous shales and sandstones of the district1 where it lay cooling in its subterranean matrices1 in beds and dikes1 like metal in the moulds of the founder2 and the places which if occupied must have been indicated on the surface but by curves and swellings of the strata4 ,the denuding power then came into operation in the form of tides and currents1 and ground down the superincumbent rocks4 ,the injected masses1 now cooled and hardened1 were laid bare2 and the softer framework of the moulds in which they had been cast was washed from their summits and sides1 except where long ridges remained attached to them in the lines of the current1 as if to indicate the direction in which they had broken its force4 ,every larger stone in a water-course1 after the torrent fed by a thunder shower has just subsided1 shows1 on the same principle1 its trail of sand and shingle piled up behind it4 ,the outlines of the landscape were modified yet further by the yielding character of the basement of sandstone or shale on which the ,plutonic beds so often rest4 ,the basement crumbled away as the tides and waves broke against it4 ,the injected beds above1 undermined in the process1 and with a vertical cleavage1 induced by their columnar tendency1 fell down in masses that left a front perpendicular as a wall4 ,each bed came thus to present its own upright line of precipice2 and hence--when they rise bed above bed1 as often occurs--the stair-like outline of hill to which the trap rocks owe their name2 hence the outline of the ,dalmahoy ,crags1 for instance1 and of the southern and western front of ,salisbury ,crags4 ,in all the sedimentary formations the peculiarities of scenery depend on three circumstances--on the ,plutonic agencies1 the denuding agencies1 and the manner and proportions in which the harder and softer beds of the deposits on which these operated alternate with one another4 ,there is an union of the active and the passive in the formation of landscape2 that which disturbs and grinds down1 and that which1 according to its texture and composition1 affects1 if ,i may so speak1 a peculiar style of being ground down and disturbed2 and it is in the passive circumstances that the peculiarities chiefly originate1 ,hence it is that the scenery of the ,chalk differs from the scenery of the ,oolite1 and both from that of the ,coal ,measures4 ,the ,old ,red ,sandstone has also its peculiarities of prospect1 which vary according to its formations1 and the amount and character of the disturbing and denuding agencies to which these have been exposed4 ,instead1 however1 of crowding its various1 and1 in some instances1 dissimilar features into one landscape1 ,i shall introduce to the reader a few of its more striking and characteristic scenes1 as exhibited in various localities1 and by different deposits1 beginning first with its conglomerate base4 ,the great antiquity of this deposit is unequivocally indicated by the manner in which we find it capping1 far in the interior1 in insulated beds and patches1 some of our loftier hills1 or1 in some instances1 wrapping them round1 as with a caul1 from base to summit4 ,it mixes largely1 in our northern districts1 with the mountain scenery of the country1 and imparts strength and boldness of outline to every landscape in which it occurs4 ,its island-like patches affect generally a bluff parabolic or conical outline2 its loftier hills present rounded1 dome-like summits1 which sink to the plain on the one hand in steep1 slightly concave lines1 and on the other in lines decidedly convex1 and a little less steep4 ,the mountain of boldest outline in 'the line of the ,caledonian ,valley 7,mealforvony7 is composed externally of this rock4 ,except where covered by the diluvium1 it seems little friendly to vegetation4 ,its higher summits are well nigh as bare as those of the primary rocks2 and when a public road crosses its lower ridges1 the traveller generally finds that there is no paving process necessary to procure a hardened surface1 for his wheels rattle over the pebbles embedded in the rock4 ,on the sea-coast1 in several localities1 the deposit presents striking peculiarities of outline4 ,the bluff and rounded precipices stand out in vast masses1 that affect the mural form1 and present few of the minuter angularities of the primary rocks4 ,here and there a square buttress of huge proportions leans against the front of some low-browed crag1 that seems little to need any such support1 and casts a length of shadow athwart its face4 ,there opens along the base of the rock a line of rounded1 shallow caves1 or what seem rather the openings of caves not yet dug1 and which testify of a period when the sea stood about thirty feet higher on our coasts than at present4 ,a multitude of stacks and tabular masses lie grouped in front1 perforated often by squat1 heavy arches2 and stacks1 caverns1 buttresses1 crags1 and arches1 are all alike mottled over by the thickly-set and variously colored pebbles4 ,there is a tract of scenery of this strangely marked character in the neighborhood of ,dunottar1 and two other similar tracts in the far north1 where the hill of ,nigg1 in ,ross-shire1 declines towards the ,lias deposit in the ,bay of ,shandwick1 and where1 in the vicinity of ,inverness1 a line of bold1 precipitous coast runs between the pyramidal wooded eminence which occupies the south-eastern corner of ,ross1 and the tower-like headlands that guard the entrance of the ,bay of ,munlochy4 ,in the latter tract1 however1 the conglomerate is much less cavernous than in the other two4 ,the sea-coast of ,st4 ,vigeans1 in ,forfarshire1 has been long celebrated for its romantic scenery and its caves2 and though it belongs rather to the conglomerate base of the upper formation than to the great conglomerate base of the lower1 it is marked1 from the nature of the materials--materials common to both--by features indistinguishable from those which characterize the sea-coasts of the older deposit4 ,its wall of precipices averages from a hundred to a hundred and eighty feet in height--no very great matter compared with some of our northern lines1 but the cliffs make up for their want of altitude by their bold and picturesque combinations of form2 and ,i scarce know where a long summer's day could well be passed more agreeably than among their wild and solitary recesses4 ,the incessant lashings of the sea have ground them down into shapes the most fantastic4 ,huge stacks1 that stand up from amid the breakers1 are here and there perforated by round1 heavy-browed arches1 and cast the morning shadows inland athwart the cavern-hollowed precipices behind4 ,the never-ceasing echoes reply1 in long and gloomy caves1 to the wild tones of the sea4 ,here a bluff promontory projects into the deep1 green water1 and the white foam1 in times of tempest1 dashes up a hundred feet against its face4 ,there a narrow strip of vegetation1 spangled with wild flowers1 intervenes between the beach and the foot of the cliffs that sweep along the bottom of some semicircular bay2 but we see1 from the rounded caves by which they are studded1 and the polish which has blunted their lower angularities1 that at some early period the breakers must have dashed for ages against their bases4 ,the ,gaylet ,pot1 a place of interest1 from its very striking appearance1 to more than geologists1 is connected with one of the deep-sea promontories4 ,we see an oblong hollow in the centre of a corn-field1 that borders on the cliffs4 ,it deepens as we approach it1 and on reaching the edge we find ourselves standing on the verge of a precipice about a hundred and fifty feet in depth1 and see the waves dashing along the bottom4 ,on descending by a somewhat precarious path1 we find that a long1 tunnel-like cavern communicates with the sea1 and mark1 through the deep gloom of the passage1 the sunlight playing beyond2 and now and then a white sail passing the opening1 as if flitting across the field of a telescope4 ,the ,gaylet ,pot seems originally to have been merely a deep1 straight cave1 hollowed in the line of a fault by the waves2 and it owes evidently its present appearance to the falling in of the roof for about a hundred yards1 at its inner extremity4 ,we pass from the conglomerate to the middle and upper beds of the lower formation1 and find scenery of a different character in the districts in which they prevail4 ,the aspect is less bold and rugged1 and affects often long horizontal lines1 that stretch away without rise or depression1 amid the surrounding inequalities of the landscape for miles and leagues1 and that decline to either side1 like roofs of what the architect would term a low pitch4 ,the ridge of the ,leys in the eastern opening of the ,caledonian ,valley1 so rectilinear in its outline1 and so sloping in its sides1 presents a good illustration of this peculiarity4 ,the rectilinear ridge which runs from the ,southern ,sutor of ,cromarty far into the interior of the country1 and which has been compared in a former chapter to the shaft of a spear1 furnishes another illustration equally apt4,,ax ,where the sloping sides of these roof-like ridges decline1 as in the latter instance1 towards an exposed sea-coast1 we find the slope terminating often in an abrupt line of rock dug out by the waves4 ,it is thus a roof set on walls1 and furnished with eaves4 ,a ditch just finished by the laborer presents regularly sloping sides2 but the little stream that comes running through gradually widens its bed by digging furrows into the slopes1 the undermined masses fall in and are swept away1 and1 in the course of a few months1 the sides are no longer sloping1 but abrupt4 ,and such1 on a great scale1 has been the process through which coast-lines that were originally paved slopes have become walls of precipices4 ,the waves cut first through the outer strata2 and every stratum thus divided comes to present two faces--a perpendicular face in the newly-formed line of precipice1 and another horizontal face lying parallel to it1 along the shore4 ,one half the severed stratum seems as if rising out of the sea1 the other half as if descending from the hill3 the geologist who walks along the beach finds the various beds presented in duplicate--a hill-bed on the one side1 and a sea-bed on the other4 ,there occurs a very interesting instance of this arrangement in the bold line of coast on the northern shore of the ,moray ,frith1 so often alluded to in a previous chapter1 as extending between the ,southern ,sutor and the ,hill of ,eathie2 and which forms the wall of a portion of the roof-like ridge last described4 ,the sea first broke in a long line through strata of red and gray shale1 next through a thick bed of pale-yellow stone1 then through a continuous bed of stratified clays and nodular limestone1 and1 last of all1 through a bed1 thicker than any of the others1 of indurated red sandstone4 ,the line of cliffs formed in this way rises abruptly for about a hundred yards on the one hand2 the shore stretches out for more than double the same space on the other2 on both sides the beds exactly correspond2 and to ascend in the line of the strata from the foot of the cliffs1 we have either to climb the hill1 or to pass downwards at low ebb to the edge of the sea4 ,the section is of interest1 not only from the numerous organisms1 animal and vegetable1 which its ichthyolite beds contain1 but from the illustration which it also furnishes of denudation to a vast extent from causes still in active operation4 ,a line of precipices a hundred yards in height1 and more than two miles in length1 has been dug out of the slope by the slow wear of the waves1 in the unreckoned course of that period during which the present sea was bounded in this locality by the existing line of coast4 7,see ,frontispiece1 sect4 #c47 ,footnote ,,ax3 ,the valleys which separate these ridges form often spacious friths and bays1 the frequent occurrence of which in the ,old lied ,sandstone constitutes1 in some localities1 one of the characteristics of the system4 ,mark in a map of the north of ,scotland1 how closely friths and estuaries lie crowded together between the counties of ,sutherland and ,inverness4 ,in a line of coast little more than forty miles in extent1 there occur four arms of the sea--the ,friths of ,cromarty1 ,beauly1 and ,dornoch1 and the ,bay of ,munlochy4 ,the ,frith of ,tay and the ,basin of ,montrose are also semi-marine valleys of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,two of the finest harbors in ,britain1 or the world1 belong to it--,milford ,haven1 in ,south ,wales1 and the ,bay of ,cromarty4 ,i know not a more instructive walk for the young geologist than that furnished by the two miles of shore along which this section extends4 ,years of examination and inquiry would fail to exhaust it4 ,it presents us1 ,i have said1 with the numerous organisms of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone2 it presents us also1 towards its western extremity1 with the still more numerous organisms of the ,lower and ,upper ,lias2 nor are the inflections and faults which its strata exhibit less instructive than its fossils or its vast denuded hollow4 ,i have climbed along its wall of cliffs during the height of a tempestuous winter tide1 when waves of huge volume1 that had begun to gather strength under the night of the ,northern ,ocean1 were bursting and foaming below2 and as the harder pebbles1 uplifted by the surge1 rolled by thousands and tens of thousands along the rocky bottom1 and the work of denudation went on1 ,i have thought of the remote past1 when the same agents had first begun to grind down the upper strata1 whose broken edges now projected high over my head on the one hand1 and lay buried far under the waves at my feet on the other4 ,almost all mountain chains present their abrupter escarpements to the sea1 though separated from it in many instances by hundreds of miles--a consequence1 it is probable1 of a similar course of denudation1 ere they had attained their present altitude1 or the plains at their feet had been elevated over the level of the ocean4 ,had a rise of a hundred feet taken place in this northern district in the days of ,csar1 the whole upper part of the ,moray ,frith would have been laid dry1 and it would now have seemed as inexplicable that this roof-like ridge should present so rugged a line of wall to the distant sea1 as that the ,western ,ghauts of ,india should invariably turn their steepest declivities to the basin of the ,indian ,ocean1 or that1 from the ,arctic ,circle to the southern extremity of ,patagonia1 the huge mountain-chain of ,america should elevate its dizzy precipices in the line of the ,pacific4 ,let us take another view of this section4 ,it stretches between two of the granitic knobs or wedges to which ,i have had such frequent occasion to refer--the ,southern ,sutor of ,cromarty1 and the ,hill of ,eathie2 and the edges of the strata somewhat remind one of the edges of a bundle of deals laid flatways on two stones1 and bent towards the middle by their own weight4 ,but their more brittle character is shown by the manner in which their ends are broken and uptilted against the granitic knobs on which they seem to rest2 and towards the western knob the whole bundle has been broken across from below1 and the opening occasioned by the fracture forms a deep1 savage ravine1 skirted by precipices1 that runs far into the interior1 and exhibits the lower portion of the system to well nigh its base4 ,will the reader spend a very few minutes in exploring the solitary recesses of this rocky trench--it matters not whether as a scene-hunter or a geologist8 ,we pass onwards along the beach through the middle line of the denuded hollow4 ,the natural rampart that rises on the right ascends towards the uplands in steep slopes1 lined horizontally by sheep-walks1 and fretted by mossy knolls1 and churchyard-like ridges--or juts out into abrupt and weathered crags1 crusted with lichens and festooned with ivy--or recedes into bosky hollows1 roughened by the sloe-thorn1 the wild-rose1 and the juniper2 on the left the wide extent of the ,moray ,frith stretches out to the dim horizon1 with its vein-like currents1 and its undulating lines of coast2 while before us we see1 far in the distance1 the blue vista of the ,great ,valley1 with its double wall of jagged and serrated hills1 and directly in the opening1 the gray1 diminished spires of ,inverness4 ,we reach a brown1 mossy stream1 of just volume enough to sweep away the pebbles and shells that have been strewed in its course by the last tide2 and see1 on turning a sudden angle1 the precipices cleft to their base by the ravine that has yielded its waters a passage from the interior4 ,we enter along the bed of the stream4 ,a line of mural precipices rises on either hand--here advancing in ponderous overhanging buttresses1 there receding into deep1 damp recesses1 tapestried with ivy1 and darkened with birch and hazel4 ,a powerful spring1 charged with lime1 comes pouring by a hundred different threads over the rounded brow of a beetling crag1 and the decaying vegetation around it is hardening into stone4 ,the cliffs vary their outline at every step1 as if assuming in succession1 all the various combinations of form that constitute the wild and the picturesque2 and the pale hues of the stone seem1 when brightened by the sun1 the very tints a painter would choose to heighten the effect of his shades1 or to contrast most delicately with the luxuriant profusion of bushes and flowers that wave over the higher shelves and crannies4 ,a colony of swallows have built from time immemorial under the overhanging strata of one of the loftier precipices2 the fox and badger harbor in the clefts of the steeper and more inaccessible banks4 ,as we proceed1 the deli becomes wilder and more deeply wooded2 the stream frets and toils at our feet--here leaping over an opposing ridge2--there struggling in a pool--yonder escaping to the light from under some broken fragment of cliff4 ,there is a richer profusion of flowers1 a thicker mantling of ivy and honeysuckle2 and after passing a semicircular inflection of the bank1 that waves from base to summit with birch1 hazel1 and hawthorn1 we find the passage shut up by a perpendicular wall of rock about thirty feet in height1 over which the stream precipitates itself1 in a slender column of foam1 into a dark1 mossy basin4 ,the long arms of an intermingled clump of birches and hazels stretch half way across1 tripling with their shade the apparent depth of the pool1 and heightening in an equal ratio the white flicker of the cascade1 and the effect of the bright patches of foam which1 flung from the rock1 incessantly revolve on the eddy4 ,mark now the geology of the ravine4 ,for about half way from where it opens to the shore1 to where the path is obstructed by the deep mossy pool and the cascade1 its precipitous sides consist of three bars or stories4 ,there is first1 reckoning from the stream upwards1 a broad bar of pale red2 then a broad bar of pale lead color2 last and highest1 a broad bar of pale yellow2 and above all1 there rises a steep green slope1 that continues its ascent till it gains the top of the ridge4 ,the middle1 lead-colored bar is an ichthyolite bed1 a place of sepulture among the rocks1 where the dead lie by myriads4 ,the yellow bar above is a thick bed of saliferous sandstone4 ,we may see the projections on which the sun has beat most powerfully covered with a white crust of salt2 and it may be deemed worthy of remark1 in connection with the circumstance1 that its shelves and crannies are richer in vegetation than those of the other bars4 ,the pale red bar below is composed of a coarser and harder sandstone1 which forms an upper moiety of the arenaceous portion of the great conglomerate4 ,now mark1 further1 that on reaching a midway point between the beach and the cascade1 this triple-barred line of precipices abruptly terminates1 and a line of precipices of coarse conglomerate as abruptly begins4 ,i occasionally pass a continuous wall1 built at two different periods1 and composed of two different kinds of materials3 the one half of it is formed of white sandstone1 the other half of a dark-colored basalt2 and the place where the sandstone ends and the basalt begins is marked by a vertical line1 on the one side of which all is dark colored1 while all is of a light color on the other4 ,equally marked and abrupt is the vertical line which separates the triple-barred from the conglomerate cliffs of the ravine of ,eathie4 ,the ravine itself may be described as a fault in the strata2 but here is a fault1 lying at right angles with it1 on a much larger scale3 the great conglomerate on which the triple bars rest has been cast up at least two hundred feet1 and placed side by side with them4 ,and yet the surface above bears no trace of the catastrophe4 ,denuding agencies of even greater power than those which have hollowed out the cliffs of the neighboring coast1 or whose operations have been prolonged through periods of even more extended duration1 have ground down the projected line of the upheaved mass to the level of the undisturbed masses beside it4 ,now1 mark further1 as we ascend the ravine1 that the grand cause of the disturbance appears to illustrate1 as it were1 and that very happily1 the manner in which the fault was originally produced4 ,the precipice1 over which the stream leaps at one bound into the mossy hollow1 is composed of granitic gneiss1 and seems evidently to have intruded itself1 with much disturbance1 among the surrounding conglomerate and sandstones4 ,a few hundred yards higher up the dell1 there is another much loftier precipice of gneiss1 round which we find the traces of still greater disturbance2 and1 higher still1 yet a third abrupt precipice of the same rock4 ,the gneiss rose1 trap-like1 in steps1 and carried up the sandstone before it in detached squares4 ,each step has its answering fault immediately over it2 and the fault where the triple bars and the conglomerate meet is merely a fault whose step of granitic gneiss stopped short ere it reached the surface4 ,but the accompanying section 7see ,frontispiece1 sect4 #d7 will better illustrate the geology of this interesting ravine1 than it can be illustrated by any written description4 ,i may remark1 ere taking leave of it1 however1 that its conglomerates exhibit a singularly large amount of false stratification at an acute angle with the planes of the real strata1 and that a bed of mouldering sandstone near the base of the system may be described1 from its fissile character1 as a tilestone4,,ay ,footnote ,,ay3 ,there is a natural connection1 it is said1 between wild scenes and wild legends2 and some of the traditions connected with this romantic and solitary dell illustrate the remark4 ,till a comparatively late period1 it was known at many a winter fireside as a favorite haunt of the fairies--the most poetical of all our old tribes of spectres1 and at one time one of the most popular4 ,i have conversed with an old woman1 who1 when a very little girl1 had seen myriads of them dancing1 as the sun was setting1 on the further edge of the dell2 and with a still older man1 who had the temerity to offer one of them a pinch of snuff at the foot of the cascade4 ,nearly a mile from where the ravine opens to the sea1 it assumes a gentler and more pastoral character2 the sides1 no longer precipitous1 descend towards the stream in green1 sloping banks2 and a beaten path1 which runs between ,cromarty and ,rosemarkie1 winds down the one side and ascends the other4 ,more than sixty years ago1 one ,donald ,calder1 a ,cromarty shop-keeper1 was journeying by this path shortly after nightfall4 ,the moon1 at full1 had just risen2 but there was a silvery mist sleeping on the lower grounds1 that obscured her light2 and the dell1 in all its extent1 was so overcharged by the vapor1 that it seemed an immense1 overflooded river winding through the landscape4 ,donald had reached its farther edge1 and could hear the rush of the stream from the deep obscurity of the abyss below1 when there rose from the opposite side a strain of the most delightful music he had ever heard4 ,he staid and listened4 ,the words of a song1 of such simple beauty that they seemed without effort to stamp themselves on his memory1 came wafted in the music2 and the chorus1 in which a thousand tiny voices seemed to join1 was a familiar address to himself--,hey1 ,donald ,calder2 ho1 ,donald ,calder4 ,there are nane of my ,navity acquaintance1 thought ,donald1 who sing like that4 ,wha can it be8 ,he descended into the cloud2 but in passing the little stream the music ceased2 and on reaching the spot on which the singer had seemed stationed1 he saw only a bare bank sinking into a solitary moor1 unvaried by either bush or hollow in which the musician might have lain concealed4 ,he had hardly time1 however1 to estimate the marvels of the case1 when the music again struck up1 but on the opposite side of the dell1 and apparently from the very knoll on which he had so recently listened to it4 ,the conviction that it could not be other than supernatural overpowered him2 and he hurried homewards under the influence of a terror so extreme1 that1 unfortunately for our knowledge of fairy literature1 it had the effect of obliterating from his memory every part of the song except the chorus4 ,the sun rose as he reached ,cromarty2 and he found that1 instead of having lingered at the edge of the dell for only a few minutes--and the time had seemed no longer--he had spent beside it the greater part of the night4 ,the fairies have deserted the ,burn of ,eathie2 but we have proof1 quite as conclusive as the nature of the case admits1 that when they ceased to be seen there it would have been vain to have looked for them any where else4 ,there is a cluster of turf-built cottages grouped on the southern side of the ravine2 a few scattered knolls1 and a long1 partially wooded hollow1 that seems a sort of covered way leading to the recesses of the dell1 interpose between them and the nearer edge1 and the hill rises behind4 ,on a ,sabbath morning1 nearly sixty years ago1 the inmates of this little hamlet had all gone to church1 all except a herd-boy and a little girl1 his sister1 who were lounging beside one of the cottages2 when1 just as the shadow of the garden dial had fallen on the line of noon1 they saw a long cavalcade ascending out of the ravine through the wooded hollow4 ,it winded among the knolls and bushes2 and1 turning round the northern gable of the cottage beside which the sole spectators of the scene were stationed1 began to ascend the eminence towards the south4 ,the horses were shaggy1 diminutive things1 speckled dun and gray2 the riders1 stunted1 misgrown1 ugly creatures1 attired in antique jerkins of plaid1 long gray cloaks1 and little red caps1 from under which their wild1 uncombed locks shot out over their cheeks and foreheads4 ,the boy and his sister stood gazing in utter dismay and astonishment1 as rider after rider1 each one more uncouth and dwarfish than the one that had preceded it1 passed the cottage and disappeared among the brushwood1 which at that period covered the hill1 until at length the entire rout1 except the last rider1 who lingered a few yards behind the others1 had gone by4 ,what are ye1 little mannie8 and where are ye going8 inquired the boy1 his curiosity getting the better of his fears and his prudence4 ,not of the race of ,adam1 said the creature1 turning for a moment in his saddle2 the ,people of ,peace shall never more be seen in ,scotland4 ,i know comparatively little of the scenery of the middle1 or ,cornstone formation4 ,its features in ,england are bold and striking2 in ,scotland1 of a tamer and more various character4 ,the ,den of ,balruddery is a sweet1 wooded dell1 marked by no characteristic peculiarities4 ,many of the seeming peculiarities of the formation in ,forfarshire1 as in ,fife1 may be traced to the disturbing trap4 ,the appearance exhibited is that of uneven plains1 that rise and fall in long1 undulating ridges--an appearance which any other member of the system might have presented4 ,we find the upper formation associated with scenery of great1 though often wild beauty2 and nowhere is this more strikingly the case than in the province of ,moray1 where it leans against the granitic gneiss of the uplands1 and slopes towards the sea in long plains of various fertility1 deep and rich1 as in the neighborhood of ,elgin1 or singularly bleak and unproductive1 as in the far-famed heath near ,forres4 ,let us select the scene where the ,findhorn1 after hurrying over ridge and shallow1 amid combinations of rock and wood1 wildly picturesque as any the kingdom affords1 enters on the lower country1 with a course less headlong1 through a vast trench scooped in the pale red sandstone of the upper formation4 ,for miles above the junction of the newer and older rocks the river has been toiling in a narrow and uneven channel1 between two upright walls of hard gray gneiss1 thickly traversed1 in every complexity of pattern1 by veins of a light red1 large grained granite4 ,the gneiss abruptly terminates1 but not so the wall of precipices4 ,a lofty front of gneiss is joined to a lofty front of sandstone1 like the front walls of two adjoining houses2 and the broken and uptilted strata of the softer stone show that the older and harder rocks must have invaded it from below4 ,a little farther down the stream1 the strata assume what seems1 in a short extent of frontage1 a horizontal position1 like courses of ashlar in a building1 but which1 when viewed in the range1 is found to incline at a low angle towards the distant sea4 ,here1 as in many other localities1 the young geologist must guard against the conclusion1 that the rock is necessarily low in the geological scale which he finds resting against the gneiss4 ,the gneiss1 occupying a very different place from that on which it was originally formed1 has been thrust into close neighborhood with widely separated formations4 ,the great conglomerate base of the system rests over it in ,orkney1 ,caithness1 ,ross1 ,cromarty1 and ,inverness2 and there is no trace of what should be the intervening grauwacke4 ,the upper formation of the system leans upon it here4 ,we find the ,lower ,lias uptilted against it at the ,hill of ,eathie--the great ,oolite on the eastern coast of ,sutherland2 and as the flints and chalk fossils of ,banff and ,aberdeen are found lying immediately over it in these counties1 it is probable that the denuded members of the ,cretaceous group once rested upon it there4 ,the fact that a deposit should be found lying in contact with the gneiss1 furnishes no argument for the great antiquity or the fundamental character of that deposit2 and it were well that the geologist who sets himself to estimate the depth of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 or the succession of its various formations1 should keep the circumstance in view4 ,that may be in reality but a small and upper portion of the system which he finds bounded by the gneiss on its under side1 and by the diluvium on its upper4 ,we stand on a wooded eminence1 that sinks perpendicularly into the river on the left1 in a mural precipice1 and descends with a billowy swell into the broad1 fertile plain in front1 as if the uplands were breaking in one vast wave upon the low country4 ,there is a patch of meadow on the opposite side of the stream1 shaded by a group of ancient trees1 gnarled and mossy1 and with half their topmost branches dead and white as the bones of a skeleton4 ,we look down upon them from an elevation so commanding1 that their uppermost twigs seem on well nigh the same level with their interlaced and twisted roots1 washed bare on the bank edge by the winter floods4 ,a colony of herons has built from time immemorial among the branches4 ,there are trees so laden with nests that the boughs bend earthwards on every side1 like the boughs of orchard trees in autumn2 and the bleached and feathered masses which they bear--the cradles of succeeding generations--glitter gray through the foliage in continuous groups1 as if each tree bore on its single head all the wigs of the ,court of ,session4 ,the solitude is busy with the occupations and enjoyments of instinct4 ,the birds1 tall and stately1 stand by troops in the shallows1 or wade warily1 as the fish glance by1 to the edge of the current1 or rising1 with the slow flap of wing and sharp creak peculiar to the tribe1 drop suddenly into their nests4 ,the great forest of ,darnaway stretches beyond1 feathering a thousand knolls1 that reflect a colder and grayer tint as they recede1 and lessen1 and present on the horizon a billowy line of blue4 ,the river brawls along under pale red cliffs1 wooded a-top4 ,it is through a vast burial-yard that it has cut its way--a field of the dead so ancient1 that the sepulchres of ,thebes and ,luxor are but of the present day in comparison--resting-places for the recently departed1 whose funerals are but just over4 ,these mouldering strata are charged with remains1 scattered and detached as those of a churchyard1 but not less entire in their parts--occipital bones1 jaws1 teeth1 spines1 scales--the dust and rubbish of a departed creation4 ,the cliffs sink as the plain flattens1 and green1 sloping banks of diluvium take their place2 but they again rise in the middle distance into an abrupt and lofty promontory1 that1 stretching like an immense rib athwart the level country1 projects far into the stream1 and gives an angular inflection to its course4 ,there ascends from the apex a thin1 blue column of smoke--that of a lime-kiln4 ,that ridge and promontory are composed of the thick limestone band1 which1 in ,moray as in ,fife1 separates the pale red from the pale yellow beds of the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone2 and the flattened tracts on both sides show how much better it has resisted the denuding agencies than either the yellow strata that rests over it1 or the pale red strata which it overlies4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,the two ,aspects in which4 ,matter can be viewed2 ,space and ,time4--,geological ,history of the ,earlier ,periods4--,the ,cambrian ,system1--,its ,annelids4--,the ,silurian ,system4--,its ,corals1 ,encrinites1 ,molluscs1 and ,trilobites4--,its ,fish4--,these of a high ,order1 and called into ,existence apparently by ,myriads4--,opening ,scene in the ,history of the ,old ,red ,sandstone a ,scene of ,tempest4--,represented by the ,great ,conglomerate4--,red a prevailing ,color among the ,ancient ,rocks contained in this ,deposit4--,amazing ,abundance of ,animal ,life4--,exemplified by a ,scene in the ,herring ,fishery4--,platform of ,death4--,probable ,cause of the ,catastrophe which rendered it such4 ,there are only two different aspects1 says ,dr4 ,thomas ,brown1 in which matter can be viewed4 ,we may consider it simply as it exists1 in space1 or as it exists in time4 ,as it exists in space we inquire into its composition1 or1 in other words1 endeavor to discover what are the elementary bodies that coexist in the space which it occupies2 as it exists in time1 we inquire into its susceptibilities or its powers1 or1 in other words1 endeavor to trace all the various changes which have already passed over it1 or of which it may yet become the subject4 ,hitherto ,i have very much restricted myself to the consideration of the ,old ,red ,sandstone as it exists in space--to the consideration of it as we now find it4 ,i shall now attempt presenting it to the reader as it existed in time--during the succeeding periods of its formation1 and when its existences lived and moved as the denizens of primeval oceans4 ,it is one thing to describe the appearance of a forsaken and desert country1 with its wide wastes of unprofitable sand1 its broken citadels and temples1 its solitary battle-plains1 and its gloomy streets of caverned and lonely sepulchres2 and quite another to record its history during its days of smiling fields1 populous cities1 busy trade1 and monarchical splendor4 ,we pass from the dead to the living--from the cemetery1 with its high piles of mummies and its vast heaps of bones1 to the ancient city1 full of life and animation in all its streets and dwellings4 ,two great geological periods have already come to their close2 and the floor of a widely-spread ocean1 to which we can affix no limits1 and of whose shores or their inhabitants nothing is yet known1 is occupied to the depth of many thousand feet by the remains of bygone existences4 ,of late1 the geologist has learned from ,murchison to distinguish the rocks of these two periods--the lower as those of the ,cambrian1 the upper as those of the ,silurian group4 ,the lower--representative of the first glimmering twilight of being--of a dawn so feeble that it may seem doubtful whether in reality the gloom had lightened--must still be regarded as a period of uncertainty4 ,its ripple-marked sandstones1 and its half coherent accumulations of dark-colored strata1 which decompose into mud1 show that every one of its many plains must have formed in succession an upper surface of the bottom of the sea2 but it remains for future discoverers to determine regarding the shapes of life that burrowed in its ooze1 or careered through the incumbent waters4 ,in one locality it would seem as if a few worms had crawled to the surface1 and left their involved and tortuous folds doubtfully impressed on the stone4 ,some of them resemble miniature cables1 carelessly coiled2 others1 furnished with what seem numerous legs1 remind us of the existing ,nereidina of our sandy shores--those red-blooded1 many-legged worms1 resembling elongated centipedes1 that wriggle with such activity among the mingled mud and water1 as we turn over the stones under which they had sheltered4 ,were creatures such as these the lords of this lower ocean8 ,did they enter first on the stage1 in that great drama of being in which poets and philosophers1 monarchs and mighty conquerors1 were afterwards to mingle as actors8 ,does the reader remember that story in the ,arabian ,nights1 in which the battle of the magicians is described8 ,at an early stage of the combat a little worm creeps over the pavement2 at its close two terrible dragons contend in an atmosphere of fire4 ,but even the worms of the ,cambrian ,system can scarce be regarded as established4 ,the evidence respecting their place and their nature must still be held as involved in some such degree of doubt as attaches to the researches of the antiquary1 when engaged in tracing what their remains much resemble--the involved sculpturings of some ,runic obelisk1 weathered by the storms of a thousand winters4 ,there is less of doubt1 however1 regarding the existences of the upper group of rocks--the ,silurian4 ,the depth of this group1 as estimated by ,mr4 ,murchison1 is equal to double the height of our highest ,scottish mountains2 and four distinct platforms of being range in it1 the one over the other1 like stories in a building4 ,life abounded on all these platforms1 and in shapes the most wonderful4 ,the peculiar encrinites of the group rose in miniature forests1 and spread forth their sentient petals by millions and tens of millions amid the waters2 vast ridges of corals peopled by their innumerable builders1--numbers without number1--rose high amid the shallows2 the chambered shells had become abundant--the simpler testacea still more so2 extinct forms of the graptolite1 or sea-pen1 existed by myriads2 and the formation had a class of creatures in advance of the many-legged annelids of the other4 ,it had its numerous family of trilobites1--crustaceans nearly as high in the scale as the common crab1--creatures with crescent-shaped heads1 and jointed bodies1 and wonderfully constructed eyes1 which1 like the eyes of the bee and the butterfly1 had the cornea cut into facets resembling those of a multiplying glass4 ,is the reader acquainted with the form of the common ,chiton of our shores--the little boat-shaped shell-fish1 that adheres to stones and rocks like the limpet1 but which differs from every variety of limpet1 inbearing as its covering a jointed1 not a continuous shell8 ,suppose a chiton with two of its terminal joints cut away1 and a single plate of much the same shape and size1 but with two eyes near the centre1 substituted instead1 and the animal1 in form at least1 would be no longer a chiton1 but a trilobite4 ,there are appearances1 too1 which lead to the inference that the habits of the two families1 though representing different orders of being1 may not have been very unlike4 ,the chiton attaches itself to the rock by a muscular sucker or foot1 which1 extending vent rally along its entire length1 resembles that of the slug or the snail1 and enables it to crawl like them1 but still more slowly1 by a succession of adhesions4 ,the locomotive powers of the trilobite seem to have been little superior to those of the chiton4 ,if furnished with legs at all1 it must have been with soft rudimentary membranaceous legs1 little fitted for walking with2 and it seems quite as probable1 from the peculiarly shaped under margin of its shell1 formed1 like that of the chiton1 for adhering to flat surfaces1 that1 like the slug and the snail1 it was unfurnished with legs of any kind1 and crept on the abdomen4 ,the vast conglomerations of trilobites for which the ,silurian rocks are remarkable1 are regarded as further evidence of a sedentary condition1 ,like ,ostre1 ,chitones1 and other sedentary animals1 they seemed to have adhered together in vast clusters1 trilobite over trilobite1 in the hollows of submarine precipices1 or on the flat1 muddy bottom below4 ,and such were the master existences of three of the four ,silurian platforms1 and of the greater part of the fourth1 if1 indeed1 we may not regard the chambered molluscs1 their contemporaries1--creatures with their arms clustered round their heads1 and with a nervous system composed of a mere knotted cord1--as equally high in the scale4 ,we rise to the topmost layers of the system1--to an upper gallery of its highest platform1--and find nature mightily in advance4 ,another and superior order of existences had sprung into being at the fiat of the ,creator--creatures with the brain lodged in the head1 and the spinal cord enclosed in a vertebrated column4 ,in the period of the ,upper ,silurian1 fish properly so called1 and of very perfect organization1 had become denizens of the watery element1 and had taken precedence of the crustacean1 as1 at a period long previous1 the crustacean had taken precedence of the annelid4 ,in what form do these1 the most ancient beings of their class1 appear8 ,as cartilaginous fishes of the higher order4 ,some of them were furnished with bony palates1 and squat1 firmly-based teeth1 well adapted for crushing the stone-cased zophytes and shells of the period1 fragments of which occur in their fcal remains2 some with teeth that1 like those of the fossil sharks of the later formations1 resemble lines of miniature pyramids1 larger and smaller alternating2 some with teeth sharp1 thin1 and so deeply serrated that every individual tooth resembles a row of poniards set upright against the walls of an armory2 and these last1 says ,agassiz1 furnished with weapons so murderous1 must have been the pirates of the period4 ,some had their fins guarded with long spines1 hooked like the beak of an eagle2 some with spines of straighter and more slender form1 and ribbed and furrowed longitudinally like columns2 some were shielded by an armor of bony points2 and some thickly covered with glistening scales4 ,if many ages must have passed ere fishes appeared1 there was assuredly no time required to elevate their lower into their higher families4 ,judging1 too1 from this ancient deposit1 they seem to have been introduced1 not by individuals and pairs1 but by whole myriads4 ,forthwith1 the sounds and seas1 each creek and bay1 ,with fry innumerable swarmed2 and shoals ,of fish1 that with their fins and shining scales ,glide under the green wave in plumps and sculls1 ,banked the mid sea4 ,the fish-bed of the ,upper ,ludlow ,rock abounds more in osseous remains than an ancient burying-ground4 ,the stratum1 over wide areas1 seems an almost continuous layer of matted bones1 jaws1 teeth1 spines1 scales1 palatal plates1 and shagreen-like prickles1 all massed together1 and converted into a substance of so deep and shining a jet color1 that the bed1 when first discovered1 conveyed the impression1 says ,mr4 ,murchison1 that it enclosed a triturated heap of black beetles4 ,and such are the remains of what seem to have been the first existing vertebrata4 ,thus1 ere our history begins1 the existences of two great systems1 the ,cambrian and the ,silurian1 had passed into extinction1 with the exception of what seem a few connecting links1 exclusively molluscs1 that are found in ,england to pass from the higher beds of the ,ludlow rocks into the ,lower or ,tilestone beds of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4,,az ,the exuvi of at least four platforms of being lay entombed furlong below furlong1 amid the gray1 mouldering mudstones1 the harder arenaceous beds1 the consolidated clays1 and the concretionary limestones1 that underlay the ancient ocean of the ,lower ,old ,red4 ,the earth had already become a vast sepulchre1 to a depth beneath the bed of the sea equal to at least twice the height of ,ben ,nevis over its surface4 ,footnote ,,az3 ,upwards of eight hundred extinct species of animals have been described as belonging to the earliest1 or ,protozoic and ,silurian period1 and of these only about one hundred are found also in the overlying ,devonian series2 while but fifteen are common to the whole ,palozoic period1 and not one extends beyond it4--7,m4 de ,verneuil and ,count ,d',archiac1 quoted by ,mr4 ,d4 ,t4 ,ansted4 #ahdd47 ,the first scene in the ,tempest opens amid the confusion and turmoil of the hurricane--amid thunders and lightnings1 the roar of the wind1 the shouts of the seamen1 the rattling of cordage1 and the wild dash of the billows4 ,the history of the period represented by the ,old ,red ,sandstone seems1 in what now forms the northern half of ,scotland1 to have opened in a similar manner4 ,the finely-laminated lower ,tilestones of ,england were deposited evidently in a calm sea4 ,during the contemporary period in our own country1 the vast space which now includes ,orkney and ,loch ,ness1 ,dingwall1 and ,gamrie1 and many a thousand square mile besides1 was the scene of a shallow ocean1 perplexed by powerful currents1 and agitated by waves4 ,a vast stratum of water-rolled pebbles1 varying in depth from a hundred feet to a hundred yards1 remains in a thousand different localities1 to testify of the disturbing agencies of this time of commotion4 ,the hardest masses which the stratum encloses1--porphyries of vitreous fracture that cut glass as readily as flint1 and masses of quartz that strike fire quite as profusely from steel1--are yet polished and ground down into bullet-like forms1 not an angular fragment appearing in some parts of the mass for yards together4 ,the debris of our harder rocks rolled for centuries in the beds of our more impetuous rivers1 or tossed for ages along our more exposed and precipitous sea-shores1 could not present less equivocally the marks of violent and prolonged attrition than the pebbles of this bed4 ,and yet it is surely difficult to conceive how the bottom of any sea should have been so violently and so equally agitated for so greatly extended a space as that which intervenes between ,mealforvony in ,inverness-shire and ,pomona in ,orkney in one direction1 and between ,applecross and ,trouphead in another--and for a period so prolonged1 that the entire area should have come to be covered with a stratum of rolled pebbles of almost every variety of ancient rock1 fifteen stories' height in thickness4 ,the very variety of its contents shows that the period must have been prolonged4 ,a sudden flood sweeps away with it the accumulated debris of a range of mountains2 but to blend together1 in equal mixture1 the debris of many such ranges1 as well as to grind down their roughnesses and angularities1 and fill up the interstices with the sand and gravel produced in the process1 must be a work of time4 ,i have examined with much interest1 in various localities1 the fragments of ancient rock inclosed in this formation4 ,many of them are no longer to be found in situ1 and the group is essentially different from that presented by the more modern gravels4 ,on the shores of the ,frith of ,cromarty1 for instance1 by far the most abundant pebbles are of a blue schistose gneiss3 fragments of gray granite and white quartz are also common2 and the sea-shore at half ebb presents at a short distance the appearance of a long belt of bluish gray1 from the color of the prevailing stones which compose it4 ,the prevailing color of the conglomerate of the district1 on the contrary1 is a deep red4 ,it contains pebbles of small-grained1 red granite1 red quartz rock1 red feldspar1 red porphyry1 an impure red jasper1 red hornstone1 and a red granitic gneiss1 identical with the well-marked gneiss of the neighboring ,sutors4 ,this last is the only rock now found in the district1 of which fragments occur in the conglomerate4 ,it must have been exposed at the time to the action of the waves1 though afterwards buried deep under succeeding formations1 until again thrust to the surface by some great internal convulsion1 of a date comparatively recent4,,ba ,footnote ,,ba3 ,the vast beds of unconsolidated gravel with which one of the later geological revolutions has half filled some of our northern valleys1 and covered the slopes of the adjacent hills1 present1 in a few localities1 appearances somewhat analogous to those exhibited by this ancient formation4 ,there are uncemented accumulations of water-rolled pebbles1 in the neighborhood of ,inverness1 from ninety to a hundred feet in thickness4 ,but this stratum1 unlike the more ancient one1 wanted continuity4 ,it must have been accumulated1 too1 under the operation of more partial1 though immensely more powerful agencies4 ,there is a mediocrity of size in the enclosed fragments of the old conglomerate1 which gives evidence of a mediocrity of power in the transporting agent4 ,in the upper gravels1 on the contrary1 one of the agents could convey from vast distances blocks of stone eighty and a hundred tons in weight4 ,a new cause of tremendous energy had come into operation in the geological world4 ,the period of this shallow and stormy ocean passed4 ,the bottom1 composed of the identical conglomerate which now forms the summit of some of our loftiest mountains1 sank throughout its wide area to a depth so profound as to be little affected by tides or tempests4 ,during this second period there took place a vast deposit of coarse sandstone strata1 with here and there a few thin beds of rolled pebbles4 ,the general subsidence of the bottom still continued1 and1 after a deposit of full ninety feet had overlain the conglomerate1 the depth became still more profound than at first4 ,a fine1 semi-calcareous1 semi-aluminous deposition took place in waters perfectly undisturbed4 ,and here we first find proof that this ancient ocean literally swarmed with life--that its bottom was covered with miniature forests of alg1 and its waters darkened by immense shoals of fish4 ,in middle autumn1 at the close of the herring season1 when the fish have just spawned1 and the congregated masses are breaking up on shallow and skerry1 and dispersing by myriads over the deeper seas1 they rise at times to the surface by a movement so simultaneous1 that for miles and miles around the skiff of the fisherman nothing may be seen but the bright glitter of scales1 as if the entire face of the deep were a blue robe spangled with silver4 ,i have watched them at sunrise at such seasons on the middle of the ,moray ,frith1 when1 far as the eye could reach1 the surface has been ruffled by the splash of fins1 as if a light breeze swept over it1 and the red light has flashed in gleams of an instant on the millions and tens of millions that were leaping around me1 a handbreadth into the air1 thick as hail-stones in a thunder-shower4 ,the amazing amount of life which the scene included1 has imparted to it an indescribable interest4 ,on most occasions the inhabitants of ocean are seen but by scores and hundreds2 for in looking down into their green twilight haunts1 we find the view bounded by a few yards1 or at most a few fathoms2 and we can but calculate on the unseen myriads of the surrounding expanse by the seen few that occupy the narrow space visible4 ,here1 however1 it was not the few1 but the myriads1 that were seen--the innumerable and inconceivable whole--all palpable to the sight as a flock on a hill-side2 or1 at least1 if all was not palpable1 it was only because sense has its limits in the lighter as well as in the denser medium--that the multitudinous distracts it1 and the distant eludes it1 and the far horizon bounds it4 ,if the scene spoke not of infinity in the sense in which ,deity comprehends it1 it spoke of it in at least the only sense in which man can comprehend it4 ,now1 we are much in the habit of thinking of such amazing multiplicity of being--when we think of it at all--with reference to but the later times of the world's history4 ,we think of the remote past as a time of comparative solitude4 ,we forget that the now uninhabited desert was once a populous city4 ,is the reader prepared to realize1 in connection with the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone--the second period of vertebrated existence--scenes as amazingly fertile in life as the scene just described--oceans as thoroughly occupied with being as our friths and estuaries when the herrings congregate most abundantly on our coasts8 ,there are evidences too sure to be disputed that such must have been the case4 ,i have seen the ichthyolite beds1 where washed bare in the line of the strata1 as thickly covered with oblong1 spindle-shaped nodules as ,i have ever seen a fishing bank covered with herrings2 and have ascertained that every individual nodule had its nucleus of animal matter--that it was a stone coffin in miniature1 holding enclosed its organic mass of bitumen or bone--its winged1 or enamelled1 or thorn-covered ichthyolite4 ,at this period of our history1 some terrible catastrophe involved in sudden destruction the fish of an area at least a hundred miles from boundary to boundary1 perhaps much more4 ,the same platform in ,orkney as at ,cromarty is strewed thick with remains1 which exhibit unequivocally the marks of violent death4 ,the figures are contorted1 contracted1 curved2 the tail in many instances is bent round to the head2 the spines stick out2 the fins are spread to the full1 as in fish that die in convulsions4 ,the ,pterichthys shows its arms extended at their stiffest angle1 as if prepared for an enemy4 ,the attitudes of all the ichthyolites on this platform are attitudes of fear1 anger1 and pain4 ,the remains1 too1 appear to have suffered nothing from the after attacks of predaceous fishes2 none such seem to have survived4 ,the record is one of destruction at once widely spread and total1 so far as it extended4 ,there are proofs that1 whatever may have been the cause of the catastrophe1 it must have taken place in a sea unusually still4 ,the scales1 when scattered by some slight undulation1 are scattered to the distance of only a few inches1 and still exhibit their enamel entire1 and their peculiar fineness of edge4 ,the spines1 even when separated1 retain their original needle-like sharpness of point4 ,rays1 well nigh as slender as horse-hairs1 are enclosed unbroken in the mass4 ,whole ichthyolites occur1 in which not only all the parts survive1 but even the expression which the stiff and threatening attitude conveyed when the last struggle was over4 ,destruction must have come in the calm1 and it must have been of a kind by which the calm was nothing disturbed4 ,in what could it have originated8 ,by what quiet but potent agency of destruction were the innumerable existences of an area perhaps ten thousand square miles in extent annihilated at once1 and yet the medium in which they had lived left undisturbed by its operations8 ,conjecture lacks footing in grappling with the enigma1 and expatiates in uncertainty over all the known phenomena of death4 ,diseases of mysterious origin break out at times in the animal kingdom1 and well nigh exterminate the tribes on which they fall4 ,the present generation has seen a hundred millions of the human family swept away by a disease unknown to our fathers4 ,virgil describes the fatal murrain that once depopulated the ,alps1 not more as a poet than as a historian4 ,the shell-fish of the rivers of ,north ,america died in such vast abundance during a year of the present century1 that the animals1 washed out of their shells1 lay rotting in masses beside the banks1 infecting the very air4 ,about the close of the last century1 the haddock well nigh disappeared1 for several seasons together1 from the eastern coasts of ,scotland2 and it is related by ,creech1 that a ,scotch shipmaster of the period sailed for several leagues on the coast of ,norway1 about the time the scarcity began1 through a floating shoal of dead haddocks4,,bb ,footnote ,,bb3 ,i have heard elderly fishermen of the ,moray ,frith state1 in connection with what they used to term the haddock dearth of this period1 that1 for several weeks ere the fish entirely disappeared1 they acquired an extremely disagreeable taste1 as if they had been boiled in tobacco juice1 and became unfit for the table4 ,for the three following years they were extremely rare on the coast1 and several years more elapsed ere they were caught in the usual abundance4 ,the fact related by ,creech1 a very curious one1 ,i subjoin in his own words2 it occurs in his third ,letter to ,sir ,john ,sinclair3 ,on ,friday1 the #dth ,december1 #aghi1 the ship ,brothers1 ,captain ,stewart1 arrived at ,leith from ,archangel1 who reported that1 on the coast of ,lapland and ,norway1 he sailed many leagues through immense quantities of dead haddocks floating on the sea4 ,he spoke several ,english ships1 who reported the same fact4 ,it is certain that haddocks1 which was the fish in the greatest abundance in the ,edinburgh market1 have scarcely been seen there these three years4 ,in ,february1 #agij1 three haddocks were brought to market1 which1 from their scarcity1 sold for #gs4 #f;d4 ,the dead haddocks seen by the ,leith shipmaster were floating by thousands2 and most of their congeners among what fishermen term the white fish1 such as cod1 ling1 and whiting1 also float when dead2 whereas the bodies of fish whose bowels and air-bladders are comparatively small and tender1 lie at the bottom4 ,the herring fisherman1 if the fish die in his nets1 finds it no easy matter to buoy them up2 and if the shoal entangled be a large one1 he fails at times1 from the great weight1 in recovering them at all1 losing both nets and herrings4 ,now1 if a corresponding difference obtained among fish of the extinct period--if some rose to the surface when they died1 while others remained at the bottom--we must1 of course1 expect to find their remains in very different degrees of preservation--to find only scattered fragments of the floaters1 while of the others many may occur comparatively entire4 ,even should they have died on the same beds1 too1 we may discover their remains separated by hundreds of miles4 ,the haddocks that disappeared from the coast of ,britain were found floating in shoals on the coasts of ,norway4 ,the remains of an immense body of herrings1 that weighed down1 a few seasons since1 the nets of a crew of fishermen1 in a muddy hollow of the ,moray ,frith1 and defied the utmost exertions of three crews united to weigh them from the bottom1 are1 ,i doubt not1 in the muddy hollow still4 ,on a principle thus obvious it may be deemed not improbable that the ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone might have had numerous contemporaries1 of which1 unless in some instances the same accident which killed also entombed them1 we can know nothing in their character as such1 and whose broken fragments may yet be found in some other locality1 where they may be regarded as characteristic of a different formation4 ,but the ravages of no such disease1 however extensive1 could well account for some of the phenomena of this platform of death4 ,it is rarely that disease falls equally on many different tribes at once1 and never does it fall with instantaneous1 suddenness2 whereas in the ruin of this platform from ten to twelve distinct genera seem to have been equally involved2 and so suddenly did it perform its work1 that its victims were fixed in their first attitude of terror and surprise4 ,i have observed1 too1 that groups of adjoining nodules are charged frequently with fragments of the same variety of ichthyolite2 and the circumstance seems fraught with evidence regarding both the original habits of the creatures1 and the instantaneous suddenness of the destruction by which they were overtaken4 ,they seem1 like many of our existing fish1 to have been gregarious1 and to have perished together ere their crowds had time to break up and disperse4 ,fish1 have been found floating dead in shoals beside submarine volcanoes--killed either by the heated water1 or by mephitic gases4 ,there are1 however1 no marks of volcanic activity in connection with the ichthyolite beds--no marks1 at least1 which belong to nearly the same age with the fossils4 ,the disturbing granite of the neighboring eminences was not upheaved until after the times of the ,oolite4 ,but the volcano1 if such was the destroying agent1 might have been distant2 nay1 from some of the points in an area of such immense extent1 it must have been distant4 ,the beds abound1 as has been said1 in lime2 and the thought has often struck me that calcined lime1 cast out as ashes from some distant crater1 and carried by the winds1 might have been the cause of the widely-spread destruction to which their organisms testify4 ,i have seen the fish of a small trouting stream1 over which a bridge was in the course of building1 destroyed in a single hour1 for a full mile below the erection1 by the few troughfuls of lime that fell into the water when the centring was removed4 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,successors of the exterminated ,tribes4--,the ,gap slowly filled4--,proof that the ,vegetation of a ,formation may long survive its ,animal ,tribes4 ,probable ,cause4--,immensely extended ,period during which ,fishes were the ,master-existences of our ,planet4--,extreme ,folly of an ,infidel ,objection illustrated by the ,fact4--,singular ,analogy between the ,history of ,fishes as ,individuals and as a ,class4--,chemistry of the ,lower ,formation4--,principles on which the ,fish-enclosing ,nodules were probably formed4--,chemical ,effect of ,animal ,matter in discharging the ,color from ,red ,sandstone4--,origin of the prevailing tint to which the ,system owes its ,name4--,successive ,modes in which a ,metal may exist4--,the ,pest orations of the ,geologist void of ,color4--,very different ,appearance of the ,ichthyolites of ,cromarty and ,moray4 ,the period of death passed1 and over the innumerable dead there settled a soft1 muddy sediment1 that hid them from the light1 bestowing upon them such burial as a ,november snow-storm bestows on the sere and blighted vegetation of the previous summer and autumn4 ,for an unknown space of time1 represented in the formation by a deposit about fifty feet in thickness1 the waters of the depopulated area seem to have remained devoid of animal life4 ,a few scales and plates then begin to appear4 ,the fish that had existed outside the chasm seem to have gradually gained upon it1 as their numbers increased1 just as the ,european settlers of ,america have been gaining on the backwoods1 and making themselves homes amid the burial-mounds of a race extinct for centuries4 ,for a lengthened period1 however1 these finny settlers must have been comparatively few--mere squatters in the waste4 ,in the beds of stratified clay in which their remains first occur1 over what we may term the densely crowded platform of violent death1 the explorer may labor for hours together without finding a single scale4 ,it is worthy of remark1 however1 that this upper bed abounds quite as much in the peculiar vegetable impressions of the formation as the lower platform itself4 ,an abundance equally great occurs in some localities only a few inches over the line of the exterminating catastrophe4 ,thickets of exactly the same alg1 amid which the fish of the formation had sheltered when living1 grew luxuriantly over their graves when dead4 ,the agencies of destruction which annihilated the animal life of so extended an area1 spared its vegetation2 just as the identical forests that had waved over the semi-civilized aborigines of ,north ,america continued to wave over the more savage red men1 their successors1 long after the original race had been exterminated4 ,the inference deducible from the fact1 though sufficiently simple1 seems in a geological point of view a not unimportant one4 ,the flora of a system may long survive its fauna2 so that that may be but one formation1 regarded with reference to plants1 which may be two or more formations1 regarded with reference to animals4 ,no instance of any such phenomenon occurs in the later geological periods4 ,the changes in animal and vegetable life appear to have run parallel to each other from the times of the tertiary formations down to those of the coal2 but in the earlier deposits the case must have been different4 ,the animal organisms of the newer ,silurian strata form essentially different groups from those of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone1 and both differ from those of the ,cornstone divisions2 and yet the greater portion of their vegetable remains seem the same4 ,the stem-like impressions of the fucoid bed of the ,upper ,ludlow ,rocks cannot be distinguished from those of the ichthyolite beds of ,cromarty and ,ross1 nor these again from the impressions of the ,arbroath pavement1 or the ,den of ,balruddery4 ,nor is there much difficulty in conceiving how the vegetation of a formation should come to survive its animals4 ,what is fraught with health to the existences of the vegetable kingdom1 is in many instances a deadly poison to those of the animal4 ,the grasses and water-lilies of the neighborhood of ,naples flourish luxuriantly amid the carbonic acid gas which rests so densely over the pools and runnels out of which they spring1 that the bird stoops to drink1 and falls dead into the water4 ,the lime that destroys the reptiles1 fish1 and insects of a thickly inhabited lake or stream1 injures not a single flag or bulrush among the millions that line its edges4 ,the two kingdoms exist under laws of life and death so essentially dissimilar1 that it has become one of the common-places of poetry to indicate the blight and decline of the tribes of the one by the unwonted luxuriancy of the productions of the other4 ,otway tells us1 in describing the horrors of the plague which almost depopulated ,london1 that the destroying angel stretched his arm over the city1 ,till in th' untrodden streets unwholesome grass ,grew of great stalk1 and color gross1 ,a melancholic poisonous green4 ,the work of deposition went on2 a bed of pale yellow saliferous sandstone settled1 tier over tier1 on a bed of stratified clay1 and was itself overlaid by another bed of stratified clay in turn4 ,and this upper bed had also its organisms4 ,the remains of its sea-weed still spread out thick and dark amid the foldings of the strata1 and occasionally its clusters of detached scales4 ,but the circumstances were less favorable to the preservation of entire ichthyolites than those under which the organisms of the lower platform were wrapped up in their stony coverings4 ,the matrix1 which is more micaceous than the other1 seems to have been less conservative1 and the waters were probably less still4 ,the process went on4 ,age succeeded age1 and one stratum covered up another4 ,generations lived1 died1 and were entombed in the ever-growing depositions4 ,succeeding generations pursued their instincts by myriads1 happy in existence1 over the surface which covered the broken and perishing remains of their predecessors1 and then died and were entombed in turn1 leaving a higher platform1 and a similar destiny to the generations that succeeded4 ,whole races became extinct1 through what process of destruction who can tell8 ,other races sprang into existence through that adorable power which ,one only can conceive1 and ,one only can exert4 ,an inexhaustible variety of design expatiated freely within the limits of the ancient type4 ,the main conditions remained the same--the minor details were dissimilar4 ,vast periods passed2 a class low in the scale still continued to furnish the master existences of creation2 and so immensely extended was the term of its sovereignty1 that a being of limited faculties1 if such could have existed uncreated1 and witnessed the whole1 would have inferred that the power of the ,creator had reached its extreme boundary1 when fishes had been called into existence1 and that our planet was destined to be the dwelling-place of no nobler inhabitants4 ,if there be men dignified by the name of philosophers1 who can hold that the present state of being1 with all its moral evil1 and all its physical suffering1 is to be succeeded by no better and happier state1 just because all things have continued as they were for some five or six thousand years1 how much sounder and more conclusive would the inference have been which could have been based1 as in the supposed case1 on a period perhaps a hundred times more extended8 ,there exist wonderful analogies in nature between the geological history of the vertebrated animals as an order1 and the individual history of every mammifer--between the history1 too1 of fish as a class1 and that of every single fish4 ,it has been found by ,tiedemann1 says ,mr4 ,lyell1 that the brain of the ftus in the higher class of vertebrated animals assumes in succession the various forms which belong to fishes1 reptiles1 and birds1 before it acquires those additions and modifications which are peculiar to the mammiferous tribes4 ,in examining the brain of the mammalia1 says ,m4 ,serres1 at an early stage of life1 you perceive the cerebral hemispheres consolidated1 as in fish1 in two vesicles isolated one from the other2 at a later period you see them affect the configuration of the cerebral hemispheres of reptiles2 still later1 again1 they present you with the forms of those of birds2 and finally1 at the era of birth1 the permanent forms which the adult mammalia present4 ,and such seems to have been the history of the vertebrata as an order1 as certainly as that of the individual mammifer4 ,the fish preceded the reptile in the order of creation1 just as the crustacean had preceded the fish1 and the annelid the crustacean4 ,again1 though the fact be somewhat more obscure1 the reptile seems to have preceded the bird4 ,we find1 however1 unequivocal traces of the feathered tribes in well-marked foot-prints impressed on a sandstone in ,north ,america1 at most not more modern than the ,lias1 but which is generally supposed to be of the same age with the ,new ,red ,sandstone of ,germany and our own country4 ,in the ,oolite--at least one1 perhaps two formations later--the bones of the two species of mammiferous quadrupeds have been found1 apparently of the marsupial family2 and these1 says ,mr4 ,lyell1 afford the only example yet known of terrestrial mammalia in rocks of a date anterior to the older tertiary formations4 ,the reptile seems to have preceded the bird1 and the bird the mammiferous animal4 ,thus the ftal history of the nervous system in the individual mammifer seems typical1 in every stage of its progress1 of the history of the grand division at the head of which the mammifer stands4 ,agassiz1 at the late meeting of the ,british ,association in ,glasgow1 mentioned an analogous fact4 ,after describing the one-sided tail of the more ancient fish1 especially the fish of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1--the subjects of his illustration at the time1--he stated1 as the result of a recent discovery1 that the young of the salmon in their ftal state exhibit the same unequally-sided condition of tail which characterizes those existences of the earlier ages of the world4 ,the individual fish1 just as it begins to exist1 presents the identical appearances which were exhibited by the order when the order began to exist4 ,is there nothing wonderful in analogies such as these--analogies that point through the embryos of the present time to the womb of ,nature1 big with its multitudinous forms of being8 ,are they charged with no such nice evidence as a ,butler would delight to contemplate1 regarding that unique style of ,deity1 if ,i may so express myself1 which runs through all his works1 whether we consider him as ,god of ,nature1 or ,author of ,revelation8 ,in this style of type and symbol did ,he reveal himself of old to his chosen people2 in this style of allegory and parable did ,he again address himself to them1 when he sojourned among them on earth4 ,the chemistry of the formation seems scarce inferior in interest to its zoology2 but the chemist had still much to do for ,geology1 and the processes are but imperfectly known4 ,there is no field in which more laurels await the philosophical chemist than the geological one4 ,i have said that all the calcareous nodules of the ichthyolite beds seem to have had originally their nucleus of organic matter4 ,in nine cases out of ten the organism can be distinctly traced2 and in the tenth there is almost always something to indicate where it lay--an elliptical patch of black1 or an oblong spot1 from which the prevailing color of the stone has been discharged1 and a lighter hue substituted4 ,is the reader acquainted with ,mr4 ,pepys's accidental experiment1 as related by ,mr4 ,lyell1 and recorded in the first volume of the ,geological ,transactions8 ,it affords an interesting proof that animal matter1 in a state of putrefaction1 proves a powerful agent in the decomposition of mineral substances held in solution1 and of their consequent precipitation4 ,an earthen pitcher1 containing several quarts of sulphate of iron1 had been suffered to remain undisturbed and unexamined in a corner of ,mr4 ,pepys's laboratory for about a twelvemonth4 ,some luckless mice had meanwhile fallen into it1 and been drowned2 and when it at length came to be examined1 an oily scum1 and a yellow1 sulphureous powder1 mixed with hairs1 were seen floating on the top1 and the bones of the mice discovered lying at the bottom2 and it was found1 that over the decaying bodies the mineral components of the fluid had been separated and precipitated in a dark-colored sediment1 consisting of grains of pyrites and of sulphur1 of copperas in its green and crystalline form1 and of black oxide of iron4 ,the animal and mineral matters had mutually acted upon one another2 and the metallic sulphate1 deprived of its oxygen in the process1 had thus cast down its ingredients4 ,it would seem that over the putrefying bodies of the fish of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone the water had deposited1 in like manner1 the lime with which it was charged2 and hence the calcareous nodules in which we find their remains enclosed4 ,the form of the nodule almost invariably agrees with that of the ichthyolite within2 it is a coffin in the ancient ,egyptian style4 ,was the ichthyolite twisted half round in the contorted attitude of violent death8 the nodule has also its twist4 ,did it retain its natural posture8 the nodule presents the corresponding spindle form4 ,was it broken up1 and the outline destroyed8 the nodule is flattened and shapeless4 ,in almost every instance the form of the organism seems to have regulated that of the stone4 ,we may trace1 in many of these concretionary masses1 the operations of three distinct principles1 all of which must have been in activity at one and the same time4 ,they are wrapped concentrically each round its organism3 they split readily in the line of the enclosing stratum1 and are marked by its alternating rectilinear bars of lighter and darker color2 and they are radiated from the centre to the circumference4 ,their concentric condition shows the chemical influences of the decaying animal matter2 their fissile character and parallel layers of color indicate the general deposition which was taking place at the time2 and their radiated structure testifies to that law of crystalline attraction1 through which1 by a wonderful masonry1 the invisible but well-cut atoms build up their cubes1 their rhombs1 their hexagons1 and their pyramids1 and are at once the architects and the materials of the structure which they rear4 ,another and very different chemical effect of organic matter may be remarked in the darker colored arenaceous deposits of the formation1 and occasionally in the stratified clays and nodules of the ichthyolite bed4 ,in a print-work1 the whole web is frequently thrown into the vat and dyed of one color2 but there afterwards comes a discharging process3 some chemical mixture is dropped on the fabric2 the dye disappears wherever the mixture touches2 and in leaves1 and sprigs1 and patches1 according to the printer's pattern1 the cloth assumes its original white4 ,now the colored deposits of the ,old ,red ,sandstone have1 in like manner1 been subjected to a discharging process4 ,the dye has disappeared in oblong or circular patches of various sizes1 from the eighth of an inch to a foot in diameter2 the original white has taken its place2 and so thickly are these speckles grouped in some of the darker-tinted beds1 that the surfaces1 where washed by the sea1 present the appearance of sheets of calico4 ,the discharging agent was organic matter2 the uncolored patches are no mere surface films1 for1 when cut at right angles1 their depth is found to correspond with their breadth1 the circle is a sphere1 the ellipsis forms the section of an egg-shaped body1 and in the centre of each we generally find traces of the organism in whose decay it originated4 ,i have repeatedly found single scales1 in the ichthyolite beds1 surrounded by uncolored spheres about the size of musket bullets4 ,it is well for the young geologist carefully to mark such appearances--to trace them through the various instances in which the organism may be recognized and identified1 to those in which its last vestiges have disappeared4 ,they are the hatchments of the geological world1 and indicate that life once existed where all other record of it has perished4,,bc ,footnote ,,bc3 ,some of the clay-slates of the primary formations abound in these circular1 uncolored patches1 bearing in their centres1 like the patches of the ,old ,red ,sandstone1 half obliterated nuclei of black4 ,were they1 too1 once fossiliferous8 and do these blank erasures remain to testify to the fact8 ,i find the organic origin of the patches in the ,old ,red ,sandstone remarked by ,professor ,fleming as early as the year #ahcj1 and the remark reiterated by ,dr4 ,anderson1 of ,newburgh1 in nearly the same words1 but with no acknowledgment1 ten years later4 ,the following is the minute and singularly faithful description of the ,professor3-- ,on the surface of the strata in the lower beds1 circular spots1 nearly a foot in diameter1 may be readily perceived by their pale yellow colors1 contrasted with the dark red of the surrounding rock4 ,these spots1 however1 are not1 as may at first be supposed1 mere superficial films1 but derive their circular form from a colored sphere to which they belong4 ,this sphere is not to be distinguished from the rest of the bed by any difference in mechanical structure1 but merely by the absence of much of that oxide of iron with which the other portion of the mass is charged4 ,the circumference of this colored sphere is usually well defined2 and at its centre may always be observed matter of a darker color1 in some cases disposed in concentric layers1 in others of calcareous and crystalline matter1 the remains probably of some vegetable or animal organism1 the decomposition of which exercised a limited influence on the coloring matter of the surrounding rock4 ,in some cases ,i have observed these spheres slightly compressed at opposite sides1 in a direction parallel with the plane of stratification--the result1 without doubt1 of the subsidence or contraction of the mass1 after the central matter or nucleus had ceased to exercise its influence4--7,cheek's ,edinburgh ,journal1 ,feb4 #ahca1 p4 #hb47 ,it is the part of the chemist to tell us by what peculiar action of the organic matter the dye was discharged in these spots and patches4 ,but how was the dye itself procured8 ,from what source was the immense amount of iron derived1 which gives to nearly five sixths of the ,old ,red ,sandstone the characteristic color to which it owes its name8 ,an examination of its lowest member1 the great conglomerate1 suggests a solution of the query4 ,i have adverted to the large proportion of red-colored pebbles which this member contains1 and1 among the rest1 to a red granitic gneiss1 which must have been exposed over wide areas at the time of its deposition1 and which1 after the lapse of a period which extended from at least the times of the ,lower ,old ,red to those of the ,upper ,oolite1 was again thrust upwards to the surface1 to form the rectilinear chain of precipitous eminences to which the hills of ,cromarty and of ,nigg belong4 ,this rock is now almost the sole representative1 in the north of ,scotland1 of the ancient rocks whence the materials of the ,old ,red ,sandstone were derived4 ,it abounds in hmatic iron ore1 diffused as a component of the stone throughout the entire mass1 and which also occurs in it in ponderous insulated blocks of great richness1 and in thin1 thread-like veins4 ,when ground down1 it forms a deep red pigment1 undistinguishable in tint from the prevailing color of the sandstone1 and which leaves a stain so difficult to be effaced1 that shepherds employ it in some parts of the ,highlands for marking their sheep4 ,every rawer fragment of the rock bears its hmatic tinge2 and were the whole ground by some mechanical process into sand1 and again consolidated1 the produce of the experiment would be undoubtedly a deep red sandstone4 ,in an upper member of the lower formation--that immediately over the ichthyolite beds--different materials seem to have been employed4 ,a white1 quartzy sand and a pale-colored clay form the chief ingredients2 and though the ochry-tinted coloring matter be also iron1 it is iron existing in a different condition1 and in a more diluted form4 ,the oxide deposited by the chalybeate springs which pass through the lower members of the formation1 would give to white sand a tinge exactly resembling the tint borne by this upper member4 ,the passage of metals from lower to higher formations1 and from one combination to another1 constitutes surely a highly interesting subject of inquiry4 ,the transmission of iron in a chemical form1 through chalybeate springs1 from deposits in which it had been diffused in a form merely mechanical1 is of itself curious2 but how much more so its passage and subsequent accumulation1 as in bog-iron and the iron of the ,coal ,measures1 through the agency of vegetation6 ,how strange1 if the steel axe of the woodman should have once formed part of an ancient forest6--if1 after first existing as a solid mass in a primary rock1 it should next have come to be diffused as a red pigment in a transition conglomerate--then as a brown oxide in a chalybeate spring--then as a yellowish ochre in a secondary sandstone--then as a component part in the stems and twigs of a thick forest of arboraceous plants--then again as an iron carbonate1 slowly accumulating at the bottom of a morass of the ,coal ,measures--then as a layer of indurated bands and nodules of brown ore1 underlying a seam of coal--and then1 finally1 that it should have been dug out1 and smelted1 and fashioned1 and employed for the purpose of handicraft1 and yet occupy1 even at this stage1 merely a middle place between the transmigrations which have passed1 and the changes which are yet to come4 ,crystals of galena sometimes occur in the nodular limestones of the ,old ,red ,sandstone2 but ,i am afraid the chemist would find it difficult to fix their probable genealogy4 ,in at least one respect1 every geological history must of necessity be unsatisfactory2 and1 ere ,i pass to the history of the two upper formations of the system1 the reader must permit me to remind him of it4 ,there have been individuals1 it has been said1 who1 though they could see clearly the forms of objects1 wanted1 through some strange organic defect1 the faculty of perceiving their distinguishing colors1 however well marked these might be4 ,the petals of the rose have appeared to them of the same sombre hue with its stalk2 and they have regarded the ripe scarlet cherry as undistinguishable in tint from the green leaves under which it hung4 ,the face of nature to such men must have for ever rested under a cloud2 and a cloud of similar character hangs over the pictorial restorations of the geologist4 ,the history of this and the last chapter is a mere profile drawn in black1 an outline without color--in short1 such a chronicle of past ages as might be reconstructed1 in the lack of other and ampler materials1 from tombstones and charnel-houses4 ,i have had to draw the portrait from the skeleton4 ,my specimens show the general form of the creatures ,i attempt to describe1 and not a few of their more marked peculiarities2 but many of the nicer elegancies are wanting2 and the complexion to which they have come leaves no trace by which to discover the complexion they originally bore4 ,and yet color is a mighty matter to the ichthyologist4 ,the fins and shining scales1 the waved coats1 dropt with gold1 the rainbow dyes of beauty of the watery tribes1 are connected often with more than mere external character4 ,it is a curious and interesting fact1 that the hues of splendor in which they are bedecked are1 in some instances1 as intimately associated with their instincts--with their feelings1 if ,i may so speak--as the blush which suffuses the human countenance is associated with the sense of shame1 or its tint of ashy paleness or of sallow with emotions of rage1 or feelings of a panic terror4 ,pain and triumph have each their index of color among the mute inhabitants of our seas and rivers4 ,poets themselves have bewailed the utter inadequacy of words to describe the varying tints and shades of beauty with which the agonies of death dye the scales of the dolphin1 and how every various pang calls up a various suffusion of splendor4,,bd ,even the common stickleback of our ponds and ditches can put on its colors to picture its emotions4 ,there is1 it seems1 a mighty amount of ambition1 and a vast deal of fighting sheerly for conquests' sake1 among the myriads of this pygmy little fish which inhabit our smaller streams2 and no sooner does an individual succeed in expelling his weaker companions from some eighteen inches or two feet of territory1 than straight way the exultation of conquest converts the faded and freckled olive of his back and sides into a glow of crimson and bright green4 ,nature furnishes him with a regal robe for the occasion4 ,immediately on his deposition1 however1--and events of this kind are even more common under than out of the water1--his gay colors disappear1 and he sinks into his original and native ugliness4,,be ,footnote ,,bd3 ,the description of ,falconer must be familiar to every reader1 but ,i cannot resist quoting it4 ,it shows how minutely the sailor poet must have observed4 ,byron tells us how ,parting day ,dies like the dolphin1 whom each pang imbues ,with a new color1 as it gasps away1 ,the last still loveliest1 till--tis gone1 and all is gray4 ,falconer1 in anticipating1 reversed the simile4 ,the huge animal1 struck by the unerring barb of ,rodmond1 has been drawn on board1 and ,on deck he struggles with convulsive pain2 ,but while his heart the fatal javelin thrills1 ,and flitting life escapes in sanguine rills1 ,what radiant changes strike the astonished sight6 ,what glowing hues of mingled shade and light6 ,not equal beauties gild the lucid ,west ,with parting beams o'er all profusely drest2 ,not lovelier colors paint the vernal dawn1 ,when ,orient dews impearl the enamelled lawn2 ,than from his sides in bright suffusion flow1 ,that now with gold empyreal seem to glow2 ,now in pellucid sapphires meet the view1 ,and emulate the soft celestial hue2 ,now beam a flaming crimson on the eye1 ,and now assume the purple's deeper dye4 ,but here description clouds each shining ray-- ,what terms of art can ,nature's powers display8 ,footnote ,,be3 ,in the ,magazine of ,natural ,history says ,captain ,brown1 in one of his notes to ,white's ,sellorne1 we have a curious account of the pugnacious propensities of these little animals4 ',having at various times1' says a correspondent1 'kept these little fish during the spring and part of the summer months1 and paid close attention to their habits4 ,i am enabled from my own experience to vouch for the facts ,i am about to relate4 ,i have frequently kept them in a deal tub1 about three feet two inches wide1 and about two feet deep4 ,when they are put in for some time1 probably a day or two1 they swim about in a shoal1 apparently exploring their new habitation4 ,suddenly one will take possession of the tub1 or1 as it will sometimes happen1 the bottom1 and will instantly commence an attack upon his companions2 and if any of them venture to oppose his sway1 a regular and most furious battle ensues4 ,they swim round and round each other with the greatest rapidity1 biting1 7their mouths being well furnished with teeth17 and endeavoring to pierce each other with their lateral spines1 which1 on this occasion1 are projected4 ,i have witnessed a battle of this sort which lasted several minutes before either would give way2 and when one does submit1 imagination can hardly conceive the vindictive fury of the conqueror1 who1 in the most persevering and unrelenting way1 chases his rival from one part of the tub to another1 until fairly exhausted with fatigue4 ,from this period an interesting change takes place in the conqueror1 who1 from being a speckled and greenish-looking fish1 assumes the most beautiful colors2 the belly and lower jaws becoming a deep crimson1 and the back sometimes a cream color1 but generally a fine green1 and the whole appearance full of animation and spirit4 ,i have occasionally known three or four parts of the tub taken possession of by these little tyrants1 who guard their territories with the strictest vigilance1 and the slightest invasion brings on invariably a battle4 ,a strange alteration immediately takes place in the defeated party3 his gallant bearing forsakes him1 his gay colors fade away1 he becomes again speckled and ugly1 and he hides his disgrace among his peaceable companions4' ,but of color1 as ,i have said1 though thus important1 the ichthyologist can learn almost nothing from ,geology4 ,the perfect restoration of even a ,cuvier are blank outlines4 ,we just know by a wonderful accident that the ,siberian elephant was red4 ,a very few of the original tints still remain among the fossils of our north country ,lias4 ,the ammonite1 when struck fresh from the surrounding lime1 reflects the prismatic colors1 as of old2 a huge ,modiola still retains its tinge of tawny and yellow2 and the fossilized wood of the formation preserves a shade of the native tint1 though darkened into brown4 ,but there is considerably less of color in the fossils of the ,old ,red ,sandstone4 ,i have caught1 and barely caught1 in some of the newly disinterred specimens1 the faint and evanescent reflection of a tinge of pearl2 and were ,i acquainted with my own collection only1 imagination1 borrowing from the prevailing color1 would be apt to people the ancient oceans1 in which its forms existed1 with swarthy races exclusively4 ,but a view of the ,altyre fossils would correct the impression4 ,they are enclosed1 like those of ,cromarty1 in nodules of an argillaceous limestone4 ,the color1 however1 from the presence of iron1 and the absence of bitumen1 is different4 ,it presents a mixture of gray1 of pink1 and of brown2 and on this ground the fossil is spread out in strongly contrasted masses of white and dark red1 of blue1 and of purple4 ,where the exuvi lie thickest1 the white appears tinged with delicate blue--the bone is but little changed4 ,where they are spread out more thinly1 the iron has pervaded them1 and the purple and deep red prevail4 ,thus the same ichthyolite presents1 in some specimens1 a body of white and plum-blue attached to fins of deep red1 and with detached scales of red and of purple lying scattered around it4 ,i need hardly add1 however1 that all this variety of coloring is1 like the unvaried black of the ,cromarty specimens1 the result1 merely1 of a curious chemistry4 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,the ,cornstone ,formation and its ,organisms4--,dwarf ,vegetation4--,cephalaspides4--,huge ,lobster4--,habitats of the existing ,crustacea4--,no unapt representation of the ,deposit of ,balruddery1 furnished by a land-locked ,bay in the neighborhood of ,cromarty4--,vast ,space occupied by the ,geological ,formations4--,contrasted with the half-formed ,deposits which represent the existing ,creation4--,inference4--,the formation of the ,holoptychius4--,probable origin of its ,siliceous ,limestone4--,marked increase in the ,bulk of the ,existences of the ,system4--,conjectural ,cause4--,the ,coal ,measures4--,the ,limestone of ,burdie ,house ,conclusion4 ,the curtain rises1 and the scene is new4 ,the myriads of the lower formation have disappeared1 and we are surrounded1 on an upper platform1 by the existences of a later creation4 ,there is sea all around1 as before2 and we find beneath a dark-colored1 muddy bottom1 thickly covered by a dwarf vegetation4 ,the circumstances diner little from those in which the ichthyolite beds of the preceding period were deposited2 but forms of life1 essentially different1 career through the green depths1 or creep over the ooze4 ,shoals of ,cephalaspides1 with their broad1 arrow-like heads1 and their slender1 angular bodies1 feathered with fins1 sweep past like clouds of crossbow bolts in an ancient battle4 ,we see the distant gleam of scales1 but the forms are indistinct and dim3 we can merely ascertain that the fins are elevated by spines of various shape and pattern2 that of some the coats glitter with enamel2 and that others--the sharks of this ancient period--bristle over with minute thorny points4 ,a huge crustacean1 of uncouth proportions1 stalks over the weedy bottom1 or burrows in the hollows of the banks4 ,let us attempt bringing our knowledge of the present to bear upon the past4 ,the larger crustace of the ,british seas abound most on iron-bound coasts1 where they find sheltering places in the deeper fissures of sea-cliffs covered up by kelp and tangle1 or under the lower edges of detached boulders1 that rest unequally on uneven platforms of rock1 amid forests of the rough-stemmed cuvy4 ,we may traverse sandy or muddy shores for miles together1 without rinding a single crab1 unless a belt of pebbles lines the upper zone of beach1 where the forked and serrated fuci first appear1 or a few weed-covered fragments of rock here and there occur in groups on the lower zones4 ,in this formation1 however1 the bottom must have been formed of mingled sand and mud1 and yet the crustacea were abundant4 ,how account for the fact8 ,there is1 in most instances1 an interesting conformity between the character of the ancient rocks1 in which we find groups of peculiar fossils1 and the habitats of those existences of the present creation which these fossils most resemble4 ,the fisherman casts his nets in a central hollow of the ,moray ,frith1 about thirty fathoms in depth1 and draws them up foul with masses of a fetid mud1 charged with multitudes of that curious purple-colored zoophyte the sea-pen1 invariably an inhabitant of such recesses4 ,the graptolite of the most ancient fossiliferous rocks1 an existence of unequivocally the same type1 occurs in greatest abundance in a finely-levigated mudstone1 for it1 too1 was a dweller in the mud4 ,in like manner1 we may find the ancient ,modiola of the ,lias in habitats analogous to those of its modern representative the muscle1 and the encrinite of the ,mountain ,limestone fast rooted to its rocky platform1 just as we may see the ,helianthoida and ,ascidioida of our seas fixed to their boulders and rocky skerries4 ,but is not analogy at fault in the present instance8 ,quite the reverse4 ,mark how thickly these carbonaceous impressions cover the muddy-colored and fissile sandstones of the formation1 giving evidence of an abundant vegetation4 ,we may learn from these obscure markings1 that the place in which they grew could have been no unfit habitat for the crustaceous tribes4 ,there is a little1 land-locked bay on the southern shore of the ,frith of ,cromarty1 effectually screened from the easterly winds by the promontory on which the town is built1 and but little affected by those of any other quarter1 from the proximity of the neighboring shores4 ,the bottom1 at low ebb1 presents a level plain of sand1 so thickly covered by the green grass-weed of our more sheltered sandy bays and estuaries1 that it presents almost the appearance of a meadow4 ,the roots penetrate the sand to the depth of nearly a foot1 binding it firmly together2 and as they have grown and decayed in it for centuries1 it has acquired1 from the disseminated particles of vegetable matter1 a deep leaden tint1 more nearly approaching to black than even the dark gray mudstones of ,balruddery4 ,nor is this the only effect3 the intertwisted fibres impart to it such coherence1 that1 where scooped out into pools1 the edges stand up perpendicular from the water1 like banks of clay2 and where these are hollowed into cave-like recesses1--and there are few of them that are not so hollowed1--the recesses remain unbroken and unfilled for years4 ,the weeds have imparted to the sand a character different from its own1 and have rendered it a suitable habitat for numerous tribes1 which1 in other circumstances1 would have found no shelter in it4 ,now1 among these we find in abundance the larger crustaceans of our coasts4 ,the brown edible crab harbors in the hollows beside the pools2 occasionally we may find in them an overgrown lobster1 studded with parasitical shells and zophytes--proof that the creature1 having attained its full size1 has ceased to cast its plated covering4 ,crustaceans of the smaller varieties abound4 ,hermit crabs traverse the pools1 or creep among the weed2 the dark green and the dingy1 hump-backed crabs occur nearly as frequently2 the radiata cover the banks by thousands4 ,we find occasionally the remains of dead fish left by the retreating tide2 but the living are much more numerous than the dead2 for the sand-eel has suffered the water to retire1 and yet remained behind in its burrow2 and the viviparous blenny and common gunnel still shelter beside their fuci-covered masses of rock4 ,imagine the bottom of this little bay covered up by thick beds of sand and gravel1 and the whole consolidated into stone1 and we have in it all the conditions of the deposit of ,balruddery--a mud-colored1 arenaceous deposit1 abounding in vegetable impressions1 and enclosing numerous remains of crustaceans1 fish1 and radiata1 as its characteristic organisms of the animal kingdom4 ,there would be but one circumstance of difference3 the little bay abounds in shells2 whereas no shells have yet been found in the mudstones of ,balruddery1 or the gray sandstones of the same formation1 which in ,forfar1 ,fife1 and ,moray shires represent the ,cornstone division of the system4 ,ages and centuries passed1 but who can sum up their number8 ,in ,england1 the depth of this middle formation greatly exceeds that of any of the other two2 in ,scotland1 it is much less amply developed2 but in either country it must represent periods of scarce conceivable extent4 ,i have listened to the controversies of opposite schools of geologists1 who1 from the earth's strata1 extract registers of the earth's age of an amount amazingly different4 ,one class1 regarding the geological field as if under the influence of those principles of perspective which give to the cottage in front more than the bulk and altitude of the mountain behind1 would assign to the present scene of things its thousands of years1 but to all the extinct periods united merely their few centuries2 while with their opponents1 the remoter periods stretch out far into the bygone eternity1 and the present scene seems but a narrow strip running along the foreground4 ,both classes appeal to facts2 and1 leaving them to their disputes1 ,i have gone out to examine and judge for myself4 ,the better to compare the present with the past1 ,i have regarded the existing scene merely as a formation--not as superficies1 but as depth2 and have sought to ascertain the extent to which1 in different localities1 and under different circumstances1 it has overlaid the surface4 ,the slopes of an ancient forest incline towards a river that flows sluggishly onwards through a deep alluvial plain1 once an extensive lake4 ,a recent landslip has opened up one of the hanging thickets4 ,uprooted trees1 mingled with bushes1 lie at the foot of the slope1 half buried in broken masses of turf2 and we see above a section of the soil1 from the line of vegetation to the bare rock4 ,there is an under belt of clay1 and an upper belt of gravel1 neither of which contains any thing organic2 and overtopping the whole we may see a dark-colored bar of mould1 barely a foot in thickness1 studded with stumps and interlaced with roots4 ,mark that narrow bar3 it is the geological representative of six thousand years4 ,a stony bar of similar appearance runs through the strata of the ,wealden3 it1 too1 has its dingy color1 its stumps1 and its interlacing roots2 but it forms only a very inconsiderable portion of one of the least considerable of all the formations2 and yet who shall venture to say that it does not represent a period as extended as that represented by the dark bar in the ancient forest1 seeing there is not a circumstance of difference between them8 ,we descend to the river side4 ,the incessant action of the current has worn a deep channel through the leaden-colored silt2 the banks stand up perpendicularly over the water1 and downwards1 for twenty feet together1--for such is the depth of the deposit1--we may trace layer after layer of reeds1 and flags1 and fragments of driftwood1 and find here and there a few fresh-water shells of the existing species4 ,in this locality1 six thousand years are represented by twenty feet4 ,the depth of the various fossiliferous formations united is at least fifteen hundred times as great4 ,we pursue our walk1 and pass through a morass4 ,three tiers of forest trees appear in the section laid open by the stream1 the one above the other4 ,overlying these there is a congeries of the remains of aquatic plants1 which must have grown and decayed on the spot for many ages after the soil had so changed that trees could be produced by it no longer2 and over the whole there occur layers of mosses1 that must have found root on the surface after the waters had been drained away by the deepening channel of the river4 ,the six thousand years are here represented by that morass1 its three succeeding forests1 its beds of aquatic vegetation1 its bands of moss1 and the thin stratum of soil which overlies the whole4 ,well1 but it forms1 notwithstanding1 only the mere beginning of a formation4 ,pile up twenty such morasses1 the one over the other2 separate them by a hundred such bands of alluvial silt as we have just examined a little higher up the stream2 throw in some forty or fifty thick beds of sand to swell the amount2 and the whole together will but barely equal the ,coal ,measures1 one of many formations4 ,but the marine deposits of the present creation have been1 perhaps1 accumulating more rapidly than those of our lakes1 forests1 or rivers8 ,yes1 unquestionably1 in friths and estuaries1 in the neighborhood of streams that drain vast tracts of country1 and roll down the soil and clay swept by the winter rains from thousands of hill-sides2 but what is there to lead to the formation of sudden deposits in those profounder depths of the sea1 in which the water retains its blue transparency all the year round1 let the waves rise as they may8 ,and do we not know that1 along many of our shores1 the process of accumulation is well nigh as slow as on the land itself8 ,the existing creation is represented in the little land-locked bay1 where the crustacea harbor so thickly1 by a deposit hardly three feet in thickness4 ,in a more exposed locality1 on the opposite side of the promontory1 it finds its representative in a deposit of barely nine inches4 ,it is surely the present scene of things that is in its infancy6 ,into how slender a bulk have the organisms of six thousand years been compressed6 ,history tells us of populous nations1 now extinct1 that flourished for ages3 do we not find their remains crowded into a few streets of sepulchres8 ',tis but a thin layer of soil that covers the ancient plain of ,marathon4 ,i have stood on ,bannockburn1 and seen no trace of the battle4 ,in what lower stratum shall we set ourselves to discover the skeletons of the wolves and bears that once infested our forests8 ,where shall we find accumulations of the remains of the wild bisons and gigantic elks1 their contemporaries8 ,they must have existed for but comparatively a short period1 or they would surely have left more marked traces behind them4 ,when we appeal to the historians1 we hear much of a remote antiquity in the history of man3 a more than twilight gloom pervades the earlier periods2 and the distances are exaggerated1 as objects appear large in a fog4 ,we measure1 too1 by a minute scale4 ,there is a tacit reference to the threescore and ten years of human life2 and its term of a day appears long to the ephemera4 ,we turn from the historians to the prophets1 and find the dissimilarity of style indicating a different speaker4 ,ezekiel's measuring-reed is graduated into cubits of the temple4 ,the vast periods of the short-lived historian dwindled down into weeks and days4 ,seventy weeks indicated to ,daniel1 in the first year of ,darius1 the time of the ,messiah's coming4 ,three years and a half limit the term of the ,mohammedan delusion4 ,seventeen years have not yet gone by since ,adam first arose from the mould2 nor has the race1 as such1 attained to the maturity of even early manhood4 ,but while prophecy sums up merely weeks and days1 when it refers to the past1 it looks forward into the future1 and speaks of a thousand years4 ,are scales of unequally graduated parts ever used in measuring different portions of the same map or section--scales so very unequally graduated1 that1 while the parts in some places expand to the natural size1 they are in others more than three hundred times diminished8 ,if not1--for what save inextricable confusion would result from their use1--how avoid the conclusion1 that the typical scale employed in the same book by the same prophet represents similar quantities by corresponding parts1 whether applied to times of outrage1 delusion1 and calamity1 or set off against that long and happy period in which the spirit of evil shall be bound in chains and darkness1 and the kingdom of ,christ shall have come8 ,and if such be the case--if each single year of the thousand years of the future represents a term as extended as each single year of the seventeen years of the past--if the present scene of things be thus merely in its beginning--should we at all wonder to find that the formation which represents it has laid down merely its few first strata8 ,the curtain again rises4 ,a last day had at length come to the period of the middle formation2 and in an ocean roughened by waves1 and agitated by currents1 like the ocean which flowed over the conglomerate base of the system1 we find new races of existences4 ,we may mark the clumsy bulk of the ,holoptychius conspicuous in the group2 the shark family have their representatives as before2 a new variety of the ,pterichthys spreads out its spear-like wings at every alarm1 like its predecessors of the lower formation2 shoals of fish of a type more common1 but still unnamed and undescribed1 sport amid the eddies2 and we may see attached to the rocks below substances of uncouth form and doubtful structure1 with which the oryctologist has still to acquaint himself4 ,the depositions of this upper ocean are of a mixed character3 the beds are less uniform and continuous than at a greater depth4 ,in some places they consist exclusively of sandstone1 in others of conglomerate2 and yet the sandstone and conglomerate seem1 from their frequent occurrence on the same platform1 to have been formed simultaneously4 ,the transporting and depositing agents must have become more partial in their action than during the earlier period4 ,they had their foci of strength and their circumferences of comparative weakness2 and while the heavier pebbles which composed the conglomerate were in the course of being deposited in the foci1 the lighter sand which composes the sandstone was settling in those outer skirts by which the foci were surrounded4 ,at this stage1 too1 there are unequivocal marks1 in the northern localities1 of extensive denudation4 ,the older strata are cut away in some places to a considerable depth1 and newer strata of the same formation deposited unconformably over them4 ,there must have been partial upheavings and depressions1 corresponding with the partial character of the depositions2 and1 as a necessary consequence1 frequent shiftings of currents4 ,the ocean1 too1 seems to have lessened its general depth1 and the bottom to have lain more exposed to the influence of the waves4 ,and hence one cause1 added to the porous nature of the matrix1 and the diffused oxide1 of the detached1 and1 if ,i may so express myself1 churchyard character of its organisms4 ,above the blended conglomerates and sandstones of this band a deposition of lime took place4 ,thermal springs1 charged with calcareous matter slightly mixed with silex1 seem to have abounded1 during the period which it represents1 over widely-extended areas2 and hence1 probably1 its origin4 ,an increase of heat from beneath1 through some new activity imparted to the ,plutonic agencies1 would be of itself sufficient to account for the formation4 ,i have resided in a district in which almost every spring was charged with calcareous earth2 but in cisterns or draw-wells1 or the utensils in which the housewife stored up for use the water which these supplied1 no deposition took place4 ,with boilers and tea-kettles1 however1 the case was different4 ,the agency of heat was brought to operate upon these2 and their sides and bottoms were covered1 in consequence1 with a thick crust of lime4 ,now1 we have but to apply the simple principles on which such phenomena occur1 to account for widely-spread precipitates of the same earth by either springs or seas1 which at a lower temperature would have been active in the formation of mechanical deposits alone4 ,the temperature sunk gradually to its former state2 the purely chemical deposit ceased2 the waters became populous as before with animals of the same character and appearance as those of the upper conglomerate2 and layer after layer of yellow sandstone1 to the depth of several hundred feet1 were formed as the period passed4 ,with this upper deposit the system terminated4 ,though fish still remained the lords of creation1 and fish of apparently no superior order to those with which the vertebrata began at least three formations earlier1 they had mightily advanced in one striking particular4 ,if their organization was in no degree more perfect than at first1 their bulk at least had become immensely more great4 ,the period had gone by in which a mediocrity of dimension characterized the existences of the ancient oceans1 and fish armed offensively and defensively with scales and teeth scarcely inferior in size to the scales and teeth of the gavial or the alligator1 sprung into existence4 ,it must have been a large jaw and a large head that contained1 doubtless among many others1 a tooth an inch in diameter at the base4 ,i may remark1 in the passing1 that most of the teeth found in the several formations of the system are not instruments of mastication1 but1 like those in most of the existing fish1 mere hooks for penetrating slippery substances1 and thus holding them fast4 ,the rude angler who first fashioned a crooked bone1 or a bit of native silver or copper1 into a hook1 might have found his invention anticipated in the jaws of the first fish he drew ashore by its means2 and we find the hook structure as complete in the earlier ichthyolites of the ,old ,red ,sandstone as in the fish that exist now4 ,the evidence of the geologist is of necessity circumstantial evidence1 and he need look for none other2 but it is interesting to observe how directly the separate facts bear1 in many examples1 on one and the same point4 ,the hooked and slender teeth tell exactly the same story with the undigested scales in the fcal remains alluded to in an early chapter4 ,in what could this increase in bulk have originated8 ,is there a high but yet comparatively medium temperature in which animals attain their greatest size1 and corresponding gradations of descent on both sides1 whether we increase the heat until we reach the point at which life can no longer exist1 or diminish it until we arrive at the same result from intensity of cold8 ,the line of existence bisects on both sides the line of extinction4 ,may it not probably form a curve1 descending equally from an elevated centre to the points of bisection on the level of death8 ,but whatever may have been the cause1 the change furnishes another instance of analogy between the progress of individuals and of orders4 ,the shark and the sword-fish begin to exist as little creatures of a span in length2 they expand into monsters whose bodies equal in hugeness the trunks of ancient oaks2 and thus has it been with the order to which they belong4 ,the teeth1 spines1 and palatal bones of the fish of the ,upper ,ludlow ,rocks are of almost microscopic minuteness2 an invariable mediocrity of dimension characterizes the ichthyolites of the ,lower ,old ,red ,sandstone2 a marked increase in size takes place among the existences of the middle formation2 in the upper the bulky ,holoptychius appears2 the close of the system ushers in the still bulkier ,megalichthys2 and low in the ,coal ,measures we find the ponderous bones1 buckler-like scales1 and enormous teeth of another and immensely more gigantic ,holoptychius--a creature pronounced by ,agassiz the largest of all osseous fish4,,bf ,we begin with an age of dwarfs--we end with an age of giants4 ,the march of ,nature is an onward and an ascending march2 the stages are slow1 but the tread is stately2 and to ,him who has commanded1 and who overlooks it1 a thousand years are as but a single day1 and a single day as a thousand years4,,bg ,footnote ,,bf3 ,there have been fish scales found in ,burdie ,house five inches in length1 by rather more than four in breadth4 ,of the gigantic ,holoptychius of this deposit we have still much to learn4 ,the fragment of a jaw1 in the possession of the ,royal ,society of ,edinburgh1 which belonged to an individual of the species1 is #ah inches in length2 and it is furnished with teeth1 one of which1 from base to point1 measures five inches1 and another four and a half4 ,footnote ,,bg3 ,see1 on this subject1 the introductory note to the present edition1 and note p4 #aed4 ,we have entered the ,coal ,measures4 ,for seven formations together--from the ,lower ,silurian to the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone--our course has lain over oceans without a visible shore1 though1 like ,columbus1 in his voyage of discovery1 we have now and then found a little floating weed1 to indicate the approaching coast4 ,the water is fast shallowing4 ,yonder passes a broken branch1 with the leaves still unwithered2 and there floats a tuft of fern4 ,land1 from the mast-head6 land6 land6--a low shore1 thickly covered with vegetation4 ,huge trees1 of wonderful form1 stand out far into the water4 ,there seems no intervening beach4 ,a thick hedge of reeds1 tall as the masts of pinnaces1 runs along the deeper bays1 like water-flags at the edge of a lake4 ,a river of vast volume comes rolling from the interior1 darkening the water for leagues with its slime and mud1 and bearing with it1 to the open sea1 reeds1 and fern1 and cones of the pine1 and immense floats of leaves1 and now and then some bulky tree1 undermined and uprooted by the current4 ,we near the coast1 and now enter the opening of the stream4 ,a scarce penetrable phalanx of reeds1 that attain to the height and well nigh the bulk of forest trees1 is ranged on either hand4 ,the bright and glossy stems seem rodded like ,gothic columns2 the pointed leaves stand out green at every joint1 tier above tier1 each tier resembling a coronal wreath or an ancient crown1 with the rays turned outwards2 and we see a-top what may be either large spikes or catkins4 ,what strange forms of vegetable life appear in the forest behind6 ,can that be a club-moss that raises its slender height for more than fifty feet from the soil8 ,or can these tall1 palm-like trees be actually ferns1 and these spreading branches mere fronds8 ,and then these gigantic reeds6--are they not mere varieties of the common horse-tail of our bogs and morasses1 magnified some sixty or a hundred times8 ,have we arrived at some such country as the continent visited by ,gulliver1 in which he found thickets of weeds and grass tall as woods of twenty years' growth1 and lost himself amid a forest of corn1 fifty feet in height8 ,the lesser vegetation of our own country1 reeds1 mosses1 and ferns1 seems here as if viewed through a microscope3 the dwarfs have sprung up into giants1 and yet there appears to be no proportional increase in size among what are unequivocally its trees4 ,yonder is a group of what seem to be pines--tall and bulky1 'tis true1 but neither taller nor bulkier than the pines of ,norway and ,america2 and the club-moss behind shoots up its green1 hairy arms1 loaded with what seems catkins above their topmost cones4 ,but what monster of the vegetable world comes floating down the stream--now circling round in the eddies1 now dancing on the ripple1 now shooting down the rapid8 ,it resembles a gigantic star-fish1 or an immense coach-wheel1 divested of the rim4 ,there is a green1 dome-like mass in the centre1 that corresponds to the nave of the wheel1 or the body of the star-fish2 and the boughs shoot out horizontally on every side1 like spokes from the nave1 or rays from the central body4 ,the diameter considerably exceeds forty feet2 the branches1 originally of a deep green1 are assuming the golden tinge of decay2 the cylindrical and hollow leaves stand out thick on every side1 like prickles of the wild rose on the red1 fleshy1 lance-like shoots of a year's growth1 that will be covered1 two seasons hence1 with flowers and fruit4 ,that strangely formed organism presents no existing type among all the numerous families of the vegetable kingdom4 ,there is an amazing luxuriance of growth all around us4 ,scarce can the current make way through the thickets of aquatic plants that rise thick from the muddy bottom2 and though the sunshine falls bright on the upper boughs of the tangled forest beyond1 not a ray penetrates the more than twilight gloom that broods over the marshy platform below4 ,the rank steam of decaying vegetation forms a thick blue haze1 that partially obscures the underwood2 deadly lakes of carbonic acid gas have accumulated in the hollows2 there is silence all around1 uninterrupted save by the sudden splash of some reptile fish that has risen to the surface in pursuit of its prey1 or when a sudden breeze stirs the hot air1 and shakes the fronds of the giant ferns or the catkins of the reeds4 ,the wide continent before us is a continent devoid of animal life1 save that its pools and rivers abound in fish and mollusca1 and that millions and tens of millions of the infusory tribes swarm in the bogs and marshes4 ,here and there1 too1 an insect of strange form flutters among the leaves4 ,it is more than probable that no creature furnished with lungs of the more perfect construction could have breathed the atmosphere of this early period1 and have lived4 ,doubts have been entertained whether the limestone of ,burdie ,house belongs to the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone or to the inferior ,coal ,measures4 ,and the fact may yet come to be quoted as a very direct proof of the ignorance which obtained regarding the fossils of the older formation1 at a time when the organisms of most of the other formations1 both above and below it1 had been carefully explored4 ,the ,limestone of ,burdie ,house is unequivocally and most characteristically a ,coal ,measure limestone4 ,it abounds in vegetable remains of terrestrial or lacustrine growth1 and these1 too1 the vegetables common to the ,coal ,measures--ferns1 reeds1 and club-mosses4 ,one can scarce detach a fragment from the mass1 that has not its leaflet or seed-cone enclosed1 and in a state of such perfect preservation1 that there can be no possibility of mistaking its character4 ,if in reality a marine deposit1 it must have been formed in the immediate neighborhood of a land covered with vegetation4 ,the dove set loose by ,noah bore not back with it a less equivocal sign that the waters had abated4 ,now1 in the ,upper ,old ,red ,sandstone none of these plants occur4 ,the deposit is exclusively an ocean deposit1 and the remains in ,scotland1 until we arrive at its inferior and middle formations1 are exclusively animal remains4 ,its upper member1 the yellow sandstone1 says ,dr4 ,anderson1 of ,newburgh1 does not exhibit a single particle of carbonaceous matter--no trace or film of a branch having been detected in it1 though1 if such in reality existed1 there are not wanting opportunities of obtaining specimens in some one of the twenty or thirty quarries which have been opened in the county of ,fife in this deposit alone4 ,no two bordering formations in the geological scale have their boundaries better defined by the character of their fossils than the ,old ,red ,sandstone and the ,coal ,measures4 ,we pursue our history no further4 ,its after course is comparatively well known4 ,the huge sauroid fish was succeeded by the equally huge reptile--the reptile by the bird--the bird by the marsupial quadruped2 and at length1 after races higher in the scale of instinct had taken precedence in succession1 the one of the other1 the sagacious elephant appeared1 as the lord of that latest creation which immediately preceded our own4 ,how natural does the thought seem which suggested itself to the profound mind of ,cuvier1 when indulging in a similar review6 ,has the last scene in the series arisen1 or has ,deity expended his infinitude of resource1 and reached the ultimate stage of progression at which perfection can arrive8 ,the philosopher hesitated1 and then decided in the negative1 for he was too intimately acquainted with the works of the ,omnipotent ,creator to think of limiting his power2 and he could1 therefore1 anticipate a coming period in which man would have to resign his post of honor to some nobler and wiser creature--the monarch of a better and happier world4 ,how well it is1 to be permitted to indulge in the expansion of ,cuvier's thought1 without sharing in the melancholy of ,cuvier's feeling--to be enabled to look forward to the coming of a new heaven and a new earth1 not in terror1 but in hope--to be encouraged to believe in the system of unending progression1 but to entertain no fear of the degradation or deposition of man6 ,the adorable ,monarch of the future1 with all its unsummed perfection1 has already passed into the heavens1 flesh of our flesh1 and bone of our bone1 and ,enoch and ,elias are there with him--fit representatives of that dominant race1 which no other race shall ever supplant or succeed1 and to whose onward and upward march the deep echoes of eternity shall never cease to respond4 ,,ichthyolites ,,of ,,the ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone4 ,,from ,,agassiz',s ,,poissons ,,fossiles4 ,the synonymes here--now supplanted1 however--with the names of a few doubtful or fictitious species1 are given in ,italics2--the former opposite the names ultimately adopted1 the latter immediately under the names of the determined species4 ,acanthodes pusillus4 ,actinolepis tuberculatus4 ,asterolepis ,asmusii4--,syn4 ,chelonichthys ,asmusii4 apicalis4 granulata4 ,hninghausii4 ,malcolmsoni4 minor4--,syn4 ,chelonichthys minor4 ornata4 speciosa4 concatenatus4 depressus4 ,bothriolepis favosa4--,syn4 ,glyptosteus favosus4 ornata reticulatus ,byssacanthus arcuatus4 crenulatus4 lvis4 ,cephalaspis ,lewisii4 ,lloydii4 ,lyellii4 rostratus4 ,cheiracanthus microlepidotus4 minor4 ,murchisoni4 ,cheirolepis ,cummingi4 ,traillii4 ,uragus4 splendens4 unilateralis4 ,chelyophorus pustulatus4 ,verneuilii4 ,cladodus simplex4 ,climatius reticulatus4 ,coccosteus cuspidatus4 decipiens4--,syn4 latus4 maximus4 oblongus4 ,cosmacanthus ,malcolmsoni4 ,cricodus incurvus4--,syn4 ,dendrodus incurvus4 ,ctenacanthus ornatus4 serrulatus4 ,ctenodus ,keyserlingii4 marginalis4 parvulus4 ,worthii4 radiatus4 serratus4 ,ctenoptychius priscus4 ,dendrodus latus4 minor4 sigmoides4 strigatus4 tenuistriatus4 ,diplacanthus crassispinus4 longispinus4 striatulus4 striatus4 ,diplopterus affinis4 ,diplopterus borealis4--,syn4 ,agassizii4 macrocephalus4 ,dipterus macrolepidotus4 arenaceus4 brachypygopterus4 macropygopterus4 ,valenciennesii4 ,glyptolepis elegans4 leptopterus4 microlepidotus4 ,glyptopomus minor4--,syn4 ,platygnathus minor4 ,haplacanthus marginalis4 ,holoptychius ,andersoni4 ,flemingii4 giganteus4 ,murchisoni4 nobilissimus4 ,omaliusii4 ,homacanthus arcuatus4 ,homothorax ,flemingii4 ,lamnodus biporcatus4--,syn4 ,dendrodus biporcatus4 hastatus4--,syn4 ,panderi4 ,dendrodus hastatus1 compressus4 sulcatus4 ,narcodes pustilifer4 ,naulas sulcatus4 ,odontacanthus crenatus4--,syn4 ,ctenoptychius crenatus4 heterodon4 ,onchus heterogyrus4 semistriatus4 sublvis4 ,osteolepis arenatus4 macrolepidotus major4 microlepidotus4 intermedius4 nanus4 ,pamphractus ,andersoni4 ,pamphractus hydrophilus4--,syn4 ,pterichthys hydrophilius4 ,parexus rccurvus4 ,phyllolepis concentricus4 ,placothorax paradoxus4 ,platygnathus ,jamesoni4 paucidens4 ,polyphractus platycephalus4 ,psammosteus arenatus4--,syn4 ,placosteus arenatus4 mandrinus4 mandrinus4 paradoxus4 ,psammolepis paradoxus4 undulatus4 ,placosteus undulatus4 ,pterichthys arenatus4 cancriformis4 cornutus4 major4 ,milleri4 latus4 oblongus4 productus4 testudinarius4 ,ptychacanthus dubius4 ,stagonolepis ,robertsoni4 ,,the ,,end4 ,,annual ,,of ,,scientific ,,discovery4 ,,notices ,,of ,,the ,,press4 ,nothing which has transpired in the scientific world during the past year1 seems to have escaped the attention of the industrious editors4 ,we do not hesitate to pronounce the work a highly valuable one to the man of ,science4--,boston ,journal4 ,this is a highly valuable work4 ,we have here brought together in a volume of moderate size1 all the leading discoveries and inventions which have distinguished the past year4 ,like the hand on the dial-plate1 'it marks the progress of the age4' ,the plan has our wannest wishes for its eminent success4--,christian ,times4 ,a most acceptable volume4--,transcript4 ,the work will prove of unusual interest and value4--,traveller4 ,we have in our possession the ledger of progress for #ahdi1 exhibiting to us in a condensed form1 the operations of the world in some of the highest business transactions4 ,to say that its execution has been worthy of its aim is praise sufficient4--,springfield ,republican4 ,to the artist1 the artisan1 the man of letters1 it is indispensable1 and the general reader will find in its pages much valuable material which he may look for elsewhere in vain4--,boston ,herald4 ,we commend it as a standard book of reference and general information1 by those who are so fortunate as to possess it4--,saturday ,rambler4 ,a body of useful knowledge1 indispensable to every man who desires to keep up with the progress of modern discovery and invention4--,boston ,courier4 ,must be a most acceptable volume to every one1 and greatly facilitate the diffusion of useful knowledge4--,zion's ,herald4 ,a most valuable and interesting popular work of science and art4--,washington ,national ,intelligencer4 ,a rich collection of facts1 and one which will be eagerly read4 ,the amount of information contained within its pages is very large4--,evening ,gazette4 ,such a key to the progress and facts of scientific discovery will be everywhere welcomed4--,new ,york ,commercial ,advertiser4 ,a most valuable1 complete1 and comprehensive summary of the existing facts of science2 it is replete with interest1 and ought to have a place in every well appointed library4--,worcester ,spy4 ,we commend it to all who wish what has just been found out2 to all who would like to discover something themselves1 and would be glad to know how3 and to all who think they have invented something1 and are desirous to know whether any one else has been before hand with them4--,puritan ,recorder4 ,this is one of the most valuable works which the press has brought forth during the present year4 ,a greater amount of useful and valuable information cannot be obtained from any book of the same size within our knowledge4--,washington ,union4 ,this important volume will prove one of the most acceptable to our community that has appeared for a long time4--,providence ,journal4 ,this is a neat volume and a useful one4 ,such a book has long been wanted in ,america4 ,it should receive a wide-spread patronage4--,scientific ,american1 ,new ,york4 ,it meets a want long felt1 both among men of science and the people4 ,no one who feels any interest in the intellectual progress of the age1 no mechanic or artisan1 who aspires to excel in his vocation1 can afford to be without it4 ,a very copious and accurate index gives one all needed aid in his inquiries4--,phil4 ,christian ,chronicle4 ,one of the most useful books of the day4 ,every page of it contains some useful in formation1 and there will be no waste of time in its study4--,norfolk ,democrat4 ,it is precisely such a work as will be hailed with pleasure by the multitude of intelligent readers who desire to have1 at the close of each year1 a properly digested record of its progress in useful knowledge4 ,the project of the editors is an excellent one1 and de serves and will command success4--,north ,american1 ,philadelphia4 ,truly a most valuable volume4--,charleston 7,s4,c47 ,courier4 ,there are few works of the season whose appearance we have noticed with more sincere satisfaction than this admirable manual4 ,the exceeding interest of the subjects to which it is devoted1 as well as the remarkably thorough1 patient and judicious manner in which they are handled by its skilful editors1 entitle it to a warm reception by all the friends of solid and useful learning4--,new ,york ,tribune4 ,,foot-,,prints ,,of ,,the ,,creator2 -- ,,or -- ,,the ,,asterolepis ,,of ,,stromness4 ,,by ,,hugh ,,miller4 ,,with ,,many ,,illustrations4 ,,from ,,the ,,third ,,london ,,edition4--,,with ,a ,,memoir ,,of ,,the ,,author ,,by ,,louis ,,agassiz4 ,in its purely geological character1 the ',foot-prints' is not surpassed by any modern work of the same class4 ,in this volume1 ,mr4 ,miller discusses the development hypothesis1 or the hypothesis of natural law1 as maintained by ,lamarck1 and by the author of the #d ,vestiges of ,creation1' and has subjected it1 in its geological aspect1 to the most rigorous examination4 ,he has stripped even of its semblance of truth1 and restored to the ,creator1 as governor cf the universe1 that power and those functions which he was supposed to have resigned at its birth4 99 99 99 ,the earth has still to surrender mighty secrets1--and great revelations are yet to issue from sepulchres of stone4 ,it is from the vaults to which ancient life has been consigned that the history of the dawn of life is to be composed4--,north ,british ,review4 ,scientific knowledge equally remarkable for comprehensiveness and accuracy2 a style at all times singularly clear1 vivid1 and powerful1 ranging at will1 and without effort1 from the most natural and graceful simplicity1 through the playful1 the graphic1 and the vigorous1 to the impressive eloquence of great thoughts greatly expressed2 reasoning at once comprehensive in scope1 strong in grasp1 and pointedly direct in application1--these qualities combine to render the ',foot-prints' one of the most perfect refutations of error1 and defences of truth1 that ever exact science has produced4--,free ,church ,magazine4 ,dr4 ,buckland1 at a meeting of the ,british ,association1 said he had never been so much astonished in his life1 by the powers of any man1 as he had been by the geological descriptions of ,mr4 ,miller4 ,that wonderful man described these objects with a facility which made him ashamed of the comparative meagerness and poverty of his own descriptions in the ,bridgewater ,treatise1 which had cost him hours and days of labor4 ,he 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 science attractive and popular1 and do equal service to theology and geology4 ,the style of this work is most singularly clear and vivid1 rising at times to eloquence1 and always impressing the reader with the idea that he is brought in contact with great thoughts4 ,where it is necessary1 there are engravings to illustrate the geological remains4 ,the whole work forms one of the best defences of ,truth that science can produce4--,albany ,state ,register4 ,the ',foot-,prints of the ,creator' is not only a good but a great book4 ,all who have read the ',vestiges of ,creation' should study the ',foot-,prints of the ,creator4' ,this volume is especially worthy the attention of those who are so fearful of the skeptical tendencies of natural science4 ,we expect this volume will meet with a very extensive sale4 ,it should be placed in every ,sabbath ,school ,library1 and at every ,christian fireside4--,boston ,traveller4 ,mr4 ,miller's style is remarkably pleasing2 his mode of popularising geological knowledge unsurpassed1 perhaps unequalled2 and the deep vein of reverence for ,divine ,revelation pervading all1 adds interest and value to the volume4--,new ,york ,com4 ,advertiser4 ,the publishers have again covered themselves with honor1 by giving to the ,american public1 with the ,author's permission1 an elegant reprint of a foreign work of science4 ,we earnestly bespeak for this work a wide and free circulation1 among all who love science much and religion more4--,puritan ,recorder4 ,the book indicates a mind of rare gifts and attainments1 and exhibits the workings of poetic genius in admirable harmony with the generalizations of philosophy4 ,it is1 withal pervaded by a spirit of devout reverence and child-like humility1 such as all men delight to behold in the interpreter of nature4 ,we are persuaded that no intelligent render will go through the chapters of the author without being instructed and delighted with the views they contain4--,providence ,journal4 ,hugh ,miller is a ,scotch geologist1 who1 within a few years1 has not ,only added largely to the facts of science1 but has stepped at once among the leading scientific writers of the age1 by his wonderfully clear1 accurate1 and elegant geological works4 ,mr4 ,miller1 taking the newly-discovered ,asterolepis for his text1 has produced an answer to the ',vestiges of ,creation1' a work which has been more widely circulated1 perhaps1 than any other professedly scientific book ever printed4 ,mr4 ,miller 7and there is no doubt of this7 completely upsets his opponent--exposing his incompetency1 ignorance1 and sophistry1 with a clearness1 ease1 and elegance that are both astonishing and delightful4 ,throughout the entire geologic portion1 the reasoning is markedly close1 shrewd1 and intelligible--the facts are evidently at the finger's end of the author--and the most unwilling1 cautious1 and antagonistic reader is compelled to yield his thorough assent to the argument4--,boston ,post4 ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 ,,publishers1 ,,boston4 ,,foot-,,prints ,,of ,,the ,,creator4 ,,notices ,,of ,,the ,,press4 ,this is a very rich and valuable book4 ,it is rich in the treasures of scientific knowledge1 which are interwoven in an argument1 remarkably clear1 in a style graceful1 vigorous1 graphic1 and of great power--rendering it a most perfect refutation of the atheistical error propagated in the work entitled1 the ',vestiges of ,creation4'--,philad4 ,christian ,observer4 ,around the name of ,hugh ,miller already gathers the halo of a most pure and grateful fame4 ,receiving his geological education among the rocks of the quarry1 where he labored for fifteen years2 writing in a style of peculiar simplicity and elegance1 and devoting the exact knowledge derived from walking in the ,creator's 'foot-prints' to the cause of true religion1 the proudest devotees of science have taken pleasure in doing him honor1 have delighted to listen to his teachings1 and rejoiced to aid in their promulgation4--,springfield ,republican4 ,this is one of the most remarkable and deeply profound works of the present age4 ,the author's name will not be soon forgotten1 in the scientific world1--and his productions will not fail to be read and admired1 wherever true science is promulgated4 ,he is most remarkably clear1 concise1 and powerful1 in his arguments2 profound in his researches1 and conclusive in his reasoning4--,new ,york ,farmer and ,mechanic4 ,there is poetry and philosophy combined in this work4 ,the author had a mind which revelled1 so to speak1 in the beauties and wonders of science4 ,from a child1 almost1 he delighted in the works of nature4444 ,he has gone from one step to another1 till now he is justly esteemed as among the great ,geologists of the world4 ,it is a book in which the man of science will delight1 but it is also one which the general reader will peruse with instruction and satisfaction4--,baltimore ,patriot4 ,the publishers are entitled to the thanks1 not only of scientific men but of christians1 in this country1 for presenting this work to the ,american public4--,christian ,secretary4 ,a remarkable work by a remarkable man4 ,mr4 ,miller is self-made1 and has elevated himself1 by the force of his genius1 from the position of an ordinary laborer in a stone quarry1 to that of one of the first ,geologists of the age4 ,for careful investigation1 accuracy1 fullness1 and beauty of description1 combined with a proper estimate of the true claims of science1 and a high reverence for sacred things1 he is not surpassed by any writer on natural science at the present day4 ,all who have taken any interest in the discussion of geological topics1 and 'particularly their connection with the ,sacred ,writings1 will read this volume with admiration and advantage4 ,its subject1 spirit1 style1 and manner of publication1 all commend it2 and it is destined to an extensive circulation4 ,it is one of the noblest and most admirable contributions lately made to ,science and ,christianity4--,christian ,herald4 ,within a few days1 this enterprising house has re-published one of the most charming scientific works of 'modern times--a work which1 from the simple love of truth which pervades it1 its clearness1 authenticity1 and wonderful revelations1 may be called a work of genius1 as appropriately as a fine poem4 ,it is entitled ',foot-,prints of the ,creator4'--,willis' ,rome ,journal4 ,a work so beautifully written1 filled with such curious1 new1 and interesting facts1 and breathing in every page the purest philosophy and ,christianity1 could scarcely meet with adequate praise1 in a limited space4 ,it should be added to the library of every one4--,washington ,union4 ,we have never read a work of the kind with so much interest4 ,its statements of fact and its descriptions are remarkably clear4 ,from minute particulars it leads us on to broad views of the creation2 and the earth becomes the witness of a succession of miracles1 as wonderful as any recorded in the ,scriptures4--,christian ,register4 ,this splendid work should be read by every man in our land4 ,we recommend the study of this science to our young men2 let them approach it with open1 and not unfaithful breasts1--for amid our mountains1 grand and tall1 our boundless plains1 and flowing rivers1 vast and virgin fields for exploration yet present themselves4--,scientific ,american4 ,this is one of the most able and learned works which has ever been issued from the ,american press4 ,the ,north ,british ,review says ',that in its geological character it is not surpassed by any modern work of the same class4' ,the style of the work is clear1 rich1 and strong2 its statements of truth are plain and accurate1 and its arguments are presented with masterly force4 ,its author1 ,hugh ,miller1 is a man of very superior talents and attainments4--,new ,york ,christian ,messenger4 ,the author resembles ,burns1 in the freshness1 and vigor1 and enthusiasm of genius2 and had he ventured into the realm of poetry1 the greatest of ,scottish bards might have welcomed his company4 ,we hope the volume may be widely circulated1 especially among intelligent ,christians4444 ,this work is written in a bold and eloquent style1 and though penetrating to the inner shrine of the ,geological temple1 and necessarily dealing with hard words and harder things1 it will secure many readers4--,christian ,chronicle4 ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 ,,publishers1 ,,boston4 ,,the ,,old ,,red ,,sandstone2 ,,or ,,new ,,walks ,,in ,,an ,,old ,,field4 ,,by ,,hugh ,,miller1 ,,from ,,the ,,fourth ,,london ,,edition--,,illustrated ,a writer1 in noticing ,mr4 ,miller's ,first ,impressions of ,england and the ,people1 in the ,new ,englander1 of ,may1 #ahej1 commences by saying1 ,we presume it is not necessary formally to introduce ,hugh ,miller to our readers2 the author of ',the ,old ,red ,sandstone' placed himself1 by that production1 which was first1 among the most successful geologists1 and the best writers of the age4 ,we well remember with what mingled emotion and delight we first read that work4 ,rarely has a more remarkable book come from the press4444 ,for1 besides the important contributions which it makes to the science of ,geology1 it is written in a style which places the author at once among the most accomplished writers of the age4444 ,he proves himself to be in prose what ,burns has been in poetry4 ,we are not extravagant in saying that there is no geologist living who1 in the descriptions of the phenomena of the science1 has united such accuracy of statement with so much poetic beauty of expression4 ,what ,dr4 ,buckland said was not a mere compliment1 that 'he had never been so much astonished in his life1 by the powers of any man1 as he had been by the geological descriptions of ,mr4 ,miller4 ,that wonderful man described these objects with a felicity which made him ashamed of the comparative meagerness and poverty of his own descriptions1 in the ,bridgewater ,treatise1 which had cost him hours and days of labor4' ,for our own part we do not hesitate to place ,mr4 ,miller in the front rank of ,english prose writers4 ,without mannerism1 without those extravagances which give a factitious reputation to so many writers of the day1 his style has a classic purity and elegance1 which remind one of ,goldsmith and ,irving1 while there is an ease and a naturalness in the illustrations of the imagination1 which belong only to men of true genius4 ,the excellent and lively work of our meritorious1 self-taught countryman1 ,mr4 ,miller1 is as admirable for the clearness of its descriptions1 and the sweetness of its composition1 as for the purity and gracefulness which pervade it4--,edinburgh ,review4 ,a geological work1 small in size1 unpretending in spirit and manner2 its contents1 the conscientious narration of fact2 its style1 the beautiful simplicity of truth2 and altogether possessing1 for a rational reader1 an interest superior to that of a novel4--,dr4 ,j4 ,pye ,smith4 ,this admirable work evinces talent of the highest order1 a deep and healthful moral feeling1 a perfect command of the finest language1 and a beautiful union of philosophy and poetry4 ,no geologist can peruse this volume without instruction and delight4--,silliman's ,american ,journal of ,science4 ,mr4 ,miller's exceedingly interesting book on this formation is just the sort of work to render any subject popular4 ,it is written in a remarkably pleasing style1 and contains a wonderful amount of information4--,westminster ,review4 ,in ,mr4 ,miller's charming little work will be found a very graphic description of the ,old ,red fishes4 ,i know not of a more fascinating volume on any branch of ,british geology4--,mantell's ,medals of ,creation4 ,sir ,roderick ,murchison1 giving an account of the investigations of ,mr4 ,miller1 spoke in the highest terms of his perseverance and ingenuity as a geologist4 ,with no other advantages than a common education1 by a careful use of his means1 he had been able to give himself an excellent education1 and to elevate himself to a position which any man1 in any sphere of life1 might well envy4 ,he had seen some of his papers on geology1 written in a style so beautiful and poetical as to throw plain geologists1 like himself1 in the shade4 ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 ,,publishers4 ,,boston4 ,,the ,,poetry ,,of ,,science2 ,,or1 ,,studies ,,of ,,the ,,physical ,,phenomena ,,of ,,nature ,,by ,,robert ,,hunt1 ,,author ,,of ,,panthea1 ,,researches ,,on ,,light1 ,,etc4 ,,notices ,,of ,,the ,,press4 ,we know of no work upon science which is so well calculated to lift the mind from the admiration of the wondrous works of creation to the belief in1 and worship of1 a ,first ,great ,cause4 99 99 99 ,one of the most readable epitomes of the present state and progress of science we have perused4--,morning ,herald1 ,london4 ,the design of ,mr4 ,hunt's volume is striking and good4 ,the subject is very well dealt with1 and the object very well attained2 it displays a fund of knowledge1 and is the work of an eloquent and earnest man4--,the ,examiner1 ,london4 ,this book richly deserves the attention of the public4 ,its object1 as may be surmised from the title1 is to paint the poetical aspect of science1 or rather to show that the deeper one investigates the mysteries of nature--whether in the formation of a continent1 in the orbit of a star1 or in the color of a flower--the more awakened will be his wonder and his veneration1 and the more call will there be upon his highest powers of the intellect and the imagination4--,boston ,post4 ,it was once supposed that poetry and science were natural antipodes2 and lo6 they now are united in loving bonds4 ,mr4 ,hunt has certainly demonstrated that the divinest poetry lies hidden in the depths of science1 and needs but a master spirit to evoke it in shapes of beauty4--,christian ,chronicle4 ,it may be read with interest1 by the lovers of nature and of science4--,n4 ,y4 ,tribune4 ,it is written in a style not unworthy of the grandeur of the subject4--,n4 ,y4 ,eve4 ,post4 ,the author1 while adhering to true science1 has set forth its truths in an exceedingly captivating style4--,new ,york ,commercial ,advertiser4 ,we are heartily glad to see this interesting work re-published in ,america4 ,it is a book that is a book4--,scientific ,american4 ,from the arcana of science especially1 has the author gleaned what may be properly termed her poetry1 which will make the book one of the most interesting character to the intelligent reader4--,christian ,herald4 ,it is really a scientific treatise1 fitted to instruct and enlarge the mind of the reader1 but at the same time it invests the subjects it describes with the radiance of the imagination1 and with the charming association of poetry4 ,the book well deserves the title it bears1 and is a beautiful illustration of the poetic interest that belongs to many of the discussions of the science4--,providence ,journal4 ,it is one of the most readable1 interesting1 and instructive works of the kind1 that we have ever seen4--,philadelphia ,christian ,observer4 #ad ,in this admirable production1 ,mr4 ,hunt offers a beautiful epitome of the physical phenomena of ,nature1 in which1 from their ultimate facts1 he leads his reader by inductive processes1 to the contemplation of vast eternal truths4 ,though full of information1 the facts cited in his pages are not collected solely because they are such1 but with true philosophical acumen1 to build up the edifice2 and if curious or rare1 they are selected merely to strengthen the position in which they are placed4--,washington ,union4 ,we anticipate a wide circulation for it in this country4--,albany ,state ,register4 ,the scientific compass of the volume is large1 and its execution is exceedingly fine and interesting4--,zion's ,herald4 ,we noticed this eloquent work1 while it was in the course of publication4 ,it is now out in beautiful style1 and makes with the notes1 which are full and as valuable as the text1 a volume of nearly four hundred pases4 ,the publishers could not have done the poets of the land a better service1 than by thus supplying them with exhaustless materials1 collected from all branches of science1 and admirably arranged for their more substantial structure4--,watchman and ,reflector4 ,here we have an illustration of the true and beautiful1 and how that they are always one4 ,the mysterious laws of nature1 and the phenomena by which they are manifested1 are brought before the reader in a way that enchants and improves4 ,there is poetry in science1 as no one may deny1 after he reads this book4--,baltimore ,patriot4 ,,gould ,,and ,,lincoln1 ,,publishers1 ,,boston4 ,,the ,,earth ,,and ,,man3 ,lectures on ,comparative ,physical ,geography1 in its ,relation to the ,history of ,mankind4 ,by ,arnold ,guyot1 ,prof4 ,phys4 ,geo4 ,hist41 ,neuchatel4 ,translated from the ,french1 by ,prof4 ,c4 ,c4 ,felton4--,with ,illustrations4 #abmo4 ,price #a4be4 ,those who have been accustomed to regard ,geography as a merely descriptive branch of learning1 drier than the remainder biscuit after a voyage1 will be delighted to find this hitherto unattractive pursuit converted info a science1 the principles of which are definite and the results conclusive2 a science that embraces the investigation of natural laws and interprets their mode of operation2 which professes to discover in the rudest forms and apparently confused arrangement of the materials composing the planets' crust1 a new manifestation of the wisdom which has filled the earth with its riches4 99 99 99 ,to the reader we shall owe no apology1 if we have said enough to excite his curiosity and to persuade him to look to the book itself for further instruction4--,north ,american ,review4 ,the grand idea of the work is happily expressed by the author1 where he calls it the geographical march of history4 99 99 99 ,the man of science will hail it as a beautiful generalization from the facts of observation4 ,the ,christian1 who trusts in a merciful ,providence1 will draw courage from it1 and hope yet more earnestly for the redemption of the most degraded portions of mankind4 ,faith1 science1 learning1 poetry1 taste1 in a word1 genius1 have liberally contributed to the production of the work under review4 ,sometimes we feel as if we were studying a treatise on the exact sciences2 at others1 it strikes the ear like an epic poem4 ,now it reads like history1 and now it sounds like prophecy4 ,it will find readers in whatever language it may be published2 and in the elegant ,english dress which it has received from the accomplished pen of the translator1 it will not fail to interest1 instruct and inspire4 ,we congratulate the lovers of history and of physical geography1 as well as all those who are interested in the growth and expansion of our common education1 that ,prof4 ,guyot contemplates the publication of a series of elementary works on ,physical ,geography1 in which these two great branches of study which ,god has so closely joined together1 will not1 we trust1 be put asunder4--,christian ,examiner4 ,a copy of this volume reached us at too late an hour for an extended notice4 ,the work is one of high merit1 exhibiting a wide range of knowledge1 great research1 and a philosophical spirit of investigation4 ,its perusal will well repay the most learned in such subjects1 and give new views to all1 of man's relation to the globe he inhabits4--,silliman's ,journal1 ,july1 #ahdi4 ,these lectures form one of the most valuable contributions to geographical science that has ever been published in this country4 ,they invest the study of geography with an interest which will1 we doubt not1 surprise and delight many4 ,they will open an entire new world to most readers1 and will be found an invaluable aid to the teacher and student of geography4--,evening ,traveller4 ,we venture to pronounce this one of the most interesting and instructive books which have come from the ,american press for many a month4 ,the science of which it treats is comparatively of recent origin1 but it is of great importance1 not only on ,recount of its connections with other branches of knowledge1 but for its bearing upon many of the interests of society4 ,in these lectures it is relieved of statistical details1 and presented only in its grandest features4 ,it thus not only places before us most instructive facts relating to the condition of the earth1 but also awakens within us a stronger sympathy with the beings that inhabit it1 and a profounder reverence for the beneficent ,creator who formed it1 and of whose character it is a manifestation and expression4 ,they abound with the richest interest and instruction to every intelligent reader1 and especially fitted to awaken enthusiasm and delight in all who are devoted to the study either of natural science or the history of mankind4--,providence ,journal4 ,geography is here presented under a new and attractive phase2 it is no longer v dry description of the features of the earth's surface4 ,the influence of soil scenery and climate upon character1 has not yet received the consideration due to it from historians and philosophers4 ,in the volume before us the profound investigations of ,humboldt1 ,ritter and others1 in ,physical ,geography1 are presented in a popular form1 and with the clearness and vivacity so characteristic of ,french treatises on science4 ,the work should be introduced into our higher schools4--,the ,independent1 ,new ,york4 ,geography is here made to assume a dignity1 not heretofore attached to it4 ,the knowledge communicated in these ,lectures is curious1 unexpected1 absorbing4--,christian ,mirror1 ,portland4 ,,contributions ,,to ,,theological ,,science4 ,,by ,,john ,,harris1 ,d4,d4 ,i4 ,,the ,,pre-,,adamite ,,earth4 ,,notices ,,of ,,the ,,press4 ,at ,as we have examined every page of this work1 and put forth our best efforts to understand the full import of its varied and rich details1 the resistless impression has come over our spirits1 that the respected author has been assisted from on high in his laborious1 but successful undertaking4 ,may it please ,god yet to aid and uphold him1 to complete his whole design2 for we can now see1 if we mistake not1 that there is great unity as well as originality and beauty in the object which he is aiming to accomplish4 ,if we do not greatly mistake1 this long looked for volume1 will create and sustain a deep impression in the more intellectual circles of the religious world4--,london ,evangelical ,magazine4 ,the man who finds his element among great thoughts1 and is not afraid to push into the remoter regions of abstract truth1 be he philosopher or theologian1 or both1 will read it over and over1 and will find his intellect quickened1 as if from being in contact with a new and glorious creation4--,albany ,argus4 ,dr4 ,harris states in a lucid1 succinct1 and often highly eloquent manner1 all the leading facts of geology1 and their beautiful harmony with the teachings of ,scripture4 ,as a work of paleontology in its relation to ,scripture1 it will be one of the most complete and popular extant4 ,it evinces great research1 clear and rigid reasoning1 and a style more condensed and beautiful than is usually found in a work so profound4 ,it will be an invaluable contribution to ,biblical ,science4--,new ,york ,evangelist4 ,he is a sound logician and lucid reasoner1 getting nearer to the groundwork of a subject generally supposed to have very uncertain data1 than any other writer within our knowledge4--,new ,york ,com4 ,advertiser4 ,the elements of things1 the laws of organic nature1 and those especially that lie at the foundation of the divine relations to man1 are here dwelt upon in a masterly manner4--,christian ,reflector1 ,boston4 ,,ii4 ,,man ,,primeval2 ,,or ,,the ,,constitution ,,and ,,primitive ,,condition ,,of ,,the ,,human ,,being4 ,,with ,a ,,fine ,,portrait ,,of ,,the ,,author4 ,,notices ,,of ,,the ,,press4 ,it surpasses in interest its predecessor4 ,it is an able attempt to carry out the author's grand conception4 ,his purpose is to unfold1 as far as possible1 the successive steps by which ,god is accomplishing his purpose to manifest ,his ,all-sufficiency4 99 99 99 ,the reader is led along a pathway1 abounding with rich and valuable thought1 going on from the author's opening propositions to their complete demonstration4 ,to students of mental and moral science1 it will be a valuable contribution1 and will assuredly secure their attention4--,christian ,chronicle1 ,philadelphia4 ,it is eminently philosophical1 and at the same time glowing and eloquent4 ,it cannot fail to have a wide circle of readers1 or to repay richly the hours which are given to its pages4--,new ,york ,recorder4 ,the reputation of the author of this volume is co-extensive with the ,english language4 ,the work before us manifests much learning and metaphysical acumen4 ,its great recommendation is1 its power to cause the reader to think and reflect4--,boston ,recorder4 ,reverently recognizing the ,bible as the fountain and exponent of truth1 he is as independent and fearless as he is original and forcible2 and he adds to these qualities consummate skill in argument and elegance of diction4--,n4 ,y4 ,com4 ,advertiser4 ,his copious and beautiful illustrations of the successive laws of the ,divine ,manifestation1 have yielded us inexpressible delight4--,london ,eclectic ,review4 ,the distribution and arrangement of thought in this volume1 are such as to afford ample scope for the author's remarkable powers of analysis and illustration4 ,in looking with a keen and searching eye at the principles which regulate the conduct of ,god towards man1 as the intelligent inhabitant of this lower world1 ,dr4 ,harris has laid down for himself three distinct1 but connected views of the ,divine procedure3 ,first1 ,the ,end aimed at by ,god2 ,second1 the ,reasons for the employment of it4 ,in a very masterly way does our author grapple with almost every difficulty1 and perplexing subject which comes within the range of his proposed inquiry into the constitution and condition of ,man ,primeval4--,london ,evangelical ,history4 ,,iii4 ,,the ,,family2 ,,its ,,constitution1 ,,probation ,,and ,,history4 ,,in ,,preparation4 ,,classical ,,studies4 ,,essays ,,on ,,ancient ,,literature ,,and ,,art4 ,with the ,biography and ,correspondence of ,eminent ,philologists4 ,by ,barnas ,sears1 ,president of ,newton ,theol4 ,institution1 ,b4 ,b4 ,edwards1 ,prof4 ,andover ,theol4 ,seminary1 and ,c4 ,c4 ,felton1 ,prof4 ,harvard ,university4 #abmo4 ,price #a4be4 ,,second ,,thousand4 ,the collection is a most attractive one1 and would be acceptable in any circumstances4 ,the discourses1 particularly those of ,jacobs1 are written in words that burn4 ,a general could not exhort his troops with more energy and spirit1 than are used by the ,german ,professor in stimulating the youth before him to labor in the acquisition of classical learning4 ,the biographical portions of the book1 naturally less exciting1 no less tend to the same end4--,london ,lit4 ,examiner1 by ,john ,forster1 ,esq4 ,this elegant book is worthy of a more extended notice than our limits at present will permit us to give it4 ,great labor and care have been bestowed upon its typographical execution1 which does honor to the ,american press4 ,it is one of the rare beauties of the page1 that not a word is divided at the end of a line4 ,the mechanical part of the work1 however1 is its least praise4 ,it is unique in its character--standing alone among the innumerable books of this book-making age4 ,the authors well deserve the thanks of the cultivated and disciplined portion of the community1 for the service which1 by this publication1 they have done to the cause of letters4 ,the book is of a high order1 and worthy of the attentive perusal of every scholar4 ,it is a noble monument to the taste1 and judgment1 and sound learning of the projectors1 and will yield1 we doubt not1 a rich harvest of fame to themselves1 and of benefit to our literature4--,christian ,review4 ,it is refreshing1 truly1 to sit down with such a book as this4 ,when the press is teeming with the hasty works of authors and publishers1 it is a treat to take up a book that is an honor1 at once1 to the arts and the literature of our country4--,new ,york ,observer4 ,this is truly an elegant volume1 both in respect to its literary and its mechanical execution4 ,its typographical appearance is an honor to the ,american press2 and with equal truth it may be said1 that the intrinsic character of the work is highly creditable to the age4 ,it is a novel work1 and may be called a plea for classical learning4 ,to scholars it must be a treat #c and to students we heartily commend it4--,boston ,recorder4 ,this volume is no common-place production4 ,it is truly refreshing1 when we are obliged1 from week to week1 to look through the mass of books which increases upon our table1 many of which are extremely attenuated in thought and jejune in style1 to find something which carries us back to the pure and invigorating influence of the master minds of antiquity4 ,the gentlemen who have produced this volume deserve the cordial thanks of the literary world4--,new ,england ,puritan4 ,we heartily welcome this book as admirably adapted to effect a most noble and much desired result4 ,we commend the work to general attention1 for we feel sure it must do much to awaken a zeal for classical studies1 as the surest means of attaining the refinement and graceful dignity which should mark the strength of every nation4--,new ,york ,tribune4 ,we make no classical pretensions1 or we might say more about the principal articles in this volume2 but it needs no such pretensions to commend1 as we heartily do1 a book so full of interest and instruction as the present1 for every reader who is at nil imbued with a love of literature4--,salem ,gazette4 ,this book will do good in our colleges4 ,every student will want a copy1 and many will be stimulated by its perusal to a more vigorous and enthusiastic pursuit of that higher and more solid learning which alone deserves to be called #d classical4' ,the recent tendencies have been to the neglect of this1 and we rejoice in this timely effort of minds so well qualified for such a work4--,christian ,reflector4 ,the volume is1 in every way1 a beautiful affair of its kind1 and we hazard nothing in recommending it to the literary world4--,christian ,secretary1 ,hartford4 ,the design is a noble and generous one1 and has been executed with a taste and good sense1 that do honor both to the writers and the publishers4--,prov4 ,journal4 ,,chambers',s ,,cyclop,,dia ,,of ,,english ,,literature4 ,a ,,selection ,,of ,,the ,,choicest ,,productions ,,of ,,english ,,authors1 ,,from ,,the ,,earliest ,,to ,,the ,,present ,,time3 ,,connected ,,by ,a ,,critical ,,and ,,biographical ,,history4 ,,edited ,,by ,,robert ,,chambers4 ,,assisted ,,by ,,robert ,,carruthers ,,and ,,other ,,eminent ,,gentlemen4 ,complete in two imperial octavo volumes1 of more than fourteen hundred pages of double column letterpress1 and upwards of three hundred elegant illustrations4 ,this valuable work has now become so generally known and appreciated1 that there need scarcely be any thing said in commendation1 except to those who have not yet seen it4 ,the 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 ,literature1 from the earliest to the present time4 ,let the reader open where he will1 he cannot fail to find matter for profit and delight1 which1 for the most part1 too1 repeated perusals will only serve to make him enjoy the more4 ,we have indeed infinite riches in a little room4 ,no one1 who has a taste for literature1 should allow himself1 for a trifling consideration1 to be without a work which throws so much light upon the progress of the ,english language4 ,the selections are gems--a mass of valuable information in a condensed and elegant form4 ,,extracts ,,from ,,commendatory ,,notices4 ,from ,w4 ,h4 ,prescott1 ,author of ,ferdinand and ,isabella4 ,the plan of the work is very judicious4 99 99 99 ,it will put the reader in the proper point of view1 for surveying the whole ground over which he is travelling4 99 99 99 ,such readers cannot fail to profit largely by the labors of the critic who has the talent and taste to separate what is really beautiful and worthy of their study from what is superfluous4 ,i concur in the foregoing opinion of ,mr4 ,prescott4--,edward ,everett4 ,it will be a useful and popular work1 indispensable to the library of a student of ,english literature4--,francis ,wayland4 ,we hail with peculiar pleasure the appearance of this work1 and more especially its republication in this country at a price which places it within the reach of a great number of readers4--,north ,american ,review4 ,this is the most valuable and magnificent contribution to a sound popular literature that this century has brought forth4 ,it fills a place which was before a blank4 ,without it1 ,english literature1 to almost all of our countrymen1 educated or uneducated1 is an imperfect1 broken1 disjointed mass4 ,much that is beautiful--the most perfect and graceful portions1 undoubtedly--was already possessed2 but it was not a whole4 ,every intelligent man1 every inquiring mind1 every scholar1 felt that the foundation was missing4 ,chambers's ,cyclopdia supplies this radical defect4 ,it begins with the beginning2 and1 step by step1 gives to every one who has the intellect or taste to enjoy it a view of ,english literature in all its complete1 beautiful1 and perfect proportions4--,onondaga ,democrat1 ,n4 ,y4 ,we hope that teachers will avail themselves of an early opportunity to obtain a work so well calculated to impart useful knowledge1 with the pleasures and ornaments of the ,english classics4 ,the work will undoubtedly find a place in our district and other public libraries2 yet it should be the 'vade mecum' of every scholar4--,teachers' ,advocate1 ,syracuse1 ,n4 ,y4 ,the work is finely conceived to meet a popular want1 is full of literary instruction1 and is variously embellished with engravings illustrative of ,english antiquities1 history1 and biography4 ,tire typography throughout is beautiful4--,christian ,reflector4 ,boston4 ,the design has been well executed by the selection and concentration of some of the best productions of ,english intellect1 from the earliest ,anglo-,saxon writers down to those of the present day4 ,no one can give a glance at the work without being struck with its beauty and cheapness4--,boston ,courier4 ,we should be glad if any thing we can say would favor this design4 ,the elegance of the execution feasts the eye with beauty1 and the whole is suited to refine and elevate the taste4 ,and we might ask1 who can fail to go back to its beginning1 and trace his mother-tongue from its rude infancy to its present maturity1 elegance1 and richness8--,christian ,mirror1 ,portland4 ,the ,publishers of the ,,american ,edition of this valuable work desire to state that1 besides the numerous pictorial illustrations in the ,english ,edition1 they have greatly enriched the work by the addition of fine steel and mezzotint engravings of the heads of ,shakspeare1 ,addison1 ,byron2 a full length portrait of ,dr4 ,johnson1 and a beautiful scenic representation of ,oliver ,goldsmith and ,dr4 ,johnson4 ,these important and elegant additions1 together with superior paper and binding1 must give this a decided preference ever all other editions4 ,,for ,,school ,,and ,,family ,,libraries4 ,,chambers',s ,,miscellany ,,of ,,useful ,,and ,,entertaining ,,knowledge1 ,,ten ,,volumes1 ,,elegantly ,,illustrated4 ,the design of the ,miscellany is to supply the increasing demand for useful1 instructive1 and entertaining reading1 and to bring all the aids of literature to bear on the cultivation of the feelings and understanding of the people--to impress correct views on important moral and social questions--to furnish an unobtrusive friend and guide1 a lively fireside companion1 as far as that object can be attained through the instrumentality of books4 ,this work is confidently commended to ,teachers1 ,school ,committees1 and all others interested in the formation of ,school ,libraries1 as the very best work for this purpose4 ,its wide range of subjects1 presented in the most popular style1 makes it exceedingly interesting and instructive to all classes4 ,the most flattering testimonials from distinguished school teachers and others1 expressing an earnest desire to have it introduced into all school libraries1 have been received by the publishers4 ,from ,george ,b4 ,emerson1 ,esq41 ,chairman of the ,book ,committee of the ,boston ,schools4--,i have examined with a good deal of care ',chambers's ,miscellany of ,useful and ,entertaining ,knowledge1' particularly with reference to its suitableness to form parts of a library for young persons4 ,it is1 indeed1 a library in itself1 and one of great value1 containing very choice selections in history1 biography1 natural history1 poetry1 art1 physiology1 elegant fiction1 and various departments of science1 made with great taste and judgment1 and with the highest moral and philanthropic purpose4 ,it would be difficult to find any miscellany superior or even equal to it2 it richly deserves the epithets 'useful and entertaining1' and ,i would recommend it very strongly1 as extremely well adapted to form parts of a library for the young1 or of a social or circulating library1 in town or country4 ,from the ,rev4 ,john ,o4 ,choules1 ,d4 ,d4--,i cannot resist the desire which ,i feel to thank you for the valuable service which you have rendered to the public by placing this admirable work within the reach of all who have a desire to obtain knowledge4 ,i am not acquainted with any similar collection in the ,english language that can compare with it for purposes of instruction or amusement4 ,i should rejoice to see that set of books in every house in our country4 ,i cannot think of any method by which a father can more materially benefit his children than by surrounding them with good books2 and if these charming and attractive volumes can be placed in the hands of the young1 they will have their tastes formed for good leading4 ,i shall labor to see the ,miscellany circulated among my friends1 and shall lose no opportunity to commend it every where4 ,they contain an excellent selection of historical1 scientific1 and miscellaneous articles in popular style1 from the best writers of the language4 ,the work is elegantly printed and neatly illustrated1 and is sold very cheap4--,independent ,democrat1 ,concord1 ,n4 ,h4 ,it is just the book to take up at the close of a busy day2 and especially will it shed a new charm over autumn and winter in-door scenes4--,christ4 ,world1 ,boston4 ,the information contained in this work is surprisingly great2 and for the fireside1 and the young particularly1 it cannot fail to prove a most valuable and entertaining companion4--,new ,york ,evangelist4 ,we are glad to see an ,american issue of this publication1 and especially in so neat and convenient a form4 ,it is an admirable compilation1 distinguished by the good taste which has been shown in all the publications of the ,messrs4 ,chambers4 ,it unites the useful and the entertaining4--,new ,york ,commercial ,advertiser4 ,it is an admirable compilation1 containing interesting memoirs and historical sketches1 which are useful1 instructive1 and entertaining4 ,every head of a family should supply himself with a copy for the benefit of his children4--,corning ,journal4 ,the enterprising publishers deserve the thanks of every lover of the beautiful and true1 for the cheap and tasteful style in which they have spread this truly valuable work before the ,american people4--,people's ,advocate1 ,pa4 ,it is filled with subjects of interest1 intended for the instruction of the youthful mind1 such as biography1 history1 anecdotes1 natural philosophy1 c4--,new ,orleans ,bee4 ,valuable ,school ,books4 ,,the ,,elements ,,of ,,moral ,,science4 ,by ,francis ,wayland1 ,d4,d4 ,president of ,brown ,university1 and ,professor of ,moral ,philosophy4 ,fortieth ,thousand4 #abmo4 cloth4 ,price #a4be4 ,this work has been extensively and favorably reviewed and adopted as a class-book in most of the collegiate1 theological1 and academical institutions of the country4 ,from ,rev4 ,wilbur ,fisk1 ,president of the ,wesleyan ,university4 ,i have examined it with great satisfaction and interest4 ,the work was greatly needed1 and is well executed4 ,dr4 ,wayland deserves the grateful acknowledgments and liberal patronage of the public4 ,i need say nothing further to express my high estimate of the work1 than that we shall immediately adopt it as a text-book in our university4 ,from ,hon4 ,james ,kent1 late ,chancellor of ,new ,york4 ,the work has been read by me attentively and thoroughly1 and ,i think very highly of it4 ,the author himself is one of the most estimable of men1 and ,i do not know of any ethical treatise1 in which our duties to ,god and to our fellow-men are laid down with more precision1 simplicity1 clearness1 energy1 and truth4 ,the work of ,dr4 ,wayland has arisen gradually from the necessity of correcting the false principles and fallacious reasonings of ,paley4 ,it is a radical mistake1 in the education of youth1 to permit any book to be used by students as a text-book1 which contains erroneous doctrines1 especially when these are fundamental1 and tend to vitiate the whole system of morals4 ,we have been greatly pleased with the method which ,president ,wayland has adopted2 he goes back to the simplest and most fundamental principles2 and1 in the statement of his views1 he unites perspicuity with conciseness and precision4 ,in all the author's leading fundamental principles we entirely concur4--,biblical ,repository4 ,this is a new work on morals1 for academic use1 and we welcome it with much satisfaction4 ,it is the result of several years' reflection and experience in teaching1 on the part of its justly distinguished author2 and if it is not perfectly what we could wish1 yet1 in the most important respects1 it supplies a want which has been extensively felt4 ,it is1 we think1 substantially sound in its fundamental principles2 and being comprehensive and elementary in its plan1 and adapted to the purposes of instruction1 it will be gladly adopted by those who have for a long time been dissatisfied with the existing works of ,paley4--,the ,literary and ,theological ,review4 ,,moral ,,science1 ,,abridged1 by the ,author1 and adapted to the use of ,schools and ,academies4 ,twenty-fifth ,thousand4 #ahmo1 half cloth4 ,price #be cents4 ,the more effectually to meet the desire expressed for a cheap edition1 the present edition is issued at the reduced price of #be cents per copy1 and it is hoped thereby to extend the benefit of moral instruction to all the youth of our land4 ,teachers and all others engaged in the training of youth1 are invited to examine this work4 ,dr4 ,wayland has published an abridgment of his work1 for the use of schools4 ,of this step we can hardly speak too highly4 ,it is more than time that the study of moral philosophy should be introduced into all our institutions of education4 ,we are happy to see the way so auspiciously opened for such an introduction4 ,it has been not merely abridged1 but also re-written4 ,we cannot but regard the labor as well bestowed4--,north ,american ,review4 ,we speak that we do know1 when we express our high estimate of ,dr4 ,wayland's ability in teaching ,moral ,philosophy1 whether orally or by the book4 ,having listened to his instructions1 in this interesting department1 we can attest how lofty are the principles1 how exact and severe the argumentation1 how appropriate and strong the illustrations which characterize his system and enforce it on the mind4--,the ,christian ,witness4 ,the work of which this volume is an abridgment1 is well known as one of the best and most complete works on ,moral ,philosophy extant4 ,the author is well known as one of the most profound scholars of the age4 ,that the study of ,moral ,science1 a science which teaches goodness1 should be a branch of education1 not only in our colleges1 but in our schools and academies1 we believe will not be denied4 ,the abridgment of this work seems to us admirably calculated for the purpose1 and we hope it will be extensively applied to the purposes for which it is intended4--,the ,mercantile ,journal4 ,we hail the abridgment as admirably adapted to supply the deficiency which has long been felt in common school education1--the study of moral obligation4 ,let the child early be taught the relations it sustains to man and to its ,maker1 the first acquainting it with the duties owed to society1 the second with the duties owed to ,god1 and who can foretell how many a sad and disastrous overthrow of character will be prevented1 and how elevated and pure will be the sense of integrity and virtue8--,evening ,gazette4 ,valuable ,school ,books4 ,,elements ,,of ,,political ,,economy1 ,by ,francis ,wayland1 ,d4,d41 ,president of ,brown ,university4 ,fifteenth ,thousand4 #abmo4 cloth4 ,price #a4be ,his object has been to write a book1 which any one who chooses may understand4 ,he has1 therefore1 labored to express the general principles in the plainest manner possible1 and to illustrate them by cases with which every person is familiar4 ,it has been to the author a source of regret1 that the course of discussion in the following pages1 has1 unavoidably1 led him over ground which has frequently been the arena of political controversy4 ,in all such cases1 he has endeavored to state what seemed to him to be truth1 without fear1 favor1 or affection4 ,he is conscious to himself of no bias towards any party whatever1 and he thinks that he who will read the whole work1 will be convinced that he has been influenced by none4--,extract from the ,preface4 ,,political ,,economy1 ,,abridged1 by the ,author1 and adapted to the use of ,schools and ,academies4 ,seventh ,thousand4 #ahmo4 half morocco4 ,price #ej cents4 ,the success which has attended the abridgment of ,the ,elements of ,moral ,science has induced the author to prepare an abridgment of this work4 ,in this case1 as in the other1 the work has been wholly re-written1 and an attempt has been made to adapt it to the attainments of youth4 ,the original work of the author1 on ,political ,economy1 has already been noticed on our pages2 and the present abridgment stands in no need of a recommendation from us4 ,we may be permitted1 however1 to say1 that both the rising and risen generations are deeply indebted to ,dr4 ,wayland1 for the skill and power he has put forth to bring a highly important subject distinctly before them1 within such narrow limits4 ,though 'abridged for the use of academies1' it deserves to be introduced into every private family1 and to be studied by every man who has an interest in the wealth and prosperity of has country4 ,it is a subject little understood1 even practically1 by thousands1 and still less understood theoretically4 ,it is to be hoped1 this will form a class-book1 and be faithfully studied in our academics2 and that it will find its way into every family library2 not there to be shut up unread1 but to afford rich material for thought and discussion in the family circle4 ,it is fitted to enlarge the mind1 to purify the judgment1 to correct erroneous popular impressions1 and assist every man in forming opinions of public measures1 which will abide the test of time and experience4--,boston ,recorder4 ,an abridgment of this clear1 common sense work1 designed for the use of academies is just published4 ,we rejoice to see such treatises spreading among2 the people2 and we urge all who would be intelligent freemen1 to read them4--,new ,york ,transcript4 ,we can say1 with safety1 that the topics are well selected and arranged2 that the author's name is a guarantee for more than usual excellence4 ,we wish it an extensive circulation4--,new ,york ,observer4 ,it is well adapted to high schools1 and embraces the soundest system of republican political economy of any treatise extant4--,daily ,advocate4 ,,thoughts on the present ,collegiate ,system in the ,united ,states4 ,by ,francis ,wayland1 ,d4,d4 ,price #fj cents4 ,these ,thoughts come from a source entitled to a very respectful attention2 and as the author goes over the whole ground of collegiate education1 criticising freely all the arrangements in every department and in all their bearings1 the book is very full of matter4 ,we hope it will prove the beginning of a thorough discussion4 ,,paley',s ,,natural ,,theology1 ,illustrated by forty plates1 and ,selections from the notes of ,dr4 ,paxton1 with additional ,notes1 original and selected1 for this edition2 with a vocabulary of ,scientific ,terms4 ,edited by ,john ,ware1 ,m4,d4 #abmo4 sheep4 ,price #a4be4 ,the work before us is one which deserves rather to be studied than merely read4 ,indeed1 without diligent attention and study1 neither the excellences of it can be fully discovered1 nor its advantages realized4 ,it is1 therefore1 gratifying to find it introduced1 as a text-book1 into the colleges and literary institutions of our country4 ,the edition before us is superior to any we have seen1 and1 we believe1 superior to any that has yet been published4--,spirit of the ,pilgrims4 ,perhaps no one of our author's works gives greater satisfaction to all classes of readers1 the young and the old1 the ignorant and the enlightened4 ,indeed1 we recollect no book in which the arguments for the existence and attributes of the ,supreme ,being1 to be drawn from his works are exhibited in a manner more attractive and more convincing4--,christian ,examiner4 99 99 99 99 99 ,transcriber ,note ,two incidences of ,ben ,wevis 7pp4 #f and #ahb7 were changed to ,ben ,nevis4 ,ben ,wyvis on page #ca was left unchanged as there is a peak with that name6 ,some minor typos were corrected4 ,duplicate ,advertisements from the front of the book were deleted6 ,to avoid splitting paragraphs by ,plate images1 text was moved4 ,due to the length of some paragraphs and the footnotes they reference1 the following paragraphs were split to accommodate placement of their footnotes nearer to their anchors4 ,page ,line #ai #bd #acj #i #afa #h #afb #i #bbc #ac