THE 
 
 OKIGIN OF THE SEASONS 
 
"WHENEVER A NEW AND STARTLING FACT is BROUGHT TO LIGHT 
 
 IN SCIENCE, PEOPLE FIRST SAY * IT IS NOT TRUE,' THEN, THAT 
 ' IT IS CONTRARY TO RELIGION,' AND LASTLY, 'THAT EVERYBODY 
 KNEW IT BEFORE.'" 
 
MIL ID 
 
 JECTION 
 
 . Edinburgh. 
 
THE 
 
 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS 
 
 CONSIDERED FROM A 
 
 GEOLOGICAL POINT OF VIEW 
 
 BY 
 
 SAMUEL MOSSMAN 
 
 AUTHOR OF 'CHINA, ITS HISTORY AND INSTITUTIONS, 
 'OUR AUSTRALIAN COLONIES,' ETC. ETC. 
 
 WITH A MAP AND DIAGRAMS 
 
 WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS 
 
 EDINBURGH AND LONDON 
 
 MDCCCLXIX 
 
 f .- , x. - Tl\e Right of Translation is reserved 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 AMONG the natural phenomena in the physical world 
 of practical importance to mankind, none, perhaps, have 
 engrossed public attention in all civilised nations more 
 than the ever-recurring, ever-changing vicissitudes of 
 THE SEASONS. This has been especially the case in the 
 islands and continent of Europe, from the most ancient 
 times up to the present day, in consequence of Spring, 
 Summer, Autumn, and Winter being more equal in 
 their division of the year than in the other temperate 
 regions of the north and south hemispheres. Moreover, 
 if there be any nation more than another where the 
 seasons, with their varied phenomena, troop most reg- 
 ularly in succession, and are most distinctly typical 
 of all their vicissitudes throughout the year, our own 
 United Kingdom, embracing all the British Isles, ranks 
 first upon the calendar. It must be admitted, however, 
 that the proverbial changeableness of our insular climate, 
 compared with the average regularity of continental ones, 
 frequently disturbs the progress of the seasons in pursu- 
 ing the " even tenor of their way," when a wintry day 
 
 M372422 
 
VI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 will sometimes rush in with snowy garb upon the leafy 
 blossoming trees of summer. But even these exceptions 
 to the rule enhance the interest we attach to the study 
 of that universal theme, The Weather, which emanates 
 from them, and in which all classes of society find a 
 topic of daily consideration, more or less important as 
 it enters into the business of life, affecting their pursuits 
 in raising food for subsistence, or the enjoyment of health 
 and comfort. Hence the vicissitudes of the seasons from 
 day to day are matters of universal interest and remark 
 from the peer to the peasant, and almost everybody pro- 
 fesses to have some special opinion regarding their 
 effects upon vegetation and animal existence. Yet it 
 will be found, by any one who takes the trouble to in- 
 quire, that few people, even educated persons, are cog- 
 nisant of the immediate cause from whence the seasons 
 spring. 
 
 Perhaps this arises from the technical and abstruse 
 method used by astronomers in describing the inclina- 
 tion of the earth's axis, its diurnal revolution, annual 
 rotation, and attendant phenomena, " Phenomena of 
 great interest to the inhabitants of the earth pheno- 
 mena which have their source in the double movement 
 of our planet. From one day to another the inhabitants 
 of the same place let us rather say the inhabitants of 
 the same latitude see the sun ascend above the horizon 
 to variable heights. The points in the east and west 
 where the radiant body rises and sets change their 
 places, the sun at noon attains a greater or lesser alti- 
 tude and the length of its daily sojourn above the hori- 
 zon gives to the days and nights their variable and 
 
INTRODUCTION. vii 
 
 unequal lengths ; hence different temperatures and di- 
 versified climatic conditions hence The Seasons" Even 
 this apparently simple astronomical description fails to 
 impress the mind with a clear substantial view of the 
 terrestrial cause which produces the phenomena. Pro- 
 minence is given to the apparent motion of the sun, 
 while the peculiar angle of the earth's axis, which is the 
 true cause of the seasons, is left in the background. It 
 is with a view to render the question more interesting 
 and impressive to the general reader that the following 
 method of treating it upon geological principles has been 
 adopted. Not, be it understood, with the intention of 
 superseding the researches of astronomers where they 
 prove the movements and perturbations of the earth 
 and her sister planets, by mathematical demonstration, 
 to affect the revolution of the seasons. On the contrary, 
 it is with a desire to unite the principles of the modern 
 study of geology with those of the more ancient science 
 of astronomy, that we venture on propounding a new 
 theory, believing that henceforth the two sciences must 
 be associated to obtain a full explanation of the pheno- 
 mena of the universe. 
 
 Hitherto geology has been considered in some meas- 
 ure antagonistic to astronomy ; but now, as the investi- 
 gations of geologists unfold the past physical condition 
 of the earth, the records exhumed furnish data for ascer- 
 taining more correctly the nature and substance of the 
 planets. Aided by powerful telescopes, observers are 
 now beginning to form an accurate idea of the moon's 
 geology. Portions of meteoric stones that have reached 
 the surface of our planet have been examined, and found 
 
Vlll INTRODUCTION. 
 
 to contain minerals analogous to those composing our 
 sedimentary rocks, from which it has been inferred that 
 they belonged to heavenly bodies similar to the earth, 
 having passed through geological epochs of the same 
 character. On the other hand, the planets are shown 
 to present different degrees of inclination in their axes 
 of rotation as compared with that of our own, thereby 
 furnishing data for inquiry as to whether the earth may 
 not have at some period passed through greater or lesser 
 angles of displacement from a normal condition. Thus 
 may the two sciences go hand in hand, and produce an 
 astro-geological study of the past history of our planet, 
 to find the true origin of the seasons. By examining 
 the structure of the earth's crust, and the unequal dis- 
 tribution of its protuberant masses of land, we may infer 
 that internal volcanic forces have exercised more influ- 
 ence in producing the aberration of its axis than all the 
 external perturbations of the planets. It is upon this 
 basis we ground our geological theory, that the world 
 has all along possessed within its own sphere the power 
 of altering the inclination of its axis, and thereby pro- 
 ducing those charming vicissitudes in temperate regions. 
 Moreover, the same power that produced the present 
 inclination, there are data to infer, has in former periods 
 extended that angle, and produced the inexplicable phe- 
 nomenon of tropical life having once reigned in latitudes 
 where it is no longer seen. 
 
 Astronomers inform us that the angles of displace- 
 ment between the planes of the equator and the orbit of 
 our planet are diminishing according to a geometrical 
 ratio, based upon observations and records for the past 
 
INTRODUCTION. IX 
 
 two thousand years. In other words, the present limit 
 of the tropical zones, defined upon ordinary maps of the 
 world at twenty -three degrees and a half of latitude 
 north and south of the equatorial line, is less than it was 
 formerly, and its annual diminution can be ascertained 
 by the delicately-graduated instruments in our observa- 
 tories. It is true the diminution within a year is infini- 
 tesimal, but in the course of many thousands of years it 
 accumulates to a whole degree, so that in time the torrid 
 zone may contract, and the heat concentrated within its 
 circle become gradually diffused through the temperate 
 zones, which, accordingly, would widen in proportion. 
 On this basis, if we trace back the ratio of diminution 
 into the fossil records of geological time, there is abun- 
 dant evidence to show that the tropical belt at one period 
 extended far beyond its present limits, even to the lati- 
 tudes of the British Isles, or at all events to double the 
 extent of the Tropic of Cancer. At this period, the four 
 seasons, as they are now calculated upon our almanacs, 
 were not in existence. Europe was subject to climatic 
 influences similar to those prevailing at present in the 
 tropical regions of Africa or America ; and it was not 
 until the flora and fauna of that period became extinct, 
 after flourishing through successive dry and rainy sea- 
 sons, that these were broken up into four divisions, 
 introducing a new order of things into the vegetable 
 and animal kingdoms. Notwithstanding the many evi- 
 dences in astronomy and geology that the reign of the 
 seasons has been of recent origin in the physical history 
 of the earth, it seems to be a foregone conclusion, almost 
 universally entertained, that they have existed from all 
 
X INTRODUCTION. 
 
 time. It is the purpose of the following Essay to advance 
 an opposite theory, as the basis of a better explanation 
 of the varied phenomena connected with the past and 
 present history of the seasons. 
 
 Hitherto the observations of writers upon this subject, 
 and to a certain extent the investigations of meteorolo- 
 gists and hydrologists bearing upon it, have been chiefly 
 confined to the physical geography of the north as com- 
 pared with the south hemisphere, they having apparently 
 come to the conclusion that the natural phenomena of 
 the one are a counterpart of the other. This is easily 
 explained, as it is only within a very recent period, 
 almost within the present generation, that the attention 
 of scientific men has been directed to the regions at our 
 antipodes, or generally south of the equator. Now, 
 however, the spirit of investigation is alive in these 
 golden regions, attracting learned men from all parts of 
 Europe, through the liberality of the local governments, 
 who furnish yearly reports, showing, in a general sense, 
 that considerable disparities exist between the two great 
 divisions of the globe, besides the inequality in the 
 distribution of land and water at the level of the sea. 
 From these and other reports by independent observers, 
 we obtain sufficient data to advance the hypothesis that 
 in each hemisphere there are separate systems of cur- 
 rents in the sea and air, which, although following the 
 same natural laws, yet in their operations are so widely 
 different that not only are the seasons reversed, but the 
 constituents of the atmosphere exist in different propor- 
 tions. Having resided for many years in different parts 
 of the south hemisphere, the Author made it his study 
 
INTRODUCTION. xi 
 
 to compare its physical aspect with what had come under 
 his observation in the north hemisphere, from the far 
 East to the western confines of Europe. It has occurred 
 to him that, if their disparities were brought forward in 
 prominent contrast, much valuable information might be 
 elicited for the benefit of individuals and communities 
 as well as science; and on these grounds he ventures 
 upon discussing and differing from the opinions of 
 learned men in the following pages, when these appear 
 to be inconclusive. 
 
 Among the undetermined questions opened up in 
 these pages is that of geologists regarding the magnitude 
 of the internal forces of our planet in modern times ; of 
 the violence of which, during the latter part of 1868, so 
 many and such widespread manifestations have been 
 felt on the surface. On this point it has been remarked 
 that " the evidence which the earth's action has afforded 
 us in that year goes far to overthrow the theory which, 
 forty years ago, was almost universally accepted by 
 geologists, that the earth's internal fires are becoming 
 gradually extinguished. It would be difficult to point 
 to any year within the past ten centuries in which we 
 have had so many and such important evidences of the 
 energy of the earth's internal action." Without endeav- 
 ouring to revive the discussions on this question, the 
 Author thinks it a favourable opportunity to consider 
 the degrees of volcanic energy in the south hemisphere 
 as compared with those in the north, together with the 
 probable depths of the volcanic seats of action which 
 produced the disastrous earthquakes in South America, 
 California, the Sandwich Islands, the West Indies, and 
 
XU INTRODUCTION. 
 
 southern Europe, within the course of a few months. 
 On these and cognate questions it will be shown in the 
 progress of the work that their consideration is not 
 confined to science, but becomes a matter of public 
 importance. With a view, therefore, to render his 
 explanations perspicuous and interesting to the general 
 reader, the Author has treated the whole subject in a 
 popular manner. 
 
 EDINBURGH, 1869. 
 
LIST OF DIAGRAMS, AND MAP. 
 
 FIG. PAGE 
 
 Map of North and South Hemispheres, to face title-page. 
 
 1. Section of Asia projected into the Indian Ocean, showing the 
 
 greatest elevations and depressions of land on the Earth, 5 
 
 2. Section of the Earth, illustrating theory of unequal poise in 
 
 its axis, 41 
 
 3. The Earth. Its axis of diurnal and annual rotation, . . 46 
 
 4. Jupiter. Inclination of axis only 3 to the plane of its orbit, 126 
 
 5. Mars. Showing the inclination of its axis, 30 18', . . 127 
 
 6. Saturn. Inclination of axis, 26 49', 133 
 
 7. Venus. Compared with the Earth, inclination of axis, 
 
 49 58', 135 
 
 8. Mercury. Greatest inclination of axis computed at 75, . 141 
 
 9. The Earth. Position at the solstices and equinoxes, . 158 
 
 10. The Earth. Its orbit, showing the progress of the seasons, 159 
 
 11. Diagram illustrating a new theory of the prevailing winds, 330 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 P A E T I. 
 
 THE LAND. 
 
 CHAP. PAGE 
 I. CONFIGURATION OF THE LAND ABOVE AND BELOW 
 
 THE SEA, 3-23 
 
 II. CONFIGURATION OF THE LAND ABOVE AND BELOW 
 
 THE SEA continued, ...... 24-43 
 
 III. EXTINCT TROPICAL EPOCH IN EUROPE, . . . 44-62 
 
 iv. EXTINCT TROPICAL EPOCH IN EUROPE continued, 63-82 
 
 V. EXTINCT TROPICAL EPOCH IN EUROPE continued, 83-107 
 
 VI. TRANSITION PERIODS OF THE TROPICAL EPOCH IN 
 
 EUROPE, 108-123 
 
 VII. PLANETARY TROPICAL ZONES, .... 124-153 
 
 VIII. EPOCH OF THE SEASONS 154-173 
 
 ix. EPOCH OF THE SEASONS continued, . . . 174-189 
 
 x. EPOCH OF THE SEASONS continued, . . . 190-217 
 
 P A E T II. 
 
 THE SEA. 
 
 XI. THE PRIMEVAL SEA, 221-251 
 
 XII. PHYSICAL CONDITION OF THE SEA AND ITS INHAB- 
 ITANTS , 252-278 
 
 XIII. VEGETATION AND CURRENTS OF THE SEA, . . 279-305 
 
XVI 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PART III. 
 
 THE AIR. 
 
 XIV. THE PRIMEVAL ATMOSPHERE, C H -, . 309-327 
 
 XV. CIRCULATION AND CONSTITUENTS OF THE AIR, . 328-347 
 XVI. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE VEGETATION OF THE 
 
 NORTH AND SOUTH HEMISPHERES, . . . 348-371 
 
 XVII. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE VEGETATION OF THE \ 
 
 NORTH AND SOUTH HEMISPHERES continued, . 372-389 
 XVIII. CONTRAST BETWEEN THE CLIMATES OF THE NORTH 
 
 AND SOUTH HEMISPHERES CHINA, . . . 390-410 
 XIX. CONTRAST BETWEEN THE CLIMATES OF THE NORTH 
 
 AND SOUTH HEMISPHERES AUSTRALIA, . . 411-438 
 XX. REMARKABLE PHYSICAL ASPECT OF SOUTH AMERICA. 
 
 CONCLUSION, 439-472 
 
PART I. 
 
 THE LAND 
 
CHAPTEE I. 
 
 CONFIGURATION OF THE LAND ABOVE AND BELOW THE SEA. 
 
 Progress of submarine geography, 1. Stupendous elevations and depres- 
 sions of the earth's crust, 2. Centrifugal force of elevated lands and 
 mountain- chains, 3. Their general aspect from the bottom of the sea, 4. 
 Cubic contents and absolute weight of the earth, 5. Disparity between 
 the solid bulk of the north and south hemispheres, 6. Estimated differ- 
 ence in weight, 7. The magnitude of land upheaved, evidence of incon- 
 ceivable volcanic force, 8. Accumulative power of internal forces, 9. 
 Lyell's geological theory considered, 10. Supposed infinite duration of 
 geological time, 11. Laws of force obscure, 12. Power of gravitating 
 force, 13. Force of earthquakes, 14. Vestiges of former volcanic force, 
 15. Humboldt's estimate of upheaving forces, 16. He points out evi- 
 dence of unequal internal forces exercised in the north and south hemi- 
 spheres, 17. Application of the principle involved to account for the dis- 
 turbance of the earth's equilibrium, 18. Comparative power of volcanic 
 force at its deep-seated origin and on the earth's surface, 19. Earth- 
 quakes in America furnish data for computing the depths of the seats of 
 volcanic activity, 20. Probable depth of the volcanic origin of the South 
 American earthquakes of 1868, 21. Concluding remarks on volcanic 
 force as a motive power in the movements of our planets, 22. 
 
 UPON ordinary maps of the world the configuration of the 
 land is superficially delineated, as it appears at the level of 
 the sea, with radiating lines intended to convey an approxi- 
 mate idea of the elevation of mountains above that level. 
 Until recently the study of geography has been confined to 
 the surface of the earth visible above its waters ; and though, 
 from time to time, some bolder inquirer than his neighbour 
 has speculated upon the possible form of the land hid from 
 view under the depths of the ocean, yet for all practical pur- 
 poses geographers formerly ignored the existence of submarine 
 
4 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 geography. It was not until Humboldt and other eminent 
 men of science turned their attention to this neglected sphere 
 of observation, that the configuration of the land beloiv the 
 level of the sea was pointed to as an important practical study 
 in the extended science of Physical Geography. Accordingly, 
 hydrographers of all nations volunteered their services to 
 solve the great problem. They soon determined that the sea 
 is not unfathomable, as hitherto supposed, for they have 
 reached some of its profoundest depths with skilfully -in- 
 vented instruments, which have brought up minute shells 
 of infusoria; from the basin of the North Atlantic at depths 
 reaching to six miles. Further, from a series of soundings 
 across the land it flows over between the British Isles and 
 America, it has been shown that the ocean bed is diversified 
 by hills and valleys, table-lands and precipitous crags, just as 
 these geographical features of the land present themselves 
 above the level of the sea. Moreover, the entire basin of the 
 Atlantic forms in itself a vast submarine valley, of which 
 that portion between Ireland and Newfoundland is about 
 two thousand miles wide, and nearly three miles deep at its 
 lowest part. Hence a person standing on the island of Valen- 
 cia on the west coast of Ireland is about the same distance 
 and elevation above the bottom of the Atlantic across which 
 the telegraph cables lie that the summit of Mont Elanc is 
 above his position. And if the bed of the ocean were dry, 
 and he were to descend to the bottom, he might traverse as 
 varied a region as that which lies above the level of the sea 
 between him and the highest peak of the Alps. Consider, 
 therefore, at what a giddy height we are perched above the 
 real terra firma base of the mountains forming the eastern 
 slope of the Atlantic valley. Like some of the cities built 
 far up in the Andes, near the line of perpetual snow in the 
 tropics, London would be situated among these mountains, 
 of which the Scottish peaks would form the summit of the 
 British groups at an elevation of 20,000 feet. 
 
 2. Stupendous Elevations and Depressions of the Earth's 
 Crust. But even this stupendous inequality on the earth's 
 
THE LAND. 
 
6 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 surface is not its greatest elevation or depression. There are 
 other points at the sea-level where the mountains inland rise 
 on the one hand to double the height of the Alps, and on the 
 other hand the bed of the ocean reaches to twice the depth 
 of that just indicated. Such a position exists at Point de 
 Galle in Ceylon, or, more appropriately perhaps, Cape Como- 
 rin, at the extreme verge of Hindostan, where the observer 
 stands between the Himalaya Mountains and the central bed 
 of the Indian Ocean. Gaurisankar, the monarch of the 
 Himalayas, and the highest mountain in the world, is 29,000 
 feet above the sea ; while the greatest ascertained depth of 
 the ocean is upwards of 35,000 feet. Here then we have a 
 depression and elevation of the land 12 miles in perpen- 
 dicular height. However, as the distance between the two 
 extremes is not far short of 2000 miles, this indentation of 
 the earth's crust would not appear greater in proportion than 
 that between the Alps and the bed of the Atlantic already 
 given. A more striking example of precipitous elevation and 
 depression exists between the highest peaks of the Andes and 
 the bed of the Pacific Ocean adjacent, where they rise " like 
 a wall on an immense crevice," as Humboldt remarks, which 
 is not less than eight miles in perpendicular height in a dis- 
 tance of about 200 miles by horizontal measurement. 
 
 3. Centrifugal Force of Elevated Lands and Mountain- 
 Chains. In this manner we obtain a more correct view of 
 the greatest inequalities of the earth, and, what is important, 
 we are enabled to form some estimate of the leverage, or in- 
 crease of rotating power, the world acquires from these stu- 
 pendous mountain-chains, which whirl with centrifugal force 
 at the extreme verge from its centre. These extremes of 
 elevation and depression are pointed out to show that the 
 ordinary method of calculating the heights of table-lands and 
 mountains above the level of the sea, does not furnish a 
 correct basis for the elucidation of our geological theory as to 
 the origin of the seasons being the result of disparity in the 
 earth's hemispherical equilibrium. Consequently we have 
 prepared a diagram delineating a section of the world, exhi- 
 
THE LAND. 7 
 
 biting an approximate outline of its solid form above and 
 below the level of the sea. In like manner a map of the 
 world on the same projection would show that the three 
 great oceans the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific are only 
 vast valleys filled with water. If, therefore, at the outset, 
 the reader will look at the solid matter of the world from a 
 subaqueous point of view, as he does at present from a sub- 
 aerial position, he will better understand the force of the pro- 
 positions advanced. It is nothing new to treat water simply 
 as a denser medium than air as one of the great supporters 
 of animal life, which is inhaled and exhaled by gill-breathing 
 fishes as the atmosphere is by lung-breathing animals. 
 
 4. Their General Aspect from the Bottom of the Sea. 
 Viewed in this light, how the bulk of each island and conti- 
 nent expands not merely doubling itself, but increasing five 
 and ten fold at the base as compared with the apex visible 
 above the sea. Here some solitary rock in the Atlantic be- 
 comes the pinnacle of a rocky mountain-chain like that which 
 fringes the coasts of America; there a "fairy isle" in the 
 Pacific crowns the summit of a volcanic cone that rivals 
 Chimborazo ; while the great Barrier Reef, off the east coast 
 of Australia, becomes a mountain-chain like the Cordilleras 
 of South America. So, in proportion, are the continents 
 enlarged in area and elevation. The table-lands of Mexico 
 assume gigantic proportions as they rise from their base in the 
 two ocean-valleys of the North Atlantic on the east, and the 
 North Pacific on the western slope. Europe and Africa would 
 be as one continent, with the Mediterranean, about half its 
 present depth and area, a lake in the mountains, 10,000 feet 
 above the valley of the Atlantic, as Lake Titicaca now lies 
 above the lower valleys of South America. But that region 
 which would show the most remarkable inequality on the 
 configuration of the earth, is where the table-lands of Tibet, 
 forming the central plateau of Asia, with the crest of the 
 Himalayas, would be augmented in elevation to 45,000 feet 
 above the lowest ocean -valleys, and form almost a semi- 
 hemisphere of the earth's crust above the sea-bed averaging 
 
8 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 20,000 feet in height. This enormous increase will be more 
 apparent if we take into consideration the average elevation 
 of the Asiatic .continent, as determined by Humboldt at not 
 more than 1150 feet above the level of the sea. By this 
 process of calculation the bulk of this great excrescence of the 
 world if we may so term it in the north hemisphere, hav- 
 ing no equivalent or counterpoise in the south, is augmented 
 to such a degree that its dimensions appear only exceeded in 
 greatness by all the land itself above the sea-level. Yet we 
 are led to suppose that this vast preponderance of solid 
 matter of massive rocks whose specific gravity is three 
 or four times that of water towering up to peaks ten or 
 twelve miles in vertical height above their bases spreading 
 over half the superficies of the north hemisphere that this 
 inconceivable bulk of heavy solid matter has no more influ- 
 ence over the rotation of the world than if it were so much 
 air and water. 
 
 5. Cubic Contents and Absolute Weight of the Earth. 
 The solid contents of the earth have been computed at up- 
 wards of 259,000 millions of cubic statute miles, and its ab- 
 solute weight at about 5842 trillions of tons. Of these totals 
 the sea comprises 788 millions of cubic miles; and for its mass 
 or weight (taking the specific gravity of sea-water under a pres- 
 sure of two miles at 1050), 3,270,600 billions of tons, or one 
 1768th part.* These estimates are based upon the average 
 specific gravity of the terrestrial substance calculated at 5 J to 
 1 of water. They include the ocean, but we are not certain 
 whether the weight of the atmosphere is comprised in the 
 general average. This, however, is immaterial, as the aerial 
 envelope is only 1,125,000th part of the total mass of the 
 earth, weighing something over the 200th part of 1 trillion 
 tons. Taking these estimates of the bulk and density of our 
 planet as a whole, they have been chiefly used for astronomi- 
 cal purposes, in computing the perturbations of the earth on 
 the other members of the planetary system. We may, with 
 equal propriety, apply them to the purposes of physical geo- 
 * Art. " Physical Geography/' 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE LAND. 9 
 
 graphy, as bearing upon our theory of unequal hemispheri- 
 cal equilibrium. For example, if we can imagine the earth 
 divided into two hemispheres through the equatorial line, 
 just as we would divide a lemon in the middle, it will be 
 found by computation that the north hemisphere is consider- 
 ably heavier than the south. As regards the precise differ- 
 ence, the present state of our knowledge regarding the pro- 
 found depths of the ocean can only lead us to an approxi- 
 mation towards the truth. Enough is known, however, to 
 venture upon a calculation for the sake of illustrating our 
 theory, trusting that it may suggest to some competent 
 geometrician the formula for a more correct computation and 
 solution of the problem. 
 
 6. Disparity between the Solid Bulk of the North and South 
 Hemispheres. In forming a basis for such an estimate, we 
 must not go by the ordinary superficies of land and sea, given 
 in round numbers as one of the former to three of the latter. 
 "We must endeavour to find the bulk of the upper strata of 
 the earth's crust at corresponding depths with the ocean, and 
 strike an average for area and depth, say of four miles below 
 its level. Taking all things into consideration, we assume an 
 approximate average of the hemispheres being equal. Then, 
 by dividing each hemisphere into three parts, we may estimate 
 the north as containing 2 of land and 1 of water, and the 
 south 2 of water and 1 of land. According to the above 
 calculation of the earth's absolute weight, an average half 
 contains 2921 trillions of tons. But, as we find the pre- 
 ponderance of heavier matter in the north, we must add the 
 excess of weight on the one hand to it, and deduct the de- 
 ficiency on the other from the south, in consequence of the 
 lesser weight of its aqueous preponderating contents, to ascer- 
 tain the disparity of the external hemispherical equilibrium. 
 Having secured our ground so far, it remains, to complete our 
 formula, to take the average specific gravity of the rocks at 
 the mean pressure of the sea, as 4 to 1 of water, or 1 J less 
 than the aggregate 5J to 1 of the whole terrestrial globe 
 according to Laplace. 
 
10 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 7. Estimated Difference -in Weight, On this basis we 
 have to add six times the weight of water in the north hemi- 
 sphere, which is equal to one-third of the whole ocean, or 
 1,090,200 billions of tons, making, in even figures, 6J trillions 
 thereby augmenting the absolute weight to 2927 \ trillions 
 of tons. According to the same ratio, the south hemisphere is 
 reduced to 291 4J trillions of tons. Thus we have a disparity 
 of 13 trillions in absolute weight between the two hemi- 
 spheres, equivalent to about four times the gravity of the entire 
 ocean ; or the 450th part of the solid earth added to the 
 northern half over the southern, and thereby overbalancing 
 its axis. This view of the disparity between the weight of 
 the solid fabric of the globe, when divided at a right angle 
 to its axis of rotation, illustrates the enormous difference 
 between the land seen above, to that which forms its basis 
 below the level of the sea. As in an iceberg floating on 
 the deep the spectator beholds only one-ninth of its crystal- 
 line substance above the water, so do we see in the conti- 
 nents and islands less than one-twentieth of their bulk, 
 reaching down to its profoundest depths. 
 
 8. TJie Magnitude of Land upheaved, Evidence of Incon- 
 ceivable Volcanic Force. Although this unequal division 
 in the absolute weight of the terrestrial sphere doubtless 
 exercises its influence on the inclination of its axis, yet we 
 do not claim this power in repose as equal, in the smallest 
 degree, to the disparity in action that must have existed 
 during the early geological epochs, when the accumulated 
 internal forces first upheaved the vast continental masses 
 in the north compared with those in the south. What, for 
 example, must have been the incalculable volcanic forces 
 which at different periods acted within the earth when the 
 crystalline rocks of the Himalayas were upheaved ! Let the 
 observer rise to these in contemplation, even their magnitude 
 above the sea-level, and some idea of this force must impress 
 his imagination. Standing within the shadow of the pris- 
 matic rocks that support the roof of Fingal's Cave at Staffa, 
 he may estimate the force that upheaved that fretted roof by 
 
THE LAND. 11 
 
 calculating the amount of animal strength and machine force 
 that was required to raise the dome of St Paul's. From this 
 basaltic isle he may travel to the mainland and ascend Ben 
 Lomond or some other of the Highland mountains, where 
 precipitous crags dwarf the rocky cliffs he has left, the agency 
 that upheaved which must have been proportionately as 
 much greater than that which raised the isle. From the 
 Highland mountains let him ascend the Alps, and look down 
 from their peaks piercing the rare atmosphere above the 
 line of perennial snow and gauge, if he can, the tremen- 
 dous forces which could have upheaved to such a height that 
 mass of igneous rock, as much surpassing the Highland 
 mountains as these do " famed Staffa's Isle." But even 
 these become of far inferior magnitude if he journey to the 
 summit of the Himalayan crest or the chain of the Andes. 
 " If we were even to picture to ourselves Mount Pilatus 
 placed on the Schreckhorn, or the Schneekoppe of Silesia 
 on Mont Blanc, we should not have attained to the great 
 colossus of the Andes, the Chimborazo, whose height is twice 
 that of Mount Etna ; and we must pile the Bighi or Mount 
 Athos on the summit of the Chimborazo in order to form a 
 just elevation of the Dhawalagiri, the highest mountain of 
 the Himalaya."* The elevated mass of land forming the 
 whole of this vast group and the table-lands on which it 
 is piled, as far transcends the Alps in density and bulk 
 of rock as it does the Highland mountains : and as Fingal's 
 cave is only a portion of the isle the Scottish Highlands a 
 part of Great Britain the Alps a section of Europe so are 
 the Himalayas only a division of the Asiatic continent ; 
 while that vast region is rivalled in area by Africa, and 
 in elevation by America. It is almost impossible for the 
 human mind to grasp the cubic measurement of these pro- 
 tuberances of land that bulge out from the spheroidal form 
 of the earth ; or to estimate the tremendous internal force 
 overcoming the law of gravitation which upheaved them 
 to their present elevation. 
 
 * Humboldt's ' Cosmos.' 
 
12 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 9. Accumulative Poiver of Internal Forces. It must not 
 be supposed, however, that these internal forces were exer- 
 cised at one time. On the contrary, geology teaches us that 
 ages elapsed in the upheaval of rocks between one epoch 
 and another. Nevertheless, the disturbing influences of 
 these forces upon the revolution of the earth we take to have 
 succeeded each other in the same direction, and thus to have 
 become cumulative in the displacement of its axis. Once 
 an upheaval was made through the stratified rocks lying in a 
 horizontal position on a certain part of the globe, it follows 
 logically that others continued in the same line of disrup- 
 tion simply because a fissure was made through which the 
 first molten mass was ejected. As to why the primary forces 
 were greater in a northern direction than in a southern point 
 from the earth's centre we are not prepared to say; but it 
 is very probable that the law of universal gravitation, act- 
 ing through the attraction of some heavenly body, drew the 
 incandescent matter of the earth towards the surface, where 
 it now preponderates in its solid state. So far our theory 
 is in harmony with that of the astronomers, who attribute 
 the obliquity of the ecliptic and its diminution to celestial 
 perturbations. 
 
 10. LyelVs Geological Theory considered. On the other 
 hand, the most advanced school of geology, founded by Sir 
 Charles Lyell, holds that at no period of the earth's geo- 
 logical history are there data for assuming that the volcanic 
 forces were more powerful than at the present day or during 
 the historical era. On this point that eminent geologist 
 remarks: "As we enlarge our knowledge of the ancient 
 rocks formed by subterranean heat, we find ourselves com- 
 pelled to regard them as the aggregates of innumerable erup- 
 tions, each of which may have been comparable in violence 
 to those now experienced in volcanic regions. It may indeed 
 be said that we have as yet no data for estimating the relative 
 volume of matter simultaneously in a state of fusion at two 
 given periods, as if we were to compare the columnar basalt 
 of Staffa and its environs with the lava poured out in Iceland 
 
THE LAND. 13 
 
 in 1783 ; but for this very reason it would be rash and un- 
 philosophical to assume an excess of ancient as contrasted 
 with modern outpourings of melted matter at particular 
 periods of time. It would be still more presumptuous to 
 take for granted that the more deep-seated effects of subter- 
 ranean heat surpassed at remote eras the corresponding effects 
 of internal heat in our own times."* This argument may 
 hold good as far as the mere outpourings of volcanic matter 
 on the external surface of the earth are concerned, but it 
 does not apply to the deep-seated internal forces that first 
 upheaved the land; nor do we deem it " rash and unphiloso- 
 phicalV to consider those forces to have exercised greater 
 power in the north hemisphere than in the south. Here is 
 the evidence before us : there is a preponderance of land in 
 the former, that could only have been upheaved at a re- 
 mote epoch by central volcanic forces which have not been 
 equalled since; otherwise we would have corresponding ele- 
 vations in the southern hemisphere, and depressions in the 
 north, under the sea-level, where continents now exist. 
 
 11. Supposed Infinite Duration of Geological Time. 
 According to this school of geology, time given, all the 
 phenomena we see in the formation of the mountain-systems 
 of the world are observable at the present period. "In 
 regard to subterranean movements, the theory of the per- 
 petual uniformity of the force which they exert on the 
 earth's crust is quite consistent with the admission of their 
 alternate development and suspension for indefinite periods 
 within limited geographical areas. . . . When reasoning on 
 the intensity of volcanic action at former periods, as well as 
 on the power of moving water, geologists have been ever 
 prone to represent nature as having been prodigal of violence 
 and parsimonious of time." * Hence the new doctrine finds 
 a solution for every geological problem in the fathomless 
 abyss of time. Without disputing the authenticity of the 
 fossil records, which furnish data for concluding that vast 
 periods of time must have elapsed during the formation of 
 * Lyell's 'Principles of Geology.' 
 
14 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the land, still we may question the computations of those 
 enthusiastic geologists who reckon epochs by tens and hun- 
 dreds of millions of years. Of them it may be said, to reverse 
 LyelTs remark, that they are prone to represent nature as 
 having been prodigal of time and parsimonious of violence. 
 Where two extreme theories are propounded, it is always best 
 to take a middle course, as likely to be nearer the truth than 
 either. On the one hand, while discarding the cataclysms 
 and tremendous convulsions of the old school, we need not 
 altogether accept the new theories of perpetual uniformity 
 throughout all time, even to that bordering on eternity. 
 However much we may appreciate this doctrine of repose, 
 yet it is a law in nature that where force exists it acquires 
 strength by degrees until it reaches a climax, when it gradu- 
 ally expends itself ; and hence there are grounds for conclud- 
 ing that the subterranean forces of the earth have decreased 
 in strength and activity from a culminating period. 
 
 12. Laws of Force obscure in Igneous and Aqueous 
 Theories. It is an undecided question among geological 
 controversialists whether the internal structure of the earth is 
 at present composed of incandescent rock, and the external 
 part only an outer shell or crust, caused by the refrigeration 
 of the molten mass ; or whether it is solid rock to its centre, 
 formed by the gradual deposit of matter during its primary 
 aqueous and gaseous condition, while the stratified rocks 
 thereby formed have generated the internal heat through 
 chemical agencies which forced the igneous rocks to the 
 surface. Into this controversy it is not necessary to enter. 
 Suffice it to say that both theories are based upon the indis- 
 putable fact that profound internal forces have existed, and 
 still exist, in upheaving masses of the earth's solid composi- 
 tion from unknown depths to its circumference, far beyond 
 its aqueous spherical form. It has been said, however, that 
 " the word force has, in general, some degree of obscurity. 
 It is used to denote the cause of motion ; but we have no 
 direct knowledge of it, and we judge of its intensity by the 
 effect of what we suppose it to produce. In all our reason- 
 
THE LAND. 15 
 
 ing concerning forces, it is the changes of motion which 
 we measure and compare together, and which are really the 
 subjects of our thoughts. Attraction and repulsion are forces 
 or principles of motion known to us only by the phenomena 
 we observe ; but the circumstance of their implying action at 
 a distance is an additional source of obscurity in which other 
 kinds of force do not participate." * 
 
 13. Power of Gravitating Force. Notwithstanding the 
 difficulty of denning in the abstract the principles of force 
 and attraction, their attendant phenomena are understood by 
 every one, especially with regard to what is visible on the 
 earth obedient to the law of gravitation. Some idea of the 
 power necessary to overcome the gravitation of bodies to the 
 earth's centre may be formed from the explosive force and 
 concussion of a gun in projecting a bullet to a height where 
 it ceases to ascend, and returns back to the ground with 
 comparatively less speed. Nevertheless this return force, or 
 attraction of gravitation, has considerable power, as military 
 men know from the effects of a shell descending from its 
 culminating point of the arc on which it has been discharged. 
 To overcome this attractive force, the projectile force must 
 preponderate. Hence, in considering the amount of inter- 
 nal force which projected the enormous masses of igneous 
 rock from the central region of the earth to its outer rim, 
 we must calculate the force of gravity by which these were 
 at every instant pulled back in a vertical line. And although 
 this downward force is slight at a short fall, yet it increases 
 with the square of the distance, until a stone descending a 
 height of a few thousand feet acquires the velocity of a can- 
 non-ball at the muzzle of the gun. A melancholy accident 
 during an Alpine ascent, illustrative of this fact, occurred 
 in 1865, when Lord Douglas and some of his companions 
 fell from the summit of the Matterhorn, down a sheer descent 
 of 4000 feet. When the bodies were discovered, portions of 
 the limbs, flesh, and clothing, were cut off as with a sharp 
 knife, and the head of the unfortunate young nobleman was 
 * Art. "Attraction," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica . * 
 
16 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 literally driven into the trunk, by coming in contact with a 
 ledge of rock in the fearful descent. 
 
 14. Force of Earthquakes. There is scarcely any neces- 
 sity, however, to adduce comparative phenomena in illus- 
 tration of the enormous power of this internal force, when 
 we have direct evidence in earthquakes and volcanic erup- 
 tions. These furnish active data from which we may com- 
 pute the dynamic force which raised the primary and sec- 
 ondary igneous formations. " Earthquakes and volcanoes, 
 which stand in intimate connection with one another, are 
 to be considered as the remains of great geognostic revolu- 
 tions of our globe previous to historical times, rarely chang- 
 ing the place of their appearance, and becoming active at 
 intervals of time varying from an hour to a hundred years."* 
 At what depth this volcanic force originates, or from what 
 immediate cause its enormous explosive and expansive power 
 is derived, there are no satisfactory data to demonstrate. 
 Many theories on this head have been put forth, but most of 
 them are mere conjecture, or without sufficient scientific data 
 to support them. Of its terrible power we have a famous 
 instance recorded in the earthquake at Lisbon, on the 1st 
 November 1755, which lasted not more than five minutes, 
 yet it laid the city in ruins and killed sixty thousand in- 
 habitants. It has been calculated that an area of the earth's 
 surface was shaken on that occasion four times greater than 
 the whole of Europe, extending from the Canadian lakes to 
 the shores of the Baltic and the West Indies. And as an 
 example of volcanic projectile power, we may cite that men- 
 tioned by Humboldt, of a solid mass of stone, measuring 
 about three hundred cubic feet, having been discharged from 
 the crater of Cotopaxi, in South America, to a distance of 
 more than eight miles. 
 
 15. Vestiges of former Volcanic Forces. In these instan- 
 ces the amount of volcanic force employed must have been 
 something tremendous compared with man's greatest efforts 
 in blasting rocks, or firing heavy ordnance charged with shot 
 
 * Johnston's 'Physical Atlas.' 
 
THE LAND. 17 
 
 and shell. Yet, when we examine the effects of the forces 
 indicated, the results are comparatively insignificant to those 
 observable on an ordinary basaltic hill, such as that very 
 characteristic mount, Arthur Seat, Edinburgh, 822 feet above 
 the sea-level. And if we continue the comparison to the 
 Alps, and from these to the Himalayas, these vestiges of 
 internal action during the past epochs of the world's history 
 represent an amount of centrifugal volcanic force overcoming 
 centripetal force of gravitation that is only less in proportion 
 to the transcendent velocity of the earth itself in its rotation 
 round the sun, or the diurnal revolution on its own axis in 
 raising its aqueous diameter at the equator 27 miles above 
 the poles. 
 
 16. Humboldfs Estimate of Upheaving Forces. Hum- 
 boldt remarks in his * Cosmos :' " Although volcanoes are 
 justly termed in many languages ' fire-emitting mountains,' 
 mountains of this kind are not formed by the gradual accu- 
 mulation of ejected currents of lava ; but their origin seems 
 rather to be a general consequence of the sudden elevation of 
 soft masses of trachyte or Labradoritic augite. The amount 
 of the elevating force is manifested by the elevation of the 
 volcano, which varies from the inconsiderable height of a hill 
 to that of a cone above 19,000 feet in height." In like 
 manner geologists conclude, from inductive reasoning, that 
 the forces which elevated the crystalline rocks of Asia were 
 subject to the same laws. Granite was the active upheaving 
 agent among the older rocks : where it " occurs in large 
 insulated masses of a faintly ellipsoidal form, it is covered by 
 a crust or shell cleft into blocks," an instance of which is met 
 with in Mysore. " This sea of rocks probably owes its ori- 
 gin to a contraction of the surface of the granite, owing to the 
 great expansion that accompanied its first upheaval" * 
 
 17. He points out Evidence of Unequal Internal Forces in 
 the North and South Hemispheres. " When the traveller on 
 the declivity of an active volcano as, for instance, of Vesu- 
 vius examines the frequent partial elevations by which por- 
 
 * Leop. von Buch, quoted in 'Cosmos.' 
 B 
 
18 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 tions of the soil are often permanently upheaved several feet 
 above their former level, either immediately preceding or 
 during the continuance of an eruption, thus forming roof-like 
 or flattened summits, he is taught how accidental conditions 
 in the expression of the force of subterranean vapours, and 
 in the resistance to be overcome, may modify the form and 
 direction of the elevated portions. In this manner feeble 
 perturbations in the equilibrium of the internal elastic forces 
 of our planet may have inclined them more to its northern 
 than to its southern direction, and caused the continent in 
 the eastern part of our globe to present a broad mass, whose 
 major axis is almost parallel with the equator; whilst in 
 the western and more oceanic part, the southern extremity is 
 extremely narrow." * 
 
 18. Application of the Principle involved to account for 
 the Disturbance of the Earth's Equilibrium. In this pas- 
 sage the great physical philosopher points out the funda- 
 mental principle of the theory herein advanced. If we 
 magnify these perturbations in the volcanic district of Vesu- 
 vius to what existed in Central Asia during the upheaval 
 of its table-lands and mountain-chains, we may form some 
 conception of the disturbing forces at that period which caused 
 those " perturbations in the equilibrium of the internal elastic 
 forces of our planet " to which we assign the first impetus 
 given to the earth that altered the angle of the equatorial 
 plane from that of its orbit. Let us consider, for the sake of 
 illustration, that the world, previous to the upheaval of its 
 internal igneous masses of rock, was covered by the sea, with- 
 out one solitary island breaking the level of its aqueous sur- 
 face ] and that it revolved round the sun with these planes 
 parallel, while the diurnal revolution produced equal day and 
 night. And let us view this terraqueous globe delicately 
 poised in space, with no inequality to disturb the equilibrium 
 of its rotation ; when, suddenly, a vast mass of molten rock 
 is driven with inconceivable violence through the crust of 
 stratified rocks which confined the internal "volcanic forces, 
 * Humboldt's 'Cosmos.' 
 
THE LAND. 19 
 
 and shakes the whole framework of the globe, which had 
 hitherto enjoyed perfect repose. Then let us suppose that 
 these masses of heavy matter were driven to the surface at 
 each upheaval with cumulative force, so as to raise the superin- 
 cumbent weight of land in the north hemisphere over that of 
 the south : how easy it is to see that the centrifugal leverage 
 of the mass, and the tremendous concussion from the volcanic 
 action, might prevail to throw the earth out of its equilibrium, 
 until it reached even a greater displacement of the ecliptic 
 than now exists. 
 
 19. Comparative Power of Volcanic Force at its deep- 
 seated Origin and its Exit on the Earth's Surface. It may 
 be advanced, in opposition to these views, that we over-esti- 
 mate the importance of the elevations and depressions of the 
 earth's surface when compared to its absolute weight and 
 magnitude ; that the profoundest depths of the sea are less 
 than the smallest indentation on the rind of the smoothest 
 orange, and the highest isolated mountain on the land is but 
 as a grain of sand placed on a terrestrial globe two. feet in 
 diameter. Be it so. Nevertheless, these are external indi- 
 cations of internal forces having exercised inconceivable power 
 in the deep-seated alembic of the terrestrial laboratory. In 
 all probability they have arisen from seats of volcanic force 
 near the centre of gravity, from 2000 to 3000 miles below the 
 surface ; and in the upward ascent these forces have lessened 
 in the ratio of their projectile motion, as they gradually be- 
 came neutralised in power by the attraction of gravitation. 
 According to that law of counteraction, internal forces become 
 in a measure expended, and the most violent earthquake or 
 greatest volcanic eruption with which we are acquainted, is 
 but an infinitesimal indication of the deep-seated forces from 
 whence they sprung. The comparative degrees of internal 
 and external volcanic force we have familiarly illustrated by 
 referring to the law of projectile motion exhibited in the dis- 
 charge of a musket-ball. If the shot be fired perpendicularly 
 from the centre of gravity, the bullet is at first impelled from 
 the muzzle of the gun with such force that it would blow to 
 
20 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 pieces the hand that should attempt to arrest its progress. 
 But on reaching a certain distance the projectile force of the 
 bullet becomes expended, and it obeys the more potent power 
 of gravitation. At this culminating point the hand of 
 an infant could catch the bullet with impunity. We have 
 seen this practically exemplified in shooting at an eagle 
 soaring aloft so high that the ball reached him harmlessly 
 without injuring a feather of his wings, which he napped as 
 it were in derision, sending the deadly messenger back to 
 the ground without having fulfilled its errand. In like 
 manner, sportsmen in Australia, when attempting to shoot 
 cockatoos, which generally perch on the highest branches of 
 the giant trees in the forests of that country, find their largest 
 shot of no avail in bringing down the game, as it rattles on 
 their feathers with less force than a shower of hailstones. 
 
 20. Earthquakes in America furnish Data for Computing 
 the Depths of the Seats of Volcanic Activity. Thus we con- 
 sider that the external elevations and depressions of the land 
 are only comparative indications in degree of the power mani- 
 fested by the deep-seated volcanic forces that produced them. 
 Therefore it would be a weak argument against our views 
 concerning the stupendous elevations and depressions of the 
 earth's surface to compare Chimborazo to a grain of sand on 
 an ordinary terrestrial globe, without showing that it is but 
 the apex of a vast volcanic vent, which reaches down probably 
 a thousand miles towards the centre of our planet, where its 
 fires are in a state of activity. It may, however, be disputed 
 that there are such deep-seated sources of volcanic energy with- 
 in the terrestrial laboratory of rocks. Without going into the 
 controversy of the aqueous and igneous theories of the earth, 
 or referring to certain epochs in its past volcanic history, we 
 may safely bring forward the recent calamitous earthquakes in 
 America as an example of the profound depths from whence 
 they spring. The two extreme points affected by the con- 
 vulsions in Bolivia to the south, and California to the 
 north were not less than five thousand miles apart. If 
 
THE LAND. 21 
 
 we draw two lines on a section of the earth from these 
 points towards the centre of the earth, making a right-angled 
 triangle near the equator, we have a perpendicular depth of 
 two thousand miles below the sea-level as the possible seat 
 of the volcanic fires that produced this, the widest spread 
 earthquake of which we have any historical record. 
 
 21. Probable Depth of the Volcanic Origin of the South 
 American Earthquakes of 1868. It may be said, however, 
 that this is no proof that the source of these volcanic oscilla- 
 tions of the earth's crust are at such profound depths, as the 
 shocks of the earthquakes did not occur simultaneously, and 
 may have travelled from south to north at a comparatively 
 superficial depth. Now it so happened that the intervening 
 region by the line of volcanic action through Central America 
 was not in any way affected by internal shocks, while ten 
 weeks elapsed between the terrible catastrophe in South 
 America and the mild convulsions in the northern continent. 
 This is good evidence that the volcanic forces did not traverse 
 the strata horizontally at least in a superficial degree, and 
 forms substantial data in favour of a deep-seated origin. But, 
 irrespective of the earthquake in California, we have sufficient 
 evidence in those of South America to calculate from, as the 
 linear volcanic action extended from the south of Bolivia into 
 Chile, and thence to the north of Peru into Ecuador, a distance 
 approximating to 2500 miles. Along the whole coast within 
 that line the earth was upheaved more or less almost simultane- 
 ously on the 13th of August 1868, causing the sea to fall and 
 rise perpendicularly to a height of from thirty to fifty feet, and 
 producing a volcanic wave that swept across the Pacific Ocean 
 to New Zealand and the furthest isles of Polynesia, carrying 
 devastation in its course on land to regions eight thousand 
 miles distant. Taking the centre of this linear volcanic action 
 at an angle of 45 from its extreme points, we have a depth 
 of a thousand miles for the source. But, in order to allow 
 for all possible and unknown aberrations of this mysterious 
 power, if we reduce that to one half, and take an average 
 
22 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 depth of the volcanic seat at five hundred miles below the 
 surface, we may estimate the tremendous projectile power of 
 the internal forces at their source that could have produced 
 such commotions on the external crust of the earth as are 
 recorded in the annals of South America during the memor- 
 able earthquakes of 1868. 
 
 22. Concluding Remarks on Volcanic Force as a Motive 
 Power in the Movements of our Planet. Without referring 
 more particularly to the widespread volcanic phenomena 
 throughout the world during the latter part of that year, 
 we may point out the evidence they furnish of existing 
 internal forces radiating from the central regions of our 
 planet. In August the South American earthquakes oc- 
 curred ; in September Vesuvius was in its third state of 
 activity during the year ; on the 8th of October a shock of 
 earthquake was felt at Hiogo, in Japan ; on the 25th of that 
 month a similar occurrence overthrew some buildings in San 
 Francisco, California; and about the same time slight but 
 perceptible shocks were experienced in England. Consider- 
 ing the distant points of these indications of volcanic force, 
 some of them antipodal in their position, and the limited 
 period of time during their occurrence, it is not unphiloso- 
 phical to conclude that this activity was not only deep-seated, 
 but may have sprung from the very centre of the earth itself, 
 radiating its projectile motion to the surface, and overcoming 
 the attraction of gravitation in a perpendicular line of nearly 
 four thousand miles. If, then, we have data in modern times 
 to support a theory of cosmical volcanic activity throughout 
 the solid framework of the earth, may we not with equal pro- 
 priety conclude that before these forces were lessened in 
 power by the refrigeration of the molten rocks through which 
 they acted, the shocks of earthquakes were proportionally 
 great as the external crust was thinner than it now is ? And 
 shall it be said that these inconceivable forces had no influence 
 on the movements of our planet? that this mission was ful- 
 filled in simply piling up the hills and depressing the valleys 
 
THE LAND. 23 
 
 under the canopy of the air, or forming basins for the waters 
 of the sea ? However grand we may regard that terrestrial 
 energy in varying the physical geography and natural pheno- 
 mena of the earth, we believe that these internal forces have 
 also served, and continue to serve, the still more sublime pur- 
 pose of regulating the vast geological year in our planet, of 
 which the epoch of the seasons is its latest manifestation. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 CONFIGURATION OF THE LAND ABOVE AND BELOW 
 
 THE SEA. Continued. 
 
 Pyramidal form of continents, 23. Ancient views on the subject, 24. 
 Modern observations, 25. Humboldt traces this form in all continents, 
 26. His views on the cause of this phenomenon, 27. The probability of 
 its being a general law in nature, 28. This form augmented in the con- 
 tinents below the sea-level, 29. Probable pyramidal form of lunar con- 
 tinents, 30. Sinking of the land, 31. Darwin's observations in the 
 Pacific Ocean, 32. Subsidence and elevation of land in Sweden and 
 Finland, 33. Geological subsidence in the North Atlantic basin, 34. 
 Hnmboldt on the causes that change forms of continents, 35. Probable 
 changes that occur below the sea-level, 36. Antipodal equivalents of 
 elevation and depression in the earth's crust, 37. Controversy regarding 
 the equiponderance of continents, 38. Proofs that the equipoise of the 
 earth is not maintained, 39. Origin of maps on east and west hemi- 
 spherical projection, 40. Figure of the earth shaped more like a lemon 
 than an orange, 41. The form and rotation of the earth seen in a 
 top spinning, 42. Diagram illustrating theory of unequal poise in the 
 earth's axis of rotation, 43. Arguments in support of propounding 
 the theory, 44. 
 
 23. Pyramidal Form of Continents. It requires no learned 
 dissertation to prove that the general form of mountains is 
 pyramidal, although there are exceptional cases of the summit 
 presenting a flat -topped instead of a conical form. These 
 facts are easily demonstrable, and apparent to every person 
 who has traversed a mountainous country. But it may have 
 escaped the notice of even careful observers, that this normal 
 condition of land in its vertical position is also apparent 
 in the horizontal direction of the great continental masses. 
 Their general outline as represented on an ordinary map of 
 
THE LAND. 25 
 
 the world exhibits this geographical feature at a glance the 
 pyramidal bases being towards the north pole, and the apex 
 pointing to the south pole. Africa presents its widest base 
 in the northern hemisphere, and tapers continuously towards 
 the south, until it reaches its apex at the Cape of Good 
 Hope. This is especially apparent in the latter section south 
 of the equator, where it looks like a vast mountain that has 
 fallen into the sea. North America assumes a similar gen- 
 eral form, although its southern pyramidal termination is 
 continuous through Central America. South America may 
 be considered the type of this configuration of continents, 
 bearing a resemblance to its own peaks in the Andes, like an 
 inconceivably great Cotopaxi or Chimborazo lying prostrate 
 in the vast Pacific. Asia is less defined generally, but pre- 
 sents almost the outline of South Africa on a small scale 
 in the territory of India, where Hindostan juts out to the 
 south in the Indian Ocean. As a rule, therefore, it has been 
 concluded by the most learned geographers that all the 
 great continents assume a pyramidal form, with their bases 
 towards the north, and tapering to an apex in a southerly 
 direction. 
 
 24. Ancient Views on the Subject. This feature of the 
 land above the sea in its coast - outline is not confined to 
 modern observation, for we are informed by Humboldt that 
 " the horizontal configuration of continents in their general 
 relations of extension, was already made the subject of intel- 
 lectual contemplation by the ancient Greeks. Conjectures 
 were advanced regarding the maximum of the extension from 
 west to east, and Dicsearchus placed it, according to the 
 testimony of Agathemerus, in the latitude of Rhodes, in 
 the direction of a line passing from the pillars of Hercules 
 to Thine. . . . Strabo, who was probably influenced by 
 Eratosthenes, appears to have been so firmly convinced that 
 this parallel of 36 was the maximum of the then existing 
 extension of the world, that he supposed it had some inti- 
 mate connection with the form of the earth, and therefore 
 places under this line the continent whose existence he 
 
26 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 divined in the northern hemisphere between Thoria and the 
 coasts of Thine." These observations of the ancients go far 
 to prove that in their researches regarding the geography of 
 the world they were equally intelligent with modern ob- 
 servers ; and that it was their limited knowledge of lands 
 beyond Europe which confined their ideas. 
 
 25. Modern Observations. In modern times the subject 
 was revived, and we are informed that " the pyramidal con- 
 figuration of all the southern extremities of continents 
 belongs to the " similitudines physicae in configuratione 
 immdi," to which Bacon already had called attention in his 
 ' Novum Organon,' and with which Reinhold Foster one of 
 Cook's companions in his second voyage of circumnavigation 
 connected some ingenious considerations. On looking 
 eastward from the meridian of TenerifFe, we perceive that the 
 southern extremities of the three continents viz., Africa, 
 as the extreme of the Old World, Australia, and South 
 America successively approach nearer the south pole. New 
 Zealand, whose length extends fully 12 of latitude, forms 
 an intermediate link between Australia and South America, 
 likewise terminating in an island. It is also a remark- 
 able circumstance that the greatest extension towards the 
 south falls, in the old continent, under the same meridian in 
 which the extremest projection towards the north pole is 
 manifested. This will be perceived on comparing the Cape 
 of Good Hope and the Agulhas Bank with the North Cape 
 of Europe, and the peninsula of Malacca with Cape Taimura 
 in Siberia. . . . The pyramidal terminations of the great 
 continents are variously repeated on a smaller scale, not only 
 in the Indian Ocean, and in the peninsulas of Arabia, Hin- 
 dostan, and Malacca, but also, as was remarked by Eratos- 
 thenes and Polybius, in the Mediterranean, where these 
 Avriters had ingeniously compared together the forms of the 
 Iberian, Italian, and Hellenic peninsulas. Europe, whose 
 area is five times smaller than that of Asia, may almost be 
 regarded as a multifariously-articulated western peninsula of 
 the more compact mass of the continent of Asia, the climatic 
 
THE LAND. 27 
 
 relations of the former being to those of the latter as the 
 peninsula of Brittany is to the rest of France."* 
 
 26. Humboldt traces the Form through all Continents. If 
 we continue these researches from the configuration of pen- 
 insulas and the great continents to the whole body of the 
 earth, we find the general principle maintained, as set forth 
 in the theory herein advanced, not only in the coast-line 
 above the ocean, but, as far as has been ascertained, down to 
 the beds of all the great seas. On this point Humboldt 
 remarks: "One hemisphere of the earth (whether we divide 
 the sphere through the equator or through the meridian of 
 Teneriffe), has a much greater expansion of elevated land 
 than the opposite one ; these two vast ocean-girt tracts of 
 land, which we term the eastern and western, or the old and 
 new continents, present, however, conjointly with the most 
 striking contrasts of configuration and position of their axes, 
 some similarities of form, especially with reference to the 
 mutual relations of their opposite coasts. In the eastern 
 continent, the predominating direction the position of the 
 major axis inclines from east to west (or, more correctly 
 speaking, from south-west to north-east), whilst in the western 
 continent it inclines from south to north (or rather from 
 south-south-east to north-north-west). Both terminate to the 
 north at a parallel coinciding with that of 70 ; whilst they 
 extend to the south in pyramidal points, having submarine 
 prolongations of islands and shoals. Such, for instance, are 
 the Archipelago of Tierra del Fuego ; the Agulhas Bank, 
 south of the Cape of Good Hope ; and Tasmania, separated 
 from the mainland of Australia by Bass Strait. Northern 
 Asia extends to the above parallel at Cape Taimura, which, 
 according to Krusenstern, is in lat. 78 16'; whilst it falls be- 
 low it from the mouth of the Great Tschukotschja river, 
 eastward to Behring Strait in the eastern extremity of Asia, 
 Cook's East Cape, which, according to Beechy, is only lat. 66 
 3'. The northern shore of the new continent follows with 
 tolerable exactness the parallel of 70, since the lands to the 
 * Humboldt 'Asie Centrale.' 
 
28 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 north and south of Barrow Strait, from Boothia Felix and 
 Victoria Land, are merely detached islands."* 
 
 27. His Views on the Cause of this Phenomenon. Seeing 
 that there is a degree of uniformity in the configuration of 
 the continental masses on the earth amounting to a general 
 principle, the question arises, Have we any geological or 
 . astronomical data to account for this phenomenon ? On this 
 head Humboldt expresses his views cautiously, as follows : 
 "Very little can be empirically determined regarding the 
 casual connection of the phenomena of the formation of con- 
 tinents, or of the analogies and contrasts presented by their 
 configuration. All that we know regarding this subject re- 
 solves itself into this one point, that the active cause is sub- 
 terranean that continents did not arise at once in the form 
 they now present, but were increased by degrees by means 
 of numerous oscillatory elevations and depressions of the 
 soil, or were formed by the fusion of separate smaller conti- 
 nental masses. Their present form is therefore the result of 
 two causes, which have exercised a consecutive action the one 
 on the other : the first is the expression of subterranean force, 
 whose direction we term accidental, owing to our inability to 
 define it, from its removal beyond the sphere of our compre- 
 hension ; whilst the second is derived from forces acting on 
 the surface, amongst which volcanic eruptions, the elevation 
 of mountains, and currents of sea- water, play the principal 
 parts." * 
 
 28. The Probability of its being a General Law in Nature. 
 That there is some general law in nature, only secondary to 
 the universal law of gravitation, which regulates this pheno- 
 menon, it is reasonable to conclude. Here we find that as 
 mountains are pyramidal in their vertical elevation from 
 the centre of gravity, so the horizontal forms of con- 
 tinents are pyramidal ; and in treating of the configura- 
 tion of the earth itself, we have endeavoured to show that 
 there is a general tendency in its solid parts to assume that 
 form between the poles, notwithstanding the spherical law 
 * Humboldt's 'Cosmos.' 
 
THE LAND. 29 
 
 which regulates its fluid and aerial envelopes. May there not 
 be a subsidiary law regulating the planetary bodies while 
 entering into their solidifying state, so as to consolidate the 
 general structure upon a pyramidal principle 1 And may not 
 that law be connected with the rotation of the earth upon its 
 axis, as essential to the maintenance of its equilibrium in the 
 ecliptic, having its equatorial plane displaced at an angle of 
 23 30', just as the conical form of the common top is essential 
 to its spinning when it leans to one side while describing a 
 circle 1 If the earth were a perfect sphere, equal in diameter 
 at the crossing-point of every parallel of latitude and meridian 
 of longitude, with the specific gravity of its substance uniform 
 in ratio from its centre to its circumference, it might probably 
 have no fixed axis of rotation. Without this guiding prin- 
 ciple for its daily revolutions it would, perhaps, be an erratic 
 globe rolling hither and thither on no fixed law of rotation, 
 except in its annual course round the sun ; just as a billiard- 
 ball rolls over a table without any defined axis of rotation, 
 yet keeping the line of momentum from the point where it 
 was struck. It is impossible to conceive what would be the 
 effects of such a condition if it could exist on the earth under 
 its present state. For the sake of illustration, we may say 
 that London might one day be within the arctic circle, next 
 day in the tropics, and make a revolution from the north to 
 the south celestial hemisphere in twenty-four hours. Under 
 these circumstances, we can easily imagine that it would be 
 no fit habitation for animals or plants. Therefore, from these 
 indications of a pyramidal structure in the solid materials of 
 the world, it is evident that it is in obedience to some law 
 equivalent to that which rules the spherical form of aqueous 
 bodies. 
 
 29. This Form augmented by the Land beloio the Sea- 
 Level. If this pyramidal form of continents is so apparent at 
 the sea-level, as delineated on an ordinary map, in all proba- 
 bility it would be still more evident if we could ascertain cor- 
 rectly the general formation of the ocean-beds. This has been 
 already alluded to in defining the altitude of the land upon 
 
30 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the earth, irrespective of the water, showing that the perpen- 
 dicular height of its solid parts in relation to its lowest spher- 
 ical proportions is double that of its coast-line elevation, if 
 not more. Below that line the observations of hydrographers, 
 in their laborious task of sounding the depths of seas, prove 
 as a rule that the land gradually slopes deeper and deeper 
 until a point is reached where declination ceases, and the 
 water becomes shallower as the lead sounds the opposite 
 shore ; just as in a lake, a river, or a channel, should they 
 dry up, their beds would appear as valleys between the land 
 which formed their banks. In like, manner the beds of the 
 great oceans are merely continental valleys filled with salt 
 water. If we could behold them drained, then should we see 
 the pyramidal form of the continents sloping on each side to 
 the bottom of the valleys of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian 
 Oceans, with their tapering forms trending as far as the 
 south pole, and there forming a general apex for the pyram- 
 idal configuration of the earth or, to speak more correctly 
 and cautiously, an approximation of a general character 
 towards that form. 
 
 30. Probable Pyramidal Form of the Moon. It may be 
 said that such a theory is contrary to the laws of the universe, 
 where nothing but spherical bodies roll through the boundless 
 realms of space. " Behold the sun, moon, and planets with 
 their satellites." It may be said, "These are all perfect 
 spheres lighting up the heavens by day and night, and the 
 earth would be an exception to the universal rule, if it as- 
 sumed even the smallest approach to a pyramidal form." Not 
 so. Recent observers of the moon have discovered that the cen- 
 tral part of her disc bulges out beyond the spherical outline, 
 but which is never seen in profile in consequence of the time of 
 her orbital motion being equal to that of her axial revolution. 
 It is supposed that the half of the moon visible to us is not a 
 spherical hemisphere, but elongated ; and if the other half is 
 flattened like the earth in proportion, the shape of her satel- 
 lite would approximate to that of an egg. Those who have 
 seen the very beautiful photographs of the moon by Warren 
 
THE LAND. 31 
 
 de la Eue may distinguish, this phenomenon, where the fore- 
 shortening of the disc appears to culminate in an apex, dif- 
 ferent from that of a perfect globe. It is no part of this work 
 to venture upon the question of that interesting discovery 
 further than this casual reference, and in support of the theory 
 that there are important deviations from sphericity among the 
 planets and their satellites, which require further research by 
 astronomers before the phenomenon can be thoroughly demon- 
 strated. 
 
 31. Sinking of the Land. In connection with the raising 
 of continental masses as the chief modifying power in altering 
 the normal condition of the earth, we must not overlook the 
 opposite force of gravitation, which has caused the land to 
 sink below its primary level. This phenomenon has been ob- 
 served from the earliest historic period on the land above the 
 level of the sea, where it has been submerged, and on inland 
 territory which has suddenly sunk by some internal collapse. 
 As a general principle of geology, the upheaval of land at one 
 place would cause a corresponding depression at another; and 
 this no doubt occurred at the depths of the sea when the 
 continental masses were raised. How far the level of the 
 primitive ocean was altered by these convulsions has not been 
 ascertained ; but if the average depths of all the seas be twenty 
 times greater than the average elevation of the continents and 
 islands, then it must have decreased in level, and also in 
 quantity, as the mineral constituents were deposited in the 
 form of strata. During the periods when the greatest activity 
 prevailed in the volcanic forces of the earth towards the ex- 
 terior of the northern hemisphere, there was evidently a cor- 
 responding action in the forces of gravitation. The result of 
 these two great contending forces was the upheaval of the 
 continents of Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America on the 
 one hand ; and the sinking of the lower crust of the earth, on 
 the other hand, at the regions forming the beds of the Atlan- 
 tic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Thus, while the volcanic 
 forces acted as & positive power in hurling the earth from its 
 equilibrium in the ecliptic by a preponderance of land up- 
 
32 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 heaved a"bove the sea-level in the north, the forces of gravi- 
 tation exercised a negative influence towards the same result 
 in diminishing its density in the south by the sinking of its 
 ocean-beds. 
 
 32. Darwin's Observations in the Pacific Ocean. Here, 
 then, we have a general principle established regarding the 
 structure of the earth in its solid parts, as well as in the 
 liquid and aeriform constituents, that whatever modification 
 its surface undergoes in elevation, there is at some place a 
 corresponding depression. These phenomena are exemplified 
 on an extensive scale in the Pacific Ocean. According to 
 Darwin, the groups of coral islands in the equatorial and 
 northern divisions of that hemisphere of water are slowly 
 sinking, which he proves by the coral insects being always 
 busy at work raising their walls to the surface of the sea 
 around the crater cones of the submarine peaks, which at a 
 past geological epoch rose above the level of the ocean. This 
 would indicate a general subsidence of the ocean-bed in these 
 latitudes, which has led to the theory of some French savans, 
 that " Oceania," as that region is named on their charts, is 
 the remains of an extinct continent that formerly united Asia 
 with North America. Although that hypothesis gives sup- 
 port to our theory, inasmuch as the preponderance of land in 
 the north hemisphere might have been infinitely greater than 
 at present, still we are not disposed to indorse these views to 
 their full extent. Suffice it that there are data to prove the 
 sinking of a large area of land at the bottom of the north and 
 equatorial sections of the Pacific. Now, in the South Pacific 
 we have a corresponding gradual elevation of the land, in the 
 island-continent of Australia, which all the learned geogra- 
 phers and others who have visited its shores pronounce to be 
 slowly upheaving at so many feet in a century. 
 
 33. Subsidence and Elevation of Land in Sweden and Fin- 
 land. If, then, we have evidence of a sinking of the land in 
 the south hemisphere during the periods of its elevation in 
 the north, according to a general law of equivalents in the 
 geological theory of forces, we must conclude that a contrary 
 
THE LAND. 33 
 
 effect took place when these forces were reversed in their 
 hemispheres of action. When the continent of South Ame- 
 rica was upheaved by consecutive volcanic forces, doubtless 
 corresponding depressions in the land occurred at other parts 
 of the earth's crust, but, for obvious reasons, human re- 
 searches cannot investigate to any great extent the sub- 
 merged evidence of this phenomenon. We may safely con- 
 clude, however, that as the sinking of the land in the south 
 hemisphere reached its greatest depression during the eleva- 
 tion of the north continents, the equivalent depressions to 
 South American elevations would occur in the north hemi- 
 sphere. That such phenomena have been in operation in 
 Europe is abundantly evident from the observations of geo- 
 logists where it is visible in its effects at the present day. 
 Certainly these are comparatively small in area j nevertheless 
 they are sufficient to indicate that there was a sinking of the 
 land in the Polar Sea and North Atlantic during the up- 
 heaval of the South American continent. On this subject 
 Humboldt has the following remarks : " According to the 
 views generally adopted by geognosists in the present day, and 
 which are supported by the observation of a series of well- 
 attested facts, no less than by analogy with the most import- 
 ant volcanic phenomena, it would appear that the elevation 
 of continents is actual and not merely apparent or owing to 
 the configuration of the upper surface of the sea. The merit 
 of having advanced this view belongs to Leopold von Buch, 
 who first made his opinions known to the scientific world in 
 the narrative of his memorable ' Travels through Norway and 
 Sweden in 1806-7.' Whilst the whole coast of Sweden and 
 Finland, from Solvitzborg on the limits of Northern Scania, 
 experiences a gradual rise of four feet in a century, the 
 southern part of Sweden is, according to Neilsoii, undergoing 
 a simultaneous depression." * Sir Charles Lyell also informs 
 us that, from the observations of the Danish savans, it is 
 evident that a large portion of the coast of Greenland has 
 been gradually sinking during the last four centuries. " An- 
 
 * Humboldt's ' Cosmos.' 
 C 
 
34 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 cient buildings on low rocky islands and on tlie shore of the 
 mainland have been gradually submerged, and experience has 
 taught the aboriginal Greenlander never to build his hut 
 near the water's edge. The Moravian settlers have been 
 obliged more than once to move inland the poles upon which 
 their large boats were set, and the old poles still remain be- 
 neath the water as silent witnesses of the change." * 
 
 34. Geological Subsidence in the North Atlantic Basin. 
 From the remarkable analogy that exists in the structure of 
 the land in North America and Europe, together with the 
 similarity between the extinct fauna and flora of the two 
 continents, here are data for concluding that they were united 
 during the tropical era in northern latitudes ; so that the 
 Atlantic telegraph cables are now reposing on land at a 
 perpendicular depth of two to three miles from the level of 
 the sea, which once was elevated above its surface, diversi- 
 fied by hills, valleys, plains, and table-lands, covered with 
 a dense vegetation, and inhabited by multitudes of strange 
 reptiles, quadrupeds, and birds. It requires no elaborate argu- 
 ment to arrive at this conclusion. Suppose the land which 
 now constitutes the bed of the North Atlantic for upwards 
 of 2000 miles from east to west, and forty degrees of 
 latitude from north to south, fell from its high altitude in 
 obedience to the eternal laws of gravitation, its subsidence 
 was probably produced by an equivalent in accumulated 
 volcanic forces to that which upheaved the continent of 
 South America. 
 
 35. Humboldt on the Causes that change the Figure of 
 Continents. " The phenomena to which we would here 
 direct attention remind us of the instability of the present 
 order of things, and of the changes to which the outlines and 
 configuration of continents are still subject at long intervals 
 of time. That which may scarcely be perceptible in one 
 generation, accumulates in periods of time whose duration is 
 revealed to us by the movement of remote heavenly bodies. 
 The eastern coast of the Scandinavian peninsula has probably 
 
 * Lyell's ' Principles of Geology.' 
 
THE LAND. 35 
 
 risen about 320 feet in the space of 8000 years ; and in 
 12,000 years, if the movements be regular, parts of the 
 bottom of the sea which lie nearest the shores, and are in 
 the present day covered by nearly fifty fathoms of water, 
 will come to the surface and constitute dry land. But what 
 are such intervals of time compared to the length of the 
 geognostic periods revealed to us in the stratified series of 
 formations, and in the world of extinct and varying organ- 
 isms 1 We have hitherto only considered the phenomena of 
 elevations, but the analogies of observed facts lead us with 
 equal justice to assume the possibility of the depression of 
 whole tracts of land. The mean elevation of the non-moun- 
 tainous parts of France amounts to less than 480 feet. It 
 would not, therefore, require any long period of time, com- 
 pared with the old geognostic periods in which such great 
 changes were brought about in the interior of the earth, to 
 effect the permanent submersion of the north-western part of 
 Europe, and induce essential alterations in its littoral rela- 
 tions. . . . The depression and elevation of the solid 
 or fluid parts of the earth are the causes of all the changes 
 which occur in the configuration of continents." * 
 
 36. Probable Changes that occur below the Sea-Level. If 
 these observations on the laws of volcanic forces affecting the 
 land above the level of the sea are applicable to the configura- 
 tion of continents, how much greater in degree is their applica- 
 tion to the form of the land below that level, where the great 
 bulk of the earth's crust is hid from view? If we had the 
 same facilities of observing the ocean-beds as we have of the 
 continental areas, in all probability the elevations and sub- 
 sidence of vast tracts of land would be seen of which we at 
 present know little or nothing. The investigations of Mr 
 Darwin into the formation of coral-reefs and islands furnish 
 satisfactory evidence that there is now, and probably has 
 been for ages, a gradual subsidence in the bed of the Pacific 
 Ocean, where the islands of Polynesia rear their volcanic 
 peaks from a depth rivalling in elevation the peaks of the 
 * Humboldt's 'Cosmos.' 
 
36 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Andes above the present sea-level. The equivalent in eleva- 
 tion for this subsidence is on the mainland of Australia, 
 where the absence of very high mountains, or great contor- 
 tion of stratified rocks, leads geologists to the conclusion that 
 the volcanic forces which upheaved that region have in all 
 probability been comparatively feebler than in other regions 
 of an equal superficial area. 
 
 37. Antipodal Equivalents of Elevation and Depression in 
 the Earth's Crust. From the general principles of subter- 
 ranean forces, as exemplified in the foregoing investigations 
 and generalisation of facts by the most eminent authorities, 
 it will be seen that throughout the structure of the earth's 
 crust, below the sea as well as above its level, there is 
 evidence of an equivalent in depression for every point of 
 elevation. Moreover, as far as they can be ascertained, these 
 indications of subsidence are not far removed from lands that 
 are upheaving. From this is deduced the theory that the 
 volcanic forces are comparatively limited in area, and not 
 deep-seated in the framework of the earth. This may be the 
 case at the present day, but it does not follow that they have 
 been superficial for all time. On the contrary, if we extend 
 our observations from these local phenomena to the leading 
 geological evidences of the first subsidence of ocean-beds and 
 elevation of continental masses, there are data for concluding 
 that the primeval volcanic forces emanated from the central 
 internal regions of our planet. If we refer to a terrestrial 
 globe, and observe the antipodes of the centres of elevated 
 lands in the north hemisphere, we find them represented in 
 the south hemisphere by deep seas, where the ocean-bed in 
 some cases is one -fourth greater in depth below, than the 
 highest mountain - chains are above, the level of the sea. 
 Besides the downward force of gravitation, this arises from 
 the enormous superincumbent pressure of the ocean, by which 
 means has been produced the greater average depth below 
 of 20,000 feet, to 1000 feet of elevation above, the sea-level. 
 Be this as it may, we have the geographical evidence before 
 us, that, as a rule, the antipodes of the great continents are 
 
THE LAND. 37 
 
 seas. This is remarkably exemplified by those portions of 
 the land between middle latitudes and the circumpolar 
 regions in the north hemisphere having* their equivalent at 
 the south antipodes in a deep circumnavigable ocean. More- 
 over, the north polar sea depression has an equivalent of 
 land elevation in a probable south polar continent, if we are 
 to accept the opinions of our most advanced geographers, 
 who base their views upon the recent voyages of discovery 
 by Captain Eoss and others. 
 
 38. Controversy regarding the Equipoise of the Conti- 
 nents. Before the circumnavigation of the globe was accom- 
 plished through the voyages of discovery by Captain Cook 
 and other renowned navigators in the south hemisphere, 
 there were great discussions amongst the learned men of 
 Europe concerning the proportions of land and water in the 
 world as affecting its diurnal as well as annual rotation. 
 " For upwards of a century before the actual configuration of 
 Australia was ascertained, the most distinguished European 
 astronomers, geographers, and navigators entertained the 
 theory that there must be a continent in the southern hemi- 
 sphere equal in extent to those of Asia and Europe in the 
 northern. They argued that, in order to preserve the equilib- 
 rium of the globe, the land of the southern division must 
 extend through the tropical and temperate zones into the 
 antarctic circle, in the same manner and in corresponding 
 meridians to what was then either known or supposed, on 
 good grounds, to extend from the equator into the arctic 
 regions. They presumed that the world could not revolve 
 equally upon its axis unless there was an area of land above 
 the ocean, between the south pole and the equator, equal to 
 that in the northern hemisphere. A glance at the terrestrial 
 globe will show to what a small extent this theory has been 
 carried out by facts. Australia will be seen to counterbalance 
 scarcely the area of Europe ; while the vast Asiatic continent 
 has no other equivalent than the boundless ocean."* 
 
 39. Proofs that the Equipoise of the Earth is not main- 
 
 * ' Our Aiistralian Colonies.' By Samuel Mossraan. 
 
38 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 tained. Notwithstanding the failure in the solution of this 
 geographical problem, to the credit of these inquirers be it said, 
 that they observed the anomaly of the preponderance of land 
 in the north hemisphere, which required to be accounted 
 for in the south, as affecting the equilibrium and rotation 
 of the terraqueous globe. So far, their conclusions were 
 based upon scientific data, that the counterpoise of the north 
 hemisphere could not otherwise be maintained than by the 
 existence of an equivalent in land above the sea at the anti- 
 podes in the south hemisphere, if the equatorial plane had 
 been parallel with the plane of the earth's orbit round the 
 sun. Such, however, not being the case as the earth's axis 
 is inclined to that plane in an angle of 66 32' 36", whence 
 the equator is inclined to the ecliptic in an angle of 23 
 27' 24" we contend that this deflection solves the geo- 
 graphical problem; that the equilibrium of the earth's diurnal 
 revolution is not maintained, otherwise it would revolve daily 
 in an equatorial plane uniform with its annual course, with- 
 out presenting the phenomena of the seasons. On the other 
 hand, according to our theory, the disturbance in its equi- 
 ponderance may have been caused by the upheaval of the 
 greater mass of land in the north hemisphere over what ex- 
 ists in the south especially those continental masses above 
 the level of the sea forming the table-lands of Asia and North 
 America, with the Himalayas and other mountain-systems, 
 which added to the centrifugal force of rotation in first 
 giving momentum to this obliquity of the earth's axis. As 
 already shown, it is a well-known geographical fact that 
 nearly three-fourths of the earth's surface are covered with 
 water. But this does not imply that water forms any great 
 proportion in the ponderosity of the terraqueous globe. On 
 the contrary, its actual weight, we have seen, is infinitesirnally 
 small compared to that of its solid contents. Notwithstand- 
 ing the apparently boundless superficies of the Pacific, At- 
 lantic, and Indian Oceans, and their almost unfathomable 
 depths, yet they are only great lakes lying in the valleys of 
 the land. The bed of the sea, we have also seen, consists of 
 
THE LAND. 39 
 
 table-lands, valleys, mountains, and plains, the counterpart of 
 those geographical features we see above its level. And if 
 we consider that the mean specific gravity of the earth is to 
 that of water as 5J to 1, it will be seen how little the sea 
 enters into the scale in maintaining the equilibrium of the 
 world. Hence the south hemisphere, where the seas pre- 
 vail, is still further reduced in balancing the north hemi- 
 sphere by reason of the lighter material that enters into its 
 surface composition, equivalent to a loss of four times the 
 weight of the entire ocean. 
 
 40. Origin of Maps on East and Wvst Hemispherical 
 Projections. If we look at an ordinary map of the world in 
 hemispheres, this disparity is easily observable ; but it would 
 strike the observer more forcibly if seen on a terrestrial globe 
 divided in half at the equatorial line. Geographers and map- 
 makers have confined their delineations of the world to the 
 arbitrary division of the eastern and western hemispheres ; 
 consequently, the public eye has been so educated to this 
 projection that it fails at first sight to comprehend the^vast 
 difference between the geographical aspect of the north and 
 south hemispheres. It may not be generally known that 
 this division of the earth is a relic of the Spanish and Portu- 
 guese discoveries in the sixteenth century. On these being 
 sanctioned by Pope Alexander VI., he marked out a line traver- 
 sing the poles which divided the terrestrial globe giving to 
 the former all lands discovered west of that line of demar- 
 cation, and to the latter the eastern territories. Without 
 cavilling with that division, it would be well that modern 
 atlases contained a map of the world on the south and north 
 hemispherical projection, such as will be found in this vol- 
 ume, in order to render the outlines of the unequal distri- 
 bution of land and water familiar to the eye. 
 
 41. Figure of the Earth shaped more like a Lemon than 
 an Orange, The configuration of the earth is set down by 
 astronomers to be that of an oblate spheroid of revolution 
 that is, a sphere flattened at the poles, the polar axis being 
 to the equatorial diameter in the ratio of 305 to 306. In 
 
40 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 familiar language it is compared to the shape of an orange. 
 This popular definition applies admirably to the general 
 figure of the north hemisphere, where the polar sea is almost 
 encircled by land, rising into mountain-ranges and table-lands 
 that render the depression at the north pole well marked in 
 its profile ; while the vast bulk of Europe, Asia, North Africa, 
 and North America swell into the rind of the orange to the 
 middle belt. If we cross the equator, however, this shape 
 is not maintained; and, to follow out the comparison, the 
 world in its southern division assumes something of a lemon 
 shape. Sir James Ross, in his voyage of discovery towards 
 the south pole, came upon elevated land trending to an un- 
 known extent in that direction ; and this, with the previous 
 observations of Captain Cook and Kerguelen, furnishes data for 
 concluding that there is an extensive mountain region in the 
 centre of the south polar latitudes. Some geographers even 
 go far to prove that there exists a mountainous continent 
 equal in area to the north polar sea. Be that as it may, 
 the latitudes outside this unexplored region are known to 
 be encircled by the open sea, thereby reversing the configu- 
 ration of the earth in the antarctic to what it is in the arctic 
 regions. 
 
 42. The Form and Movements of the Earth like a Top 
 spinning. In computing the polar diameter of the earth at 
 7898 English miles, as compared with the equatorial diameter 
 of 7925, astronomers show a difference of 27 miles. Without 
 disputing that calculation, it is not illogical to conclude that 
 the depression at the north pole is considerably greater than 
 at the south, inasmuch as the water is immediately affected 
 by the diurnal revolution of the globe where the land is not. 
 At all events, the flattening at the north pole has not its 
 equivalent in the south. Moreover, if we take the land as 
 the ruling body, by virtue of its ponderosity, in the rota- 
 tion of the earth, this diversity of contour is more apparent. 
 Suppose the world emptied of its seas, the bed of the Arctic 
 Ocean would present a still greater depression at the north 
 pole, while those of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans 
 
THE LAND. 
 
 41 
 
 in the south would give the antarctic regions something of a 
 tapering form. In that case, the solid framework of the 
 earth, as the rotating power which sustains its diurnal revolu- 
 tion, may be considered an oblato-oblong spheroid or, to use 
 a familiar comparison, top-shaped. And that well-known toy, 
 which has beguiled our boyhood's hours by its rotation, may 
 show to the popular mind a familiar example of the obliquity 
 of the ecliptic, when the top leans to one side while spinning, 
 yet describing a circle in its course while kept in motion 
 the former illustrating diurnal revolution, and the ktter 
 annual rotation. 
 
 A 
 
 Fig. 2. 
 
 SECTION of the EARTH Illustrating the great Elevations and Depressions of its 
 External Solid Parts above and below the Level of the Sea. 
 
 43. Diagram illustrating Theory of Unequal Poise in the 
 Earth's Axis of Rotation. The annexed diagram, exhibiting 
 
42 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 a section of the earth, will serve to illustrate the drift of our 
 theory regarding the great continental elevations and oceanic 
 depressions of its solid parts above and below the level of the 
 sea. Of course the proportions of the external crust are purpose- 
 ly enlarged, as compared with the earth's diameter, in order 
 to make the theory more easily understood. There are three 
 great points delineated : 1st, the continent of Asia, having 
 the Pacific Ocean for its antipodes ; 2d, the North American 
 continent, with its antipodes in the Indian Ocean ; and, 3d, 
 the depression of the Arctic Ocean, in all probability having 
 an antipodal elevation in an antarctic continent. The line 
 of the polar axis, it will be seen, terminates in the centre of 
 the north polar sea on the one hand, and at a supposed 
 culminating mountain in the south polar continent on the 
 other. The present inclination of the polar axis to the 
 earth's orbit is shown by the lines A, and the probable 
 extension of that inclination, before the diminution of the 
 obliquity, is suggested by the lines B. If we take into con- 
 sideration the fact, that the termination of these lines in the 
 north hemisphere touches a line of circumference along the 
 most elevated regions, we can understand how the centrifugal 
 motion of the earth is accelerated at these angles, having its 
 true apex of revolution at the south pole. When we con- 
 sider, also, how delicately our planet is poised in space, and 
 the incalculable power exercised by its subterranean forces in 
 affecting its equilibrium, it cannot be deemed unphilosophical 
 to consider the preponderance of land in the northern hemi- 
 sphere, and the central volcanic action which elevated these 
 regions, as the primary motive power in the earlier epochs 
 of the earth's geological history that caused the inclination 
 of its axis, thereby displacing the equatorial plane from the 
 plane of its orbit, and producing the vicissitudes of the seasons 
 that did not previously exist. 
 
 44. Argument in support of advancing the Theory. It 
 may be said that the conclusions arrived at here are not sup- 
 ported by geological evidence, or if they are, it is in a degree 
 so small that they do not warrant such stupendous deduc- 
 
THE LAND. 43 
 
 tioiis. Tn reply we advance the logical argument, that it is 
 not the abundance of testimony at the outset that substan- 
 tiates a principle always ; for there are many truths now 
 established which sprang from apparently very feeble pro- 
 positions. No study has proved that in a more forcible 
 manner than geology itself, where we have seen the for- 
 merly-despised hypothesis that fossils were organic remains, 
 become the basis of the whole science connecting ex- 
 tinct with living species of plants and animals, and open- 
 ing up for human contemplation a field of knowledge only 
 second to the study of astronomy itself. If our theory be 
 viewed in that light, as simply suggesting a new process of 
 generalisation from existing data, there can be nothing rash 
 in advocating it. It does not start a new system of classi- 
 fying sedimentary strata or crystalline rocks ; or infringe 
 upon the doctrines of geology as established on existing 
 causes and effects. All that we have endeavoured to show is 
 additional evidence in the earth itself, not merely considered 
 in its minor parts but as a grand whole, that from geologi- 
 cal causes have sprung astronomical effects which further tend 
 to exalt the science. From the structure of our own planet 
 the study is now extending to a knowledge of the physical 
 condition of her satellite and other members of the planetary 
 sphere ; so that, as observers increase their knowledge by im- 
 proved instruments, we may have in time a geology of the 
 solar system. As a step in that direction we have treated the 
 structure of the earth in these brief geological passages more 
 as a unit of that system than in its terrestrial magnitude. 
 This naturally brings us to the consideration of our sub- 
 ject from its astronomical point of view, and to see what 
 light the planets throw upon our theory of the origin of the 
 seasons. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 EXTINCT TROPICAL EPOCH IN EUROPE. 
 
 Problem of the earth's axis being inclined not geometrically solved, 45. 
 Eratosthenes the first to calculate the distance of the tropics, 46. 
 Astronomical theory of axial inclination designated "obliquity of the 
 ecliptic," 47. Assumed limits to tropical oscillation of obliquity, 48. 
 Advantages of geological research into vestiges of extinct epochs, 49. 
 Fossil remains of extinct animals a popular study, 50. London Zoologi- 
 cal Gardens a restoration of extinct British fauna, 51. Kew Botanical 
 Gardens a restoration of extinct British flora, 52. Humboldt's theory 
 of the tropical epochs in Europe, 53. Theory of a perpetual equinox 
 having existed, 54. Evidence of a perpetual equinox in the planet 
 Jupiter, 55. Domes of elevation and basins of depression in the earth's 
 crust, 56. Lyell's theory of " uniformity of change," past and present, 
 57. Fossil evidence of an extended tropical region, 58. Lyell's theory 
 not sufficient to solve the question, 59. Combined with our hypothesis, 
 capable of giving a better solution to the problem, 60. 
 
 45. Problem of the Earth's Axis being inclined not geomet- 
 rically solved. At the outset of this part of our inquiry we 
 meet with the astronomical problem, whether the inclination 
 of the earth's axis is caused by the equatorial plane having 
 moved away from the plane of the orbit, or vice versa. In 
 other words, has the earth in its annual movement round 
 the sun diverged from the line of its diurnal motion, 
 or has the latter departed from the path of the former] 
 This question is not yet determined to the satisfaction of 
 astronomers, consequently it is still a moot point among 
 them, as we shall presently see. Meanwhile, we may re- 
 mark that, according to our theory, the question would be 
 more appropriately put as between the axis of revolution 
 
THE LAND. 45 
 
 instead of the planes of rotation. This manner of putting 
 the problem does not alter its value in the least, while it has 
 the advantage of placing the question more clearly in a popu- 
 lar point of view, which is aimed at in this essay. Here are 
 two lines, as shown in the diagram subjoined one repre- 
 senting the axis of annual rotation, and the other the 
 axis of diurnal revolution separated from each other on 
 the circumference of the earth by about twenty -three de- 
 grees and a half of latitude. If the planetary perturbations 
 advanced by astronomers be the sole disturbing influences, 
 then it is probable that the axis of the earth's orbit has been 
 deflected from its axis of revolution. On the other hand, if 
 our theory be the correct one, the axis of daily revolution 
 receded from that of yearly rotation, as it is seen in the 
 diagram, where the latter is shown by its perpendicular line, 
 and the line of the former crossing it at an angle of 23J in 
 both hemispheres. Viewed in this manner, the distance 
 between the tropics resulting from the difference between 
 the orbital and equatorial planes is only a solar effect of a 
 terrestrial cause. At the same time, it must be observed, 
 we may infer from the principles of both theories, that the 
 present inclination of the earth's polar axis is a departure 
 from a normal condition when it probably coincided with the 
 axis of its orbit. 
 
 46. Eratosthenes the first to calculate the Distance of the 
 Tropics. Having thus endeavoured to show theoretically 
 that the unequal hemispherical proportions of the earth, pro- 
 duced by its internal forces, originated the inclination of its 
 axis, we now proceed to ascertain the exact angle of that 
 inclination and its attendant phenomena in the tropics. In 
 this part of our inquiry we combine the observations of 
 geologists and astronomers in elucidating the problem, and 
 giving a clear conception of the past condition of the seasons 
 as compared with the present. Although mankind from the 
 earliest ages studied their recurrence within the more northern 
 latitudes of the temperate zone, yet it was on the border of 
 tha Tropic of Cancer that the angle of the earth's axial 
 
46 
 
 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 inclination was first ascertained by observing its limit in 
 Africa, where the perpendicular rays of the sun at the sum- 
 mer solstice fall, as shown on the annexed diagram. The 
 observer was Eratosthenes, an ancient philosopher, born 276 
 years before the Christian era, at Syene, the most southern 
 
 Fig. 3. 
 
 The EARTH Showing 'the Inclination of its Axis, 23 2?' 24", at the North Suir.mer 
 Solstice, unequal day and night. 
 
 of the cities of ancient Egypt. That city was known to be 
 situated exactly under the Tropic of Cancer ; for at the sum- 
 mer solstice the gnomon of the sun-dial had no shadow, and 
 the sun's rays illumined the bottom of a deep well within its 
 precincts. From this circumstance it is supposed that he 
 applied his ingenuity to the invention of an instrument for 
 calculating the distance between the tropics and other astro- 
 nomical phenomena, known as an armillary sphere. By 
 means of an instrument of this kind, he observed the distance 
 
THE LAND. 47 
 
 to be as 11 to 83 of the whole circumference of a great 
 circle ; a ratio equivalent to 47 4=2' 39", half of which gives 
 23 51' 19.5" for the latitude of the tropics in his day. This 
 is a very important observation, as the distance is now re- 
 duced to 23 27' 24.2", showing a considerable diminution in 
 the inclination of the earth's axis ; or, as astronomers desig- 
 nate the phenomena, " in the diminution of the obliquity of 
 the ecliptic as indicated by theory." * 
 
 47. Astronomical Theory of Axial Inclination designated 
 " Obliquity of the Ecliptic." If it be a demonstrable fact, 
 which learned geometers affirm it is, that the obliquity of the 
 ecliptic has been diminishing during historical periods, we 
 have here the most substantial data to infer that it must 
 have been greater in pre-historic ages. It is true that 
 their computations are confined to a very limited diminution 
 of the obliquity; "and theory has shown that the cause 
 of the displacement is the action of the planets, particularly 
 of Jupiter and Venus, on the earth, by virtue of which the 
 plane of the earth's orbit is drawn nearer to the planes of the 
 orbits of these two planets. This, however, though by far the 
 most considerable, is not the sole cause of the phenomenon ; 
 for theory also shows that a slight motion of the plane of 
 the equator is produced by the attraction of the sun and 
 moon, but so very minute that its effects will only become ap- 
 preciable after a long series of ages."t This brief description 
 embodies the generally - received doctrine of astronomers 
 as regards the inclination of the earth's axis, which, on 
 their own showing, is based upon an abstruse theory regard- 
 ing the perturbations of certain members of the planetary 
 sphere. It is entirely transmundane, and ignores the earth 
 as having had any influence in bringing about this most 
 important part of its condition, affecting as it does the 
 destiny of all created things upon its surface. On the other 
 hand, there is abundant evidence in geology to show that in 
 its earlier epochs a much greater obliquity of the ecliptic 
 existed than anything even hinted at by astronomers. And 
 * Art. "Astronomy," ' Encyclopaedia Britannica.' t Ibid. 
 
48 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 as it is a question at what angle of displacement the diminu- 
 tion continually going on from year to year will cease, so is it 
 a problem to be solved as to what was the extreme obliquity 
 in former ages or, in other words, up to what latitude did 
 the tropical declination of the sun reach during the summer 
 solstice in the north hemisphere at its greatest primary angle 1 
 
 48. Assumed Limits to Tropical Oscillation of Obliquity. 
 At the present day we find that the maximum decimation 
 of the sun, which marks the outer lines of the tropical zones, 
 is computed at 23 27' 24.2"; a century back it was 23 28' 
 15"; and if we accept the calculations of Eratosthenes twenty 
 centuries ago, it was 23 51' 19.5". This diminution of 23' 
 55.3", in such a space of time as two thousano^years, is small, 
 and may well satisfy timid minds that any vital changes in 
 the seasons need not be apprehended in their day, or for 
 many generations to come. And so far, therefore, might this 
 part of our subject be summarily dismissed, as it has been by 
 the astronomers, who state, rather confidently, we think, and 
 upon indeterminate grounds, as already mentioned, " that the 
 planes of the ecliptic and equator, which have been approach- 
 ing to each other during 'the last 2000 years, will, in the 
 course of some thousands of years more, begin to recede." 
 Also, that " the gradual diminution of the obliquity of the 
 ecliptic might lead us to suppose that a time will ultimately 
 arrive when that plane will coincide with the equator, and 
 the earth be deprived, in consequence, of the agreeable vicis- 
 situdes of the seasons. But the theory of universal gravitation, 
 which has revealed the cause of the diminution, has also 
 shown that there are certain limits which the angle of the 
 two planes can never exceed, and between which it must con- 
 tinue for ever to oscillate." * 
 
 49. Advantages of Geological Research into Vestiges of 
 Extinct Epoclis. These arguments may be very consolatory 
 to the agricultural mind that dreads any vital change in 
 the seasons ; but they shut out all investigation regard- 
 ing the former conditions of our planet, when these vicis- 
 
 * Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE LAND. 49 
 
 situdes were not in existence, or in their rudimentary 
 stages. It is very different, however, if we trace this 
 phenomenon to causes that are coeval with the solid struc- 
 ture of our planet, of which the islands, continents, and 
 mountain-chains are the vestiges of the inconceivable internal 
 forces through which those comparatively placid changes in 
 the temperate regions originated. By adopting the geological 
 mode of investigation, additional light may be thrown upon 
 the extinct organic world, whose fossil remains are found of 
 tropical types in the rocks of the north temperate zone and 
 the arctic regions. Hitherto the science of geology has un- 
 folded the wondrous history of the earth, from its primeval 
 epoch down to recent ages, furnishing a panoramic view of 
 the progress of its inorganic matter, and the development of 
 the vegetable and animal kingdoms. As a concentration of 
 the physical sciences applied to natural phenomena, in order 
 to elucidate that history, the results have been most satis- 
 factory ; and every day fresh views of igneous arid aqueous 
 agencies, extinct fauna and flora, and the antiquity of man, 
 are being added to the accumulating facts. Still, it must be 
 admitted that the chain of events is incomplete. There are 
 gaps in the sequence of epochs that remain to be filled up, 
 notwithstanding the indefatigable labours of deep -thinking 
 and far - searching geologists and naturalists. Moreover, 
 throughout the data on which the various periods are founded 
 notwithstanding the wondrous restoration of disjointed 
 fossil remains into their living semblance there is a want of 
 vitality in the pictures, which might be added if geological 
 investigation was turned more in the direction we propose 
 going leading, as it were, to the condition of the sea and 
 the atmosphere, as well as of the land, during past geological 
 periods. By this method of research we may obtain correct 
 glimpses of the extinct landscapes and sea-views which once 
 prevailed in the latitudes of Europe; and be able to account 
 more satisfactorily for the existence of the extinct species of 
 animals that flourished under a tropical climate in the British 
 Isles or even in Greenland, where a frigid clime now prevails. 
 
50 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 On this interesting and important branch of our inquiry 
 Humboldt observes : " The cold regions of the earth contain, 
 deposited in sedimentary strata, the products of tropical cli- 
 mates; thus, in the coal-formations, we find the trunks of 
 palms standing upright amid coniferse, tree-ferns, goniatites, 
 and fishes having rhomboidal osseous scales ; in the Jura 
 limestone, colossal skeletons of crocodiles, plesiosauri, planu- 
 lites, and stems of the cycadess . . . . and, lastly, in trans- 
 ported soils, and in certain caves, the bones of elephants, 
 hyenas, and lions. An intimate acquaintance with the phy- 
 sical phenomena of the universe leads us to regard the pro- 
 ducts of warm latitudes that are thus found in a fossil condi- 
 tion in northern regions not merely as incentives to barren 
 curiosity, but as subjects awakening deep reflection, and 
 opening new sources of study." 
 
 50. Fossil Organic Remains and Living Animals a 
 Popular Study. It is in the spirit recommended by the 
 earnest-thinking author of l Cosmos ' that we venture to sug- 
 gest a new mode of inquiry into this open field of investiga- 
 tion. Yet it is sometimes necessary, in the midst of profound 
 argument, to enliven the natural curiosity of the popular 
 mind by familiar illustrations, in order that' the general 
 reader may take more interest in the question. For instance, 
 when persons visit the Zoological Gardens in London to see 
 the caged monarchs of tropical regions, how few think, or 
 even know, that at one period in the geognostic history of 
 the British Isles, monster mammals and reptiles of similar 
 types, bulk, and form to these, were the " lords of creation " 
 on the very ground whereon they stand, or in the surround- 
 ing country, but under very different climatic and terrestrial 
 conditions ! How few know that the ancient progenitors of 
 these huge creatures the elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, 
 lion, tiger, and hyena, with crocodiles and other ferocious 
 animals roamed through the tropical forests and inhabited 
 the waters of Great Britain ! and how few know that remains 
 of such animals are found in the very London clay which 
 forms the substratum under the soil on which the Gardens are 
 
THE LAND. 51 
 
 laid out ! Such, however, is the fact, which has been indis- 
 putably proved to the most sceptical mind by the researches 
 of Sir Charles Lyell, Professor Owen, and a host of other 
 men of science. Looking, therefore, at the assemblage of 
 animals in that unrivalled zoological collection from this point 
 of view, the visitor sees nothing new that has not existed on 
 the spot before, during the tropical epoch that nurtured simi- 
 lar gigantic forms. All the difference is, that man has brought 
 them at immense expense, trouble, and danger, from distant 
 regions, and, to protect himself from their destructive nature, 
 he has caged them behind strong iron bars ; whereas their 
 extinct prototypes moved about in unrestrained liberty in all 
 probability before the human race existed. 
 
 51. London Zoological Gardens a Restoration of Extinct 
 Fauna. How strange, yet true, that at one period there was 
 a great lake all over the land where London now is situated, 
 and that amphibious monsters wallowed on its muddy shores, 
 just as we see the rhinoceros and hippopotamus in their 
 ponds within the enclosure of the gardens ! It might even 
 be that when the rhinoceros emerges from his bath, turn- 
 ing his horned muzzle to some child's hand for cake, cov- 
 ered with claggy particles rooted from his watery bed, the 
 same clay was stirred up by the indigenous hippopotami of 
 Britain during its tropical era. How strange, also, that 
 among the giant trees of the primeval forest, and the dense 
 jungle which then existed on the margin of that lake, the 
 lion devoured his prey, awakening the echoes around with 
 his roar, probably within hail of the very locality where the 
 growl may be heard of his African descendant at feeding 
 time ! And stranger still, the vestiges of that bygone epoch 
 prove that the kangaroo which has been brought from Aus- 
 tralia to hop about an enclosure fifteen thousand miles from 
 its native land, is only a living representative of pouched 
 animals that once grazed on the pasture-lands of England ! 
 Moreover, turtles at that period laid their eggs on Primrose 
 Hill which rose above this extinct lake like a small gravelly 
 isle after they had been swimming over the site of eht 
 
52 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 Mansion House, where others of their kind, brought from 
 the West Indies, a distance of four thousand miles, are now 
 boiled down into aldermanic soup ! And more wonderful 
 still, frogs larger than turtle croaked in the jungles of our 
 isle, with a noise probably greater than the lion's roar ! But 
 it is not our purpose to enter minutely into the zoology of 
 this epoch, as it has been done sufficiently by eminent geo- 
 logists. Suffice it to add, that among the remains "A 
 crocodile has been described by Dr Buckland from Sheppy 
 and Bognor; and an alligator has been announced by Mr 
 Searles Wood at Hordwell. Thus it would appear that the 
 eocene reptilian fauna of Britain was of a tropical character, 
 even as the mammalian and invertebrate faunas of that period, 
 and as the plants, appeared to have been." * 
 
 52. Kew Botanical Gardens a Restoration of Extinct British 
 Flora. In like manner following up our inquiries in this 
 familiar way visitors to the Kew Gardens, on entering the 
 palm-houses there, heated to an uncomfortable degree, are 
 breathing an atmosphere of the same temperature, and see 
 vegetation of a similar character, to that which prevailed 
 during that epoch. As to the amount of vegetation which 
 flourished and decayed on the land in these ages, we have 
 evidence, in the extensive coal-measures of England and Scot- 
 land, that it must have been of a more luxuriant and tropical 
 character than exists at present ; while we find living types 
 of that flora in the tropics of Australia. But as this branch 
 of our subject will be more fully entered upon in the part 
 treating of " the air," we shall reserve further details until 
 then. Meanwhile, let it be understood that there are geo- 
 logical data from which it is impossible to infer anything 
 else than that a tropical climate, with its animals and plants, 
 existed once in European latitudes, the same in condition 
 and intensity as now exists within the tropics of Asia, Africa, 
 America, and Australasia, at the level of the sea. This being 
 the case, it only remains to consider the question that natu- 
 rally arises, Under what circumstances did this intensely hot 
 * Professor Owen in 'Keports of the Britisli Association.' 
 
THE LAND. 53 
 
 period originate 1 As usual, many theories have been pro- 
 pounded which have evoked learned discussions on this 
 point, but without any satisfactory conclusion being attained ; 
 and it is just possible that our theory may be thrown into 
 the limbo of rejected scientific speculations. Nevertheless we 
 shall do our best, without fear of ridicule, to lay it before the 
 public, especially as some of the theories discarded have been 
 advanced by those who possessed a higher reputation for 
 scientific research than we can lay claim to. 
 
 53. Humboldt's Theory of the Tropical Epoch in Europe. 
 Without entering into the numerous speculations and dis- 
 cussions on this point, we shall quote first from Humboldt's 
 * Cosmos ' a passage wherein the great physical philosopher 
 hints at the possibility of this tropical era in the present 
 cold regions of the earth having arisen from an excess of in- 
 ternal heat in the planet itself, more than from the external 
 heat of the sun, as follows : " I apply the term volcanic, in 
 the widest sense of the word, to every action exercised by 
 the interior of a planet on its external crust. The surface 
 of the globe and that of the moon manifest traces of this 
 action, which, in the former at least, has varied during the 
 course of ages. Those who are ignorant of the fact that the 
 internal heat of the earth increases so rapidly with the 
 increase of depth, that granite is in a state of fusion about 
 twenty or thirty geographical miles below the surface, cannot 
 have a clear conception of the causes, and the simultaneous 
 occurrence of volcanic eruptions at places widely removed 
 from one another, or of the extent and intersection of circles 
 of commotion in earthquakes, and equality of chemical com- 
 position observed in thermal springs during a long course of 
 years. The quantity of heat peculiar to a planet is, however, 
 a matter of such importance being the result of its primi- 
 tive condensation, and varying according to the nature and 
 duration of the radiation that the study of this subject may 
 throw some degree of light on the history of the atmosphere, 
 and the distribution of the organic bodies imbedded in the 
 solid crust of the earth. This study enables us to under- 
 
64 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 stand how a tropical temperature, independent of latitude 
 (that is, of the distance from the poles), may have been pro- 
 duced by deep fissures remaining open, and exhaling heat 
 from the interior of the globe, at a period when the earth's 
 crust was still furrowed and rent, and only in a state of semi- 
 solidification ; and a primordial condition is thus revealed to 
 us, in which the temperature of the atmosphere, and climates 
 generally, were owing rather to a liberation of caloric and of 
 different gaseous emanations (that is to say, rather to the 
 energetic reaction of the interior on the exterior), than to 
 the position of the earth with respect to the central body, 
 the sun." This view of Humboldt's may be considered 
 the extreme of geological views accounting for the tropical 
 era of Europe ; nevertheless it shows the opinion such an 
 eminent authority had concerning the " furrowed and rent " 
 condition of the world in its pristine state, when he infers a 
 degree of volcanic action and disturbance of its equilibrium 
 that might not only be sufficient to account for the obliquity 
 of the ecliptic by volcanic forces, but almost to cause the 
 equator and the poles to change places in relation to the 
 earth's orbit. 
 
 54. TJieory of a Per%)etua.l Equinox having once existed. 
 According to Lyell : "At first it was imagined that the earth's 
 axis had been for ages perpendicular to the plane of the 
 ecliptic, so that there was a perpetual equinox and uniformity 
 of the seasons throughout the year ; that the planet enjoyed 
 this ' paradisiacal ' state until the era of the great flood ; but 
 in that catastrophe, whether by the shock of a comet or 
 some other convulsion, it lost its equal poise, and hence the 
 obliquity of its axis, and with that the varied seasons of the 
 temperate zone, and the long nights and days of the polar 
 circles." At the period when this and other theories of the 
 earth were propounded, it was the custom to call in astro- 
 nomical and miraculous influences to account for certain ter- 
 restrial phenomena, of which many have been since proved 
 to emanate from causes within the sphere of our planet itself. 
 This arose in a great measure from ignorance of the science of 
 
THE LAND, 55 
 
 geology, as at present established, even in its rudimentary 
 principles. In its place an arrangement existed of fanciful 
 theories called generally the Cosmogony of the World, com- 
 prised of little else than a conglomeration of astronomical and 
 Scriptural dogmas. It was not until the beginning of the 
 present century that correct views concerning the structure of 
 the earth were entertained, and our knowledge regarding its 
 ancient development is daily extending. Even " within the 
 memory of the present generation the science of geology has 
 made immense progress. Aided not only by the higher 
 branches of pjiysics, but by recent discoveries in mineralogy 
 and chemistry, in botany, zoology, and comparative anatomy, 
 it has extracted from the archives of the interior of the earth, 
 records of former conditions of our planet, and deciphered 
 documents that were a sealed book to our ancestors. It ex- 
 tends its researches into regions more vast and remote than 
 come within the scope of any other physical science except 
 astronomy, of which it has been emphatically termed the 
 sister science."* 
 
 55. Evidence of a Perpetual Equinox in the Planet Jupi- 
 ter. Notwithstanding the progress of theoretical astronomy 
 during the past century, the practical knowledge of the 
 physical constitution of planetary bodies was still in its 
 infancy from the want of sufficiently powerful instruments 
 to examine and compare their structure. During the present 
 century great strides have been made in the construction and 
 magnitude of telescopes and other astronomical instruments, 
 especially the gigantic telescope of Lord Rosse, which mag- 
 nifies the lunar disc so that a space of a few hundred yards 
 square may be discernible to the observer. These instruments 
 have revealed to us the fact that every planet and satellite 
 belonging to the solar system, and even the sun himself, has 
 an obliquity of the axis, and that not two of the former 
 present the same degree of displacement between their orbits 
 and equatorial planes, while they range at angles of inclina- 
 tion from 3 to 75. Into this part of our subject we shall 
 * Art. "Geology," 'Imperial Dictionary.' By Jolin Ogilvie. 
 
56 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 enter more fully in the next section, treating of the astron- 
 omical phenomena of the seasons. Meanwhile, let us remind 
 the reader that the cosmogonist who propounded the theory 
 mentioned by Lyell, of the earth's axis having been probably 
 at one period perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic, might 
 have supported his hypothesis astronomically by referring to 
 the planet Jupiter as at present enjoying within a few degrees 
 this "paradisiacal" state of its seasons if such it may be 
 considered where almost no variation reigns during its per- 
 petual equinox. And if he had been acquainted with the 
 principles of geology known at the present day, he might 
 have advanced a theory of subterranean forces to account for 
 the equal poise of the north and south hemispheres being 
 lost, instead of an imaginary cataclysm or collision with a 
 comet. So far, therefore, this theory, which is considered to 
 be exploded by the arguments of astronomers, may be found 
 in time to have been well conceived, though erroneously 
 carried out. 
 
 56. Domes of Elevation and Basins of Depression in the 
 Earth's Crust. Now that the conjectures of cosmogonists 
 are exploded, and the theories of alternate violence and re- 
 pose modified by the researches of geologists, there is no 
 necessity for resuscitating these opinions that have now been 
 long buried. Nevertheless, should there be evidence to 
 incline us towards a belief in the subterranean forces of our 
 planet having been at earlier epochs greater in degree than 
 in later eras, we should not discard the theory because it 
 apparently assimilates with exploded conjectures. For ex- 
 ample, the expansion of the rocky matter forming the igneous 
 formations of the earth's crust by heat, and its subsequent 
 contraction by refrigeration, are among the best-established 
 principles of geology. We have evidence that on many 
 elevated regions there are spots where, in cooling, the rocks 
 have shrunk so as to cause deep ravines, and generally to 
 contract the area of the original molten mass. From this it 
 is inferred that as the refrigeration proceeded of the primitive 
 crystalline rocks on which subsequent formations were de- 
 
THE LAND. 57 
 
 posited, " domes of elevation" were formed, with orifices 
 through which the molten rocks were erupted, gradually 
 forming the great mountain-chains and solitary peaks, until 
 they cooled and solidified into permanent structures. On the 
 other hand, where the plastic rock lay under the superincum- 
 bent pressure of the ocean, it subsided, in proportion to its 
 elevation elsewhere, into " basins of depression." Thus we 
 have a principle of expansion or swelling of the earth's crust 
 that must have been more active at earlier than later periods 
 of its formation, inasmuch as with the cooling of the rocks 
 the rents for these subterranean forces became gradually 
 closed up. It is evident, therefore, that the movements of 
 the earth internally must have been at one time greater in 
 degree than another, simply because the movable mass of 
 matter was greater ; and it is not rash or unphilosophical to 
 conclude that such internal movements affected its external 
 revolutions while so delicately poised in space until it lost 
 its polar equilibrium. 
 
 57. LyeUs Theory of" Uniformity of Change" Past and 
 Present. At this stage of our inquiry we meet again with 
 the arguments of Sir Charles Lyell in support of his theory 
 of " uniformity of change" in reference to the living creation, 
 subterranean forces, and sedimentary deposition. This theory 
 implies that the tropical, temperate, and frigid zones, as they 
 now exist, have been perpetually the same in latitude, or at 
 all events unchanged from the primary epochs of geological 
 time to the present day. In support of this hypothesis it is 
 advanced that if, by a different distribution of the land above 
 the level of the sea without enlarging or contracting its area, 
 the continents and islands were disposed within the polar 
 regions on the one hand, or the tropical regions on the other, 
 extremes of heat and cold would be produced in the climates 
 of the globe. Upon this basis the theory of uniformity of 
 change in the climate of Europe is founded, from its extinct 
 tropical heat to its present temperate seasons, by reason of 
 the upheaval and subsidence of immense tracts of land 
 evidence being given where vestiges of these subterranean 
 
58 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 movements have occurred in modern history. Without 
 entering into the elaborate details of this complex theory, we 
 give the following passage, which briefly describes its purport : 
 " It appears that when the oldest or eocene tertiary deposits 
 were formed, a warm temperature pervaded the European 
 seas and land. Shells of the genus nautilus, and other forms 
 characteristic of tropical latitudes ; fossil reptiles, such as the 
 crocodile, turtle, and tortoise ; plants, such as palms, cocoa- 
 nuts, the screw pine, the custard-apple, and the acacia all 
 lead to this conclusion. This flora and fauna were followed 
 by those of the miocene formation, in which indications of 
 a southern but less tropical climate are detected. Finally, 
 the pliocene deposits, which come next in succession, exhibit 
 in their organic remains a much nearer approach to the state 
 of things now prevailing in corresponding latitudes. It was 
 towards the close of this period that the seas of the northern 
 hemisphere became more and more filled with floating ice- 
 bergs, often charged with erratic blocks, so that the waters 
 and the atmosphere were chilled by the melting ice, and an 
 arctic fauna enabled for a time to invade the temperate lati- 
 tudes of both North America and Europe. The extinction of 
 a considerable number of land quadrupeds and aquatic mol- 
 lusca was gradually brought about by the increasing severity 
 of the cold ; but many species survived this revolution in 
 climate, either by their capacity of living under a variety of 
 conditions, or by migrating for a time to more southern lands 
 and seas. At length, by modifications in the physical geo- 
 graphy of the northern regions, and the cessation of floating 
 ice on the eastern side of the Atlantic, the cold was mode- 
 rated, and a milder climate ensued, such as we now enjoy in 
 Europe." 
 
 58. Fossil Evidence of a widely - extended Tropical Re- 
 gion. Tracing back through the secondary formation, and 
 still older strata, for fossils proving the change of climate in 
 Europe, Lyell proceeds as follows : "A great interval of time 
 appears to have elapsed between the formation of the secon- 
 dary strata, which constitute the principal portion of the ele- 
 
THE LAND. 59 
 
 vated land in Europe, and the origin of the eocene deposits. 
 If we examine the rocks from the New Eed Sandstone to the 
 Chalk inclusive, we find many distinct assemblages of fossils 
 entombed in them, all of unknown species, and many of them 
 referable to genera and families now most abundant between 
 the tropics. Among the most remarkable are reptiles of 
 gigantic size, some of them herbivorous, others carnivorous, 
 and far exceeding in size any now known even in the torrid 
 zone. The genera are for the most part extinct, but some of 
 them, as the crocodile and monitor, have still representatives 
 in the warmer parts of the earth. Coral-reefs also were evi- 
 dently numerous in the seas of the same periods, and com- 
 posed "of species belonging to genera now characteristic of a 
 tropical climate. The number of very large chambered shells 
 also leads us to infer an elevated temperature ; and the 
 associated fossil plants, although imperfectly known, tend to 
 the same conclusion, the cycadese constituting the most 
 numerous family. But it is from the more ancient coal- 
 deposits that the most extraordinary evidence has been 
 supplied in proof of the former existence of an extremely 
 uniform, moist, warm, and equable climate in those latitudes 
 which are now the colder, and, in regard to temperature, the 
 most variable, regions of the globe. . . . The flora of the 
 coal appears to indicate a high temperature in the air; while 
 the fossils of the contemporaneous mountain-limestone, com- 
 prising abundance of lamelliform corals, large-chambered 
 cephalopods, and crinoidia, naturally lead us to infer a great 
 warmth in the waters of the northern sea of the carboniferous 
 period. So, also, in regard to strata older than the coal ; they 
 contain in high northern latitudes mountain masses of corals 
 which must have lived and grown on the spot, and large- 
 chambered univalves, such as orthocerata, which indicate, 
 even in regions bordering on the arctic circle, the former pre- 
 valence of an elevated temperature. The heat and humidity 
 of the air, and the uniformity of the climate, appear to have 
 been most remarkable when some of the oldest fossiliferous 
 strata were formed. The approximation to a climate similar 
 
60 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 to that now enjoyed in these latitudes does not commence 
 till the era of the formations termed tertiary; and while the 
 different tertiary rocks were deposited in succession, the 
 temperature seems to have been still further lowered, and to 
 have continued to diminish even after the appearance upon 
 the earth of a considerable number of the existing species 
 the cold reaching its maximum of intensity in European 
 latitudes during the glacial epoch, or the epoch immediately 
 antecedent to that in which all the species now contem- 
 porary with man were in being."* 
 
 59. LyeUs Theory not sufficient to solve the Question. To 
 account for these geological evidences of extraordinary changes 
 of temperature, the data and arguments adduced are volumin- 
 ous, and based upon the theory of uniformity of change in 
 the land and sea as observable since the historical .era. Hav- 
 ing the highest regard for the principles of geology as pro- 
 pounded by Sir Charles Lyell, and the research shown by 
 him in treating of its details, we are not disposed to reject 
 his arguments absolutely. At the same time we must admit 
 that, after carefully weighing all the evidence, it is not suffi- 
 cient to convince us that it affords a complete solution of the 
 problem. There appears to be some link wanting in the chain 
 of testimony some leading phenomenon connected with the 
 structure of the earth that has either been overlooked or has 
 not yet been discovered. May we not find that missing link 
 in the theory herein advanced, that the tropical zone extended 
 beyond its present latitudes during these epochs, when it 
 reached a maximum probably twice its present limits, and 
 afterwards gradually diminished? This hypothesis is not 
 incompatible with Lyell's theory, provided the subterranean 
 movements be considered to have been of greater magnitude 
 at primary periods than subsequently or in the present era, 
 acquiring their maximum of force during the epochs of the 
 secondary formation in the northern hemisphere, and gradu- 
 ally diminishing during the tertiary epochs, when their great- 
 * Lyell's 'Principles of Geology.' 
 
THE LAND. 61 
 
 est power was transferred to the southern hemisphere. The 
 admission of such a principle would divest Lyell's theory of 
 its complexity, and render the study of fossil, vegetable, and 
 animal remains more satisfactory to the inquiring student of 
 geology, who is at present perplexed with the conflicting 
 evidence of the past and present history of the organic world. 
 Moreover, it might tend to show the astronomical observer 
 that the physical influences which produced the variations of 
 the seasons have been of a simpler character than the intri- 
 cate perturbations attributed to the origin of these pheno- 
 mena. 
 
 60. Combined with our Hypothesis, capable of giving a 
 better Solution. We have said that the theory of Lyell is 
 not sufficient to convince us of such a vital change in the 
 climate of Europe as geological testimony indicates, but that, 
 with the addition of our hypothesis of a widely-extended 
 tropical zone, it would be more satisfactory. This is espe- 
 cially the case with the section which endeavours to show 
 that the diminution of the earth's obliquity of axis by reac- 
 tionary subterranean movement has been slow and uniform. 
 Let us once believe in the changes of climate resulting from 
 the contraction of the tropical zone, after reaching a maxi- 
 mum double its present latitude, and the epochs of the eocene, 
 miocene, and pliocene formations, followed by the glacial 
 period, may be more satisfactorily accounted for than before. 
 It is perfectly consistent with it that the geological changes 
 during those periods were going on with all the uniformity 
 he asserts, while the astronomical changes we suggest stamp 
 the fossil records with the seal of truth. On the one hand, 
 our theory does not support the old hypothesis of sudden 
 universal catastrophes overwhelming animated nature, or vio- 
 lent changes of climate ; and, on the other hand, it eschews 
 the extravagant periods of geological time, computed by geo- 
 logists from the deposition of sedimentary strata. Steering 
 a middle course, we shall further endeavour to show that, 
 although no cataclysm happened to the earth in its earlier 
 
62 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 ages, there are astronomical data for concluding that it reached 
 an extreme phase in its annual rotation ; also that, though 
 the epochs of its history may not be sempiternal, we have 
 astronomical time sufficient to calculate the lapse of vast 
 periods since a tropical sun shone upon the lands of Northern 
 Europe. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 EXTINCT TROPICAL EPOCH IN EUROPE. Continued. 
 
 Sir John Herschel's astronomical views on the subject, 61. His suggestions 
 of a former greater degree of solar heat, 62. M. Poisson's theory of great 
 stellar heat in space, 63. Problem of tropical epoch in Europe unsolved 
 by astronomical theories, 64. Difference between a planet's axial and 
 orbital inclination, 65. Precession of the equinoxes and its physical 
 cause, 66. Distinction between the phenomena of precession and obli- 
 quity, 67. Secondary causes that produce the seasons well known, 68. 
 Secular diminution in the inclination of the earth's axis, 69. Average 
 diminution in a century, 70. Tropical epoch in Europe accounted for by 
 an extended torrid zone, 71. Probable period when the earth had no in- 
 clination of axis, 72. The planet Jupiter an example of the earth at this 
 period, 73. Temperate latitudes at this period a perpetual spring, 74. 
 Action of internal forces during earliest geological epochs, 75. Primary 
 quiescent condition of the earth broken up, 76. Internal action con- 
 tinued through ages increasing the tropical zone, 77. Argument in 
 favour of its having been formerly widely extended, 78. Its probable 
 extension to 45 of latitude, 79. Computation of geological time by 
 stratified rocks, 80. Computation by extinction of species, 81. Croll's 
 estimate of glacial period by precession of the equinoxes, 82. Bate of 
 diminution of obliquity a basis for calculating geological time, 83. Not 
 to be considered arbitrary, but suggestive, in the formula of computa- 
 tion, 84. 
 
 61. Sir John HerscheVs Astronomical View of the subject. 
 The remarkable changes of climate in Europe that have oc- 
 curred within geological periods of time have attracted the 
 notice of modern astronomers. "We are told that " Sir John 
 Herschel has lately inquired whether there are any astronom- 
 ical causes which may offer a possible explanation of the 
 difference between the actual climates of the earth's surface 
 and those which formerly appear to have prevailed. He has 
 
64 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 entered upon this subject, lie says, impressed with the mag- 
 nificence of that view of geological revolutions which regards 
 them rather as regular and necessary effects of great and 
 general causes, than as resulting from a series of convulsions 
 and catastrophes regulated by no laws and reducible to no 
 fixed principles. Geometers, he adds, have demonstrated 
 the absolute invariability of the mean distance of the earth 
 from the sun, whence it would at first seem to follow that 
 the mean annual supply of light and heat derived from that 
 luminary would be alike invariable. But a closer considera- 
 tion of the subject will show that this would not be a legiti- 
 mate conclusion, but that, on the contrary, the mean amount 
 of solar radiation is dependent on the eccentricity of the 
 earth's orbit, and therefore liable to variation. Now, the 
 eccentricity of the orbit, he continues, is actually diminish- 
 ing, and has been so for ages beyond the records of history. 
 In consequence, the ellipse is in a state of approach to a 
 circle, and the annual average of solar heat radiated to the 
 earth is actually on the decrease. So far this is in accordance 
 with geological evidence, which indicates a general refriger- 
 ation of climate ; but the question remains, Whether the 
 amount of diminution which the eccentricity may have 
 undergone can be supposed sufficient to account for any sen- 
 sible refrigeration 1 ?"* On this point M. Arago was of opinion 
 that the mean amount of solar radiation can never be mate- 
 rially affected by irregularities in the motion of the earth. 
 
 62. His suggestion of a former greater Solar Heat. Sir 
 John Herschel ventures upon " another astronomical sugges- 
 tion respecting the possible causes of secular variations in the 
 terrestrial climates which deserves notice. It has long been 
 known that certain stars are liable to great and periodical 
 fluctuations in splendour, and Sir J. Herschel has lately as- 
 certained that a large and brilliant star, called Alplia Orionis, 
 sustained, in the course of six weeks, a loss of nearly half its 
 light. ' This phenomenon,' he remarks, ' cannot fail to awaken 
 attention and revive those speculations which were first put 
 * Ly ell's ' Principles of Geology.' 
 
THE LAND. 65 
 
 forth, by my father, Sir W. Herschel, respecting the possi- 
 bility of a change in the lustre of our sun itself. If there 
 really be a community of nature between the sun and fixed 
 stars, every proof that we obtain of the extensive prevalence 
 of such periodical changes in those remote bodies adds to the 
 probability of finding something of the kind nearer home.' 
 Eef erring, then, to the possible bearing of such facts on 
 ancient revolutions in terrestrial climates, he says that ' it is 
 a matter of observed fact, that many stars have undergone, 
 in past ages, within the records of astronomical history, very 
 extensive changes in apparent lustre without a change of dis- 
 tance adequate to produce such an effect. If our sun were 
 even intrinsically much brighter than at present, the mean 
 temperature of the surface of our globe would, of course, be 
 proportionally greater. I speak now not of periodical but of 
 secular changes. But the argument is complicated with the 
 consideration of the possibly imperfect transparency of the 
 celestial spaces, and with the cause of that imperfect trans- 
 parency, which may be due to material non-luminous particles 
 diffused irregularly in patches analogous to nebulae, but of 
 greater extent to cosmical clouds, in short of whose exist- 
 ence we have some indication in the singular and apparently 
 capricious phenomena of temporary stars, and perhaps in the 
 recent extraordinary sudden increase and hardly less sudden 
 diminution of >j Argus' " * 
 
 63. M. Poisson's Theory of great Stellar Heat in Space. 
 "Another astronomical hypothesis respecting the possible 
 cause of secular variations in climate has been proposed by 
 a distinguished mathematician and philosopher, M. Poisson. 
 He begins by assuming 1st, That the sun and our planetary 
 system are not stationary, but carried onward by a movement 
 through space ; 2dly, That every point in space receives heat 
 as well as light from innumerable stars surrounding it on all 
 sides, so that if a right line of indefinite length be produced 
 in any direction from such a point, it must encounter a star 
 either visible or invisible to us ; 3dly, He then goes on to 
 * Proceedings Roy. Astronom. Soc., cited by Lyell. 
 E 
 
66 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 assume that the different regions of space, which, in the course 
 of millions of years, are traversed by our system, must be of 
 very unequal temperature, inasmuch as some of them must 
 receive a greater, others a less, quantity of radiant heat from 
 the great stellary inclosure. If the earth, he continues, or 
 any other large body, pass from a hotter to a colder region, it 
 would not readily lose in the second all the heat which it has 
 imbibed in the first region, but retain a temperature increasing 
 downwards from the surface, as in the actual condition of our 
 planet." * 
 
 64. Problem of Tropical Epoch in Europe unsolved by Astro- 
 nomical Theories. These and other speculative conjectures of 
 astronomers to account for the ancient tropical heat that per- 
 vaded the atmosphere and ocean in our temperate latitudes, it 
 is not necessary to go minutely into, or to cite the arguments 
 of Lyell and other geologists in their refutation. Suffice it to 
 state, that none of them have been accepted as in any way 
 solving the problem, not even by astronomers, so that they 
 do not take rank in the principles of theoretical astronomy. 
 It would appear that, in searching for some cosmical principle 
 in the boundless regions of space as the cause of these pheno- 
 mena, astronomers have overlooked the more probable solution 
 to the question we have put forward, in a well-established 
 principle of our terrestrial sphere itself namely, the diminu- 
 tion of the obliquity of the ecliptic causing the refrigeration 
 of climate, from which we infer that there was formerly an 
 increase of obliquity creating a general tropical climate over 
 the present temperate regions. 
 
 65. Difference between the Inclination of a Planet's Axis 
 and its Orbit. Not only do the speculative theories of as- 
 tronomers fail to account for these extraordinary climatic 
 changes, but we are of opinion that the causes they assign 
 for the origin of the seasons, from which all existing varieties 
 of climate have sprung, are not sufficient to convince us of 
 their terrestrial influence so far. These are the perturbations 
 which the most influential planets Venus, Mars, Jupiter, 
 
 * Ly ell's 'Principles of Geology.' 
 
THE LAND. 67 
 
 and Saturn are alleged to have on the earth's orbit, so as to 
 separate its plane from the equatorial plane, and cause the 
 obliquity of the ecliptic. As to the secondary causes which 
 produce the summer and winter solstices, and the vernal and 
 autumnal equinoxes, these are proved to mathematical de- 
 monstration ; but it is otherwise with the primary causes to 
 which we allude. While there are differences between the 
 planes of the planetary orbits which may be produced by 
 their perturbations on each other's movements round the sun, 
 still these do not coincide with the various inclinations of 
 their axes. For example, the inclination of the axis of Mars 
 is 28 51', while that of his orbit is only 1 51', and these in- 
 clinations in Venus are respectively 49 58' and 3 23' ; show- 
 ing that the perturbations of the planets, however much they 
 may affect the eccentricity and inclination of each other's 
 orbits, cannot be said to influence the angles of their axes of 
 rotation. This point of our subject we shall more particularly 
 refer to when treating of the planets individually. 
 
 66. Precession of the Equinoxes and its Physical Cause. 
 Besides the perturbations of the planets on the earth's 
 orbit, there are attractive influences of the sun and moon that 
 affect its revolution, which are named and briefly described 
 as follows : " The precession of the equinoxes is a slow retro- 
 grade movement of the equinoctial points viz., from east to 
 west, or contrary to the order of the signs. The equinoctial 
 points do not retain the same position in the heavens, but 
 have a slow retrograde motion at the rate of about 50J" in a 
 year, or about a degree in 72 years the equator moving on 
 the ecliptic, while the ecliptic remains nearly coincident with 
 the same fixed stars. This phenomenon is called the preces- 
 sion of the equinoxes, because it makes the equinoxes succeed 
 each other in less time than they would otherwise do. In 
 consequence of the precession of the equinoxes, the longitudes 
 and right ascensions of the heavenly bodies are continually 
 increasing, and owing to the motion of the equator, which 
 occasions that precession, their declinations also are altered. 
 The precession of the equinoxes was discovered by l^ipparchus 
 
68 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 a century and a half before the Christian era, though it is 
 alleged that the astronomers of India had discovered it long 
 before. At that time the point of the autumnal equinox was 
 about six degrees to the eastward of the star called Spica Vir- 
 ginis. In 1750 that is, about nineteen hundred years after 
 this point was observed to be about 26 21' westward of 
 that star. Hence it appears that the equinoctial points will 
 make an entire revolution in about 25,745 years." * 
 
 67. Distinction between the Phenomena of Precession and 
 Obliquity. The physical cause of this phenomenon, as dis- 
 tinguished from that of the obliquity of the ecliptic, is 
 accounted for in the following manner : " The diminution 
 of the obliquity of the ecliptic arises from the displacement 
 of the ecliptic itself ; the precession of the equinoxes is, on 
 the contrary, occasioned by the continual displacement of the 
 plane of the terrestrial equator. This displacement results 
 from the combined action of the sun and moon (for the 
 influence of the planets amounts only to a fraction of a 
 second, and is consequently scarcely sensible) on the mass of 
 protuberant matter accumulated about the earth's equator, or 
 the matter which forms the excess of the terrestrial spheroid 
 above its inscribed sphere. The attracting force of the sun 
 and moon on this shell of matter may be resolved into two 
 one parallel to the plane of the equator, the other perpen- 
 dicular to it. The tendency of this last force is to diminish 
 the angle which the plane of the equator makes with that of 
 the ecliptic ; and if the earth had no motion of rotation, it 
 would soon cause the two planes to coincide." t In this de- 
 monstration of a phenomenon connected with the equinoxes 
 of the seasons, we find astronomers acknowledging that the 
 excess of matter at the equator affects the earth's rotation on 
 that plane. May we not, then, as philosophically conclude that 
 the mass of protuberant matter in the north as compared with 
 the south hemisphere influences the inclination of the axis ? 
 68. Secondary Causes that produce the Seasons well 
 
 * 'Imperial Dictionary/ art. "Precession." 
 f f Encyclopaedia Britannica/ art. "Astronomy." 
 
THE LAND. 69 
 
 known. Of the secondary causes that produce the vicissi- 
 tudes of the seasons astronomers furnish abundance of de- 
 monstrable facts, with which, we presume, even the most 
 superficial reader is acquainted ; while the scientific reader 
 knows that their calculations of the sun's declination, and 
 other astronomical phenomena in the ephemeris, are the most 
 profound computations in geometry. With deep learning and 
 untiring zeal they have elucidated the various phases which 
 the diurnal revolution of the earth assumes in its annual 
 rotation, passing "from the vicissitudes of the day to the 
 seasons of the year," as the second fundamental object of 
 astronomy. These phases are laid down with mathematical 
 accuracy. Diagrams are executed to illustrate the position of 
 the earth in the solar system at the advent of spring, sum- 
 mer, autumn, and winter ; and the exact days when the sol- 
 stices and equinoxes occur are registered in almanacs for the 
 guidance of the public. Abstruse calculations are made to 
 define the positions of the sun, moon, and stars for the use 
 of navigators in determining their latitude and longitude on 
 every day of the year. These and other practical demonstra- 
 tions of the phenomena resulting from the inclination of the 
 earth's axis are familiar to most people, yet few have thought 
 of inquiring into the origin of the secondary causes producing 
 these effects. Notwithstanding the many learned disquisi- 
 tions to which the obliquity of the ecliptic, as the immediate 
 cause of the seasons, has given rise, still the primary origin 
 of that phenomenon, as stated before, remains to be satisfac- 
 torily accounted for. Astronomers have not yet determined 
 mathematically whether it results from the plane of the 
 earth's orbit being displaced from the equatorial plane, or 
 vice versa; in less technical language, whether the line of 
 annual rotation round the sun has separated from that of 
 daily revolution, or the contrary. According to our geological 
 theory of this displacement being the effect of forces within 
 the earth itself, we would infer that the plane of the equator 
 has separated from the plane of the orbit or ecliptic, as it 
 is denominated, in consequence of its path being that of 
 
70 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 eclipses. Thus it would appear that astronomers hitherto 
 have been content to point out the secondary causes and 
 effects of the phenomenon without inquiring too deeply into 
 the primary causes that produced planetary obliquity of 
 axis ; and so satisfied apparently are they with these results, 
 that it seems unnecessary to inquire any further into the 
 question. If we placed implicit faith in these conclusions, 
 we might well 'lay down our pen and abandon the subject 
 of our discourse ; while, under the circumstances, it may be 
 deemed presumptuous on our part to look for a terrestrial 
 solution to the problem. But we feel satisfied that some use- 
 ful result may follow this astro-geological method of inquiry ; 
 and in the end we may find that as the earth benefits in its 
 animal and vegetable life from the glorious changes in the 
 seasons, so is there evidence to infer that these have sprung 
 from the internal action of the great globe itself. 
 
 69. Secular Diminution in tlie Inclination of the Earth's 
 Axis. The astronomical question arises here as to whether 
 the inclination of the earth's axis or the obliquity of the 
 ecliptic is the same now as at earlier periods in ordinary 
 history? On this point observations have been collected 
 extending over the space of two thousand years, showing that 
 there is a small but gradual diminution of the phenomenon. 
 The earliest observation recorded, we have stated, is that by 
 Eratosthenes, a famous Greek philosopher, who flourished in 
 the second century before the Christian era. He calculated 
 the sun's declination at 23 51' 19.5", which was afterwards 
 confirmed by Hipparchus and Ptolemy. In 1860 it was 
 computed at 23 27' 24.2", showing a diminution within the 
 intervening period of 23' 55;3". Of course, allowance must 
 be made for the rudeness of the instruments used by the an- 
 cients as compared with those to be found in modern observa- 
 tories. "The ancient observers were not, indeed, possessed 
 of the means of determining an element of this sort with great 
 precision; but as all the observations recorded in history 
 agree in making the obliquity greater in former times than 
 it is now, the probability is almost infinite that the angle 
 
THE LAND. 71 
 
 formed by the planes of the equator and the ecliptic has 
 really diminished ; for, had the difference of values assigned 
 to it arisen solely from errors of observation, they would have 
 been in excess and defect indifferently, instead of being, as 
 they are, uniformly in excess." * 
 
 70. Average Diminution in a Century. Taking the aver- 
 age diminution of the foregoing extremes of observation, the 
 result amounts to about 70" in a century. But the ancient 
 observations being too uncertain, they have been rejected ; 
 and, comparing those only which have been made since the 
 time of Bradley in 1755, the secular diminution has been 
 fixed at 45.7" in a century. Whether it is accelerated or 
 retarded at different periods has not been ascertained; but 
 there can be no doubt that its diminution is still going on, 
 and, with the delicate and minutely-graduated astronomical 
 instruments of the day, may be calculated annually. This 
 fact involves the vital point of the whole subject under 
 review. The diminution of the obliquity, however gradual, 
 however slow, proves that at one period it was on the increase, 
 and that it may eventually lead to a period when it will 
 reach the line of perpetual equinox, and the earth, in conse- 
 quence, be deprived of the agreeable vicissitudes of the sea- 
 sons. In order to show that such a consummation is not in 
 harmony with the theory of universal gravitation, astronomers 
 consider that they find in the disturbing influences of other 
 planets the true cause of this diminution, to which they state 
 there are certain limits beyond which it cannot proceed, and 
 will for ever oscillate between them. " Geometers," we have 
 before stated, " have not yet ventured to assign the precise 
 extent of those limits, but their existence is certain ; and the 
 planes of the ecliptic and equator, which have been approach- 
 ing to each other during the last 2000 years, will, in the 
 course of some thousands of years more, begin to recede." t 
 
 71. Tropical Epoch in Europe accounted for by an extended 
 Torrid Zone. Assuming that the earth has been driven into 
 its obliquity of axis by its own internal forces, it does not 
 
 * Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' "h Ibid. 
 
72 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 follow that this diminution will cease in a few thousand or in 
 fifty thousand years, when it will again commence increasing 
 the displacement of its planes. On the contrary, it is more 
 probable, if not a certainty, that the diminution will continue 
 until the equatorial plane shall coincide with the plane of 
 the ecliptic when there shall be no seasons, and day and 
 night will be of equal length throughout the year all over the 
 world, from the poles to the equator. Eeasoning upon this 
 basis, it is not illogical to conclude that in the early epochs 
 of the earth's formation, when the great bulk of the igneous 
 rocks were upheaved with tremendous force, shaking the 
 earth from its centre to its circumference, the inclination of 
 the earth's axis, or the obliquity of the ecliptic, was many 
 degrees greater than it is at present : a period when the sun's 
 rays fell with almost tropical intensity upon the verge of the 
 arctic circle for perhaps six months during the year, thereby 
 counteracting the frigidity of the polar winter, and rendering 
 the circumpolar regions habitable by animals only found at 
 the present day within the tropics. This would account for 
 the existence of the tropical epoch in Europe a question 
 which has baffled the researches of so many inquirers. 
 
 72. Probable Period when the Earth had no Inclination of 
 Axis. To comprehend this condition of the world in its 
 pristine state, we must suppose that it was externally a sphere 
 of water, or rather an oblate spheroid, being flattened at the 
 poles in its liquid or plastic condition, by reason of its centri- 
 fugal force, in rotation, throwing the elastic matter towards 
 the equator from the axis of revolution. At this period, also, 
 there was little or no obliquity of the earth's axis, and hence 
 there were no seasons, while day and night would be equal in 
 every latitude from the poles to the equator. In proof that 
 there are data for these inferences we have only to refer to the 
 conclusions arrived at by astronomers regarding the physical 
 constitution of the planet Jupiter, which may be considered at 
 present as being in a condition similar to that of the earth 
 during the epoch we refer to. " The inclination of his 
 equator to his orbit is only 3 5' 30", so that the variations of 
 
THE LAND. 73 
 
 his seasons must "be almost insensible." * Thus it is not un- 
 philosophical to conclude that at one period, before the land 
 appeared above the surface of the ocean, there was little or no 
 displacement of the ecliptic, and the vicissitudes of the sea- 
 sons were not yet in existence. It will be seen, however, 
 that the Almighty Designer of the universe had not yet 
 created the animated beings who were to enjoy their fruits, 
 or the vegetation that was to fructify under their influence. 
 The sea was everywhere, and the land was hidden from the 
 genial influence of the sun by the superincumbent body of 
 water. 
 
 73. The Planet Jupiter an example of the Earth's condition 
 at this period. "When, however, the pent-up volcanic forces 
 below the bed of the sea began to work towards the surface, 
 the ocean was driven hither and* thither to make way for the 
 new order of things. At first the upheaved land, in domes 
 of elevation, reached only a short distance towards the sea- 
 level ; but, by the accumulated forces, it rose sufficiently to re- 
 ceive the light and heat of the sun penetrating the shallow 
 waters, warming them to such a degree that marine plants and 
 zoophytes sprung from the organic principle that pervades 
 matter, and propagates under certain laAvs which are as in- 
 evitable as the law of gravitation. At this period there was 
 no ice at the poles, in consequence of the sun shining con- 
 stantly within the present polar circles, as it does during the 
 equinoxes in March and September, when day and night are 
 equal in length. Then, as a preponderance of matter heavier 
 than the water was driven towards the north hemisphere, the 
 equilibrium of the globe began to totter. Still, the primary 
 blasts from the mines of incandescent rock within the pro- 
 found depths of the earth only gave a lurch, as it were, to the 
 axis of rotation, and for ages it may not have exceeded the 
 obliquity of Jupiter's ecliptic which is not sufficient, as far 
 as we know, to ice his poles. 
 
 74. Temperate Latitudes at this period a perpetual Spring. 
 At this period, likewise, those latitudes within what we 
 
 * Art. " Astronomy/' 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
74 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 now denominate the temperate zones would receive a greater 
 degree of heat from the central luminary in consequence of 
 there being no severe winter to lower the temperature ; and 
 it is just possible that, on the first lands that rose above the 
 ocean in the present latitudes of Europe, the plants that grew 
 were of a tropical character, or what may be called semi- 
 tropical, such as the araucarias of the carboniferous formation. 
 Be this as it may, we can scarcely consider the heat to have 
 been of such intensity and permanence as to account for the 
 existence of the leviathan creatures that inhabited the lakes, 
 rivers, and forests of Great Britain, the remains of which 
 have been already referred to. It may be suggested that the 
 atmosphere at that period was so much denser than at pre- 
 sent, that while the tropics were subject to a temperature of 
 twice the average heat now ascertained, the temperate zones 
 glowed under a tropical heat, while the arctic and antarctic 
 circles enjoyed a temperate clime. These points will be fully 
 considered under the third division of our subject when treat- 
 ing of the atmosphere. 
 
 75. Action of internal Forces during the earliest Geological 
 Epochs. Meanwhile we shall resume the consideration of the 
 internal forces, and their effect on the land in driving the 
 earth from its equilibrium. These once having obtained a 
 weak point in the shell that enclosed their energies, battered 
 at that point until a breach was made, not merely raising 
 "domes of trachyte and cones of basalt" through isolated 
 apertures, but splitting up the crust hardened by incandescent 
 matter into long lines of eruption, creating the bases of those 
 vast mountain-chains which are the most wonderful pheno- 
 mena of the earth's solid surface. Evidently one weak 
 fissure begat another; or when one crack was choked up 
 with solid matter it cooled and another broke out, generally 
 parallel with its predecessor, or with lesser fissures at right 
 angles; and thus we have the vast congeries of mountain- 
 systems on the globe, of which those of Asia are the most 
 remarkable, and among the most ancient in their formation. 
 Not only did these volcanic forces within our planet, by some 
 
THE LAND. 75 
 
 irrepressible law, seek the surface and concentrate their ener- 
 gies on the weakest parts, but, as already frequently observed, 
 they were, for immense periods of time, directed almost en- 
 tirely to the latitudes and longitudes north of the equator ; 
 while those in the southern half were comparatively free from 
 their influence. And we shall see that it was not until the 
 first northern fissures were closed that the unexpended vol- 
 canic agency found vent for its surplus matter by the stupen- 
 dous latitudinal rents through which the Cordilleras of the 
 Andes were upheaved in regions south of the equator. In 
 this manner we contend that the first operations of nature 
 commenced in the alembic of our planet, which has resulted 
 not only in diversifying its surface with mountain and valley, 
 river and lake, but in producing those perturbations in its 
 movements whence arise the glory of the seasons. 
 
 76. Primary quiescent condition broken up. Let us now 
 consider the world in that pristine state, when the silicious 
 and other deposits from the ocean became hardened into a 
 crust on which the waters reposed, lying upon an even bed, 
 and without a rock to break their surface, like a crystal 
 sphere gleaming in the realms of space. Let us further con- 
 sider the extent of the subterranean heat that first solidified 
 these deposits, thereby confining the incandescent rocky 
 matter within a shell, which increased its volcanic force as 
 the strata became thicker, condensing the caloric by superin- 
 cumbent pressure, until the internal forces reacted on the ex- 
 ternal, and the earth swelled and heaved below the sea in a 
 struggle between fire and water for supremacy on its surface. 
 Let us then conceive the tremendous revolution that in- 
 augurated the new order of things which followed in the 
 constitution of our planet the breaking up of its previous 
 quiescent state, and the disruption of its aqueous uniformity 
 by convulsions rending the framework of the world. And 
 let us bear in mind that these mighty concussions, these 
 universal earthquakes, this inconceivable volcanic action, and 
 the consequent upheaval of vast masses of solidifying rock, 
 were in the beginning directed chiefly towards the north 
 
76 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 hemisphere almost exclusively, raising it above the level of 
 the sea without equivalents in elevation within the south 
 hemisphere. 
 
 77. Internal Action continues through Ages increasing the 
 Tropical Zone. ~Now let us imagine the globe poised in 
 space, delicately balanced on its axis of rotation, yet revolv- 
 ing with violent activity in its diurnal and annual course, 
 suddenly shaken by the outburst of the first igneous forma- 
 tion, and we can conceive how it was driven from its equi- 
 librium, at first only a degree or so, but increasingly by the 
 impetus of repeated concussions and upheavals, until the 
 plane of the equator differed considerably from that of the 
 earth's orbit. From that time forth day and night lost the 
 monotony of duration which previously characterised them, 
 and the annual rotation varied with the declination of the 
 sun reaching the solstices in each hemisphere. This went 
 on for ages, but with probably accelerated speed on the 
 upheaval of some new mountain - system in Asia, Africa, 
 Europe, or Xorth America, so that in time the inclination 
 of the earth's axis reached the angle at which we now 
 find it, with the vicissitudes of spring, summer, autumn, 
 and winter, to vary the aspect of the revolving year. But, 
 although the northern continents and islands were then es- 
 tablished above the sea-level not as they are now, yet ap- 
 proximate in area and elevation nature had scarcely time to 
 clothe their naked rocks with vegetation, or people the shal- 
 low waters with highly-organised creatures. Hence the sea- 
 sons at this epoch passed over the temperate zone without 
 fostering and renewing that vegetable and animal life which 
 marks their course at present. No vestiges appear among the 
 fossil remains unfolded by geological research of a temperate 
 fauna and flora having existed before the tropical era to which 
 we now direct our attention. 
 
 78. Argument in favour of an extended Tropical Zone. 
 Having traced the effect of volcanic force in disturbing the 
 equilibrium of the world so as to cause it by continuous 
 action to reach an obliquity of twenty-three and a-half de- 
 
THE LAND. 77 
 
 grees from its pristine position, it is not illogical to conclude 
 that it went considerably beyond that angle. As we have 
 already seen, according to astronomical data, it has exceeded 
 to a fractional extent its present tropical limits within the 
 range of human history ; and why should it be regarded as 
 improbable that the displacement was not greater in the propor- 
 tion which geological epochs bear to historical eras ? Time 
 given, there is nothing unscientific in concluding that at one 
 period the obliquity of the ecliptic was twice as great as we 
 find it now, when a tropical sun shone in the zenith upon the 
 extinct fauna and flora of Europe. We have seen by the 
 incontestible evidence of fossil remains, interpreted by the 
 light of science, under the investigations of acute, learned 
 men, that plants and animals analogous to those inhabiting 
 the torrid zone in bygone periods existed even as far north 
 as the British Isles. Does this not amply warrant the 
 conclusion that the continually-increasing angle of obliquity 
 reached a limit bordering on the latitudes of our own shores 1 
 Can we not suppose, without any violation even of the doc- 
 trines of astronomy, that the same forces which caused the 
 displacement of the two planes to the angle they now sub- 
 tend, may have increased it to a still greater obliquity, until 
 it was checked by some counteracting force of a character 
 similar to that which originally set it in motion? 
 
 79. Probable Extension of the Extinct Tropics to 45 of 
 Latitude. Humboldt informs us that, " in the Jura lime- 
 stone, colossal skeletons of crocodiles, plesiosauri, planulites, 
 and stems of the cycadeas exist;" all creatures and plants of 
 an essentially tropical nature. If we take the middle latitude 
 of the Jura Mountains on the map, we find it at 47 K This 
 is precisely double the present declination of the sun in the 
 Tropic of Cancer, which intersects the great desert of Sahara 
 in Africa. Now, as we know that alligators and other tropical 
 monsters are found in the Nile considerably to the north of 
 that line, we are not justified in concluding that the ancient 
 extent of the tropical zone we contend for reached to the 
 latitude of the Jura Mountains. On the other hand, having 
 
78 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 seen that there are abundance of tropical fossils in the rocks 
 and deposits of England and Scotland, we may fairly take 
 these latitudes as analogous, during the European tropical 
 epoch, to the African shores of the Mediterranean at present. 
 Eor the sake of illustration, therefore, let us strike the limit 
 at 45, and we find at once a solution of this mysterious 
 problem in the physical history of the world. Here no 
 gratuitous theory interposes to upset astronomical doctrines 
 on the one hand, or geological data on the other. No direct 
 overthrow of the axis of rotation to the equatorial plane or 
 vice versa need be assumed ; or a state where the earth's crust 
 had fissures and yawning gaps, of such extent and depth that 
 the subterranean heat and gaseous elements belched forth so 
 abundantly that the temperature of the colder regions was 
 rendered tropical. These and similar theories endeavouring to 
 account for the vestiges of an extinct tropical Europe are at 
 variance with the order of nature on our planet as exemplified 
 by the facts of geology and the principles deduced therefrom. 
 While avoiding both extremes, the theory herein propounded 
 goes in for a greater extension of the obliquity of the ecliptic 
 than astronomers are prepared to admit ; while it advocates 
 an amount of volcanic force in the earlier epochs of the earth's 
 formation which no geologist has hitherto advanced. Never- 
 theless we think, after a calm inquiry into the proposition, 
 there is nothing in it contrary to the universal law of gravi- 
 tation, or those volcanic forces of which evidence still exists 
 in almost every quarter of the globe. It is a logical solution 
 of an important scientific question, and entitled to further 
 investigation and fair argument. 
 
 80. Computation of Geological Time by Stratified Rocks. 
 Without determining the maximum of tropical latitudes at 
 that epoch, there are sufficient data to open up a new mode of 
 computation for the ages of sedimentary rocks. Hitherto geol- 
 ogists, in calculating the lapse of time during the successive 
 epochs of extinct animal and vegetable life, have based their 
 estimates upon observations of recent deposits, considered to 
 be analogous to the matter of certain stratified rocks, con- 
 
THE LAND. 79 
 
 taining fossil remains, at the period of their formation. Upon 
 this basis the length of time given to these epochs extends to 
 millions of years. Without disputing the premises on which 
 these estimates are founded, and the undoubted evidence that 
 geological time is inconceivably great, it will be admitted 
 that the basis of calculation is rude and uncertain. A portion 
 of ground is examined where a sedimentary deposit has been 
 made by a river so many inches thick within a known space 
 of time, and the time occupied by the laying down of such 
 deposits is multiplied to ascertain that which would be 
 required for others thousands of feet in thickness. This 
 method of calculation supposes that deposits have been uni- 
 form throughout all time, against which there are abundance 
 of geological facts showing that sedimentary deposits have 
 not been thus uniform. For instance, the fact that fossil 
 stems of trees many feet in length are found upright in hori- 
 zontal strata show that the deposits around them must have 
 been rapid, otherwise the lapse of time would have destroyed 
 that part of the tree exposed to the decomposing action of 
 air or water. Hence, in calculating geological time, enthusi- 
 asts are apt to fall into error where they conclude that the 
 process of depositing sedimentary rocks has been uniform 
 from the beginning. 
 
 81. Computation by Extinction of Species. Besides that 
 system of computation which is applied to the most recently 
 formed stratified rocks, geologists estimate the antiquity of 
 the more ancient formations by the fossil remains of plants 
 and animals whose species or genera no longer exist. They 
 say that if so many years have elapsed during the most recent 
 era, when some three or four species of shells only have 
 become extinguished, how enormous must have been the 
 lapse of time required to extinguish the hundreds and 
 thousands of species and genera which lie embedded in fossi- 
 liferous rocks ! But the difficulty again arises as to data of 
 time for the recent era. Here some geologists have called 
 in the aid of astronomy, and, calculating through the pre- 
 cession of the equinoxes, have endeavoured to fix upon a 
 
80 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 period when the eccentricity of the earth's orbit was so great 
 that the heat received by the earth from the sun would 
 be one-fifth more in summer than at present, and one-fifth 
 less in winter. Calculating on this basis, which is of a 
 thoroughly scientific and legitimate character, Mr James 
 Croll, a thoughtful Scottish geologist, has endeavoured to 
 show that 800,000 years have elapsed since the time 
 when he considered the glacial period existed arguing as 
 follows : 
 
 82. CrolTs Estimate of Glacial Period by Precession of the 
 Equinoxes. " If, now, by the precession of the equinoxes, 
 winter in our northern hemisphere should happen when the 
 earth is in the aphelion of its orbit at the time of its greatest 
 eccentricity, there would result, according to Mr Croll, such a 
 severity of climate as to bring our mean annual winter tem- 
 perature below freezing-point. In that case, all the moisture 
 that would fall here would fall in the form of snow; and 
 though when summer came it would be one-fifth warmer than 
 at present, the first effect of that would be to generate fogs 
 and mists, and to intercept the sun's rays, and prevent the 
 heat exercising its due influence so that Mr Croll conjec- 
 tures that the ice and snow would never be melted, and in 
 that way he accounts for the world in its glacial period. . . . 
 If we in this way get a beginning, it may be possible in the 
 end to find some approximate value in years for the length 
 of some of our geological periods. We are just groping our 
 way at present, and whatever is stated must be stated with 
 extreme caution, and must be stated rather with the desire of 
 eliciting truth than of pretending to state dogmas." * 
 
 83. Rate of Diminution of Obliquity a Basis for Geological 
 Time. Acting in the cautious manner indicated by Mr 
 Geikie, we venture to propose our views on the primeval ex- 
 tension of the obliquity of the ecliptic, and its subsequent 
 diminution, as a basis for computing geological time. It 
 appears to us that once the wings of imagination are let loose 
 by enthusiastic geologists there is no limit to their flight, and 
 
 * Lecture on Geological Time, by Archibald Geikie, F.E.S. 
 
THE LAND. 81 
 
 they conclude by rushing into boundless time bordering on 
 eternity. In their estimates of epochs they scatter hundreds 
 of thousands, nay millions, of years broadcast over the extinc- 
 tion of species, as if they were the days and months of the 
 geological year in which they existed. As if in a spirit of 
 antagonism to the Mosaic history of the creation, which 
 limits the world's existence to some six thousand years, the 
 advocates for these inconceivable spaces of time seem to glory 
 in showing its infinitesimal degree by the countless ages 
 they have unrolled on the book of the earth's stratified 
 records illustrated in its fossil pages. Steering a middle 
 course between these extremes, we find that, in applying the 
 ascertained diminution of the displacement of the ecliptic 
 during one century, we arrive at an approximate calculation 
 of the time which elapsed since the earth began to recede 
 from its maximum extension of obliquity at the close, or 
 rather the turn, of the tropical epoch in Europe. For example, 
 if the diminution of the ecliptic be 45" in a century, this 
 would give in 8000 years a decrease of 1; and taking the 
 maximum of the torrid zone at 45 extension, or 21 30' 
 greater than it is at present, the result would be a lapse of 
 172,000 years since the epoch referred to, when the flora 
 and fauna of Europe were of a similar nature to what now 
 exists within and on the borders of the present tropical 
 limits. According to this theory of constant diminution, a 
 greater lapse of time must take place before the planes of the 
 equator and the earth's orbit are parallel, when the seasons 
 will no longer exist. 
 
 84. Not to be considered arbitrary but suggestive in the 
 Formula of Computation. In venturing upon naming a 
 given space of time, numbered by years, to specify the dura- 
 tion of any epoch in the physical history of the world, it by 
 no means follows that it should be taken as an arbitrary 
 system of computing geological time. It shows, however, that 
 geology must go hand in hand with astronomy in determining 
 the age of the earth since it became the abode of organised 
 creatures and plants. If, on the one hand, astronomers were 
 
82 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 to descend from abstruse celestial computations, and en- 
 deavour to assimilate their investigations with geognostic 
 phenomena, they would materially aid the solution of such 
 problems. On the other hand, geologists would advance the 
 doctrines of their science more logically and acceptably if 
 they avoided arbitrary conclusions from imperfect data, leav- 
 ing a wide margin for calculating periods in the early epochs 
 of the earth. 
 
CHAPTEE V. 
 
 EXTINCT TROPICAL EPOCH IN EUROPE. Continued. 
 
 Duration and aspect of the tropical epoch in Europe, 85. Hugh Miller's 
 sketch of Scotland during this epoch, 86. Comparison between the 
 aspect of that epoch and the present, 87. Probable cause of diminution 
 in the inclination of the earth's axis, 88. Disparity between the land of 
 the two hemispheres greater then than now, 89. Australian and South 
 African geography present low elevations, 90. Reactionary volcanic 
 forces in the upheaval of South America, 91. Physical differences 
 between North and South America, 92. Remarkable geological analogy 
 between North America and Europe, 93. Immense extent of active 
 volcanic regions in South America, 94. Activity of volcanic forces in 
 modern times up to 1868, 95. Humboldt's first impressions on feeling 
 the shock of an earthquake, 96. Dread of earthquakes felt by the in- 
 habitants of South America, 97. Humboldt's account of phenomena 
 attending volcanic eruptions, 98. Volcanic forces in South America 
 sufficient to cause a reactionary movement in the earth's axis, 99. 
 Volcanic regions of Central America and Southern Mexico included in 
 this reaction, 100. Humboldt's account of the extraordinary volcano of 
 Jorullo, 101. Example of volcanic action typical of that of South 
 America, 103. Modern volcanic activity chiefly confined to equatorial 
 latitudes, 104. Volcanic region of Java, 105. Concluding remarks, 
 106. 
 
 85. Duration and Aspect of the Tropical Epoch in Europe. 
 Assuming that the tropical epoch in Europe was the result 
 of the torrid zone being expanded to forty-five degrees of 
 latitude on each side of the equator, it would have taken 
 350,000 years to reach its maximum, from the first point of 
 departure, when there was no obliquity of the ecliptic. The 
 next question for inquiry is, Whether the earth remained in 
 that position for any great period, or was by some imme- 
 
84 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 diate counteracting volcanic force in an opposite direction 
 arrested in its progress, and the diminution begun 1 ? On 
 this head geological data are not so precise as on others ; 
 yet the evidence goes to show that the tropical period must 
 have existed for an immeasurable space of time, when not 
 only the fauna and flora of that epoch were brought into ex- 
 istence, but, as far as Europe is concerned, the entire vege- 
 table and animal nature which then flourished, became 
 extinguished. Of the marvels of that period, the following 
 inferential sketch by Hugh Miller, from geological data, 
 forms a graphic picture : 
 
 86. Hugh Miller's Sketch of Scotland during this Epoch. 
 " Could we but see the productions of our country as they 
 once really existed could we travel backwards into the 
 vanished past, as we can descend into the strata that contain 
 their remains, and walk out into the woods or along the 
 shores of oolitic Scotland we should be greeted by a suc- 
 cession of marvels, strange beyond even the conceptions of 
 the poet, or at least only equalled by the creations of him 
 who, in his adventurous song, sent forth the lady Una to 
 wander over a fairy -land of dreary wolds and trackless 
 forests, whose caverns were the haunts of dragons and satyrs, 
 and its hills the abodes 
 
 " ' Of dreadful beasts, that when they drew to hande, 
 Half-flying and half-floating, in their haste, 
 Did with their largeness measure o'er much lande, 
 And made wide shadow under bulksome waist, 
 As mountain doth the valley overcaste ; 
 And trailing scaly tails did rear afore 
 Bodies so monstrous, horribill, and vaste.' 
 
 " Let us, however, ere we part for the evening, adventure 
 a short walk into the wilds of Oolite, in that portion of space 
 now occupied on the surface of the globe by the north- 
 eastern hills of Sutherland, where they abut on the precipi- 
 tous Ord. We stand on an elevated wood-covered ridge, that 
 on the one hand overlooks the blue sea, and descends on the 
 other towards a broad river, beyond which there spreads a 
 
THE LAND. 87 
 
 wide expanse of a mountainous country. The higheithan 
 more distant hills are dark with pines ; and save that the 
 sun, already low in the sky, is flinging athwart them his 
 yellow light and gilding, high over shaded dells and the 
 deeper valleys, cliff, and copse, and hare mossy summit, the 
 general colouring of the background would be blue and cold. 
 But the ray falls warm on the rich vegetation around us, 
 tree-ferns, and tall club-mosses, and graceful palms, and 
 the strangely - proportioned cycadacese, whose leaves seem 
 fronds of the bracken fixed upon decapitated stumps; and 
 along the banks of the river we see tall intensely - green 
 hedges of the feathered equisetacese. Brown cones and 
 withered spiky leaves strew the ground, and scarcely a hun- 
 dred yards away there is a noble araucaria, that raises, 
 sphere-like, its proud head more than a hundred feet, over 
 its fellows, and whose trunk, bedewed with odoriferous bal- 
 sam, glistens to the sun. The calm stillness of the air makes 
 itself faintly audible in the drowsy hum of insects. There 
 is a gorgeous light -poised dragon-fly darting hither and 
 thither through the minuter gnat-like groups ; it settles for a 
 moment on one of the lesser ferns, and a small insectiverous 
 creature, scarcely larger than a rat, issues noiselessly from its 
 hole, and creeps stealthily towards it. But there is a whirr 
 of wings overhead, and lo ! a monster descends, and the lit- 
 tle mammal starts back into its hole. 'Tis a winged dragon 
 of the Oolite, a carnivorous reptile, keen of eye and sharp of 
 tooth, and that to the head and jaws of the crocodile adds 
 the neck of a bird, the tail of an ordinary mammal, and that 
 floats through the air on leathern wings resembling those of 
 the vampire -bat. We have seen, in the minute rat -like 
 creature, one of the two known mammals of this vast land of 
 Oolite the insect-eating ampUitherium ; and in the flying 
 reptile, one of its strangely-organised pterodactyles. 
 
 11 But hark ! what sounds are those ? Tramp, tramp, 
 tramp crash, crash. Tree-ferns and club-mosses, cycas and 
 zamia, yield to the force and momentum of some immense 
 reptile, and the colossal iguanodon breaks through. He is 
 
86 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 tall a;s the tallest elephant, but from tail to snout greatly 
 more than twice as long bears, like the rhinoceros, a short 
 horn on his snout, and has his jaws thickly implanted with 
 saw-like teeth. But, though formidable from his weight and 
 strength, he possesses the comparative inoffensiveness of the 
 herbivorous animals ; and with no desire to attack, and no 
 necessity to defend, he moves slowly onward, deliberately 
 munching, as he passes, the succulent stems of the cyca- 
 dacese. 
 
 "The sun is fast sinking, and, as night thickens, the 
 reaches of the neighbouring rivers display their frequent 
 dimples, and ever and anon scaly backs are raised over its 
 surface. Its numerous crocodilians are astir, and now they 
 quit the stream, and we see its thick hedge-like lines of equi- 
 setacese open again and close, as they rustle through, to 
 scour, in quest of prey, the dank meadows that line the 
 banks. There are tortoises that will this evening find their 
 protecting armour of carapace and plastron all too weak, and 
 close their lives of centuries. And now we saunter down- 
 wards towards the shore, and see the ground-swell breaking 
 white in the calm against ridges of coral scarce less white. 
 The shores are strewed with shells of pearl, the whorled 
 ammonite, and the nautilus; and amid the gleam of ganoidal 
 scales, reflected from the green depths beyond, we may see 
 the phosphoric trail of the belemnite, and its path is over 
 shells of strange form and name the sedentary gryplioea, the 
 pama, and the plagiostoma. 
 
 11 But lo ! yet another monster. A snake-like form, sur- 
 mounted by a crocodilean head, rises high out of the water 
 within yonder coral ledge, and the fiery sinister eyes peer 
 inquiringly round, as if in quest of prey. The body is but 
 dimly seen; but it is short and bulky compared with the 
 swan-like neck, and mounted on paddles instead of limbs ; 
 so that the entire creature, wholly unlike anything which 
 now exists, has been likened to a boa-constrictor threaded 
 through the body of a turtle. We have looked upon the 
 plcsiosaurus. And now outside the ledge there is a huge 
 
THE LAND. 87 
 
 crocodilean head raised ; and a monstrous eye, huger than 
 that of any other living creature for it measures a full foot 
 across glares upon the slimmer and less powerful reptile, and 
 in an instant the long neck and small head disappear. The 
 monster of the immense eye an eye so constructed that its 
 focus can be altered at will, and made to comprise either near 
 or distant objects, and the organ itself adapted either to 
 examine microscopically or to explore as a telescope is 
 another be-paddled reptile of the sea, the ichthyosaurus, or 
 fish-lizard. 
 
 " But the night comes on, and the shadows of the woods 
 and rocks deepen ; there are uncouth sounds along the beach 
 and in the forest ; and new monsters of yet stranger shape 
 are dimly discovered moving amid the uncertain gloom. Rep- 
 tiles, reptiles, flying, swimming, waddling, walking, the 
 age is that of the cold-blooded, ungenial reptile; and, save 
 in the dwarf and inferior forms of the marsupials and in- 
 sectivora, not one of the lowest mammals has yet appeared. 
 And now the moon rises in clouded majesty; and now her 
 red wake brightens in one long strip the dark sea ; and we 
 may mark where the cetiosaurus, a sort of reptilian whale, 
 comes into view as it crosses the lighted track, and. is 
 straightway lost in the gloom. But the night grows danger- 
 ous, and these monster-haunted woods were not planted for 
 men. Let us return, then, to the safer and better furnished 
 world of the present time, and to our secure and quiet 
 homes." * 
 
 87. Comparison between the Aspect of that Epoch and the 
 Present. As far as his native country is concerned, the weird- 
 thinking Scottish geologist is right, but not as regards the 
 inhabitants of tropical regions in Asia, Africa, and America, 
 where man is still surrounded by dangerous reptiles and 
 quadrupeds, of different forms, no doubt, but equally voracious. 
 There is no evidence that man did exist at that period; at 
 the same time there is nothing to assure us that he could not 
 have existed. Let us imagine under what different circum- 
 * Hugh Miller ' Sketch-Book of Popular Geology.' 
 
88 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 stances the inhabitants of the British Isles would have toiled 
 for their subsistence then to what obtains now, or if the cli- 
 mate had never changed from its tropical character to the 
 present temperate one, with the vicissitudes of the seasons. 
 Instead of the hardy independent race that now tills the 
 ground, sowing and reaping the golden grain, rejoicing in the 
 spring-time and harvest, or spreading their flocks and herds 
 over the pasture-lands, there would have been in all proba- 
 bility some black race as in Africa, of degraded intellect, or a 
 red race as in India, effeminate and servile, living on the 
 fruits of the forest, and exposed to the ferocious attacks of 
 animals. Instead of the open forest-land and greensward, 
 with the hardy oak and elm, there would be a dense jungle 
 of succulent shrubs, trees, and arborescent ferns ; and instead 
 of the balmy breezes of summer and autumn, we should be 
 breathing a damp, hot, suffocating atmosphere, charged with 
 deadly malaria, like what may be found in African forests. 
 
 88. Probable Cause of Diminution of Inclination in the 
 Earth's Axis. Having traced the displacement of the equa- 
 torial plane from the earth's orbit to its maximum extent, we 
 now proceed to investigate the cause of its diminution. We 
 have seen how the plutonic forces in the interior were most 
 intensely manifested by the upheaval of continental masses 
 in the north hemisphere. We can also understand how : the 
 masses of igneous rock, after rending the earth's crust, became 
 solidified until the rents were closed. Then the confined 
 volcanic forces were directed towards the south hemisphere, 
 piercing through the stratified rocks at the weak points and 
 fissures along the chain of the Andes with such tremendous 
 force, that it not only arrested the further extension of the tro- 
 pical zones, but had the effect of counteracting the forces in 
 the north hemisphere ; and then commenced the diminution 
 of this phenomenon, which has continued to the present era. 
 On this point geology informs us that the bulk of the moun : 
 tain- chains and elevated table-lands, especially in the more 
 northern parts of the continents of Europe, Asia, and North 
 America, is composed of the crystalline schistous formation, 
 
THE LAND. 89 
 
 comprehending all the granitoid rocks, and the primary 
 stratifications, or the transition series, including the carbonifer- 
 ous formation ; while South America is chiefly of secondary 
 and tertiary strata, with igneous rocks of recent formation; 
 and as far as we know of Australia, New Zealand, and the 
 islands in the South Pacific, they partake chiefly of similar 
 geological features. At all events, there are enough data for 
 concluding that the continental masses of the south hemisphere 
 (excepting, perhaps, South Africa) were upheaved, for the 
 most part, subsequent to the upheaval of the northern con- 
 tinents especially the preponderating masses of the Hima- 
 layas, and other mountain-chains of the primary series in Asia 
 and in North America. 
 
 89. Disparity between the Land of the two Hemispheres 
 greater then than now. On referring to our map of the world 
 on the polar projection, where the globe is bisected at the 
 equator, we may see, at a glance, the immense superficies of 
 land above the level of the sea at the present period in the 
 north hemisphere as compared with the south. Great as the 
 disproportion is now, it was probably more so at the epoch 
 when the earth received the vertical rays of a tropical sun in 
 Europe. As far as geological researches have revealed the 
 extent of land and sea at that era, it would appear that while 
 the area of the primary and secondary formations equalled 
 that of the ocean in the north hemisphere, in the south the 
 few islands that comprised that series of rocks, rising above 
 the then level of the sea, scarcely covered a hundredth part 
 of its boundless domain. At that period the island-continent 
 of Australia comprised two narrow chains of isles, one in its 
 present eastern longitudes, the other in the west, and both 
 trending north and south, with a shallow sea between, which 
 has been slowly upheaved until its bed formed the level, 
 marshy, saline districts characterising the interior geo- 
 graphy of that extensive territory, which nearly equals the 
 area of Europe. On the other hand, these groups of isles 
 must have been of comparatively low elevation, as we find, 
 notwithstanding the extent of this region, that the crest of 
 
90 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 its great eastern mountain-chain of 1700 miles is not more 
 than 2000 feet above the sea-level, and Mount Kosciusko, in 
 the Australian Alps, its highest ascertained peak, only 6500 
 feet. " From the absence of any great mountains commensu- 
 rate with the enormous extent of country, and from the gene- 
 ral horizontal formation of its rocks, it has been inferred that 
 the convulsions of the globe have been less active in this 
 region than on the other continents. No active volcanoes 
 are seen among its mountains, nor do recent strata indicate 
 their existence. Its surface geology, therefore, presents a 
 region undisturbed since the tertiary epoch ; at the same time 
 it is evident that the upheaval of the country has been 
 regular though slow, and some geologists have observed that 
 it is still going on in certain localities. Be that as it may, 
 Australia may be regarded as representing an extinct archi- 
 pelago, with its sea-bed upheaved beneath the rays of a burn- 
 ing sun, which through ages has dried up its superincumbent 
 waters. The sea became shallower from evaporation and 
 continued upheaval, until it has disappeared, except in the 
 chasms and depressions of the old ocean-bed, where it still 
 remains, forming the salt lakes of the west and central parts 
 the former above the level of the present sea, and some of 
 the latter with the adjacent land below it. During that 
 epoch, those streams which now flow through the marshy 
 interior from the mountain-chains once mingled their floods 
 with the tide that rippled upon their shores, when they were 
 islands studding the extinct Australian sea." * 
 
 90. Australian and South African Geography present low 
 Elevations. This basin-like form, with elevated lands fring- 
 ing the coast around a depressed interior, characterises the 
 geography of South Africa also, bearing out the theory of 
 slow elevation of the continental mass, without any evidence 
 of recent eruptive rocks or active volcanoes. From the re- 
 searches of Dr Livingstone, who crossed the interior from 
 west to east, and nearly from north to south, we learn that 
 there are no mountain-chains of elevation proportioned to the 
 * 'Our Australian Colonies.' By Samuel Mossman. 
 
THE LAND. 91 
 
 extent of the continent in that hemisphere. In crossing the 
 widest part, from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean, he found 
 elevated ridges from 300 to 350 geographical miles from the 
 coast, and trending in a general north and south direction. 
 From crest to crest of these ranges he estimated the distance 
 at 400 geographical miles, and the highest culminating point 
 at 5000 feet above the sea-level ; consequently he came to 
 the conclusion that the greater portion of South Africa is a 
 vast interior basin, enclosed by extensive rocky ridges, except 
 where they are broken to admit the outlet of the waters col- 
 lected therein. In one respect the geography here differs 
 from Australia, as the interior basin is at a greater elevation, 
 and the fringe of mountains on either side is further from the 
 coast. Nevertheless there is a striking similarity in the 
 general configuration, and sufficient data to conclude that at 
 a contemporary epoch South Africa presented only chains of 
 islands scattered over an African archipelago, with a shallow 
 sea between, which plutonic forces have gradually upheaved, 
 until the ocean-waters have departed, and their place is sup- 
 plied by numerous fresh-water lakes and streams. At this 
 period the mighty Himalayas, the gigantic table -land of 
 Tibet, with its mountain-chains, the Celestial Mountains, and 
 the steppes of Tartary, in Asia the Alps and the Pyrenees in 
 Europe the Eocky Mountains and the table-lands of Mexico 
 in North America and all the circle of rugged eminences 
 within the circumpolar regions, then weighed down the com- 
 parative "world of waters" which encircled their antipodes in 
 the south hemisphere, and thus disturbed the equilibrium of 
 the globe so as to displace the planes of its diurnal and annual 
 rotation. So that we may conclude, as far as the continental 
 masses of South Africa and Australia influenced the reaction 
 of internal forces, or counterbalanced the land in the north 
 hemisphere, they exercised comparatively an inferior power ; 
 and if our theory of terrestrial action in the south hemisphere 
 producing diminution of the tropics was based upon their 
 geological data, it would be inadmissible and unscientific. 
 91. Reactionary Forces in the Upheaval of South America. 
 
92 OKIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 But we have yet to consider the vast continent of South 
 America, with its stupendous mountain-system the backbone 
 of the world the mighty Andes. If the human mind could 
 only conceive the tremendous volcanic forces brought to bear 
 on that latitudinal line of five thousand miles, rending the 
 south hemisphere, as it were, in twain, there would be no 
 difficulty in imagining the shock that arrested the deflection 
 of the earth's axis in its equatorial career. If man could have 
 witnessed the depth and length of the awful fissure which 
 yawned on the earth's crust at the epoch of their creation 
 when the incandescent rock was erupted from its subterranean 
 source, in masses so overwhelming that not only were the 
 deepest parts of the ocean filled up, but the highest elevations 
 above the sea-level attained then might we conceive the 
 awful convulsion that made the terraqueous globe quake from 
 the equator to the poles, causing a reaction towards the res- 
 toration of its equilibrium which has ever since progressed 
 by the diminution of the torrid zone, until that zone has 
 entirely left the continent of Europe. Notwithstanding the 
 difficulty, almost amounting to a mental impossibility, of 
 forming a vivid conception of this stupendous event in the 
 world's geological history, we can form some approximate 
 idea of the volcanic forces engaged in the upheaval of the 
 Andes or Cordilleras from the graphic descriptions of scientific 
 travellers especially those of Humboldt who have witnessed 
 the vestiges of this creation in the volcanic eruptions and 
 earthquakes which still agitate the South American continent. 
 Before doing so, however, it will be necessary to refer briefly 
 to the North American continent in its geological relations 
 with Europe and Asia as contrasted with its southern sister. 
 92. Physical Differences between South and North America. 
 Although the two great divisions of the American conti- 
 nent are united together by the volcanic band of Central 
 America, thereby tending to convey the impression that they 
 are homogeneous in their physical relations, yet no two 
 regions on the earth are so dissimilar in their geognostic 
 phenomena, fauna, and flora. After the discovery of their 
 
THE LAND. 93 
 
 entire extent by Columbus, Americus, and their fellow-navi- 
 gators of the fifteenth century, the astounding length of the 
 coast-line from north to south, and, as far as was then known, 
 their width from the shores of the Atlantic to the Pacific, ap- 
 peared so immense, together with all the strange inhabitants, 
 animals, and plants, hitherto unknown to Europeans, that, 
 with one accord, this land was designated the " New World " 
 in contradistinction to the appellation of the " Old World " 
 bestowed on Europe, Asia, and Africa. In its general mean- 
 ing the term was appropriate at the time, as briefly including 
 all the vast territories in the western hemisphere. It is time, 
 however, that these names should become obsolete, especially 
 in works of a scientific nature, as they are apt to mislead the 
 general reader in his impressions concerning the continental 
 divisions of the world. 
 
 93. Remarkable Geological Analogy between North America 
 and Europe. Not only is North America physically distinct 
 from the southern continent in its main features, but these 
 possess a striking similarity to the physical phenomena of 
 Europe, more especially in geological structure and fossil 
 remains. " A remarkable analogy exists in the structure of 
 the land in North America and Central and North Europe. 
 Gneiss, mica-schist, and granite prevail over wide areas in 
 the Alleghanies; on the Atlantic slope, and the northern 
 latitudes of the American continent, and in the high and 
 middle latitudes, the Silurian strata extend over 2000 miles. 
 Crystalline and Silurian rocks form the substratum of Mexico, 
 for the most part covered with plutonic and volcanic forma- 
 tions and secondary limestone. The Rocky Mountains are 
 mostly Silurian, except the east ridge, which is of stratified 
 crystalline rocks, amygdaloid, and ancient volcanic produc- 
 tions." * It is well known that the Silurian formation is 
 named after a district in England where it abounds, and 
 which was formerly inhabited by an ancient tribe of Britons 
 named Silures. The formation itself is remarkable for ex- 
 hibiting the fossil remains of the earliest types of animal life, 
 * ' Imperial Gazetteer/ edited by W. G. Blackie, Ph. D. 
 
94 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 as represented by mollusca and zoophytes, the genera and 
 species being analogous in both Europe and America. In 
 like manner the remains of vertebrate animals found in North 
 America, as well as those of its extinct flora, are either iden- 
 tical with, or congeners of, those which existed in Europe dur- 
 ing the tropical epoch. Indeed the geological data of the two 
 countries go to prove their contemporary existence during 
 the earliest ages of the world, and at a period, as we have 
 seen, when the continental masses of the south hemisphere 
 were only in their infancy, peeping above the primeval ocean, 
 or small islets before consolidation. Moreover, it may be 
 said that these northern regions had attained their geological 
 maturity, and were progressing towards old age, which ulti- 
 mately verged into decay, death, and extinction of species, 
 leaving behind them the ruins of what ought to be desig- 
 nated scientifically the " Old World," as distinguished from 
 what now exists on the surface of the earth, which is actually 
 a " New World " of creation. Viewing the physical aspect of 
 the North American continent in this light, it is not a new 
 region, but forms a grand member of the continental masses 
 in the ancient northern world. 
 
 94. Immense Extent of Volcanic Regions in South America. 
 On the other hand, the South American Cordilleras, to 
 which we may join the volcanic band of Central America, 
 are comparatively of recent igneous formation ; while the 
 boundless plains of the interior are evidently of modern up- 
 heaval, with the immense area drained by the river Amazon 
 presenting alluvial deposits formed by that queen of rivers, 
 and the Pampas of Buenos Ayres entirely alluvium, deposited 
 by the Plata-Parana. But it is in the Andes that we find 
 those examples of the subterranean forces of the earth which 
 are truly the grandest volcanic wonders of the world. " In 
 considering the geology of the Andes, the first fact that strikes 
 the observer is the vast development of volcanic force along 
 the whole length of the chain, and even continued north, 
 through Guatemala and Mexico. These volcanic vents seem 
 to occur in linear groups, the southmost of which is Chile, 
 
THE LAND. 95 
 
 extending from the 42d to the 33d parallel, and comprising, 
 besides more than a dozen extinct volcanoes, twenty-one still 
 in a state of ignition, the more remarkable of which are 
 Tupungato (15,100 ft.), Antuco (13,000 ft.), and Minchin- 
 maddom (8000 ft.) From the 30th to the 27th parallels no 
 volcanic action is to be found ; but in the Bolivian Andes, 
 and principally west of Lake Titicaca, are eight active craters, 
 among which may be mentioned Gualatieri (22,000 ft.), 
 Atacama (18,000 ft.), Chipicani (19,740 ft), and Arequipa 
 (18,400 ft.) Further north, as far as the 2d parallel south, 
 there are no active volcanoes ; but here we arrive at a district 
 of highly volcanic character, comprising other eight lofty 
 summits now in an igneous state Sangay, Tunguragua, 
 Cotopaxi, Antisana, Imbabura, Cumbal, Pasto, and Purace. 
 As respects the geological formations of this gigantic range, 
 granite, which is abundant in Tierra del Fuego and Patagonia, 
 seems to be the base of the whole, but it comes so rarely to 
 the surface in the north parts of the chain, that, according 
 to Humboldt, a person might travel years in the Andes of 
 Peru without meeting this species of rock ; and he never saw 
 any at a greater absolute elevation than 11,500 ft. Gneiss is 
 sometimes found in connection with the granite, but mica- 
 schist is by far the commonest of all the crystalline rocks. 
 ii' i; -i . As respects volcanic products, the west face of the 
 Andes presents immense quantities of lava, tufa, and obsid- 
 ian, none of which are found on the east side ; this remark 
 applies especially to that part of the chain lying between 
 Chile and the equator. Fossil remains are by no means com- 
 mon; but in the limestone strata of the coast, towards the 
 north extremity of the range, Humboldt found many marine 
 shells." * "Without entering minutely into the geology of 
 this region, it is abundantly evident that the great bulk of 
 the continental mass was upheaved to its present heights 
 above the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific subsequent to 
 the elevation of the northern continent. 
 
 95. Activity of Volcanic Forces in Modern Times up to 
 * ' Imperial Gazetteer.' 
 
96 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 1868. " Many of the volcanoes, as before observed, are in a 
 state of either constant or occasional action ; it cannot, there- 
 fore, be matter of surprise that there should be frequent and 
 violent earthquakes. All the districts of the Andes system, 
 but Chile especially, have suffered more severely from these 
 oscillations than any other part of the world ; and among the 
 towns either destroyed or greatly injured by these visitations 
 may be mentioned Bogota, Quito, Riobamba, Lima, Callao, 
 Valparaiso, and Concepcion." * In 1797, Eiobamba, Tacunga, 
 and Hambato were levelled to the ground. The earth opened 
 under the feet of the inhabitants, and whole caravans were 
 swallowed up, besides habitations ; while avenues of trees 
 were shifted from one spot to another without the trees being 
 in the least damaged. In 1822 Chile was severely visited, 
 and an upheaval of 100,000 square miles of ground to a 
 height of seven feet was the result of the volcanic force. 
 But by far the most extensive and calamitous earthquakes of 
 modern times are those of which Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia 
 were the centres of oscillation in August 1868, which are 
 still fresh in our recollection. On the evening of the 13th 
 of that month, about 4 P.M., the first shocks were felt, and 
 continued at intervals during the night with unprecedented 
 violence, even in that region of earthquakes. In the course 
 of a few hours the oscillations of the unstable ground com- 
 pletely destroyed the towns of Arequipa, Moquegua, Arica, 
 Pisagua, Iquique doing, besides, immense damage to a num- 
 ber of other places all along the coast from Iquique to Callao. 
 At Arequipa the shocks commenced at 5.22 P.M., more or less, 
 and lasted six to seven minutes, followed during the night 
 by eighteen others at intervals, but not so violent. IsTot 
 a church was left standing, not a house habitable ; and had 
 they commenced about midnight few would have survived to 
 tell the tale. At Tacna the shock was almost as destructive ; 
 and at Arica the buildings which withstood the earthquake 
 were washed down by the sea, which broke over the town 
 shortly after the first shock. An eyewitness and sufferer at 
 * ' Imperial Gazetteer.' 
 
THE LAND. 97 
 
 Iquique describes the rising of the sea as follows : " I saw 
 the whole surface of the sea rise as if a mountain-side was 
 actually standing up. Another shock, accompanied with a 
 fearful roar, now took place. I called to my companions to 
 run for their lives on to the Pampa. Too late ! With a 
 horrid crash the sea was upon us, and at one swoop one 
 terrible swoop dashed what was Iquique on to the Pampa. 
 I lost my companions, and in an instant was fighting with 
 the dark waters. The mighty wave surged and roared and 
 leaped. The cries of human beings and animals were dread- 
 ful. A mass of wreck covered me and kept me down ; and 
 I was fast drowning when the sea threw me on to a beam, but 
 a nail piercing my coat, the timber rolled me again under, and 
 I lost all sense. I suppose, as in such cases, I must have 
 struggled after sensation had left me, for when returning 
 consciousness came I was grasping under one arm a large 
 plank, the broken end of which afterwards pierced my thigh. 
 I knew no more until I found myself on the Pampa and 
 all dark around me. In the morning I looked about me 
 and found Iquique gone, all but a few houses round the 
 church." While the proximity of the sea added to the de- 
 vastations of the towns on the coast, those in the interior 
 suffered an equal destruction of property from the greater 
 violence of the shocks, and as they occurred later in the 
 night, when the inhabitants had retired to rest, the number 
 of people killed by the falling houses was tenfold greater in 
 proportion to the population. At Otavalo, Ibarra, and Cata- 
 cachi almost every building was overthrown, and the number 
 who perished in the ruins was overwhelming, as the terror of 
 the calamity was increased by its occurrence at midnight. 
 Ibarra is about twenty leagues from Quito, situated on a 
 plain 7000 feet above the level of the sea. Its population 
 was estimated at 29,000, of whom fully 13,000 perished in 
 the ruins. Otavalo is to the east of Ibarra, about 9000 feet 
 above the sea-level, having a population of 10,000, of whom 
 about 7000 perished, These towns and Catacachi are in the 
 province of Irnbabura, containing a population altogether of 
 
 G 
 
98 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 about 65,000 ; and it was estimated that upwards of 40,000 
 perished on that fearful night. Nearly every village in the 
 province had become a mass of ruins by the time daylight 
 unfolded the true extent of the devastation, and the losses 
 of relatives and friends sustained by the inhabitants. Many 
 of the victims buried under the ruins suffered a lingering 
 death from the inability of the few survivors to extricate 
 them. And as decomposition sets in rapidly in these lati- 
 tudes, it was impossible afterwards to go into the vicinity of 
 the awful scenes of dissolution, owing to the decomposition 
 of so many human bodies. As far as could be ascertained, 
 the number who perished in these earthquakes was not less 
 than 60,000, while the value of the property destroyed was 
 incalculable. 
 
 96. Humboldfs First Impressions on the Heaving of an 
 Earthquake. It would be an easy task to multiply examples 
 of the terrible effects in that region from the pent-up subter- 
 ranean forces which make the old crust of the earth yield like 
 a piece of cardboard to their pressure, and cause the land to 
 undulate like the waves of the sea. "We thus recognise in 
 earthquakes the existence of a volcanic force which, although 
 everywhere manifested and as generally diffused as the in- 
 ternal heat of our planet, attains but rarely, and then only at 
 separate points, sufficient intensity to exhibit the phenomena 
 of eruptions." Thus writes Humboldt in ' Cosmos,' and after- 
 wards describes his experiences of earthquakes as follows : 
 " Before we leave these important phenomena, which we have 
 considered not so much in their individual characteristics as 
 in their general physical and geognostic relations, I would 
 advert to the deep and peculiar impression left on my mind 
 by the first earthquake which we experience, even where it is 
 not accompanied by any subterranean noise. This impression 
 is not, in my opinion, the result of a recollection of those 
 fearful pictures of devastation presented to our imagination 
 by the historical narratives of the past, but it is rather due to 
 the sudden revelation of the delusive nature of the inherent 
 faith by which we had clung to a belief in the immobility of 
 
THE LAND. 99 
 
 tlie earth. We are accustomed from early childhood to draw 
 a contrast between the mobility of water and the immobility 
 of the soil on which we tread ; and this feeling is confirmed 
 by the evidence of our senses. When, therefore, we suddenly 
 feel the ground move beneath us, a mysterious and natural 
 force with which we were previously unacquainted is revealed 
 to us as an active disturbance of stability. A moment de- 
 stroys the illusion of a whole life our deceptive faith in the 
 repose of nature vanishes, and we feel transported, as it were, 
 into a realm of unknown destructive forces. Every sound 
 the faintest motion in the air arrests our attention, and we 
 no longer trust the ground on which we stand. ... To 
 man the earthquake conveys an idea of some universal and 
 unlimited danger. We flee from the crater of a volcano in 
 active eruption, or from the dwelling whose destruction is 
 threatened by the approach of the lava-stream ; but in an 
 earthquake, direct our flight whithersoever we will, we still 
 feel as if we trod upon the very focus of destruction." * 
 
 97. Dread of Earthquakes felt ly the Inhabitants of South 
 America. "Dr Tschudi, in his interesting work, 'Travels in 
 Peru,' describes strikingly the effect of an earthquake upon 
 the native and upon the stranger. ' No familiarity with the 
 phenomenon can blunt this feeling. The inhabitant of Lima, 
 who from childhood has frequently witnessed these convul- 
 sions of nature, is roused from his sleep by the shock, and 
 rushes from his apartment with the cry of Misericordia ! 
 The foreigner from the north of Europe, who knows nothing 
 of earthquakes but by description, waits with impatience to 
 feel the movement of the earth, and longs to hear with his 
 own ear the subterranean sounds which he has hitherto con- 
 sidered fabulous. With levity he treats the apprehension of 
 a coming convulsion, and laughs at the fears of the natives ; 
 but as soon as his wish is gratified he is terror-stricken, and 
 is involuntarily prompted to seek safety in flight.' " t 
 
 98. Humboldfs Account of Phenomena attending Volcanic 
 Eruptions. " Volcanoes which, like the chain of the Andes, 
 
 * Humboldt's 'Cosmos.' t Ibid., translator's note. 
 
100 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 lift their summits high above the boundaries of the region 
 of perpetual snow, present peculiar phenomena. The masses 
 of snow, by their sudden fusion during eruptions, occasion 
 not only the most fearful inundations and torrents of water, 
 in which smoking scoriae are borne along on thick masses of 
 ice, but they likewise exercise a constant action whilst the 
 volcano is in a perfect state of repose, by infiltration into the 
 fissures of the trachytic rock. Cavities, which are either on 
 the declivity or at the foot of the mountain, are gradually 
 converted into subterranean reservoirs of water, which com- 
 municate by numerous narrow openings with mountain 
 streams, as we see exemplified in the highlands of Quito. 
 The fishes of these rivulets multiply, especially in the ob- 
 scurity of the hollows, and when the shocks of earthquakes, 
 which precede all eruptions in the Andes, have violently 
 shaken the whole mass of the volcano, these' subterranean 
 caverns are suddenly opened, and water, fishes, and tufaceous 
 mud are all ejected together. . . . Amongst all the volcanoes 
 I have seen in the two hemispheres," Humboldt remarks, 
 " the conical form of Cotopaxi is the most beautifully regular. 
 A sudden fusion of the snow at its cone of cinders announces 
 the proximity of the eruption. Before the smoke is visible 
 in the rarified strata of air surrounding the summit and the 
 opening of the crater, the walls of the cone of cinders are 
 sometimes in a state of glowing heat, when the whole moun- 
 tain presents an appearance of the most fearful and portent- 
 ous blackness. The crater which, with very few exceptions, 
 occupies the summit of the volcano, forms a deep caldron- 
 like valley, which is often inaccessible, and whose bottom is 
 subject to constant alterations. . . . Long narrow fissures, 
 from which vapours issue forth, or small roundish hollows 
 filled with molten masses, alternately open and close in the 
 caldron-like valley ; the bottom rises and sinks, eminences 
 of scoriae and cones of eruption are formed, rising sometimes 
 far over the walls of the crater, and continuing for years 
 together to impart to the volcano a peculiar character, and 
 then suddenly fall together and disappear during a new erup- 
 
THE LAND. 101 
 
 tion. The openings of these cones of eruption, which rise 
 from the bottom of the crater, must not, as is too often done, 
 be confounded with the crater which encloses them. If 
 this be inaccessible from extreme depth, and from the per- 
 pendicular descent, as in the case of the volcano of Eucu- 
 Pichincha, which is 15,920 feet in height, the traveller may 
 look from the edge on the summits of the mountains which 
 rise in the sulphureous valleys at his feet ; and I have never 
 beheld a grander or more remarkable picture than that 
 presented by this volcano."* 
 
 99. Volcanic Forces in South America sufficient to cause 
 a Reactionary Movement of the Earth's Axis. If this vol- 
 canic region of South America presents such terribly grand 
 features of the subterranean forces at work in the continued 
 upheaval of the continent when they may be said to be in 
 a comparatively quiescent state, what must have been the 
 effects of the tremendous convulsions that first raised a few 
 groups of isles into a vast continental mass, consolidating its 
 western boundary on the Pacific by a wall of igneous rocks 
 five thousand miles in length, from two hundred to three 
 hundred miles wide at its crest, and rising from the bed of 
 the ocean to a perpendicular height of eight miles, or about 
 fifty thousand feet ! Let us conjure up in imagination the 
 awfully sublime aspect of nature in these regions during that 
 period ; when the laws that had governed the declination of 
 the sun on this planet were in a measure suspended, and 
 a reaction commenced in the contraction of its torrid zone, 
 tending to restore again its primary equilibrium. Not all 
 the poetic descriptions of Dante in the * Inferno,' or the 
 chaotic pictures of Martin in his Biblical illustrations, could 
 represent the labours of the earth in giving birth to these 
 the latest, but not least, offspring of her incandescent womb 
 of molten rocks. Let us imagine the sea boiling, bubbling, 
 and steaming above the domes of red-hot trachyte, swelling 
 and bursting as they rose towards its surface, and then eject- 
 ing through volcanic cones and yawning fissures such masses 
 * Humboldt's < Cosmos.' 
 
102 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of lava as to form so many thousand miles of mountains ; 
 let us conceive the shocks and quakes of the earth in this 
 era of her travail, when the pent-up volcanic forces caused 
 her to rend the solid framework of her sphere, a perturbed 
 daughter of the sun, the most convulsive child of the solar 
 system ; and then we may conclude that the counteraction 
 of these plutonic forces, together with the counterpoise of 
 this protuberance of the globe in the south hemisphere, had 
 the effect of giving it an impetus of reaction towards the 
 adjustment of its equilibrium, lessening the angle of its axis, 
 and reducing the displacement of the equatorial plane from 
 that of its orbit a conclusion that is inconsistent with the 
 laws neither of astronomy nor geology. 
 
 100. Volcanic Region of Central America included in this 
 Reaction. In attributing to the sudden upheaval of the 
 igneous mountain -chains of South America the diminution 
 of the displacement of the ecliptic by reason of the counter- 
 action of force and counterpoise of weight against North 
 America, Europe, and Asia, we include the region of Central 
 America and part of Mexico. Although these are situated in 
 the north hemisphere, yet we contend that they added their 
 quota to the general result ; inasmuch as the volcanic forma- 
 tions there are contemporary with those in the south hemi- 
 sphere, and subsequent in their action to the igneous rocks 
 and mountain - chains of the North American continent. 
 Moreover, having assumed that the obliquity of the ecliptic 
 extended at that epoch to forty-five degrees, these equatorial 
 centres of volcanic force would act with the southern forces 
 already established, and against the general preponderance of 
 land in the northern regions. As an example of the recent 
 upheaval and volcanic activity of Southern Mexico, we shall 
 instance the volcano of Jorullo, described in Johnston's 
 ' Physical Atlas/ accompanied by a plan from Humboldt's 
 account of New Spain, as follows : 
 
 101. Southern Mexico also comprised in the great Volcanic 
 Band. " The great catastrophe which caused the upheaval 
 of this mountain from the surface of the earth, and through 
 
THE LAND. 103 
 
 which a country of considerable extent totally changed its 
 appearance, is perhaps one of the most extraordinary physical 
 revolutions which the annals of the history of our planet 
 present. Geology describes the shores of the ocean, where, 
 up to recent times, during a course of two thousand years, 
 near the Azores, in the ^Egean Sea, and at the south of 
 Iceland, volcanic isles have elevated themselves above the 
 surface of the water; but it presents no other example where, 
 in the interior of a continent, at a distance of thirty-six 
 leagues from the shores of the ocean and more than forty-two 
 leagues from any other active volcano, there was formed 
 suddenly, in the centre of a profusion of burning little cones, 
 a mountain of scoriae and ashes to a height of nearly 1760 feet 
 above the former level of the neighbouring plains." 
 
 102. Humboldfs Account of the extraordinary Volcano of 
 Jorullo." The plain of Malpays, on which the volcano is 
 situated, forms part of an elevated plateau, from 2000 to 
 3000 feet above the level of the sea. Until the middle of 
 the eighteenth century, fields, in which the sugar-cane and 
 indigo were cultivated, extended between the two rivulets 
 called Cuitimba and San Pedro. They were bounded by 
 basaltic mountains, the structure of which clearly indicated 
 that at a remote period the whole country had been the 
 theatre of volcanic action. These fields, watered artificially, 
 belonged to the plantation of San Pedro de Jorullo, one of the 
 richest regions of the country. In the month of June 1759 
 a subterranean noise was heard; frightful bello wings were 
 accompanied by frequent earthquakes, which succeeded each 
 other during fifty or sixty days, and threw the inhabitants of 
 the hacienda into the greatest consternation. From the com- 
 mencement of the month of September perfect tranquillity 
 seemed to be restored, when in the night between the 28th 
 and 29th of the same month, a dreadful subterranean con- 
 cussion was again observed. The terrified Indians sought for 
 safety on the mountains of Aguasarco. On this occasion the 
 ground which is called the Malpays, to an extent of from 
 three to four square miles, was raised in the form of a blad- 
 
104 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 der, to a height of 550 feet above the plain at its highest 
 point." 
 
 103. An Example of Volcanic Action typical of that in South 
 America. " The Malpays, towards its sides, has an elevation 
 of only forty feet above the level of the former plain, called 
 the Play as de Jorullo; but the convexity of the upheaved soil 
 rises progressively towards the centre to a height of 525 feet. 
 Those who, from the summit of Aguasarco, witnessed this 
 great catastrophe, assert that flames were seen to burst from 
 the ground over an extent of more than half a league square ; 
 that fragments of incandescent rocks were thrown to a pro- 
 digious height ; and that across a thick cloud of ashes, lighted 
 up by the volcanic fire, it appeared as if the softened crust of 
 the earth was swelling. Then the rivers Cuitimba and San 
 Pedro were precipitated into the burning crevices. The de- 
 composition of the water contributed to revive the flames, 
 which were distinguished at the town of Pasewaro, although 
 situated on a broad plateau, and elevated 4500 feet above the 
 plains of las Play as de Jorullo. Eruptions of mud, and espe- 
 cially of beds of clay, in which balls of decomposed basalt were 
 enveloped, seemed to indicate that subterranean waters had 
 played a most important part in this extraordinary revolution. 
 Thousands of little cones, from six to ten feet in height, 
 termed by the natives ovens (liornitos), arose upon the upraised 
 vault of the Malpays. Each little cone was a fumerole, from 
 which dense smoke ascended to a height of from thirty to fifty 
 feet. In many of these cones a subterranean noise was heard, 
 which appeared to indicate the proximity of a fluid in a state 
 of ebullition. In the middle of these hornitos six volcanic cones 
 were formed upon a chasm, in a direction of north-north-east 
 to south-south-west, each elevated from 1300 to 1600 feet 
 above the former level of the plain. The highest of these 
 enormous cones is the great volcano of Jorullo, 1682 feet 
 above the level of the plain, and 4265 feet above the sea. 
 Great eruptions of the central volcano continued until the 
 month of February 1760, but in succeeding years they have 
 become progressively more rare. The Indians, frightened by 
 
THE LAND. 105 
 
 the dreadful turmoil caused by the new volcano, at first 
 abandoned the villages situated at a distance of seven or eight 
 leagues from the Play as de Jorullo; but in a few months 
 they became accustomed to the frightful spectacle, and re- 
 turning to their cabins, they descended towards the moun- 
 tains of Aguasarco and Santa" Ines, in order to admire the jets 
 of flame thrown out by an infinity of great and little volcanic 
 mouths. The ashes then covered the roofs of the houses in 
 Queretaro, at a distance of more than forty-eight leagues in a 
 straight line from the place of explosion." At the period of 
 Humboldt's visit there was no apparent volcanic activity, and 
 the ground was being covered with vegetation; yet the heat 
 from the little ovens was so great that it increased the tem- 
 perature of the air to 109 in the shade. 
 
 104. Modern Volcanic Activity chiefly confined to Equa- 
 torial Latitudes. In this most remarkable instance of the 
 volcanic elevation of mountains, as witnessed by individuals 
 of the human race capable of handing down a record, we 
 obtain a glimpse into the operations of nature during the past ; 
 showing with what suddenness, in point of time, a level plain 
 is transformed into a mountainous district. All that the in- 
 telligent mind has to do, in conceiving the elevation of the 
 Andes, or the volcanic mountain-systems of Central America 
 and Southern Mexico, is to magnify, in imagination, the vol- 
 cano of Jorullo to that of Cotopaxi, and the Malpays country 
 to the height of the table-lands of Quito. Not, be it observed, 
 that these were elevated to their present altitude in an equally 
 short space of time, but that the plutonic forces, and masses 
 of eruptive rocks, were on a scale proportionate to their mag- 
 nitude. It is only by such degrees of comparison that we 
 can arrive at any conception of the magnitude of igneous 
 operations on the crust of the earth, either recently or in 
 ancient epochs. 
 
 We see also, in this example of modern volcanic mountains, 
 the activity of igneous subterranean action that still prevails 
 on the confines of the equator, from which we may con- 
 clude that it was not until the great vents in the north hemi- 
 
106 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 sphere were closed, and afterwards in the higher latitudes 
 of the south hemisphere, that the internal plutonic forces 
 found a weakness in the shell of the earth, through which 
 they exploded in an equatorial direction. It has been pointed 
 out that the great centres of volcanic action in the north 
 swelled to their maximum extent, if not elevation, in those 
 latitudes midway between the north pole on the one hand 
 and the equator on the other; and that the sequence of action 
 among the primary formations appears to have progressed in 
 an equatorial direction that as the more northern fissures 
 were closed up by the cooling rocks forming dykes and min- 
 eral veins, the waves of ebullition proceeded southwards. In 
 like manner we find in the South American continent the 
 most active volcanic region in tropical latitudes, and an ex- 
 tinct igneous series of mountains in the extreme south, includ- 
 ing the groups of rocky islands. Of course the great chain of 
 the Andes is broken in its volcanic series ; and we cannot 
 point out the fulfilment of this law so clearly as in the North 
 American mountains, or the mountain-systems of Asia. At all 
 events, there are sufficient data to show that during the latest 
 geological era, and in the present period, the great centres of 
 volcanic action are chiefly directed towards the equatorial 
 zone, as if that were the thinnest part of the earth's crust, or 
 the points through which, as weakest, the pent-up volcanic 
 matter can most readily find an outlet. 
 
 105. Volcanic Region of Java. Not only have we an ex- 
 ample of this phenomenon in the western hemisphere, but in 
 the far East there is almost a counterpart in the Indian Archi- 
 pelago. The island of Java presents a linear series of volca- 
 noes similar to that of Central America, and the adjacent isles 
 bristle with volcanic cones, even to the Philippines. It is a 
 wonderful region altogether of volcanic phenomena, presenting 
 some features not manifested by its western contemporary. In 
 Java " all the mountains may be considered as volcanoes, 
 active or dormant. When in an active state they are remark- 
 able for the quantity of sulphur and sulphureous vapours they 
 discharge. Many of the eruptions have been peculiarly dis- 
 
THE LAND. 107 
 
 astrous. The crater of Tasehem, at the east end of the island, 
 contains a lake, about a quarter of a mile long, strongly im- 
 pregnated with sulphuric acid, from which there issues a 
 stream of acid water so destructive to life that even fish can- 
 not live in the sea near its mouth. An extinct volcano near 
 Batar, called Guevo Upas, or the vale of poison, about half a 
 mile round, is held in horror by the natives. Every living 
 creature that enters it drops down dead, and the soil is cov- 
 ered with carcasses of deer, birds, and even the bones of men, 
 killed by the noxious deadly gases that lie at the bottom of 
 the valley." " In another crater in this land of wonders," 
 says Sir Charles Lyell, " the sulphureous exhalations have 
 killed tigers, birds, and innumerable insects ; and the soft 
 parts of these animals, such as the fibres, muscles, hair, and 
 skin, are very well preserved, while the bones are corroded 
 and entirely destroyed." 
 
 106. Concluding Remarks. Here we conclude our view 
 as to the probable causes that produced the extinct tropical 
 epoch in Europe, and proceed to review the geological evi- 
 dence of its decline through vast periods of a transitionary 
 character. Casting a retrospective glance at the ancient 
 aspect of our country, it is evident that there was as great a 
 difference if not a greater between the physical geography 
 of the British Isles at that period and their present condition, 
 as now exists between them and the isles of Java. In all 
 probability we see there an existing example not only of the 
 intense solar heat which once prevailed here, but, in the gase- 
 ous exhalations from volcanoes and their eruptive action, ex- 
 amples of the terrestrial forces of the interior which acted at 
 that period on the exterior of our present quiescent temperate 
 group of islands. Shall it be said, then, that there has been 
 no greater change than might arise from an alteration in the 
 elevation or subsidence of the present lands above the level 
 of the sea 1 Is it not more probable that Java, " this land of 
 wonders," is typical, not only of the British Isles, but of 
 Europe, Asia, and North America during the extinct tropi- 
 cal eras that formerly existed throughout the temperate 
 regions of the earth 1 ? 
 
CHAPTEK VI. 
 
 TRANSITION PERIODS OF THE TROPICAL EPOCH IN EUROPE. 
 
 Humboldt's views on geological exhalations of carbonic acid gas, 107. 
 Carboniferous era in Europe ante-tropical, 108. Absorption of carbonic 
 acid gas by the plants forming the coal -deposits, 109. This period 
 isolated from subsequent transition periods, 110. Probable extension of 
 the tropics during the carboniferous era, 111. General view of epochs 
 according to tropic extension, maximum, and diminution, 112. Extinct 
 organic world compared to rise and fall of the Roman empire, 113. 
 Migration' of animals and extinction of plants during transition periods, 
 114. Miocene period, 115. Pliocene and pleistocene periods, 116. 
 Advent of the glacial period difficult of explanation, 117. Forbes's de- 
 scription of glacial phenomena in the Alps, 118. Application of our 
 theory to account for glacial period, 119. Its duration computed accord- 
 ing to the rate of diminution of the tropical zone, 120. Glacial period 
 extinguished the fauna and flora of the tropical epoch in Europe, 121. 
 Geikie on geological time and the glacial period, 122. 
 
 107. Humboldt's Views on Geological Exhalations of Car- 
 bonic Acid Gas. Of carbon in a gaseous form there no 
 longer exists in the north hemisphere so large a proportion as 
 mingled with the extinct European tropical atmosphere. On 
 this important branch of our subject Humboldt expresses his 
 views as follows : " Exhalations of carbonic acid are, even 
 in our days, to be considered as the most important of all 
 gaseous emanations with respect to their number and the 
 amount of their effusion. We see in Germany, in the deep 
 valleys of the Eifel, in the neighbourhood of the Lake of 
 Laach, in the crater-like valley of the Wehr, and in Western 
 Bohemia, exhalations of carbonic acid gas manifest themselves 
 as the last efforts of volcanic activity in or near the foci of an 
 
THE LAND. 109 
 
 earlier world. In those earlier periods, when a higher terres- 
 trial temperature existed, and when a number of great fissures 
 still remained unfilled, the processes we have described acted 
 more powerfully, and carbonic acid gas and hot steam were 
 mixed in larger quantities in the atmosphere ; from whence it 
 follows, as Adolph Brongniart has ingeniously shown, that 
 the primitive vegetable world must have exhibited almost 
 everywhere, and independently of geographical position, the 
 most luxuriant abundance and the fullest development of 
 organism. In these constantly warm and damp atmospheric 
 strata, saturated with carbonic acid gas, vegetation must have 
 attained a degree of vital activity, and derived the super- 
 abundance of nutrition necessary to furnish materials for the 
 formation of the beds of lignite (coal), constituting the inex- 
 haustible means on which are based the physical power and 
 prosperity of nations. Such masses are distributed in basins 
 over certain parts of Europe, occurring in large quantities in 
 the British Islands, in Belgium, in France, in the provinces 
 of the Lower Rhine, and in Upper Silesia. At the same 
 primitive period of universal volcanic activity those enormous 
 quantities of carbon must also have escaped from the earth 
 which are contained in limestone rocks, and which, if separ- 
 ated from oxygen and reduced to a solid form, would consti- 
 tute about the eighth part of the absolute bulk of these 
 mountain -masses. That portion of the carbon which was 
 not taken up by the alkaline earths, but remained mixed with 
 the atmosphere as carbonic acid, was gradually consumed by 
 the vegetation of the earlier stages of the world, so that the 
 atmosphere, after being purified by the processes of vegetable 
 life, only retained the small quantity that it now possesses, 
 and which is not injurious to the present organisation of 
 animal life." * 
 
 108. Carboniferous Period in Europe ante-Tropical. In 
 stating that there are no geological data to show that a tem- 
 perate flora existed in Europe prior to its tropical era which 
 would have been the case according to the theory of a former 
 * Humboldt's ' Cosmos.' 
 
110 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 extension of the torrid zone herein advanced it should be 
 understood as applying to a flora botanically analogous to that 
 which now exists. This statement must be qualified by re- 
 ferring to the geological data from the fossil remains of the 
 carboniferous epoch, which exhibit proofs of a vegetation 
 existing before the tropical era of Europe, partaking in some 
 measure of a temperate flora, but still not of a purely tropical 
 character. That flora may be designated semi-tropical, inas- 
 much as its living congeners in Australia are found within 
 the Tropic of Capricorn, and as far south as 40 of lati- 
 tude ; but the plants are so sensitive of cold that a sharp 
 frost kills them, and even giant trees will perish if snow re- 
 mains any length of time on the ground. These are gum- 
 trees (Eucalypti), pine-trees (Araucarice), arborescent ferns 
 (Dicksonia), and sheack-trees (Casuarina), which are analo- 
 gous to the extinct vegetation of the coal-formation, from their 
 highly carbonic structure. As pointed out by Humboldt in 
 the foregoing extract, the atmosphere at this period was 
 highly charged with carbonic acid gas, which was absorbed 
 by the luxuriant vegetation, the remains of which form the 
 immense coal-fields to which Great Britain owes so much of 
 its material prosperity. "The existence of such enormous 
 quantities of coal itself bears witness to the extent of vegeta- 
 tion during the epoch of its production." And the amount 
 of carbon extracted from the atmosphere aided materially in 
 altering its chemical condition, which, as we shall see in the 
 third part of this work on " The Air," changed the foliage of 
 the trees from an evergreen to a deciduous condition. There- 
 fore, be it remarked that previous to the tropical era in 
 Europe there existed a semi-temperate flora, differing in char- 
 acter from what now exists, but analogous to what is found 
 in the south temperate zone. Moreover, it was at this epoch 
 that animals of a marsupial character, similar to the Austra- 
 lian kangaroo, leapt through the coverts of the carboniferous 
 forests ; and though these interesting animals roam over the 
 tropics of their native country, yet are they abundant in its 
 coldest latitudes. 
 
THE LAND. Ill 
 
 109. Absorption of Carbonic Acid Gas by the Coal-For- 
 mation. Without going further into geological data on this 
 point, it is abundantly evident that, prior to the era of palms 
 and cycadaceae flourishing under the rays of a vertical sun, 
 there was a period when plants of a comparatively temper- 
 ate nature existed. This fact supports the theory advanced as 
 to the gradual extension of the torrid zone before it became 
 contracted to its present limits. There is also evidence that 
 this carboniferous epoch lasted for such a space of time that 
 the greater number of species became extinct before the dawn 
 of the tropical era in Europe. Now this extinction of species 
 did not result so much from the increase of heat as the de- 
 crease of carbonic acid gas in the atmosphere, on which the 
 vegetation depended for its support. It is a botanical fact, 
 proved by experiment, that ferns grow more rapidly and 
 with a more woody texture in a factitious atmosphere highly 
 charged with carbonic acid gas than they do in the ordinary , 
 air ; also that pines, ferns, and shrubs, growing in craters of 
 extinct volcanoes where this gas is ejected from crevices, 
 nourish with greater luxuriance than at other localities in 
 these mountains, where less carbon exists in a gaseous form. 
 Hence it has been concluded that, during the carboniferous 
 era in Europe, the gigantic tree-ferns, the catamites, lepido- 
 dendra, sigillaria, and other plants whose fossil-remains are 
 so abundant in the coal-measures, were supported in their 
 growth by the atmosphere being more highly charged with 
 carbonic acid gas than at present. When this was reduced 
 by absorption into the lignite from these dense forests they 
 diminished in abundance, while the larger species became 
 extinct, leaving only the fern-brake and mare's-tail, with their 
 diminutive congeners, in our ponds and thickets at the pre- 
 sent day, as vestiges of a colossal semi-temperate vegetation, 
 anterior to the tropical era in Europe. 
 
 110. This Period isolated from subsequent Transition 
 Periods. On this point Humboldt remarks, in discussing 
 the influence of reaction from the interior of our planet on 
 the exterior, as not being " limited to inorganic nature alone. 
 
112 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 It is highly probable that in an earlier world more powerful 
 emanations of carbonic acid gas, blended with the atmo- 
 sphere, must have increased the assimilation of carbon in 
 vegetables, and that an inexhaustible supply of combustible 
 matter (lignites and carboniferous formations) must have been 
 thus buried in the upper strata of the earth by the revolu- 
 tions attending the destruction of the vast tracts of forest." 
 Thus the formation of our coal-deposits, so especially benefi- 
 cial to the inhabitants of Great Britain, in time exhausted 
 the gaseous element, or rather reduced it to an infinitesimal 
 proportion of the atmosphere, such as exists at the present 
 period. That this process of extinction of species was 
 gradual, there are abundant data to show; while the dura- 
 tion of this remarkable epoch would appear to have been 
 comparatively limited. Moreover, on the sections of strata 
 forming the crust of the earth, it appears prominently in a 
 . succession of black-bands that have no counterpart above or 
 below. We conclude, therefore, that it was a period in the 
 world's history when the first flora of the north temperate 
 zones enjoyed only a comparatively brief sojourn on the 
 newly-upheaved lands of the north hemisphere, and the im- 
 perfect seasons of the epoch merged somewhat rapidly into 
 the tropical era. 
 
 111. Probable Extension of the Tropics during the Car- 
 boniferous Era. Assuming, as already taken for granted, that 
 this change in the organic epochs was the result of an ex- 
 pansion of the torrid zone, it becomes interesting to inquire 
 what were the degrees of obliquity of the ecliptic at the 
 commencement and termination of the carboniferous era. If 
 we take the latitudes of Australia and New Zealand as exist- 
 ing examples of that epoch, the tropic would then have 
 extended to between 28 and 35 of latitude as these may be 
 called the middle latitudes of the gigantic conifers and ar- 
 borescent ferns of those regions. Here the objection may be 
 raised, that this bare assumption is not supported by astro- 
 nomical computations showing that the angle of inclination 
 of the earth's axis ever reached the minimum degree men- 
 
THE LAND. 113 
 
 tioned. Truly so ; but if we look beyond the terrestrial orbit 
 we shall find some of the planets with angles of inclination 
 in their axes, and consequently tropical zones, much greater 
 than the maximum, even the highest we have named, of 
 45 as a possible extension to the extinct tropical zone. This 
 part of our subject will be carefully examined in the next 
 chapter treating of the planetary seasons. 
 
 112. General View of Epochs according to Tropical Exten- 
 sion, Maximum, and Diminution. Admitting, meanwhile, 
 the general principle of this theory, the question involved in 
 the last remark concerning transition periods of the tropical 
 epoch in its decline, demands our attention, as to whether 
 the world rested at its greatest obliquity of the ecliptic 
 when the volcanic forces, lessening their activity in the north 
 hemisphere, began to increase in the south. On this point 
 geology furnishes ample data in the lower and upper second- 
 ary formations, when time was divided into epochs of im- 
 mense duration, before the world reached the climax of its 
 tropical existence. This we consider occurred at the com- 
 mencement of the older tertiary formation, during the eocene 
 period, when the expanded torridzone showed symptoms of con- 
 traction as the obliquity of the ecliptic began to diminish. The 
 following appears a rough sketch of the progress, maturity, 
 and decline of the tropical history of our planet as revealed 
 by geology : There are three grand epochs the paleozoic, 
 secondary, and tertiary each being subdivided into several 
 periods when the preceding genera and species were extin- 
 guished, and then succeeded by new forms of creation. In 
 the paleozoic series we see a gradual scale of development, 
 from the most ancient forms of organised beings, the remains 
 of which are abundant in the Silurian rocks, up to the Per- 
 mian system containing the fossil remains of vertebrata. In 
 the secondary formation the higher classes of animals com- 
 mon to tropical regions increase in genera and species until 
 they reach their most colossal dimensions. At the beginning 
 of the tertiary formation the fauna and flora of Europe is 
 still tropical; but as they pass through the miocene, plio- 
 
 H 
 
114 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 cene, and pleistocene periods, there is a gradual decline from 
 tropical forms to a temperate fauna and flora, such as now 
 exist. Applying these epochs to our theory, the palaeozoic 
 would correspond with the increase of obliquity of the 
 ecliptic, the secondary formation with its maximum, and 
 the tertiary formation with its diminution and the origin of 
 the seasons. 
 
 113. The Extinct Organic World compared to the Rise and 
 Fall of the Roman Empire. From what we have advanced 
 in the foregoing chapters, it will "be seen that nature in all 
 her transcendental operations, whether in the interior of our 
 planet, or in its movements among other celestial bodies in 
 the universal cosmos, proceeds with gradual and measured 
 pace towards the development of any physical structure or 
 its phenomena. Hence, in tracing the decline of the tropical 
 era in Europe and the rise of the temperate epoch, we find 
 geological data which indicate a gradual extinction of the 
 one blended with the origin of the other. Like the rise and 
 fall of the Roman empire, we observe the disappearing of 
 organic provinces one by one, and of the gigantic species of 
 animals in those once tropical realms where they ruled with 
 imperial sway. As the legions of Rome conquered that 
 empire, so a universal torrid zone prevailed, sending forth its 
 armies of invulnerable reptiles and mammalia to conquer and 
 subdue the wide tropical world ; so also do we now see the 
 genial lands of the seasons broken up into many kingdoms 
 of animals and plants, like the several monarchies of Europe, 
 flourishing each in its own dominions, where once the 
 laws of the Roman empire reigned supreme. And as the 
 architectural relics of ancient Greece and Rome show the 
 grandeur and extent of that extinct civilisation, so do the 
 colossal remains imbedded in the fossiliferous rocks of the 
 transition periods illustrate the gigantic organisms of the 
 extinct organic world that succumbed to the encroachments 
 of the frigid and temperate zones. 
 
 114. Migration of Animals and Extinction of Plants in 
 Transition Periods. As a rule, all animals indigenous to 
 
THE LAND. 115 
 
 warm regions will migrate towards the equator should their 
 native clime become so cold that the temperature interferes 
 with their enjoyment of life ; and if they should be so geo- 
 graphically situated that they are prevented from migrating, 
 the increasing lowness of temperature will ultimately extin- 
 guish the race. Moreover, while a decrease in temperature 
 leads to the extinction of a species presenting tropical forms 
 of animal life, it also affects plants of a tropical character, 
 and as they have not the power of locomotion, they are the 
 first to be extirpated by a frigid or rigorous clime. Thus, on 
 the decline of the tropical era, the vegetable food of her- 
 bivorous animals became extinguished, and as their carcasses 
 served as food for carnivorous beasts and birds, the entire 
 organic world of that era in Europe was annihilated. Hence 
 we find at the close of the eocene period the first of the 
 tertiary formations that in the British Isles the general 
 character of the fauna and flora was tropical ; but, with one 
 or two exceptions, all the species became extinct, and do not 
 range to formations either above or below. Not only were 
 the giant forms of that era extinguished in the middle lati- 
 tudes of the north hemisphere, but those of analogous char- 
 acter and dimensions now inhabiting the tropics are all more 
 or less specifically distinct from their eocene progenitors 
 showing thereby other organic changes in the atmosphere and 
 vegetation from those of temperature, which will be further 
 alluded to in the third part treating of " The Air." 
 
 115. Miocene Period. The next period named by geolo- 
 gists is the miocene, as exemplified in the coralline crag of 
 the British Isles, composed of marine calcareous sands, lime- 
 stone bands, and greenish marls. " The coralline crag abounds 
 in shells and zoophytes. Above 340 species of mollusca have 
 been collected in it, of which 73 are living British species. 
 . . . The general character of the fauna of this epoch is 
 Lusitanian (i.e., like that of the Spanish peninsula). Zoo- 
 phytes abound, including many southern genera." * At this 
 stage in the physical history of the world it may be said that 
 * Professor Edward Forbes, in Johnston's 'Physical Atlas.' 
 
116 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the seasons commenced their career, and the winter though 
 short was sharp, cooling the air and the water, causing the 
 migration of birds, beasts, and fishes to the south at its rig- 
 orous approach. At first their places were not supplied by 
 the higher classes of animals in the water, and the land would 
 appear to have been deserted as compared with the numbers 
 of its previous occupants, while the succulent vegetation 
 perished in the cold blast. From the geological remains of 
 this period the fructifying powers of nature appeared to have 
 been circumscribed in their action. She seems to have com- 
 menced de novo in engendering the lower forms of marine 
 creatures with functions and organs adapted to the altered 
 temperature of the sea, and raising small but hardy plants to 
 resist the rigours of a winter season. 
 
 116. Pliocene and Pleistocene Periods. The miocene 
 period was succeeded by the pliocene, when there were 
 changes in the genera and species of animals and plants ad- 
 vancing in organic structure, but adapted to the continued 
 lowering of temperature. This new creation of organisms 
 capable of resisting increasing cold evidently reached its 
 climax at the close of the deposition of the newer tertiary 
 formations what geologists term the pleistocene period 
 when ice abounded throughout Europe to a greater extent than 
 at the present day ; and it is evident that the seas, if not the 
 climate, of that period reached a temperature as low as that 
 on the confines of the arctic circle. " The fossils found in the 
 British marine pleistocene are chiefly remains of mollusca. 
 They are all either living British species now chiefly found 
 within the Celtic region, or such as, still living within our 
 area, are only abundant in the boreal region ; or such as are 
 extinct in our seas, but still survive in the arctic regions or on 
 the coasts of boreal America. A few southern forms, which 
 do not now range to our seas, accompany them. The fauna 
 of the glacial beds, including the mammaliferous crag, con- 
 sists of above 170 species of marine animals, chiefly mollusca. 
 In the fresh-water beds many extinct mammals occur." * 
 * Professor Edward Forbes. 
 
THE LAND. 117 
 
 117. Advent of the Glacial Period difficult of Explana- 
 tion. Looking to the theory of a gradual diminution in 
 the atmospheric temperature from tropical to temperate in 
 Europe, as set forth in this chapter, the occurrence of a 
 glacial period between these climatic changes will appear at 
 first sight subversive of such a doctrine. It seems contrary 
 to the laws of nature that the period of arctic frigidity which 
 prevailed through the glacial period should intervene between 
 extreme and moderate degrees of heat. We shall, however, 
 endeavour to show that this apparently exceptional period to 
 the general law may be accounted for on solid grounds, in 
 accordance with our theory. 
 
 118. Forbes 1 s Description of Glacial Phenomena in the Alps. 
 The evidences of the glacial period are numerous, and con- 
 sist of indications existing in countries where no glacier exists 
 at present, as in Scotland, and their former extension where 
 they now exist, as in Switzerland. " The immediate neigh- 
 bourhoods of most of the glaciers of the Alps afford unequivocal 
 traces of their having been much more extended at periods 
 anterior to history than even in the present day. . . . Yast 
 moraines, or heaps of transported blocks and gravel, at con- 
 siderable distances (a mile or more) in advance of the present, 
 bounds of ice, have been admitted on all hands, at least since 
 the time of De Saussure, to attest this fact. Those most fre- 
 quently quoted are the old moraine of Lavanchi, near 
 Chamouni, belonging to the Glacier des Bois ; the moraine of 
 the Glacier of Rossboden, on the Simplon ; and that of the 
 Glacier of the Rhone. Admitting these, we find it impos- 
 sible to draw a line between them and other moraines in 
 or near the mouths of valleys whose heads are still occupied 
 by glaciers ; and this evidence is strengthened if we observe 
 the same character of the rocky surfaces which the friction 
 of glaciers undoubtedly produces namely, perfectly smooth, 
 rounded, dome -like forms (called roches moutonnees by 
 De Saussure), grooves, and striae in the direction in which 
 ice must be moved ; and in some cases a fine even-polished 
 surface, such as is produced by continued attrition, but 
 
118 OEIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 never by crystallisation. Such are the phenomena seen 
 near St Gervais in Savoy, where (as already mentioned) 
 the travelled blocks and gravel of Mont Blanc may be con- 
 tinuously traced from the neighbourhood of Sallenches (and 
 probably much farther) up to the existing moraines of the 
 Glacier of Bionassay, and others in the same direction. . . . 
 But, so much being admitted, it seems impossible to stop 
 here. The continuity of moraines and the effects of attri- 
 tion seem to connect the vast blocks of Monthey, in the 
 valley of the Rhone below St Maurice, with the undoubted 
 glacier deposits of the valleys of Trient and Ferret ; and 
 the blocks of Monthey cannot reasonably have any origin 
 ascribed to them which must not be extended by precise par- 
 allelism of circumstances to the innumerable forests of primi- 
 tive boulders which once strewed the whole plain of Lower 
 Switzerland, and which, reaching the Jura Mountains (formed 
 entirely of limestone), has left an imposing memorial of its 
 existence in the vast belt of granitic masses, but slightly worn 
 or rounded, which lie along the face of that chain facing the 
 Alps, at a height of 800 feet above the plain of Switzerland 
 arid the Lake of Neufchatel. Startling and improbable as 
 such an origin must be admitted to be at first sight, it is 
 found, upon examination, that every hypothesis yet proposed 
 to explain so important and striking a geological phenomena 
 is pressed with not less formidable difficulties." * 
 
 119. Application of our TJieory to account for the Glacial 
 Period. Further evidence need not be adduced to show 
 that a period existed, subsequent to the tropical epoch in 
 Europe, when intense cold prevailed, such as now exists 
 during winter in the arctic regions. It does not follow, how- 
 ever, that a corresponding frigidity of climate continued all 
 the year round ; it is quite compatible with natural pheno- 
 mena, where extremes of heat and cold exist on continents, 
 to find an approach to an arctic winter and a tropical summer 
 in the same latitudes. This will be more fully alluded to in 
 citing the north of China as an example of these extremes 
 * James D. Forbes, in Johnston's ' Physical Atlas.' 
 
THE LAND. 119 
 
 of temperature, where the thermometer falls to 10 and 15 
 below zero in winter, and the sea is frozen in the Gulf of 
 Pee-che-lee many miles from the shore ; while in summer the 
 thermometer rises to from 130 to 140 in the sun, and from 
 110 to 115 in the shade, with palm-trees and bamboos 
 flourishing luxuriantly. It requires only an extension of 
 this fact to account for the glacial period that is, a colder 
 winter than now prevails in Europe, and a hotter summer. 
 Such, we contend, existed when the obliquity of the ecliptic 
 reached a diminution of 30, or six and a half degrees greater 
 than it is now. Assuming that the obliquity had obtained a 
 maximum of 45 at the tropical epoch, one-half of the north 
 hemisphere and the south also received the perpendicular 
 rays of the sun, so that the land and the sea absorbed such 
 an intense degree of heat during six months of the year, that 
 sufficient caloric radiated in the atmosphere to prevent any 
 accumulation of ice and snow in winter. In all probability 
 an intense humidity prevailed, such as we find in tropical 
 latitudes at the present day. But when the diminution 
 reached 30 the distribution of heat and cold over high lati- 
 tudes was reversed ; only one-third received the vertical rays 
 of the sun, while the other two-thirds were subject to a short 
 but severe winter, from the sun being so much lower at its 
 meridian altitude during that solstice. At that period, also, 
 the spring and autumn were scarcely defined, and the year 
 was divided into a hot and cold season, each probably intense 
 in degree throughout European latitudes as in North China 
 or in Canada. During the cold season glaciers were formed 
 more rapidly and extensively on the Alps than at present ; 
 and these would move quicker, in consequence of the greater 
 heat dissolving them, carrying boulders and gravel along with 
 them. Hence the moraines are larger, the grooves are deeper, 
 and the surface of the rocks finer polished by the ancient 
 swift-moving glaciers, than by those that now exist, when 
 the heats of summer are tempered by the spring, and the 
 cold of winter by the autumn. On this principle there will 
 be a gradual cooling of summer throughout Europe, and a 
 
120 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 more genial temperature in winter, as the obliquity of the 
 ecliptic diminishes. 
 
 120. Its Duration computed by Rate of Diminution of the 
 Ecliptic. For the reasons given, we have assumed that the 
 glacial period commenced when the obliquity of the ecliptic 
 diminished from its maximum point of 45 to an angle of 
 30. On the same hypothesis we assume that it continued 
 during a further reduction of five degrees, until the angle 
 reached 25, comprising a period of time computed from 
 the basis formerly given, of one degree in eight thousand 
 years equivalent to 40,000 years. It must be understood, 
 however, that there was a gradual approach to that frigid 
 era in Europe, as we find a slow departure from it, in the 
 existence still of glaciers in Alpine regions, though not at 
 lower altitudes. The term specified may be considered, 
 therefore, as applying to the time during which the glacial 
 period existed in its greatest intensity of cold, as exempli- 
 fied by the evidence of ancient moraines and boulders. 
 
 121. The Glacial Period extinguished the Fauna and Flora 
 of the Tropical Epoch. At this stage of our inquiry it is im- 
 portant to observe that the rigorous winters of the glacial 
 period effectually extinguished the tropical vegetation and 
 animals previously existing in Europe, and hence the great 
 diversity of the living fauna and flora from the fossil remains 
 which prove the existence of that extinct epoch. Had there 
 been no such sudden transition from a torrid to a frigid 
 climate, it is just possible that the botany and zoology of 
 Europe would have presented genera and species more nearly 
 allied to those of the tropics than they do. As it is, the 
 leading characteristics of our indigenous plants and animals 
 approach more nearly the arctic types than the tropic. There 
 is evidence also to show that during the glacial period the 
 organic forms of creation in the British Isles, more especially 
 in Scotland, partook of an arctic character, and these are 
 gradually disappearing with the present epoch, which may 
 be appropriately designated the epoch of the seasons. 
 
 122. Geikie on Geological Time and the Glacial Period. 
 
THE LAND. 121 
 
 On this head Mr Geikie, F.R.S., Director of the Government 
 Geological Survey of Scotland, made some excellent remarks 
 in a lecture " On Geological Time." He directed attention to 
 the facts that the present flora of the British Isles was the 
 result of a long series of geographical and botanical changes ; 
 and that the shells in the seas had gone through a similar 
 series of changes our present marine fauna showing that 
 there had been great changes in the inhabitants of the seas 
 within a very recent geological period. Some species of 
 arctic shells still lingered in the depths of some of our west- 
 ern sea-lochs ; and it was clear that at the time the arctic 
 flora prevailed on the surface of the land, arctic fauna in- 
 habited the seas ; and that, just as the arctic flora had been 
 driven to the mountains by the increasing mildness of the 
 climate, so the arctic fauna had been driven, by the same 
 cause, step by step to the depths of the seas, and there they 
 would die out, just as the arctic plants would do on the tops 
 of the mountains. All these changes, he showed, had taken 
 place within the glacial period, and yet no shell, so far' as 
 was known, had become extinct. From other evidence it 
 was known that the interval which had elapsed since the 
 glacial period had been very long. Now, if so vast a period 
 had produced so little change in the organic world, how 
 enormous must be the periods embraced in the geological 
 record, when whole dynasties of plants and animals have 
 passed away! "Whatever our theory as to the origin of 
 species might be, we must admit, he argued, that their ex- 
 tinction cannot but be an extremely slow process. Yet 
 thousands of species and genera had appeared and disappeared 
 since the introduction of life, and during the passing away 
 of the ages presented by the geological record. But that 
 geological record was confessedly very imperfect. We have 
 therefore to deal not merely with the periods of which it 
 contains some memorial, but likewise with those of which no 
 chronicle remains. Hence intervals of time which were not 
 represented in our rocks by sedimentary fossiliferous strata 
 might perhaps be even vaster than the time which was so 
 
122 OEIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 recorded. . . . The geological record affords no data for 
 computing the lengths of its periods in years. If, however, 
 it contained traces of any great cosmical event, it might be 
 possible to arrive at the date of such an event; for the 
 astronomical periods were not vague like those of geology, 
 but could be stated in years. It had long been a belief 
 among thoughtful geologists, that if any accurate data of this 
 kind were to be found, it must be by the labours of the 
 astronomer, rather than the geologist. 
 
 123. Concluding Remarks on computing Geological Time. 
 We have already expressed our opinion to the same effect, 
 not only regarding the computation of geological time by 
 astronomical events, but the application generally of planet- 
 ary phenomena to terrestrial geology, and, vice versa, terres- 
 trial phenomena to planetary geology. In the next chapter 
 this mode of testing the value of our theory of extended and 
 contracted tropics will be fully exemplified by the varied 
 phenomena of the planetary seasons. Meanwhile we again 
 recommend the astronomical rate of diminution in the obli- 
 quity of the ecliptic, which produces an annual observable 
 decrease registered by astronomers, as a basis for calculating 
 geological time. To show that a tangible formula may be 
 arrived at, we shall reduce the average decrease to an ordin- 
 ary degree of historical time and terrestrial contraction of the 
 tropics. This average rate of diminution has been fixed by 
 astronomers at 45 seconds of latitude in a century, which is 
 equivalent to about half a geographical mile of contraction in 
 the perpendicular rays of the sun towards the equatorial line. 
 If we reduce this by British statute measurement it gives a 
 diminution of 3080 feet in 100 years, or about 30 feet per 
 annum. At this rate the deep well at Syene, in ancient 
 Egypt, would no longer be illuminated at the bottom, for the 
 perpendicular rays of the sun have moved 11 J miles south of 
 that city, where Eratosthenes first measured the width of the 
 torrid zone two thousand years ago. Could we trace the 
 geological changes that have occurred during that period, we 
 might then compute the time astronomically since the tropi- 
 
THE LAND. 123 
 
 cal epoch reigned in Europe by an extension of the torrid 
 zone to the latitude of London, or even to the Shetland Isles, 
 where fossil remains of tropical vegetation and animals are 
 found say in 60 K. lat., where the sun's rays might have 
 been perpendicular 290,400 years ago. That such a pheno- 
 menon was not impossible will be seen in the planetary evi- 
 dences of even greater extension of the tropics illustrated in 
 the next chapter. 
 
CHAPTEK VII. 
 
 PLANETARY TROPICAL ZONES. 
 
 Extremes of axial inclination in the planets of Jupiter and Mercury, 124. 
 Absence of the phenomena of temperate seasons in Jupiter, 125. Pro- 
 bability of Mars passing through a glacial period, 126. Frankland's 
 views on planetary and lunar glacial periods, 127. Remarkable similar- 
 ity between Mars and the earth, 128. The fall and thaw of snow ob- 
 served in its polar regions, and extremes of heat and cold very decided, 
 129. Mars possesses an atmosphere, and its climate is subject to terrific 
 storms and hurricanes, 130. Seasons of Mars double the duration of ours, 
 131. Seasons of Saturn of thirty times longer duration than ours, 132. 
 Venus possesses great inclination of axis, 133. Its angle formerly com- 
 puted at about 50, 334. Mountains of great height at its south pole, 
 135. Equipoise of Venus revolving in space greatly disturbed, 136. 
 Mercury has comparatively the highest mountains in the planetary 
 sphere, 137. M. Guillemin on planetary physical phenomena generally, 
 138. Mercury receives heat and light from the sun seven times more in- 
 tense than the earth, 139. Its claims to an atmosphere not fully deter- 
 mined, 140. No temperate seasons, from its extreme angle of axial in- 
 clination, 141. The angle computed at more than treble that of our 
 planet, 142. Mercury typical of the earth during the tropical epoch in 
 Europe, 143. Table of the various degrees of planetary inclination of 
 axis, 144. Problem involved open to solution by our theory, 145. Ex- 
 traordinary phenomena in the lunar climate without seasons, 146. As- 
 tronomers have overlooked the importance of planetary variability of 
 axis, 147. The solar system compared to a central state and its ^pro- 
 vinces, 148. Planetary range of obliquity supports our theory of tropical 
 extension to 60, 149. Speculative views that might arise from the theory 
 of an extended tropical zone, 150. Comets present no indications of pos- 
 sessing a fixed axis of rotation, 151. Concluding remarks on the differ- 
 ence between internal and external perturbations in the planetary sphere, 
 152. 
 
 124. Extremes of Axial Inclination in the Planets Jupi- 
 ter and Mercury. In searching for data throughout the 
 
THE LAND. 125 
 
 planetary sphere in aid of our arguments as to the probable 
 minimum and maximum of the obliquity of our earth's eclip- 
 tic, we have pointed to Jupiter as an example of the former, 
 where the angle of displacement is but little over 3, an 
 obliquity not sufficient to produce the phenomena of the 
 seasons on any part of that planet, or, at all events, as they 
 occur in Europe. Moreover, astronomers in their researches 
 have failed in discovering on the disc of Jupiter satisfactory 
 evidence of any great mountain-chains or continental masses 
 as observed in the other planets ; while there are no indi- 
 cations at his poles of ice existing, showing that no frigid 
 region prevails there. Hence we may consider that Jupiter 
 is an example of what the earth was before the great conti- 
 nental masses were upheaved, and the surface an aqueous 
 sphere over which day and night were nearly equal without 
 the vicissitudes of the seasons a period when the solar heat 
 fell with greater intensity on equatorial latitudes than at pre- 
 sent, and there were no frigid zones at the poles, neither snow 
 nor ice. On the other hand, we find in the planet Mercury 
 an example of the maximum displacement of the equatorial 
 plane from the plane of the ecliptic, where the obliquity 
 reaches an angle as high as 75 an angle sufficient to render 
 the climate of four-fifths the area of its sphere perfectly 
 tropical. From this we have deduced the theory, that it is 
 not inconsistent with the laws of the planetary system that, 
 during the tropical era in Europe, the earth had probably an 
 obliquity of the ecliptic approximating to that angle, produc- 
 ing a widely-extended tropical zone. Hence we may consider 
 Mercury as an instance of that condition of our planet when 
 its higher latitudes lay under the rays of a vertical sun dur- 
 ing the epochs of the paleozoic, secondary, and tertiary for- 
 mations. 
 
 125. Absence of the Phenomena of Seasons in Jupiter. 
 " The rotation of Jupiter, of course, produces the phenomena 
 of day and night on the planet. But as the axis of rotation 
 is very little inclined to the plane of the orbit, there is but 
 little difference in their length, the maximum of which is five 
 
126 
 
 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 hours for the greater portion of the surface throughout the 
 length of the planet's long year. Two very narrow zones, 
 situated at the two poles, comprise those regions of the planet 
 where the day and night exceed the time of rotation. At the 
 
 Fig. 4. 
 
 JUPITER. Tnclination of Axis only 3 to the plane of its orbit. 
 
 poles themselves the sun is visible for nearly six years, and 
 remains set afterwards for a like period. The seasons are 
 also very slightly varied on Jupiter, at least at any given 
 place. Summer reigns during the whole year in the zones 
 nearest to the equator, whilst the temperate regions rejoice in 
 a perpetual spring those which surround the poles being 
 subject to a continual winter. . . . We have no reason for 
 supposing the existence of violent tempests or hurricanes, 
 which were at first imagined. We may hold, on the con- 
 trary, that the Jovian meteorological phenomena are produced 
 very calmly. The long year of the planet, the slight and 
 gradual variations of its seasons, the no doubt considerable 
 density of its atmosphere, the force of gravity at its surface, 
 are so many facts that tend to produce a great atmospheric 
 stability. The mass of Jupiter equals 338 times that of our 
 
THE LAND. 127 
 
 globe, whilst its volume exceeds the earth nearly 1400 times. 
 This gives, for the matter of which it is formed, a mean den- 
 sity less than a quarter of the terrestrial density. It is a 
 third more than that of water ; it is easy to conjecture that 
 the strata forming the surface have, at most, the density of 
 water. Is the surface of Jupiter, then, in a liquid state? 
 Here observation fails us." * 
 
 Fig. 5. 
 MABS, Showing the Inclination of the planet's Axis. 
 
 126. Probability of Mars passing through a Glacial Period. 
 In like manner, pursuing our investigations through the 
 solar system, we find that the planet Mars exhibits indi- 
 cations of passing through a glacial period similar to what 
 probably existed on this earth- before the advent of the pre- 
 sent geological era. " Besides the dark spots on the surface 
 of Mars, astronomers have noticed that a segment of his 
 globe about the south pole exceeded the rest of his disc so 
 much in brightness that it appeared to project as if it were 
 the segment of a larger globe. ... A similar though less 
 remarkable brightness about the north pole of Mars was 
 also sometimes observed, the existence of which has been 
 confirmed by Sir "W. Herschel, who examined the planet 
 with telescopes of much greater power than any former as- 
 tronomer ever was in possession of. ... The bright ap- 
 pearance so remarkable about the poles of Mars is ascribed 
 by Herschel to the reflection of light from mountains of ice 
 * ' The Heavens,' by Amade'e Guillemin. 
 
128 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 and snow accumulated in those regions." * Taking these ob- 
 servations in conjunction with others by that eminent astro- 
 nomer, from which he ascertained "that the equator of Mars 
 is inclined to his orbit in an angle of 28 42', and his axis of 
 rotation to the axis of the ecliptic in an angle of 30 18'," we 
 have an example of extreme frigidity in high latitudes, where 
 the obliquity of the ecliptic is greater by five degrees than 
 that of our own planet. Hence it is not at all improbable 
 that Mars is now at a glacial period of its geological history 
 analogous to what existed formerly on this earth, when the 
 displacement of the ecliptic was reduced from the maximum 
 Ave have assumed, of 45 extension of the tropics on each side 
 of the equator, to 30, and from that to 25 when the seasons 
 in Europe attained their quarterly divisions in all probability 
 more regularly than at present. 
 
 127. Frankland's Views on Planetary Glacial Periods. 
 " Professor Frankland has perhaps provided us with some 
 data towards answering this question. A study of the glacial 
 epoch on our own globe, he asserts, renders it probable that 
 the other bodies belonging to our solar system have either 
 already passed through a similar epoch, or are destined to en- 
 counter it. With the exception of the polar ice of Mars, we 
 have hitherto obtained no certain glimpse into the thermal 
 and meteorological condition of the planets ; and, indeed, the 
 moon is the only body whose distance is not too great to pre- 
 vent the visibility of comparatively minute details upon her 
 surface. Professor Frankland believes, and his belief rests 
 on a special study of the lunar surface, that our satellite has, 
 like its primary, also passed through a glacial epoch, and that 
 several, at least, of the valleys, rilles, and streaks of the lunar 
 surface, are not improbably due to former glacial action. 
 Notwithstanding the excellent definition of modern tele- 
 scopes, it could not be expected that other than the most 
 gigantic of the characteristic details of an ancient glacier-bed 
 would be rendered visible. What, then, may we expect to 
 see ? Under favourable circumstances the terminal moraine 
 * Art. "Astronomy," l Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE LAND. 129 
 
 of a glacier attains enormous dimensions. Two such terminal 
 moraines, one of them a double one, have appeared to him to 
 be traceable upon the moon's surface . . . the whole present- 
 ing an appearance reminding the observer of the concentric 
 moraines of the Ehone glacier. These ridges are visible for 
 the whole period during which that portion of the moon's 
 surface is illuminated ; but it is only about the third day 
 after the first quarter, and at the corresponding phase of the 
 waning moon, when the sun's rays, falling nearly horizontally, 
 throw the details of this part of the surface into strong relief, 
 and these appearances suggest this explanation of them. An- 
 other ridge, answering to a terminal moraine, occurs at the 
 northern extremity of that magnificent valley which runs 
 past the eastern edge of Rheita." * 
 
 128. Remarkable similarity between the Earth and Mars. 
 Seeing that an eminent astronomer like Professor Frankland 
 is of opinion that Mars is probably passing through a glacial 
 period, the angle of displacement being 28 42" from that of 
 his orbit, we are thereby supported in our view of the glacial 
 period on the earth occurring when, according to our theory, 
 the diminution of the extended torrid zone reached a similar 
 limit. This also agrees with the generally-received opinion 
 that there is a remarkable similarity between the physical 
 condition and phenomena of our world and those of this in- 
 teresting planet. "After Yenus, Mars is the planet whose 
 orbit is nearest to the earth. His diameter is about one-half, 
 and his volume only about one-sixth part of that "of our 
 globe." t From numerous observations of the spots on the 
 disc of Mars, Herschel concluded that his diurnal rotation is 
 accomplished in 24 hours 39 minutes and 2 If seconds. This, 
 coupled with the inclination of the equator to his orbit, being 
 at an angle of 28 42', shows that the time of rotation and 
 the seasons of this neighbouring planet are but little different 
 from those of our own. And in all probability the displace- 
 ment of his ecliptic is diminishing like that of the earth. 
 
 * J. Norman Lockyer, in ' The Heavens/ by Guillemin. 
 t Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 I 
 
130 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Moreover, there are bright appearances about the poles of 
 Mars which Herschel ascribes to the reflection of light from 
 mountains of ice and snow accumulated in those regions. 
 " The analogy between Mars and the earth," he remarks, " is 
 by far the greatest in the whole solar system. Their diurnal 
 motion is nearly the same, the obliquity of their respective 
 ecliptics not very different; of all the superior planets the 
 distance of Mars from the sun is by far the nearest alike to 
 that of the earth; nor will the length of the martial year 
 appear very different from what we enjoy when compared to 
 the surprising duration of the years of Jupiter, Saturn, and 
 the Georgium Sidus (now named Uranus). If we then find 
 .that the globe we inhabit has its polar region frozen and 
 covered with mountains of ice and snow, that only partly 
 melt when alternately exposed to the sun, I may well be 
 permitted to surmise that the same causes may probably have 
 the same effect on the globe of Mars ; that the bright polar 
 spots are owing to the vivid reflection of light from frozen 
 regions, and that the reduction of those spots is to be ascribed 
 to their being exposed to the sun." 
 
 129. The Fall and Thaw of Snow seen in the Polar Region 
 of Mars, and the Extremes of Heat and Cold very decided. 
 Recent observations of this most interesting planet confirm 
 the views of Herschel and earlier astronomers ; and as the 
 instruments in observatories are becoming more powerful and 
 perfect, we may look forward to fresh discoveries regarding 
 the planetary seasons. Of the latest, M. Guillemin furnishes 
 a concise account in his admirable work on popular astro- 
 nomy, entitled ' The Heavens,' in which he has the following 
 remarks on the seasons of Mars : " Thus, from the earth 
 we can watch the formation of the polar ice, and the fall and 
 thaw of the snows on the surface of a neighbouring planet ; 
 in a word, all the vicissitudes of heat and cold which distin- 
 guish the seasons of winter and spring, autumn and winter. 
 The succession of these changes is now so well established, 
 that astronomers can predict approximately the form, relative 
 size, and position of the northern and southern snow-zones. 
 
THE LAND. 131 
 
 We have said that the two white spots are not of the same 
 extent either during their respective winters or summers. 
 The snowy cap of the southern hemisphere varies within 
 much greater limits than that of the opposite pole; it is much 
 more extensive during the winter season, and it diminishes 
 during the summer to such an extent that it does not occupy 
 more than the fifth part of the superficies of the snowy spot 
 of the northern pole. This difference is easily explained by 
 the great inclination of the axis of the planet to the plane of 
 its orbit, and by the fact that the southern pole is turned 
 towards the sun when Mars is nearly at its smallest distance 
 from the focus of light and heat. The summer-time, on the 
 other hand, of the northern hemisphere, occurs at the epoch 
 of its greatest distance. The quantities of heat received by 
 the globe of Mars at these two opposite points of its orbit 
 vary in the ratio of seven to five. In truth, these differences 
 of temperature are partly compensated in the course of a 
 revolution ; but the extremes of heat and cold are still very 
 decided." 
 
 130. Mars possesses an Atmosphere, and its Climate is sub- 
 ject to Terrific Storms and Hurricanes. " We have seen that 
 Mars presents the most curious analogies with the earth ; and 
 it is probable that to the inhabitants of Venus our planet 
 presents the same appearances that Mars does to us. Like 
 the poles of Mars, the poles of the earth are covered with 
 snow and ice : it is also our southern pole that is most frost- 
 bound, and for the same astronomical reasons, by the congela- 
 tion of the aqueous vapour. Lastly, the points of greatest 
 cold on Mars, as on the earth, do not coincide with the poles 
 of rotation. ... If snow falls in Mars, it is because water is 
 there evaporated by heat ; hence, the water must be spread 
 on the surface under the form of clouds, which condense 
 sometimes in a liquid state in the form of rain, sometimes as 
 snowy crystallizations. Thus Mars certainly possesses an 
 atmosphere of aqueous vapour. But we see too distinctly 
 the prominent spots of the disc, not to be certain of an 
 atmosphere analogous to our own, the pressure of which, by 
 
132 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 counterbalancing the expansion of the aqueous vapour, pre- 
 vents it from usurping all the surface. We have already 
 said that the more luminous borders of the disc allow us to 
 infer the existence of a cloud-bearing atmosphere, which 
 effaces by its brightness the dark spots when the rotation 
 brings them towards the limb. The meteorology of Mars is, 
 then, to a great extent known. It presents, we repeat, the 
 greatest analogies with the meteorology of our earth. But at 
 the same time notable differences distinguish them. As 
 Professor Phillips has remarked, the considerable periodical 
 exchange of moisture which is made between the two hemis- 
 pheres, especially between the two poles, must give rise to 
 hurricanes and storms, of the violence of which we can form 
 no idea ; while the melting of the snows over such large areas 
 must produce terrible inundations." 
 
 131. Seasons of Mars double the Duration of ours. "We 
 have seen that Mars turns on its axis in about 24| hours. 
 Thus the duration of its movement of rotation exceeds that of 
 our sidereal day by 41 minutes. Mars accomplishes an entire 
 revolution round the sun in 687 of our terrestrial days. But 
 the year of Mars only contains 669 of its own sidereal days ; 
 and as the number of solar days is always less by one than 
 that of the rotations, the year of Mars in reality is composed 
 of 668f of its own solar days, which gives, for the duration 
 of one of those days, 24 hours, 39 minutes, 35 seconds. 
 Thus a whole day of Mars exceeds one of our days by 39 
 minutes 35 seconds. The difference is not very perceptible. 
 Besides, the inclination of the axis of rotation to the plane of 
 the ecliptic is nearly the same as that of the axis of the 
 earth. It follows that in the course of a year Mars presents 
 its various regions to the sun nearly like our globe, so that 
 the length of the days and nights, in the different latitudes, 
 is distributed in the same manner. The extreme zones, 
 torrid and frigid, are a little more extended, proportionally, 
 which consequently reduces the surface of the temperate 
 zones. But it must not be forgotten that this is a favourable 
 circumstance, at least for the tropical regions, since the solar 
 
THE LAND. 
 
 133 
 
 light and heat arrive at the planet with an intensity much 
 less than on our globe. Between Mars and the earth, how- 
 ever, there is an important distinction, and it lies in the 
 difference between the terrestrial and martial seasons. In 
 the northern hemisphere of the planet, the 668 days of its 
 year are divided as follows : spring lasts 191 days 8 hours, 
 summer 181 days, autumn 149 days 8 hours, and winter 147 
 days. But the summer seasons of the northern hemisphere 
 are the winter seasons of the southern hemisphere, whence it 
 follows that the spring and summer, taken together, last 76 days 
 longer in the northern hemisphere than in the southern one." * 
 132. Seasons of Saturn of thirty times longer Duration than 
 ours. In that extraordinary planet, Saturn, astronomers 
 have ascertained the inclination of its axis to be 26 49', or 
 less than that of Mars and greater than that of the earth. 
 
 Fig. 6. 
 
 SATURN, Showing the Inclination of its Axis. 
 
 " Owing to the considerable inclination of the axis to the 
 
 plane of the orbit, Saturn presents to the sun sometimes one 
 
 and sometimes the other of its poles of rotation. For the 
 
 * The Heavens.' By A. Guillemin. 
 
134 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 same place on its surface, the altitude of the sun above the 
 horizon is still more variable than on the earth ; but if we 
 wish to form an idea of the change of temperature due to 
 this cause, it is important to remark that the altitude of 
 which we speak varies thirty times less rapidly than with us. 
 Each of Saturn's seasons lasts more than seven of our years, 
 and there is nearly fifteen years' interval between the autumn 
 and spring equinoxes, and between the summer and winter 
 solstices. But we should have but an incomplete idea of the 
 phenomena presented by the days, nights, and seasons of 
 Saturn, if we did not take into account the modifications 
 produced in these elements by the existence of the annular 
 appendages by which this magnificent planet is surrounded, 
 and by the presence on the horizon of the eight satellites 
 which escort it in its long revolution of thirty years." * 
 
 133. Great Inclination of Axis in Venus. Although the 
 greater inclination of the axis of rotation in Mars and Saturn 
 serves to illustrate the variability of the angles presented by 
 each planet, still these are not sufficient to furnish data for 
 concluding that the tropical zone might extend to middle 
 latitudes. This fact is fully demonstrated in the very con- 
 siderable inclination of the axis of rotation in the planet 
 Venus. According to Lockyer, this is computed to be 
 49 58', or nearly 2J times that of the earth. Other astrono- 
 mers consider it to be much greater, as represented by M. 
 Guillemin in a diagram of the planet, here copied. On this 
 point he remarks, that "the nearly circular form of its orbit 
 gives a nearly equal length to the four seasons, and the light 
 and the heat of the sun are distributed with a like constancy. 
 But that which establishes a marked difference between the 
 terrestrial seasons and climates, and those of the planet we 
 are exploring, is the great inclination of the axis of rotation 
 to the plane of its orbit. Fig. 7 shows the position of the 
 planet at one of its solstices, at the commencement of the 
 summer of the hemisphere which presents its pole to the sun. 
 At the winter solstice Venus occupies a diametrically opposite 
 * < The Heavens.' By A. Guillemin. 
 
THE LAND. 
 
 135 
 
 position. It follows that the polar regions undergo alter- 
 nately the torrid temperature of summer and the prolonged 
 cold of winter. At the equator, the sun then hardly rises 
 above the horizon. Towards the equinoxes, on the contrary, 
 
 EARTH 
 
 VENUS 
 
 Fig. 7. 
 
 Comparative dimensions of Venus and the Earth, and Axis of Rotation, 
 
 the regions nearest the equator are exposed to the heat of the 
 sun, the intensity of which is nearly double the intensity of 
 the solar heat on our globe. Perhaps a very dense, cloudy 
 atmosphere, constantly charged with vapours arising from the 
 heat, envelops the globe of Venus, and thus moderates the 
 rigour of its opposite seasons. A fact which gives to this 
 hypothesis a certain degree of truth, is the observation of the 
 transit of Venus over the sun in 1761, when a nebulous ring 
 seemed to surround the black disc of the body." 
 
 134. Angle computed at about 50. "Venus, the most 
 beautiful object in the heavens, is about 7700 English miles 
 in diameter, and placed at the distance of sixty-eight millions 
 of miles from the sun. Although the oscillations of this 
 planet are considerably greater than those of Mercury, and 
 she is seldom invisible, yet, on account of the uniform bril- 
 liancy of her disc, it is extremely difficult to ascertain the 
 period of her rotation. Dominic Cassini, after having long 
 fruitlessly attempted to discover any object on her surface so 
 well defined as to enable him to follow its motions, at length, 
 in 1667, perceived a bright part, distant from the southern 
 
136 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 horn a little more than a fourth part of the diameter of the 
 disc, and near the eastern edge. By continuing his observa- 
 tions on this spot, Cassini concluded the rotation of Venus 
 to be performed in about 23 hours . . . The question of the 
 rotation of Venus was finally settled by Schroeter, who found 
 it to be performed in about 23 hours, 21 minutes, 19 seconds. 
 Each of the observers found the inclination of the axis of 
 rotation to the axis of the ecliptic to be very considerable. 
 Subsequent observations have fixed the angle of inclination at 
 49 58', and there is reason to doubt the value of this element." 
 
 135. Mountains of great Height at South Pole. " Schroe- 
 ter' s observations on this planet were principally directed to a 
 mountain situated near the southern horn. The line which 
 joins the extremities of the horns is always a diameter ; and 
 the horns of the crescent of a perfect sphere ought to be sharp 
 and pointed. Schroeter remarked that this was not always 
 the case with regard to the horns of Mercury and Venus. 
 The northern horn of the latter always presented the pointed 
 form, but the southern occasionally appeared rounded or ob- 
 tuse a circumstance which indicated that the shadow of a 
 mountain covered the part ;" while "he remarked a luminous 
 point, which he supposed to be the summit of another moun- 
 tain, illuminated by the sun after he had ceased to be visible to 
 the rest of that hemisphere." * 
 
 136. Equipoise of Venus revolving in Sf)ace greatly dis- 
 turbed. From these observations of this interesting planet 
 we learn that there are mountains of conspicuous elevation on 
 its surface, and of such enormous magnitude in proportion to 
 its spherical dimensions that they enable our astronomers to 
 determine the period of its revolution. And what is worthy 
 of remark, this prominent protuberance of land is situated 
 in the south hemisphere of Venus, without any apparent 
 equivalent in its northern hemisphere ; showing a dispropor- 
 tion in the continental masses of that planet similar to, if not 
 greater than, what exists on the earth. It is also observable 
 that this preponderance is in the opposite hemisphere to what 
 
 * Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE LAND. 137 
 
 is found in our planet. Nevertheless, the same law pre- 
 vails, and we can conceive that if the first volcanic forces 
 in the interior of the earth were directed to South America 
 instead of its northern sister, besides Asia and Europe, the 
 counterbalancing power would have been the reverse to what 
 it is, and the same as in Venus. Looking, therefore, at this 
 beautiful object in the heavens through a powerful telescope, 
 we see a globe poised in space, but thrown out of its equili- 
 brium, between the axis of rotation and the plane of its orbit, 
 to an extent more than twice the displacement of the earth's 
 ecliptic ; consequently, the differences of her days and seasons 
 must be very great. 
 
 137. Mercury has comparatively the highest Mountains in 
 the Planetary System. In like manner, it has been discovered 
 that the planet Mercury exhibits phenomena of a similar 
 nature, thereby supporting the theory of an extended torrid 
 zone having at one time prevailed on the earth ; only that 
 from physical causes, the observations are not so determinate 
 as those of the planet Venus. "Mercury is about 3140 
 English miles in diameter, and his mean distance from the 
 sun about thirty-seven millions of miles. On account of his 
 smallness and brilliancy, it is extremely difficult to find any 
 spot on his disc so distinctly marked as to afford the means 
 of determining his rotation. Besides, by reason of his prox- 
 imity to the sun, an observation of a spot, if made in the 
 evening, can scarcely be well begun before the planet sets ; 
 or, if in the morning, before the increasing twilight renders 
 the spot invisible. Hence it is only possible to observe daily 
 a very small arc of a small circle ; and if the spot reappears 
 on the succeeding day, it is doubtful whether the arc it has 
 passed over exhibits the whole motion, or if one or more cir- 
 cumferences ought to be added. By an attentive observation 
 of the variations of the phases of Mercury, Schroeter has, 
 however, remarked that he revolves about his axis in the 
 space of 24 hours, 5 minutes, 30 seconds. M. Harding dis- 
 covered in 1801 an obscure streak on the southern hemis- 
 phere of the planet, the observations of which, together with 
 
138 ORIGIN .OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 those of a spot discovered by Schroeter, gave the same period 
 of rotation." * From the results of that eminent astronomer's 
 researches on Mercury we also learn that his equator, like 
 that of Venus, " is very considerably inclined to his orbit, and 
 the differences of his days and seasons must consequently be 
 very great ;" and " there are mountains on his surface which 
 cast very long shadows, and of which the height bears a 
 greater proportion to the diameter of the planet than those of 
 the earth, the moon, or even of Venus. The height of Chimbo- 
 razo is y^Vr f ^ ne radius of the earth ; one of the mountains 
 in the moon has been estimated at ^^ T of her radius ; the high- 
 est in Venus at T J T ; and one in Mercury at y^-. The highest 
 mountains are in the southern hemisphere, which is also the 
 case in respect of Venus. There are no observations to prove 
 decisively whether Mercury is surrounded by an atmosphere, "t 
 138. Guillemin on Planetary Phenomena. On the recent 
 observations and conjectures on the physical constitution of 
 this planet, M. Guillemin has the following remarks and 
 data : " We now know the movement of Mercury round the 
 sun, the time of its revolution, its distances from the sun and 
 the earth, and, lastly, its dimensions in diameter, in surface, 
 and in volume. It only remains now to speak of what is 
 known of its physical condition. The facts that science has 
 succeeded in gathering on this curious and important point 
 of the monography of the planets ought to present a lively 
 interest to us all, by reason of the likeness or contrast which 
 each of these worlds possesses to our own. The manner in 
 which light and heat are distributed on the surfaces of the 
 planetary bodies; the succession of their days, nights, and 
 seasons ; the existence or the want of an atmosphere like 
 ours ; lastly, the surface-markings that the telescope has per- 
 mitted us to observe on their surfaces, are so many valuable 
 particulars which enable us to make the most probable con- 
 jectures on the organisation of the living beings which doubt- 
 less people them. Supported by such positive data, imagina- 
 tion can then boldly launch into the field of conjecture. 
 * Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' f Ibid. 
 
THE LAND. 13 
 
 139. Mercury receives Heat and Light from the Sun seven 
 Times more intense than the Earth. " The intensity of the 
 light which Mercury receives from the sun, at its mean dis- 
 tance, is nearly seven times as great as that with which our 
 globe is illuminated under the same conditions of distance. 
 It is not then surprising that the ancients gave Mercury the 
 epithet of * Twinkler.' This is not all. The laws governing 
 the propagation of radiant heat are the same as those of light. 
 Mercury then receives seven times more heat than the earth, 
 or, more properly, a heat the intensity of which is in the mean 
 seven times as great. To judge by the impression which the 
 light-rays make on our eyes, seeing that we cannot bear their 
 dazzling brightness without pain, and, again, by that which 
 they make on our body when it is subject to their influence, 
 the inhabitants of Mercury should be exceedingly uncomfort- 
 able. But are they formed like us 1 ? and have their senses 
 the same degree of impressionability? We know not. 
 Variations of temperature are also disagreeable to us. In 
 this respect, again, we must own that the inhabitants of 
 Mercury have more to suffer than we. Owing to the planet's 
 elongated orbit, we have seen that it sometimes recedes from, 
 and sometimes approaches, the sun, and that the difference 
 between the extreme distances amounts to fifteen millions of 
 miles. So that whilst at aphelion the intensity of the lumi- 
 nous and heat-rays is no more than four times and a-half that 
 of the rays received by the earth ; at perihelion, on the con- 
 trary, it rises to more than ten times the same quantity. 
 Lastly, and this adds still more to the contrasts of tempera- 
 ture, the variations occur in a period of time less than a 
 quarter of one of our terrestrial years. Presently we shall 
 see that the seasons present still greater anomalies. 
 
 140. Its Claims to an Atmosphere not fully determined. 
 " We must not forget, however, that one circumstance may 
 modify all this to an extent sufficient to render the conditions 
 of vegetable and animal life in Mercury either similar to our 
 own, or more different still. This circumstance is the exist- 
 ence or absence of a gaseous or vaporous envelope in. a word, 
 
140 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 of an atmosphere. Has Mercury then an atmosphere ? Ac- 
 cording to many astronomers, Mercury presented such an 
 appearance in its transit across the solar disc in 1799. In- 
 stead of a black round spot, perfectly clear and well defined, 
 there was seen all round the disc of the planet a circular Land 
 less luminous than the rest of the surface of the sun, forming 
 a sort of nebulous ring. It was thence inferred that there 
 existed a very high and dense atmosphere. Eecent observers 
 have not seen anything like it. But, on the other hand, they 
 have remarked in the phases of the planet, that the line of 
 separation of the light and shade, which astronomers call the 
 terminator, is never very decided, so that the breadth of the 
 luminous part seemed diminished. i Hence/ say Beer and 
 Ma'dler, ' we must conclude that Mercury has a pretty sen- 
 sible atmosphere.' If this be so, we can form an idea of the 
 modifications which a somewhat dense atmosphere would in- 
 duce in the intensity of the light and heat, by comparing the 
 days when, on our earth, the sky is clear and without clouds 
 when the sun darts its rays on the surface without obstacle 
 with the dark and dull days when the clouds completely hide 
 him from us. The density of the atmospheric envelope, we 
 see, can strikingly change the effects of solar radiation. Let us 
 compare, for instance, the temperature of one of our valleys 
 with that of the mountain summits which surround it. It is 
 like passing from summer to the cold of winter from the 
 burning heat of July to the frost of November ; and yet the 
 sun shines alike on the mountains and on the valley. Fin- 
 ally, the chemical composition of the atmosphere of Mercury, 
 the nature of the gases of which it is formed, and which are 
 perhaps very different from the nitrogen and oxygen of our 
 own air, are also features which may influence the climate of 
 the planet ; concerning these matters we have no data. Let 
 us confine ourselves, then, to describe the astronomical phe- 
 nomena, of which the influence is incontestible. 
 
 141. No Temperate Seasons, from its extreme Angle of Axial 
 Inclination. " In the first place, let us consider the length of 
 the day. Mercury turns on its axis in 24 hours and 5 J min- 
 
THE LAND. 
 
 141 
 
 utes, and his year comprises 87f of these sidereal rotations. 
 The number of his solar days in this period is therefore 86|, 
 whence results as the length of one of them 24 hours and 54 
 seconds. This is nearly the length of one of our own solar 
 days, so that the organised beings of the two planets have the 
 
 Mercury at one of its Solstices, showing the Inclination of the Axis of Rotatioa at the 
 approximate angle of 75". 
 
 Orbit of Mercury showing perpendicular Solar rays at lat. 75. 
 
 same periods of light and darkness, of activity and repose. 
 But the relative length of the days and nights in the course 
 of the entire year is much more variable than on the earth, 
 
142 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 owing to the great inclination of the axis of Mercury to the 
 plane of its orbit. Fig. 8 shows, according to old observers, 
 at what angle Mercury presents itself to the sun at the com- 
 mencement of each of its seasons. Very extensive zones 
 around the pole enjoy at one season, during their summer, 
 continuous day; at another, during their winter, they are 
 plunged in profound darkness. It is only during a short 
 period, and near the planet's equinoxes, that these zones see 
 light and darkness succeed in the interval of the same day. 
 The glacial and torrid zones are not distinct on Mercury, and 
 temperate climates do not exist, or rather their zones change 
 their character twice during each revolution. The equatorial 
 regions alone have the advantage of possessing all the year 
 day and night, light and darkness, and of experiencing heat 
 during the day, cold and calm during the night. It is true, 
 however, that if the sun towards the equinoxes rises as far as 
 the zenith, it descends nearly to the horizon in the extreme 
 seasons. We have said above, that the orbit of Mercury is 
 very elongated, or, in astronomical language, its eccentricity is 
 considerable. It results that the seasons in Mercury are of 
 very unequal duration, and seeing that, according as we con- 
 sider the northern or the southern hemispheres, the spring 
 and the summer of the one are the autumn and winter of the 
 other, a like inequality should exist between the extreme 
 temperatures of the two hemispheres." 
 
 142. Inclination of Axis more than Treble that of the Earth. 
 The inclination of the axis of rotation in Mercury has not 
 been sufficiently determined to give its true value. It was 
 Schroeter, at the end of the last century, who deduced the 
 inclination given in the diagram, from observing some dark 
 bands on its disc, which he considered as an equatorial zone. 
 At an approximate calculation the obliquity of the ecliptic in 
 Mercury is not far short of 75, which, if it be correct, would 
 exceed that of Venus by one-third, and more than treble that 
 of the earth an obliquity which would not only subject 
 Europe to the influence of a tropical clime, but is equivalent 
 to a torrid zone stretching on each side of the equator beyond 
 
THE LAND. 143 
 
 the present limits of the arctic and antarctic circles on our 
 earth. 
 
 143. Mercury Typical of the Earth during the Tropical 
 Epoch in Europe. In these two brilliant examples of our 
 planetary system, we have not only periods of diurnal rota- 
 tion corresponding to that of our own planet, but obliquities of 
 the ecliptic far exceeding that of the earth at the present 
 time, and considerably beyond the bounds of the theory of 
 expansion and contraction herein expounded, and to which 
 we have attributed our tropical epoch in Europe. It has 
 been suggested that the maximum of the earth's torrid zone 
 in that era did not exceed an inclination of 45, while in 
 Mercury it is considered to be about 75. Here, therefore, 
 are data that would justify an extension of the obliquity of 
 the earth's ecliptic at one time to 50 or even 60, which would 
 fully account for the long epochs during the earlier existence 
 of the world, when those monster animals the iguanodon, 
 megalosaurus, mastodon, labyrinthodon, ichthyosaurus, pie- 
 siosaurus, and their congeners were brought into being amidst 
 a gigantic vegetation that could have flourished only under 
 an intensely tropical clime, where now we find their fossil re- 
 mains in temperate and even frigid regions. When we con- 
 sider the acute angle at which Mercury rotates in its orbit 
 round the sun, exposing its circumpolar regions to a degree of 
 heat equal to, if not greater than we find in the temperate 
 zones of the earth, we cannot imagine these to be regions of 
 ice and snow like ours, while we may easily surmise that the 
 middle latitudes between the poles and the equator are sub- 
 ject to a heat more intense than that within our tropics. And 
 as there is evidence that Mercury is enveloped in an atmo- 
 sphere supposed to be denser than ours, we can understand 
 how, in all probability, that planet is now, over three-fourths 
 of its surface, sweltering under tropical heats, that bring forth 
 the monsters of its forests and waters the giants of its organ- 
 ised creation such as reigned supreme on this earth before 
 the advent of the glacial period. 
 
 1 44. Table of the various Degrees of Planetary Inclination 
 
144 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of Axis. Let us now glance at the various degrees of inclina- 
 tion each planet we have described presents between its 
 equatorial plane and the plane of its orbit including that 
 of our own planet commencing at the smallest obliquity. 
 According to the latest astronomical calculations these are as 
 follows : 
 
 Jupiter, 3 4' 0" 
 
 Earth, 23 27' 24" 
 
 Saturn, 26 49' 0" 
 
 Mars, 28 51' 0" 
 
 Venus, 49 58' 0" 
 
 Mercury, (?) 75 0' 0" 
 
 145. Problem involved open to Solution by our Theory. 
 In contemplating the planetary sphere from this point of 
 view, we fail to perceive any general law which regulates the 
 inclination of the axis of rotation in each planet, in relation 
 to its distance from the sun or the perturbations of the 
 planets on each other. "While astronomers have taken the 
 greatest pains to observe the phenomena as materially assist- 
 ing to unfold the physical constitution of the planets, based 
 upon the physical phenomena of our own, they have not 
 ventured to account for the great disparity between the slight 
 inclination of Jupiter and the wide displacement of the equa- 
 torial planes of Venus and Mercury from the planes of their 
 orbits. Hence the subject may be considered an open ques- 
 tion, to be dealt with upon geological principles. Here, then, 
 we find certain data bearing upon our theory, which point to 
 some law inherent in each planet, that where the inclination 
 is greatest, as in Venus and Mercury, the protuberances of 
 the land are highest above the sphere of rotation ; and where 
 the angle is smallest, as in Jupiter, there is no observable 
 elevation above the sphere of revolution, while the low 
 degree of density ('0227) suggests a liquid surface on that 
 planet. On these data are we not justified in deducing the 
 hypothesis that the inclination is caused by the internal vol- 
 canic forces acting unequally on the external hemispheres in 
 upheaving solid matter 1 
 
THE LAND. 145 
 
 146. Extraordinary Phenomena of Climate and Seasons in 
 the Moon. This view of the general question would be in- 
 complete if we omitted to point out the infinitesimal inclina- 
 tion of the moon's axis to the ecliptic, which is determined 
 by astronomers at 1 30' 10", or less than half the least in- 
 clination of the superior planets. Combining this with the 
 lengthy diurnal rotation, annual revolution in its orbit, and 
 other phenomena, the climate and seasons of our satellite are 
 more extraordinary than those of any of the planets. " Dur- 
 ing about fifteen days the sun pours his rays without any 
 cloudy curtain or aerial current to temper them. To this 
 temperature, more intense even than that of our torrid zone, 
 succeeds an intense cold, which a night of fifteen days' length 
 renders more glacial than that of our polar winters. It is 
 true, that during the day the radiation of the solar heat into 
 space again is not prevented. We must conclude, therefore, 
 that the climates of the various regions of the moon have a 
 certain analogy with those of our Alpine regions, seeing that 
 the depression of the temperature, and the reverberation of 
 the intense light there, become insupportable by the con- 
 tinuity of their action. There are, properly speaking, no 
 seasons in the moon. The slight inclination of its axis of 
 rotation maintains the sun at a nearly constant inclination 
 in each latitude. But whilst in the equatorial regions the 
 radiant body scarcely leaves the zenith, at the middle of the 
 day, in the polar regions, it scarcely rises above the horizon. 
 The polar mountains enjoy perpetual day. One can under- 
 stand, also, that the inclination of the sun to the lunar sur- 
 face, variable according to the latitudes, can never have on 
 the moon the same importance as on the earth, since the rays, 
 whether luminous or calorific, are transmitted directly to the 
 surface without having to traverse atmospheric strata of un- 
 equal thickness. The revolution of our satellite is effected 
 with variable velocity, whilst its movement of rotation is 
 uniform. Hence it follows that of 1000 parts of its surface 
 569 are visible and 431 constantly hidden from us."* 
 * 'The Heavens.' By A. Guillemin. 
 K 
 
146 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 147. Astronomers have overlooked the importance of Plane- 
 tary Variations of Axis. The variations in the obliquities 
 of the planetary ecliptics are a subject of great interest in our 
 researches regarding the laws that control the solar system, 
 and one that appears not to have commanded the attention 
 of astronomers which its importance deserves. Content with 
 the suggestion that these phenomena have arisen from ex- 
 ternal perturbations in the planetary system, they have 
 ignored all inquiry into the existence of internal action in 
 each planet as the probable cause of this general displacement 
 from the perpendicular axis of their orbits. If this obliquity 
 had been at a uniform angle throughout the planetary sphere, 
 then we could have supposed that some great general law, 
 emanating from the sun by virtue of his attraction, origin- 
 ated and controlled it. But when we find the divergence 
 ranging in round numbers from 3 in Jupiter to 75 in Mer- 
 cury, with the medium angles of 23 on the earth and 28 in 
 Mars, we are justified in inferring that it supports the theory 
 of internal causes for the obliquity of ecliptics generally ; the 
 result of local disturbances in the physical condition of 
 planets, differing from ordinary celestial perturbations which 
 affect their annual rotation round the sun. In the orbital 
 disturbances affecting planets, we can understand how they 
 may diverge from their accustomed path as they attract each 
 other by the way, while rushing through space with tremend- 
 ous velocity, singly or in satellite groups. Here all obey the 
 central law of gravitation towards the sun, yet susceptible to 
 a small degree of each other's attractive power, and that of 
 erratic comets visiting the fervid heat and light of the 
 supreme central globe of fire and gravitation. 
 
 148. The Solar System compared to a Central State and its 
 Provinces. Through the light thrown upon the operations of 
 the universal law of gravitation by the immortal Newton, it 
 is comparatively a simple matter to comprehend slight aberra- 
 tions in the planetary manifestations of the principle in- 
 volved. It is otherwise, however, when we come to consider 
 the disturbing causes that have driven the earth and the 
 
THE LAND. 147 
 
 other planets from their equilibrium, where aberration from 
 a fixed angle of axis is the rule, and uniformity the excep- 
 tion. To make a familiar comparison, it might be said that 
 the planets represent subsidiary states within the empire of 
 the sun, where they are subject to general laws for the 
 mutual conservation of the whole. But each planet, like a 
 separate state under a union, has an inherent power within 
 itself to form its own laws of self-government, provided they 
 are not contrary to the spirit of the general constitution. 
 Thus we may consider that though the earth is obedient to 
 the great luminary from whence it derives all its vital power, 
 if not its primary existence, yet by its internal energy it has 
 raised the fabric of its own greatness as the abode of plants 
 and animals, without which it would have been a fluid 
 sphere, with an aeriform envelope, comparatively inert and 
 lifeless. In this sense the general laws are astronomical, and 
 the special laws geological ; at the same time the latter are 
 dependent on the former. 
 
 149. The Planetary Range of Obliquity supports our TJieory 
 of Tropical Extension to 60. Now that we have cited 
 planetary examples of tropical zones of wider dimensions than 
 our own, and shown that the obliquity of the ecliptic which 
 produces this phenomenon on our planet is diminishing, these 
 data seem almost sufficient to sustain our inference that the 
 tropical regions of the earth extended formerly into the pre- 
 sent temperate zones, even had we no organic fossil remains 
 to prove the existence of an extinct tropical fauna and flora. 
 But when we combine the astronomical with the geological 
 evidences, the case appears almost conclusive. As previ- 
 ously observed, the only doubtful point of the question is, to 
 what maximum extent the angle of obliquity expanded the 
 tropics ? We have ventured to place it at 45, a parallel of 
 latitude passing through the south of Europe, and 10 below 
 the central latitudes of the British Isles. Now, as we have 
 seen that some of the most gigantic and essentially tropical 
 forms of plants and animals are found in the fossiliferous 
 rocks of Scotland as well as England which Miller so 
 
148 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 graphically describes there is good evidence that the tropic 
 may have reached the highest latitudes of Great Britain, even 
 to the Shetland Isles, bordering on the parallel of 60 N". 
 Coupling these geological evidences with the astronomical 
 observations that the planet Mercury probably revolves on its 
 polar axis at an angle of 75 to the plane of its orbit, there is 
 nothing contrary to the order of nature in the hypothesis that 
 the earth, during that epoch, had a torrid zone 120 in width, 
 or an obliquity of 60 in her ecliptic. This would not only ac- 
 count for the wonderful organic remains in the secondary and 
 tertiary formations of geologists, found in northern Europe, 
 but would extend the period of the tropical epoch to some- 
 thing approaching their calculations of geological time, taking 
 the diminution of the obliquity of the ecliptic as the basis of 
 computation. In a former chapter of this division of our 
 subject, this diminution was given at the rate of one degree 
 in eight thousand years, showing a lapse of 172,000 years 
 since the tropical era existed in its intensity in Europe. 
 According to the same computation, with 60 as the angle of 
 obliquity, the lapse of time would be increased to 292,000 
 years. All things considered, and as far as the finite views 
 of man can enable him to penetrate into the infinite realms 
 of the past, the actual expansion of the torrid zone probably 
 reached the maximum of 60, and its duration nearly that of 
 three thousand centuries, before it attained the present limit of 
 23 30', irrespective of the period of its augmentation, or that 
 during which, in all probability, it remained at its maximum. 
 150. Speculative Views that might arise from the Theory 
 of an extended Tropical Zone. Instead of limiting our com- 
 putations on this point of time, the speculative philosopher 
 might step in here with arguments based on our theory 
 which would extend the primary augmentation of axial in- 
 clination on our planet until it reached an angle of 90, 
 when the polar regions would exchange places with the 
 equator, altering the circle of the seasons. He might point 
 to the fossil remains of tropical plants in Greenland as only 
 to be accounted for in this manner ; and as showing that, if 
 
THE LAND. 149 
 
 we could examine the fossiliferous strata of the circumpolar 
 regions, it is possible that similar evidence would be found 
 of a tropical climate having once existed there. On the 
 other hand, he might account for the remarkable evidence 
 discovered by Agassiz in Brazil, that glaciers once deposited 
 boulders and moraines in latitudes within the limits of the 
 present tropical zone at the sea-level. It might be argued, 
 if the displacement reached a right angle, we can imagine 
 the frigidity of the winter season near the equator, when the 
 sun scarcely appeared above the horizon, causing the forma- 
 mation of glaciers at a comparatively low altitude ; while, at 
 the same time, the summers in high latitudes would be suffi- 
 ciently hot to support tropical vegetation. Pursuing his 
 speculative arguments further, he might hold that there 
 was no evidence to the contrary why the earth having 
 reached its culminating degree of axial inclination at 90, the 
 same forces which set it in motion, continuing their motive 
 power, drove the north polar axis beyond the equatorial 
 plane into the southern celestial hemisphere until the ter- 
 restrial hemispheres were ultimately reversed in relation to 
 the planetary plane of the ecliptic. So that if sentient 
 beings lived on the British Isles in those ages, they would 
 have beheld in the heavens the constellation of the Southern 
 Cross above the horizon where now the Great Bear is in the 
 ascendant. In support of this extension of the tropic into the 
 arctic regions, the speculative philosopher might find astrono- 
 mical evidence in the extreme inclination assigned by living 
 astronomers to the axis of the planet Uranus. According to 
 Lockyer, .as given in his translation of 'The Heavens,' by 
 Guillemin, this is represented as being equal to a right angle 
 of displacement. Hence it may be argued, that instead of 
 the earth diminishing its tropical zone by contraction of a 
 maximum extension, it is possible that it is making a revo- 
 lution from the zenith to the nadir of the celestial sphere. 
 And if we can bring this hypothesis to bear upon the law of 
 universal gravitation, or as being in accordance with the laws 
 that rule the movements of the heavenly bodies, we can 
 
150 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 conceive that the earth may have reversed its polar axis 
 during the great geological epochs. Also that the disparity 
 in the inclination of the planetary axes may he accounted for 
 hy the different stages they have arrived at in polar rotation, 
 according to a law perhaps as universal as those laws which 
 regulate their axial and orbital rotation. As the annual 
 rotation in regard to the earth takes 365 times longer to 
 perform its circuit than the time accomplished hy a diurnal 
 revolution, so might there he a polar rotation having a 
 boundless space of time for its revolutions, in which the 
 epochs of the geological record describe the vast circle of its 
 seasons a carboniferous spring, an eocene summer, a pliocene 
 autumn, and a glacial winter. Thus computing the rate at 
 one degree in eight thousand years as given by astronomers 
 to the diminution of the tropical zone it would take 2,880,000 
 years to make one complete polar revolution. Here is a spec- 
 ulative basis of calculating geological time that might serve 
 to clear up, by astronomical calculations, all the inexplicable 
 phenomena of sedimentary deposits, tropical and frigid epochs, 
 origin and extinction of species, and the numerous unex- 
 plained anomalies of geology. 
 
 151. Comets present no indications of possessing fixed 
 Axes of Rotation. There yet remains a class of celestial 
 bodies belonging to the solar system to be noticed, which, as 
 far as human knowledge goes, are exceptional as regards the 
 law of fixed axial rotation. These are comets, whose erratic 
 movements and eccentric orbits have hitherto baffled astrono- 
 mers to assign to determinate laws. In referring to them 
 briefly it is not necessary to enter into the questions as to 
 the probable nature of cometary substance, or the cause of 
 their wondrous luminous tails that from time to time il- 
 luminate the heavens in their transit from the realms of 
 outer darkness into the fervid heat and light of the sun. 
 Suffice it to say, that astronomers agree that, in the largest 
 comets observed, each has a nucleus more brilliant than its 
 surroundings, which, if stripped from it, would in all proba- 
 bility present a spherical disc having the ordinary aspect of 
 
THE LAND. 151 
 
 the superior planets, varying like them in size and degree of 
 brilliancy. Of these nuclei, the most remarkable of which 
 we have any authentic scientific description is that of the 
 celebrated comet of 1680, figured in Lernonnier's 'Histoire 
 Celeste.' The figure given there exhibits a nucleus or disc 
 of a perfectly spherical form, as seen through a telescope. 
 This disc is surrounded by what was concluded to be a 
 cometic atmosphere. Above that was a sort of ring, wider 
 at the summit and narrower towards the sides. " A coma 
 or beard succeeds the ring, and lastly an immense train of 
 luminous matter, somewhat less vivid than the nucleus."* 
 Now, it must be observed, that although the bright centre in 
 a comet presents the densest portion of its substance, yet it 
 is stated on the best authority, that "the real nucleus has 
 probably never been observed by any astronomer." t Be that 
 as it may, the nuclei whatever may be the nature of their 
 substance present a more perfectly spherical form than any 
 of the planets ; but, in consequence of the luminosity of the 
 rarified substance considered to be their atmospheres, no 
 astronomer has yet been able to observe any evidence of a 
 comet possessing a fixed axis of revolution. In the absence 
 of any positive data on this point, it may be advanced with 
 scientific probability, that it is probably in consequence of 
 not yet having acquired this law, that these erratic members 
 of the solar system are so eccentric in their orbits. On the 
 other hand, it may be said that the fixed law of axial revo- 
 lution in the planets probably forms the basis of their concen- 
 tric orbital rotation. Without this apparently subsidiary 
 rotatory motion it is just possible that the superior rotation 
 of a planet round the sun would otherwise approximate in 
 eccentricity to the orbits of the comets. We have elsewhere 
 started a supposititious case of what the consequences would 
 be if the earth was a perfect sphere, equal in density at all 
 points of latitude and longitude on its surface and in ratio 
 of pressure towards the centre, when in all probability there 
 would be no fixed axis of rotation at the poles, and the 
 * Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' t Ibid. 
 
152 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 world might revolve without any determinate angle of diur- 
 nal revolution in its annual rotation, like a billiard-ball or a 
 round-shot, turning over in all directions though maintaining 
 its line of projectile motion. On this hypothesis may not the 
 comets fly off at a tangent beyond the planetary sphere, be- 
 cause they have no fixed axes of revolution to keep them 
 within a concentric orbit ? This hypothesis of a very per- 
 plexing question in astronomy may be exemplified in a 
 popular manner by comparing a planet to a whip-top, which 
 revolves within a circumscribed sphere as long as it is kept 
 in motion by flagellation ; while the comet may be compared 
 to a boy's marble, which, if whipped in the same manner, 
 would roll over and over in a straight line, or might be more 
 correctly described as performing a parabolic curve in its on- 
 ward progress. 
 
 152. Concluding Remarks on the Difference between internal 
 and external Perturbations in the Planetary Sphere. From 
 what has been said concerning the deviation of the heavenly 
 bodies from a universal uniformity of revolution, we may with 
 scientific propriety conclude that, as a rule, the pristine or 
 normal condition of a planet revolving in its diurnal motion 
 would give the angle of the axis of rotation at a right angle 
 to the plane of its orbit, with which the equatorial plane 
 would coincide. This may be considered as a necessary 
 result of the universal law of gravitation where its primary 
 influence has not been disturbed by secondary agencies. Any 
 deviation from that fundamental principle of rotation is an 
 exception to the rule, and must arise from the attractive 
 power of planetary bodies on each other, or, as we have sug- 
 gested, the action of the internal forces of each individual 
 planet on itself. In the former case, we have evidence of 
 perturbations causing the eccentricity of their orbits from the 
 form of a perfect circle, and displacement of the planes of 
 these orbits from that of the ecliptic ; and, in the latter 
 instance, internal forces affecting their equilibrium so as to 
 incline their axes at various angles from the axes of their 
 orbits. Here are, therefore, two distinct modes of displace- 
 
THE LAND. 153 
 
 ment from the normal movements of the planets one from 
 external, and one from internal causes. The question involved 
 appears to us very simple, and requires no profound know- 
 ledge to understand, once it is admitted that the forces pro- 
 duced internally by heat exert an influence on the general 
 motion of a planet. Hitherto such an element has not 
 entered into the calculations of geometers, consequently we 
 have no mathematical data to prove or disprove the hypo- 
 thesis. We venture to hope that the subject may command 
 the attention of those who are better able to furnish a satis- 
 factory solution than we can lay claim to ; and, whatever be 
 the result, we shall be satisfied with having pointed out the 
 problem to be solved. 
 
CHAPTEE VIII. 
 
 EPOCH OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Introductory remarks on this practical branch of the subject, 153. Direct 
 or secondary causes that produce the seasons properly denned, 154. As- 
 tronomical definition of the apparent cause of the seasons, 155. Familiar 
 illustration of apparent motion, 156. Astronomical description and dia- 
 gram of the seasons, 157. Diminution of obliquity overlooked by writers 
 on the subject, 158. Popular remarks concerning changes in the seasons, 
 159. Hypothesis of obliquity of the ecliptic not conclusive, 160. This 
 astronomical problem open to solution by geology, 161. The question of 
 displacement considered astronomically, 162. Geological inferences may 
 be in harmony with astronomical truths, 163. Practical solution of this 
 question a matter of public importance, 164. Popular division of the four 
 seasons in the almanacs, 165. General characteristics of the seasons and 
 calendar months, 166. Antiquity of the study has not exhausted the 
 subject, 167. Poetical fancies of happy lands where perpetual summer 
 reigns, 168. The seasons, their fauna and flora the result of contracted 
 energy, 169. Natural history of this epoch the most perfect in structure, 
 170. The seasons evidently of comparatively recent geological origin, 171. 
 
 J53. Introductory Remarks on this practical Branch of 
 the Subject. From the realms of conjecture and the lifeless 
 vestiges of the world's past organic history, we now come to 
 an epoch of living evidences of its progress, full of animation 
 and stirring events, when man first appeared on the stage of 
 life ; a period which may be appropriately termed the epoch 
 of the seasons. In reviewing the preceding epochs through 
 the dim and imperfect records of the past, as revealed by 
 geology and astronomy, it is a continual groping in the dark 
 to reach the smallest approximation to truth. Now, under 
 the penetrating beams of the great luminary that vivifies the 
 
THE LAND. 155 
 
 planetary system, we behold the minutest changes in the 
 external condition of our planet, from which we may deduce 
 the secondary causes and effects that inaugurated the won- 
 drous phenomena which physical geography lays open to us 
 in the book of nature. But in appreciating the evidences of 
 the present era and its origin, we must not disparage the ves- 
 tiges of the past. Although the dumb witnesses of fossil 
 geology are not so numerous and convincing in their evidence 
 as those which the existing organic and inorganic worlds 
 unfold, yet they should be valued accordingly, as the progeni- 
 tors and types of living plants and animals, and the founda- 
 tion of the fertile soil they inhabit. Like the dead languages 
 without which the living tongues of Europe would have had 
 no utterance these strange natural hieroglyphics on stratified 
 rocks comprise the classics of geology, in which we read con- 
 cerning the origin of the seasons as we now experience them. 
 At the same time, as the development of the attendant 
 phenomena was gradual, it will be necessary to refer briefly 
 to the immediate causes of the seasons, as demonstrated by 
 astronomers, in order to understand more clearly the changes 
 which the climate of Europe has undergone since the tropical 
 epoch or, according to our theory, during the diminution of 
 the tropical zones to their present limits. 
 
 154. Direct or Secondary Causes producing the Seasons 
 properly defined. The immediate causes that produce the 
 phenomena of the seasons are described in two ways the one 
 by the real motions of the earth in its diurnal revolution and 
 annual rotation in its orbit round the sun, and the other by 
 the apparent movements of the sun, moon, planets, and stars 
 over the celestial meridian. From the latter method of 
 description being in accordance with the vicissitudes of the 
 day, month, and year, as they roll on before our perceptive 
 faculties, astronomers have taken the most elaborate care to 
 demonstrate the apparent causes, while the real ones, best under- 
 stood by our reflective faculties, are comparatively overlooked. 
 This is purposely intended, as it would be a matter of extreme 
 intricacy of expression, if not confusion of language, to 
 
156 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 describe every position of the heavenly bodies in the ephem- 
 eris, in respect of their daily changes, by the complex move- 
 ments of our planet. It is true that, for the purposes of 
 navigation, the distances of the earth from the heavenly 
 bodies are given in the nautical ephemeris according to their 
 real position; but for general astronomical purposes their 
 apparent movements are still held as the basis of describing 
 the phenomena of the seasons. It is well, however, to remind 
 the reader of the fact, that " All these movements, both those 
 of rotation and translation round the sun, and those of nuta- 
 tion and precession, are effected simultaneously by the earth. 
 The motion of our globe has often been compared, and with 
 justice, to that of a top which, while turning on itself with 
 great rapidity, and tracing on the surface which supports it 
 a line which may be likened to its orbit, undergoes also a 
 balancing of its axis of figure or rotation analogous to the 
 oscillations of the earth. There is this difference, that the 
 various movements of the earth are accomplished with mathe- 
 matical regularity in periods relatively very long, and accord- 
 ing to laws which allow us each instant to assign its true 
 position in space." * 
 
 155. Astronomical Definition of the apparent Causes of the 
 Seasons. " In astronomy the seasons are considered as begin- 
 ning respectively when the sun enters the signs Aries, Can- 
 cer, Capricorn, and Libra. Hence the spring season com- 
 mences about the 21st of March, summer about the 22d of 
 June, autumn about the 23d of September, and winter about 
 the 23d of December." This is the stereotyped definition of 
 the seasons which has obtained from the earliest observa- 
 tions of astronomers up to the present day ; yet, as regards 
 the sun entering these particular signs of the zodiac on or 
 about the days and months enumerated, the calculations no 
 longer hold good, in consequence of the precession of the 
 equinoxes. That phenomenon has been already alluded to 
 as being entirely different from the obliquity of the ecliptic, 
 the diminution of which arises from the displacement of the 
 * 'The Heavens.' By M. Guillemin. 
 
THE LAND. 157 
 
 ecliptic itself ; the precession of the equinoxes is, on the con- 
 trary, occasioned by the continual displacement of the terres- 
 trial equator, through the combined action of the sun and 
 moon on the mass of protuberant matter about the earth's 
 equator. If the sun and moon moved in the plane of the 
 equator, there would evidently be no precession. " In con- 
 sequence of this regression of the equinoctial points, the sun's 
 place among the zodiacal constellations at any given season of 
 the year is now greatly different from what it was in remote 
 ages. Some time prior to Hipparchus, the first points of 
 Aries and Libra corresponded to the vernal and autumnal 
 equinoxes ; those of Cancer and Capricorn to the summer and 
 winter solstices : at present these constellations have separated 
 thirty degrees from the same points of the ecliptic. The 
 vernal equinox now happens in the constellation Pisces, the 
 summer solstice in Gemini, the autumn equinox in Virgo, 
 and the winter solstice in Sagittarius. Astronomers, how- 
 ever, still count the signs from the vernal equinox, which, 
 therefore, always corresponds to the first point of the sign of 
 Aries. On this account it is necessary to distinguish care- 
 fully between the signs of the zodiac, which are fixed with 
 regard to the equinoxes, and the constellations, which are 
 movable with respect to those points." Of course it is pre- 
 sumed that the most superficial reader understands the ap- 
 parent as distinguished from the real motion of the heavenly 
 bodies in this instance, as it is the annual rotation of the 
 earth round the sun which causes these changes, as the diur- 
 nal revolution on its axis is the cause of day and night. 
 
 156. Familiar Illustration of apparent Motion. In the 
 foregoing astronomical description we have regarded the sun 
 as being apparently in motion round the earth; but the 
 diurnal revolution of the celestial bodies may be equally well 
 explained by supposing these motions to be only optical 
 illusions ; just as a person seated in a railway train in motion, 
 passing another at rest, may be almost convinced that his 
 carriage is stationary while the others are moving. " If we 
 now consider the phenomena with reference to the earth, we 
 
158 
 
 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 shall find that they may all be equally well explained on the 
 hypothesis of the earth's motion, and the immobility of the 
 sun. The most remarkable phenomenon connected with the 
 annual revolution is the variation of the seasons ; and in 
 order to explain their cause it is only necessary to suppose 
 that the earth, in describing its oblique orbit, always pre- 
 serves its axis parallel to the same straight line." * But as 
 mere description may fail to convey a correct idea of this 
 well-ascertained phenomenon, it is necessary to demonstrate 
 the fact by the usual astronomical diagrams. 
 
 157. Astronomical Description and Diagram of the Seasons. 
 "Let A, B, C, D, represent the earth in four different posi- 
 tions of its orbit, n. s. being its axis, and n. and s. being its 
 north and south poles respectively. While the earth goes 
 round the sun in the order of the letters A, B, C, D, its axis 
 n. s. preserves its obliquity, and always continues parallel to 
 
 c 
 
 Fig. 9. 
 
 Diagram illustrating tlie phenomena of the Seasons, 
 
 its first direction. At C, the north pole inclines towards the 
 
 sun, and brings all the northern places more into light than 
 
 * Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE LAND. 
 
 159 
 
 at any other season of the year. But when the earth is at 
 A, the opposite point of the orbit, the north pole declines 
 from the sun, and a less portion of the north hemisphere 
 enjoys the blessings of his light and heat. At B and D 
 the axis is perpendicular to the plane of the orbit, so that 
 
 Fig. 10. 
 Diagram illustrating the phenomena of the Seasons, 
 
 the poles are situated in the boundaries of the illuminated 
 hemisphere, and the sun, being directly over the equator, 
 makes the days and nights equal at all places. These pheno- 
 mena are illustrated in the second diagram (Fig. 10), which 
 represents the situation of the north pole, with regard to 
 the limits of illumination, in eight different positions of the 
 orbit. In this figure, IE, is the terrestrial equator, T the 
 tropic of Cancer, the dotted circle the parallel of London, U 
 
160 OKIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the arctic or north polar circle, and above this is the north 
 pole, where all the meridians or hour-circles meet. The 
 spectator is supposed to be placed at the pole of the ecliptic. 
 "When the earth is at the beginning of Libra about the 20th 
 March, the sun, as seen from the earth, appears at the begin- 
 ning of Aries in the opposite part of the heavens, the north 
 pole is just coming into light, and the sun is vertical to the 
 equator, which, with all its parallels, is divided into two 
 equal parts by the circle which forms the boundary between 
 the dark and illuminated hemispheres, and therefore the days 
 and nights are equal all over the earth. As the earth moves 
 in the ecliptic according to the order of the letters A, B, C, 
 D, &c., the north pole comes more and more into the light, 
 and the days increase in length at all places north of the 
 equator ^E. When the earth comes to the position between 
 E and C, or the beginning of Capricorn, the sun, as seen from 
 the earth, appears at the beginning of Cancer about the 21st 
 of June ; and the north pole of the earth inclines towards the 
 sun, so as to bring into light all the north frigid zone, and 
 more of each of the northern parallels of latitude in propor- 
 tion as they are farther from the equator. As the earth ad- 
 vances from Capricorn towards Aries, and the sun appears to 
 move from Cancer towards Libra, the north pole recedes from 
 the light, which causes the days to decrease and the nights 
 to increase in length, till the earth comes to the beginning of 
 Aries, and then they are equal as before the boundary of light 
 and darkness cutting the equator and all its parallels equally. 
 The north pole then goes into the dark, and does not emerge 
 till the earth has completed a semi-revolution of its orbit, or 
 from the 23d of September till the 20th of March. All these 
 phenomena will be readily understood from the bare inspection 
 of the diagram ; and it will be perceived that what has been 
 said of the northern hemisphere is equally true of the southern 
 in a contrary sense that is, at opposite seasons of the year." 
 158. Diminution of Obliquity ignored by writers on the 
 Seasons. With these and similar diagrams and descriptions, 
 the phenomenon attending the remarkable displacement of the 
 
THE LAND. 161 
 
 equatorial plane from the orbit of the earth is dismissed "by 
 astronomers as fully explaining, in their estimation, the origin 
 of the seasons. True, it is so, and they demonstrate clearly 
 the immediate cause of the phenomenon, but almost ignore 
 the important fact that this obliquity is diminishing, the 
 investigation of which might lead to conclusions of still 
 greater importance. A popular writer on the seasons, in 
 treating of this subject, does not even consider the diminu- 
 tion as deserving of notice : " We may further remark, 
 that the earth's axis, though it changes its situation in 
 space, changes its direction very little ; so little and so 
 slowly, indeed, that it has no traceable effect on the seasons, 
 and ..therefore we may pass it by as too nice for our pur- 
 pose." * Probably so, as far as one year's revolution of the 
 earth round the sun is concerned; "and we may say that 
 the earth performs its three hundred and sixty-five and a 
 quarter rotations with its axis in the same position, and its 
 plane of motion always the same ; and this is the first and 
 simplest branch of those motions of the earth which we must 
 well understand, taken singly, before we can be prepared for 
 understanding their joint effect." But may not that infinites- 
 imal diminution in a year mount up, even in the course of a 
 generation, or several generations, so as to have an observable 
 effect upon the normal condition of each season, irrespective 
 of the vast epochs of time considered in the previous sections 
 of this work 1 
 
 159. Popular Remarks concerning Changes of the Seasons. 
 It is a common remark among the inhabitants of the 
 British Isles who are in positions to notice our proverbially 
 changeable climate, that the seasons are not the same as they 
 used to be, according to old meteorological registers ; and even 
 old people notice that the summers are colder and the winters 
 not so severe as they remember them in their young days. 
 These changes are accounted for by some meteorologists from 
 the cultivation of the land, its drainage, the clearing away of 
 forests, and other artificial causes ; while some almanac manu- 
 * Kobert Mudie ' Spring.' 
 L 
 
162 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 facturers endeavour to show that the seasons change in cycles 
 of fifty or sixty years, on which they ground their prognos- 
 tications for the ensuing year. Without attaching greater 
 weight to these opinions than all crude observations deserve, 
 they indicate that there is some influence at work which 
 alters the complexion and regularity of the seasons in the 
 lapse of a generation, though the change is not noticeable in 
 the year. May not these changes be attributable to the con- 
 traction of the torrid zone, caused by the decrease in the 
 angle of the earth's orbit and the equatorial plane ? At all 
 events, the question is worth being investigated in this view, 
 instead of " passing it by as too nice for our purpose." 
 
 160. Hypothesis of Obliquity of the Ecliptic not conclusive. 
 In like manner, astronomers furnish no conclusive explan- 
 ation of the origin of the obliquity of the ecliptic, and rest 
 satisfied with the hypothesis that it arises from the pertur- 
 bations of certain planets. They say, " Theory has shoAvn 
 that the cause of the displacement is the action of the planets, 
 particularly of Jupiter and Venus, on the earth, by virtue of 
 which the plane of the earth's orbit is drawn nearer to the 
 planes of the orbits of these two planets." Upon the same 
 grounds might it not be as logically advanced, that the ob- 
 liquity of the ecliptic in Venus, which is more than double 
 that of the earth, is caused by the influence of our planet's 
 orbit upon hers? The astronomers further say: "This, 
 however, though by far the most considerable, is not the sole 
 cause of the phenomenon ; for theory also shows that a slight 
 motion of the plane of the equator is produced by the attrac- 
 tion of the sun and moon, but so very minute that its effects 
 will only become appreciable after a long series of ages." 
 Granted that the sun and moon exercise a certain influence 
 over the earth in producing the precession of the equinoxes, 
 it does not follow that they affect this phenomenon of obli- 
 quity; while the earth itself is ignored as having direct share 
 in creating and controlling this wonderful source of profit 
 and pleasure to her industrious children dwelling within the 
 latitudes influenced by the four seasons. 
 
TUB LAND. 163 
 
 161. Tliis Astronomical Problem open to Solution Inj Geo- 
 1"'J'J' Let us even suppose that this obliquity was caused by 
 the overwhelming attraction of the sun upon the north hemi- 
 sjiln-.iv,, when that moiety of tins earth presented its Hiirf;tre 
 towards the parent centre of its gravitation during some early 
 ej.or.h of it,s convulsions, and at that part of its orbit marking 
 its i>resent summer solstice in Europe, and there would bo 
 more substantial grounds for the astronomical hypothesis than 
 tin-, i > lanetary theory suggested. But the fact of the earth inain- 
 taining its oblique position when that hemisphere is at the 
 winter solstice, or pointing away from the sun, distinctly 
 illustrates the fact that solar attraction, however powerful 
 in ruling the annual rotation of our planet, has little or no 
 influence over the obliquity of its axis. And consequently, 
 although the heat and light of the sun which fall upon the 
 earth are the great source of organic phenomena produced by 
 the four seasons, yet as to the origin of the seasons them- 
 selves, even astronomers do not attribute any influence to its 
 gravitation. Neither do they attribute to any lunar attrac- 
 t ion the cause of this phenomenon, although it is proved that 
 the moon exercises great influence over the sea in producing 
 the tides. If, then, the sun and moon have had no power in 
 drawing the earth from its primary uniform equatorial plane 
 arid orbit, where shall we look for those perturbations which 
 have produced and now control this wondrous phenomenon ? 
 It is advanced by astronomers, as we have seen, that the 
 planets Venus and Jupiter have aided in altering the piano 
 of the earth's orbit; but even in their hands the arguments 
 are not conclusive. In the absence, therefore, of any incon- 
 trovertible astronomical data or calculations to prove the 
 cause of this vital feature in the structure and functions of 
 our planet, it is with the more confidence that we propound 
 the geological theory, that the basis of the phenomena 
 which we see manifested in the seasons emanated from the 
 earth itself, irrespective of its position as a member of the 
 planetary sphere. Like an independent state among the 
 community of nations, possessing a constitution of its own, 
 
164 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 yet consistent with the general balance of power, the earth 
 holds the power of regulating her own sessional movements, 
 though in her diurnal and annual rotation she is regulated by 
 the universal law of gravitation the sun being, as it were, 
 the central power to which she is subservient. 
 
 162. The Question of Displacement considered Astronomi- 
 cally. It must be observed once more that astronomers, in 
 their researches respecting the diminution of the obliquity of 
 the ecliptic, at first were uncertain whether the phenomenon 
 is occasioned by the displacement of the plane of the ecliptic 
 or that of the equator. By comparing modern with ancient 
 observations they have come to the conclusion that the former 
 is the cause, based on the following grounds: "It is evident 
 that, if the inclination of these two planes becomes less, the 
 stars which are situated between them, particularly those 
 situated near the solstitial colure (i.e., the cardinal points of 
 summer and winter), will appear to approach to that plane 
 which changes its position ; so that if the ecliptic is displaced, 
 the latitudes of those stars will be diminished or their de- 
 clinations, if the displacement belongs to the equator. It 
 was first observed by Tycho, and the observation has been 
 confirmed by succeeding astronomers, that the latitudes of 
 the southern stars situated near the solstitial colure that is, 
 of those stars whose longitudes are nearly 90 have dimin- 
 ished upwards of 20' since the time of Hipparchus and 
 Ptolemy ; while the latitudes of the northern stars have 
 undergone a corresponding augmentation. From this fact it 
 is proved that the diminution of the obliquity is occasioned 
 by the displacement of the ecliptic." * 
 
 163. Geological Inferences may be in Harmony with Astro- 
 nomical Trutlis. At first sight this demonstration of the 
 cause that produces the diminution of the obliquity would 
 appear to stultify the arguments set forth in the preceding 
 sections in support of our theory, which inclines to the con- 
 trary inference, that it was produced at first " by the displace- 
 ment of the equatorial plane from that of the ecliptic. We 
 
 * Art. "Astronomy," ( Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE LAND. 165 
 
 have endeavoured to show that in all probability the earth 
 was driven from its normal equilibrium by internal forces, 
 producing what should properly be called an obliquity of the 
 axis instead of the planes. Having advanced this hypothesis 
 with regard to the expansion of the angle of displacement, it 
 does not follow that the principle would control the decrease 
 of that angle. On the contrary, the affinity arising between 
 the earth's orbit and its equatorial plane of revolution is 
 another proof that these two planes were once in accord, and 
 that they will again return to their original condition by 
 virtue of the law of order that pervades the universe. Al- 
 though it has been advanced that the counteracting forces in 
 the south hemisphere, which arrested the maximum increase 
 of the equatorial displacement caused by those previously 
 acting within the northern half of the earth, were the im- 
 mediate cause of diminution, it is not intended to prove that 
 these subsequent influences were of equal power with the 
 primary forces. Hence it may be inferred that the earth, 
 having reached its greatest angle of obliquity by its internal 
 agencies, has been aided by external influences in bringing the 
 two planes, so separated, again into harmony with one another. 
 164. A Practical Solution of this Question a Matter of 
 Public Importance. Having so far demonstrated the apparent 
 cause of this diminution, astronomers have rested in their 
 calculations and observations at that point, leaving the great 
 problem of obliquity, in our opinion, unsolved. With all due 
 deference to their views and transmundane researches, they 
 have not exhausted this field of inquiry, or brought their 
 profundity of knowledge to bear upon the root of the ques- 
 tion. In that sense its investigation should be continued by 
 the aid of geologists and meteorologists, as appertaining more 
 appropriately to the subjects of their study, in connection 
 with the phenomena of the .four seasons a subject in which 
 every one takes an interest, from the highest personage in the 
 realm to the humblest labourer in the fields. The further 
 prosecution of the inquiry becomes a point of practical im- 
 portance to the community at large, as well as of scientific 
 
166 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 investigation for the few who take an interest in its theoretical 
 bearings. It involves the consideration of the weather, which 
 exercises so much influence on the wealth and prosperity of 
 Europe in general, and the British Isles in particular. Here 
 we have a department of the Board of Trade charged speci- 
 ally to issue storm-warnings and forecasts of the weather for 
 the guidance of the mariner, and in some respects the farmer. 
 Hitherto these have been issued upon " a rule of thumb" 
 plan, until at one period they were suspended as being fre- 
 quently incorrect, the persons engaged in concocting them 
 not basing their calculations on scientific data. Now, under 
 the auspices of the Eoyal Society, a better system is in the 
 .course of adoption, and these prognostications may be the 
 means of preventing many maritime disasters, and other- 
 wise be of public utility. It is just possible that a con- 
 sideration of the primary question as to the origin of the 
 seasons and their variation, on the grounds set forth in this 
 new theory, may assist the meteorologists in charge of the 
 weather department of the Board of Trade in arriving at 
 classified results, from the data furnished by their tables and 
 registers, more in accordance with general principles than 
 they are at present. 
 
 165. Popular Division of the Four Seasons in the Al- 
 manacs. Besides the astronomical division of the seasons, 
 which fixes the dates of their quarterly occurrence at the 
 equinoxes and the solstices, every one knows that there is an 
 ordinary division when spring is held to commence on the 
 1st of February, summer on the 1st of May, autumn on 
 the 1st of August, and winter on the 1st of November. In 
 this division the astronomical arrangement is considered as 
 the culminating point of each season such as midsummer, 
 when the longest day happens on the 21st of June; mid- 
 winter, or the shortest day, on or about the 21st December; 
 the vernal equinox about the 20th March ; and the autumnal 
 equinox on the 23d September. It is under this popular 
 arrangement that the four seasons of the European year are 
 best understood by the general reader, each with its sub- 
 
THE LAND. 167 
 
 division into three months, as set forth in the annual al- 
 manacs. With regard to these publications it must be 
 observed that, as they are published in advance of the year 
 indicated, all prognostications of weather must be taken as 
 only approximate, sometimes not within days, at other times 
 weeks, or even a month, of the date fixed regarding the 
 occurrence or setting in of a season. Again, where particular 
 degrees of heat, moisture, rain, &c., are indicated, the prog- 
 nostications may prove correct on the sea-board, but erroneous 
 inland ; and what would apply to the British Isles in these de- 
 tails would not upon the Continent. In Great Britain itself 
 we have an example of the variations of the seasons in different 
 localities, which renders the gardener's calendar for England 
 unsuitable for Scotland ; while the farmers have earlier or 
 later periods of seed-time and harvest, according as their crops 
 are reared in the south or north latitudes of the island. 
 
 166. General Characteristics of the Seasons and Calendar 
 Months. Notwithstanding the variations of the seasons as 
 they occur in comparatively adjacent localities, and their 
 changeableness in respect of each locality in different years, 
 there are general characteristics by which they are recognised 
 as being distinct from each other. For example, spring is 
 mild in temperature, and the season when plants begin to 
 bud; summer is the hot season, when the flowers are in 
 greatest bloom; autumn is a season of balmy airs, when 
 fruits ripen and trees shed their leaves ; and winter is the 
 cold season, when vegetation lies dormant. Experience has 
 shown, however, that there are exceptions in some years to 
 these general characteristics; when a cold summer occurs, with 
 snow in June or July and a mild winter happens, when 
 flowers bloom in the open air at Christmas. Seeing that the 
 natural recurrence of each season, and its prevailing charac- 
 teristics, are not fixed quantities in the order of nature, it is 
 not surprising to find that the artificial division into calendar 
 months fails to register the special phenomena allotted to 
 each by almanac compilers. Yet, even in that division, 
 there are certain characteristics in the economy of nature 
 
168 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 observable throughout a series of years, which are applicable 
 to any one particular month. For instance, January is 
 the severest month of cold and frost,; February the most 
 cheerless month of the year in rain and snow ; March is dry 
 and windy; the fickle month of April is all showers and sun- 
 shine ; the merry month of May is fresh and verdant ; the 
 leafy month of June is fragrant with the scent of flowers 
 during its warm long days; July sets in with fervid heat 
 and sunshine, when hay crops are garnered ; August is the 
 corn-harvest month, with clear cloudless skies ; in September 
 the weather is bracing ; during October the leaves fall from 
 the trees ; November sets in with cold stormy weather ; and 
 December is the gloomiest month of the year. Some en- 
 thusiastic observers of the phenomena of the seasons and 
 months go even further than the monthly subdivisions, and 
 endeavour to show that each month may be divided into 
 three parts, showing the variations between the beginning, 
 middle, and the end. So might the variableness be traced 
 even to each day, as exhibiting some difference from those 
 preceding and following it. But it is not with these details 
 that we have to deal in elucidating our subject ; we shall 
 endeavour to trace some general characteristics which dis- 
 tinguish the four seasons as they occur in Europe, in com- 
 parison with other regions, and these in relation to the 
 extinct tropical and glacial seasons. 
 
 167. The Antiquity of the Study has not exhausted the 
 Subject. Unlike many other subjects of physical inquiry 
 discussed by the ancients, which have been shelved in 
 modern times as their errors have been corrected by the 
 advancement of knowledge, the popular study of the seasons 
 is not more interesting in this nineteenth century than it 
 was before the Christian era throughout the Roman empire. 
 Then, as now, it was the theme of the poet, and the topic of 
 the day amongst the people ; and we recognise in the names 
 of the calendar months the titles of some of the Roman 
 emperors who shed their imperial lustre upon the study 
 during the Augustan age. From that period till now, 
 
THE LAND. 169 
 
 through succeeding ages of religious and political controversy, 
 this topic alone has held its calm but firm hold upon the 
 minds of the people, undisturbed by the conflicts of war or 
 time. Hence it may be said that there is little or nothing 
 new to be written about the four seasons, their phenomena 
 and associations; but we are of opinion that something 
 remains untold regarding their vicissitudes. In treating of 
 this subject there seems to be a foregone conclusion among 
 most writers not excepting learned astronomers that the 
 seasons all at once leapt into existence, and that their origin 
 is coeval with the creation of the world, or at all events with 
 its pristine condition of land above the sea-level. When the 
 farmer looks forward to the coming spring as the time for 
 sowing his grain, to the summer when it will ripen, and to 
 the autumn for his harvest, he considers the succession of 
 these seasons, on which he depends for his subsistence, as 
 things that must and ever will be, and that ever have been. 
 "When the gardener watches the seasons for the culture of 
 his flowers, he calculates on their recurrence with something 
 of a certainty akin to the return of day and night ; and if 
 his experiences have not travelled beyond Europe, he will 
 smile incredulously if told that there are lands where the 
 four seasons, quartering the escutcheon of the year in Europe, 
 are condensed and bisected into a rainy and dry season in 
 one region, or a short warm season and a long cold one in 
 another. Those who live in a variable clime, such as (rreat 
 Britain possesses, where the trimonthly seasons occur with 
 tolerable regularity, and who have no experience of other 
 regions where the divisions are unknown, become confirmed 
 in the idea of their permanence and universality, and sing 
 the praises of each recurring season as the bard of ' The 
 Seasons,' Thomson, has sung, although nature rarely follows 
 the flattering invitation : 
 
 " Come, gentle Spring ! ethereal Mildness ! come, 
 And from the bosom of yon dropping cloud, 
 While Music wakes around, veil'd in a shower 
 Of shadowing roses, on our plains descend." 
 
170 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 168. Poetical Fancies of Happy Lands where Perpetual 
 Summer reigns. Those who have lived in countries where 
 the prolongation of summer on the one hand or winter on 
 the' other almost obliterates spring and autumn, look back 
 with fond recollection to the land enjoying these vicissitudes 
 of the weather to their fullest extent, even though that land 
 has a rigorous or changeable climate. Imaginative poets 
 revel in the glories of an eternal summer, and picture a par- 
 adise where no change of season or cold weather is known, 
 as the happiest land for the human family. They sing 
 of cloudless skies, the cerulean heavens above, the never- 
 fading grove below, the continual hum of insects, and the 
 constant fluttering and warbling of birds, as contributing to 
 the summum bonum of human happiness. How different 
 might be the reality, if we may judge from the sunny clime 
 of Australia, where the bright blue sky has palled upon our 
 senses, and we have longed to see a cloud on the horizon 
 where the evergreen forests soon appear monotonous to the 
 eye, and we welcomed the sight of a deciduous tree ; while 
 the continual hum of insects and the chattering of birds 
 became irksome, and their presence troublesome. Although 
 that great south land is half within the southern temperate 
 zone, yet the quarterly division of the seasons is not ap- 
 parent, and the indigenous vegetation scarcely marks the 
 changes from winter to summer, which specially distinguish 
 the flora of the north temperate zone. Thus it is evident 
 that the seasons, strictly speaking, are confined to a narrow 
 belt of the globe compared with those regions where their 
 distinctive character is obliterated, or blended into one cli- 
 matic range. 
 
 169. The Seasons, their Fauna and Flora the Result of 
 Contracted Energy. This aspect and these phenomena of 
 other climates beyond Europe it is not our purpose to dis- 
 cuss here, though there are points connected therewith that 
 will demand our attention hereafter. What especially re- 
 quires our consideration at present is the question, Whether 
 the seasons have existed from all time or not 1 In reply it 
 
THE LAND. 17 lr 
 
 may be said that there is abundant geological ' evidence to 
 decide in the negative ; and that they had a beginning in 
 the history of our planet, with a gradual development 
 throughout an immense course of time, like those other 
 great changes in its physical condition which have been 
 referred to. It must be observed, however, that in their 
 progress from a primary state to their present condition, there 
 has been a gradual breaking up of the tropical divisions of 
 climate in Europe from which they originated. In the origin 
 and development of extinct organic life we see an ascent in 
 the scale of creation from the simplest forms of plants and 
 animals to the more perfect in structure ; and geology fur- 
 nishes proofs that the inorganic solid matter of the earth 
 progressed from a crude or plastic condition to a consoli- 
 dated and crystalline state. Nature proceeded step by step 
 in her march up the hill of developments during the pre- 
 paratory epochs of the world's history, before she inaug- 
 urated the laws which now rule our terrestrial planet. And 
 of these, the laws that control the seasons and arranged 
 them originally into four divisions, it is evident, sprang from 
 an advanced state of creation, and are the result of a pre- 
 vious condition of progressive development. It is abun- 
 dantly evident from the vegetation and animated nature 
 peculiar to the temperate regions where the seasons prevail, 
 that these have not resulted from an expansion of nature's 
 powers. On the contrary, everything connected therewith 
 leads us to conclude that the seasons and their special fauna 
 and flora were the result of a contraction, as it were, of a pre- 
 vious state of things ; and also, that they could not exist as 
 we see them now without having risen from an elementary 
 condition, more rudimentary, more colossal, more prolific and 
 intensely generative, than what now obtains in those countries 
 where spring, summer, autumn, and winter are each in its 
 turn a check upon the other in developing their species, as 
 compared with the universal prolificness throughout the year 
 in the tropical regions. In the growth of vegetation in 
 Europe, for example, it is at times a struggle for existence, 
 
172 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 even when aided by the efforts of man ; in spring the bud is 
 frequently nipped by the lingering frosts of winter, and in 
 summer the blossom suddenly decays when a premature 
 autumn comes on. How different in the tropics, where heat 
 and moisture intensify the generative powers of plants, so 
 that the efforts of man to keep vegetation within bounds are 
 frequently abortive ! 
 
 170. Natural History of this Epoch the most Perfect in 
 Structure. It would appear from these indications that the 
 seasons and their natural history are the children of our 
 common mother earth, begotten at an advanced period of 
 her existence. So to speak, the comparatively humble weeds 
 of the European thicket, the deciduous trees of the forest, 
 the common animals that tread the greensward, and the 
 modest birds that nutter through the grove, are all the 
 children of her old age ; while the progenitors of the bril- 
 liant and colossal creatures that inhabit the Indian jungle 
 or the tropical waters are among the first-born. Before the 
 modest elegantly-formed creatures of Europe were brought 
 into being, she bore other fruits of her generative power, 
 more gigantic, but less perfect in form and instinct : the 
 early created plants and animals on the habitable globe were 
 giants in physical aspect, rude in their structure, and low in 
 their mental calibre. These perished, and out of their re- 
 mains rose the lesser forms of organised life, which we now 
 behold in Europe, augmented in brain and instinct, more 
 peaceful in disposition, and more perfect in form and struc- 
 ture. 
 
 171. The Seasons evidently of comparatively Recent 
 Geological Origin. In tracing the progress of the torrid 
 zone through its assumed expansion to the latitudes of 45 
 or 60 on each side of the equator, it was remarked, that 
 although the latitudes of Europe must have passed through 
 a temperate period such as now prevails, there is no evidence 
 of a temperate fauna and flora having existed anterior to its 
 tropical era. This is accounted for by the seasons recurring 
 at an epoch while the earth was a barren region of rocks and 
 
THE LAND. 173 
 
 water, when vegetable or animal life had not yet appeared. 
 Had this condition of things continued throughout succes- 
 sive ages up to the present time, it is not unscientific to 
 conclude, that in all probability Europe would still have 
 presented a barren aspect, sparsely covered with vegetation 
 of a low order in its northern and middle latitudes, increas- 
 ing in abundance on the confines of the tropics, and tenanted 
 by such birds, beasts, and insects as became acclimatised to 
 the colder regions north of the torrid zone, where they first 
 had their existence. Heat, it is well known, is the great 
 supporter and generator of animal and vegetable life, and 
 it is chiefly derived from the sun. We find, therefore, that 
 where the sun's rays are most intense and constant, there 
 nature is most prolific in her productions. Consequently we 
 naturally arrive at the conclusion, that the primary seats of 
 organic creation must have been the hottest ; and, as they 
 spread towards cooler latitudes, subsidiary centres of organisa- 
 tion were formed under different physical conditions. Hence 
 it required an intensely tropical climate to generate the 
 primary progenitors of the indigenous flora and fauna of 
 Europe, and these have risen, phcenix-like, from the ashes of 
 an extinct tropical era ; they are vegetable and animal king- 
 doms built out of the ruins of a primary organic empire, 
 without which they never would have existed, or would have 
 presented inferiority in structure. Viewed in this light, the 
 seasons are of comparatively recent origin, and are among the 
 latest efforts of nature to diversify the surface of the earth, 
 and vary the atmospheric changes of the year. 
 
CHAPTEE IX. 
 
 EPOCH OF THE SEASONS. Continued. 
 
 The ancient dogmas of stability superseded by the modern laws of change, 
 172. This epoch rose by necessity out of the transition periods, 173. 
 Animals decreased in size but increased in species during this epoch, 
 174. Destructive animals decreased and harmless animals increased in 
 species, 175. Eemarkable changes in the vegetable kingdom, 176. 
 Trees and shrubs changed their foliage from perennial to annual, 177. 
 Changes of the seasons best known from the flora of a country, 178. 
 The four seasons typical of the vast periods of geological time, 179. 
 Nature repeats itself in existing changes of extinct vitality, 180. Migra- 
 tion of birds a vestige of the glacial period, 181. Probability of the 
 seasons having passed their climax, 182. Difficulty of prognosticating 
 the changes of the weather, 183. The Duke of Buccleuch on the advan- 
 tages of storm-signals, 184. 
 
 172. Tlie Ancient Dogmas of Stability superseded by the 
 Modern Laws of Change. In ancient times it was a favourite 
 dogma with the philosophers of Greece and Rome to uphold 
 the stability of things in the physical world as evidence of 
 the fundamental laws that rule the movements of the visible 
 universe. The earth was placed immovably in the centre of 
 all the systems, around which the crystal spheres of the 
 several descriptions of heavenly bodies revolved, yet these 
 sun, moon, planets, and stars were fixed in their transpar- 
 ent media, unalterable and eternal. Taking example from 
 the supposed stability of the material order of things, the 
 civilised nations of antiquity sought to establish laws in 
 the moral world as permanent as those which seemed to 
 prevail in the physical. Hence we read of the laws of the 
 
THE LAND. 17 
 
 Medes and Persians, which were considered unchangeable, 
 and the appellation of the "eternal city" to the city of the 
 Caesars. Time has exploded these dogmas of stability ; and 
 in modern days the doctrine of change is the rule in both 
 physical and moral philosophy. On the one hand, we see 
 nations and governments altering their laws and improving 
 their institutions progressively, so that, in the course of a few 
 generations, the whole fabric of society is changed old laws 
 become obsolete, and a new order of things rules, according 
 to the exigencies of the day. On the other hand, almost 
 every year brings forth some new discovery in astronomy and 
 geology, representing hitherto unknown changes in the con- 
 dition and movements of the earth and heavenly bodies, 
 from which principles are deduced proving that there is no 
 stability in the universe, and that throughout past time there 
 has been a continuous change in all things. In accordance 
 with these principles we have referred to the inclination of 
 the earth's axis, its extension and diminution, as an illustra- 
 tion of this instability of things. Hence, in reviewing the 
 seasons and the monthly subdivisions of the year, there is 
 one grand deduction to be made from the varied phenomena 
 they present like an endless panorama before us, and that is, 
 CHANGE. At whatever period of the year, or in whatever 
 region of their influence, we behold their effects upon the 
 physical world, on animate or inanimate objects ; there is a 
 constant change going on of renovation and decay, which 
 alone marks any general principle in the laws that regulate 
 their succession. All is evanescent in the never-ending 
 scene, from the summer cloud that flits athwart the azure 
 sky, to the snowy mantle that covers the ground in winter 
 from the tiny snowdrop that struggles into existence in 
 spring, to the giant oak shedding its leaves in autumn. 
 Everywhere and at all times the flag of the seasons is before 
 us, inscribed with the everlasting insignia, " Change ; " and 
 the summer breeze and winter storm are continually ringing 
 in our ears, " Change ! change ! eternal change ! " 
 
 173. Tliis Epoch rose by necessity out of the Transition 
 
176 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Periods. From this we derive the theory that the seasons 
 originated during a transition period, when nature was 
 more active than usual in renovating the decay of a prior 
 epoch, which reduced the species of the vegetable and animal 
 kingdoms of the north temperate regions to their lowest 
 numbers. There is abundant geological evidence to show 
 that the glacial period not only extirpated the flora and 
 fauna of the tropical era in Europe, but its frigid winters 
 reduced the genera and species to an arctic minimum capable 
 of resisting the inclemency of that season at its northern con- 
 fines. Hence, when the gigantic animals and plants disap- 
 peared, they were succeeded by species diminutive compared 
 to their progenitors. These, however, were not altogether 
 new forms of creation. They appear to have been simply 
 the primary forms modified in their organs and functions, as 
 they became acclimatised to the altered temperature of the 
 atmosphere and water just as we find dwarf specimens of 
 a tree or shrub at high altitudes subject to a frigid zone, as 
 compared with larger examples in warmer localities near the 
 base of a mountain or in the valleys below. Besides this 
 diminution of form, it is observable, also, that the new gen- 
 erations of plants and animals possessed higher organisms, 
 having more perfect organs and functions as we find exem- 
 plified in the common violet compared to the baobab-tree, 
 or the mouse as contrasted with the rhinoceros. But it is 
 evident, from the gradual development of everything on this 
 planet even to its own framework, that these higher organ- 
 isms would not have existed but for the cruder forms which 
 had gone before. To use a homely illustration : when we 
 look at the small delicately -finished works of a Geneva watch, 
 we do not see in that machine the earliest form of a time- 
 keeper ; we must go back to the days when the first clock 
 was invented a great clumsy machine of wood and brass, 
 standing in relation to the modern watch as an extinct 
 megatherium does to a living mouse. Thus as in art so in 
 nature. The small watch would never have existed but for 
 the big clock ; and but for the giants of the tropical era in 
 
THE LAND. 177 
 
 Europe, the existing small indigenous animals and plants 
 would not have the perfect structure they represent. 
 
 174. Animals Diminished in Size but Increased in Species 
 during this Epoch. As the frigid half of the glacial year 
 changed in the course of time from the diminution of the 
 extended torrid zone, it gradually mingled with the warm 
 moiety, producing an incipient spring on the one hand, and 
 a rudimentary autumn on the other. At first these embryo 
 seasons were probably of not more than a month's duration ; 
 then they extended to two months, until at last they reached 
 their equable division of the year into quarters, as at present. 
 In progressing towards this altered condition of the tempera- 
 ture, and the proportions of the solar heat and light that fell 
 upon the earth, there was an increase in the genera and 
 species of the vegetable and animal kingdoms, with an aug- 
 mentation in the bulk of the arborescent plants and some of 
 the animals. It would appear that the forms sufficient for 
 the alternations of two great seasons of heat and cold were of 
 a simpler character than their successors, when the alterna- 
 tions were more complex, and that nature provided a higher 
 compound organic structure to meet the vicissitudes of the 
 four seasons. On the other hand, the seasons themselves 
 developed functions which altered the nature of these pri- 
 mary organisms, so that new species and genera arose out of 
 the hardiest of their progenitors that survived the rigours of 
 the glacial period. Hence we find fossil remains in the sub- 
 sequent fresh-water formation, and terrestrial deposits in peat- 
 bogs, of vertebrate animals, mostly such as now live or have 
 become extinct during the historical period. Of these, the 
 most characteristic fossils are the bones of the Irish elk 
 (Megaceros Hibernicus), a gigantic member of the deer tribe, 
 which was abundant in the British Isles during prehistoric 
 periods; while a congener (Cervus alces) is described by Csesar 
 and Pausanias as existing on the continent in their time ; but 
 both animals are now extinct. These, no doubt, were the 
 prototypes from which the numerous elegant species of the 
 extensive genus of existing deer have sprung; all of which, 
 
 M 
 
178 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 be it observed, are smaller in proportion ; while a congener 
 the royal antelope is the smallest animal of the kind in 
 existence, its feet and legs being as slender as a common 
 pencil ; while those of the extinct elk were as large as those 
 of a race-horse. 
 
 175. Destructive Animals Decrease in Species and Harm- 
 less Animals Increase. From the absence at the present day 
 of any gigantic animals indigenous to Europe, it would ap- 
 pear that the general effect of the epoch of the seasons has 
 been to diminish in size those forms that survived the glacial 
 period in temperate regions. It is also observable that where 
 the species have increased abundantly they are chiefly of a 
 herbivorous or harmless nature ; while carnivora or ferocious 
 animals have decreased both in dimensions and species. This 
 is most remarkable among the family of reptiles, especially 
 the frog tribe, these harmless inhabitants of our ponds, no 
 bigger than a wine-glass, being the representatives of an ex- 
 tinct progenitor the labyrinthodon having a body larger 
 than a hogshead, with capacious jaws fringed with teeth. 
 In like manner the diminutive lizard, found mostly in the 
 southern latitudes of Europe, is the only living representative 
 of the most wonderful and stupendous forms of the animal 
 creation that ever existed such as the iguanodon, plesiosau- 
 rus, ichthyosaurus, megalosaurus, besides numerous species 
 of crocodiles and alligators. Thus the advent of the epoch 
 that ushered in the seasons was a period when the destructive 
 powers of the animal creation were succeeded by species of a 
 preservative character, not only harmless in their nature to- 
 wards man, but providing him with sustenance the most 
 suitable to his omnivorous appetite. The sheep and the ox 
 are peculiarly illustrative of this epoch; and hence, under 
 the hands of man, they have become the most prolific of all 
 animals. It is an open question whether man was in exist- 
 ence during the tropical era in Europe ; and if so, how the 
 animal and vegetable food obtainable would have preserved 
 human life, or at all events sufficed to support man as a sen- 
 tient being, if he escaped the ravages of the carnivorous and 
 
THE LAND. 179 
 
 poisonous monsters that were then the " lords of creation." 
 It is evident that the world was scarcely fitted for man's 
 habitation during that period ; or if he existed elsewhere 
 than in European latitudes, he was of the very lowest type 
 of humanity, as we now find him in regions where the quad- 
 rumana dispute the lordship of the forest with the rude 
 aborigines. Moreover, like an era of peace succeeding one 
 of war in human annals, the epoch of the seasons was a 
 period of animal repose, built upon the ruins of colossal 
 organic energy of the most destructive character. 
 
 176. Remarkable Changes in the Vegetable Kingdom. 
 In the vegetable kingdom we also observe a distinct change 
 in the structure of plants, with new functions not exercised, 
 as far as we know, by the vegetation of preceding epochs. 
 The most generally striking feature exhibited in this wide 
 domain of observation is that of deciduous vegetation, or the 
 annual fall of the leaf in autumn. Common as this pheno- 
 menon appears to the denizens of Europe and North America, 
 yet it is the most remarkable characteristic, of trees especially, 
 that distinguishes the flora of the north temperate zone from 
 that of its southern contemporary, and the great mass of 
 vegetation within the tropical zone. If an intelligent in- 
 dividual, born and brought up in these regions, where the 
 vegetation is perennial or evergreen, and who had never seen 
 a deciduous tree or bush growing, were brought to Europe, 
 and witnessed the fall of the leaves in our forests during the 
 month of October, it would be to him the most wonderful 
 thing in nature. And if he saw our forests stripped bare of 
 their foliage in winter, without being told of their renewal 
 in spring, it would appear to his imagination as if the vital- 
 ity of nature were dying for ever, and the end of the world at 
 hand. 
 
 177. Trees and Shrubs change their Foliage from Peren- 
 nial to Annual. Now this remarkable feature of European 
 vegetation has not always characterised its arborescent plants. 
 In comparing the fossil flora of our coal-measures with the 
 living flora of Australia, where, as we shall presently see, the 
 
180 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 trees and shrubs are all evergreen, it is found that there is a 
 remarkable analogy between them ; therefore it follows that 
 the vegetation of Europe, at the period of the carboniferous 
 formation, was not deciduous. During the tropical era the 
 succulent gigantic vegetation was of a similar perennial char- 
 acter to what now exists within the tropics, so there was no 
 regular fall of the leaf during that epoch. And as the glacial 
 period destroyed all the gigantic species of animals, or reduced 
 their organisms to a comparatively diminutive size, so did its 
 rigorous climate in winter extirpate the palms and cycads ; 
 while the tree-ferns and stigmarias of giant proportions are 
 now only represented by the humble fern-brake and club- 
 moss. These hardy cryptogamous plants survived the glacial 
 period, though immensely reduced in proportion from their 
 progenitors ; but we have no geological data as to the proto- 
 types of the flowering-plants which bedeck the native wilds 
 of Europe. As already observed, the structure of some 
 species, such as the violet, is the most perfect known to 
 botanists, inasmuch as it possesses all the parts of a plant, 
 according to scientific classification, which comparatively few 
 plants possess, while numbers of species, especially tropical 
 plants, are more or less defective in their organs. In the 
 absence of data from fossil flora, we can only refer to existing 
 tropical flowers, which are of proportions gigantic and rude in 
 structure as the animals inhabiting these regions, and which 
 are representative of those seen in fossil zoology. Under 
 circumstances similar to those which, we have seen, tended to 
 reduce the forms of species during the glacial period, we may 
 suppose that the new generations of trees, shrubs, and flowers, 
 which inaugurated the epoch of the seasons, were the remains 
 of the primeval vegetation that escaped extirpation, and con- 
 tinued to " multiply and replenish the earth " during spring, 
 summer, and autumn of each revolving year, until it reached 
 the perfection it now wears. 
 
 178. Changes of the Seasons best known from the Flora 
 of a Country. It is here in the garb of flora that the seasons 
 are best known to us in their popular division. "We may 
 
THE LAND. 181 
 
 mark the meteorological changes of the year as conveying 
 tangible distinctions between one season and another, and 
 the ornithologist may tell us of the migration of birds as 
 indicating the seasons; but it is the wonderful changes 
 that occur in vegetation the budding, flowering, fruiting, 
 and falling of foliage that to the denizens of Europe sig- 
 nalise the recurrence of spring, summer, autumn, and winter. 
 The minute chronicler of the seasons is the gardener, who 
 not only registers in his calendar the quarterly appearance or 
 disappearance of every bud, flower, or leaf, but each month 
 has its special horticultural phenomena. Even the bleak 
 winter season is not excluded from his almanac, and he 
 completes the annual report on vegetation by directing the 
 
 culture of 
 
 Spring flowers, and winter bowers ; 
 Autumn fruits, and winter roots. 
 
 179. TJie Four Seasons Typical of the Vast Periods of 
 Geological Time. To descant upon the changes which the 
 indigenous flora of Europe undergoes during the year would 
 be foreign to the purpose of this work, as it is presumed the 
 reader is sufficiently acquainted with its general character to 
 understand any inferences that might be drawn in support of 
 the theory herein advanced. In looking at these changes 
 from an abstract point of view, with reference to their origin, 
 it is not too much to say that, in their annual succession 
 from a point of wintry lifelessness, through a spring-time of 
 floral birth, maturing in the bloom of summer, to an autum- 
 nal decay we witness changes that are typical of the great 
 geological epochs from whence they have sprung. Thus we 
 may consider the period of the carboniferous formation as the 
 spring epoch of the earth's sempiternal year, which arose out 
 of a primary era of barrenness equivalent to the desolation of 
 winter ; while the tropical epoch in Europe was the summer 
 of its leviathan seasons, which has been succeeded by a 
 pliocene epoch as its autumn, and by a glacial period usher- 
 ing in an epoch that may be considered the winter of these 
 vast divisions of time, compared with which the diurnal and 
 
182 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 annual revolutions that mark the seasons are but infinitesi- 
 mal proportions ; and, on the other hand, " each day is as a 
 thousand years " of the vast periods of geological time. 
 
 180. Nature Repeats itself in Living Changes of Extinct 
 Vitality. Viewing the recurrence of the seasons in this light, 
 we see the past history of our planet through an annual 
 microcosm that presents the ever-changing nature of its con- 
 stituent parts in their renovation and decay. It must be 
 observed, however, that in the organic changes of the seasons 
 there is an important difference between them and the 
 changes that occurred during the geological epochs. In 
 what now takes place there are germs in the vegetable and 
 animal kingdoms that continue the powers of fructification, 
 which produce species and varieties similar in organs and 
 functions to those of their progenitors. But in the geological 
 periods of time the first plants and zoophytes arose out of the 
 generative slime apparently spontaneously ; and when higher 
 organisms were propagated subsequently, they continued 
 fertile through countless generations until their species be- 
 came extinct ; while they were followed by new forms speci- 
 fically, and in some instances generically, distinct. Notwith- 
 standing this difference between geological periods and annual 
 seasons, there is a distant analogy which indicates the same 
 vital principle at work in producing those changes. As we 
 find varieties in the flowers produced from the same species, 
 from some casual change in the climate or soil during the 
 year, so may we multiply such changes by myriads of years, 
 and then arrive at a specific distinction in the original plant. 
 Time given, it is quite as easy to understand how one species 
 became extinct and another species was brought into exist- 
 ence, as it is to find a dwarf specimen of a plant, weak and 
 dying, where formerly vigorous and healthy specimens grew ; 
 or vice versa, where a sickly decaying shrub one year, from 
 some physical causes, renews its vitality and becomes the 
 strongest tenant of the grove. As it has been said of history 
 in repeating analogous events, so nature repeats itself in all 
 vital changes, however small or great the field of operation. 
 
THE LAND. 183 
 
 181. Migration of Birds a Vestige of the Glacial Period. 
 In like manner, whatever changes may have been effected 
 in the functions or instincts of the animal creation through 
 these vast periods of time, there still exist among living crea- 
 tures vestiges of primary functions which they exercise dur- 
 ing the course of years. For instance, the migration of 
 certain species of "birds at regular seasons we take to be of 
 this character, as the result of the glacial period. If, as we 
 contend, there were longer periods of extreme cold and heat 
 than at present, the animal creation descended from the 
 tropical era would naturally leave their native latitudes 
 during the rigorous season for more genial climes, and return 
 during the hot season by reason of their instinct to the place 
 of their birth. Where quadrupeds could migrate in this 
 manner they have done so; but, as we have already ob- 
 served, especially with regard to the British Isles, their 
 progress southward would be cut off by water, and they were 
 forced to remain through the cold season and become accli- 
 matised or perish in the attempt. Not so with birds : 
 possessed of greater powers of locomotion through the at- 
 mosphere, unobstructed in their progress by sea or land, 
 rivers, lakes, or mountains, they easily flew away from the 
 cold season that destroyed their insect food to warmer 
 regions where that was abundant at all seasons. Then, on 
 the approach of the hot season, they would return to their 
 native clime at the period of incubation. In all probability, 
 ornithological migration was then upon a much greater scale 
 than we find it at the present day. On the one hand, many 
 species of birds wintered in Europe, as the season was broken 
 up by the autumn, rendering it less severe ; and, on the other, 
 species of a more tropical nature were deterred from return- 
 ing during the early period of the hot season when it was 
 divided by spring which even now is too cold for the 
 swallow, the harbinger of summer, who makes but a brief 
 stay in northern latitudes, and would be the first to disap- 
 pear altogether if they became colder, or remain longer if the 
 spring and autumn became warmer. 
 
184 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 182. Probability of the Seasons having passed their Climax. 
 Assuming that the diminution of the tropical zone, from a 
 greatly extended belt to its present limit, indicates the com- 
 mencement of the epoch of the seasons at the close of the 
 glacial period in Europe, it becomes an interesting part of 
 this inquiry concerning their present condition, whether they 
 are before or after the culminating point an equal division of 
 the year into four parts. This is a very delicate and difficult 
 problem to solve, but we are inclined to conclude they are on 
 the decline towards a period when they will more and more 
 blend into each other so as to be less distinctly defined. The 
 tendency of this diminution is to equalise the temperature 
 throughout the year, having a lower standard during the 
 summer, with an extension of the winter season into spring, 
 though the thermometer may not reach so low a degree as 
 formerly. On this point there is much room for investiga- 
 tion, which might throw new light upon the alterations of 
 the seasons observed within the historic period. The calcu- 
 lations and prognostications of their attendant phenomena 
 in calendars, almanacs, and other works registering the 
 weather, culture of plants, migration of birds, and the like 
 are based on the assumption that the four seasons are coeval 
 with the creation of the world. Now, on every hand we 
 may see that there is no phenomenon connected with the 
 transcendent march of time upon the earth that is so evan- 
 escent and ever-changing. The very fact of their incessant 
 changeability is a proof of their recent existence in geological 
 time, and having had a beginning, they will have an end; 
 while there is every probability of their having passed the 
 culminating point, and that we are now witnessing their 
 downward march toward a consummation when, as four dis- 
 tinct periods of the year, they will cease to be. It is there- 
 fore important that those whose duties are connected with 
 the registration and prognostication of the weather for pur- 
 poses of utility should base their calculations upon some 
 general principle in accordance with the natural laws that 
 influence the vicissitudes of the seasons, of which there can 
 
THE LAND. 185 
 
 be no doubt that the diminution of the obliquity of the 
 ecliptic is the most important. Hitherto it has been treated 
 as a phenomenon too insignificant to have any effect upon 
 the recurrence of each season, or the weather that prevails at 
 stated periods of the year. But when we consider the sen- 
 sibility of the atmosphere to local influences some geogra- 
 phical, others meteorological, and even at certain localities 
 agricultural we cannot reject the theory that this general 
 terrestrial phenomenon exercises its influence in some manner 
 on the weather and the duration of each season. It may not 
 be so apparent as to be reduced to a fixed quantity in one 
 year, but it is just possible that in a long series of years its 
 effects may be traced. When we look at the records of the 
 weather during the latter part of the last century, and com- 
 pare them with the present, there are many remarkable 
 changes, which meteorologists have not scientifically ac- 
 counted for, that might be explained satisfactorily upon the 
 basis of this phenomenon, which tends to create milder 
 winters, and generally to distribute the solar heat more 
 equably throughout the four seasons. Even within the past 
 decade of years the mildness of the winters throughout the 
 British Isles, compared with those in the recollection of a 
 living generation, are the common topics of conversation at 
 the recurrence of the festive season that follows the winter 
 solstice. In vain the "Christmas tales" are told of penury 
 and privation from cold, or stories of gladness are published, 
 illustrated profusely by picturesque landscapes bright with 
 snow and ice. Notwithstanding these literary and pictorial 
 forecasts of what the conventional weather should be, the 
 " old-fashioned " winter scarcely puts in an appearance. Art 
 endeavours to perpetuate the former rigorous seasons by the 
 semblance of a hoary monarch crowned with icicles, but 
 nature refuses to obey its quasi-magic power. This was 
 especially the case during the winter of 1868-69 which sur- 
 passed its predecessors for unusual mildness, when the reverse 
 was expected by the weather-wise prognostics. In compar- 
 ing the present with the past it has been remarked, that " A 
 
186 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 question of great interest is suggested by the consideration 
 of the weather which now so commonly prevails during our 
 winter months. It seems impossible to doubt that the 
 climate of England has undergone a change of late years. 
 In looking back over the records of the past quarter of a 
 century, one notices a marked prevalence of mild and moist 
 winters. Now and then there has been a bitter spell, but 
 scarcely an instance has been recorded of long-continued 
 frosts, such as used to be experienced of old. If we compare 
 the account given in Gilbert White's ' Natural History of 
 Selborne' of the winter weather experienced less than a 
 hundred years ago, we are yet more struck by the change 
 which has taken place. White's account, for example, of 
 the winter of 1776, describes a state of things such as has 
 not been seen in England for many years. The cold weather 
 began on the 7th of January, and on the 14th the narrow 
 roads were filled with snow to the top of the hedges. From 
 this time the snow continued to increase and stopped the 
 road waggons and coaches, 'which could no longer keep 
 their regular stages, especially on the western roads.' On 
 the 22d, White went to London, and he remarked that the 
 metropolis exhibited a still more singular appearance than 
 the country, being completely bedded in snow. The frost 
 in the evening of the 27th, and afterwards for four following 
 nights, was so intense that the Thames was frozen over both 
 below and above bridge, and crowds ran over the ice. The 
 snow remained twenty-six days without melting on the houses 
 in the city." * To account for the present mildness of our 
 winters, the writer of the foregoing refers to the increased 
 warmth and extension of the Gulf Stream to British waters as 
 the immediate cause. Of this fact there can be no doubt ; 
 but as to the origin of the augmented temperature and 
 volume of that great river of the Atlantic Ocean no satisfac- 
 tory hypothesis has been put forward. Here we may ven- 
 ture to suggest that the contraction of the tropical zone 
 might have reached a point where the intensity of the sun's 
 * 'Daily News/ December 1868. 
 
THE LAND. 187 
 
 rays is more concentrated on the waters at the source of the 
 Gulf Stream during autumn and winter than formerly. At all 
 events, it is just possible that the diminution of the earth's 
 axis of inclination may be an element in producing the ob- 
 served mildness of our winters ; therefore, we recommend the 
 suggestion to the notice of meteorologists. 
 
 183. Difficulty of Prognosticating Changes of Weather. 
 Thus it is probable that further inquiry into the cause and 
 effect of diminution in the tropical zones might throw some 
 light upon the mysterious changes of the weather, which 
 sometimes defy the most experienced and learned meteorolo- 
 gists to account for. Yet it is commonly supposed that no- 
 thing is easier than to prognosticate what changes may happen 
 in a day, and everybody considers himself in some degree a 
 judge of the weather. When we look forth into the country 
 on a bright summer day, with fleecy clouds passing across the 
 blue sky, refreshing the fields and gardens with genial rain, 
 we are apt to view this delightful phase of the weather as the 
 simplest thing in nature, whereas it is one of the most com- 
 plex vicissitudes of the seasons. This will be apparent to 
 the most ordinary capacity in the difficulty every person finds 
 even the most weather-wise in predicting the occurrence 
 of fine weather. On the other hand, there is a little more 
 certainty in forecasts of bad weather, although the best of 
 these are not always to be relied on. In this country it may 
 be said that unsettled weather is the rule, and fine days the 
 exception, throughout the year. Hence it is a matter of great 
 importance, especially to the seafaring community, to know 
 beforehand the probabilities of violent changes in the weather. 
 Formerly the indications of a coming storm were left to the 
 judgment of the mariners engaged to proceed on their voyage, 
 and of course their observations were limited to what they 
 saw in the weather immediately around them. It having 
 been ascertained that these local indications of change or 
 steadiness were only evanescent, meteorologists suggested 
 that notices from distant localities would be surer guides if 
 they could be forwarded in time. Since the invention of the 
 
188 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 electric telegraph we have seen this suggestion put into oper- 
 ation, under the control of a Government department, with 
 considerable success. 
 
 184. The Duke of Buccleuch on the Advantage of Storm- 
 Signals. In establishing this meteorological branch of the 
 Board of Trade, no public body has done more service to per- 
 fect its arrangements than the British Association for the 
 Advancement of Science. Of their recent exertions to restore 
 its operations, after a short interregnum on the death of Ad- 
 miral Fitzroy, the Duke of Buccleuch, as chairman of the 
 Association at their Dundee meeting in 1867, spoke as fol- 
 lows : " Great efforts have been made, and with signal suc- 
 cess, by the British Association for the advancement of this 
 science (meteorology), more particularly at Kew Observa- 
 tory. What I and others have urged on the Government 
 of the day is, the great importance of having renewed and 
 carried on what were called storm-signals at our different 
 ports. I do not mean that we have asked the meteorolo- 
 gical department of the Board of Trade to turn themselves 
 into weather-prophets, to give us forecasts of weather ; but 
 as they have the power of ascertaining the prevailing winds 
 and storms by telegraphic communication over the whole of 
 the country, and over the continent of Europe over all 
 the shores of it at least and to very distant parts, they 
 can inform us where there are great disturbances of the ele- 
 ments prevailing. For instance, there may be a tremendous 
 gale of wind and storm on the south coast of Ireland, and in 
 the entrance to the Channel. "Well, notice of that is tele- 
 graphed to Glasgow and to Liverpool, and to all the ports 
 upon the west coast, and the commanders of vessels at those 
 ports will hesitate to set sail when they hear of these tele- 
 grams regarding heavy storms raging in the very part of the 
 seas which they know they must enter and pass within a few 
 hours. This is of immense value and importance ; and I 
 believe much valuable property has been saved, and many 
 valuable lives preserved, by the timely hoisting of the drum 
 signifying bad weather ; and those interested can easily, by 
 
THE LAXD. 189 
 
 application, ascertain where that bad weather is. At the 
 Firth of Forth I have seen the drum hoisted indicating tre- 
 mendous storms and risks that may be run, and yet not a 
 breath of wind blowing in that particular quarter, though we 
 may have been in the centre of the storm which, perhaps, 
 was raging in the extreme north. Yet, by proper warning, 
 masters may have been hindered from putting out to sea ; 
 Vhile some, who have not this simple warning, may have said, 
 ' We may just as well go out to sea, as there is not a breath 
 of wind here ; ' but then come the newspapers, twenty-four 
 or eight-and-forty hours afterwards, and tell of disastrous 
 gales of wind and shipwrecks upon no very distant portion 
 of the coast." 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 EPOCH OF THE SEASONS. Continued. 
 
 Occasional disparity in the length of the seasons in Europe, 185. Great 
 disparity in the seasons of British North America, 186. This disparity 
 typical of the seasons at the glacial period, 187. Extremes of hot and 
 cold weather in Northern China, 188. Vegetation around Shanghai 
 adapted to extremes of temperature, 189. Plants of a temperate and 
 tropical character growing at Shanghai, 190. Vegetation of the Hima- 
 layan temperate region of altitude, 191. Seasons there analogous to 
 those of the Alps in Europe, 192. In the Andes of South America all 
 seasons are blended, 193. Long summer and short winter seasons of 
 Australia, 194. A second spring among vegetation after the scorching 
 summer, 195. No autumnal aspect in the forests of Australia, 196. 
 Peculiar shedding of bark by the Australian trees in autumn, 197. The 
 seasons in Australia reversed according to the months, 198. European 
 plants growing there mark the recurrence of the seasons, 199. Australian 
 seasons typical of the carboniferous era in Europe, 200. Seasons in 
 South Africa analogous to those in Australia, 201. European deciduous 
 trees become evergreen in South Africa, 202. Mountain waves off the 
 Cape of Good Hope explained, 203. Mudie's account of the violent 
 spring in South Africa, 204. Seasons of New Zealand approximate to 
 those of Great Britain, 205. Spring the prevailing season in New Zea- 
 land, 206. Magnificence and peculiarity of the forests in New Zealand, 
 207. Analogy between the New Zealand flora and that of the carbon- 
 iferous era in Europe, 208. Keturn to the consideration of hemispheri- 
 cal disparity of land and water, 209. Extreme cold of winter at the 
 southern regions of South America, 210. Concluding remarks on the 
 past, present, and future vicissitudes of the seasons, 211. 
 
 185. Occasional Disparity in the Length of the Seasons in 
 Europe. When we speak of the seasons, we naturally asso- 
 ciate our ideas with their effects on vegetation and animated 
 nature. On a "barren rock or sandy desert, their varied 
 
THE LAND. 191 
 
 changes pass without leaving a mark behind ; and so, also, 
 on the wide ocean, no vestige remains of their existence, save 
 the glittering iceberg of winter melting under the heat of 
 summer. It is only in latitudes, and on fertile soils, like 
 those of the British Isles, that spring, summer, autumn, and 
 winter present their separate aspects distinctly on the face of 
 nature, dividing the year into four defined portions of time, 
 and leaving behind many vestiges of their effects on the 
 organic world. So well defined is their recurrence, and so 
 important is their influence upon the physical conditions of 
 life, that the popular mind can scarcely suppose a country 
 inhabitable where the seasons do not exist with the same 
 regularity. To those, however, who live in tropical and 
 arctic regions, these quarterly divisions of the year are not 
 apparent ; in the former it is one continual summer, and in 
 the latter winter prevails for nine months, while spring, 
 summer, and autumn, are concentrated into the other three. 
 The seasons in their equable succession are confined to the 
 temperate regions, and even there they are restricted in their 
 equal development. In the foregoing section upon the wea- 
 ther and division of the seasons, we have confined our obser- 
 vations to European latitudes generally, and the British Isles 
 in particular. Although we have considered the popular 
 division of the year into four equal parts as the best defined for 
 ordinary purposes, yet it is only conventional, for in reality 
 we find winter running into the spring months, spring into 
 the summer months, and so on with autumn ; so that at the 
 best their occurrence as to dates is only approximate. Not 
 only is this the case, but one season may be prolonged in a 
 particular year or shortened in another ; of course, when this 
 occurs, the other seasons are curtailed or lengthened accord- 
 ingly. For example, a long winter may happen, of four or 
 five months' duration as it did in 1866-67 and be suc- 
 ceeded by a short spring and summer. In this manner a 
 record of the seasons during a number of years would exhibit 
 a great disparity in their duration over or under the allotted 
 three months to each, probably no two years being of equal 
 
192 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 proportion in ten or twenty. Where this disparity is uncer- 
 tain in European latitudes, it approaches a more constant 
 form in other parts of the north hemisphere. 
 
 186. Great Disparity in the Seasons of British North 
 America. In the temperate regions of North America, the 
 summer and winter take up about two-thirds of the year, 
 leaving only one-third for spring and autumn; hence the 
 extremes of heat and cold are greater there than in Europe. 
 "In Canada, and that not in the hottest parts of it, in the 
 summer season the thermometer rises to about 102 in the 
 shade, and in winter it sinks to at least 36 below zero or 
 of Fahrenheit's scale. This is 68 below the temperature at 
 which water freezes, and a degree of cold of which the in- 
 habitants of Great Britain have but little conception. One 
 hundred and thirty-eight degrees, or thereabouts, is the 
 average temperature between the two extremes of the Cana- 
 dian seasons; and when the difference is so great, we can 
 readily understand that a considerable time, as well as great 
 power in the agencies, must be requisite in order to pass 
 from the one of them to the other. The extreme heat of the 
 summer prevents the winter from setting in so early as it 
 
 does in countries where that extreme is less rigorous 
 
 The labour of the spring in those wild countries is almost 
 entirely confined to the removal of the winter snow ; for, by 
 the time the snow and the snow-water are gone, both the 
 temperature of the season and the appearances of the wild 
 plants, have a character deserving the name of summer. 
 This summer comes on apace, and its productiveness both in 
 vegetable and animal action is as remarkable as the stagna- 
 tion of the energies of life and growth which 'reigned during 
 the winter." * 
 
 187. This Disparity Typical of the Seasons during the 
 Glacial Period. Here, then, we have a region where the 
 disparity in duration of the seasons is considerable the 
 length of winter and summer being at least double that of 
 spring and autumn. In this respect it approaches to what 
 
 * ' Spring,' by Robert Mudie. 
 
THE LAND. 193 
 
 we may conclude the seasons were in Europe during the 
 glacial period, when the heavy falls of snow remained on the 
 ground for six months, and in hollows on the mountains all 
 the year round, where the heat of the summer only sufficed 
 to thaw it partially at comparatively low altitudes, so that 
 glaciers covered the rocks in Scotland at places not a hundred 
 feet above the sea-level. Of course America at that period 
 was subject to the same influences, and these latitudes 
 where the above extremes are now experienced, and which 
 correspond with the middle latitudes of Europe, must have 
 undergone the rigours of an arctic winter. Yet from the 
 fossil remains found in its strata, there are abundant data to 
 conclude that, prior to the glacial period, a tropical epoch 
 prevailed there as in Europe, the flora and fauna of which 
 were analogous. As before observed, this suggests the idea 
 that the two continents were then united by what is now the 
 bed of the North Atlantic ; and if so, we would have ad- 
 ditional data to account for the glacial period by reason of 
 the extremes of heat and cold on continents, which do not 
 prevail on islands. 
 
 188. Extremes of Hot and Cold Weather in Northern 
 China. In the middle latitudes of Asia the disparity of the 
 seasons is similar to that of North America, with analogous 
 extremes of heat and cold, and a long range of thermometer 
 throughout the year. This is most observable in North 
 China at the sea-level, or a few hundred feet above it. At 
 Peking (lat. 39 54') the thermometer rises to 115 in the 
 shade during an ordinary summer, and sinks to 15 below 
 zero in winter, thus giving a range of 130; and in some years 
 it has been known to extend to ten degrees more, equal to, if 
 not exceeding, the Canadian range of temperature. Peking 
 has a mean annual temperature of 52 3', or more than 9 lower 
 than Naples, which is situated a little farther north. The mean 
 winter temperature of Peking is at least 5 4' below freezing- 
 point ; while in Western Europe, at Paris (lat. 48 50'), it is 
 6 above it; again, the winters of Peking are 4 5' colder than 
 those of Copenhagen, though the latter is situated 17 of lati- 
 
194 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 tude farther north. This rigorous winter, with quite a tropical 
 summer, extends throughout the greater part of North China. 
 Having been resident some years in that country, we can 
 vouch for the excessive heat and cold experienced by the in- 
 habitants, and the rapidity of the growth and decay of its 
 vegetation. Winter is truly a season of barrenness, when 
 the mountains, valleys, and plains are stripped of every 
 green thing, giving an air of desolation to the landscape that 
 has no counterpart in even the poorest lands of Europe. 
 This arises chiefly from the circumstance that in China Proper 
 the fertile lands are laid under cultivation without any 
 hedgerows or grass-lands intervening, while on the hill- 
 country the brushwood and trees have been cut down for 
 fuel or building purposes. Hence the surface of the ground 
 is everywhere denuded of vegetation at the close of the short 
 autumn, presenting a scene of sterility to the traveller that 
 ill accords with the boasted title the Chinese give to their 
 country of " The Great Central Flowery Land." But 'let 
 him revisit the same region in summer and the whole scene 
 is changed ; scarcely a bare spot of ground is visible, from 
 the universal mantle of green that covers the earth every- 
 where, even up the steep acclivities to the mountain-tops, 
 where native industry has compelled the stubborn soil to 
 yield some vegetable product for the food of man and animals ; 
 while the gardens, groves, and even wild thickets are bril- 
 liant with the livery of Flora, maintaining to the full the 
 flowery appellation bestowed upon that extraordinary empire 
 by the sons of Han. 
 
 189. Vegetation around Shanghai adapted to Extremes of 
 Temperature. During the height of summer, when the greatest 
 heat and humidity prevail, under the influence of the south- 
 west monsoon, the profuse vegetation in the middle latitudes 
 between the cold and hot regions of China partakes consider- 
 ably of a tropical character, while in winter almost an arctic 
 barrenness prevails. This is especially the case on the low 
 lands of the province of Kiang-soo, formed by the delta of the 
 great Yang-tsze river, of which Shanghai is the central out- 
 
THE LAND. 195 
 
 port. In the environs of that city and foreign settlement, 
 we have seen plants growing luxuriantly in the stifling atmo- 
 sphere of June and July, saturated with humidity, which 
 horticulturists class as hothouse plants, that would perish in 
 the open air if exposed to the comparative mildness of an 
 English winter. Yet these trees and shrubs brave the rigour 
 of a Shanghai winter, when the cold north-east monsoon de- 
 scends from the Tartarian Alps, and reduces the temperature 
 at night in the depth of the season to zero, or only a few 
 degrees above that point. We have even seen the fan-palm 
 retain some of its leaves, although snow clung to them during 
 winter for six weeks ; and where, under ordinary circum- 
 stances in Europe, we should have expected the plant to have 
 been killed, it resumed its wonted luxuriance in the following 
 summer, as if the frost and snow had never touched its stem 
 or roots. In like manner the bamboo shoots up to a height 
 of 50 or 60 feet in the hot weather, growing with such 
 rapidity that you can almost see the process going on ; and 
 yet this plant retains its vitality during the rigorous winter, 
 although the rapidity of growth is retarded. This power of 
 acclimatisation in plants now existing is evidence that, even 
 during the early part of the glacial period in Europe, the 
 previous tropical vegetation lingered on in its confines and up 
 to its climax, while the extremes of heat and cold prevailed ; 
 and it was only when these blended with spring and autumn 
 that the equable temperature extinguished their species. 
 
 190. Plants of a Temperate and Tropical Character growing 
 at Shanghai. Another remarkable feature, bearing upon the 
 same point, we observed in the acclimatisation of plants at 
 Shanghai, was the growth of certain shrubs and flowers of an 
 ordinary temperate region, some European, which retained 
 their vitality during both extremes of heat and cold, but only 
 flourished in the short spring, which rarely lasts beyond two 
 months. It was curious to see these humble children of Flora 
 growing by the wayside, or rearing their flowers and branches 
 near a grove of palms, and passing through the process of 
 budding, flowering, and seed-time all within that short season ; 
 
196 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 then vanishing from the copse at the approach of the tropical 
 heats, not to reappear until the lapse of about ten months. 
 From this fact we can also understand how the existing tem- 
 perate flora of Europe struggled through the glacial period, 
 leaving a limited number of species from which 4 to propagate 
 at the commencement of the epoch of the seasons. Then, as 
 the spring and autumn expanded their equability of tempera- 
 ture throughout the years, disarming winter of its rigour and 
 summer of its tropical heat, these humble plants grew in 
 size and extent until heaths became shrubs, and shrubs the 
 monarchs of the forest. In its development the vegetation of 
 this new epoch was evidently slower than that of its prede- 
 cessor, and from that circumstance the trees and shrubs have 
 acquired those exogenous properties of hardness and durabil- 
 ity which endogenous tropical trees and shrubs never attain. 
 It will also be observed from these examples of tropical veg- 
 etation growing luxuriantly within the north semitemperate 
 regions, that the zones of vegetation marked out by botanists 
 in their theories of the geographical distribution of plants are 
 only approximate, and the exceptions may become the rule in 
 certain localities, as at Shanghai and other places in North 
 China. Thus, as we have seen, as the diminution of the 
 obliquity of the ecliptic has been overlooked by astronomers 
 as an important element in the regulation of the seasons, and 
 by geologists in furnishing a guide to the phenomena of ex- 
 tinct epochs, so have botanists set aside the exceptional data 
 of semitropical floras in endeavouring to retain intact their 
 theory regarding zones of vegetation exceptions to the rule 
 which, according to the line of argument adopted in this essay, 
 meant to lead to the solution of some problems in the natural 
 history of our planet, as revealed by geology, which are still 
 unexplained. 
 
 191. Vegetation of the Himalayan Temperate Region by 
 Altitude. In the foregoing examples of the exceptional char- 
 acter presented by the vegetation of Asia, it is important to 
 note that the localities are near the level of the sea, as there 
 are still more striking phenomena exhibited in temperate 
 
THE LAND. 197 
 
 latitudes where the land is elevated many thousand feet above 
 that level. These are seen in their grandest features in India, 
 on the Himalaya Mountains, where the zones of vegetation in 
 altitude comprise all the characteristics of the latitudinal zones, 
 with fewer exceptions to the rule. " Mountains placed be- 
 tween the tropics, the summits of which ascend above the 
 snow-line, represent the vegetable zones of the whole earth* 
 rising one above the other, in the same order as is observed in 
 the direction from the equator to the poles. Proceeding from 
 the level of the ocean in the temperate and frigid zones, we 
 perceive, as we ascend the slopes of mountains, that plants 
 decrease, not only in the size of individuals, but also in their 
 number. At a certain height trees will not grow, still higher 
 shrubs also disappear, and at the limit of snow, mosses and 
 lichens alone are found. The same appearances are remarked 
 under the tropics, with this difference, that here the mass of 
 vegetation is found to be more limited in the plains than in 
 the lower mountain-regions. Such, also, is the case with the 
 greater varieties of species which, in common with these, de- 
 crease in an upward direction ; and this remark is applicable 
 to the other zones, especially the temperate ; since, in the cold 
 zones, the plants of higher regions cannot differ much from 
 those of the plains, because the snow-limits have but little 
 absolute elevation. Besides, the distance of the limits of trees 
 and shrubs from the snow-line is greater in the torrid than 
 in the temperate and frigid zone." * 
 
 192. Seasons there analogous to those in the Alps of Europe. 
 In these elevated regions the seasons vary in duration ac- 
 cording to the altitude, from almost a continuous winter at 
 the line of perpetual snow, to a long summer in the deep 
 valleys at their base. At the same time, according to Hum- 
 boldt, " The chain of the Himalaya is placed far beyond the 
 limits of the torrid zone, and scarcely is a solitary palm-tree to 
 be found in the beautiful valleys of Kumaoun and Garhwal." 
 Here the vegetation partakes of the characteristics of European 
 plants. " On the slope of the Himalaya, under the shade of 
 * Johnston's ' Physical Atlas.' 
 
198 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the deodara and the broad-leaved oak, peculiar to these Indian 
 Alps, the rocks of granite and of mica-schist are covered with 
 vegetable forms almost similar to those which characterise 
 Europe and Northern Asia. The species are not identical, 
 but closely analogous in aspect and physiognomy as, for in- 
 stance, the juniper, the Alpine birch, the gentian, the marsh 
 parnassia, and the prickly species of ribes." * The fact that 
 plants of these kinds, well known to nourish only in temperate 
 latitudes, grow on the Himalayas, is proof that the seasons 
 there approximate in duration to those which prevail on the 
 Swiss Alps, having a long winter season, with a brief spring, 
 summer, and autumn. 
 
 193. In the Andes of South America all Seasons are 
 blended. In like manner, at certain altitudes in the Andes 
 of South America a temperate zone exists, with a climate of 
 a similar character, but subject to more rapid transitions of 
 temperature, occasioning mountain-storms in winter which 
 surpass in violence any that occur in northern European 
 latitudes. Notwithstanding the astonishing bulk and eleva- 
 tion of the Himalaya, " they cannot, from their geographical 
 position, present the same inexhaustible variety of pheno- 
 mena by which the latter are characterised. There are some 
 spots in the Andes where the mountains are suddenly cleft 
 into valleys of great depth where a traveller can stand on 
 the same rock and see the extreme vegetation of India below 
 him, and the sterility of Lapland above. When the rains 
 have fallen for some time, the evaporation produced by them 
 lowers the temperature and brings frost and snow upon the 
 mountains ; and the snow-storms there are terrific compared 
 with what they are even in the regions of the extreme north. 
 . . . Countries in which drought and rain are still the chief 
 and only causes of difference of season, and which are subject 
 to such variations of weather, have many returns of spring in 
 the course of the year. The temporary snows speedily melt 
 upon those places where snow is not perennial ; and as the 
 fall is of sufficient depth entirely to cover the vegetation, the 
 * Humboldt's 'Cosmos.' 
 
THE LAND. 199 
 
 effect of the brief snow-storm after it is gone is very similar 
 to that of the winter snows of the north when melted by the 
 ardour of the spring. Vegetation is wonderfully refreshed, 
 and sprouts and blooms with the greatest vigour so that, 
 though the plants of such places are peculiar in their species, 
 they are equally remarkable for their beauty and the vigour 
 of their growth. All seasons of the year may be said to be 
 blended together in these singular countries." * 
 
 194. Long Summer and Short Winter Seasons of Australia. 
 While the temperate zone of elevation in South America 
 is characterised by these anomalies in the recurrence of the 
 seasons, there are other regions in the south hemisphere at 
 lower elevations where the seasons are so genial that winter, 
 even according to the mild standard of the south of England, 
 is unknown. This is characteristic of the climate generally 
 in the temperate regions of Australia places having corre- 
 sponding latitudes exhibiting remarkable contrasts with those 
 in Eastern Asia. We have seen that at Shanghai, in lat. 
 31 15' JS"., the thermometer falls nearly to zero in winter, 
 with heavy showers of snow, remaining on the ground for 
 more than a month. Now at Sydney, in lat. 33 51' S. 
 two and a half degrees of colder latitude the thermometer 
 rarely touches the freezing-point at night in winter, while 
 snow has been only known to fall once or twice on the 
 streets and house-tops, and then to melt rapidly under the 
 morning sun. On the other hand, during the height of sum- 
 mer it is intensely hot, with the thermometer rising to 110, 
 and sometimes 115, in the shade. But in consequence of the 
 pecular dryness of the atmosphere, and other influences which 
 we shall refer to in the third part of our subject, the heat is 
 less oppressive to man or animals than in the dog-days of 
 Europe. From being situated in the opposite hemisphere, 
 the hottest months are those of December and January, when 
 they are the coldest with us in Great Britain. But it may 
 be said that both are seasons of barrenness, as far as the 
 growth of temperate vegetation for purposes of food is con- 
 * ' Spring,' by Robert Mudie. 
 
200 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 cerned the one from extreme cold and humidity, and the 
 other from excessive heat and aridity. "While the pastures 
 of England are covered with snow, refusing nourishment 
 to cattle and sheep, those of Australia are parched up, 
 with only scanty tufts of grass and muddy pools of water to 
 sustain the flocks and herds of that great pastoral land, caus- 
 ing the deaths of thousands and tens of thousands of live 
 stock from the want of sufficient food. The seasons there 
 may be classed as a short spring, a very long summer, with 
 the autumn and winter having no clear definition as in 
 Europe. In illustration of this prolonged warm season, it 
 may be mentioned that, in the kitchen-gardens of Sydney, 
 green pease are raised during nine months of the year. At 
 Adelaide, in lat. 34 55', similar seasons prevail ; but at Mel- 
 bourne, in lat. 37 48', it is cooler during the months of June 
 and July, when the season corresponding to our winter sets 
 in, which increases in rigour at Hobart Town, in lat. 42 53', 
 where* water occasionally freezes at the sea-level, and the 
 adjacent mountains are covered with snow at their summits 
 for months. 
 
 195. A Second Spring among the Vegetation after the 
 Scorching Heat of Summer. Not only is the duration of 
 the seasons in Australia different from what occurs in cor- 
 responding latitudes of the north hemisphere, but there is 
 something anomalous in the season that follows the scorching 
 summer, which gives it more the character of spring than 
 autumn. As the hot blasts from the north cease towards the 
 close of Eebruary, they are followed by cool gales from the 
 south, generally accompanied by rain, so that the parched 
 soil swells with the moisture, and closes up the gaping fissures 
 on the land. Then the pastures, that by this time are more 
 or less reduced to dust by the hot sun and bush-fires which 
 annually occur in the summer, begin to send forth fresh 
 blades of grass, and though no sward of turf is formed, the 
 plains and open forest-lands are green with verdure. Not 
 only do grasses spring forth during this anomalous autumn, 
 but small flowers of orchideous tribes bloom as in spring if 
 
THE LAND. 201 
 
 the roots have survived the droughts of summer. On the 
 other hand, deciduous fruit-trees of European species, if they 
 withstand the excessive heat, shed their leaves at this season 
 as in their native country. As already observed, the indigen- 
 ous trees and shrubs of Australia are evergreen, and their 
 foliage is of that character that it is most luxuriant in the 
 heat of summer, when deciduous foliage is drooping and 
 shrivelled up. At the approach of the autumn season a 
 curious phenomenon takes place, which may be considered 
 equivalent to the fall of the leaf. The bark of the trunk 
 and branches peels off naturally, as clean as if it was stripped 
 by human agency ; and where the ground would have been 
 covered with foliage, as in Europe and America at the " fall " 
 of the year, it is strewed with strips of bark, which dangle 
 in the wind and drop from the trees in long ribbons. This 
 curious phenomenon is most observable in the white gum- 
 trees, which acquire a snowy-white new bark when the old 
 one is shed, presenting a remarkable contrast to the fresh 
 green leaves on its branches. 
 
 196. No Autumnal Aspect in the Forests of Australia. 
 Thus, while the trees rejoice in the leafy reign of summer 
 from year to year, it is especially characteristic of the sea- 
 sons in Australia that snow never falls at the sea-level, and 
 the mountains are covered to their summits with evergreen 
 arborescent vegetation. "Australian trees, as well as shrubs, 
 are perennial evergreens. Hence the forests of that vast 
 island are verdant with foliage all the year round. There 
 is no autumnal fall of the leaf, consequently there is scarcely 
 any soil formed in the woods by decayed leaves. As there 
 is no general denudation in winter of the leaves from the 
 branches, so, when spring-time comes round, no universal 
 budding takes place to renew the charms of that season, as 
 in European forests. The well-known American expression, 
 ' fall of the year/ which is derived from its deciduous vege- 
 tation, is in this southern region inapplicable. There is a 
 stereotyped aspect, if we may so term it, about Australian 
 forest-scenery, so that its general effect upon the mind is that 
 
202 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of monotony. This impression is likewise assisted by the 
 sombre green colour of the foliage, caused by the dark tint of 
 the chlorophyle that constitutes the colouring matter of the 
 leaves. Although the country is open and grassy, and the 
 climate clear and sunny, yet there are no warm green hues 
 in the forest-landscape in spring, nor the rich glowing tints 
 of autumn. A universal sombreness would thus prevail were 
 these effects not considerably modified by the unusual struc- 
 ture of the leaves and bark of the trees belonging to the 
 genus eucalyptus, which form, on an average, four-fifths of 
 the forests in the temperate regions of Australia. It is well 
 known that in forests of deciduous trees the leaves project 
 horizontally from the leaf-stalk, showing a distinct upper and 
 under side in the structure of their veins, parenchyma, and 
 epidermis. This position of the leaves gives that umbrage- 
 ous foliage to European forest-trees which is well marked in 
 the sycamore and elm. In Australia, on the contrary, gum- 
 trees and their congeners have their leaves placed vertically 
 upon the leaf-stalk, both sides being of the same structure, 
 like the mistletoe-leaf. Consequently there is abundance of 
 light from above piercing these forests, rendering more cheer- 
 ful what would otherwise be gloomy in the Australian land- 
 scape, and permitting the sun's rays to penetrate through the 
 foliage so as to fall upon the brilliant-coloured flowers and 
 grass which cover the open forest-lands, as it were, with a 
 beautiful carpet. Moreover, the leaves of this class of trees 
 are rarely more than an inch wide and five inches long, being 
 simple, acute, and scimitar-shaped, the branches but thinly 
 covered with foliage, and the trees wide apart; so that, except- 
 ing their monotonous character, the open forests of Australia 
 are cheerful to the traveller, salubrious to the settler, and 
 are always well lighted up by the sun and swept by the 
 breeze." 
 
 197. Peculiar Shedding of Bark by the Trees of Australia 
 in Autumn. " The autumnal fall of the leaf is likewise in 
 some measure represented by their annual decortication, or 
 natural stripping of the bark from the trunks and branches 
 
THE LAND. 203 
 
 of the gum-trees. . . . The appearance of a white gum- 
 tree forest has no counterpart in the northern hemisphere. 
 From the base of the trunk up to the minutest branches the 
 bark of the tree is perfectly white, and the leaves of a leek- 
 green colour. Its general aspect is that which a forest of ash- 
 trees would have if their stems and branches were white- 
 washed. Their trunks, also, are generally naked for about 
 two-thirds of the way up, and the branches above that pro- 
 ject at nearly right angles from them, while the smaller 
 branches frequently shoot up vertically. The leaves show 
 the specific character of the foliage alluded to, particularly 
 their leathery structure. On being crushed in the hand an 
 essential oil is expressed from them, which is contained in 
 cavities to preserve them during their perennial existence, 
 and to enable them to withstand the aridity and heat of the 
 climate." * 
 
 198. The Seasons in Australia reversed according to the 
 Months. If we compare the phenomena of the seasons in 
 Australia with what occurs here, the exceptions in Europe are 
 the rule there. Being situated in the opposite hemisphere to 
 Britain , its seasons are exactly the reverse of ours. July is 
 the middle of winter, and January of summer. The festivi- 
 ties of Christmas and of the New Year are celebrated there, 
 not, as in the old country, with doors and windows shut, 
 and a cheerful fire to dispel the winter cold, but amid the 
 oppression and the heat of summer, with doors and windows 
 open to invite the refreshing breeze. We no longer hear, in 
 this Australian climate, of the gentle south wind, nor of 
 " rude Boreas, blustering railer." The north is there the 
 region of heat, as the south is of cold. While the extremes 
 of heat and cold occur in the opposite months of the year, 
 the division of the seasons into spring, summer, autumn, and 
 winter, is by no means so clearly defined as in this country. 
 In the island of Tasmania, where the climate approaches more 
 to that of England than the mainland of Australia, when 
 the snow falls on the mountains it remains for weeks and 
 * S. Mossman, in Rhind's ' Vegetable Kingdom.' 
 
204 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 months, according to altitude, and there is a decided winter. 
 The spring and autumn are short and indefinite ; while the 
 summer begins in October and lasts from five to six months. 
 In Victoria the winter prevails in a milder degree, except in 
 the vicinity of the Australian Alps, where it is rigorous on 
 the elevated table-lands. Northwards, through New South 
 Wales, it varies according to latitude ; and within the tem- 
 perate zone the spring and autumn become less marked 
 towards the Tropic of Capricorn at Queensland. There the 
 cold season is so mild that it cannot be called winter in the 
 sense known in Europe ; and as vegetation is luxuriant all 
 the year round, the seasons may be divided into six months 
 summer, and six months spring and autumn. 
 
 199. European Plants mark the recurrence of the Seasons 
 there. " The anomaly of this division of the seasons is, to a 
 certain extent, more apparent than real. Their separation in 
 the northern hemisphere is plain and obvious, in consequence 
 of the deciduous vegetation that prevails the budding in 
 spring, the blossoming in summer, -the fall of the leaf in 
 autumn, and the denudation of foliage in winter. Without 
 these marked changes in the vegetable kingdom, we should 
 be at a loss to divide the seasons. In Australia, the trees and 
 shrubs being evergreen, the foliage apparently never dies ; 
 and it is only by the flowering of plants and the appearance 
 of grasses, insects, and small animals, that even the indefinite 
 division of the seasons can be made out. Of course decidu- 
 ous trees and shrubs from Europe, when transplanted, shed 
 their leaves and shoot forth buds at periods analogous to 
 their seasons, and even these remain longer on the boughs 
 than in their native country, with a shorter season of de- 
 nudation. As they become acclimatised, this retention of 
 the leaf increases, in some trees more than others, such as 
 the oak ; and there is reason to conclude that in time this 
 tree and others may become evergreens, like the South 
 African oak, which was imported many centuries ago from 
 Europe, when it was deciduous, but now it is evergreen. 
 It has been observed that plants from Europe, and other 
 
THE LAND. 205 
 
 exotic regions in the north hemisphere, rapidly become 
 acclimatised in Australia ; while the contrary is the case 
 among Australian plants brought to Europe. The horticul- 
 turist has not yet succeeded in changing the flowering season 
 of many species from the indigenous summer in December 
 and January, to June and July. Hence the Australian 
 heaths are the gems of our winter gardens. Thus it would 
 appear that the Australian flora clings to its own climatic 
 habits in a strange clime with greater tenacity than most 
 others. This may arise from the hard woody fibre of the 
 stems, and the essential oils that pervade the foliage. 
 Though easily destroyed by frost, they will stand the greatest 
 heat without injury, from possessing these properties. Hence 
 the eucalyptus or gum-tree can stand the hot blasts of the 
 sirocco, while the cold damp air of England would destroy 
 that monarch of the Australian forest." * On the other hand, 
 this genus of trees has been successfully reared by the French 
 in Algeria, where the simoom of the desert has no damaging 
 effect on the foliage in summer ; and the dry mild winter in 
 that region, accords with the Australian season at a corre- 
 sponding period of the year. 
 
 200. Australian Seasons typical of Carboniferous Period in 
 Europe. Although there is this disparity in the duration of 
 the seasons and their attendant phenomena in Australia, as 
 compared with those of Europe at the present period, there 
 exist data for concluding that, during the carboniferous era, 
 analogous atmospheric and vegetable phenomena prevailed 
 in Europe. In the abundant fossil remains found in the coal- 
 measures of that early formation, the general characters of the 
 extinct European flora and the living Australian flora are 
 remarkably similar. This is not only the case with the 
 arborescent ferns that enter largely into the coal-deposits, 
 but the conifers that chiefly formed the bituminous kinds of 
 coal are identical with the araucarias of Australia, while 
 these are distinct in their tissues from any other class of 
 conifers in the north hemisphere. Botanists have discov- 
 * ' Our Australian Colonies/ by Samuel Mossman. 
 
206 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 ered, in examining thin layers of fossil conifers through 
 the microscope, that they present a double -dotted tissue, 
 while the extensive pine tribe of conifera of Europe and 
 America have them single and in rows ; whereas the Arau- 
 caria excelsa and other Australian pines show exactly the 
 same structure as the fossils. As these araucarias grow only 
 in the warmer latitudes of the temperate regions of Australia, 
 and cannot survive an English winter, we may conclude that 
 the British Isles, during the carboniferous era, possessed a 
 climate and duration of seasons similar to what now prevails 
 at our antipodes. 
 
 201. Seasons of South Africa analogous to those of Austra- 
 lia. In the temperate regions of South Africa the duration 
 of the seasons, and their attendant natural phenomena, very 
 much resemble those of Australia, at least in their general 
 characteristics ; for in detail they have many specific variations. 
 Both regions are subject to extreme heat and aridity, and long 
 droughts are succeeded by devastating floods. " Southern 
 Africa is the country upon which the south wind tells with 
 the greatest effect. Though not exactly in a tropical latitude, 
 that country gets exceedingly hot and parched during the 
 southern summer. After the heat has dried up the vegeta- 
 tion (and it has begun to do so before the wind shifts to the 
 south), this wind often blows with excessive violence, and 
 its drying and parching qualities are extreme. It begins 
 with what is really the vernal equinox in that country 
 namely, in September but the vernal equinox there, as 
 regulated astronomically, is anything but a spring-time upon 
 the earth. The violence of the wind is often terrific ; the 
 waves off the Cape roll in congregated ridges, mountain upon 
 mountain, almost as high as the topmasts of a ship. This is 
 the l south-easter off the Cape,' so well known to navigators. 
 It comes from the sea, not at all deficient in moisture ; but it 
 comes from over cool water to sweep along a dry and heated 
 land. The heat is imparted to it, and it speedily dries up 
 all the remaining moisture, withers every herbaceous plant to 
 the ground, and shrivels every leaf. The heat is excessive, 
 
THE LAND. 207 
 
 and the clouds of dust during the squalls are most annoying; 
 so that the people of Cape Town are obliged to close their 
 doors and windows, and shut up every opening of their houses, 
 until its fury abates. But, notwithstanding the desolation 
 which it spreads over the fields, and the annoyance which it 
 gives to the inhabitants, it is still the healthy wind of that 
 part of the world, and they term the part of the year during 
 which it blows ' the good monsoon.' It is not a constant 
 wind, but rather springs up in the forenoon, just as the 
 sea-breezes do in some parts of Britain and many other 
 countries, and the intensity of its drought bears away every 
 species of noxious vapour, so that its effect is healthy. 7 '* 
 
 202. European Deciduous Trees become Evergreen in South 
 Africa. Some of the observations in the above extract re- 
 quire qualification ; and in correcting what is otherwise a 
 graphic description of the effects of a Cape " south-easter" we 
 speak from experience, having twice visited the Cape colony, 
 and twice rounded the Cape during the hot season. With 
 reference to the trees, shrubs, and field-plants being shrivelled 
 up by that wind, it applies only to European and other 
 northern vegetation transplanted to Africa ; for the indigenous 
 flora flourishes in spite of it, as we have found it does in 
 Australia. For instance, the heaths, those beautiful and num- 
 erous species of the genus Erica that adorn our conservatories, 
 are like the Australian heaths of the genus Epacris, and with- 
 stand the hottest blasts of summer ; while the native shrubs 
 and trees are evergreen with leathery leaves, analogous to the 
 gum-trees of Australia, which are now to be seen growing 
 luxuriantly at the Cape ; so that it is the exotic vegetation 
 which suffers from the heat in South Africa. Some species, 
 however, when acclimatised, such as the African oak, already 
 mentioned, not only survive the excessive heat, but their 
 foliage becomes evergreen, while other plants that are annual 
 in Europe become perennial there after a time. The same 
 phenomenon happens also in Australia, where, in Queensland, 
 the " sea-island " variety of cotton-plant, which is annual in 
 * ' Spring/ by Robert Mudie. 
 
208 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 North America, has become perennial in the course of not 
 more than twenty years' culture. This remarkable property 
 of the climates in the south hemisphere as compared with 
 those in the north, will be discussed more fully in the divi- 
 sion treating of the atmosphere, with a view to show that it 
 arises from the difference in the chemical properties of the 
 one aerial hemisphere from the other, irrespective of heat, 
 aridity, or moisture. 
 
 203. Mountain Waves off the Co.pe of Good Hope explained. 
 As to " the waves off the Cape rolling in congregated ridges, 
 mountain upon mountain, almost as high as the topmasts of 
 a ship," by the violence of the winds, of course that must be 
 taken cum grano salis, as indeed the author points out in the 
 following note : " Dr Scoresby calculated the waves off the 
 Cape to be occasionally forty feet from the hollow trough to 
 the summit ; so that, as Mrs Somerville remarks in her ' Phy- 
 sical Geography,' it is the sublimity of the scene, united to 
 the threatened danger, which naturally leads to an over-esti- 
 mate of the magnitude of the waves, and has given rise to the 
 proverbial expression, that they appear to rise ' mountains 
 high ! '" In this instance, however, the waves off the Cape are 
 higher than any in the open sea, whether the Atlantic, Pa- 
 cific, or Indian Oceans, but not from the cause assigned. It 
 is in consequence of their moving over the great Agulhas 
 Bank, which extends along the coast a distance of about 560 
 miles, with a general breadth of 100 miles ; but opposite Cape 
 Agulhas it stretches out in a triangular form to upwards of 
 200 miles. Here the sea is comparatively shallow; and it 
 is well known that when the momentum of a wave touches 
 soundings, the crest rises higher and the trough is lower than 
 where it is not influenced by the land. It is therefore the 
 shallowness of the water, and not the force of the wind 
 specially, which gives rise to the extra " mountain waves " off 
 the Cape of Good Hope. Beyond this bank they do not rise 
 much more than half the height indicated by Dr Scoresby. 
 
 204. Mudie's Account of the Violent Spring in South Africa. 
 Returning to Mr Mudie's account of the seasons in South 
 
THE LAND. 209 
 
 Africa, we have the following interesting remarks in his book 
 on the ' Spring' : " The spring in this part of the world really 
 takes place about the middle of the winter that is, it is at 
 its greatest action in June or July, varying a little in dif- 
 ferent years, as the changes of the seasons do in all countries. 
 The turn of the monsoon, from the season of vegetation to that 
 of drought, begins in September, but it does not acquire its 
 full character till near the middle of the astronomical summer 
 there, which answers that of our winter. By this time the 
 southern waters have acquired the maximum of their summer 
 temperature, which, however, differs so little from that of the 
 opposite season, that the dry and heated land draws from it a 
 constant current of air. This monsoon, or season (for that is 
 the meaning), continues till March, at which time the oppo- 
 site one begins, but, like the other, mildly at first. It comes 
 with a north-west wind from the Atlantic, which wind is in 
 itself hotter and more charged with vapour when it leaves the 
 ocean than the opposite monsoon is when it leaves the South 
 Sea. It meets the colder air from the south, a contest ensues, 
 and the lightning and thunder are sublime, while the rain 
 falls in torrents, which are often so heavy as to sweep away, 
 not merely the cattle and the crops, but the very soil itself, 
 on the banks of those water-courses which but just before 
 were dry. This is the real spring of Southern Africa, and 
 perhaps it is the most violent spring anywhere to be met with 
 on the surface of the globe. The resistance which it has 
 to overcome is very strong, and the power of this spring 
 inverted, as far as the astronomical year is concerned is cor- 
 respondingly great. It has to contend, not with snow and 
 ice, as in the high latitudes of the northern hemisphere, or 
 with the humidity of winter, as in our own milder latitudes, 
 but with the very extreme of heat and drought. As in every 
 case in nature, however, the very intensity of this heat and 
 drought contains in itself the elements of its own correction, 
 and of a return to the opposite state of things. Whenever 
 the effect of the sun upon the great Antarctic Ocean during 
 the southern summer has, by raising the temperature, caused 
 
 o 
 
210 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the tendency of a current of air from the ocean, the parched 
 surface of Southern Africa is at the very maximum of its 
 power of rarifying the air over it, making the air ascend, and 
 thus demanding a supply along the surface. The state of the 
 Southern Ocean, as just explained, renders it incapable of 
 granting the full amount of this supply; but the general 
 elasticity of the atmosphere which pervades its whole mass, 
 and produces an equilibrium around the whole globe, never 
 fails to send from some quarter or other every supply of air 
 that may be necessary. It is this which brings the Atlantic 
 wind, or north-west monsoon, upon the arid karoos, or dry 
 plains, of Southern Africa; and it is because the southern 
 current still comes there in part and the two currents are of 
 different temperatures, as the south one comes from the direc- 
 tion of the pole, and the north from the direction of the 
 equator that such torrents of rain are poured down at this 
 season." 
 
 205. Seasons of New Zealand approximate to those of 
 Britain. Besides these continental tracts of land in the 
 south hemisphere, subject to the influences of the tem- 
 perate zone namely, in South America, South Africa, and 
 Australia the islands of New Zealand are of sufficient im- 
 portance to observe the duration and phenomena of the 
 seasons that occur there. In that region we find a nearer 
 approach to the European divisions than on the southern 
 continental masses ; and, from their isolation in the Pacific, 
 they partake something of the climatic changes that occur 
 in the British Isles during the year. Although not exactly 
 in the corresponding latitudes and longitudes of the south 
 hemisphere, yet, for the sake of illustration, they may be 
 considered as our antipodes bearing in mind always that 
 where the warmest latitudes in England cease at 50 N., the 
 coldest begin in New Zealand at about 48 S. This relative 
 position in latitude adds about ten degrees of heat to all 
 localities in these islands as compared with ours, or, accord- 
 ing to meteorological observations, an average temperature 
 there of 59 Fahrenheit to 49 here. Having travelled a good 
 
THE LAND. 211 
 
 deal in that interesting colony, we can vouch for it that the 
 climate of JSTew Zealand is better adapted to the English con- 
 stitution than that of any other of our colonies. The greater 
 preponderance of water over land in the south hemisphere 
 causes a lesser range of temperature in any latitude than in 
 its corresponding parallel of the north hemisphere, where 
 land preponderates over water. The temperature of New 
 Zealand, however, somewhat resembles that of the land 
 between the south of Portugal and the middle of France ; 
 or rather, from its insular character, that which Great Britain 
 would enjoy if its centre lay twelve hundred miles to the 
 west of Cape Finisterre. The extremes of heat in summer 
 and of cold in winter are within very narrow limits ; for the 
 immense expanse of ocean which surrounds these narrow 
 islands on all sides moderates alike the heat of the tropics 
 and the cold of the antarctic regions. Hot winds and droughts, 
 such as we have seen occur in Australia and South Africa, 
 are wholly unknown in New Zealand ; for a never - failing 
 supply of moisture is shed on the mountain-tops and forest- 
 lands by the winds which blow from all quarters of the 
 compass over a vast expanse of ocean. On the other hand, 
 except in the most southern parts, on the high table-lands, or 
 on the summits of the highest mountains, snow is seldom 
 seen after the sun has fairly risen, and never lies upon the 
 ground about the settlements near the level of the sea for 
 a whole day. 
 
 206. Spring the prevailing Season in New Zealand. The 
 chief characteristic of the climate of JSTew Zealand as com- 
 pared with the neighbouring island-continent of Australia is 
 its humidity. Yet there is no distinct rainy season as in the 
 tropics. Although it is rare for a fortnight to elapse without 
 at least refreshing showers, determined rainy weather seldom 
 lasts longer than three days without clear intervals, during 
 which everything, including the atmosphere, becomes quickly 
 dry. This general character, however, applies strictly to the 
 open country, where the vegetation is sparse ; for in the 
 forest-lands the trees and underwood are so dense that the 
 
212 OEIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 rays of the sun can scarcely penetrate to dry the ground ; 
 consequently they are humid more or less all the year round. 
 It rains during all the months of the year, but the greatest 
 quantity falls in June and July and the other cold months, 
 when there is also the greater number of rainy days ; while 
 the longest intervals between rain, and the smallest quantity 
 when it does rain, generally occur in December and January 
 and the other warm months. From this showery character 
 of the climate, with intervening periods of sunshine, there 
 is a freshness in the air that rarely occurs in the arid clime 
 of Australia. To a native of the British Isles there is a 
 " scent of home " about it that is pleasing to his mental as 
 well as his physical functions ; while a season analogous to 
 spring seems to predominate. It may be said that, from the 
 beginning of August to the middle of December, the " smiles 
 and tears of April " prevail ; and if the flora of New Zealand 
 possessed the numerous flowering-plants of Europe or Asia, 
 the groves and plains, the hills and valleys, would revel in 
 the varied hues of a garden. Such, however, is not the case 
 with the indigenous vegetation of these islands, where native 
 flowers are rarely seen, and when found they are small and 
 sober in tint. The smaller plants, both in the forests and on 
 the plains, are chiefly cryptogamous, or what are popularly 
 called "fiowerless plants," such as ferns, mosses, and lich- 
 ens; while the trees mostly belong to the family of conifers. 
 Hence there is little or no indication of spring upon the 
 vegetation from the budding of leaves or flowers. Notwith- 
 standing the favourable climatic influences for the growth of 
 deciduous trees and shrubs, nature has denied these islands 
 the glories of spring, which give such a charm to our own 
 isles at that season. Man, however, in colonising the country, 
 is clearing away the valueless ferns and cultivating useful 
 cereals, while the settlers are rearing every description of 
 flower that may be seen in European gardens, together with 
 hardy fruit-trees and vegetables of all kinds. The division 
 of the seasons in New Zealand may be defined as follows : 
 spring commences in August, summer in December, autumn 
 
THE LAND. 213 
 
 in March, and winter in July. Of course, from these islands 
 " extending over 800 miles of latitude, with the varied con- 
 figuration of lofty mountain - ranges, extensive plains and 
 forest-tracts, there must necessarily exist, irrespective of local 
 influence, great varieties of wind and weather," * and, con- 
 sequently, in the duration of the seasons. 
 
 207. Magnificence and Peculiarities of the Forests in New 
 Zealand. Here, as in all the southern latitudes, the native 
 trees and shrubs are evergreen retaining in the cold season 
 the verdant clothing of summer, and what may be called 
 autumnal foliage being cast off by the vigorous renewal of 
 vegetation in spring. The same phenomenon of the timber- 
 trees of Australia shedding their bark annually occurs in a 
 less marked degree among the larger trees of New Zealand, 
 although they are all of different species. In addition to 
 these characteristics, the roots of the trees rarely penetrate 
 the ground on account of the shallow soil, so that they 
 spread out on the surface, forming a rough network of root- 
 lets, which renders travelling through the forests unusually 
 troublesome. When a tree is blown down by the wind the 
 roots stand up like a cake of soil and wood, leaving the rock 
 quite bare. From this it is evident that the trees obtain 
 very little nourishment from the soil, and their luxuriance is 
 derived from the humidity and other properties of the atmo- 
 sphere. Hence a New Zealand forest is a dense mass of 
 vegetation, with its perennial foliage forming an umbra- 
 geous shade, causing a continual twilight of gloomy grandeur. 
 Perhaps there is no forest-scenery in temperate regions that 
 can equal the magnificence they present, vying with the 
 tropical forests of America. What gives them a remarkable 
 character is the underwood being principally composed of 
 tree-ferns from twenty to fifty feet in height, while the stems 
 of the large trees are hung with festoons of beautiful creep- 
 ing ferns, and clad with mosses and lichens of the most 
 curious forms. The monarch of the New Zealand forests is 
 the Kauri pine, which grows to a hundred and fifty feet in 
 * 'New Zealand Pilot.' 
 
214 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 height, the trunk being bare of branches two -thirds of the 
 way up, forming admirable timber for large masts and spars. 
 Like the greater number of the trees, it belongs to the 
 family of conifers ; and this, taken in conjunction with the 
 size and number of the fern-tribe, renders these forests in- 
 teresting from a geological point of view. We see in them a 
 counterpart of the vegetation that prevailed during the car- 
 boniferous period, even more perfect than what may be seen 
 in Australia, which we have already alluded to. In that 
 country there are abundance of flowering-plants ; while in the 
 carboniferous formation there are no vestiges of such, and 
 the paucity of these in the ISTew Zealand flora assimilates it 
 with the extinct flora of Europe. We behold, therefore, in 
 the islands of that country a living example of the vegetation 
 of our own isles when the forests were preparing the material 
 which forms our valuable coal-deposits. 
 
 208. Analogy between New Zealand Flora and Carbonif- 
 erous Era. In taking this view of the subject, an interest- 
 ing question arises regarding the causes which lead to this 
 analogy between the floras of two regions placed at the anti- 
 podes of each other, and in point of time so distant in their 
 origin. Geology informs us that the New Zealand islands 
 are all more or less of recent volcanic formation, whereas the 
 igneous rocks of the British Isles are of the most ancient, 
 structure ; while the fossil flora of the latter is embedded in 
 the oldest aqueous strata, without any equivalent in the 
 former. The inference to be drawn from this is, that atmo- 
 spheric conditions prevail in the south temperate regions now, 
 similar to those which existed in the northern zone during the 
 carboniferous era. What these conditions are remains to be 
 discussed, and they will form the leading arguments in the 
 division on the air, where it will be shown that there is a 
 remarkable difference between the properties of the atmo- 
 sphere in the south from those in the north hemisphere. 
 That this difference is the result of other elements than the 
 ordinary properties of heat, aridity, and moisture, may have 
 been observed by the reader, as we have seen that an 
 
THE LAND. 215 
 
 evergreen arborescent vegetation is the characteristic of New 
 Zealand, as it is of Australia, South Africa, and South 
 America, where no indigenous deciduous trees or shrubs 
 exist, though every degree of heat, aridity, and moisture may 
 be found. 
 
 209. Return to Hemispherical Disparity of Land and Water. 
 By these remarks we are led back to the general question 
 involved in our whole subject as to the origin of the seasons, 
 and disparity between the distribution of land and water in 
 the two hemispheres. " When it is recollected how much 
 more land is heated by solar action than water is heated by 
 the same, it will be perceived that the difference of seasons 
 in the northern hemisphere must be much greater than in 
 the southern ; that the spring there must act with far greater 
 energy, and have a correspondingly greater resistance to over- 
 come. . . . The vast extent of sea in the south can never be 
 hotter than the sea is with us in the same latitudes ; and 
 over great part of it there can be but little difference be- 
 tween the summer and winter temperature. The air over 
 any surface does not become much hotter than that surface, 
 speaking generally ; and therefore there cannot be, even in 
 the height of the southern summer, any very great extent of 
 heated air from the surface of this great expanse of water."* 
 
 210. Extreme Cold of Winter at the Southern Regions of 
 South America. Although mildness characterises the tem- 
 perature of the Cape, Australian, and New Zealand colonies, 
 yet the winter season in Terra - del - Fuego and the extreme 
 southern regions of the South American continent is more 
 rigorous, comparatively, than in corresponding latitudes in 
 the north of Europe. As a rule, there is a difference of some 
 five degrees of cold in these high latitudes, which leads to 
 the inference that there is an ice-bound continent at the 
 south pole. " The cold of the antarctic regions was con- 
 jectured by Cook to be due to the existence of a large tract 
 of land between the seventieth degree of south latitude and 
 the pole. The justness of these and other speculations of 
 
 * ' Spring/ by Robert Mudie, 
 
216 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 that great navigator has since been singularly confirmed by 
 the investigation made by Sir James Ross in 1841. He 
 found Victoria Land, extending from 71 to 79 S. latitude, 
 skirted by a great barrier of ice, the height of the land rang- 
 ing from 4000 to 14,000 feet, the whole entirely covered 
 with snow, except a narrow ring of black earth surrounding 
 the huge crater of Mount Erebus, rising 12,400 feet above 
 the level of the sea. The position of a mountainous territory 
 of such altitude so near the pole, and so obvious a source of 
 intense cold, fully explains why Graham's and Euderby's 
 land, discovered by Captain Biscoe in 1831-32 (between lati- 
 tude 64 68 S.), presented a most wintry aspect, covered 
 even in the summer with ice and snow, and nearly destitute 
 of animal life. In corresponding latitudes of the northern 
 hemisphere we not only meet with herds of wild herbivorous 
 animals, but with land which man himself inhabits, and 
 where he has even built ports and inland villages."* This 
 evidence of the existence of a south polar continent we 
 alluded to in describing the configuration of the solid parts 
 of the earth, as an equivalent in elevation to the depression 
 of the north polar sea. 
 
 211. Concluding Remarks on tire Vicissitudes of the Seasons. 
 Thus it will be seen that not only are the seasons of varied 
 duration, according to the local influences of sea and land, in 
 all the temperate regions of the earth, but that the disparity 
 in the surface-distribution of ocean and continents gives a 
 general character to their recurrence in the south, which 
 differs considerably from the phenomena in the north tem- 
 perate zone. Taking the seasons occurring on the British 
 Isles as the standard of equal duration, we find in the far 
 east the winter and summer prolonged, with extremes of heat 
 and cold ; while in the distant south temperate regions the 
 divisions of winter, spring, and autumn are so blended to- 
 gether that their distinguishing features are not recognisable. 
 Exceptions to the rule may be found in every region, and in 
 no two regions do they occur alike. As each season in its 
 * Ly ell's 'Principles of Geology.' 
 
THE LAND. 217 
 
 relation to the other is the result of incessant change, so 
 each group of seasons differs from another according to the 
 physical features of the country, and these in the course of 
 geological time have altered in their duration and pheno- 
 mena. From whatever point of view we consider their 
 relations in the economy of nature, the seasons have origi- 
 nated in vicissitude, they flourish in vicissitude, and in 
 vicissitude they may disappear. Instead of being examples 
 of the eternal laws of heat, light, and gravitation that per- 
 vade the universe, they are exceptions to the rule, presenting 
 only a transitory epoch in the history of the earth. 
 
PART II. 
 
 THE SEA 
 
CHAPTEE XI. 
 
 THE PRIMEVAL SEA. 
 
 Mean density and average depth of the sea ascertained, 212. Hydrostatic 
 figure of the earth in rotation orange-shaped, 213. Depression at the 
 poles compared with that in Jupiter, 214. M. Plateau's experiment 
 illustrating the principle of planetary centrifugal force, 215. Rotation 
 and bulk of the earth probably lessened, 216. Extraordinary computa- 
 tion of the earth's rotation, 217. Serenity and monotony reigned over 
 the primeval sea, 218. Maury's description of the basin of the Atlantic, 
 219. How continents might be levelled into the depths of the sea, 220. 
 Probable average depth of the primeval sea, 221. Has the sea dimin- 
 ished in volume since that period? 222. Geology shows that land is 
 formed by deposits from the sea, 223 The moon an example of a world 
 without a sea, 224. Recent observations of the lunar surface confirma- 
 tory of this, 225. Lockyer's theory of the lunar seas being engulfed in 
 the cavernous interior, 226. The moon a prophetic picture of the ulti- 
 mate fate of the earth, 227. The existence of the sea depends upon great 
 internal heat, 228. The sea contains atoms of all soluble minerals and 
 metals, 229. Analysis of chemical ingredients found in sea- water, 230. 
 Primary bed of the sea formed by microscopic silicious shells, 231. 
 Captain Maury's remarks on the abundance of calcareous shells and 
 absence of sand at the sea-bottom, 232, 233. Professor Bailey's remarks 
 on the animalcules of these shells living in the upper waters and sinking 
 after death, 234, 235. All the limestone series of rocks formed of fossil 
 zoophyte remains, 236. The bed of the primeval sea formed of extinct 
 species of shells, 237. Dr Carpenter's estimate of the enormous increase 
 of animalcules, 238. Silica a large ingredient in the primeval sea now 
 exhausted, 239. Crystalline rocks may have been originally formed of 
 silicious shells, 240. Speculative views on latent vitality and spontane- 
 ous generation, 241. Sequence of organic life traced back into the in- 
 organic world, 242. Saline solutions discovered in granite, and silver in 
 the sea, 243. Silicious rocks originally formed the bed of the primeval 
 sea, 244. 
 
 212. Mean Density and Average Depth of the Sea ascer- 
 tained. At the commencement of the foregoing division, 
 
222 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 when treating of the solid parts of the earth as affecting its 
 hemispherical equilibrium, the fluid parts which lie in the 
 hollows of its surface were only casually referred to. It was 
 inferred that the sea, notwithstanding its extent and depth, 
 is small in ponderosity as compared with the bulk and 
 density of the land. According to Lyell, " the mean density 
 of the earth has been computed by Laplace to be about 5|, 
 or more than five times that of water. JS T ow the specific 
 gravity of many of our rocks is from 2J to 3, and the greater 
 part of the metals range between that density and 21. 
 Hence some have imagined that the terrestrial nucleus may 
 be metallic that it may correspond, for example, with the 
 specific gravity of iron, which is about 7. Eut here a curious 
 question arises in regard to the form which materials, whether 
 fluid or solid, might assume, if subjected to the enormous 
 pressure which they must obtain at the earth's centre. Water, 
 if it continued to decrease in volume according to the rate of 
 compressibility deduced from experiment, would have its 
 density doubled at the depth of ninety-three miles." Whether 
 the sea attained a greater depth before the land rose above its 
 surface than at present, there are no data for computing; 
 therefore we must confine our calculations to the knowledge 
 we possess of the ocean as it now appears. Its deepest parts 
 are ascertained to be not more than seven miles, giving a 
 probable average for the entire superficies of the earth of per- 
 haps four miles. When we compare this with the earth's mean 
 diameter of 7912 miles, and the average gravity of five and a 
 half times that of water, we may conclude that if the move- 
 ments of the sea exercised any direct influence in displacing 
 the planes of our planet's diurnal and annual rotation, accord- 
 ing to our theory, it must have been more of a negative than 
 a positive character, by reason of its fluidity reacting upon 
 the forces that upheaved the land, according to the law of 
 oscillation. 
 
 213. Hydrostatic Figure of the Earth in Rotation Orange- 
 shaped. Hitherto we have considered the configuration of 
 the earth, and the land phenomena leading to the origin of 
 
THE SEA. 223 
 
 the seasons, from a strictly geological point of view, as 
 exemplified in the solid structure of its external crust. This 
 we have compared, for the sake of illustration, to a common 
 top, with an apex at the south pole and depression at the 
 north pole of revolution. "We now come to consider our 
 planet as a hydrostatic sphere, influenced by the law of 
 centrifugal force, which increases its fluid circumference of 
 rotation, and depresses both axes of diurnal revolution. 
 Hence the world has been familiarly compared to an orange ; 
 but this should be qualified by adding that the orange ought 
 to be spinning rapidly on a pivot through its centre and 
 across its least diameter. In the former instance, we have 
 viewed the solid fabric of the earth in repose, as it would 
 appear if axial rotation ceased, and the waters had disap- 
 peared from its surface; and, in the latter case, it comes 
 before us in all its activity of daily movement, where a true 
 spherical form of revolution is not only reached, but main- 
 tained in excess, by the greater circumference of the equa- 
 torial latitudes over the polar, when measured at the level of 
 the sea. This is the astronomical figure of our planet, which 
 Newton designated an oblate spheroid before it was mathe- 
 matically demonstrated ; and the hydrostatic theory of the 
 earth goes to prove that the internal solid parts must have 
 been deposited in an elliptical form. "However irregular 
 the surface of the earth may be in its details, its general form 
 agrees so nearly with the figure of hydrostatic equilibrium, that 
 the agreement cannot be regarded as fortuitous or accidental. 
 The regular increase of gravity from the equator to the poles 
 also proves that it is symmetrically constituted, or that the 
 materials in its interior are disposed about the centre of grav- 
 ity in regular elliptical strata, and arranged according to the 
 order of density. The earth must therefore have taken its 
 present form while its particles were at liberty to arrange them- 
 selves in obedience to the forces arising from their mutual 
 attractions, and from their rotation in other words, it must 
 have existed at some period of time in a state of fluidity." * 
 * Art. "Figure of the Earth," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
224 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 214. Depression at the Poles compared with that in 
 Jupiter. Although the sea is now, and has been for count- 
 less ages, inferior to the land as a component part of the 
 terraqueous globe, yet it is the opinion of many eminent 
 astronomers and geologists that in earlier epochs, when our 
 planet's density was less and its bulk greater, water formed 
 a larger proportion of the terrestrial matter than it does now. 
 It is even held by some as a cosmical theory that our planet, 
 in its primary elementary state, passed through an aqueous 
 condition, from which the solid nucleus was precipitated. 
 Into these hypotheses we shall not enter at present. Our 
 investigations into the phenomena of the sea, bearing upon 
 the disturbance of the equilibrium of the land, begin at that 
 epoch when the depths and shallows were being formed by 
 upheavals and sinkings of the solid matter which, by refrig- 
 eration, now forms what geologists term the " crust of the 
 earth." At this period the sedimentary rocks, we assume, 
 were in a plastic state, so as to be affected by centrifugal 
 force ; but, from their greater density and tenacity, the de- 
 pression at the poles would be less in proportion at the bed 
 of the sea than on its surface. Whether the oblateness of 
 the terrestrial spheroid was greater then than now, is a 
 question impossible to determine, as that would depend upon 
 the velocity of the diurnal rotation, according to the experi- 
 mental illustration we shall presently quote. That it is not 
 unphilosophical to moot the inquiry, is obvious from the 
 observations of astronomers regarding the rotation and form 
 of the planet Jupiter. " The radius of Jupiter being nearly 
 11 times (10.86) that of our earth, his rotation 2.4 times 
 more rapid, it follows that the space passed over by a point 
 on his equator is 26 times greater than that passed over by a 
 point on the terrestrial equator at the same time. Hence the 
 centrifugal force is 26 times greater ; and if the spheroidal 
 form of the earth is occasioned by the diurnal motion, we 
 may expect to find the same effects, on a much larger scale, 
 exhibited in the form of Jupiter. And this is in fact ob- 
 served to be the case ; for, according to Struve, the compres- 
 
THE SEA. 225 
 
 sion of Jupiter is about j^th of his radius, the diameter of his 
 equator being to that of his poles as 14 to 13 nearly; while 
 that of the earth is only ^J-g- th * that is to say, the equatorial 
 is to the polar diameter in the ratio of 306 to 305, or a com- 
 pression of 27 miles. 
 
 215. M. Plateau's Experiment illustrating the Principle. 
 " Some very curious physical experiments, imagined by M. 
 Plateau, account in the most satisfactory way for the pheno- 
 mena which we have just described ; they appear to us well 
 adapted to dissipate the obscurity which a description of such 
 an abstract conception would naturally leave in the minds of 
 some of our readers. These experiments consist essentially 
 in freeing a fluid mass from the action of gravity in such a 
 manner that all its parts may be merely acted upon by their 
 mutual attraction, and in imparting afterwards to this mass 
 a movement of rotation more and more rapid. To do this, 
 M. Plateau places a quantity of oil in a glass vessel filled 
 with a mixture of water and alcohol, the lower strata of 
 which are more dense than oil, whilst the upper strata are 
 lighter. The mass of oil descends in the mixture as far as 
 the stratum of the same density, where it remains, taking the 
 form of a sphere. In this state the mass of oil is freed from 
 the action of gravity, and the form which it takes is due 
 simply to the mutual attraction of its molecules. Next, by 
 the help of a metallic disc, introduced with care into the 
 sphere of oil, and a stem which passes through its centre and 
 communicates with a handle, M. Plateau imparts to the sys- 
 tem a progressive movement of rotation. When this move- 
 ment is slow, the sphere is transformed into a spheroid, 
 swelled at the equator, flattened at the poles, under the 
 action of the centrifugal force, which develops the movement. 
 The phenomenon accounts, then, perfectly, for the form of 
 the planets. If the movement becomes more rapid, the flat- 
 tening becomes more considerable; the spheroid becomes 
 indented at its poles, spreading out more and more in the 
 horizontal direction, until the oil, entirely leaving the disc, 
 * Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 P 
 
226 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 is formed into a circular ring. At this moment the pheno- 
 menon at once explains both the zones detached at the origin 
 of the solar mass and the rings of Saturn. Lastly, if the 
 rotatory movement, rendered more rapid, is continued with a 
 disc of a diameter sufficiently large, the centrifugal force, in 
 driving the particles of the surrounding medium towards the 
 ring, soon separates it into isolated masses, which form them- 
 selves into individual spheres, each of which preserves for a 
 certain time a movement of rotation of its own in the same 
 direction as the ring. This last phase of the phenomenon 
 offers a striking analogy with that of the formation of the 
 centres of condensation which, on Laplace's hypothesis, are 
 the origin of the planets of our system." * 
 
 216. Rotation and Bulk of the Earth probably lessened. 
 Without considering whether the earth at one time had pro- 
 portionate dimensions to the enormous bulk of Jupiter, when 
 its mean density approximated to the lighter matter of that 
 planet, or its diurnal revolution was ever proportionately as 
 rapid, we have here data to speculate upon the probability 
 that, at some period anterior to the upheaval of the land, it 
 revolved on its axis with greater rapidity than at present, 
 and the oblateness of its spheroidal form was probably 
 greater. Moreover, the depth of the circumambient sea 
 would be less at the poles than the equator. Assuming this 
 to have been the case, we draw the inference that the up- 
 heaval of the continental masses, dividing the sea into num- 
 erous branches, probably affected the diurnal rotation of the 
 earth, so that day and night may have lengthened. On this 
 point astronomers conclude that there has been no alteration 
 in the equation of time throughout the year, although astro- 
 nomical or solar days are not equal. " Two causes in particu- 
 lar conspire to produce their inequality namely, the unequal 
 velocity of the sun in his orbit, and the obliquity of the 
 ecliptic." Here it is sufficient merely to note that even the 
 length of each day is subject to change throughout the year, 
 and that it is possible the revolution of the earth on its axis 
 * < The Heavens,' by A. Guillemin. 
 
THE SEA. 227 
 
 was performed in a shorter space of time than the twenty- 
 four hours into which man has divided it. 
 
 217. Computation of the Earth's Hate of Rotation. A 
 writer in one of our popular periodicals furnishes a compu- 
 tation as to the length of time that must have elapsed to 
 increase the day by one second, and the period when diurnal 
 rotation may be expected to cease, as follows : " There are 
 86,400 seconds in a day of the current anno domini. If it 
 requires 100,000 years for the day (in consequence of the 
 earth's more sluggish rotation) to increase by the 86,400th 
 part of its length, it will take 8,640,000,000 of years to cause 
 that rotation to cease altogether, supposing the slackening of 
 its speed to continue under the same conditions. Will it 
 ever cease 1 Will the earth ever come to a stand-still, as far 
 as her rotation is concerned 1 No, she will not. Her rate of 
 spinning is gradually slackened, because she spins faster than 
 the moon, who thereby raises the water into a heap, convert- 
 ing it into a brake or drag. But when once the earth spins 
 no faster than the moon, she will always have the same hem- 
 isphere turned towards her satellite ; the liquid protuberance 
 will be no longer carried forwards, and the moon will have 
 no further hold whereby to check the earth's rotation. The 
 period of the earth's rotation would then coincide with that 
 of the moon's revolution round the earth. In short, the 
 earth at last would constantly turn the same face to the 
 moon, exactly as the moon turns the same to us. It is only 
 natural to suppose that the very same cause has produced the 
 singularity which we observe in the motions of the moon. 
 If she always turns the same face to the earth, the cause 
 ought to be analogous to that now submitted to your con- 
 sideration. But things may not even go so far as that. As 
 time slips away, the earth's temperature is expected gradually 
 to drop. The waters of the ocean may be converted into ice : 
 with no more water there will be no more tides ; the cause of 
 the slackening of the rotatory movement will disappear, and 
 the earth will thenceforth continue to turn with a constant 
 velocity. The exact amount of slackening is not yet known ; 
 
228 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 it is ascertained approximately only by the indications afforded 
 by ancient eclipses. Its accurate determination must be a 
 work of time." * / 
 
 218. Serenity and Calmness reigned over the Primeval Sea. 
 Confining our investigations to the geological part of the 
 subject, the first question that presents itself is the physical 
 condition of the primeval sea in relation to the diurnal and 
 annual revolutions of our planet. That these were of the 
 simplest character is abundantly evident from the data fur- 
 nished by the earliest stratified rocks. Compared with the 
 present intricate " Physical Geography of the Sea," as the 
 study is designated by Humboldt and Maury, its currents, 
 tides, and other phenomena must have been of the most 
 rudimentary nature. Assuming that the equatorial plane 
 was parallel with the earth's orbit, or only slightly displaced, 
 the distribution of solar heat over the sea would be unbroken 
 throughout the year, with a superincumbent atmosphere en- 
 circling the waters, having isothermal lines corresponding 
 with the parallels of latitude. The sea being unbroken by 
 the submerged land would have a uniformity of current, 
 caused by its diurnal rotation, only disturbed by lunar at- 
 traction and other perturbations of the heavenly bodies, which 
 had then but little influence on its general condition. In 
 this pristine era, a universal sameness and monotony prevailed 
 over the "boundless deep," save when its surface was agi- 
 tated by the winds, and even these would be of a monoton- 
 ous character, having no land to influence their direction or 
 variation. Day and night were equal from pole to pole 
 throughout the year, and belts of clouds hung over the sea, 
 in certain latitudes encompassing the watery globe. The 
 currents of the ocean were more or less uniform with the 
 currents of the air, and these followed the laws that regulated 
 the diurnal revolution of the earth. Everywhere a universal 
 serenity reigned over the primeval sea. If a sentient being 
 could have visited our planet at this epoch, and sailed over 
 its endless watery expanse, his mental energies would have 
 * 'All the Year Round.' 
 
THE SEA. 229 
 
 collapsed with the eternal sameness of day and night, sea 
 and sky, heat and light. 
 
 219. Maury's Description of the Basin of the Atlantic. 
 In like manner the bed of the primeval sea was probably of 
 a uniform depth from its surface always excepting the dif- 
 ference between the polar compressions of the plastic land 
 and the water. If it were possible to ascertain the mean 
 depth of the present ocean, it would furnish data for an ap- 
 proximate computation of the average depth of the body of 
 water which covered the earth at this period before any of 
 the land was upheaved. Maury, in his work on the ' Physi- 
 cal Geography of the Sea,' has constructed a chart of the 
 basin of the North Atlantic Ocean, with numerous soundings, 
 showing a probable average of 3000 fathoms, or upwards of 
 three miles. Of its general character he remarks as follows : 
 " In its entire length the basin of this sea is a long trough, 
 separating the Old World from the New, and extending pro- 
 bably from pole to pole. This ocean-furrow was scored into 
 the solid crust of our planet by the Almighty hand, that 
 there the waters which * He called seas ' might be gathered 
 together, so as to ' let the dry land appear,' and fit the earth 
 for the habitation of man. From the top of Chimborazo to 
 the bottom of the Atlantic, at the deepest place yet reached 
 by the plummet in the North Atlantic, the distance, in a 
 vertical line, is nine miles. Could the waters of the Atlantic 
 be drawn off so as to expose to view this great sea-gash which 
 separates continents, and extends from the arctic to the 
 antarctic, it would present a scene the most rugged, grand, 
 and imposing. The very ribs of the solid earth, with the 
 foundations of the sea, would be brought to light, and we 
 should have presented to us at one view, in the empty cradle 
 of the ocean, * a thousand fearful wrecks,' with that dreadful 
 array of dead men's skulls, great anchors, heaps of pearl and 
 inestimable stones, which, in the dreamer's eye, lie scattered 
 011 the bottom of the sea, making it hideous with sights of 
 ugly death." 
 
 220. How Continents might be swallowed up in the Deep 
 
230 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Sea. On the other hand, could we imagine the mountain- 
 chain of the Alleghanies hurled into the profound depths of 
 the North Atlantic, and the table-lands of Mexico shovelled 
 into the Gulf of Florida, until its bed became comparatively- 
 level, it would present the aspect of a more uniform sea un- 
 disturbed by wayward currents, or that wondrous ocean-river, 
 the Gulf Stream similar to what it was at the period under 
 consideration. Still, its average depth would be greater than 
 the primeval sea, as the continental masses themselves would 
 have to be cleared away, not only level with the surface- 
 waters, but down, down, two or three thousand fathoms, 
 until the ocean-bed was raised to that average, or the appar- 
 ent mean depth delineated in Maury's chart. Then all traces 
 of land above the sea-level would be gone, and the submarine 
 mountains and valleys, plains and precipices, would no longer 
 " present a scene the most rugged, grand, and imposing ; " 
 while "the empty cradle of the ocean," with that dreadful 
 array of men's skulls, great anchors, and "a thousand wrecks," 
 would be buried under the tremendous superincumbent 
 debris. 
 
 221. Probable Average Depth of the Primeval Sea. As- 
 suming, for the sake of illustration, that the average depth of 
 the primeval sea was 20,000 feet, or about four miles, we 
 may form some idea of the immense body of water that en- 
 veloped the earth before the upheaval of the land. Yet this 
 was a light stratum only, covering the vast bulk of the globe, 
 when compared with its diameter of 7000 miles, and mean 
 density of 5 J to 1 of water. At the same time, the pressure 
 of such a column of fluid upon the plastic crust of the earth 
 must have exercised a counteracting influence in suppressing 
 the internal volcanic forces that upheaved the continental 
 masses ; and we may thereby estimate the greater power of 
 the primary agencies that had to contend with that pressure, 
 compared with subsequent and modern volcanic forces bat- 
 tling only against shallow seas or atmospheric pressure. 
 There must have been a tremendous struggle between the 
 igneous internal force and its opposing aqueous external pres- 
 
THE SEA. 231 
 
 sure to obtain the mastery. We have fully considered in the 
 first part of this work how the former succeeded, not only 
 in shaking the framework of the earth to its centre, but im- 
 pelling its axis from its normal position. We have also ad- 
 vanced that there was a corresponding subsidence of the 
 earth's crust as the continental masses were upheaved. At 
 these periods it is not unscientific to conclude that the rush 
 of waters displaced by the upheaval of the land into the 
 depressions of the sea-bed would give a negative impetus to 
 the one grand work of the displacement of the equatorial 
 plane from the orbit of the earth. And as the greatest up- 
 heaval of the land was in the north hemisphere, so the rush 
 of waters to maintain the ocean-level would be towards the 
 south hemisphere, throwing their weight with some force into 
 the opposite scale, and thus aiding in driving the earth off its 
 balance. 
 
 222. Has the Sea diminished in Quantity since that 
 Period ? It becomes here a subject of interesting inquiry 
 whether the sea, at the period under consideration, altered 
 its level, in relation to the centre of gravity, by a diminution 
 of its fluid or increase of its solid parts. As far as human 
 calculations can penetrate into the past condition of the sea 
 from geological data, and the evidences furnished during the 
 historic era, this question has not been satisfactorily deter- 
 mined. According to the general principle inferred from the 
 foregoing section, that there was an equivalent to the up- 
 heaval of land by its subsidence, the mean level of the sea 
 would not be affected permanently, however much it might 
 have been transiently in some places. We can understand 
 how the Atlantic, when first shaped by the continental 
 masses that determine its shores, was considerably higher in 
 its level than at present, from the waters displaced by the 
 land partly rushing into its valley. But when the surplus 
 waters flowed towards the south to fill up a lower level 
 caused by subsidence, they would sweep along with immense 
 velocity, like a flooded river rising between its banks, until 
 the current reached the unconfined Southern Ocean and the 
 
232 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Pacific, where they would spread out in comparative quies- 
 cence, as the rushing stream forms a lake on the plain. Then 
 the Atlantic would fall and the Pacific rise to the universal 
 level. It is not long since hydrographers settled the question 
 whether the levels of these two oceans were the same some 
 observers having stated that there was a difference of several 
 feet; so that, in the event of the proposed canal being cut 
 through the Isthmus of Panama, there would be a constant 
 current from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The supposed dif- 
 ference of level, however, was ascertained to be the difference 
 of tides only the variation at the times of observation, with 
 the rise and fall on each side of the isthmus, being variously 
 affected by local causes. 
 
 223. Geology shows that Land is formed by Deposits from 
 the Sea. "When meteorologists and hydrologists inform us 
 that there has been no change in the volume of the atmo- 
 sphere and the sea since the creation, we must receive their 
 statements with the same qualifications that we have done 
 with regard to those bearing upon the immutability of the 
 seasons. There is abundant geological evidence to prove that 
 a great portion of the earth's crust was deposited by the sea, 
 as it is conjectured that the volume of the sea may have 
 been augmented by the watery deposits of the primeval 
 atmosphere. We do not allude here to the agency of water 
 in the formation of sandstone and cognate rocks, or humidity 
 caused by evaporation forming rain -clouds, and the like, 
 which are only modifications of these elements. Irrespective 
 of these modifying agencies, there are others at work, and 
 have been at work from primeval time on this planet, which 
 have produced many of the physical phenomena that now 
 exist. As a rule, aqueous matter from chemical affinity tends 
 to become solid, as aeriform matter by the same law has a 
 tendency to become fluid. Thus it may be said that all the 
 elements on the surface of the earth will ultimately resolve 
 themselves into a solid form ; so that, in the course of im- 
 measurable periods of time, the sea and the air will disappear 
 by solidification into the framework of our planet. Then 
 
THE SEA. 233 
 
 would the whole of the animal and vegetable creations, 
 which make this world so beautiful, become utterly extinct, 
 and its whole circumference, from pole to pole, present the 
 aspect of a howling wilderness, like her own satellite the 
 moon, which astronomers represent upon sound data to be 
 an oceanless sphere, without a life-breathing atmosphere. 
 
 224. The Moon an Example of a World without a Sea. 
 " The dark spots on the moon's surface were formerly 
 supposed to be water, but as elevations and cavities are dis- 
 tinctly perceptible in them, that hypothesis is evidently 
 erroneous. Besides, the extreme tenuity of her atmosphere 
 is inconsistent with the existence of water at her surface. 
 It is only by the weight of the terrestrial atmosphere that 
 the liquids at the surface of the earth are prevented from 
 being dissipated in vapours. If the present atmosphere were 
 removed, every liquid would continue to be dissipated in this 
 manner till a new atmosphere was formed, to which each 
 would contribute in proportion to its elastic force ; and the 
 evaporation would only cease when the tension of the vapour 
 of each liquid was equal to its elastic force in a vacuum at 
 the same temperature. But if the vapours were removed as 
 they arose by any absorbing cause, the evaporation would 
 continue until the liquids entirely disappeared. Now we 
 may suppose this to be the case with respect to the moon, 
 and that at one time she may have had an atmosphere which 
 the attractive force of the earth, aided by some accidental 
 circumstance, may have swept away and united with our 
 own. Under these circumstances, it is evident that no 
 animal similarly constituted to those which inhabit the 
 earth could respire at the surface of the moon. Everything 
 there appears solid, desolate, and unfit for the production of 
 organised substances ; and the excessive cold which certainly 
 prevails must be sufficient to destroy every source of animal 
 or vegetable life. May it not then be supposed that the 
 moon is a planet which has not yet reached a state of 
 maturity a maturity to be prepared by successive volcanic 
 eruptions ; or that, having fulfilled its destiny, it is now in a 
 
234 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 state of decay 1 ?"* In replying to that question we would 
 incline to the latter suggestion, as more consonant with the 
 theory set forth in this work, and according with the views of 
 the most profound geologists, that all the solid matter of this 
 earth has been consolidated from a liquid and aeriform con^ 
 dition. With regard to the hypothesis in the foregoing 
 extract, that if the earth had no atmosphere the waters 
 would evaporate until they disappeared this may be true in 
 the abstract ; but the writer forgot to mention what would 
 become of these atoms of matter, which, of course, could not 
 entirely leave the earth, by reason of the attraction of gravi- 
 tation, consequently they would resolve themselves into solid 
 matter. Applying the same principle to the waterless, if not 
 airless, condition of the moon, it is more consistent with 
 the physical laws of nature that her possible primary life- 
 giving atmosphere became absorbed within her own solid 
 framework, than that "the attractive force of the earth, 
 aided by some accidental circumstance, may have swept it 
 away and united it with our own;" and that her seas have 
 collapsed within her hollow sphere as the crust cooled. 
 
 225. Recent Observations of the Lunar Surface confirma- 
 tory. From numerous recent observations of the moon's 
 surface by Lord Rosse's powerful telescope of six feet aper- 
 ture and sixty feet focal length, as well as other large instru- 
 ments in British and foreign observatories, it has been 
 determined by astronomers that the moon is devoid of air, 
 and that the absence of air implies absence of water. " If 
 there existed lakes, seas, or even rivers, the liquids forming 
 these reservoirs or currents would be reduced to vapour by 
 the fact that they would not be maintained as such by atmo- 
 spheric pressure. But the solar heat acting still more ener- 
 getically would develop a gaseous envelope. . . . The large 
 dark spots which the first observers took for seas, are now 
 known to be vast plains, lower in level than the valleys of 
 the mountain - regions. One thing which doubtless, in the 
 first instance, increased the illusion was, that many of these 
 * Art. "Astronomy," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE SEA. 235 
 
 spots appear of a light greyish - green colour ; others are 
 greenish - grey, reddish, or, again, of a deep grey, like steel. 
 The absence of waters, and as a natural consequence of 
 rains, is so much the more probable, as it well explains the 
 present appearance "of the surface of the moon, or, in other 
 words, the geology of its superficial strata." * 
 
 226. Lockyer's Theory of the Lunar Seas being engulfed 
 in the Moon's Interior. "Instead of seas they are most 
 probably old sea-bottoms. Such, then, are the results of the 
 telescopic observations of our satellite turned towards us. Do 
 we know anything about the like conditions of the side turned 
 away from us 1 or, again, can we dive into the past history 
 of the moon? The illustrious Hansen has held that it is 
 quite possible that the lunarians on the side away from us 
 may possess both water and an atmosphere, and that the 
 side turned towards us may be regarded as one vast moun- 
 tain. Adams and Le Yerrier, however, ' have shown that 
 such a hypothesis is not very securely based. . . . With 
 regard to the probability of former aqueous agency on the 
 surface of the moon, difficulties of an apparently very formi- 
 dable character present themselves. There is not only now no 
 evidence whatever of the presence of water in any of its three 
 forms on the lunar surface, but, on the contrary, all seleno- 
 graphic observations tend to prove its absence. Neverthe- 
 less the idea of former aqueous agency in the moon has 
 received almost universal acceptation. It was entertained by 
 Gruithuisen and others. . But if water at one time existed 
 on the surface of the moon, whither has it disappeared ? If 
 we assume, in accordance with the nebular hypothesis, that 
 the portions of matter composing respectively the earth and 
 the moon once possessed an equally elevated temperature, it 
 almost necessarily follows that the moon, owing to the com- 
 parative smallness of its mass, would cool more rapidly 
 than the earth ; for whilst the volume of the moon is only 
 about ^th, its surface is nearly T ^th, that of the earth. This 
 cooling of the mass of the moon must, in accordance with all 
 * ' The Heavens/ by Amade Guillemin. 
 
236 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 analogy, have been attended with contraction, which can 
 scarcely be conceived as occurring without the development 
 of a cavernous structure in the interior. Much of this 
 cavernous structure would doubtless communicate by means 
 of fissures with the surface ; and thus there would be pro- 
 vided an internal receptacle for the ocean, from the depths of 
 which even the burning sun of the long lunar day would be 
 totally unable to dislodge more than traces of its vapour. 
 Assuming the solid mass of the moon to contract on cooling 
 at the same rate as granite, its refrigeration, through only 
 180 Fahrenheit, would create cellular space equal to nearly 
 14 J millions of cubic miles, which would be more than 
 sufficient to engulf the whole of the lunar oceans, supposing 
 them to bear the same proportion to the mass of the moon as 
 our own oceans bear to that of the earth."* 
 
 227. The Moon a Prophetic Picture of the Probable Fate 
 of the Earth. According to this hypothesis of the disap- 
 pearance of former lunar oceans, and the surface of the moon 
 presenting only the solid framework of its sphere, we have 
 before us, within scope of our far - searching telescopes, an 
 example in the solar system of what the earth would be like 
 divested of its seas, as we have endeavoured to picture in 
 the first section of our work. The absence of water from 
 the ocean-beds accounts also for the great heights of the 
 mountains as compared with those on the earth, inasmuch as 
 these are estimated from the depths of former sea-valleys of 
 the satellite ; whereas in the parent.planet they are calculated 
 from the level of the sea. Taking these modes of compu- 
 tation into consideration, there is not so great a disparity 
 between the elevation of the terrestrial and lunar mountain- 
 chains and crateriforni mountains as we have hitherto been 
 led to suppose. The highest of these are in the vicinity of 
 the southern pole : there Dorfel is found, the summit of 
 which attains 26,691 feet in altidude; the mountains Casa- 
 tus and Curtius are 21,234 and 22,227 feet high. In all 
 probability, however, when the moon had its extinct sea, 
 * J. Norman Lockyer, F.R.A.S., in ' The Heavens/ by Guillemin. 
 
THE SEA. 237 
 
 these would not have been half their elevation above its 
 level ; and if the earth was oceanless, like her satellite, the 
 Himalayas and the Andes would attain an altitude of from 
 50,000 to 60,000 feet above the deepest valleys of the Pacific 
 and Indian Oceans, while Gaurisankar would be 63,360 feet 
 a vertical height of twelve miles or so. " JS"ow, if such be 
 the present condition of the moon, we can scarcely avoid the 
 conclusion that a liquid ocean can only exist upon the sur- 
 face of a planet so long as the latter retains a high internal 
 temperature. The moon, then, becomes to us a prophetic 
 picture of the ultimate fate which awaits our earth; when 
 deprived of an external ocean, and of all but an annual 
 rotation upon its axis, it will revolve round the sun an arid 
 and lifeless wilderness, one hemisphere being exposed to the 
 perpetual glare of the solar rays, the other shrouded in eter- 
 nal night." * 
 
 228. TJie Existence of the Sea depends upon great Internal 
 Heat. It is now the general opinion of both astronomers 
 and geologists, that the interior of the earth must be pos- 
 sessed of a temperature exceeding anything we know of 
 calorific emanations on its surface ; and that it is this in- 
 tense heat, whether maintained by solid or liquid matter, 
 which holds together the inner particles of the external 
 crust, otherwise the roof of the crust would shrink and crack 
 at a low temperature, and the sea sink through the deepest 
 or thinnest parts of its bed. It has been calculated that 
 " If a channel only three quarters of a square mile in sec- 
 tional area were opened from the bottom of the sea to the 
 centre of the earth, the whole ocean would flow into it 
 taking, that is to say, the increase of density of water (ac- 
 cording to the experiments of Perkins) at 0.474 per cent for 
 every additional 100 atmospheres of pressure, and supposing 
 the same ratio to hold good under all pressures. This, of 
 course, cannot be supposed to be really the case. One of 
 two things must happen, either the water would be com- 
 pressed into solidity, or must be sustained from so doing by 
 * J. Norman Lockyer, in ' The Heavens.' 
 
238 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 an increased elasticity, the effect of an exceedingly high, tem- 
 perature. This, indeed, we have every reason to believe, really 
 exists within the earth. Not only is it a general fact that 
 the thermometric temperature of the ground does increase in 
 descending, in all regions wherever deep mines have been 
 sunk, or borings executed, at an average rate of about 1 
 Fahrenheit for every 90 feet of depth ; and not only do the 
 phenomena of volcanoes and hot -springs indicate unmis- 
 takably the still further increase of heat beyond the reach 
 of artificial excavation, but the fact itself, that the mean 
 density of the globe is so small as 5J, must be held as con- 
 clusive evidence of an excessive internal temperature. It 
 is not by solidifying that fluids can escape from further 
 condensation." * 
 
 229. The Sea contains Atoms of all Soluble Minerals and 
 Metals. On this head it has been advanced by the same 
 authority, that " As the sea continually receives the drainage 
 of all the land, besides having, in the course of countless 
 ages, washed over and over again the disintegrated materials 
 of successive continents, it must of course hold in solution 
 all the saline ingredients capable of being separated and 
 taken up by such lixiviation in cold water; in fact, in 
 greater or less quantity, every soluble substance in nature 
 such, at least, whose existences in extremely dilute solution 
 are not incompatible. By far the larger proportion, however, 
 consists of chloride of sodium (common salt), after which 
 occur chlorides and sulphates of magnesia and lime in some 
 considerable abundance. And in much more minute but yet 
 appreciable quantity, occur salts of potash and ammonia, the 
 iodide and bromide of sodium, carbonate of lime, silica, and 
 other matters too numerous to mention. The sulphate and 
 carbonate of lime, and the silica, however minute the per- 
 centage of the latter, are yet of vast importance in the 
 economy of animated nature, as furnishing all the lime and 
 silica out of which the shells of mollusca, the structures of 
 the coral and other similar insects, and the shells and cara- 
 * Art. "Physical Geography," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE SEA. 239 
 
 paces of the silicious infusorise, &c., are derived. But 
 besides these saline and earthy ingredients, metallic salts in 
 excessively minute quantities have been shown to exist in 
 sea-water. Thus copper is present to such an extent, that 
 clean and polished iron dragged in the wake of a ship, 
 during even a short voyage, has been observed to come up 
 with a film of that metal precipitated upon it. Silver also 
 is formed in combination with the old and worn coppering 
 of ships to such an amount as to make it worth while to 
 extract it ; " * and, as we shall presently see, has been com- 
 puted at 200 million tons held in chemical solution by the 
 whole ocean. 
 
 230. Analysis of Chemical Ingredients found in Sea- 
 Water. We must distinguish here between those ingredients 
 that may be considered primarily in chemical combination 
 with sea -water and others of a secondary character, that 
 mingle in the ocean by means of rains, rivers, currents, 
 waves, and winds, through what may be termed mechanical 
 action. For example, a salt spring carries saline particles 
 to the sea from passing over a stratum of rock-salt originally 
 deposited by the ocean ; but it does not follow that all the 
 salt in the sea came from similar land-sources. We take it to 
 be an incontestable fact, that the salts in chemical solution 
 with the pure water, which forms more than nineteen- 
 twentieths of the sea, have been in combination before any 
 land was formed. Moreover, we must distinguish between 
 the soluble and insoluble substances produced by the sea, 
 where the former may combine with their parent element, 
 but the latter, once produced, never return to their primary 
 condition. This is seen in the coral-reefs, that withstand the 
 most powerful attrition of waves and the warm currents 
 of tropical seas for centuries, without a particle of their 
 substance either softening or dissolving. How far the softer 
 formations of chalk and marl may mingle chemically with 
 sea -water we are not prepared to say, but this must be 
 infinitesimal compared with the ingredients inherent in its 
 * Art. "Physical Geography," 'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
240 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 composition. The following is given by M. Eegnault as a 
 mean result of the analysis of sea-water : 
 
 Pure water, . . ; 96. 470 
 
 (Chloride of sodium, 2.700 
 
 magnesium, 0.360 
 
 potassium, 0.070 
 
 Sulphate of lime, . 0.140 
 
 magnesia, 0.230 
 
 Carbonate of lime, . 0.003 
 
 Bromide of magnesium, 0.002 
 
 Loss (including iodides, silica, &c. ), . . . 0.025 
 
 100.000 
 
 231. Primary Bed of the Sea formed of Microscopic Shells. 
 To return to the main subject under consideration, regard- 
 ing the strata forming the bed of the primeval sea. The pro- 
 cess of solidification alluded to was of an entirely different 
 nature from these chemical changes. There are ample data 
 for concluding that the great organic law that pervades every 
 drop of the ocean was the first solidifier of the earths and 
 salts which sea-water holds in chemical combination. The 
 most remarkable discoveries on this head have been made by 
 hydrographers only recently in sounding the depths of the 
 ocean, and submitting the particles obtained from its bed, 
 brought up by the sounding-apparatus, to the examination of 
 the microscope. In the hands of Ehrenberg and other skilled 
 savans, that instrument has revealed to us the fact that, in 
 the deepest parts of the Atlantic, the Pacific, and the Indian 
 Ocean, their beds are strewed with countless myriads of 
 minute shells, without a particle of sand or gravel being 
 found. Among the foremost men in conducting these oceanic 
 experiments practically is Captain Maury, formerly of the 
 American navy, who received great aid from a fellow-officer 
 named Brooke, the inventor of an ingenious sounding-appa- 
 ratus, which has reached depths of five and nearly six miles, 
 bringing up specimens of the ocean-bed. On submitting 
 some soundings from a depth of two miles in the basin of the 
 Atlantic to Professor Bailey of America, he pronounced them 
 to be " chiefly made up of perfect little calcareous shells 
 
THE SEA. 241 
 
 (foramintfera), and contain also a small number of silicious 
 shells (diatomacece)" Although perfect in form, these min- 
 ute shells contained no animal life, which led the Professor 
 to conclude " that they inhabit the waters near the surface, 
 and when they die their shells settle to the bottom." This 
 examination elicits the following remarks from Captain 
 Maury : 
 
 232. Captain Maunjs Remarks on the Abundance of Minute 
 Shells and Absence of Sand at the Sea-Bottom. " These little 
 mites of shells seem to form but a slender clew indeed by 
 which the chambers of the deep are to be threaded, and the 
 mysteries of the ocean revealed ; yet the results are suggestive 
 in right hands, and to right minds they are guides to both 
 light and knowledge. The first noticeable thing the micro- 
 scope gives of these specimens is, that all of them are animal, 
 not one of the mineral kingdom. The ocean teems with life, 
 we know. Of the four elements of the old philosophers 
 fire, earth, air, and water perhaps the sea most of all abounds 
 with living creatures. The space occupied on the surface of 
 our planet by the different families of animals and their re- 
 mains is inversely as the size of the individual. The smallei 
 the animal, the greater the space occupied by his remains. 
 Though not invariably the case, yet this rule, to a certain 
 extent, is true, and will therefore answer our present pur- 
 poses, which are simply those of illustration. Take the 
 elephant and his remains, or a microscopic animal, and corn- 
 pare them. The contrast, as to space occupied, is as striking 
 as that of the coral reef or island with the dimensions of the 
 whale. The graveyard that would hold the corallines is 
 larger than the graveyard that would hold the elephants. 
 
 233. " We notice another practical bearing in this group 
 of physical facts that Brooke's apparatus fished up from the 
 bottom of the deep sea. Bailey with his microscope could 
 not detect a single particle of sand or gravel among these 
 mites of shells. They were from the great telegraphic pla- 
 teau ; and the inference is, that there, if anywhere, the waters 
 of the sea are at rest. There was not motion enough there 
 
 Q 
 
242 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 to abrade these very delicate organisms, nor current enough 
 to sweep them about, and mix up with them a grain of the 
 finest sand, nor the smallest particle of gravel torn from the 
 loose beds of debris that here and there strew the bottom of 
 the sea." 
 
 234. Professor Bailey's RemarTts on the Animalcules of these 
 Shells living in the Upper Waters and sinking after Death. 
 " As Professor Bailey remarks, the animalcule whose remains 
 Brooke's lead has brought up from the bottom of the sea, 
 probably did not live or die there. They would have had no 
 light there, and, had they lived there, their frail little tex- 
 tures would have been subjected in their growth to a pressure 
 upon them of a column of water twelve thousand feet high, 
 equal to the weight of four hundred atmospheres. They 
 probably lived and sported near the surface, where they could 
 feel the genial influence of both light and heat, and were 
 buried in the lichen-caves below after death. Brooke's lead 
 and the microscope, therefore, it would seem, are about to 
 teach us to regard the ocean in a new light. Its bosom, 
 which so teems with animal life ; its face, upon which time 
 writes no wrinkles makes no impression are, it would 
 seem, as obedient to the great law of change as is any depart- 
 ment whatever, either of the animal or vegetable kingdom. 
 It is now suggested that henceforward we should view the 
 surface of the sea as a nursery teeming with nascent organ- 
 isms, its depths as the cemetery for families of living crea- 
 tures that outnumber the sands on the sea-shore for multitude. 
 "Where there is a nursery, hard by there will be found also a 
 graveyard such is the condition of the animal world. But 
 it never occurred to us before to consider the surface of the 
 sea as one wide nursery, its every ripple as a cradle, and its 
 bottom one vast burial-place." 
 
 235. " The geological clock may, we thought, strike new 
 periods its hands may point to era after era ; but so long as 
 the ocean remains in its basin so long as its bottom is cov- 
 ered with blue water so long must the deep furrows and 
 strong contrasts in the solid crust below stand out bold, 
 
THE SEA. 243 
 
 ragged, and grand. Nothing can fill up the hollows there ; 
 no agent now at work that we know of, can descend into its 
 depths and level off the floors of the sea. But it now seems 
 that we forgot these oceans of animalcule that make the sur- 
 face of the sea sparkle and glow with life. They are secret- 
 ing from its surface solid matter for the purpose of filling up 
 the cavities below. These little marine insects are "building 
 their habitations at the surface, and when they die, their re- 
 mains, in vast multitudes, sink down and settle upon the 
 bottom. They are the atoms of which mountains are formed 
 and plains spread out." 
 
 236. All the Limestone Series of Rocfa formed of Fossil 
 Zoophyte Remains. In confirmation of this statement, geo- 
 logy informs us that there are certain formations in the crust 
 of the earth composed entirely of minute shells. A familiar 
 example of these marine deposits is found in England in the 
 oolitic formation, which is a species of limestone composed 
 of globules clustered together commonly without any visible 
 cement or base. They vary in size from that of small pin- 
 heads to that of peas. These globules, on investigation, have 
 been pronounced to be shells of the sea-urchin order, that 
 must have existed in enormous quantities in the primeval 
 sea of Europe. In still more ancient formations, such as the 
 Silurian series of fossil rocks, there is evidence that these 
 were formed of minute zoophytes, which existed in myriads 
 at the earliest geological periods, when the deep-sea forma- 
 tions were deposited. And recently, in Canada, discoveries 
 have been made of even lower fossil rocks than have been 
 found in Europe, named the Laurentian series, which is con- 
 sidered to be anterior in its formation to some of the primary 
 igneous rocks, so called. This series of strata has been as- 
 certained to be several thousand feet in thickness, and in all 
 probability is part of the bed of the primeval ocean before 
 the upheaval of the land. In examining the structure of 
 these recks, geologists have a difficulty in pronouncing satis- 
 factorily the nature of their primary composition, as they 
 exhibit evidence of having been metamorphosed by the ac- 
 
244 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 tion of the internal heat of the earth and the igneous rocks 
 which burst through them, in many cases amalgamating and 
 forming a distinct rock from either. Every day new light is 
 being thrown upon this interesting branch of geological study 
 by the researches of its zealous students, tending to show 
 that the abundance of animal life in the primeval ocean was 
 as great as, if not greater than, it is at present. It may be 
 satisfactorily proved yet that all the limestone series of 
 rocks, which comprise such a depth and extent of the earth's 
 crust, are solely the result of animal organisms that have 
 extracted their elements from the sea, as we are satisfied 
 that the coal-deposits are entirely of vegetable origin, con- 
 solidated by pressure, and acted on by volcanic heat. 
 
 237. The Bed of the Primeval Sea formed probably of 
 Minute Shells. There is no necessity to go further into de- 
 tail ; enough has been shown that the primeval sea swarmed 
 with animal life, and their remains sank to the bottom, form- 
 ing deposits which have been ascertained to be several thou- 
 sands of feet in thickness. Now, with this fact before us, it 
 is not unscientific to advance the hypothesis that the entire 
 spherical bed of the primary circumambient waters was com- 
 posed of the earths and salts they held in chemical combi- 
 nation. These minute molluscs were animated laboratories 
 that separated the mineral parts of the ocean from the pure 
 water ; and as the fact of their remains being precipitated to 
 the bottom illustrates their greater density, so must the bulk 
 of the primeval sea have decreased, and consequently its gen- 
 eral level. What that decrease may have been, of course 
 there are no geological data to show, inasmuch as no land 
 was upheaved above its surface to register its subsidence from 
 a higher level. Since the advent of geological eras, the same 
 process of solidification has been going on, and it is an im- 
 portant branch of research to obtain data that may throw 
 light on the subject. At present our information is chiefly 
 confined to the subsidence of subsidiary seas, which no doubt 
 are also worthy of investigation ; but so far as the phenome- 
 non has been observed, the cause has been traced more to the 
 
THE SEA. 245 
 
 changes in the level of the coasts than to the seas them- 
 selves. 
 
 238. Dr Carpenter's Estimate of the Enormous Increase of 
 Animalcules. Of the elevation of sea-beds the most remark- 
 able examples are those where the myriads of coral insects 
 are at work secreting the calcareous ingredients of the ocean, 
 to build up those magnificent structures seen by divers into 
 the waters where they most prevail. " We may here recall 
 what has been stated respecting the extensive formations of 
 calcareous submarine masses by the labours of the coral insect. 
 Such facts would be utterly incredible but for what we know 
 of the astonishing rapidity of multiplication of these minute 
 forms of animal life. Dr Carpenter computes the progeny of 
 a pair of aphides, if allowed to accumulate, at the end of the 
 year, at a trillion. Granting the reproduction of marine 
 animalcules to be one thousand billions less rapid than that 
 of aphides granting that each of them during its lifetime 
 (supposed not interfered with, and food supplied) secreted 
 only a ten-millionth part of a cubic inch of indestructible 
 calcareous matter we should find accumulated, in less than 
 a quarter of a century, a globe of such material whose diam- 
 eter would exceed the distance travelled by light since the 
 ordinary received epoch of creation (4004 B.C.); and the sur- 
 face of the globe, supposed to continue increasing at the same 
 rate, would then be swelling* into space a great many times 
 faster than the speed of light. There needs, then, only a 
 residual immunity for a small percentage of those produced 
 to afford scope for the production of all the calcareous for- 
 mations existing ; and the same may be said of all geological 
 formations, such as. the polishing slate of Bilin (40,000,000 
 to the cubic inch !), the infusorial formations in Holland, &c., 
 which microscopic examination has shown to consist of in- 
 fusorial and other exuviae." * 
 
 239. Silica, a large Ingredient of the Primeval Sea, now 
 exhausted. From the analysis of sea-water, as already men- 
 tioned, its mineral constituents held in chemical solution are 
 
 * Art. " Physical Geography," ' Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
246 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 comparatively small to the volume of pure water, and com- 
 puted generally as follows: chloride of sodium, 2.50; chlo- 
 ride of magnesium, 0.35; sulphate of magnesia, 0.58; car- 
 bonates of lime and magnesia, 0.02 ; sulphate of lime, 0.01 ; 
 water, 96.54 in 100 parts. Calculating upon this basis, and 
 considering the enormous masses of lime contained in sedi- 
 mentary rocks of the tertiary period, we may safely infer that 
 the sea, during that epoch, contained in solution a much larger 
 proportion of calcareous matter than at present, if it did not 
 exceed in volume all the other mineral ingredients of the 
 ocean together. Then we may infer that the tertiary zoo- 
 phytes, in extracting so much of that element from the sea, 
 rendered the water less capable of supporting their constitu- 
 tion, and many species became extinct, while individuals 
 decreased in numbers. In this manner we can understand 
 how the carbonates and sulphates of earths in the sea, which 
 form the imperishable parts of these marine animals and their 
 shells, lessened as the sediment forming the tertiary strata 
 increased; while the chloride of sodium, or common salt, 
 remained comparatively undiminished, in consequence of that 
 mineral being easily soluble in water. On the other hand, 
 we may speculate upon the sea having possessed other min- 
 eral ingredients, not specified in the above analysis, during 
 earlier epochs than the one referred to. It is not out of the 
 range of probability that silica once entered even more ex- 
 tensively than lime into the chemical constituents of the sea, 
 as the oxide of silicon; for there is evidence still of its 
 existence in the exuviae of diatomaceae and the silicious cover- 
 ing of shells. There are data, also, from the silicious slates 
 of Tripoli, &c., to show that at one period marine zoophytes, 
 whose shells were entirely composed of silex as pure as 
 quartz, existed in such multitudes that, in the course of 
 time, they nearly exhausted the sea of this mineral element, 
 until they became extinct, and were succeeded by lime- 
 secreting molluscs and coral insects. 
 
 240. Crystalline Rocks may have been originally formed 
 of Silicious Shells. The consideration of this question opens 
 
THE SEA. 247 
 
 up a wide field of inquiry to the speculative geologist. Here 
 he might find a solution to the problem regarding the pri- 
 mary formation of the rocky masses which constitute the lower 
 parts of the crust of the earth, wherein this important min- 
 eral forms the characteristic ingredient, such as granite, syen- 
 ite, porphyry, and quartz rock. May not these have "been 
 originally deposited in the form of microscopic silicious 
 shells, which afterwards "became crystallised and metamor- 
 phosed through the incandescent volcanic heat of the earth 1 
 The theory that obtains amongst all classes of speculative 
 philosophers who have considered the question, is based on 
 the chemical principle of precipitation, where solid matter 
 separates from liquid by loss of affinity, and descends in 
 virtue of the law of gravitation. This is perfectly correct as 
 far as secondary silicious rocks, such as the sandstones, are 
 concerned, because these are formed by the abrasion of older 
 rocks ; but it is not applicable to the first formation of silex, 
 or as we have observed to that of lime, the basis of the 
 fossiliferous limestone rocks. There is incontrovertible living 
 evidence that the calcareous deposit of coral-reefs is formed 
 by minute insects possessing the function of secreting the 
 lime contained in sea-water ; and by comparing these modern 
 deposits with ancient marble formations, it is abundantly 
 evident that they are analogous in structure. Hence it is 
 concluded that every portion of the enormous masses of lime- 
 stone rocks that enter into the structure of the earth's crust 
 has, at one period or another, passed through living organisms, 
 without whose agency they never would have been extracted 
 from the sea. Pursuing the same line of analysis, it is pro- 
 bable that the basis of all the silicious and argillaceous rocks 
 may have been secreted in a similar manner, each in its turn 
 having been subservient to the purposes of life by entering 
 into the composition of organised bodies. 
 
 241. Speculative Views on Latent Vitality and Spontaneous 
 Generation. In like manner the experimental philosopher 
 might settle the much- vexed question among scientific contro- 
 versialists regarding the phenomena of apparent spontaneous 
 
248 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 generation, so zealously disputed by two French savans re- 
 cently namely, M. Pouchet, the great champion of the theory, 
 and M. Pasteur, its sworn enemy. It might be argued, that 
 as all solid matter on this earth at one period formed a con- 
 stituent part of some living creature, so does it retain in a 
 latent degree the elements which would again produce life, 
 just as the chemist informs us that every substance contains 
 more or less latent heat. Viewed in this light, inorganic 
 matter would be only comparatively devoid of organic pro- 
 perties, as cold substances, such as ice and snow, are proved 
 to possess latent degrees of heat. Then, again, this latent 
 organic property would increase in degree as the atoms of 
 matter passed through several stages in the scale of animal or 
 vegetable organisation accumulating this principle until they 
 reached a point where the power of vitality being destroyed 
 in producing a larger and more perfect animal, nevertheless 
 retained sufficient organic fecundity to generate lesser and 
 microscopic infusoria, returning, as it were, to its primary 
 organic form in the sea. Thus would the experimental philo- 
 sopher show that the whole substance of our planet is more 
 or less impregnated with the elements of life, which are not 
 extraneous to matter itself, but inherent in its composition 
 as a universal law, permeating every atom like the laws of 
 cohesion or gravitation. And thus might he point to the 
 limestone rocks that spread over the earth above and beneath 
 the sea, as secretions of infusoria that would again aid in 
 generating life ; and even point to the granitic Alps, covered 
 with perpetual snow, where now no life is seen, as having 
 once lived and moved in the primeval ocean, becoming the 
 debris of multitudinous marine creatures, and still retaining 
 some vital energy. 
 
 242. Sequence of Organic Life traced back into Inorganic 
 Matter. When we investigate the minute gradations natural- 
 ists have marked on the scale of organised creation, from the 
 lowest to the highest forms of vegetable and animal life, we 
 cannot strictly define each link in the chain of existence, to 
 say where this degree of organic structure begins and where 
 
THE SEA. 249 
 
 that ends. Every class, order, family, or individual blends so 
 imperceptibly into one harmonious whole, that all seem more 
 or less mutually dependent on each for their existence ; and, 
 as a rule, the lower forms supply the necessary nourishment 
 for the maintenance of the higher. Thus we find the members 
 of the animal kingdom ultimately dependent upon those of 
 the vegetable kingdom for their food, inasmuch as without 
 vegetation no herbivorous animals could exist, and conse- 
 quently, by their extinction, carnivorous animals would be 
 deprived of subsistence. This rule obtains in the sea also, 
 though not generally supposed ; for the number of marine 
 animals that feed upon sea- weed is calculated to be even 
 greater in proportion than of herbivorous animals on land. 
 But that which especially distinguishes the food -supplying 
 inferior animals of the sea are the cases where they obtain 
 nourishment from the sea-water almost alone; for certain spe- 
 cies of whales the monsters of the deep support their huge 
 forms on these minute zoophytes. Here we see a general law 
 in support of the vital principle which pervades the whole 
 organic creation, until it descends to the level of what we 
 term the inorganic world. But may we not pursue the inquiry 
 below that arbitrary level by the same process of inductive 
 reasoning ? If it is necessary for the grosser particles of matter 
 to pass through vegetable organisms before they are proper food 
 for animals, may it not be as necessary that these grosser parts 
 should have been secreted by animalcule in order to refine 
 them from their purely elementary state for that purpose 1 
 Thus it may be said that the doctrine of the ancient philoso- 
 phers that the vital principle pervaded the whole material 
 universe, from which man himself was an emanation agrees 
 with these modern inquiries into an abstruse subject. 
 
 243. Saline Solutions discovered in Granite, and Silver in 
 the Sea. Apart from these speculative views of a subject 
 which has been one of angry controversy among naturalists 
 from the time of Aristotle, we may allude to a geological fact 
 of some interest bearing upon the aqueous origin of igneous 
 rocks, which has been made out by Mr Sorby. Upon a close 
 
250 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 microscopic examination of granite, ground and polished so 
 thin as to be transparent, and then cemented with Canada 
 balsam between two glass plates, he has discovered that this 
 rock contains an immense number of cavities holding water 
 and saline solutions, which must, therefore, have been in a 
 liquid state when the rock was in the process of formation. 
 It must therefore be concluded that granite is not simply an 
 igneous rock, but that it has been formed by the joint action 
 of fire and water. This fact supports the hypothesis we have 
 suggested, that the silicious rocks were originally sedimen- 
 tary deposits from the sea, through the secretions of marine 
 zoophytes, as abundantly manifested in the formation of lime- 
 stone rocks. Moreover, it is not at all improbable that the 
 metallic ores which so largely impregnate the mineral veins of 
 silicious rocks, may have had their origin in these substances 
 entering largely into the composition of the minute shells at 
 the epoch of their generation, as we find the beautiful metallic 
 lustre on shells at the present day. In this manner we can 
 imagine how the gold-bearing and silver-bearing quartz-veins 
 originated in the deposition of purely silicious corals and 
 shells specifically rich in these metals. We have no evidence 
 that gold exists in sea- water; but, on the authority of Captain 
 Maury, we learn that the presence of silver has been detected. 
 By examining, in Valparaiso, the copper that had been a great 
 while on the bottom of a ship, the presence of silver, which it 
 obtained from the sea, was detected in it. It was in such 
 quantities as to form the basis of a calculation, by which it 
 would appear that there is held in solution by the sea a quan- 
 tity of silver sufficient to weigh no less than 200 million tons, 
 could it all, by any process, be precipitated into a separate 
 mass. 
 
 244. Siliciom Rocks originally formed the Bed of the 
 Primeval Sea. If, on further investigation, it be found that 
 the older crystalline rocks contain elements of aqueous for- 
 mation, or, as we have suggested, are metamorphosed remains 
 of an original fossiliferous structure, these may be restored to 
 their former geological position as primitive rocks, which 
 
THE SEA. 251 
 
 they have lost latterly in the nomenclature of the science. 
 This has arisen on account of some members of the granitoid 
 series having been found above the oldest fossiliferous rocks, 
 which were classed as secondary. Hence Lyell has proposed, 
 as a substitute for primary, the term hypogene, implying 
 nether-formed. " As applied to rocks, it expresses that they 
 have assumed their form and structure at a depth from the 
 surface, without implying any priority in their formation as 
 to time; whereas the term primary, as applied to rocks, 
 indicates that their formation was prior to that of all others." 
 "Without disputing the appropriateness of the new term, we 
 may point out that if the newest of the granite and quartz 
 series bear evidence of being metamorphic rocks of silicious 
 fossil deposits, they are older in time than the most ancient 
 calcareous fossil formations that have not become metamor- 
 phosed by heat. Hence the silicious unstratified rocks form- 
 ing the crust of the earth may with propriety be designated 
 primitive, as in all probability they formed the primary bed 
 of the primeval sea. 
 
CHAPTEE XII. 
 
 PHYSICAL CONDITION OF THE SEA AND ITS INHABITANTS. 
 
 Humboldt's views on the disparity between the areas of the sea and land, 
 245. Superficies of the sea and land computed in British square miles, 
 246. Cubic measurement and absolute weight of the sea, 247. Average 
 depth of the sea estimated by astronomical formula, 248. Extent, depth, 
 and sea-bottom of the Pacific, 249. Deep soundings in the Atlantic by 
 English navigators, 250. Brooke's improved sounding-rod for testing 
 the bed of the sea, 251. Area and depth of the Indian Ocean not cor- 
 rectly ascertained, 252. Boundaries of the Antarctic Ocean not properly 
 defined, 253. Area and depth of the Arctic Ocean only approximately 
 known, 254. Depth of the Mediterranean and profusion of animal life, 
 255. Schleiden's description of the beautiful zoophytes and fish in the 
 Indian Ocean, 256-258. Zoophytes from the Atlantic in the French 
 aquarium at Arcachon, 259. The earth not an inert mass of matter, but 
 a stupendous shell of extinct life, 260. Speculative hypothesis on the 
 origin of bright-coloured minerals, 261. Wonderful coral scenery and 
 animal life in the sea described by Green, the diver, 262. Captain 
 Cook's account of an amphibious minnow in Australia, 263. Professor 
 Agassiz finds a land-travelling fish in South America, five miles from 
 water, 264. M. Dufosse* and Mr Couch on the voluntary sounds made 
 by fish, 265, 266. Instinct of creatures in the sea to rise towards the 
 light and air, 267. Migration of fish in European waters indicates the 
 seasons of the sea, 268. Shoals of herring on the coast of Norway irreg- 
 ular in their migratory seasons, 269. Summer the season of activity 
 among the inhabitants of the sea, 270. The temperature of the sea de- 
 creases in depth from the surface, 271. 
 
 245. HumbolcUs Views on the Disparity between the Areas 
 of Sea and Land. From the primeval condition of the sea, 
 and its mineral analysis, we now come to consider its present 
 physical geography, and the influence it exercises on the 
 seasons. With regard to the intervening periods, sufficient 
 
THE SEA. 253 
 
 has been advanced in the division on the land to furnish a 
 general sketch of its separation into oceans and subsidiary 
 seas, forming a chain of secondary causes and effects, uniting 
 the rudimentary with the complicated phenomena that now 
 exist. According to Humboldt : " In the present condition of 
 the surface of our planet, the area of the solid is to that of the 
 fluid parts as 1 to 2|-ths (according to Eigaud, as 100 to 270). 
 The islands form scarcely ^d of the continental masses, which 
 are so unequally divided that they consist of three times 
 more land in the northern than in the southern hemisphere ; 
 the latter being therefore pre-eminently oceanic. From 40 
 south latitude to the antarctic pole, the earth is almost 
 entirely covered with water. The fluid element predominates 
 in like manner between the eastern shores of the old and the 
 western shores of the new continent, being only interspersed 
 with some few insular groups. The learned hydrographer 
 Fleurieu, has very justly named this vast oceanic basin, 
 which under the tropics extends over 145 of longitude, the 
 Great Ocean, in contradistinction to all other seas. The 
 southern and western hemispheres (reckoning the latter from 
 the meridian of Teneriffe) are therefore more rich in water 
 than any other region of the whole earth. These are the 
 main points involved in the consideration of the land and 
 sea a relation which exercises so important an influence on 
 the distribution of temperature, the variations in atmospheric 
 pressure, the direction of the winds, and the quantity of 
 moisture contained in the air, with which the development 
 of vegetation is so essentially connected. When we consider 
 that nearly three-fourths of the upper surface of our planet 
 are covered with water, we shall be less surprised at the 
 imperfect condition of meteorology before the beginning of 
 the present century ; since it is only during the subsequent 
 period that numerous accurate observations on the temper- 
 ature of the sea, at different latitudes and different seasons, 
 
 have been made and numerically compared together 
 
 The word climate certainly has special reference to the char- 
 acter of the atmosphere, but this character is itself dependent 
 
254 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 on the perpetually concurrent influences of the ocean, which 
 is universally and deeply agitated by currents having a totally 
 opposite temperature, and of radiation from dry land, which 
 varies greatly in form, elevation, colour, and fertility, whether 
 we consider its bare rocky portions, or those that are covered 
 with arborescent or herbaceous vegetation." 
 
 246. Superficies of the Sea and Land computed in British 
 square miles. Computations have been made of the entire su- 
 perficies of the earth at the sea-level according to the British 
 scale of measurement, which give a total of 196,663,400 
 statute square miles. This, of course, supposes that all the 
 mountainous regions are level with the water, and furnishes 
 us with the area of the primeval sea before the land rose 
 above its surface. Of its division into land above the level 
 of the sea, and the area of the sea itself in its continuous 
 ramifications around the land, only approximate estimates 
 can be formed, in consequence of its unexplored regions at the 
 poles and elsewhere. As far as the latter can be ascertained, 
 hydrographers have calculated its superficies, including all 
 the inland seas, at 146,863,400 square miles. The most 
 remarkable general feature which the sea presents to the 
 physical geographer is its continuity. Excepting the Caspian 
 Sea, with its completely land-locked shores, which is more a 
 vast lake than a sea, the oceanic waters encompass the globe 
 from pole to pole, and embrace both hemispheres in their 
 sinuous arms, encircling every continental mass and island. 
 
 247. Cubic Measurement and Absolute Weight of the Sea. 
 " Erom a careful measurement of its extent, as laid down 
 in charts, it has been concluded that the dry land occupies a 
 superficies of about 49,800,000 square statute miles. This 
 does not include the recently-discovered tracts of land in the 
 vicinity of the poles ; and, allowing for yet undiscovered land 
 (which, however, can only exist in small quantity), if we 
 assign 51 millions to the land, there will remain about 146 
 millions of square miles for the extent of surface occupied by 
 the ocean. Its mean depth, of course, cannot be stated with 
 any certainty. There are phenomena in the formation and 
 
THE SEA. 255 
 
 progress of the tidal wave, and of certain other great undu- 
 latory movements, which are incompatible with an average 
 depth under four or five miles. Most of the soundings which 
 have been taken far from land, and in deep water, fall, how- 
 ever, far short of these limits ; but as some have obtained the 
 higher of them, and as there are numerous instances when 
 twenty, thirty, forty, and even fifty thousand feet of line run 
 out have failed to give distinct evidence of the bottom having 
 been reached, a mean depth of four miles may be taken as one 
 quite as near the truth as five miles ; the more so, as a great 
 proportion of the vast area of the Pacific is so abundantly 
 bestrewn with islands as to authorise a reasonable suspicion 
 that its average depth is less than that of the Atlantic, where 
 islands are comparatively rare, and of which the depth has 
 been ascertained over no inconsiderable portion of its whole 
 extent. Calculating on these data, we find, for the total 
 cubic contents of the sea, 788 millions of cubic miles, and for 
 its mass or weight (taking the specific gravity of sea- water 
 under a pressure of two miles at 1.0151) 3,270,600 billions 
 of tons, or TyVs^h P ar ^ f the total mass of the globe." * 
 
 248. Average Depth of the Sea estimated by Astronomical 
 Formula. Besides the practical method of using improved 
 sounding-apparatus to ascertain the depth of the ocean, astro- 
 nomers have a formula showing that there exists a relation 
 between the breadth of a wave, its velocity of progress, and 
 the depth of the water on which it travels, whereby they can 
 compute the average depth of the great oceans. On this 
 basis Professor Airy has constructed a table, by which Pro- 
 fessor Bache came to the conclusion that, in the North Paci- 
 fic, between Japan and California, the mean depth is 2365 
 fathoms, or 14,190 feet. His observations were taken during 
 a great wave caused by an earthquake in Japan, which tra- 
 versed the ocean to the American coast. " By a similar 
 principle of calculation, grounded on the progress of the 
 tide-wave (regarded as a free wave) running up the Atlantic 
 viz., that a wave 6000 geographical miles in breadth from 
 * Art. " Physical Geography/' ' Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
256 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 east to west travels its own breadth in twelve hours we find, 
 for the mean depth of the whole Atlantic, from 50 south 
 lat. to 50 north, 22,157 feet, a result perfectly in accordance 
 with what we know from numerous soundings of its northern 
 basin, and what may reasonably be concluded from the com- 
 paratively few obtained in its southern basin." 
 
 249. Extent, Depth, and Sea-Bottom of the Pacific. The 
 Pacific Ocean is the most extensive of the great hydrographi- 
 cal divisions of the world, extending from the arctic circle at 
 its northern boundary to the antarctic circle in the south 
 hemisphere over 133 of latitude; and from the west coast 
 of America to Australia in the south, and Asia in the north 
 division, over nearly 160 of longitude, covering an area 
 estimated in round numbers at 50,000,000 square miles. 
 Its depths have been only partially sounded, the most inter- 
 esting being those obtained with the apparatus invented by 
 Lieutenant Brooke, U.S.N., for the purpose of ascertaining 
 the nature of the sea-bottom. The deepest of these sound- 
 ings was taken in the North Pacific, near Behring Strait, 
 where the bottom is at 16,200 feet, and consists chiefly of 
 microscopic silicious shells, named diatomacece, " which are in 
 a remarkable state of preservation, frequently with the valves 
 united, and even retaining the remains of the soft parts." 
 This statement of Professor Bailey of New York, who ex- 
 amined the specimens, is evidence that the sea contains silica 
 in solution, although chemists have not detected its presence 
 by analysis. Specimens from the South Pacific, obtained 
 from the bed of the coral sea at a depth of 12,900 feet, were 
 pronounced by the same authority to yield representatives of 
 most of the groups of microscopic organisms usually found 
 in marine sediments, the predominant forms being silicious 
 spicules of sponges, with a few diatoms, and only one perfect 
 shell of foraminiferas. This test of the ocean-bed by deep- 
 sounding differs considerably from those obtained in the 
 Atlantic, which were almost wholly composed of the latter 
 genus, and of a calcareous nature, while the former were 
 mostly silicious. "This only makes the condition of things 
 
THE SEA. 257 
 
 in the northern Atlantic the more interesting ; because," re- 
 marks Professor Bailey, " they prove that deep water is not 
 necessarily underlaid by foraminiferous deposits, and that 
 some peculiar local conditions of temperature, currents, or 
 geological substratum, have made the North Atlantic a per- 
 fect vivarium for the calcareous forms." May this condition 
 not arise from the presence of silica and silicious-secreting 
 zoophytes in the South Pacific, as living remnants of extinct 
 diatomacecB, whose shells enter chiefly into the composition 
 of the silicious rocks forming the lower crust of the earth ? 
 a hypothesis suggested by our speculative remarks on the 
 primary formation of granite and quartz rock before they 
 were metamorphosed by volcanic heat. It is worthy of re- 
 mark here, that most of the corals found in the Coral Sea, 
 near the Australian shores of the Pacific, are analogous to the 
 species of madrepores, forming the most numerous fossils of 
 the ancient limestone rocks ; also some species of shells allied 
 to the extinct genus of terebratula. 
 
 250. Deep Soundings in the Atlantic ~by English Naviga- 
 tors. The Atlantic Ocean occupies only half the superficial 
 extent given to the area of the Pacific, and is estimated at 
 25,000,000 square miles the two forming hydrographical 
 divisions in the aggregate rather more than all the other 
 oceans and subsidiary seas together. It extends 8600 miles 
 from north to south, and its breadth varies from 1800 to 
 5400 miles. Of all the oceans this is best known in its 
 physical phenomena, and its bed has been accurately sounded 
 to the greatest depths known in the sea generally. " Thus, 
 Captain Sir Edward Belcher, K.K, in lat. 4' N., long. 
 10 6' W., sounded to the depth of 3065 fathoms = 18,390 
 feet; Captain Barnett, RK, in lat. 41 2' K, long. 44 3' 
 W., sounded to "the depth of 3700 fathoms, or 22,200 feet; 
 Captain Sir James Eoss, R.K, in 1840, to 2677 fathoms, or 
 16,062 feet ; and afterwards in lat. 33 3' S., long. 9 1' E., 
 to 4600 fathoms, or 27,600 feet ; and Captain Denham, 
 H.M.S. Herald, has obtained soundings at the vast depth 
 of 7706 fathoms =46, 236 feet, or about 8j English miles. 
 
258 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 This, which is the deepest sounding ever yet taken, occurred on 
 the 30th October 1852, in lat. 36 49' S., long. 37 6' W."* 
 There are doubts as to the accuracy of this last depth, as it is 
 supposed the line may have been extended horizontally by 
 the currents. To check this error, the plan now adopted is 
 to time the descent of the weight attached to a line always 
 of the same thickness and make, by which means it can be 
 ascertained when the sinker ceased to carry the line out, 
 which it does at a decreasing rate from oceanic pressure, 
 while currents do so at a uniform rate. This check upon 
 errors of deep sounding was established by Maury and other 
 hydrographers ; and on testing the soundings of British 
 hydrologists, there was evidence showing that these were not 
 so great as report had made them to be. With the improved 
 apparatus and correction by time, two hundred soundings 
 have been made by officers of the American navy, from 
 which a chart of the North Atlantic basin has been con- 
 structed, showing its greater depths from 1000 to 5000 
 fathoms, and the general form of this great ocean-valley. 
 
 251. Brooke's improved Sounding - Rod for testing the 
 Bed of the Sea. It was here especially that Brooke's sound- 
 ing-rod brought up the remains of infusoria, showing that 
 the Gulf Stream has literally strewed the bottom of the 
 Atlantic with these microscopic shells. Their unabraded 
 appearance, " and the almost total absence of the mixture of 
 any detritus from the sea or foreign matter, suggest most 
 forcibly the idea of perfect repose at the bottom of the deep 
 sea. Some of the specimens that Brooke's apparatus has 
 brought up are as pure and free from the sand of the sea as 
 the snow-flake that falls, when it is calm, on the lea, is from 
 the dust of the earth. Indeed these soundings suggest the 
 idea that the sea, like the snow-cloud with its flakes in a 
 calm, is always letting fall upon its bed showers of these 
 microscopic shells ; and we may readily imagine that the 
 * sunless wrecks ' which strew its bottom are, in the process 
 of ages, hid under this fleecy covering, presenting the 
 * 'Encyclopaedia Britannica/ art. "Atlantic Ocean." 
 
THE SEA. 259 
 
 rounded appearance which is seen over, the body of the 
 traveller who has perished in the snow-storm. The ocean, 
 especially within and near the tropics, swarms with life. 
 The remains of its myriads of moving things are conveyed by 
 currents, and scattered and lodged in the course of time 
 all over its bottom. This process, continued for ages, has 
 covered the depths of the ocean as with a mantle, consisting 
 of organisms as delicate as the macled frost, and as light as 
 the undrifted snow-flake on the mountain."* 
 
 252. Area and Depth of the Indian Ocean not correctly 
 ascertained. The Indian Ocean comprises all that hydro- 
 graphical division between the Antarctic Ocean in the south 
 hemisphere and the shores of the Asiatic continent in the 
 north an extent of about 6500 miles of latitude and from 
 the African coast on the west to the Australian shores on the 
 east, ranging from 6000 to 4000 miles between the coast of 
 Arabia and that of Malacca. North of the equator its shores 
 are rendered very irregular by the great Asiatic peninsulas of 
 Arabia and Hiiidostan, around which its branches form the 
 Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, and the Bay of Bengal. The 
 area of the Indian Ocean is estimated at 20,000,000 square 
 geographical miles. Its greatest depths have not yet been 
 ascertained with such a degree of correctness as to entitle 
 them to the same confidence as the deep soundings of the 
 Atlantic. At the same time there are data for concluding 
 that these are equally profound. On one occasion, when an 
 American surveying ship was in the deep waters of this 
 ocean, Lieutenant Brooke cast his ingenious sounding-rod, 
 which run out the line to the enormous length of 7040 
 fathoms, or 42,240 feet, when it touched the bottom. Un- 
 fortunately, however, the line broke, and the testing -ap- 
 paratus was lost, so that the nature of the ocean-bed could 
 not be ascertained. This was to be regretted, as he reports 
 that " such opportunities are rare in that locality; yet, owing 
 to the current of sixty miles, it will be a difficult matter to 
 determine its absolute depth. That current was not as super- 
 * ' Physical Geography of the Sea/ by M. F. Maury. 
 
260 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 ficial as one might at first suppose, for it was during the 
 latter part of the operation that the boat experienced its 
 effect, and it would seem that, had the current been super- 
 ficial, the line would have given indication by tending ahead, 
 whereas it ran right down. Moreover, that current was 
 local, which adds to the probability of its depth." Allowing 
 an error of 2240 feet for the current, and adding this depth 
 to the highest peak of the Himalayas above the sea-level, 
 we have here a vertical elevation of land not less than thir- 
 teen miles in perpendicular height, or 68,640 feet, forming 
 g^th part of the earth's radius, at its mean diameter of 
 7912 miles. As these soundings are extended into the 
 higher latitudes of the Indian Ocean, where the sea enters 
 the grand southern extra-circumpolar depression of the earth, 
 greater depths in all probability will be reached. 
 
 253. Boundaries of the Antarctic Ocean not properly de- 
 fined. The Antarctic Ocean comprises all the area beyond 
 the southern latitudes referred to, and forming a superficial 
 radius round the south pole of 23 28', or 1408 miles, pre- 
 senting a circle of the earth's surface having a diameter of 
 2816 miles, and an approximate area of 6,000,000 square 
 geographical miles. From this it will be seen that the 
 boundary of this so-called ocean is quite arbitrary, and has 
 no exact definition compared with the land, as a line of coast 
 that eminently belongs to other great hydrographical divi- 
 sions of the sea. According to the natural definition of its 
 waters, they are merely the southern prolongations of the 
 Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, which in themselves 
 are only separated by imaginary meridian lines, until they 
 lave the ice-bound shores of the south polar continent. Few 
 navigators have penetrated beyond the arbitrary boundary 
 of this quasi ocean, in latitude 66 32'. The first dis- 
 tinguished explorer was Captain Cook, who reached 71 10' 
 30" S. lat., in 107 E. long., on January 30, 1774; and 
 among the latest is Sir James Eoss, who traced the shores of 
 the great south Victoria Land from lat. 71 to nearly lat. 78; 
 and on February 2, 1841, reached 78 10' S. lat., in 167 
 
THE SEA. 261 
 
 27' W. long., when his further progress was arrested by a 
 barrier of ice, presenting a perpendicular face of 150 feet 
 in height, and far overtopping the ship's masts. It would 
 appear, from the soundings made during this expedition in 
 the ships Erebus and Terror, that the seas in that region are 
 comparatively shallow. These rarely exceeded 400 fathoms, or 
 2400 feet, being more frequently from 1200 to 1800 feet, as 
 the sounding-apparatus was cast in higher latitudes. This 
 would indicate a gradual shallowing of the sea in the south- 
 ern circunmavigable waters, thereby supporting the theory 
 of a south polar continent, and illustrative of our hypothesis 
 that the submarine levels of the land in these regions taper 
 suddenly towards the pole, which we have compared to the 
 narrow end of a lemon. 
 
 254. Area and Depth of the Arctic Ocean only approxim- 
 ately estimated. The Arctic Ocean is a well-defined hydro- 
 graphical division of the universal sea, with its shores clearly 
 marked out by the extremities of the continents of Europe, 
 Asia, and America. In this respect its features are quite the 
 opposite of those presented by the assumed counterpart at 
 its antipodes ; while of the great oceans it is the most 
 enclosed by land. In describing its boundaries, geographers 
 cast aside the imaginary line of the arctic circle, and delineate 
 its area by the coast-lines, which in some places are within, 
 and in others without, that circle, where it is united to the 
 Pacific by Behring Strait, and to the Atlantic by a wide 
 channel between Greenland and Norway. Although none of 
 the many intrepid navigators who have explored this inhos- 
 pitable region have penetrated to the north pole, or crossed 
 the highest latitudes from east to west, yet there are sufficient 
 data to infer from their observations that a polar sea exists, 
 only that its waters are ice-bound during the greater part of 
 the year. " The Arctic Ocean freezes even in summer ; and 
 during the eight winter months a continuous body of ice ex- 
 tends in every direction from the pole, filling the area of a 
 circle between 2000 and 3000 miles in diameter." The area 
 of this ocean may be estimated at from 4,000,000 to 5,000,000 
 
262 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 square geographical miles ; but no minute computation has 
 been ventured upon by hydrographers, as the unexplored 
 regions still form a considerable blank on their charts. Dr 
 Kane sounded in Baffin Bay near its axis, and found 1900 
 fathoms = 11,400 feet. Of its greatest depths we are not 
 furnished with any soundings by the navigators who pene- 
 trated furthest into its central latitudes. It would appear 
 that their efforts in exploring its superficies were so perilous 
 over the fields of ice which covered the ocean, that this bar- 
 rier, and want of time, prevented sounding the deepest parts. 
 Wherever the water was crossed in shallow parts, it appeared 
 extremely pure, shells being distinctly visible at a depth of 
 480 feet. It also presented rapid transitions of colour, 
 chiefly from ultramarine to olive green the latter produced 
 by the presence of myriads of marine animals. 
 
 255. Depth and Profusion of Animal Life in the Mediter- 
 ranean. In this outline of the leading features presented by 
 the five great hydrographical divisions of the world, enough 
 has been advanced to furnish a comprehensive view of the 
 sea without entering into separate descriptions of the sub- 
 sidiary and inland seas not included in these computations. 
 Suffice it to say, that the aggregate area of the Mediterranean, 
 Caspian, Baltic, and Black Seas, is estimated at not more than 
 2,291,600 square geographical miles. Of these seas the 
 Mediterranean is the deepest, being 6000 feet at one spot 
 where the telegraph cable lies at the bottom, between the 
 island of Corfu and Otranto in Italy ; and at a point midway 
 between Malta and Crete, Captain Spratt sounded to a depth 
 of 2300 fathoms = 13,800 feet the soundings bringing up 
 the usual calcareous shells of foraminifera, but few or none 
 of silicious diatomacece. Here, also, is an instance of the 
 extraordinary productiveness of sea- waters ; and the produc- 
 tions of the Mediterranean are generally of a more tropical 
 character than those of the lands which abut on its shores. 
 " The countless numbers of the larger spinaceo-finned fishes 
 sporting near the surface, which makes the Mediterranean 
 gay with the tint of every colour, the lustre of every metal, 
 
THE SEA. 263 
 
 and the glow of every gem the groves of precious coral 
 the multitudes of Crustacea, mollusca, and all the other pro- 
 ductions of the deep all tend to make this inland sea one 
 of the wonders of nature ; and there is really nothing in the 
 same latitudes of the Atlantic or the Pacific that can vie 
 with it." From this we infer that in these land-locked 
 waters we have the remaining species of the tropical era in 
 Europe that inhabited more northern seas, but which have 
 become extinct or migrated to the present tropical oceans. 
 Of their resplendent beauty, as exemplified in existing species, 
 no one has furnished such a graphic description as the Ger- 
 man naturalist Schleiden, in his published lectures, from 
 which we quote the following passages, translated in Maury's 
 ' Physical Geography of the Sea ' : 
 
 256. Schleiden' s Description of the beautiful Zoophytes and 
 fish in the Indian Ocean. " We dive into the liquid crystal 
 of the Indian Ocean, and it opens to us the most wondrous 
 enchantments of the fairy tales of our childhood's dreams. 
 The strangely-branching thickets bear living flowers. Dense 
 masses of meandrinas and astrceas contrast with the leafy, 
 cup-shaped expansions of the explanarias, the variously 
 ramified madrepores, which are now spread out like fingers, 
 now rise in trunk-like branches, and now display the most 
 elegant array of interlacing branches. The colouring sur- 
 passes everything ; vivid green alternates with brown or 
 yellow; rich tints of purple, from pale red-brown to the 
 deepest blue. Brilliant rosy, yellow, or peach-coloured nulli- 
 pores overgrow the decaying masses, and are themselves 
 interwoven with the pearl-coloured plates of the retipores, 
 resembling the most delicate ivory carvings. Close by, wave 
 the yellow and lilac fans, perforated like trellis-work, of the 
 gorgonias. The clear sand of the bottom is covered with 
 the thousand strange forms and tints of the sea-urchins and 
 star-fishes. The leaf-like flustras and escharas adhere like 
 mosses and lichens to the branches of the corals ; the yellow, 
 green, and purple-striped limpets cling like monstrous cochi- 
 neal insects upon their trunks. Like gigantic cactus-bios- 
 
264 OKIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 soms, sparkling in the most ardent colours, the sea-anemones 
 expand their crowns of tentacles upon the broken rocks, or 
 more modestly embellish the flat bottom, looking like beds of 
 ranunculuses. Around the blossoms of the coral shrubs play 
 the humming-birds of the ocean little fish sparkling with 
 red or blue metallic glitter, or gleaming in golden green, or 
 in the brightest silvery lustre. 
 
 257. " Softly, like spirits of the deep, the delicate milk- 
 white or bluish bells of the jelly-fishes float through this 
 charmed world. Here the gleaming violet and gold-green 
 Isabelle, and the flaming yellow, black, and vermilion-striped 
 coquette, chase their prey ; there the band-fish shoots, snake- 
 like, through the thicket, like a long silver ribbon, glittering 
 with rosy or azure hues. Then come the fabulous cuttle-fish, 
 decked in all the colours of the rainbow, but marked by no 
 definite outline, appearing and disappearing, intercrossing, 
 joining company and parting again, in most fantastic ways ; 
 and all this in the most rapid change, and amid the most 
 wonderful play of light and shade, alternated by every breath 
 of wind and every slight curling of the surface of the ocean. 
 When day declines, and the shades of night lay hold upon 
 the deep, this fantastic garden is lighted up in new splen- 
 dour. Millions of glowing sparks, little microscopic medusas 
 and crustaceans, dance like glow-worms through the gloom. 
 The sea -feather, which by daylight is vermilion - coloured, 
 waves in a greenish phosphorescent light. Every corner of 
 it is lustrous. Parts which by day were dull and brown, 
 perhaps, and retreated from the sight amid the universal 
 brilliancy of colour, are now radiant in the most wonderful 
 display of green, yellow, and red light ; and to complete the 
 wonders of the enchanted night, the silver disc, six feet 
 across, of the moon-fish, moves, slightly luminous, among the 
 crowd of little sparkling stars. 
 
 258. "The most luxuriant vegetation of a tropical land- 
 scape cannot unfold as great wealth of form, while in the 
 variety and splendour of colour it would stand far behind 
 this garden - landscape, which is strangely composed exclu- 
 
THE SEA. 265 
 
 sively of animals, and not of plants; for, characteristic as 
 the luxuriant development of vegetation of the temperate 
 zones is of the sea-bottom, the fulness and multiplicity of the 
 marine fauna is just as prominent in the regions of the 
 tropics. Whatever is beautiful, wondrous, or uncommon 
 in the great classes of fish and echinoderms, jelly-fishes 
 and polypes, and molluscs of all kinds, is crowded into the 
 warm and crystal waters of the tropical ocean rests in the 
 white sands, clothes the rough cliifs, clings, where the room 
 is already occupied, like a parasite upon the first comers, or 
 swims through the shallows and depths of the elements 
 while the mass of vegetation is of a far inferior magnitude. 
 It is peculiar in relation to this, that the law valid on land, 
 according to which the animal kingdom, being better adapted 
 to accommodate itself to outward circumstances, has a greater 
 diffusion than the vegetable kingdom for the polar seas 
 swarm with whales, seals, sea-birds, fishes, and countless 
 numbers of the lower animals, even where every trace of vege- 
 tation has long vanished in the eternally frozen ice, and the 
 cooled sea fosters no sea- weed that this law, I say, holds 
 good also for the sea, in the direction of its depth ; for when 
 we descend, vegetable life vanishes much sooner than the 
 animal, and even from the depths to which no ray of light 
 is capable of penetrating, the sounding- lead brings up news 
 at least of living infusoria." 
 
 259. Zoophytes from the Atlantic in the French Aquarium 
 at Arcachon. Our more northern temperate seas are not in- 
 habited by such gorgeous-coloured zoophytes as those existing 
 in tropical oceans ; but in the south of Europe, on the Atlan- 
 tic, many beautiful forms and colours are to be found. At 
 Arcachon, in France, situated on " Biscay's sleepless bay," 
 the largest aquarium in Europe has been constructed, con- 
 taining specimens of the most interesting creatures of the 
 wondrous deep. As it is situated on the sea -coast, certain 
 species which could not bear being conveyed from place to 
 place inland may be found in it, brought directly from the 
 sea. Among the strangest tenants of this watery palace, the 
 
266 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 physalis pelagica, of the same family as what is commonly 
 called the " Portuguese man-of-war," holds the first rank. Its 
 body consists of a large air-sac of a beautiful bluish mother-of- 
 pearl tinge, and surmounted with a crest presenting the various 
 hues comprised between a purple and a brilliant red. From 
 the body there issue splendid blue peduncles, ending in violet 
 tassels, composed of little filaments, each of which is in con- 
 stant motion ; also long spiral fibres, constantly going up and 
 down, and others formed of transparent pearls, presenting all 
 the colours of the rainbow. Next to this most curious and 
 elegant creature, the cuttle-fish may be seen, with its elephant's 
 head and undulating mantle of various hues; and another 
 strange zoophyte, with its head like a hare, and its fins bor- 
 dered with purple. The task would be too long to enumerate 
 all the strange denizens of the deep that have found hospi- 
 tality at Arcachon, such as rays, torpedoes, sea-horses, sea- 
 spiders, and other curious creatures typical of animated nature 
 on shore. Thus the sea-spider cuts off a leaf from some aquatic 
 plant at hand, chews it into a pulp, and afterwards puts the 
 latter on his back. The consequence is that his prey, seeing 
 this green stuff, which it takes for an island or a tuft of grass, 
 gets upon it, and the moment after has cause to repent its act. 
 260. The Earth not an inert mass of Matter, but a stu- 
 pendous shell of Extinct Life floating in Space. Equally 
 curious in form, and sometimes as brilliant in colour, are the 
 countless myriads of infusoria, when viewed under the power 
 of the microscope ; so that probably the larger forms of zoo- 
 phytes are derived from their minute progenitors, the species 
 being augmented and altered in the course of time and by the 
 influence of local causes. And these zoophytes themselves, 
 bearing such extraordinary resemblances to elephants, horses, 
 hares, and other land animals, may have been the typical forms 
 created in the primeval sea from which they sprung. When 
 we connect this suggestive idea with what has been shown 
 of the fact that extensive formations in the earth's crust are 
 composed of the remains of infusoria, diatomacece, and other 
 zoophytes, we cannot look upon " our common earth" as the 
 
THE SEA. 267 
 
 inert mass of matter which the old astronomers and chemists 
 would have us believe her to be. Here a new and living 
 history is opened up to our contemplation that enhances our 
 veneration for the primary constitution of the world when it 
 emanated from the hands of the Creator. If some rocks can 
 be proved beyond a doubt to have been formed by the labours 
 of marine living creatures, where is the contrary evidence that 
 every formation of the earth's crust did not emanate primarily 
 from the same source, and afterwards became metamorphosed 
 by reason of their own pressure generating the heat that sub- 
 sequently produced the eruptive forces ? This is a question 
 that might be enlarged upon, but not here, as it is in a meas- 
 ure foreign to the subject in hand. Sufficient, however, has 
 been advanced to show that the land which aids so materially 
 in producing vegetable and animal life, is not altogether a 
 mere lifeless deposit of the elements. Viewed in this light, 
 it is the cemetery of those countless myriads of marine crea- 
 tures of exquisite beauty that rendered the waters of the 
 primeval sea a mass of living tentaculce, surrounding the outer 
 shell, making the world, as it were, a stupendous encrinite 
 floating in the boundless ether of the universe. In this light 
 also we may view the rocks as containing the bright elements 
 of colour that dazzled the waves at night, or glowed in the 
 sunlight of the pristine ocean. When we see the various 
 hues that streak the rocks, and glitter in the mineral world, 
 perhaps these are the remains of the bright tints extracted 
 from the sea by the primitive molluscan laboratories. Even 
 the brightest gems found in its dull rocky matrix may have 
 derived their brilliancy from the pigments originally obtained 
 from the ocean, through the alembics of zoophytes, molluscs, 
 or brilliant-scaled fishes. 
 
 261. Speculative Hypothesis on the Origin of Bright- 
 coloured Animals. Here the speculative chemical philosopher 
 might trace some affinity between the bright tints of the 
 mineral world and the brilliant colours of zoophytes, testacea, 
 and Crustacea, especially those inhabiting tropical seas realis- 
 ing, in some measure, the poet's idea, that 
 
268 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 " Full many a gem of purest ray serene, 
 
 The dark unfathomed caves of ocean bear " 
 
 with this addendum, that it is possible their beauty may 
 have been derived originally from the sea itself. He might 
 argue that though the scales of fishes reflect the rays of light, 
 in most cases, like the evanescent rainbow-hues of the spec- 
 trum, the colours of marine creatures indicate the existence of 
 a pigment, extracted by the animal from sea-water, and may 
 become a chemical constituent in the body of a zoophyte or a 
 Crustacea. On these grounds he might inquire if, among the 
 exuviae of the countless myriads of bright -coloured marine 
 animals that formed the limestone rocks, their pigments have 
 not entered into the beautiful crystals of fluor-spar and other 
 calcareous minerals. Or, going further back to the theory that 
 silicious rocks are the metamorphosed exuviae of extinct mol- 
 luscs, diatoms, and crustaceans, having silex as the basis of 
 their structure, he might thus account for the colouring matter 
 of the amethyst, the topaz, the emerald, the ruby, and other 
 coloured gems being derived from analogous sources. If he 
 were told that this was a far-fetched hypothesis, he might 
 point to the pearl as a pure product of the sea, presenting the 
 lustre and beauty of a gem without metamorphosis by heat. 
 As evidence that in the profound depth of the ocean there 
 exist myriads of bright-coloured creatures where formerly it was 
 supposed none could be found, he might point to the recent 
 dredging operations on the American coast, where, at a depth 
 of more than 3000 feet, some beautiful zoophytes and crusta- 
 ceans have been fished up, proving that "animal life exists 
 at great depths in as great diversity, and as great an abund- 
 ance, as in shallow water." Also, "that so far from being 
 lifeless, the deep sea-bottom teems with animal life and with 
 creatures of a very remarkable kind, some of which connect 
 long past geological periods with the geological action going 
 on in our own time." * 
 
 262. Wonderful Scenery and Life in the Sea described by 
 Green, the Diver. The remarkable analogy between the forms 
 * ' Athenaeum/ December 1868. 
 
THE SEA. 269 
 
 of sea and land fauna and flora is every day being more and 
 more illustrated as our researches penetrate into the depths and 
 shallows of the ocean, and the estuaries of mighty rivers. 
 Among the practical investigators of submarine regions, Mr 
 Green, the famous diver, furnishes some graphic descriptions 
 of what he has seen in the clear waters of the Atlantic, among 
 the West India islands, as follows : " The banks of coral on 
 which my divings were made are about forty miles in length, 
 and from ten to twenty in breadth. On this bank of coral 
 is presented to the diver one of the most beautiful and sub- 
 lime scenes the eye ever beheld. The water varies from ten 
 to one hundred feet in depth, and is so clear that the diver 
 can see from two to three hundred feet in depth when sub- 
 merged, with little obstruction to the sight. The bottom of 
 the ocean, in many places on these banks, is as smooth as a 
 marble floor; in others, it is studded with coral columns 
 from ten to one hundred feet in height, and from one to 
 eighty feet in diameter. The tops of those more lofty sup- 
 port a myriad of pyramidal pendants, each forming a myriad 
 more, giving a reality to the imaginary abode of some water- 
 nymph. In other places the pendants form arch after arch ; 
 and as the diver stands on the bottom of the ocean and 
 gazes through these into the deep winding avenue, he feels 
 that they fill him with as sacred an awe as if he were in some 
 old cathedral which had long been buried beneath ' old ocean 
 wave.' Here and there the coral extends even to the surface 
 of the water, as if those loftier columns were towers belong- 
 ing to those stately temples now in ruins. There were count- 
 less varieties of diminutive trees, shrubs, and plants in every 
 crevice of the corals where the water deposited the least earth. 
 They were all of a faint hue, owing to the pale light they re- 
 ceived, although of every shade, and entirely different from 
 plants I am familiar with that vegetate on dry land. One in 
 particular attracted my attention ; it resembled a sea-fan of 
 immense size, of variegated colours, and of the most brilliant 
 hue. The fish which inhabit these silvery banks I found as 
 different in kind as the scenery was varied. They were of 
 
270 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 all forms, colours, and sizes from the most symmetrical to 
 the globe-like sun-fish ; from those of the dullest hue to the 
 changeable dolphin ; from the spot of the leopard to the hues 
 of the sunbeam ; from the harmless minnow to the voracious 
 shark. Some have heads like squirrels, others like cats and 
 dogs ; one of small size resembled a bull-terrier. Some darted 
 through the water like meteors, while others could scarcely 
 be seen to move. To enumerate and explain all the various 
 kinds of fish which I beheld while diving on these banks 
 would, were I naturalist enough so to do, require more space 
 than my limits would allow ; for I am convinced that most 
 of the kinds of fish which inhabit the tropical sea can be 
 found there (Hayti). The sun-fish, the saw-fish, white shark, 
 blue or shovel-nosed sharks, were often seen. There were 
 also fish that resembled plants, and remained as fixed in their 
 position as a shrub. The only power they possessed was to 
 open and shut when in danger." 
 
 263. Captain Cook describes an Amphibious Minnow in 
 Australia. In this submarine domain it requires 110 stretch 
 of imagination to trace the links of the animal creation in 
 their progressive development from the sea to the land, how 
 gill-respiring fishes emerging from the water have leapt on 
 shore, until, in the lapse of ages, their species changed into 
 lung-breathing animals. Such a transition state is described 
 by Captain Cook in his ' Voyage of Discovery in Australia,' 
 where, on the shores of the Coral Sea, he, and his scientific 
 coadjutors, Sir Joseph Banks and Dr Solander, discovered 
 previously unknown marine and land animals among others 
 the kangaroo typical of the extinct fauna of Europe, and 
 forming a missing link in the great chain of organised crea- 
 tion. The amphibious fish referred to he describes as fol- 
 lows : " We found here a small fish of a singular kind. It 
 was about the size of a minnow, and had two very strong 
 breast -fins. We found it in places that were quite dry, 
 where we supposed it might have been left by the tide ; but 
 it did not seem to have become languid by the want of water, 
 for upon our approach it leaped away, by the help of the 
 
THE SEA. 271 
 
 breast-fins, as nimble as a frog. Neither, indeed, did it 
 seem to prefer the water to the land ; for when we found 
 it in the water it frequently leaped out, and pursued its way 
 upon dry ground. We also observed that when it was in 
 places where small stones were standing above the surface 
 of the water at a little distance from each other, it chose 
 rather to leap from stone to stone than to pass through the 
 water ; and we saw several of them pass entirely over puddles 
 in this manner till they came to dry ground, and then leap 
 away." 
 
 264. Professor Agassiz finds a Land - travelling Fish in 
 South America Jive miles from Water. Recent researches 
 of naturalists have led to the discovery of fishes in a still 
 more advanced stage of development from a water-respiring 
 to an air-breathing state. Professor Agassiz informs us "that, 
 on the Amazon river in South America, he found an extra- 
 ordinary fish, that had the power of walking or creeping on 
 dry land, one having been discovered five miles distant from 
 water. The Professor himself kept one of them out of the 
 water half a day, and on putting it back into its natural ele- 
 ment it showed as much life as if it had never been removed. 
 Moreover it is an agile fish, worming its way up the inclined 
 plane of the trunk of some old tree that had fallen, and twist- 
 ing about among the branches, until finally a single shot has 
 brought down a bird and a fish together. Thus the fish and 
 the bird, with their connecting link the reptile, at first sight 
 so different in appearance, and so apparently separated by a 
 great gulf in structure as well as in habit, are found to grow 
 nearer to each other the better they are understood. It is by 
 tracing points of resemblance, of too technically anatomical 
 a character to be referred to in detail, that Professor Huxley 
 expresses the decision of comparative anatomists when he 
 speaks of the class of birds as * an extremely modified and 
 aberrant reptile type ; ' and if the general reader will take for 
 granted the connection between reptiles and birds, he will 
 have no difficulty, from a slight knowledge of frogs in their 
 tadpole and gill-breathing state, in carrying the argument 
 
272 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 further, and connecting reptiles, through the amphibia, with 
 fish."* 
 
 265. M. Dufosse and Mr Couch on the Voluntary Sounds 
 made by Fish. Besides this extraordinary power of loco- 
 motion on land by certain species of fishes, there are some 
 which exercise a vocal power in a remarkable degree. On 
 this interesting subject a French savant, M. Dufosse, re- 
 cently addressed the Academy of Sciences at Paris, laying 
 down the following propositions : " The muscles of certain 
 fishes have the power of vibratory motion by contraction. 
 This motion is the cause of the sounds which these fishes 
 emit. The noise which lyrae, umbrinse, and hippocampi 
 make are voluntary. The muscular vibrations which are 
 manifested in the two latter when young, and in a perfectly 
 normal state, abundantly prove that the vibrations observed 
 in these species when subjected to vivisection are normal 
 and physiological, and not owing to a secondary nervous 
 action. The vibrations of the muscles are strengthened by 
 being transmitted to a pneumatic bladder, which increases 
 their intensity. Nevertheless some of the acoustic phe- 
 nomena emitted by hippocampi are the result of vibrations 
 not intensified by that bladder ; so that here there is an 
 instance of muscular motion producing sounds in a verte- 
 brated animal without the aid of any organic auxiliary. In 
 the above species, both males and females have the faculty of 
 emitting sounds, and this faculty is most highly developed at 
 the spawning season." 
 
 266. Our own countryman, Mr Couch, in his interesting 
 work on British fishes, mentions several species having the 
 capacity of producing vocal sounds. " In the case of the 
 piper (trigla lyra)" he says, " several of the fishes of this 
 genus are known to utter obscure grunting sounds when 
 newly taken out of the water, and they continue them at 
 intervals as long as they live." And speaking of the com- 
 mon gurnard, he mentions its social habits, and tells us 
 that sometimes in the fine weather of summer they will as- 
 
 * 'The Intellectual Observer.' 
 
THE SEA. 273 
 
 semble together in large numbers, and mount to the surface 
 over deep water, with no other apparent object than the 
 enjoyment of the season; and when thus aloft they move 
 along at a slow pace, rising and sinking in the water for 
 short distances, and uttering a short grunt as if in self- 
 gratification." 
 
 267. Instinct of Creatures in the Sea to rise towards the 
 Light and Air. If we contemplate the whole arcana of organic 
 nature from the point of view suggested by these researches 
 into the habits and senses of fishes in relation to land ani- 
 mals, we perceive a great principle animating every member 
 of the animal kingdom, from the lowest to the highest organ- 
 ism, that prompts them to rise towards the great source of 
 light and heat, in order to perfect their structure and im- 
 prove their functions in the glorious light of the sun. Thus 
 the infusorial exuviae of the deep seas, where not even a ray 
 of light penetrates, are the remains of animalcule living in 
 illuminated waters, which in time originate larger species, 
 assuming a crustaceous covering, and becoming a submarine 
 insect inhabiting the shallow waters on the sandy shore 
 a tiny shrimp, the prototype of the locust that flies over 
 the sands of the desert, revelling in the tropical sunlight. 
 Thus, also, another monad of the deep rising to the sur- 
 face leaps on shore like the Australian minnow, and in time 
 succeeding species find their breast-fins become feet, their side- 
 fins become wings, and their gills become lungs, enabling 
 them to mount into the air, and warble forth their praises 
 at the gates of heaven, rejoicing in their glorious transforma- 
 tion from a lower existence in the sunless deep. Thus, even 
 in the vegetable kingdom, there is an inherent principle in 
 plants to rise from underground darkness into the regions of 
 light from the gloomy cave into the bright realms of day 
 from the shady forest high up above the umbrageous foliage. 
 Thus it is everywhere we find an instinct in the animal 
 creation that prompts to aspirations in perfecting organisms 
 and their functions ; even as man aspires to soar beyond this 
 sublunary sphere, where his existence is finite, to the realms 
 
 s 
 
274 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 above, where he hopes to become a dweller under the light 
 of the Infinite. 
 
 268. Migration of Fish in European Waters indicate the 
 Seasons of the Sea. From the contemplation of these won- 
 ders of the tropical seas we return to the more familiar 
 inhabitants of European waters, and observe in what manner 
 they are affected by the seasons. At the very threshold of 
 our inquiry we are met with the word itself as specially 
 applied to the finny tribe, which ministers so deliciously to 
 our appetites. This fish is in season, and that is not in 
 season signifying that there are times and seasons for their 
 spawning, or their appearance or disappearance from our wa- 
 ters. In these respects the migration of fishes partakes of 
 the same instinct as that of birds. There is this difference, 
 however, with regard to the direction in which that migra- 
 tion takes place, from the point of departure in Europe : 
 birds of migratory habits fly to the south after incubation, 
 but fish of this nature swim towards the north after spawn- 
 ing ; while the distances to which fish migrate are not nearly 
 so great as those of birds. Many erroneous views on this 
 head, formerly entertained, have been corrected by the recent 
 observations of indefatigable ichthyologists. For example, 
 it was asserted that the salmon in British waters rushed 
 away to the north pole in their migration. Not only is 
 this totally without foundation, but it has been proved that 
 the habits of the salmon are very local, like those of all other 
 fishes, and it never goes away from the estuary of its own 
 particular stream. Various causes are assigned for the regu- 
 larity in the migration of salmon from fresh water to salt, 
 and vice versa, among which it is said to be driven from the 
 salt water in consequence of becoming infested with vermin 
 of some kind, which can only be killed by fresh water ; and 
 fresh-water lice, on the other hand, impelling it again to seek 
 the sea. Be this as it may, the salmon is brought forward 
 as an example of the regular migration of fish at seasons as 
 marked as the migration of swallows. The return of these 
 beautiful fish from a sojourn in the ocean to their native 
 
THE SEA. 275 
 
 streams is one of the natural wonders in animated nature, 
 illustrative of the great law referred to, which impels the 
 lowest class of animals to seek by some mysterious instinct 
 a superior sphere of existence. From the dull depths of the 
 sea the shoals of salmon enter their river - estuary as if re- 
 joicing in their return home to its sunny waters j and in their 
 course they bound over the rocky bed of the stream, or up 
 the rapids, like birds more than fish, their silver-bright scales 
 glittering in the sunshine more brilliantly than the plumage 
 of the feathered creation. It is at such times that man 
 rejoices in the bounty of nature, when he may reap, without 
 the care and trouble of sowing or planting, the most delicious 
 sustenance from the " harvest of the sea," which, in these 
 days of practical knowledge, is becoming as interesting as the 
 harvest of the land. 
 
 269. Shoals of Herring on the Coast of Norway irregular 
 in their Migration. The migration of fishes that continually 
 inhabit the deep seas, although regular as to the season of 
 the year, is not so defined as to its area near the land, and, 
 from unknown causes, is sometimes irregular in appearance 
 and numbers. Of this class the common herring is an 
 example, and the history of the fisheries on the coast of 
 Norway furnishes some interesting facts on that head. "Al- 
 though the fishings on this long range of coast have been 
 abundant during the present century, the fish have been 
 capricious in their appearance at different points along the 
 coast, appearing in some years in large shoals at one spot, 
 and totally abandoning others which for years had been 
 regularly visited. Explanations have not been wanting as 
 to the capriciousness of their migrations, only one of which 
 I will mention, as appearing to me less imaginative than the 
 others and that is, the belief that the herring shuns places 
 where the year previously large fishings have taken place, 
 because large quantities of dead fish fall to the bottom and 
 infect the water. Instances are given where, in great shoals, 
 masses of dead herring have sunk to the bottom, and where 
 for many years afterwards no shoals have reappeared. One 
 
276 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 place in particular near Galten, south-west of Bergen, is 
 pointed out, where one year between 20,000 and 30,000 
 herrings died from want of room for the shoal, and at which 
 spot no fish has since been seen. The real cause, however, 
 has yet to be discovered, and more probably will be found 
 to be in close connection with submarine agencies, with the 
 abundance or scarcity of food, and with the storms and cur- 
 rents aifecting the ocean." * Nevertheless, when the herring 
 does appear after its migration from the coast it is pretty 
 regular, especially in the first season of the year, which lasts 
 from January to March. 
 
 270. Summer the Season of Activity among the Inhabi- 
 tants of the Sea. Although the abundance of animal life 
 inhabiting the deep seas of Europe in winter and spring is 
 something marvellous, yet summer is the season of activity 
 among the fishes and zoophytes found in shallow waters. As 
 the temperature of the sea becomes warmer, and the sun 
 illumines the subaqueous shore, myriads of creatures ap- 
 proach the surface to gambol and revel in the face of day. 
 Unlike the animals and birds on land, that pant and seek 
 for shelter in the heat of the noontide sun, the ocean tribes 
 hold high festival in their watery element. Where the 
 shores are the most destitute of animal or vegetable life the 
 seas are often the most prolific. " When, in the season of 
 drought, the land is parched to the total suspension of all 
 vegetable action, and every animal upon it is faint and lan- 
 guishing, the sea is in the full vigour of growth and life. 
 Even in those parts of the world where the land is perennially 
 and utterly barren, or in such a state as to be quite una- 
 vailable for cultivation, and altogether and hopelessly imprac- 
 ticable as the habitation of civilised man, the sterility of the 
 land in nowise invades or affects the sea. Take any locality 
 that you please the Atlantic on the coast of Sahara, or 
 the Indian Ocean on the barren coasts of Australia and 
 the sea is as fertile as if the land which it washes were the 
 garden of the globe. The north-west shores of Australia are 
 * Report of the British Consul on the fisheries of Norway. 
 
THE SEA. 277 
 
 barren and irreclaimable ; but not so the adjoining waters, 
 for they are redolent of growth and life. The bottom, where 
 it can be seen, and it is seen to a far greater depth than in 
 our seas, because the almost perpendicular beams of the sun 
 are not so reflected and refracted, but penetrate far into the 
 depths the bottom, in the number and luxuriance of its 
 productions, and the variety and richness of their colours, 
 emulates a garden of the richest plantation and the highest 
 culture." * 
 
 271. TJie Temperature of the Sea decreases in Depth 
 from the Surface. While the shallow waters of the sea are 
 thus affected at certain seasons by the influence of the sun, 
 the ocean depths are comparatively beyond the direct rays of 
 light and heat. It is calculated that even the tropical seas 
 that maintain the maxima of ocean temperature at the sur- 
 face, may possess an arctic coldness at their profound depths, 
 thereby in a measure corresponding, only in an inverse ratio, 
 with the decrease of temperature in elevated regions in the 
 air. On this point Humboldt has the following remarks : 
 "Proceeding upwards and downwards from the common 
 limit of the aerial and liquid oceans, we find that the strata 
 of air and water are subject to determinate laws of decrease 
 of temperature. This decrease is much less rapid in the air 
 than in the sea, which has a tendency tinder all latitudes to 
 maintain its temperature in the strata of water most contigu- 
 ous to the atmosphere, owing to the sinking of the heavier 
 and more cooled particles. A large series of the most care- 
 fully conducted observations on temperature shows us that, 
 in the ordinary and mean condition of its surface, the ocean, 
 from the equator to the forty-eighth degree of north and south 
 latitude, is somewhat warmer than the adjacent strata of air. 
 Owing to this decrease of temperature at increasing depths, 
 fishes and other inhabitants of the sea, the nature of whose 
 digestive and respiratory organs fits them for living in deep 
 water, may even, under the tropics, find the low degree of 
 temperature and the coolness of climate characteristic of more 
 * ' Summer/ by Mudie. 
 
278 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 temperate and more northern latitudes. This circumstance, 
 which is analogous to the prevalence of a mild and even cold 
 air on the elevated plains of the torrid zone, exercises a special 
 influence on the migration and geographical distribution of 
 many marine animals." And no doubt it affects the marine 
 vegetation in a corresponding manner, though less striking 
 than the flora of the atmosphere in its zones of altitude. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 VEGETATION AND CURRENTS OF THE SEA. 
 
 General aspect and extent of subaqueous vegetation, 272. Great length to 
 which some species of sea-plants grow, 273. Vast extent of submarine 
 forests in the southern seas, 274. Geographical range of algse according 
 to temperature, 275. Area of the Sargasso Sea in the Atlantic covered 
 with gulf- weed, 276. Appearance of the Sargasso Sea while sailing 
 through the weed, 277. Theories as to the origin of so great a mass of 
 vegetation, 278. Evidence of the Sargasso plant propagating on the 
 surface of the sea, 279. Hydrographical extent and majestic flow of the 
 Gulf Stream, 280. Phenomena of the Gulf Stream according to Maury, 
 281. Genial effects of the Gulf Stream on the climates of Europe, 282. 
 Direction of currents ascertained by floating bottles, 283. Hemispherical 
 division of south and north currents in the sea, 284. Hypothesis of. the 
 universal commingling- of sea-water disputed, 285. Origin of great ocean- 
 currents not satisfactorily explained, 286. Currents of rotation diverted 
 from their primary course by the upheaval of the land, 287. In the 
 primeval sea all currents continuous, as in Jupiter, 288. Equatorial ex- 
 cess of aqueous diameter overlooked by hydrographers, 289. Convexity 
 of the Gulf Stream an example of the equatorial current, 290. Binary 
 division of the sea and its currents by the equatorial current, 291. 
 Black stream of Japan analogous to the Gulf Stream, 292. Physical 
 phenomena of the two streams compared, 293. The Humboldt current 
 in the South Pacific Ocean, 294. Currents of the sea temper the cold and 
 cool the hot regions on land, 295. Scorched and barren aspect of the 
 shores of the Red Sea, 296. Abundance of vegetation and animal life in 
 the Red Sea, '297. Animal life in the Red Sea typical of the world's for- 
 mation, 298. Concluding remarks on the hypothesis that the land was 
 first deposited by organic life in the sea, 299. 
 
 272. General Aspect and Extent of Subaqueous Vegetation. 
 Of the vegetation that nourishes in the liquid medium of the 
 sea, the numbers of genera and species are few compared with 
 their congeners in the gaseous medium of the air ; neverthe- 
 
280 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 less they present, as far as we can penetrate to their habitats, 
 equally luxuriant aspects with the groves and forests on shore. 
 Dr Greville probably the most learned botanist on marine 
 plants thus epitomises the knowledge derived from many 
 sources on this interesting study : " We find the vegetation 
 of the ocean no less conspicuous for beauty and variety of 
 form than splendour of colour, admirably fitted for the place 
 it is designed to occupy, and of direct utility to mankind. 
 Viewing these tribes in the most careless way, as a system of 
 subaqueous vegetation, or even in a mere picturesque light, 
 we see the depths of ocean shadowed with submarine groves, 
 often of vast extent, intermixed with meadows, as it were, of 
 the most lively hues ; while trunks of the larger species, like 
 the giant trees of the tropics, are loaded with innumerable 
 minute kinds as fine as silk, and delicate as the most trans- 
 parent membrane. Nor must we forget that while thousands 
 and tens of thousands of quadrupeds, birds, and insects, de- 
 pend upon the vegetation immediately surrounding us for 
 their very existence, a countless host of creatures derive pro- 
 tection and nourishment from the plants of the deep, appro- 
 priated to their use by that merciful Power in whom they 
 live, move, and have their being, whose goodness is over all 
 His works. Some of the algae, placed, on account of the 
 simplicity of their structure, at the bottom of the scale, are 
 so small as to be invisible to the naked eye, except by the 
 appearance they give to other species on which they happen 
 to be parasitic in prodigious numbers. From these micro- 
 scopic forms algae are found of all sizes on our shores, up to 
 thirty or forty feet in length, an extent to which a common 
 sea-weed (cJtorda filium) not unfrequently attains." 
 
 273. Great Length to which some Species of Sea-Plants 
 Grow. From the dense medium in which marine plants 
 grow, they are enabled to support their long fronds upon 
 slender stems ; and this buoyancy is supplemented in some 
 species by air-vesicles being formed in the fronds themselves. 
 Navigators inform us that their ships have sailed over beds of 
 sea-weed which they estimated by sounding at from 500 to 
 
THE SEA. 281 
 
 1 500 feet. Perhaps some of the measurements of greatest depth 
 have been incorrect where the sounding-line has been carried 
 away at an angle by some current. In our own voyages 
 we have seen sea-weed on the surface of the water at con- 
 siderable depths, such as at the entrance to the spacious har- 
 bour of Port Phillip in Australia, where the soundings are 
 from 15 to 20 fathoms. The most remarkable thing is, that 
 this sea-plant grows in the channel where an impetuous tide 
 ebbs and flows, calculated, under ordinary circumstances, to 
 uproot the largest trees, yet they bend to the current without 
 breaking their stems, while the long fronds flourish amidst 
 the agitated surf. Taking into consideration the angle at 
 which some of these plants must bend, there are data for 
 concluding that some of them cannot be less than 200 feet 
 from the base of the root to the extremity of the frond. 
 
 274. Vast Extent of Submarine Forests in the Southern 
 Seas. Darwin, in his ' Voyage Eound the World,' mentions 
 a curious fact regarding a gigantic sea-weed on the shores 
 of South America, near Magellan Strait. " This plant," he 
 says, " grows on every rock from low-water to a great depth, 
 both on the outer coast and within the channel. I believe, 
 during the voyages of the Adventure and the Beagle, not one 
 rock near the surface was discovered which was not buoyed by 
 this floating mud. The good service it thus affords to vessels 
 navigating near this stormy land is evident, and it certainly 
 has saved many a one from being wrecked. I know few 
 things more surprising than to see this plant growing and 
 flourishing amidst those great breakers of the western ocean, 
 which no mass of rock, let it be ever so hard, can long resist. 
 The stem is round, shining, and smooth, and seldom has a 
 diameter of so- much as an inch. A few taken together are 
 sufficiently strong to support the weight of the large loose 
 stones to which, in the inland channels, they grow attached ; 
 and some of these stones are so heavy that, when drawn to 
 the surface, they can scarcely be lifted into a boat by one 
 person." This sea-plant is ihefucus giganteus discovered by 
 Captain Cook, who estimated the length of some plants at 
 
282 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 not less than 360 feet, although this must be taken as only 
 an approximate measurement. The extent of these beds of 
 sea-weed has been found as marvellous as their height and 
 habitat. " It is found from the extreme southern islets near 
 Cape Horn as far north on the eastern coast as lat. 43, and 
 on the western it was tolerably abundant, but far from luxu- 
 riant at Chiloe in lat. 42, thus having a range of fifteen de- 
 grees of latitude." Rhind, in his work on the 'Vegetable 
 Kingdom,' remarks as follows concerning the wonderful 
 number of living creatures of all orders whose existence 
 depends on these gigantic beds of sea-weed : " I can only 
 compare these great aquatic forests of the southern hemi- 
 sphere with the terrestrial ones within the intertropical re- 
 gions. Yet if the latter should be destroyed in any country, 
 I do not believe nearly so many species of animals would 
 perish as, under similar circumstances, would happen with the 
 kelp. Independent of the numerous zoophytes, amidst the 
 leaves of this plant many species of fish live which nowhere 
 else could find food or shelter. With their destruction the 
 many cormorants, divers, and other fishing-birds, the otters, 
 seals, and porpoises, would soon perish also ; and, lastly, the 
 Fuegian savage, the miserable lord of this miserable land, 
 would redouble his cannibal feast, decrease in numbers, and 
 perhaps cease to exist." 
 
 275. Geographical Range of Algce according to Tempera- 
 ture. How the seasons of the sea affect the fructification of 
 marine plants there are but limited data to determine. Bot- 
 anists class them under the head of cryptogamia, where no 
 flower proper is visible. Hence there are no seasons of bud- 
 ding, flowering, and seed-time ; so that they exhibit no dis- 
 tinctive character in that respect, as seen in phanerogamous 
 or flowering plants. That they have analogous periods of de- 
 cay and luxuriance with their aerial congeners in temperate 
 regions is beyond doubt, as they " are found upon the British 
 coasts in greatest abundance during the summer months, and 
 in unusual luxuriance during hot seasons. It is probable, 
 also, that sea-plants may be acted on by the temperature of 
 
THE SEA. 283 
 
 the water at greater or less depths ; and that those species 
 which grow at the bottom of the ocean may have some re- 
 semblance to those of the polar circle. On the shores of the 
 British Islands it is easy to perceive that certain species be- 
 come more plentiful and luxuriant as we travel from north to 
 south; and, on the other hand, that several others occur more 
 frequently, and in a finer state, as we approach the north ; 
 while others, again, possess too extended a range to be influ- 
 enced by any change of temperature between the northern 
 boundary of Scotland and the south-western point of Eng- 
 land. The researches and observations of Lamouroux have 
 demonstrated satisfactorily that the great groups of algce do 
 affect particular temperatures or zones of latitude, though 
 some genera may be termed cosmopolite." * 
 
 276. Area of the Sargasso Sea in the Atlantic covered with 
 " Gulf-Weed." Could we but observe as closely the fructi- 
 fication, growth, and decay of the plants composing these 
 forests of the oceaii as we can the trees and shrubs of our 
 woods, no doubt the observing botanist could discern anal- 
 ogous changes in their structure at certain seasons. At the 
 same time, from the greater equability of ocean temperature 
 throughout the year and through wider ranges of latitude, 
 the seasons in the sea cannot affect submarine vegetation, 
 even in the lowest degree of change, as manifested by plants 
 growing in the air of an evergreen or perennial character. 
 Moreover, in the classification of plants botanists place the 
 algce below the fern tribe and next to the lichens, which, 
 popularly speaking, can scarcely rank as legitimate flowers. 
 In the absence of better information regarding the vast fields 
 of submarine vegetation hid from our sight, we may gather 
 some idea of their extent from the fields of floating sea-weed 
 covering large areas of the ocean's surface. The most exten- 
 sive tract of this kind is in the Atlantic Ocean, where a 
 species of algce flourishes commonly called " gulf-weed," from 
 the supposition that it is collected by the Gulf Stream, and 
 named sargassum bacciferum by botanists, from sargago, the 
 * Rhind's 'Vegetable Kingdom.' 
 
284 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Spanish for the lentil, which the seeds or air- vesicles of the 
 plant resemble. Hence this region of the Atlantic is desig- 
 nated the Sargasso Sea by hydrographers, who consider it an 
 eddy, situated in point of latitude between the regular equi- 
 noctial current on the south setting to the westward, the 
 south-easterly current from the northern sea on the east, and 
 as the recipient of the Gulf Stream from the north and north- 
 west. The tract which is occupied is more than twelve hun- 
 dred miles in length, varying from fifty to one hundred and 
 fifty miles in width, and having a superficies, according to 
 Humboldt, the greater part of which is covered with sea- 
 weed, equal to more than 260,000 square miles. Major Ken- 
 nel observes that the breadth of this mass of weed is small 
 in proportion to its length, being drawn out into a kind of 
 stream, and bending a little to the east of south. Dr Frank- 
 lin crossed it in lat. 36, and found it less than fifty miles 
 wide ; but it spreads to the southward, and, in lat. 20 N., 
 appears to be a hundred and fifty miles wide. 
 
 277. Appearance of the Sargasso Sea while sailing 
 through the Weed. Though this remarkable collection of 
 sea-weed is situated at a comparatively short distance from 
 the shores of Europe and America, yet it is seldom crossed 
 by mariners, and hence its actual boundaries are not very 
 clearly defined, while the nature of the sea-weed, and the 
 marine creatures living on it, are but little known. Navi- 
 gators avoid its confines in consequence of the weed imped- 
 ing the progress of their ships, and in the case of steamers, 
 its collection round the screws and paddle-wheels seriously 
 endangering the machinery. It so happened in our many 
 long voyages, that on rounding Cape Horn and sailing from the 
 South to the North Atlantic, the captain of our ship encoun- 
 tered head- winds as he neared the Sargasso Sea, which com- 
 pelled him to beat through it for a distance of seven hundred 
 miles before he got into the usual homeward-bound track. 
 Taking advantage of this opportunity to observe the phe- 
 nomena of this curious sea-weed, so widely spread upon the 
 surface of the ocean, we collected a quantity of it and the 
 
THE SEA. 285 
 
 smaller creatures feeding thereon, for examination and pre- 
 servation. Few of the specimens were more than two feet 
 long, with slender stalks in proportion, covered more or less 
 with the berry-like vesicles, which enabled the whole plant 
 to float on the surface so as to be quite visible to the eye 
 at some distance. When the weather was calm, with little 
 agitation on the water, the sea appeared, in some places 
 where it was unusually dense, like an inundated meadow. 
 Then, when a smart breeze sprang up, and the waves broke 
 in long ridges, the weed collected in rows at distant intervals, 
 having the appearance of hedges partly submerged. If these 
 lay across the ship's course, they very materially impeded 
 its progress ; and however much we were pleased to see this 
 famous Sargasso Sea, our captain rejoiced when he sailed out 
 of its latitudes. In looking on this mass of sea-weed in the 
 mid-ocean, we could scarcely divest ourselves of the idea that 
 we were close to the shore though more than a thousand 
 miles from the mainland; while we could easily imagine how 
 the sailors in Columbus's first voyage of discovery hailed its 
 appearance as the indication of land, and, as reported, some 
 leapt overboard expecting to touch the rocks on which it 
 grew. 
 
 278. TJieories as to the Origin of so great a mass of 
 Vegetation. Various theories have been promulgated as to 
 the origin of this vast " sea- weed meadow." As its common 
 name of gulf- weed denotes, it was supposed by mariners to 
 grow in the Gulf of Mexico, from whence it is carried by the 
 Gulf Stream round Cape Florida, and, proceeding between 
 Bermudas and the Western Islands, settles in the eddy of 
 that vast current which encircles the Atlantic. This hypo- 
 thesis has not found favour in the eyes of hydrographers, as 
 no uniform current has been discovered capable of carrying 
 the nodules in the direction specified, and to those parts of 
 the ocean where the weed is most abundant. Humboldt 
 was of opinion that it grows on a sandbank raised above the 
 bottom of the sea in form similar to the surface, elongated in 
 shape, and of the area the weed occupies. In support of its 
 
286 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 growing at the bottom of the ocean where it is now found on 
 the surface, Mr Luccock remarks : " It is more than reason- 
 able to suppose, that the plants grow nearly on the spot over 
 which they float ; that those which appear on the surface of 
 the water are only the heads or minor branches of others 
 which flourish beneath ; that they are broken off by the 
 agitation of the ocean, or some other accidental circumstance ; 
 perhaps by the buoyancy of the air -vesicles themselves, 
 which at a great depth must be fully sufficient for the pur- 
 pose, as it enables them to float lightly even on the surface 
 of the water." "What renders this theory most plausible is 
 the fact, that of the thousands of specimens examined not 
 one has the vestige of a root or fructification as seen in sea- 
 weeds fixed to rocks. But here eminent botanists have come 
 forward to show that some sea-weeds propagate without what 
 are called roots. These Dr Greville considers to be merely 
 holdfasts (crampons), and not the organs of absorption as 
 in ordinary plants. Sea-weeds absorb through their whole 
 substance, and the use of their roots is to allow them to grow 
 in favourable circumstances for taking up nourishment. With 
 this and other data connected with fructification, it is now 
 considered that the Sargasso sea-weed may originally have 
 possessed a discoid root, and that, the plant becoming modi- 
 fied in its nature under the peculiar circumstances in which 
 it is placed, it propagates by lateral shoots when floating in 
 the sea. This view of the question seems to us the most 
 probable, as the specimens we examined were most of them 
 bright green at the top as if fresh plucked, while the lower 
 portions were brown and in a state of decay. It would 
 therefore appear as a more likely theory that, as the older 
 parts of the plant decay, they are broken off by the agitation 
 of the waves, and the air- vesicles bursting, these may sink 
 into the depths of the ocean, leaving the floating plants al- 
 ways fresh and green. In that case it is just possible that 
 soundings made in the Sargasso Sea, fishing up specimens of 
 its bed, would show evidence of its vegetable and animal 
 remains, that have been deposited through countless genera- 
 
THE SEA. 287 
 
 tions since the remote period when this immense area of the 
 North Atlantic was as clear of sea-weed as other parts are 
 found to be. 
 
 279. Evidence of the Sargasso Plant propagating on the 
 Surface of the Sea. Another argument in favour of the 
 Sargasso sea-weed not being merely broken branches from 
 the parent stems growing at the bottom of the Atlantic, 
 where it is probably from two to four miles deep, is the 
 nature of the marine animals found upon it. This point, as 
 far as we are aware, has been overlooked by previous observ- 
 ers, who would lead us to suppose that this vast ocean- 
 prairie greater than any prairie on the American continent, 
 was destitute of animal life. On the contrary, there are 
 data for concluding that the surface of the Sargasso Sea 
 swarms with living creatures of every variety found in the 
 ocean, from the microscopic zoophyte to the perfect fish, and 
 all these are more or less dependent on the weed for sub- 
 sistence. As far as our observations go, there was scarcely a 
 bucket of water taken up, while dipping for specimens of the 
 weed, but contained some tiny pipe-fish, shrimp, or shell ; 
 and doubtless more might have been collected, and of larger 
 dimensions, had we possessed better gear for the purpose 
 than simply plunging a ship's bucket over the bows. Now 
 these marine creatures were all of a character that live near 
 the surface of the sea, or, as in the case of the shrimp, on the 
 shallow waters of a sandy shore, and they could not have 
 subsisted at the profound depths of the Atlantic. Hence 
 there is every reason to conclude that the gulf-weed is neither 
 produced on the rocky bottom of the Mexican Gulf, nor on 
 a bank in the mid-ocean, but simply by lateral propagation 
 on the surface where it is found the boundaries of its 
 distribution being defined by ocean -currents, within which 
 the Sargasso Sea is a vast eddy in the basin of the North 
 Atlantic Ocean. 
 
 280. Hydrographical Extent and Majesty of the Gulf 
 Stream. Among the influences of the sea upon the seasons, 
 not merely below but above its surface, none are of more 
 
288 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 importance than the great ocean- currents, which have been 
 appropriately designated the " rivers of the sea" the greatest 
 and most wonderful of which is the Gulf Stream just referred 
 to. Of this phenomenon of the sea, Captain Maury thus 
 writes : " There is a river in the ocean. In the severest 
 droughts it never fails, and in the mightiest floods it never 
 overflows. Its banks and its bottoms are of cold water, 
 while its current is of warm. The Gulf of Mexico is its 
 fountain, and its mouth is in the arctic seas. It is the 
 Gulf Stream. There is in the world no other such majestic 
 flow of waters. Its current is more rapid than the Mississippi 
 or the Amazon, and its volume more than a thousand times 
 greater. Its waters, as far out from the gulf as the Carolina 
 coasts, are of an indigo blue. They are so distinctly marked 
 that their line of junction with the common sea-water may 
 be traced by the eye. Often one half of the vessel may be 
 perceived floating in Gulf -Stream water, while the other 
 half is in common water of the sea ; so sharp is the line, and 
 such the want of affinity between those waters, and such, 
 too, the reluctance, so to speak, on the part of those of the 
 Gulf Stream to mingle with the common water of the sea." 
 
 281. Phenomena of the Gulf Stream according to Maury. 
 It is not precisely the province of this part of our subject 
 to enter into details concerning any particular current of the 
 sea, yet we may be excused giving another quotation from 
 Maury's book, describing the extraordinary phenomena of the 
 Gulf Stream. "As to the temperature of the Gulf Stream, 
 there is in a winter's day, off" Hatteras, and even as high up as 
 the Grand Banks of Newfoundland in mid-ocean, a difference 
 between its waters and those of the ocean nearly of 20 and 
 even 30. Water, we know, expands by heat, and here the 
 difference of temperature may more than compensate for the 
 difference of saltness, and leave, therefore, the waters of the 
 Gulf Stream lighter by reason of their warmth. If they be 
 lighter, they should therefore occupy a higher level than those 
 through which they flow r . Assuming the depth off Hatteras to 
 be one hundred and fourteen fathoms, and allowing the usual 
 
THE SEA. 289 
 
 rates of expansion for sea-water, figures show that the middle 
 or axis of the Gulf Stream there should be nearly two feet 
 higher than the contiguous waters of the Atlantic. Hence 
 the surface of the stream should present a double inclined 
 plane, from which the water would be running down on 
 either side as from the roof of a house. As this runs off at 
 the top, the same weight of colder water runs in at the bot- 
 tom, and so raises up the cold-water bed of the Gulf Stream, 
 and causes it to become shallower and shallower as it goes 
 north. That the Gulf Stream is therefore roof-shaped, caus- 
 ing the waters on its surface to flow off to either side from 
 the middle, we have not only circumstantial evidence to 
 show, but observations to prove. Navigators, while drifting . 
 along with the Gulf Stream, have lowered a boat to try the 
 surface current. In such cases the boat would drift either to 
 the east or to the west, as it happened to be on one side or 
 other of the axis of the stream, while the vessel itself would 
 drift along with the stream in the direction of its course, 
 thus showing the existence of a shallow roof-current from 
 the middle towards either edge, which would carry the boat 
 along, but which, being superficial, does not extend deep 
 enough to affect the drift of the vessel." 
 
 282. Genial Effects of the Gulf Stream on the Climate of 
 Europe. This extraordinary current exercises great influence 
 on the climate and seasons in Europe, especially among the 
 British Isles and during winter. " The maximum temper- 
 ature of the Gulf Stream is 86, or about 9 above the ocean 
 temperature due to the latitude. Increasing its latitude 10 
 it loses but 2 of temperature, and after having run three 
 thousand miles to the north, it still preserves, even in winter, 
 the heat of summer. With this temperature it crosses the 
 40th degree of north latitude, and there overflowing its liquid 
 banks, it spreads itself out for thousands of square leagues 
 over the cold waters around, and covers the ocean with a 
 mantle of warmth that serves so much to mitigate in Europe 
 the rigours of winter. Moving now more slowly, but dis- 
 pensing its genial influences more freely, it finally meets the 
 
 T 
 
290 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 British Islands. By these it is divided one part going into 
 the polar basin of Spitzbergen, the other entering the Bay 
 of Biscay, but each with a warmth considerably above the 
 ocean temperature. Such an immense volume of heated wa- 
 ter cannot fail to carry with it beyond the seas a mild and 
 moist atmosphere. . . . Every west wind that blows crosses 
 the stream on its way to Europe, and carries with it a por- 
 tion of this heat to temper there the northern winds of 
 winter. It is the influence of this stream upon climate that 
 makes Erin the l Emerald Isle of the sea,' and that clothes 
 the shores of Albion in evergreen robes ; while in the same 
 latitude, on this side (America), the coasts of Labrador are 
 fast bound in fetters of ice." 
 
 283. Direction of Currents ascertained by floating Bottles. 
 From the influence of the Gulf-Stream current upon the 
 climate of Europe and navigation of the Atlantic, its course 
 and phenomena have been more thoroughly determined than 
 those of any other ocean -current. But it may be said with 
 truth that the greater part of the sea is more or less subject 
 to currents that render its surface a series of oceanic rivers, 
 continually keeping its waters in circulation. On this point 
 Captain Maury goes so far as to say that they are so mingled 
 with each other " that sea-water from one part of the world 
 is, in the process of time, brought into contact and mixed up 
 with sea-water from all other parts of the world." Without 
 disputing the premises, we would point out that, according to 
 the current-chart of the earth by that eminent hydrographer, 
 there appear to be two great systems of currents, one in the 
 south, the other in the north hemisphere, divided by the 
 great equatorial current, each system independent of the 
 other. From this it is probable that the waters of the two 
 hemispheres do not commingle, each system of warm and cold 
 currents circulating between its equatorial and polar limits. 
 For example : "It is a custom often practised by seafaring 
 people to throw a bottle overboard with a paper, stating the 
 time and place at which it is done. In the absence of other 
 information as to currents, that afforded by these mute little 
 
THE SEA. 291 
 
 navigators is of value. They leave no tracks behind them, it 
 is true, and their routes cannot be ascertained. But knowing 
 where they were cast, and seeing where they are found, some 
 idea may be formed as to their course. Straight lines may at 
 least be drawn showing the shortest distance from the begin- 
 ning to the end of their voyage, with the time elapsed. Ad- 
 miral Beechey, K.N., has prepared a chart representing, in 
 this way, the tracks of more than one hundred bottles. From 
 it, it appears that the waters from every quarter of the Atlan- 
 tic tend towards the Gulf of Mexico and its stream. Bottles 
 cast into the sea midway between the Old and the New 
 Worlds near the coasts of Europe, Africa, and America, at 
 the extreme north or farthest south have been found either 
 in the West Indies, on the British Isles, or within the well- 
 known range of Gulf -Stream waters. Of two cast out to- 
 gether in south latitude on the coast of Africa, one was found 
 on the island of Trinidad, the other on Guernsey in the 
 English Channel. In the absence of positive information on 
 the subject, the circumstantial evidence that the latter per- 
 formed the tour of the gulf is almost conclusive. And there 
 is reason to suppose that some of the bottles of the admiral's 
 chart have also performed the tour of the Gulf Stream ; then, 
 without being cast ashore, have returned with the drift along 
 the coast of Africa into the intertropical region ; thence 
 through the Caribbean Sea, and so on with the Gulf Stream 
 again." 
 
 284. Hemispherical Division of South and North Currents 
 in the Sea. In this instance we have a practical illustration 
 of a continuous current circulating within northern latitudes, 
 between 10 and 40, without crossing the equator into 
 southern latitudes, or even flowing to the north of Europe. 
 If we continue our researches into the South Atlantic Ocean 
 we find currents analogous, in their general circulation, to 
 those in the North Atlantic ; and though we have no data to 
 go upon, in all probability a bottle thrown into the main 
 equatorial current south of the line would make the circuit 
 of that ocean along the Brazil coast, crossing over to the Cape 
 
292 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of Good Hope and returning by the South African coast. 
 In like manner the Pacific Ocean has two complete systems 
 of currents in its north and south divisions ; while the In- 
 dian Ocean, from the greater portion of its waters being in 
 south latitudes, does not show its northern system of currents 
 so clearly defined ; yet there is an approximation to the gene- 
 ral law involved namely, that each hemisphere has its own 
 sets of currents more or less independent of the other. At 
 the same time there may be exceptions to the general rule ; 
 but these are infinitesimal in proportion to the great law of 
 binary systems of currents in the southern and northern 
 divisions of the sea. And as the general direction of the 
 great currents is longitudinal, we can suppose a drop of water 
 making the circuit of the globe from east to west within a 
 reasonable space of time ; whereas the chance of a drop of 
 water in the arctic seas reaching its antipodes in the antarctic 
 circle is a contingencj 7 " so remote that it appears almost an 
 impossibility. 
 
 285. Hypothesis of the Universal Commingling of Sea- 
 Water disputed. Captain Maury assumes that the currents 
 of the sea convey every particle of water over its area and 
 depths, from the uniformity of its constituents wherever 
 analyses have been made. He states : "If we take a sample 
 of water which shall fairly represent, in the proportion of its 
 constituents, the average water of the Pacific Ocean, and 
 analyse it, and if we do the same by a similar sample from 
 the Atlantic, we shall find the analysis of the one to resemble 
 that of the other as closely as though the two samples had 
 been taken from the same bottle after having been well 
 shaken. How then shall we account for this, unless upon 
 the supposition that sea-water from one part of the world is, 
 in process of time, brought into contact and mixed up with 
 sea-water from all other parts of the world 1 " We are not 
 prepared to accept this statement of invariable uniformity 
 of analyses of sea-water, for it is well known that the pro- 
 portion of saline constituents varies considerably that of the 
 tropical waters of the Atlantic being 1-2 4th, while in the 
 
THE SEA. 293 
 
 German Ocean it is l-30th. Indeed, if we compare the nu- 
 merous analyses of the highest chemical authorities, we do 
 not find two agree in the quantities of mineral ingredients ; 
 while some have detected the elements of iodine and bro- 
 mine where others could find no trace. As a rule, therefore, 
 the analysis of sea- water by ordinary chemical means is but 
 a crude approximation to the negative evidence of marine 
 plants and animals, which proves that there are elementary 
 substances in solution that human ingenuity has failed to 
 detect. Of this we have an example in the silicious micro- 
 scopic shells that prevail in the North Pacific, while in the 
 North Atlantic they are calcareous ; from which we infer 
 that silex exists in a greater proportion in the one sea than 
 the other, although no analyst has detected that constituent 
 in a crude form. Taking this into consideration, and looking 
 at the stupendous barrier of the American continent between 
 the two seas, together with their separate systems of currents, 
 we have good evidence that the particles of these oceans do 
 not commingle, as though they were shaken up in a bottle. 
 
 286. Origin of great Ocean - Currents not satisfactorily 
 explained. " The existence of ocean-currents has been long 
 known yet it is only since the later improvements in navi- 
 gation, especially by the introduction of the chronometer 
 and lunar observations, about the year 1770, that they have 
 been treated as a regular and extensive system ; and for this 
 we are chiefly indebted to the valuable researches of Major 
 Rennell. Notwithstanding the many attempts to account 
 for the formation of these great systems of aqueous circula- 
 tion, the subject is still involved in considerable obscurity. 
 The prevalent opinion is that advanced by Rennell, who sup- 
 poses that they are produced by the pressure of the trade- 
 winds, and the consequent accumulation of water near the 
 equator. But many examples which he himself adduces 
 prove this opinion to be untenable. For instance, such an 
 accumulation of water could only produce a superficial cur- 
 rent ; while he shows that many of the stream-currents reach 
 to a very great depth probably to the bottom of the sea. 
 
294 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Besides, many of the currents have their origin in regions 
 where there are no trade or periodical winds. Among other 
 causes to which they have been attributed by recent authors 
 there are, in addition to trade-winds, the changeableness of 
 atmospheric pressure, the temperature of the air, the differ- 
 ence of temperature or saltness of the sea, the periodical 
 melting of the polar ice, the unequal amount of evaporation 
 at different latitudes, and the local forms of the continents. 
 Humboldt, ascribing their formation to the diurnal rotation 
 of the globe, calls them currents of rotation. Doubtless, 
 many of these causes may combine to produce the result ; 
 but the laws which govern the motion of fluids in large 
 bodies through each other in currents of different tempera- 
 tures are not yet sufficiently understood to warrant a satis- 
 factory explanation of these wonderful phenomena. Future 
 investigations will, in all probability, develop a system of 
 marine circulation in perfect harmony with the other ascer- 
 tained laws of the universe." * 
 
 287. Currents of Rotation diverted from their Primary 
 Course by the Upheaval of the Land. In considering this 
 question let us go back to first principles, and we may clear 
 up some points if we do not solve the whole phenomena of 
 currents. "We have already referred to that epoch in the 
 history of our planet, when the primeval sea encompassed its 
 nucleus, free from any disturbance of upheaved land. At 
 that period we cannot suppose the existence of the Gulf 
 Stream or similar currents, as it is abundantly evident these 
 were caused by the disposition of the continental masses 
 either disturbing the direction of primary currents or creat- 
 ing a new local circulation of the oceanic waters. On the 
 other hand, we can readily understand that what Humboldt 
 calls currents of rotation existed during the earliest periods of 
 the primeval sea, caused by the diurnal rotation of the earth. 
 "We can also easily understand that these currents, being un- 
 obstructed by any inequality of the ocean-bed, were of great 
 uniformity, flowing round the circumference of the earth in 
 * Johnston's 'Physical Atlas of Natural Phenomena.' 
 
THE SEA. 295 
 
 belts from east to west, as clearly defined as the meridian 
 lines on a globe, diminishing in diameter from the equator to 
 the poles. It requires no stretch of imagination or ingenious 
 argument to prove that, on the upheaval of the land, this 
 uniform system of currents was broken up, and the waters 
 diverted from their primary course to all points of the com- 
 pass, though still retaining their general direction, as we now 
 find them, especially in the great equatorial current, which 
 maintains its primitive character more than the temperate 
 or polar currents do. Then it followed as a matter of neces- 
 sity that the minor currents, being hemmed in by the land, 
 assumed new features as they were influenced more or less 
 by the conformation of continents and islands, atmospheric 
 agencies, evaporation, and the other causes enumerated in 
 the foregoing extract. 
 
 288. In the Primeval Sea all Currents continuous, as in 
 Jupiter. As to surface currents caused by the action of the 
 wind upon the sea, we have a grand example in those pro- 
 duced by the trade-winds, which are, however, confined in 
 their operations by the land. " Were there a free communi- 
 cation round the globe, at or about its equator, the continuous 
 action of the trades could not fail to establish a westerly cir- 
 culation of the equatorial waters with little deviation to the 
 north or the south ; and were the whole globe covered with 
 water, the compensating south-west and north-west winds 
 beyond the tropics would produce two extra-tropical easterly 
 currents surrounding the globe, and separated from the 
 equatorial one by zones of still water a lively picture, in 
 short, of what is most probably the state of the planet 
 Jupiter." Thus, if we refer back by induction to the pro- 
 bable condition of the currents in the primeval sea, we will 
 arrive at a more correct view of the principles upon which 
 they are divided into so many different sets, but all obeying 
 the general laws that set them in motion. 
 
 289. Equatorial Excess of Diameter overlooked by Hydro- 
 grapliers. It appears to us, however, that a potent influence 
 in regulating the distribution of the currents has been over- 
 
296 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 looked. We allude to the diameter of the primeval fluid 
 oblate spheroid at the equator, compared with that between 
 the poles, which was, in all probability, greater than it is 
 now. When astronomers inform us that the equatorial dia- 
 meter of the globe is some twenty-seven miles greater than 
 its polar, they do not refer to the solid but the liquid area, 
 which is not a fixed quantity, but depends upon the centri- 
 fugal movement of rotation. It is a common illustration of 
 this fact to calculate that if the earth stopped in its diurnal 
 revolution, the ocean -currents would rush with tremendous 
 velocity towards the poles in obedience to the law of gravity, 
 so that the two diameters should be equal, and the globe 
 become a perfect sphere at the sea-level. And if such a cat- 
 aclysm were to occur now, the receding waters would leave 
 the beds of some equatorial seas dry, while they would flood 
 the lands of the polar regions, so that scarcely a mountain 
 would be seen ; while all the lower countries of Europe would 
 be submerged, turning the Alps into a group of islands. 
 
 290. Convexity of the Gulf Stream an Example of the 
 Equatorial Current. Now, let us consider that this excess of 
 fluid diameter exists on the terraqueous globe at or near the 
 equator in the three great oceans raising, as it were, a watery 
 mountain between the currents south and north of the line 
 and we have a solution of the phenomenon of binary systems 
 of currents independent of each other just pointed out. We 
 have quoted Captain Maury's interesting account of " the roof- 
 shaped current " of the Gulf Stream ; and in it we have the 
 phenomenon of equatorial expansion exemplified on a small 
 scale. They are both subject to the same oceanic laws. As 
 a farther proof of what has been cited on his authority, of the 
 convexity observable in the Gulf Stream, he states : " That 
 such is the case is also indicated by the circumstance, that the 
 sea-weed and drift-wood which are found in such large quan- 
 tities along the outer edge of the Gulf Stream, are rarely, even 
 with the prevalence of easterly winds, found along its inner 
 edge ; and for the simple reason that to cross the Gulf Stream, 
 and to pass over from that side to this, they would have to 
 
THE SEA. 297 
 
 drift up an inclined plane, as it were that is, they would 
 have to stem this roof-current until they reached the middle 
 of the stream. We rarely hear of planks or wrecks, or of 
 any floating substance which is cast into the sea on the other 
 side of the Gulf Stream, being found along the coast of the 
 United States. Drift-wood, trees, and seeds from the "West 
 India islands are said to have been cast up on the shores of 
 Europe, but never, that I ever heard, on the Atlantic shores of 
 America." 
 
 291. Binary Division of the Sea and its Currents near the 
 Equator. If we apply the inferences to be deduced from 
 these facts and phenomena to the equatorial swelling of the 
 sea, though produced by different causes, we can readily under- 
 stand why the currents in the south hemisphere do not cross 
 the equator and at once commingle with the systems in the 
 north hemisphere, or why drift sea-weed and wreck does not 
 float from the North to the South Atlantic. These would 
 have to ascend an incline, the axis of which is midway across 
 the equatorial current. Hence they are drifted back into the 
 great eddy of the Sargasso Sea, or carried round and round 
 the basin of the Atlantic, or perchance cast up on the shores 
 of Europe, Northern Africa, or North America. It is true 
 that there are under-currents which do not obey the laws that 
 regulate those upon the surface, such as the lower waters of 
 the Gulf Stream, which, according to Maury, when passing 
 through the straits off Cape Hatteras, " are actually forced up 
 an inclined plane whose submarine ascent is not less than 
 ten inches to the mile." But this phenomenon is a purely 
 exceptional one, arising from the Gulf Stream being jammed 
 up in the " narrows " of the Florida Pass, causing the waters 
 to rise, just as those of a great river flowing through a narrow 
 gorge do. It is true also, according to the same authority, 
 that a bottle, thrown from a ship off Cape Horn by an 
 American mariner in 1837, was picked up some eight years 
 afterwards on the coast of Ireland, which Captain Maury 
 considers, " went even from that remote region to the so-called 
 higher level of the Gulf Stream reservoir," while it must have 
 
298 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 crossed the equatorial current at some place, passing from 
 south to north latitudes. This also may be considered ex- 
 ceptional, as the bottle may have got into some temporary 
 counter-current on the coast of South America, by which it 
 reached Cape St Roque, where the great equatorial current 
 divides one branch flowing towards the Caribbean Sea, and 
 the other into the South Atlantic. It will be seen that the 
 broad principles we contend for in the distribution of currents 
 over the world are not affected by these exceptions; and 
 that despite them we are entitled to assume the existence of 
 binary systems, each in its own hemisphere and in its own 
 ocean, as distinct and varied as the distribution of islands 
 and continents within the two hemispheres. In the north, 
 as the land predominates, the number of subsidiary currents 
 is greatest; and in the south, where the ocean encircles 
 the globe, they are fewer, but on a greater scale ; while the 
 equatorial current keeps more in these latitudes, as if to pre- 
 serve the vestiges of its primitive uniformity in the primeval 
 sea. Indeed, it may be said that the earth is binary in all its 
 relations from its own physical structure and phenomena to 
 those of the highest organisms it has produced. 
 
 292. Black Stream of Japan analogous to the Gulf Stream. 
 Of the currents in the Pacific Ocean much less is known 
 than of those in the Atlantic ; yet the data obtained so far 
 by hydrographers go to prove that this hemisphere of water 
 in the phenomena of its upper and under currents obeys 
 the general laws in operation, which regulate the whole cir- 
 culation of waters on the globe. The most interesting fact 
 connected with the Pacific currents is the existence of a warm 
 stream flowing through the north temperate zone in all re- 
 spects analogous to the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic, only 
 upon a smaller scale. And what is deserving of special notice 
 is the circumstance that it tempers the winters of the Japanese 
 Isles in the far East, just as its contemporary does those of 
 the British Isles in the West ; while the humidity that arises 
 from it in all seasons has rendered the island of Niphon the 
 " Emerald Isle " of the Pacific. The Japanese being an in- 
 
THE SEA. 
 
 telligent people, and, like ourselves, experienced in maritime 
 affairs, have observed this peculiar current from the earliest 
 times, noting particularly the darker tint of its waters from 
 those of the adjacent ordinary sea-water. Hence it is named 
 by them Kuro-Siwo, which signifies " Black Stream," and it 
 never ceases to run in a north-westerly direction. 
 
 293. Physical Phenomena of the two Streams compared. 
 During the American surveying expedition of 1854 in 
 Chinese and Japanese waters, under the command of Com- 
 modore Perry, the officers made some particularly interest- 
 ing observations concerning this current, and its remarkable 
 analogy to the phenomena of the Gulf Stream. These 
 observations were strikingly confirmatory of the views ex- 
 pressed by Captain Maury and others as to the cause of the 
 deflection of the Atlantic Gulf Stream to the eastward, and the 
 cold counter-current below or between it and the shore. There 
 are precisely similar currents, warm and cold, with the same 
 relative position too, on the coast of Japan. " It may be that 
 the first northward direction of both currents may be produced 
 by the configuration of the eastern sides of America and Asia 
 respectively ; but their turn to the eastward afterwards is 
 probably not influenced by any agency of the land in its 
 shape or position." There are other analogies which the 
 officers observed. A comparison of the temperatures of the two 
 streams showed a striking coincidence. The maximum of 
 86 Fahrenheit was the same ; but in the Kuro-Siwo the dif- 
 ference of 12 between its temperature and that of the ocean 
 proper to the latitude where taken, was somewhat greater 
 than in the Gulf Stream, which averages about 10, although 
 it reaches 30 in the coldest latitudes. What is still more 
 interesting in these analogies, a sea-weed was found floating 
 within the eddy formed by the Kuro-Siwo, similar in appear- 
 ance to the gulf-weed, although, from some accident whereby 
 the specimens were lost, it was not determined whether the 
 species was identical with the Sargassum baedferum. At 
 all events, to those on board the squadron, the ships sailed 
 through a portion of the Pacific in all respects similar in 
 
300 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 aspect to the Sargasso Sea in the Atlantic. It must be ob- 
 served here that these two remarkable currents and their 
 attendant phenomena are situated within the north hemi- 
 sphere, and there is no corresponding system of oceanic cir- 
 culation to be found south of the equator. 
 
 294. The Humboldt Current in the South Pacific Ocean. 
 The southern currents of the Pacific Ocean are but little un- 
 derstood. According to Maury, " Among those about which 
 most is thought to be known is the Humboldt Current of 
 Peru, which the great and good man whose name it bears 
 was the first to discover. This current is felt as far as the 
 equator, mitigating the rainless climate of Peru as it goes, and 
 making it delightful. The Andes, with their snow-caps, on 
 one side of the narrow Pacific slopes of this intertropical re- 
 public, and the current of the antarctic regions on the other, 
 make its climate one of the most remarkable in the world ; 
 for, though torrid as to latitude, it is such as to temperature 
 that cloth clothes are seldom felt as oppressive during any 
 time of the year, especially after nightfall." 
 
 295. Currents of the Sea temper the Cold and cool the 
 Hot Regions on Shore. Thus do we find the currents of the 
 ocean on one hand cooling the tropical countries along whose 
 shores they sweep, and on the other giving a more genial tem- 
 perature to climes which would otherwise suffer the severe 
 rigours of winter. Moreover, we find that though the sea- 
 sons of the sea, in temperate latitudes, cannot compare in 
 their changeable phenomena with those exhibited by the 
 fauna and flora that exist in the atmosphere, yet these are 
 entirely dependent upon the moisture created by the evapo- 
 ration of the sea, which descends upon the land in the shape 
 of refreshing rain and dew. But for this moisture the land 
 above the surface of the sea would be a barren waste, even 
 where the necessary elements of organic life, heat, and light 
 are abundant. A region of this kind exists on the shores of 
 the Eed Sea, which, in itself, is a notable exception to the 
 rule we have pointed out. " That sea lies, for the most part, 
 within a rainless and riverless district the evaporation from 
 
THE SEA. 301 
 
 it is immense ; none of the water thus taken up is returned 
 to it either by rivers or rains. It is about one thousand 
 miles long ; it lies nearly north and south, and extends from 
 latitude 13 to the parallel of 30 north."* " The lands upon 
 all the shores of the Red Sea are of an arid description ; and 
 there flows into no part of it a stream of water that can be 
 called a river, even in the seasons of the rains. The land 
 upon the African side especially is worn to the very bones, 
 and even the rocks, which may be considered the bones of 
 the land, are in a state of decomposition and decay ; the very 
 mountains are buried in their own ruins, much in the same 
 way that ancient cities are in many parts of the world only 
 there comes a month of vegetation over the ordinary ruin ; 
 but here there is none. The solid mountain, long since de- 
 spoiled of its vegetation and its vegetable mould, is now bro- 
 ken like a potsherd, and where the fragments are still too 
 heavy for being blown about by the winds, they drink up 
 every drop of rain, and are both plantless and tenantless." t 
 
 296. Scorched and Barren Aspect of the Shores of the Red 
 Sea. We can endorse this description of the barrenness of 
 these shores, having sailed up the Red Sea in our many voy- 
 ages throughout the world. Having landed at Aden, we there 
 saw an example of the desolation of its shores, though outside 
 its entrance ; and as we rode over the crateriform valley where 
 the town is situated, the whole rocky circuit looked like piles 
 of gigantic cinders surrounding a Cyclopaean furnace. Then 
 as we sailed through the strait of Babel-Mandeb, we could 
 appreciate its appropriate Arabic signification of the " Gates 
 of Death." We shall never forget the intense heat and light 
 that prevailed, which approached more to the reality than the 
 figurative expression of a " sea of molten silver." It is called 
 the Red Sea on account of the myriads of infusoria of a blood- 
 red colour seen at times in its waters. When the rays of the 
 sun are reflected therefrom it looks like molten silver, as we 
 have said ; and when you look into its depths it is the bluest 
 
 * Maury's 'Physical Geography of the Sea.' 
 f ' Summer,' by Robert Mudie. 
 
302 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of blue seas. But then the arid shores consist chiefly of red 
 rugged rocks and sand, and the red glare of the sky on the 
 African coast gives it a lurid aspect at sunset, which adds to 
 its ancient appellation. 
 
 297. Abundance of Vegetation and Animal Life in the Red 
 Sea. " But when we turn from these wasted and worn lands 
 to the sea which washes their coasts, we find not one symp- 
 tom of desolation or decay. Vegetation in it is like a forest ; 
 and perhaps there is no portion of the earth's surface, of the 
 same extent, that supports so many and such varied animals. 
 There are some other circumstances connected with the Red 
 Sea which draw our attention to more extended uses of the 
 world of waters than any which come within the scope of a 
 season, a year, an age, or a period of time as long as that to 
 which human history reaches back. In some parts of that 
 sea countless thousands of polypi are constantly at work 
 forming coral reefs, which render the navigation peculiarly dan- 
 gerous, as a ship may, on a second voyage, be wrecked upon 
 one of those reefs, at the very spot where, on a former voyage 
 a few years previous, or only the preceding year, there was 
 ample depth of water, and not the least vestige of that reef, 
 which now extends for miles, and rises nearly to the surface. 
 Then, in other parts of the same limited sea, volcanic fires are 
 constantly in action, and additional islands and dangers to 
 the navigator are in the course of formation by their means. 
 Along with this there is an activity of vegetable and animal 
 life which is truly wonderful ; and there are probably more 
 living creatures in the Red Sea than upon any ten times the 
 same extent of land on the surface of the globe." * 
 
 298. Animal Life in the Red Sea typical of the World's 
 Formation. Could we but dive into the depths of this 
 wondrous sea, and explore the recesses of its coral caverns 
 and volcanic rocks, we would see nature's great laboratory in 
 operation, from the elements of which the solid matter of 
 this world was fashioned. Here the countless myriads of 
 infusoria are busily at work secreting from the watery me- 
 
 * ' Summer/ by Eobert Mudie. 
 
THE SEA. 303 
 
 dium the alkalies and earths held in solution to build up 
 their submarine edifices, with fretted roofs and slender pin- 
 nacles white as the driven snow. There showers of minute 
 shells are falling down to the bed of the sea, forming de- 
 posits of calcareous substance, which the internal volcanic 
 fires consolidate into marble rocks. While here and there 
 some mollusc forms his shell of hues that outvie the colours 
 of the rainbow, which in time decomposes and sinks into the 
 plastic rocks. Everywhere these animated workers are chemi- 
 cally extracting mineral substances from the sea, separating 
 the solids from the fluid matter, to consolidate the crust of 
 the earth on which the sea reposes. Nor is it a mere figure 
 of speech to speak of the "silvery sea;" for, as already 
 shown, it has been proved by circumstantial evidence that 
 the metal itself exists in chemical solution. So may we con- 
 jecture that in the primeval sea gold and all the other metals 
 may have formed atoms of its constituent parts, which the 
 busy workers of earlier epochs have exhausted from its store. 
 By pursuing this line of argument, there is no reason to re- 
 ject the conclusion that in its pristine condition, before any 
 solid matter was extracted from the sea, it contained in solu- 
 tion the elements of every mineral, rock, and metal compos- 
 ing its dense nucleus, as well as that portion we call its crust, 
 of which we have the most knowledge. And it is not un- 
 scientific to infer that as the primary molluscs and infusoria 
 utilised the special elements that passed through each alem- 
 bic, their particular species became extinct as they exhausted 
 those elements, and they were entombed for ever within their 
 own remains. 
 
 299. Concluding Remarks on the Hypothesis that the Land 
 ivas first (posited by Organic Life in the Sea. In express- 
 ing our views of organic nature during the earliest epochs of 
 the primeval sea in terms so apparently at variance with 
 received opinions, we may be taxed with allowing imagina- 
 tion to overmaster truth. What, however, is the principle 
 inferred by induction from the premises before us but simply 
 a generalisation of evidence furnished by a multitude of wit- 
 
304 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 nesses, that cry out from the depths and shallows of the ocean 
 that they and their progenitors from the creation of our 
 planet have been ceaselessly at work, day and night, from 
 year to year, generation to generation, epoch to epoch, 
 through countless periods of time, laying the solid founda- 
 tions of the earth ] Theorists of the igneous school of cos- 
 mogony are too apt to overlook the importance of aqueous 
 formations deposited by marine organisms, and endeavour to 
 class rocks of this character as secondary in the superposition 
 of strata; whereas the evidence is equally strong, if not 
 stronger, that they assisted in the primary work of the 
 world's solid structure, and that the phenomena of volcanic 
 agency were of 'subsequent origin, metamorphosing the primi- 
 tive organic deposits, so as to make them appear like purely 
 inorganic formations. These denizens of the profound deep 
 unfold to us a more probable solution of the great geologi- 
 cal question regarding the formation of rocks and minerals, 
 than has been hitherto entertained, besides furnishing a 
 sublimer theory of the infancy of our glorious mother earth. 
 Here in the cradle of her childhood we are not introduced to 
 a state of fiery incandescence, blazing in her orbit round the 
 sun, from which she was supposed to be a direct emanation. 
 On the contrary, we see our infant planet cradled in her 
 aqueous sphere, calm and undisturbed, nurturing within her 
 bosom those beautiful living organisms that first laid the 
 foundations of the earth, from whence arose the superstruc- 
 ture of her mountains as she reached the period of her vol- 
 canic maturity. Since then the living forces of the sea have 
 attained perfection on the land surrounded by the air, and 
 man has been created as the exponent of her universal vital 
 energy. In contemplating the ocean from this point of view, 
 we behold, not a subsidiary element filling up the hollows of 
 the land for the sake of spherical uniformity, but the vestige 
 of a liquid world, from whence the solid earth was first pre- 
 cipitated, by virtue of that organic chemistry that pervades 
 every drop of water in the ocean. So can we speak of " the 
 heaving of its placid bosom," while sailing over the bound- 
 
THE SEA. 305 
 
 less expanse, not merely as a figure of speech, but we can 
 associate with it the knowledge that within its breast the 
 dawn of animal life was nourished. And so also in listening 
 to its murmurs on the pebbly beach, or its loud resoundings 
 along the rocky shore, we hear not alone the concussion of 
 the waves upon the land, but recognise voices uttering a 
 primeval language that tells us, " Earth ! Earth ! remem- 
 ber that thou art in all thy living beauty but the offspring 
 of the SEA ! " 
 
PART III. 
 
 THE AIR 
 
CHAPTEE XIV. 
 
 THE PRIMEVAL ATMOSPHERE. 
 
 Introductory remarks on the vital importance of air in the terrestrial econ- 
 omy, 300. Speculative suggestions on extinct geological meteorology, 
 301. Hypothesis of a diminution of the vital constituents in the air, 
 302. Desolate aspect of a region without air, as observed in the moon, 
 303. Description of lunar scenery by M. Guillemin, from the latest 
 observations, 304. General phenomena of the air according tp Dr 
 Buist, 305. The air a vestige of the earth when in a nebulous state, 306. 
 Uniformity of winds or currents in the primeval atmosphere, 307. 
 Cloud-belts in Jupiter typical of the primary belts of the earth, 308. 
 Calm-zones and currents of rotation in the primeval atmosphere, 309. 
 Familiar illustration of how the primary air-currents were diverted, 310. 
 The trade-winds are vestiges of primeval currents of rotation, 311. 
 Phenomena of the trade- winds according to Ogilvy, 312. Evidence of 
 intense humidity in the primeval atmosphere, 313. Phenomena of the 
 great equatorial zone of calms and rains, 314. This zone of neutral air 
 caused by the opposing currents of the trade- winds, 315. Commodore 
 Sinclair's account of this sultry and disagreeable region, 316. Maury's 
 views on the equatorial cloud-ring above the zone of calms and rains, 317. 
 Torrid zone of winds, calms, and rains, evidence of the climate in Europe 
 during its tropical epoch, 318. 
 
 300. Introductory Remarks on the Vital Importance of Air 
 in the Terrestrial Economy. From the study and contempla- 
 tion of the sea, its wondrous physical phenomena, vegetation, 
 and animal life, we now direct our attention to the AIR, 
 where nature displays still more wonderful aspects of her 
 vitality, and the vicissitudes of the seasons under the genial 
 climates of the temperate zones of the atmosphere, the influ- 
 ences of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, are felt in their 
 highest degree by the vast number of species of the vegetable 
 
310 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 and animal kingdoms that depend upon the air for their 
 existence. Without this circumambient medium, which 
 penetrates into every crevice of the land, and rests upon every 
 atom of the sea, all nature on the surface of the earth would 
 be but a lifeless wilderness of desolation. Even if the gase- 
 ous elements that compose the atmospheric constituents were 
 different in volume from what they are, so that those which 
 support vitality were diminished or exhausted, few of the 
 innumerable forms that enrich the fauna and flora of the 
 aerial medium would exist. The sun might shed his vivi- 
 fying rays upon our planet in vain if the vital elements of 
 the air were gone, or so reduced that they failed to support 
 the individuals of the organic world. The sea might still 
 contain vegetation peculiar to itself, and its waters swarm 
 with gill-respiring and other animals united to that denser 
 medium of life. But if the atmosphere were deprived of a 
 comparatively small proportion of oxygen, all air-respiring 
 creatures would cease to breathe. Thus do we find that the 
 most beautiful and the most gigantic forms of animated nature 
 are dependent for their existence upon a certain combination 
 of gaseous atoms of the most subtle character in the atmo- 
 sphere. It is true that to sustain them it is necessary they 
 should have fluid and solid food according to their organisa- 
 tion, otherwise the more vital elements of the air would fail 
 to support life. These, however, are only modified forms of 
 the vital gaseous elements, which are inseparable from the 
 fountain of life in the air. 
 
 301. Speculative Suggestions on extinct Geological Meteoro- 
 logy. A speculative question arises at the outset of our inquiry, 
 whether any changes have occurred in the relative volumes 
 of the atmospheric constituents since the earliest forms of 
 breathing animals appeared upon the earth. If we consider 
 the rapidity of consumption which oxygen undergoes by ab- 
 sorption into the animal frame, and its chemical combination 
 with other bodies by oxidation, we can easily imagine that 
 this gas, as the great vital constituent of the atmosphere, has 
 been subject throughout all time to a process of reduction. 
 
THE AIR. 311 
 
 But then we are told that it is evolved by vegetation, and so 
 far its equilibrium may be maintained. This is the point for 
 investigation, which no analyst has satisfactorily determined; 
 consequently we are at liberty to suggest the probable changes 
 that may have occurred in this branch of what we will term 
 Geological Meteorology. In the pre-mammalian periods, 
 when enormous lung-respiring reptiles nourished, such as the 
 iguanadon a lizard measuring from seventy to one hundred 
 feet in length, with a proportionate height and breadth it 
 is probable that the atmosphere then contained different vol- 
 umes of its constituents than now, and the change may have 
 been one of the causes that led to the extinction of this and 
 analogous species. In like manner, perhaps, the mammalian 
 monsters of the megatherium, mastodon, and mammoth type 
 may have breathed an atmosphere differing from that breathed 
 by their reptile predecessors as well as at present, and their 
 extinction might have been accelerated by a change in the 
 atmospheric constituents. Besides oxygen, we can imagine a 
 decrease in the constituent of carbonic acid gas, if we consider 
 the immense amount of that constituent which must have 
 been withdrawn during the carboniferous era. So that it is 
 not altogether incompatible with geological evidence that the 
 air has undergone changes equivalent to those of the land 
 and the sea. 
 
 302. Hypothesis of a Diminution of the Vital Constituents 
 in the Air. Applying this hypothesis to the present condi- 
 tion of the air as it acts upon the human constitution, we 
 would infer that it does not now contain so large a volume of 
 these vital constituents as it probably did during the earliest 
 ages of man's existence. This we deduce from the prevalence 
 of disease in the human subject, which may be traced, not 
 merely to the presence of malaria in the atmosphere, but also 
 to the liability of contracting disease from a deficiency of 
 vitality in the air itself. Hence it may be that in the course 
 of time, after the human species reaches its maximum in- 
 crease, it will gradually decrease, and the extinction of man- 
 kind be accelerated by a diminution in the volumes of oxygen 
 
312 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 and carbonic acid gas in the atmosphere, which do not main- 
 tain at present the same healthy equilibrium in the crowded 
 regions of the north hemisphere as is exhibited in the thinly- 
 populated lands of the south. If we could trace correctly 
 the margin between health and disease throughout the earth, 
 in all probability we should find that it lies in a narrow com- 
 pass, controlled by a small balance in the vital constituents 
 of the air. In like manner there may be only a small reduc- 
 tion necessary to extinguish the great bulk of lung-breathing 
 animals. Thus it may be said that the maintenance of ani- 
 mated beings upon the dry land depends on the volume of 
 oxygen in the air as much as the food raised from the soil. 
 Whether there is a corresponding decrease in the nitrogen 
 gas, which constitutes four -fifths in volume of the atmo- 
 sphere, there are no data for determining. As long as the sea 
 exists, it is held by meteorologists that the atmosphere can- 
 not diminish in its general volume, which includes the moist- 
 ure held in suspension. If, however, by some operation of 
 nature, the ocean were to disappear within the crust of the 
 earth, it is supposed that the air, in course of time, would 
 follow it. 
 
 303. Desolate Aspect of a Region without Air, as observed 
 in the Moon. That such a condition of natural phenomena 
 is not incompatible with what exists in the universe, is 
 abundantly evident in the physical constitution of the moon, 
 which astronomers have now ascertained, by means of power- 
 ful optical instruments some capable of defining an area or 
 object of 200 yards extent to be a sphere of the most pro- 
 found desolation that the human mind can conceive. The 
 views thus furnished are wonderful in their aspect, as if pre- 
 senting the wreck of a former world now in ruins, and awe- 
 inspiring to the beholder. "If an inhabitant of the earth 
 were transported to the surface of the moon, he would be at 
 once struck with the strangeness of the scene. The configura- 
 tion of the surface, every corner broken up and rugged here 
 circular cavities, there elevated peaks ; the aspect of the 
 heavens the bright stars shining in the broad day ; the 
 
THE AIR. 313 
 
 sharpness of the lights and shades ; the eternal silence which 
 reigns in these desolate regions ; the extreme temperature, 
 now glacial, now torrid ; all would unite to upset the most 
 familiar notions. Nevertheless, whatever may be the con- 
 trasts between the lunar world and our own globe, it will be 
 seen that the variety which is manifested with a marvellous 
 richness here, as in all works of nature, is the effect of but a 
 small number of causes, or rather the result of simple modifi- 
 cations of elements which are really the same for all celestial 
 bodies. The simplicity of the laws which govern astronomi- 
 cal phenomena causes the unity of plan of the whole solar 
 system to shine forth with incomparable clearness." 
 
 304. Description of Lunar Scenery by M. Guillemin, from 
 the latest Observations. "We have supposed an inhabitant of 
 the earth landing on the desolate lunar world, bristling with 
 mountains and covered with thousands of volcanic vents. 
 We have described him contemplating with wonder this 
 strange globe. But we ought to mention one fact, which 
 would render his sojourn much more than painful im- 
 possible namely, that he would not find on the surface of 
 the moon the most indispensable elements of his existence 
 air and water. The moon, indeed, it would appear, is en- 
 tirely devoid of atmosphere. This fact seems demonstrated 
 by the occultation of stars. When, by reason of the moon's 
 movement across the constellations, one of the luminous 
 points of the starry vault is covered by the dark part of the 
 lunar disc, it is extinguished suddenly, without any gradual 
 diminution of its light indicating the presence of a gaseous 
 envelope. This fact holds good with the smallest as with the 
 largest stars, even during the eclipses of the moon, when the 
 terrestrial atmosphere is no longer illuminated by our satellite. 
 ... Is it possible that there may be an atmosphere con- 
 fined to the bottom of the lowest plains and deepest craters 1 
 Nothing renders probable or contradicts this hypothesis. 
 But at all events no cloud ever disturbs the purity of its sky ; 
 for clouds, even of slight dimensions, would be easily per- 
 ceived from the earth. In consequence of this want of atmo- 
 
314 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 sphere, the lunar landscapes have a very peculiar aspect 
 the shadows have everywhere the same blackness. At the 
 most, the crudity of the bright and luminous tints, which 
 stand out on a nearly black sky, is tempered by reflections. 
 Then, again, there is no aerial perspective none of those 
 effects of light, of those cloud-tints, which give our terrestrial 
 landscapes so much charm and softness. There refraction 
 does not decompose sunshine into glorious colouring and a 
 thousand varied tints ; the rainbow and other phenomena of 
 the same kind are unknown on the surface of the moon. No 
 air and no water ! This implies, of necessity, absence of 
 winds and currents absence of motion and sound. For 
 sound, as it cannot be communicated without an aerial 
 medium, can only make itself known by the contact with 
 solid molecules. To an inhabitant of the earth, our light- 
 giver by night would appear, according to the expression of 
 Humboldt, but a silent and voiceless desert." * 
 
 305. General Phenomena of the Air according to Dr 
 Buist. Of the atmosphere and its phenomena generally we 
 have a graphic account by Dr Buist of Bombay, in the fol- 
 lowing extract cited by Maury : " Its upper surface cannot 
 be nearer to us than fifty, and can scarcely be more remote 
 than five hundred miles. It surrounds us on all sides, yet 
 we see it not ; it presses on us with a load of fifteen pounds 
 on every square inch of surface of our bodies, or from seventy 
 to one hundred tons on us in all, yet we do not so much as 
 feel its weight. Softer than the softest down more impal- 
 pable than the finest gossamer it leaves the cobweb 
 undisturbed, and scarcely stirs the lightest flower that feeds 
 on the dew it supplies ; yet it bears the fleets of nations on 
 its wings around the world, and crushes the most refractory 
 substances with its weight. When in motion, its force is 
 sufficient to level the most stately forests and stable build- 
 ings with the earth to raise the waters of the ocean into 
 ridges like mountains, and dash the strongest ships to 
 pieces like toys. It warms and cools by turns the earth and 
 * ' The Heavens/ by A. Guillemiu. 
 
THE AIR. 315 
 
 the living creatures that inhabit it. It draws up vapours 
 from the sea and land, retains them dissolved in itself, or 
 suspended in cisterns of clouds, and throws them down 
 again as rain or dew when they are required. It bends the 
 rays of the sun from their path to give us the twilight of 
 evening and of dawn ; it disperses and refracts their various 
 tints to beautify the approach and the retreat of the orb of 
 day. But for the atmosphere, sunshine would burst on us 
 and fail us at once, and at once remove us from midnight 
 darkness to the blaze of noon. We should have no twilight 
 to soften and beautify the landscape no clouds to shade us 
 from the scorching heat ; but the bald earth, as it revolved 
 on its axis, would turn its tanned and weakened front to the 
 full and unmitigated rays of the lord of day. It affords the 
 gas which vivifies and warms our frames, and receives into 
 itself that which has been polluted by use and is thrown off 
 as noxious. It feeds the flame of life exactly as it does that 
 of fire it is in both cases consumed and affords the food of 
 consumption in both cases it becomes combined with char- 
 coal, which requires it for combustion, and is removed by it 
 when this is over." 
 
 306. The Air a Vestige of the Earth wlien in a Nebulous 
 State. The air has its geological history as well as the sea 
 and land ; and if we take into account the relative antiquity 
 of these three divisions of terrestrial matter, the air is the 
 most ancient. We go back to the period when every particle 
 of the earth that is now solid and fluid existed in a gaseous 
 or vaporous form ; the atmosphere is the only approximate 
 vestige of its nebulous condition that condition which 
 astronomers have dicovered to be the state of heavenly 
 bodies in the process of formation in the boundless regions 
 of space. "In the contents of space we see matter either 
 agglomerated into rotating revolving spheres of different 
 density and size, or scattered through space in the form of 
 self-luminous vapour. If we consider first the cosmical 
 vapour dispersed in definite nebulous spots, its state of aggre- 
 gation will appear constantly to vary. Sometimes appearing 
 
316 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 separated into round or elliptical discs, single or in pairs, 
 occasionally connected by a thread of light ; whilst at 
 another time these nebula occur in forms of larger dimen- 
 sions, and are either elongated, or variously branched, or 
 fan-shaped, or appear like well-defined rings, enclosing a 
 dark interior. It is conjectured that these bodies are under- 
 going variously-developed formative processes, as the cosmical 
 vapour becomes condensed in conformity with the laws of 
 attraction, either round one or more of the nuclei. ... In 
 comets, which actually constitute the most considerable por- 
 tion of our solar system with respect to the number of 
 individual forms, the concentrated part, usually termed the 
 head or nucleus, transmits sidereal light unimpaired. The 
 mass of a comet probably in no case equals the five- 
 thousandth part of that of the earth, so dissimilar are the 
 formative processes manifested in the original, and perhaps 
 still progressive, agglomerations of matter." * Upon this 
 theory of the origin of bodies in space, it has been advanced 
 by Humboldt and other philosophical observers that this 
 world originated from the condensation of aeriform matter. 
 Therefore, as already observed, the air that we breathe, and 
 which appears to be of so evanescent a formation compared 
 with the sea or the land, is more ancient than either, and is 
 to man the most glorious vestige of creation with which he 
 is tangibly acquainted. 
 
 307. Uniformity of Winds or Currents in the Primeval 
 Atmosphere. It is not necessary, however, to treat this 
 section of our subject from a cosmical point of view. Our 
 theory of the origin of the seasons will be amply illus- 
 trated in its atmospherical phenomena by starting from 
 the same epoch observed at the commencement of the 
 preceding sections, when there was no obliquity of .the 
 ecliptic, and the atmosphere rested on an oblate spheroid of 
 water, unbroken by the land. At that period we have 
 assumed that the currents of the sea were simple and uni- 
 form compared with their present condition, when they are 
 * Humboldt's 'Cosmos.' 
 
THE AIR. 317 
 
 diverted in all directions by the obstructions of continents 
 and islands. The same remarks apply generally to the 
 primeval atmosphere; only, from its volatile nature, the 
 aerial currents were subject to changes, more or less rapid, 
 caused by solar influences, which affected but slightly the 
 steady currents of the primeval sea. As observed at the 
 present day, there were the two great divisions of currents 
 one caused by the diurnal revolution of the earth, and the 
 other by the heat of the sun. The former influence may 
 be described generally as producing winds of a permanent 
 character blowing in a longitudinal direction, the latter those 
 of a more evanescent nature blowing in a latitudinal direc- 
 tion. At the epoch, however, to which we refer, these 
 influences combined to produce winds of a steadier kind 
 between the equator and the poles than now exist, chiefly 
 blowing from directions more or less easterly at the equa- 
 torial lines of which we have an example in the north-east 
 and south-east trade -winds 'and westerly towards polar 
 latitudes. We can imagine those winds blowing in a perfect 
 zone at that epoch, when no land intervened, and that their 
 influence was felt in much higher latitudes than at present. 
 Indeed, if we take into consideration that part of our theory 
 that the earth revolved upon its axis without any displace- 
 ment of the equatorial plane from its orbit, it is probable 
 that the primeval winds swept around the globe in belts 
 divided by calm -zones in uninterrupted currents generally 
 parallel with the meridian lines shown upon ordinary 
 maps. 
 
 308. Cloud-Belts in Jupiter typical of the Primary Belts of 
 the Earth. Another view may be taken of the winds at this 
 period if we select Jupiter as approximating to the primeval 
 condition of our planet, where apparently the aerial currents 
 of rotation overcome those caused by solar heat, producing 
 those remarkable belts that cross his disc more or less longi- 
 tudinally. " They are generally parallel to one another, but 
 not always so; and their breadth is likewise variable, one 
 belt having been observed to grow narrow, while another in 
 
318 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 its neighbourhood has increased in breadth, as if the one had 
 flowed into the other ; and in this case a part of an oblique 
 belt lay between them, as if to form a communication for 
 this purpose. The time of their continuance is very uncer- 
 tain sometimes they remain unchanged for three months, at 
 other times new belts have been formed in an hour or two. 
 In some of these belts large black spots have appeared, which 
 moved swiftly over the disc from east to west, and returned 
 in a short time to the same place ; whence the rotation of 
 this planet about its axis has been determined. . . . The 
 time of rotation, according to Cassini, Miraldi, and others, is 
 9 hours and between 55 and 56 minutes. . . . The changes 
 in the appearance of the spots, and the difference in the time 
 of their rotation, make it probable that they do not adhere 
 to Jupiter, but are clouds transported by the winds, with 
 different velocities. . . . The radius of Jupiter being nearly 
 11 times (10.86) that of our earth, and his rotation being 2.4 
 times more rapid, it follows that the space passed over by a 
 point on his equator is 26 times greater than that passed 
 over by a point of the terrestrial equator in the same time. 
 Hence the centrifugal force is 26 times greater."* From this 
 tremendous velocity in its axial rotation, and the dense 
 clouds arising from an oblate spheroid in all probability 
 presenting nothing but water on its surface, it has been con- 
 cluded by astronomers that the belts of Jupiter are caused 
 by the currents of its atmosphere. 
 
 309. Calm-Zones and Currents of Rotation in the Primeval 
 Atmosphere. In this planet we have an. example of what 
 the earth was at the period under review, only we have no 
 data to determine whether its bulk and velocity of diurnal 
 revolution approached that of Jupiter, or even if these were 
 greater than they are at present. Calculating by the universal 
 law of aggregation, according to Humboldt, observable in the 
 formation of planetary bodies, always from a lighter medium 
 of extended dimensions to a denser nucleus of smaller cir- 
 cumference, we should infer that the bulk of the world was 
 * Art. "Astronomy," ' Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
THE AIK. 319 
 
 then larger than at present, and the atmosphere of greater 
 extent and humidity ; while probably the velocity of the 
 diurnal revolution was more rapid. But it is not necessary 
 to speculate upon what may have been the physical con- 
 dition of the earth at this period as affecting atmospheric 
 phenomena, for we have ample evidence that there were not 
 only belts of winds and clouds, but zones of calms that 
 divided the circulation of the air into separate systems of 
 currents. Captain Maury has constructed a diagram of the 
 winds, which gives an excellent idea of these belts of calms 
 and winds, showing four of the latter divided by three of 
 the former, besides two discs of polar calms. Looking at 
 this diagram, we see at once how the belts of Jupiter are 
 formed; and we can easily suppose that a sentient being 
 possessed of telescopic power in any of the other planets 
 would observe similar belts around the earth which we may 
 consider existed in the primeval atmosphere, before the 
 zones were broken up by the upheaval of the land, more 
 perfect than they now are. 
 
 310. Familiar Illustration of how the Primary Air-Cur- 
 rents were diverted. It requires no great amount of scientific 
 knowledge to understand how the primeval currents of air 
 were subsequently diverted from their course at certain 
 localities by the interposition of islands and continents. 
 The inhabitant of any large city may see the principle in 
 operation on a windy day, where the true direction of the 
 breeze aloft is scarcely to be found among the streets and 
 squares below. For example, take London, and observe its 
 level site. Here, before a house was built, the west wind 
 swept across the native heath in a straight line towards the 
 east. Now that same wind will blow down one street as 
 from the north-west, and from the south-west in another, 
 according to the angle in which it is built, while it will eddy 
 round St Paul's at all points of the compass. If we magnify 
 these structures of man to the dimensions of the continental 
 works of nature, we can see how a great belt of wind blowing 
 from west to east may become a different wind along the 
 
320 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 shores of a continent, or among the Alps may twist and turn 
 in all directions. It is not, however, the purport of our 
 researches in the regions of atmospheric phenomena to 
 enter into the minutise of aerial currents, but generally to 
 inquire how far they assist in mingling the atoms of the 
 atmosphere; and, on the other hand, how far the belts of 
 calms prevent the commingling of the air at the opposite 
 latitudes of the south and north temperate zones, if not the 
 two hemispheres. 
 
 311. The Trade-Winds are Vestiges of Primeval Currents 
 of Rotation. Regarding the constant winds or currents of the 
 atmosphere, we are informed by Captain Maury that " from 
 the parallel of about 30 north and south, nearly to the 
 equator, we have, extending entirely round the earth, two 
 zones of perpetual winds viz., the zone of north-east trades 
 on this side, and of south-east on that. With slight inter- 
 ruptions they blow perpetually, and are as steady and as 
 constant as the currents of the Mississippi river, always 
 moving in the same direction, except when they are turned 
 aside by a desert here and there to blow as monsoons, or as 
 land and sea breezes. As these two main currents of air are 
 constantly flowing from the poles to the equator, we are safe 
 in assuming that the air which they keep in motion must 
 return by some channel to the place toward the poles whence 
 it came in order to supply the trade-winds. If this were not 
 so, these winds would soon exhaust the polar regions of 
 atmosphere, and pile it up about the equator, and then cease 
 to blow for the want of air to make wind of. This return- 
 current, therefore, must be in the upper regions of the atmo- 
 sphere, at least until it passes over those parallels between 
 which the trade- winds are always blowing on the surface. 
 The return-current must also move in the direction opposite 
 to that wind the place of which it is intended to supply. 
 These direct and counter currents are also made to move in 
 a sort of spiral or loxodromic curve, turning to the west as 
 they go from the poles to the equator, and in the opposite 
 direction as they move from the equator toward the poles. 
 
THE AIR. 321 
 
 This turning is caused by the rotation of the earth on its 
 axis. The earth, we know, moves from west to east. Now, 
 if we imagine a particle of atmosphere at the north pole, 
 where it is at rest, to be put in motion in a straight line 
 toward the equator, we can easily see how this particle of air, 
 coming from the very axis of diurnal rotation, where it did 
 not partake of the diurnal motion of the earth, would, in 
 consequence of its vis inertice, find, as it travels south, the 
 earth slipping from under it, as it were ; and thus it would 
 appear to be coming from the north-east and going toward 
 the south-west in other words, it would be a north-east 
 wind. On the other hand, we can perceive how a particle 
 of atmosphere that starts from the equator to take the place 
 of the other at the pole, would, as it travels north, in conse- 
 quence of its vis inertice, be going towards the east faster 
 than the earth. It would therefore appear to be blowing 
 from the south-west and going towards the north-east, and 
 exactly in the opposite direction to the other. "Writing 
 south for north, the same takes place between the south pole 
 and the equator." 
 
 312. Phenomena of the Trade-Winds according to Ogilvy. 
 A less technical yet lucid description of the trade-winds 
 is concisely given in Blackie's ' Imperial Dictionary/ as fol- 
 lows : " The trade-winds are those perpetual or constant 
 winds c which occur in all open seas on both sides of the 
 equator, and to the distance of about 30 north and south of 
 it. They are so named because they are favourable to navi- 
 gation and trade. On the north of the equator their direc- 
 tion is from the north-east (varying at times a point or two of 
 the compass either way) ; on the south of the equator they 
 proceed from the south-east. The origin of the trade-winds 
 is this : The great heat of the torrid zone rarefies and makes 
 lighter the air of that region, and in consequence of this rare- 
 faction the air rises and ascends into the higher regions of 
 the atmosphere. To supply its place, colder air from the 
 northern and southern regions rushes towards the equator, 
 which also, becoming rarefied, ascends in its turn. The 
 
 x 
 
322 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 heated air which thus ascends into the upper regions of the 
 atmosphere, being there condensed, flows northward and 
 southward to supply the deficiency caused by the under-cur- 
 rents blowing towards the equator. These under-currents, 
 coming from the north and south, are, in consequence of the 
 earth's rotation on its axis, deflected from their course as they 
 approach the equatorial region, and thus become north-east 
 and south-east winds, constituting the trade-winds." 
 
 313. Evidence of intense Humidity in the primeval At- 
 mosphere. It is important to note here that a space of at- 
 mosphere intervenes between these two contending winds, 
 " extending at different seasons from about 150 to 500 miles. 
 Here the two winds meet, with opposing forces so nearly 
 balanced as to neutralise each other and produce a calm." * 
 This is the tract of air so much dreaded by mariners in their 
 voyages from the North to the South Atlantic, where the 
 navigation is subject to sudden and violent storms of thunder, 
 lightning, and rain, accompanied by heavy squalls of wind, 
 which as suddenly cease, when a dead calm prevails in the 
 sultry humid air, more oppressive than the storm of rain. 
 "When the north-east and south-east trade-winds meet and 
 produce the equatorial calms, the air, by the time it reaches 
 this calm -belt, is heavily laden with moisture ; for in each 
 hemisphere it has travelled obliquely over a large space of 
 the ocean. It has no room for escape but in the upward 
 direction. It expands as it ascends, and becomes cooler ; a 
 portion of its vapour is thus condensed, and comes down in 
 the shape of rain. Therefore it is that under these calms 
 we have a region of constant precipitation. Old sailors tell 
 us of such dead calms of long continuance here, of such 
 heavy and constant rains, that they have scooped up fresh 
 water from the surface of the sea." t Thus, when the sea 
 was universal, the humidity of the primeval atmosphere 
 would be intensely greater than at present. 
 
 314. Phenomena of the great Equatorial Zone of Calms 
 
 * Johnston's 'Physical Atlas.' 
 
 f Maury's ' Physical Geography of the Sea.' 
 
THE AIR. 323 
 
 and Rains. These permanent winds, with the dividing zone 
 of calms and variable winds, extend across the Atlantic and 
 the greater width of the Pacific, but they are not so well de- 
 fined in the Indian Ocean, where the continent of Asia affects 
 the north-east trade-winds so as to convert them into monsoon 
 winds, blowing one-half the year in that direction, and the 
 other half from the south-west. So also on the continent of 
 Africa these winds and calms are not defined as on the sea, 
 in consequence of the great breadth of land within its tropi- 
 cal latitudes. The same causes affect the south-east trade- 
 winds, where the widest portion of the South American con- 
 tinent extends its shores ; but the north-east are less affected 
 where the Atlantic and Pacific trade-winds are only separated 
 by the comparatively narrow region of Central America ; 
 while the belt of calms is almost united when, at certain sea- 
 sons, it reaches the Isthmus of Panama. From this it will 
 be inferred that the equatorial zone of calms is not stationary, 
 and likewise the trade-winds which produce it. They follow 
 the sun in his apparent annual course from the Tropic of 
 Cancer to the Tropic of Capricorn, and vice versa. At the 
 same time there is considerable inequality in the two sets of 
 winds. The south-east trade-winds form a wider belt than 
 the north-east, and their force is greater. Consequently they 
 press them back at times as far as the 9th degree of north 
 latitude, and rarely allow them to enter southern latitudes. 
 " It is a remarkable phenomenon that the annual -movements 
 of the trades and calm-belts from south to north, and back 
 again, do not directly follow the sun in its declination, but 
 appear to wait until the temperature of the sea- water puts it 
 in motion. The trades and the belt of calms do not decline 
 before the temperature of 80 of the water in the North 
 Ocean turns it southward ; and in the spring they do not go 
 northward until the temperature of 80 returns." * 
 
 315. This Zone of neutral Air caused by the opposing 
 Currents of the Trade-Winds. Now this belt of calms, ac- 
 cording to the best authorities, is considered as a damming-up 
 * Lieutenant Jansen, cited by Maury. 
 
324 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of the atmosphere "between the two great aerial currents. 
 Hence it has been found, by barometrical observations, to 
 measure a column of air less dense than those of the winds 
 on either side, but of intense humidity. So that it is like a 
 reservoir into which the trade-winds discharge their surplus 
 air and moisture, until a barrier, as it were, of neutral atmo- 
 sphere has become collected, separating their currents almost 
 as effectually as the Gulf Stream divides the ordinary sea- 
 water. As the winds approach its confines they take an up- 
 ward course, producing what sailors term a " lifting- wind," 
 when the sails of the vessel swell out like balloons, and ac- 
 tually lift the ship fractionally out of the water. Well do 
 we remember the delightful motion created thereby when 
 bounding through the north-east trade-winds over a gentle 
 sea, which realised all our previous notions of what the 
 poet describes as " sailing on the wings of the wind." And 
 well do we recollect, also, the discomfort and wearisome- 
 ness of being becalmed in the "doldrums," as the sailors 
 quaintly term the variable winds and calms of this tropical 
 belt of the atmosphere. It was, therefore, with enhanced 
 pleasure that we again entered the trade-wind at the opposite 
 boundary of the calm -zone into southern latitudes, where 
 the buoyancy and brightness of the air are even more exhil- 
 arating than to the north of the equator. The passage 
 through this belt is the theme of all voyagers from the North 
 to the South Atlantic; and recently their name has been 
 legion, as all emigrant ships from Europe to the golden lands 
 of Australia have to cross it. 
 
 316. Commodore Sinclair's Account of this sultry and 
 disagreeable Region. Of the many accounts given, few sur- 
 pass the following graphic sketch by Commodore Sinclair of 
 the United States navy, as cited by Maury : "This is cer- 
 tainly one of the most unpleasant regions in our globe. A 
 dense, close atmosphere, except for a few hours after a thun- 
 der-storm, during which time torrents of rain fall, when the 
 air becomes a little refreshed ; but a hot glowing sun soon 
 heats it again, and but for our awnings and the little air put 
 
THE AIR. 325 
 
 in circulation by the continual napping of the ship's sails, it 
 would be almost insufferable. No person who has not crossed 
 this region can form an adequate idea of its unpleasant effects. 
 You feel a degree of lassitude unconquerable, which not even 
 the sea-bathing, which everywhere else proves so salutary and 
 renovating, can dispel. Except when in actual danger of 
 shipwreck, I never spent twelve more disagreeable days in 
 the professional part of my life than in these calm latitudes. 
 I crossed the line on the 17th of January at eight A.M., in 
 longitude 21 20', and soon found that I had surmounted all 
 the difficulties consequent to that event ; that the breeze con- 
 tinued to freshen and draw round to the south-south-east, 
 bringing with it a clear sky and most heavenly temperature, 
 renovating and refreshing beyond description. Nothing was 
 now to be seen but cheerful countenances, exchanged as by 
 enchantment from that sleepy sluggishness which had borne 
 us all down for the last two weeks." 
 
 317. Maury's Views on the Equatorial Cloud-Ring above 
 the Zone of Calms and Rains. The intelligent reader will 
 readily suppose that, in a region of such heavy and constant 
 rains, there must be dense clouds continually hovering about, 
 of that kind named nimbus by meteorologists, or the well- 
 known rain-cloud. So dense and constant are these in the 
 zone of calms separating the trade-winds, that Captain Maury 
 appropriately designates it the "Equatorial Cloud -King." 
 " Ceaseless precipitation," he says, " goes on under this 
 cloud-ring. Evaporation under it is suspended almost en- 
 tirely. We know that the trade- winds encircle the earth ; 
 that they blow perpetually ; that they come from the north 
 and the south and meet each other near the equator ; there- 
 fore we infer that this line of meeting extends around the 
 world. By the rainy seasons of the torrid zone, except where 
 it may be broken by the continents, we can trace the declina- 
 tion of this cloud -ring, stretched like a girdle round our 
 planet, up and down the earth it travels up and down the 
 ocean, as from north to south and back. It is broader than 
 the belt of calms out of which it rises. As the air, with its 
 
326 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 vapours, rises up in this calm-belt and ascends, these vapours 
 are condensed into clouds, and this condensation is followed 
 by a turgid intumescence, which causes the clouds to over- 
 flow the calm-belt, as it were, both to the north and south. 
 The air, flowing off in the same direction, assumes the char- 
 acter of winds that form the upper currents that are counter 
 to the trade-winds. These currents carry the clouds still 
 further to the north and south, and thus make the cloud- 
 ring broader ; at least we infer such to be the case, for the 
 rains are found to extend out into the trade- winds, and often 
 to a considerable distance both to the north and south of the 
 calm-belt." In his enthusiastic observations regarding the 
 phenomena of the cloud-ring, Captain Maury compares it to 
 the rings of Saturn, which it would resemble, only more 
 rugged in its outer rim, to an inhabitant of that planet if the 
 earth's cloud-ring were luminous. With all due deference to 
 his opinion, we should compare it more appropriately to the 
 dark belts of Jupiter, or those on the body of Saturn. 
 
 318. Torrid Zone of Winds, Calms, and Rains evidence 
 of the Climate in Europe during its Tropical Epoch. If we 
 apply this observed phenomenon of intense humidity with 
 belts of constant winds and calms within the present tropics 
 to our theory of an extended torrid zone in the primary 
 atmosphere, we have a solution of the question of atmo- 
 spheric moisture that prevailed in Europe during its tropical 
 epoch. Comparing the fossil remains of vegetation at that 
 period with what exist at present, we find the extinct flora 
 of the British Isles analogous to that of the West Indies, 
 where the islands revel in luxuriant succulent plants. These 
 indicate a moisture and heat in the air during the greater 
 part of the year of which we have no experience at the pre- 
 sent day, even scarcely in the hottest days of summer. In- 
 stead of the comparatively dry atmosphere and cool sea- 
 breezes that blow through our forests of oak and pine, invig- 
 orating the robust frame of the peasant, the air was charged 
 with humidity, and intensely hot both by night and day ; 
 
THE AIR. 327 
 
 while jungles of rank vegetation sprang up among the palm- 
 tree forests, generating malaria from the marshy ground. 
 During the transition periods between that epoch and the 
 present era of the seasons, there were changes in the currents 
 and condition of the air which altered, modified, and broke 
 up the uniformity of the primeval atmosphere. 
 
CHAPTEE XV. 
 
 CIRCULATION AND CONSTITUENTS OF THE AIR. 
 
 Theory of independent circulation in the tropical air-currents, 319. The 
 equatorial belt of calms acts as a barrier between the trade-winds, 320. 
 Momentum of probable atmospheric waves, 321. Tropical calm-belts 
 acting as barriers between the north and south temperate winds, 322. 
 The question arises whether the air commingles north and south, 323. 
 Maury's theory in favour of universal intermingling of the atmosphere, 
 324. How particles of air are supposed to circulate from pole to pole, 
 325. Principle of Maury's theory inconsistent with atmospheric pheno- 
 mena, 326. Maury's arguments why air must possess the same constitu- 
 ents in both hemispheres, 327. Theory of a disparity in the volume of 
 constituents of air in the temperate zones, 328. Maury's remarks on 
 propounding a new hypothesis, 329. Our own views on the importance 
 of studying the phenomena of the air, 330. Dr Priestley first discovers 
 that air is a compound body, 331. Mr Cavendish analyses the volumes 
 of its constituents, oxygen and azote, 332. Foreign chemists confirm 
 Cavendish's experiments, 333. Carbonic acid gas discovered as an ele- 
 ment in the air, 334. No analysis of the atmosphere made in the south 
 hemisphere, 335. Scientific observers at the Cape and in Tasmania over- 
 looked analysis of the air, 336. Numerous observatories in Australia, 
 but none analysed the air, 337. Surveying expeditions in southern oceans 
 made no analysis, 338. Inquiry as to existence of negative evidence 
 showing disparity of volume in the constituents of the air, 339. 
 
 319. Theory of independent Circulation in the Tropical 
 Air-Currents. Among the phenomena of winds and calms 
 that characterise the distribution of the great aerial currents, 
 the question that bears most directly on the theory broached 
 in this essay is that which relates to their hemispherical divi- 
 sion. As we have seen in the foregoing part on " The Sea " 
 that there appears to be a binary separation of the oceanic 
 currents north and south of the equator, so in the atmosphere 
 
THE AIR. 329 
 
 there is a belt of equatorial calms that divides the winds 
 caused by the earth's rotation on its axis. Hence we have 
 to consider a series of winds and calms between the poles 
 that occur in duplicate, like the meridian lines on a globe, 
 apparently independent of each other, and separated at the 
 equator. Without endorsing the entire theory of Maury 
 relating to the phenomena of the equatorial zone of calms 
 and rains, we agree with his lucid demonstration of the gen- 
 eral character of this zone, which has been described by 
 numerous other meteorologists namely, that there is a 
 counter - current in the upper regions of the atmosphere 
 blowing in a contrary direction to that of the trade-winds on 
 either side of the equator. We have already observed that 
 this zone of comparatively neutral air, varying in width 
 at different seasons and different meridians on the ocean 
 from 6 to 9 of latitude, was the receiver of the surplus 
 humidity of the trade-winds blowing into it. But it does 
 not follow that the gaseous atoms of azote, oxygen, and car- 
 bonic gas are also absorbed into it ; for, large as this aerial 
 receptacle is, it would not contain a tenth part of the trade- 
 winds. The more correct deduction to be drawn from the 
 data given would be, that the air, having discharged the 
 moisture absorbed in its passage over the "wide waste of 
 waters " in those latitudes where the trade-winds blow into 
 the calm-zone, the pure air ascends above the region of pre- 
 cipitation, and returns to those higher latitudes from whence 
 it sprang in a highly-purified condition within the Tropics of 
 Cancer and Capricorn. Here the upper return - currents, 
 meeting with two other calm -belts, into which they have 
 no moisture to discharge, enter the lower currents as com- 
 paratively dry winds. Thus the circulation of this tropical 
 section of the atmosphere is kept up within limits as clearly 
 denned as the great equatorial currents of the ocean. To 
 illustrate this view of aerial circulation more clearly, it is 
 necessary to refer to the annexed diagram, exhibiting an 
 imaginary vertical section of the atmosphere. 
 
 320. The Equatorial Belt of Calms acts as a Barrier 
 
330 
 
 OKIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 between the Trade- Winds. An important question arises 
 here, whether the pure air on the north side of the equato- 
 rial belt of calms and rains ever commingles in its constit- 
 uent elements with that on the south side. If we accept 
 the foregoing theory in its entirety, we cannot see how this 
 
 Fig. 11. 
 
 Showing the. Equatorial and Tropical Cairn-Zones, the Trade-Winds, and prevailing westerly 
 winds in the North and South Hemispheres, with a new theory of Atmospheric Circula- 
 tion. 
 
 can take place, with such a humid barrier of neutral air be- 
 tween. It is true that the particles of water held in suspen- 
 sion by the two currents of air mingle together, and form the 
 rain-clouds that produce this great byetographic zone. It is 
 also probable that portions of each lower current mingle with 
 
THE AIR. 331 
 
 the neutral air, and become at rest for a time until they ascend 
 into the upper regions and mingle with the counter-currents. 
 But it does not appear how an immense bulk of air like the 
 north-east trade-winds, blowing with considerable strength, 
 being suddenly checked by a neutral zone of atmosphere, sat- 
 urated with moisture, can cross that barrier and commingle 
 with the south-east trade -winds. According to the law of 
 forces, the particles of air would rebound from this concus- 
 sion of a moving current against a comparative stationary 
 body of air. And as we have seen that the trade-winds have 
 an upward tendency in their course towards the equatorial 
 belt of calms, there is no doubt but that the upper return- 
 current is assisted greatly by the rebound of the particles of 
 air from their momentum. 
 
 321. Momentum of probable Atmospheric Waves. More- 
 over, we deem it a question not yet satisfactorily determined, 
 whether there is not a momentum in the atmosphere indepen- 
 dent of its moving atoms that is, a force of wind produced 
 without the particles of air moving with the same velocity 
 just as we find in the motion of a wave, where there is no 
 corresponding movement in the atoms of water. According 
 to meteorologists, it appears to be a foregone conclusion that 
 all winds are currents of air, where the particles move along 
 like the flow of a river, or, what is more apposite, the motion 
 of the Gulf Stream in mid-ocean. IsTo doubt such is the basis 
 of all winds of long continuance or permanence, as the tropi- 
 cal trade-winds and constant temperate westerly winds. But 
 it is well known that these winds impart an impetus to the 
 particles of the ocean that form waves, which travel with great 
 velocity and beat with vast power on the solid land, without 
 any actual current of water beyond the rolling of the surf 
 upon the beach. May not the atmosphere, which furnishes 
 the impelling power in this instance, acquire a similar momen- 
 tum, and the actual force of a wind be greater than the cur- 
 rent of air or its velocity 1 As there are forces in the waves 
 of the sea independent of oceanic currents, may not there be 
 atmospheric waves imparting force to the particles of air in 
 
332 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 addition to ordinary currents 1 This may be a nice question 
 to solve as regards the trade-winds, but it is different with 
 reference to the sudden gusts of wind which blow with terri- 
 fic violence in the belt of calms. Although the lowering of 
 the barometer indicates the approach of violent squalls, yet 
 they are so sudden, so strong in pressure of wind, and so short 
 in duration, that the theory of air-currents is not sufficient, in 
 our opinion, to account for the phenomenon. As the question 
 is one that bears upon the general subject of the universal 
 intermingling of the atmospheric atoms, we point it out as a 
 possible element in our theory which supports a hypothesis 
 to the contrary. 
 
 322. Tropical Calm-Belts acting as Barriers betivee?i the 
 North and South Temperate Winds. Besides this equatorial 
 belt of calms, we have shown in the diagram the calms of 
 Cancer in the north hemisphere, and a corresponding zone in 
 the south under the Tropic of Capricorn. The average width 
 of these calm-belts is calculated variously sometimes less 
 and sometimes wider than the equatorial belt of calms. They 
 separate the winds of the temperate zone from the trade-winds ; 
 and in this respect act as a barrier to their commingling, just 
 as the equatorial belt does between the trades. In these calm 
 regions it has been ascertained that the pressure of air is lower 
 than it is to the north or the south of them, which has been 
 instanced as a proof that the atmosphere is rarefied into an 
 ascending current by the neutralising influences of the trade- 
 winds on one side being easterly, and the temperate winds, 
 which blow in an opposite direction. Within the influence 
 of the latter winds there are regions of constant rain, but not 
 so heavy as that of the equatorial belt of calms. These calms 
 of the tropical limits are likewise subject to the solar influence, 
 moving north and south according to the declination of the 
 sun. In this movement they mark what are termed periodi- 
 cal rains, or those that occur in certain tropical latitudes at 
 fixed periods of the year, which are succeeded by dry seasons 
 of equal duration more or less. 
 
 323. The Question arises whether the Air commingles North 
 
THE AIR. 333 
 
 and South. Here we have a second and a third belt of neu- 
 tral air surrounding the earth one in each hemisphere that 
 evidently must affect the commingling of the atmosphere gen- 
 erally, again raising the question whether such commingling 
 really takes place. On this point Captain Maury expresses 
 himself as follows : "Arrived with my investigations at this 
 stage in the construction of a theory, a question of this sort 
 arose : Does the air which is poured into those calm-belts 
 from the north, for instance, return to the north as it flows 
 out, or does it keep on its circuit towards the south 1 " In 
 endeavouring to solve this important problem, which is one of 
 vital interest to mankind as well as science, Captain Maury 
 adheres to his hypothesis, that in the atmosphere, as in the 
 sea, every particle of air and water not only changes its posi- 
 tion in the circumference of the globe, but that there is a con- 
 tinual change of atoms between the poles ; so that, in the 
 course of time, the entire ocean is shaken up, even to its pro- 
 foundest depths, as effectually as if it " were shaken in a bottle," 
 to use his own expression. In the previous division of our 
 subject on " The Sea," we have ventured to dissent from this 
 doctrine of universal circulation; for, however beautiful it 
 may be in theory, as an instance of the harmony of all mov- 
 ing things in the universe, there are data for concluding that 
 the currents of the ocean do not mingle universally, as ex- 
 plained in that section. In like manner, with a consistency 
 we cannot but admire, however we may dissent from his hypo- 
 thesis, the gallant physical geographer of the sea endeavours 
 to show, by an ingenious mode of argument, that the atmos- 
 pheric atoms cross the three belts of calms in their circulation 
 from the north to the south pole, and vice versa, as regularly 
 as the particles of air forming the trade-winds circulate within 
 their own domain. In elucidating his theory of universal po- 
 lar circulation, he has constructed a " Diagram of the Winds," 
 with a marginal reference to the course supposed to be pur- 
 sued by two imaginary particles of air one starting from 
 the north pole and the other from the south. The course 
 of each at starting is in the upper current of air, presumed 
 
334 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 to exist at the poles, until they reach the tropical calm-belts, 
 when they descend and cross each other in the still medium, 
 each pursuing its latitudinal course, ascending and descend- 
 ing alternately, until all the three belts are crossed, and the 
 north pole particle reaches the south pole, where it rests in 
 a supposed disc of polar calms, until it ascends and again 
 returns to the north polar disc of calms and so on ad in- 
 finitum. In order, however, to do justice to the author 
 of this hypothesis, we must again briefly quote his own 
 words : 
 
 324. Maury's Theory in favour of universal intermingling 
 of the Atmosphere. "The earth, we know, moves from west to 
 east. Now, if we imagine a particle of atmosphere at the north 
 pole, where it is at rest, to be put in motion in a straight 
 line toward the equator, we can easily see how this particle 
 of air, coming from the very axis of diurnal rotation, where 
 it did not partake of the diurnal motion of the earth, would, 
 in consequence of its vis inertice, find, as it travels south, the 
 earth slipping from under it, as it were ; and thus it would 
 appear to be coming from the north-east and going toward 
 the south-west in other words, it would be a north-east 
 wind. . . . Setting off from the polar regions, this particle of 
 air, for some reason which does not appear to have been satis- 
 factorily explained by philosophers, instead of travelling on 
 the surface all the way from the pole to the equator, travels 
 in the upper regions of the atmosphere until it gets near the 
 parallel of 30 north. Here it meets also, in the clouds, the 
 hypothetical particle that is coming from the south and going 
 north to take its place. About this parallel of 30 north, 
 then, these particles press against each other with the whole 
 amount of their motive power, and produce a calm and an 
 accumulation of atmosphere ; this accumulation is sufficient 
 to balance the pressure of the two winds from the north and 
 south." 
 
 325. How Particles of Air are supposed to circulate from 
 Pole to Pole. " Following our imaginary particle of air from 
 the north across this calm-belt of Cancer, we now feel it 
 
THE AIR. 335 
 
 moving on the surface of the earth as the north-east trade- 
 wind ; and as such it continues till it arrives near the equator, 
 where it meets a like hypothetical particle, which, starting 
 from the south at the same time the other started from the 
 north pole, has blown as the south-east trade-wind. Here, 
 at this equatorial place of meeting, there is another conflict of 
 winds and another calm region ; for a north-east and south- 
 east wind cannot blow at the same time in the same place. 
 The two particles have been put in motion by the same 
 power, they meet with equal force, and therefore, at their 
 place of meeting, are stopped in their course. Here, there- 
 fore, there is a calm-belt. Warmed now by the heat of the 
 sun, and pressed on each side by the whole force of the north- 
 east and south-east trades, these two hypothetical particles, 
 taken as the type of the whole, cease to move onward, and 
 ascend. This operation is the reverse of that which took 
 place at the meeting near the parallel of 30. This imaginary 
 particle then, having ascended to the upper regions of the 
 atmosphere again, travels there counter to the south-east 
 trades, until it meets, near the calm-belt of Capricorn, an- 
 other particle from the south pole : here there is a descent 
 as before ; it then flows on to the south pole as a surface- 
 wind from the north-west. Entering the polar regions 
 obliquely, it is pressed upon by similar particles flowing in 
 oblique currents across every meridian ; and here again is a 
 calm place or node; for, as our imaginary particle approaches 
 the parallels near the polar calms more and more obliquely, 
 it, with all the rest, is whirled about the pole in a continued 
 circular gale. Finally, reaching the vortex or>the calm place, 
 it is carried upward to the regions of the atmosphere above, 
 whence it commences again its circuit to the north as an 
 upper current, as far as the calm-belt of Capricorn : here it 
 encounters its fellow from the north; they stop, descend, and 
 flow out as surface-currents, the one with which the imagi- 
 nation is travelling to the equatorial calm, as the south-east 
 trade-wind ; here it ascends, travelling thence to the calm- 
 belt of Cancer, as an upper current counter to the north-east 
 
336 OEIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 trades. Here it ceases to be an upper current, but, descend- 
 ing, travels on with the south-west passage winds toward the 
 pole." 
 
 326. Principle of Maury's Theory inconsistent with At- 
 mospheric Phenomena. Our first impression of this ingeni- 
 ous hypothesis is its intricacy. In nautical phraseology these 
 imaginary particles of air, in pursuing their course from pole 
 to pole, have found it a very intricate piece of navigation; 
 and it has been only by the skilfulness of their pilot that they 
 have reached their destination in safety. Seriously, however, 
 even the talented propouiider of this hypothesis will admit 
 that it is a complex theory, and one where the imagination 
 has more to do than perception in following the line of ar- 
 gument. In some respects it is inconsistent with Captain 
 Maury's views regarding the laws of other physical pheno- 
 mena. For instance, there is no blending of the atmosphere, 
 as he says of the sea, so that it also should be everywhere 
 mingled, or, as it were, " shaken up in a bottle." Apparently 
 the particles of air retain their particular current, and cross 
 ea.ch other at the calm -belts, as if they were of distinct con- 
 stituent parts the one like oil, the other like water, so that 
 they crossed each other without combination. This we con- 
 sider a point that requires more conclusive arguments than 
 those given to support it. It is just possible that a small 
 percentage of the great aerial currents north and south of the 
 equator may slip through, as it were, from one side of the 
 calm-belt to the other ; but that the immense body of air in 
 each system of winds maintains a kind of cross-firing in the 
 upper regions of the equatorial calm-zone, is too much to en- 
 tertain for a scientific hypothesis. Moreover, according to 
 this theory, the atmospheric currents produced by the law of 
 gravitation and the rotation of the earth on its axis would 
 appear to be subsidiary to some polar influence, gratuitously 
 supposed to give momentum to the particles of air forming 
 this imaginary system of currents, which is contrary to 
 experience, and even data furnished elsewhere by Maury 
 himself. 
 
THE AIR. 337 
 
 327. Maunjs Arguments why the Air must be the same 
 in the North and South Hemispheres. Evidently Captain 
 Maury was not satisfied with his first sketch of this novel 
 hypothesis, for he discusses the question more practically in 
 an additional chapter to the later edition of his work on the 
 ' Physical Geography of the Sea.' Without entering further 
 into these fresh arguments than as they are contained in the 
 first paragraph, we shall examine the question from a point 
 of view differing entirely from that adopted by him, yet 
 shadowed forth in the following quotation : " There seem 
 to be reasons for supposing that the air which enters the calm- 
 belts from the north flows out toward the south, and vice 
 versa ; consequently, it was held that the construction of the 
 atmospherical machinery is such as to require a crossing air 
 in those calm-belts. . . . The identity of atmospherical 
 constituents in all parts of the earth, notwithstanding the 
 unequal distribution over its surface, both as to place, num- 
 bers, and kind of the agents which corrupt and of those which 
 purify the air, this identity of constituents seemed to favour 
 the idea of a general and regular intermingling nay, the 
 principles of adjustment which obtain in that exquisite sys- 
 tem of compensations which is displayed in the workings of 
 the physical machinery of our planet seem to call for such 
 regular and active intermingling of the fluid covering, both 
 aerial and aqueous, of the earth, as would keep each element 
 pure and make it homogeneous. Were it not so, we know of 
 physical agents which, in process of time, would make both 
 the air and the water of the two hemispheres quite different 
 those of the one from those of the other. Consequently, if 
 the atmosphere of one hemisphere were to become different 
 from that of the other, the air of the north would not be 
 suited to the flora and fauna of the southern hemisphere, and 
 conversely." 
 
 328. Theory of a disparity in the Constituents of the Air 
 in the Tropical Zones. Now, in adopting this first postulate 
 as datum for his hypothesis, Maury has assumed as a foregone 
 conclusion that the constituents of pure air nitrogen, oxygen, 
 
 Y 
 
338 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 and carbonic acid gas are in equal proportions throughout 
 the entire atmosphere and over every part of the earth. To 
 this we take exception, inasmuch as the atmosphere has not 
 been chemically analysed in regions remote from Europe to 
 determine this point; and, as far as our researches have 
 gone, we cannot find a scientific analysis of the atmosphere 
 in the south hemisphere, such analyses being all confined 
 to regions north of the equator. Moreover, in support of 
 this conclusion, he infers that the fauna and flora of both 
 hemispheres live under the same atmospheric conditions, 
 otherwise the air of the on,e would not suit the animals and 
 plants of the other if transported thither. This last deduc- 
 tion does not follow ; for the air of one hemisphere might im- 
 prove the physical condition of the fauna and flora of an- 
 other ; as, for example, were these transported from the north 
 temperate regions to corresponding parallels in south latitude. 
 On these points we shall produce data from scientific sources 
 and personal observation in the south hemisphere, tending 
 to prove that " the identity of atmospherical constituents in 
 all parts of the earth " is not absolute, as Maury and meteor- 
 ologists generally lead us to believe ; and that there is evi- 
 dence to show that the constituents of the south aerial hemi- 
 sphere do not universally commingle with those of the north. 
 329. Maury 's Remarks on propounding a new Hypothesis. 
 In venturing to submit these personal observations and 
 other data in support of a theory opposed to the opinion of 
 the world in general, and endorsed by high authorities on 
 the question, such as Captain Maury, it is with no dogmatic 
 intention that we bring them forward. On the contrary, it is 
 with a sincere desire to add, if possible, to the sum of human 
 knowledge in the grand study of physical geography with 
 a view to improve the physical and moral condition of man- 
 kind that we submit to abler minds the result of our obser- 
 vations on the atmosphere in the most remote regions of the 
 earth during a long course of experience on land and sea. 
 It is just possible that, among the data to be furnished in 
 support of our views, some missing link in the chain of 
 
THE AIR. 339 
 
 evidence may be found to complete even the existing theory 
 as propounded by Maury. In that case we shall be satisfied 
 with the result in the propagation of scientific discovery, 
 although different from our preconceived opinions, if the 
 new data given support a truthful hypothesis. It is in this 
 spirit that Maury conducted his labours while compiling his 
 admirable work on the ' Physical Geography of the Sea,' 
 wherein he expresses himself in the following manner upon 
 this point : " Whenever, in the course of my investigations 
 touching the physics of sea and air, new facts have been 
 elicited, I have, if they appeared consistent enough to be 
 suggestive, never hesitated to follow them up with sugges- 
 tions, especially if hypothesis seemed to be called for. The 
 principle by which I have sought to be governed is this : 
 fairly to weigh the facts under discussion, and then offer in 
 explanation that hypothesis which would apparently best 
 reconcile them. In case I could not reconcile all by any 
 one supposition, the preference has been given to that hypo- 
 thesis which would reconcile the greatest number. Then, as 
 additional facts were developed, the hypothesis was, if neces- 
 sary, discarded or amended, as the new lights seemed to 
 require. As an investigator in the particular field to which 
 much of my labour is directed, I do not consider that I 
 should content myself by merely stating observations and 
 facts. It is the business of the investigator to let those who 
 labour with him have the benefits of his thoughts and con- 
 clusions, as well as a fair statement of his facts. Such 
 thoughts, though they be founded in misapprehension, rarely 
 fail to help the course of progress and of truth ; for, though 
 wrong in themselves, they impart interest to the subject, set 
 others to thinking, and often suggest what is right. More- 
 over, by such a course discussion is encouraged ; and scientific 
 discussion, when philosophically directed and properly con- 
 ducted, is always profitable." 
 
 330. Our own Views on the importance of studying the 
 Phenomena of the Air. To the general reader these minute 
 investigations into the constituent elements and circulation 
 
340 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of the atmosphere may appear superfluous, as enough is 
 already known for all the uses of mankind. We would 
 remark to such persons that, irrespective of its high scien- 
 tific results, nothing can be of greater advantage to the com- 
 munity generally than a true knowledge of that medium on 
 which not only the health but the life of every human being 
 depends. It frequently happens in our experiences of and 
 researches into the physical world, that those objects and 
 phenomena most familiar to our senses are the least under- 
 stood, and we are better acquainted with the nature of those 
 at a distance. This arises, in a great measure, from the 
 popular notion that things around us are common and under- 
 stood by everybody ; while things at a distance are new to 
 us, and require to be investigated on account of their novelty. 
 Such is the general impression abroad on the phenomena of 
 the atmosphere ; and persons of ordinary intelligence would 
 feel themselves offended if they were asked what was its com- 
 position, and how it affected their constitution. Yet these 
 are points that remain undetermined even at the present day, 
 in an era when scientific investigation has become one of the 
 most advanced studies in our universities ; and it is to be 
 hoped that ere long in the humblest school a better know- 
 ledge of the air we breathe will be taught to the poorest 
 scholar. 
 
 331. Dr Priestley discovers that Air is a compound body. 
 A century has not elapsed since Dr Priestley (1774), a 
 famous English chemical analyst, first demonstrated that air 
 was a compound body, and not the simple element which 
 the ancients thought it to be, and from which, in their 
 opinion, all things originated. He was the discoverer of 
 oxygen gas, and showed it to be a constituent of air. " He 
 determined several of its most remarkable properties, and 
 called it deplilogisticated air, from a notion that it was air 
 deprived of phlogiston. "When azotic gas, the other con- 
 stituent of air, was discovered soon after, the difference 
 between its properties and those of oxygen gas could not fail 
 to strike the most careless observer. Bodies burn more 
 
THE AIR. 341 
 
 rapidly, with much, greater splendour, and with the evolution 
 of much greater heat, in oxygen gas than they do in common 
 air ; while in azotic gas they cannot be made to burn at all. 
 Animals breathe oxygen gas without inconvenience, and they 
 live much longer when confined in a given bulk of it, than 
 when in the same volume of common air ; but in azotic gas 
 animals cannot live at all. When plunged into it they die 
 of suffocation, precisely as they would do if plunged into 
 water."* 
 
 332. Mr Cavendish determines the proportions of Oxygen 
 and Azote. About the same time a Swedish savant named 
 Scheele made a similar discovery that the air consisted of 
 two elementary gases, without having any knowledge of 
 what had been done in Britain ; and he further determined 
 their relative proportions assigning, in 100 parts of air, 27 
 volumes of oxygen gas and 73 of azote, or, as it is now 
 termed, nitrogen gas, from being the radical of nitric acid. 
 In France, Lavoisier the great chemist drew the same con- 
 clusions as Scheele, without knowing what had been done 
 by his Swedish contemporary. Both, however, were in 
 error, and it was reserved for Mr Cavendish of London to 
 determine more exactly the volume of each constituent. " It 
 was in 1782 that Mr Cavendish, by a careful analysis of the 
 air in the neighbourhood of London, repeated frequently, and 
 continued for a whole year, determined that the volume of 
 oxygen gas in 100 volumes of atmospherical air is 20.82, and 
 of nitrogen 79.18." A spirited discussion amongst the most 
 eminent scientific men in Europe followed, upon the gaseous 
 elements of the air, among whom were Dr Ingenhousz of 
 Vienna and others, who advanced the proposition " that air 
 differs in the proportion of oxygen gas which it contains in 
 different parts of the earth, and that the salubrity of different 
 places is connected with this difference." " The experiments 
 of Mr Cavendish were published in the ' Philosophical Trans- 
 actions' for 1783; but they continued for many years un- 
 attended to. The determination of Scheele and Lavoisier 
 * Art. "Atmosphere," ' Encyclopaedia Britannica. ' 
 
342 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 was universally adopted ; and the notion of Dr Ingenhousz, 
 that the proportions between the oxygen and the azote vary 
 in different places, was adopted."* This opinion, however, 
 was subsequently discarded on finding the proportions of 
 oxygen within a fraction the same everywhere, whether 
 the air was taken from a salubrious or unhealthy locality. 
 Had these analytical experiments been carried into the 
 south hemisphere, probably this notion of the Viennese 
 doctor would have been found to be correct on a more 
 extended scale, though not in limited areas, or under local 
 influences. 
 
 333. Foreign Chemists confirm Cavendish's Experiments. 
 This question of relative volume remained undetermined until 
 1802, when " Berthollet announced that he had frequently 
 analysed the air in Egypt by absorbing its oxygen by means 
 of a stick of phosphorus, and that he always found it a com- 
 pound of 79 volumes azote and 21 volumes oxygen. . . . 
 Davy, about the same time, announced that he had tried air 
 from the coast of Africa, from Cornwall, and from the neigh- 
 bourhood of Bristol, and had uniformly found it composed of 
 79 volumes of azotic gas and 21 volumes of oxygen gas. It 
 was soon after analysed in Edinburgh, in North America, and 
 in France with the very same results. Gay-Lussac and 
 Humboldt made a set of careful experiments to determine the 
 exact proportions of the two constituents, and confirmed the 
 ratio of 21 volumes of oxygen gas and 79 volumes of azotic 
 gas. This ratio has been generally adopted by chemists." 
 
 334. Carbonic Acid Gas discovered as an Element in the 
 Air. " Besides oxygen and azotic gases, air likewise contains 
 a little carbonic acid gas. Who first made that remark we 
 do not know ; but it was an almost inevitable inference, as 
 soon as the cause of the difference between caustic and mild 
 alkali became known. Chemists at first stated the volume of 
 carbonic acid gas in the atmosphere at 1 per cent, but this 
 determination was not founded on any accurate experiment. 
 Mr Dalton found the quantity much smaller than had been 
 
 * Art. "Atmosphere," ' Encyclopaedia Britannica. ' 
 
THE AIR. 343 
 
 stated by preceding experimentalists. . . . But by far the 
 most complete set of experiments on the volume of carbonic 
 acid gas in the atmosphere was made by M. Saussure. . . . 
 The experiments were continued for two years. Sometimes 
 (indeed most commonly) the air examined was collected at 
 Chambeisy, a meadow about three-fourths of a league from 
 Geneva, elevated about 52 J feet above the lake, and distant 
 from it 820 feet. The mean quantity of carbonic acid gas found 
 in 10,000 volumes of air, deduced from 104 observations made 
 during both day and night, was 415 volumes. The greatest 
 quantity was 574 volumes, and the smallest 313. . . . If 
 we admit the mean volume of carbonic acid gas in air to be 
 0.000415, then the true component parts of 100 volumes of 
 air will be * 
 
 Azotic gas, . .,'*.'. "i 79.9668) 
 Oxygen gas, ; $ A$f* . ' . ' . 19.9917 [ 100 " 
 Carbonic acid gas, . . . .' 0.0415) 
 
 335. No Analysis of the Air made in the South Hemisphere. 
 In estimating the value of this determinate analysis of the 
 atmospherical constituents, it will be observed that all the 
 chemical experiments relate to the air in the north hemi- 
 sphere, and that they are chiefly confined to that in Europe. 
 It is true that some were conducted in Egypt, the African 
 shores of the Mediterranean, and the east coast of North 
 America, but we do not learn of any having been made in 
 the far East in China, for example, where it is just possible 
 that some variation might be found. In like manner no 
 carefully-conducted chemical analysis of the atmosphere has 
 been made in the south hemisphere, as far as we know. 
 At this we need not be surprised, as the regions south of 
 the equator occupied by European nations at the time these 
 atmospherical investigations were going on, had not made 
 sufficient progress in civilisation to invite learned savans from 
 their laboratories at home, for an unsafe residence among 
 anarchical communities in the settlements of South America 
 * Art. "Atmosphere," ' Encyclopaedia Britannica.' 
 
344 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 and South Africa, or those of felons in Australia, and savages 
 in New Zealand. Indeed, it may be said that it is only 
 within the last seventeen years or so that the scientific world, 
 aided by the English and colonial governments, and in a 
 small degree by some other European governments, has begun 
 to investigate more particularly the physical phenomena of 
 the south hemisphere, in consequence of the valuable gold 
 discoveries made in the British possessions of Australia and 
 New Zealand. 
 
 336. Scientific Observers at the Cape and in Tasmania 
 overlooked Analysis of the Air. The only instances that 
 occur to us of scientific investigations being conducted on 
 land in the south hemisphere that might have led to a care- 
 ful analysis of the air, previous to the era in question, were 
 at the Cape of Good Hope and in the Island of Tasmania. 
 At the former colony Sir John Herschel had established an. 
 observatory for astronomical purposes, in connection with 
 Greenwich observatory not only to make observations on 
 the constellations of the south celestial hemisphere, but to 
 profit by the remarkable purity and clearness of the atmo- 
 sphere there, in observing the nebulae, the galaxy, and other 
 cosmical phenomena. It does not appear that this eminent 
 astronomer availed himself, during a residence of many years 
 at the Cape, of the opportunity of analysing the brilliant 
 atmosphere around him. Evidently he rested satisfied with 
 the analyses in northern regions, and confined his observa- 
 tions to the special astronomical mission upon which he was 
 sent. In like manner an observatory was established for 
 some years at Hobart Town, Tasmania, by the Government 
 Hydrographic Department, to ascertain the nature and direc- 
 tion of electric currents, and the force and duration of mag- 
 netic storms in that locality, as indicative of the magnetic 
 forces generally in the south hemisphere. But the commis- 
 sion appointed to carry out these investigations, although 
 registering thermometrical and barometrical observations, to- 
 gether with other atmospherical phenomena, paid no scientific 
 attention to the chemical analysis of the air, being content, 
 
THE AIR. 345 
 
 apparently, with that ascertained in the north as applicable 
 to the south hemisphere. 
 
 337. Numerous Observatories in Australia, but no Analysis 
 of the Air. Since the gold discoveries in Australia, observa- 
 tories have been established in the principal cities of each 
 colony that will compare with the smaller establishments of 
 the kind in Europe for the method in which the observations 
 are conducted. Not only is this the case at Melbourne, in 
 the colony of Victoria, but " for many years past the colonial 
 government has maintained a system of meteorological sta- 
 tions in various parts of the colony, of which the Melbourne 
 observatory forms a centre ; and regular observations of tem- 
 terature, pressure of air, humidity, radiation, rain, &c., have 
 been obtained for longer or shorter intervals at each. These 
 stations are distributed so that nearly all districts .possessing 
 any climatic peculiarity are represented, with the exception, 
 perhaps, of the higher altitudes in the mountain-districts, 
 and the arid plains in the north-west." Besides these facil- 
 ities for observing atmospherical phenomena as enumerated 
 in the report of the local government astronomer Victoria 
 was fixed on by the late King of Bavaria as a region for 
 scientific inquiry in the south hemisphere. Accordingly he 
 commissioned a learned savant, named Professor Neumeyer, 
 to proceed to Melbourne with a complete set of the most 
 improved magnetic, meteorological, and astronomical instru- 
 ments, in order to make a series of observations on magnetic 
 and atmospheric phenomena. On his arrival the local gov- 
 ernment allowed him the use of a public building on an 
 eligible site, and the legislature of the colony very liberally 
 voted an annual allowance towards the maintenance of the 
 establishment during his stay. Although this learned pro- 
 fessor applied himself diligently to his task for three years, 
 during which he added materially to our knowledge of 
 Australian meteorology, yet in all his reports no reference is 
 made to the constituents of the atmosphere in that region. 
 The same may be said of the annual reports from the observa- 
 tories in the other southern colonies. However minute the 
 
346 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 tables issued by their conductors may be in registering the 
 monthly and annual temperature, humidity, pressure of air, 
 rainfalls, winds, and clouds, no reference whatever is made to 
 the greater or less proportion of nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon 
 in the atmosphere. 
 
 338. Surveying Expeditions in Southern Oceans make no 
 Analysis. Although not to be placed in the same category 
 with land observations, yet, notwithstanding the numerous 
 surveying expeditions in the south hemisphere accompanied 
 by men of science, and the many times the southern waters 
 of the globe have been circumnavigated, no allusion has ever 
 been made, as far as we know, to the gaseous elements of the 
 air these ships have passed through in the scientific observa- 
 tions taken during their voyages. From all these, and other 
 examples that might be cited, it would appear that scientific 
 men, as well as the world at large, are satisfied with the 
 investigations and results of the analysts at the close of the 
 past and the commencement of the present century that the 
 air is universally the same in its elementary constituents, 
 from its circulation intermingling all its atoms in a series 
 of winds or currents, so that in every meridian and parallel 
 from pole to pole it forms one vast aerial sphere of chemical 
 unity consisting of nitrogen gas, 79.9668 parts ; oxygen gas, 
 19.9917 parts ; and carbonic acid gas, 0.0415 parts. 
 
 339. Inquiry as to negative Data showing disparity of 
 Aerial Constituents. We shall now proceed to inquire what 
 data, if any, exist to show that these proportions may be 
 different in the south from the north aerial hemisphere. At 
 the outset it must be premised that we do not intend to pro- 
 duce positive data towards supporting such a hypothesis ; for 
 if we had counter-chemical analyses to those already quoted, 
 the matter would simply rest upon the authenticity of the 
 experiments and the competency of the experimentalists. 
 Having no evidence of this kind to produce as direct proof of 
 a disparity in the two hemispherical divisions of the atmo- 
 sphere, we may with logical propriety have recourse to nega- 
 tive data in elucidation of the theory. This is no new or 
 
THE AIR. 347 
 
 weak mode of investigation, and many important discoveries 
 in the physical world have been made through observing the 
 effects of an unknown cause, which has been subsequently 
 proved to exist upon substantial grounds. It is just pos- 
 sible, therefore, that however apparently feeble may be the 
 arguments and evidence we bring forward in support of this 
 theory, they may lead some competent experimentalist to 
 analyse the air in the south hemisphere ; and the result of 
 his experiments may prove the correctness of our views. 
 
CHAPTEE XVI. 
 
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE VEGETATION OF THE NORTH 
 AND SOUTH HEMISPHERES. 
 
 Diminution of carbonic acid gas in the north aerial hemisphere, 340. 
 The air highly charged with the carbonic element during the carbon- 
 iferous era, 341. Carbon extracted from the air buried in the coal- 
 measures, 342. Numerous species of fossil ferns in the carboniferous 
 formation, 343. Carboniferous fossil trees different from existing forest- 
 trees in Exirope, 344. Trees and shnibs of New Zealand analogous to 
 the extinct flora of Great Britain, 345. General aspect of New Zealand 
 forest scenery and vegetation, 346. Peculiar surface-roots of the trees in 
 New Zealand, 347. Extraordinary roots and trunk of the Rata-tree, 
 348. New Zealand trees derive all their carbon from the atmosphere, 
 349. Vegetation of New Zealand typical of the carboniferous flora of 
 Europe, 350. Magnificence of the tree-fern forests of New Zealand, 351. 
 Arborescent ferns derive their strength from air and moisture, 352. 
 Greater volume of the carbonic constituent in the south .aerial hemi- 
 sphere, 353. Tropical division of Australia, and its humidity, 354. 
 Aridity of the temperate regions of Australia, 355. An Australian 
 sirocco blows during summer in Victoria, 356. A hot wind at Melbourne 
 described, 357. Forests and pastures on fire during the hot winds in 
 Victoria, 358. Open and monotonous aspect of the forest-scenery in 
 Australia, 359. Australian gum-trees the highest trees in the world, 
 360. Dr Mueller's account of the Australian jungle, 361. Rapidity of 
 growth in Australian gum-trees and acacias, 362. Evidences of a large 
 volume of the carbonic constituent in the atmosphere of Australia, 363. 
 Evergreen characteristics of all the vegetation in the south hemisphere, 
 364. 
 
 340. Diminution of Carbonic Acid Gas in the North Aerial 
 Hemisphere. Throughout the preceding sections of this work 
 the intelligent reader may have observed that the line of argu- 
 ment adopted has been from the lesser to the greater series 
 
THE AIR. 349 
 
 of facts and postulates sometimes from the infinitesimal 
 to the infinite. For example, in building up our theory of 
 the origin of the seasons, through infinite periods of time 
 and the transcendent operations of nature on the earth, we 
 approached the superstructure of our argument through the 
 comparatively trifling and neglected phenomenon observed 
 by astronomers in the diminution of the obliquity of the 
 ecliptic. Following a similar line of investigation into the 
 vast circumambient medium that enfolds the world in its 
 embrace, and endeavouring to unravel the history of the 
 primeval atmosphere, we shall select the comparatively in- 
 finitesimal constituent of carbon in its elementary form as a 
 key to open this temple of hidden knowledge. Although a 
 mere fraction of a fraction of an element in the grand atmo- 
 spheric compound compared with its two great fellow- con- 
 stituents, nitrogen and oxygen, there is abundant evidence 
 to prove that at one period carbonic acid gas entered largely 
 into the component parts of both the air and the sea as the 
 universality of mineral carbonates fully testifies. Without 
 referring more particularly to the oceanic part of the question, 
 we shall quote again the illustrious Huniboldt's opinion on 
 this point in treating of the internal reaction of the earth on 
 its surface during the upheaval of mountains and mineral 
 masses : " The influence of this reaction of the interior on 
 the exterior is not," he thinks, "limited to inorganic nature 
 alone. It is highly probable that in an earlier world more 
 powerful emanations of carbonic acid gas, blended with the 
 atmosphere, must have increased the assimilation of carbon 
 in vegetables, and that an inexhaustible supply of combus- 
 tible matter (lignites and carboniferous formations) must 
 have been thus buried in the upper strata of the earth by 
 the revolutions attending the destruction of vast tracts of 
 forest." Hence it has been concluded, after taking into con- 
 sideration the immense extent of the carboniferous and lig- 
 nite formations which have not returned their elements into 
 the atmosphere by combustion, that the volume of carbonic 
 acid gas in the north aerial hemisphere now, is probably only 
 
350 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 a fractional vestige of what it was before the carboniferous 
 era. 
 
 341. The Air highly charged with this Element during 
 the Carboniferous Era. Besides the extent and cubic meas- 
 ure nient of the known coal-fields of the earth, and an ap- 
 proximate calculation of those unknown, as evidence of the 
 amount of carbonic gas extracted from the air and buried in 
 the land, we have also experimental data to show that the 
 primeval atmosphere was much more highly charged with 
 that constituent than at present at all events as regards the 
 north aerial hemisphere. On the authority of Dr Balfour, 
 Professor of Botany in the Edinburgh University, we have 
 the following remarks on this head : "It has been suspected 
 by various chemists that the atmosphere, at the period when 
 the coal-depositions were going on, contained more carbonic 
 acid gas than it does now ; botanists, too, had reason to 
 imagine that the fern tribe would thrive in an atmosphere 
 more teeming with carbonic acid than other vegetables. 
 Accordingly, Professor Daubeny of Oxford, and, we believe, 
 also Mr Hunt, tried the experiment of growing plants in 
 factitious atmospheres highly charged with carbonic acid gas. 
 The results went to prove that the opinions of the botanists 
 were well founded, and that in all probability there existed 
 considerably more carbonic acid gas in the atmosphere when 
 the coal-measures were being formed than there does at the 
 present time." 
 
 342. Carbon extracted from the Air buried in the Coal- 
 Measures. From these data we do not mean to assert that 
 the carbon which forms so large a proportion of vegetable 
 structure is entirely extracted from the atmosphere ; [for it is 
 well known in chemical agriculture that plants absorb this 
 element through their roots from the soil and manures. 
 What we are endeavouring to point out is, that certain 
 classes of plants absorb more carbonic acid gas than others from 
 the air, and flourish best in a factitious atmosphere highly 
 charged with that gas; and of such are the arborescent 
 ferns, catamites, lycopodiacece, sigillarice, stigmarice, and trees 
 
THE AIR. 351 
 
 of the coniferous and palm tribes, which chiefly enter into 
 the composition of the coal-measures. "There can be no 
 doubt but that the valuable and important mineral, coal, has 
 owed its origin to vegetable bodies. On examining a coal- 
 seam, the upper layer of shale which forms the roof will be 
 found to contain innumerable impressions of vegetable stems 
 and leaves, most beautifully and faithfully preserved. Some- 
 times large portions of the trunks of trees are found tra- 
 versing the centres of the coal-seam ; but in general the 
 central mass has been so compressed, and has undergone 
 such a chemical change, as to obliterate all marks of its 
 vegetable origin, and a mass of semi-crystallised bituminous 
 matter alone remains. Yet even in this bituminous mass 
 traces are occasionally to be found of organised structure, 
 if'*- . The great extent and thickness of the coal-fields in 
 various parts of the world show the vast quantities of vege- 
 table matter which must have gone to the formation of them. 
 Nearly one-half of the surface of the west and north-west of 
 England is composed of coal-strata; and the coal-fields of 
 Newcastle cover an area of about two hundred square miles. 
 Besides these, there are extensive coal-districts in Wales, in 
 the southern part of Scotland, and in Ireland."* 
 
 343. Number of Species of Fossil Ferns in the Car- 
 boniferous Formation. According to the most eminent 
 botanists and geologists, the period when the plants flourished 
 from which the carboniferous formation derived its distinc- 
 tive strata, is designated the reign of acrogens, and forms 
 the first chapter of the history of the vegetable kingdom. 
 This division includes the lycopodiacece, or club -mosses, 
 besides the ferns. At the same time we must not judge of 
 the flora of an epoch from the scanty number of fossil species 
 collected. Lindley has proved by experiment that ferns, of 
 all classes of plants, are least acted upon by water and pres- 
 sure. Hence the quantity of these found in the carboniferous 
 formation, when probably the more cellular and destructible 
 plants have entirely disappeared. From this we may infer 
 * Khind's 'Vegetable Kingdom.' 
 
352 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 that the abundance of vegetation at that period in Europe 
 surpassed anything that we know of in the world at pre- 
 sent, not excepting the dense forests and jungles of the 
 tropics. Not only has the preservative power of carbon 
 handed down the remains of these fern-forests and club- 
 moss marshes, but in the imperishable impressions of their 
 fronds in shale, limestone, and sandstone, botanists have clas- 
 sified some two hundred and fifty species of ferns alone in 
 the British Isles, while in all Europe at the present day there 
 are not more than fifty species. Moreover, as the fern tribe 
 is peculiarly exempt from the decay produced in most plants 
 by immersion in water, so do its members flourish most 
 luxuriantly in a humid atmosphere and a rainy climate, 
 especially in rocky situations, where the spray of waterfalls 
 sprinkles their fronds unceasingly. Hence it has been con- 
 cluded that heavy and constant rains must have fallen on the 
 newly-upheaved lands at this epoch ; but it does not follow 
 that extreme heat prevailed, for in those regions at the pre- 
 sent day where ferns attain their greatest luxuriance, the 
 temperature is moderate. 
 
 344. Carboniferous Fossil Trees different from existing Forest- 
 Trees in Europe. The question that suggests itself here is, 
 How far the vegetation that formed the coal-fields depended 
 upon the atmosphere for its supply of carbonic acid gas ? If 
 we are to suppose that the peat -bogs, dense forests, and 
 jungles of that period presented an aspect similar to the 
 bogs, woods, and thickets of Europe at the present day 
 where the trees send their tap-roots deep into the soil, with 
 their numerous rootlets spread out underground, extracting 
 their carbon from the earth and water, in which it mingles 
 largely we should conclude that only a small proportion 
 was absorbed from the air. But it must be remembered that 
 the ground on which these primeval forests grew had not 
 been long upheaved above the ocean, and there could be little 
 or no soil formed on the bare volcanic rocks to convey 
 nourishment or moisture through their roots. Moreover, 
 the roots could not penetrate the hard rocks, so that they 
 
THE AIR. 353 
 
 must have been spread out on the surface ; and as there were 
 many trees of gigantic growth at that period, these could not 
 have tap-roots, but depended for their fixity on the ground upon 
 their general spread over it. In that case the roots would 
 approach in character those of a sea -weed, which we have 
 seen is a mere holdfast or crampon. Then, being of a highly 
 carboniferous nature, they must have absorbed the element 
 which nourished their woody fibre from the primeval atmos- 
 phere, which learned chemists and botanists inform us, as we 
 have seen, upon experimental data, must have been highly 
 charged with carbonic acid gas. 
 
 345. Trees and Shrubs of Neio Zealand analogous to the 
 extinct Flora of Great Britain. But we may be told that 
 these characteristics of the trees and shrubs forming the 
 ancient carboniferous forests of the British Isles, of which 
 the coal-fields are the remains, are become imaginary, as they 
 are not supported by the prevailing features of the trees and 
 shrubs in our living forests. These evidently absorb but a 
 very small portion of their carbon from the air, as their leaves 
 are not adapted for that purpose, while the foliage is stripped 
 from their branches during one half the year, with nothing 
 exposed to the air but hard stems, which cannot so effectually 
 perform the office of absorption. On the other hand, the 
 roots .of most European trees penetrate to a great depth, 
 spreading out in their ramifications, almost equal in extent to 
 the upper branches, and seldom appearing on the surface. 
 We must not look, however, for evidence to support our 
 views among existing forests in Europe, but to those in 
 remote parts of the world exhibiting a living vegetation ana- 
 logous to the extinct flora of the carboniferous era. As a 
 field for illustrating this remarkable phenomenon of the prim- 
 eval atmosphere and its vegetation, no region is so interesting 
 and characteristic as the New Zealand group of islands, situ- 
 ated nearly at the antipodes of the British Isles. In con- 
 sequence of that position and their geographical area, and 
 being a dependency of this country colonised by the British, 
 that colony has been appropriately termed the " Great Britain 
 
354 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of the South." The interest, therefore, attached to the 
 botanical and physical features becomes still more appropri- 
 ate, if we can see in them an existing type of our mother- 
 country when it first "arose from out the azure main." 
 Having travelled through a great part of the interior of New 
 Zealand, we can vouch for the peculiar character of its flora, 
 indicated in the foregoing remarks as resembling the extinct 
 vegetation of the carboniferous era in Europe. And we shall 
 endeavour to show that with the resemblance between the 
 existing flora of that south region, and the extinct flora of 
 its northern antipodes, there are also data for concluding 
 that the air of the south hemisphere at present is probably 
 as highly charged with carbonic acid gas as that of the prim- 
 eval atmosphere was in Europe. 
 
 346. General Aspect of New Zealand Forest Scenery and 
 Vegetation. New Zealand forests, as a rule, are remarkably 
 well defined from the adjacent open lands, where a tree or a 
 clump of bushes is rarely seen rising from amongst the fern- 
 brake which covers the ground in the absence of indigenous 
 pasture. So clear is the line of demarcation, that at first sight 
 we supposed that it was the work of the native inhabitants ; 
 but on closer examination we could see that it was the handi- 
 work of nature from some peculiarity of the rock on which 
 the trees and shrubs grew being more favourable to the growth 
 of dense masses of vegetation than where it was open, or, as 
 in some places, nearly barren. Be that as it may, our first 
 observations on entering one of these forests were the definite 
 boundary outside, with the contrast between the dingy fern- 
 brake and the magnificence of the trees and underwood in- 
 side. And as we penetrated its recesses we were equally 
 struck with the remarkable network of roots that covered 
 the surface of the ground, rendering walking along the 
 native path very fatiguing, as we had to spring from root to 
 root to avoid stepping into the pools of water everywhere 
 collected between them. Although it was not raining at the 
 time, or had done so that day, yet the moisture that hung 
 upon the foliage was so dense that it continued dropping 
 
THE AIR. 355 
 
 down, amid the profound silence of the forest, like the heavy 
 drops of rain before a thunder-shower. It was a fine warm 
 day, with the sunlight shining through the maze of vegeta- 
 tion, yet we soon got wet from the falling moisture ; at the 
 same time it was not the steamy humidity of a tropical 
 forest, for the atmosphere was clear enough to see any dis- 
 tance, where the prospect was not intercepted "by the dense 
 foliage. Altogether its general aspect was that of exceeding 
 freshness, and even sparkling, where the globules of moisture 
 glittered like gems in the sunbeams of a bright New Zea- 
 land day. 
 
 347. Peculiar Surface-Roots of the Trees in New Zealand. 
 Besides the network of roots incommoding the road, there 
 were so many climbing-plants on each side that it was not 
 an easy matter to diverge from the path without using a 
 tomahawk to cut through those in our way. Having done 
 this, we reached a comparatively clear spot to survey the 
 characteristics of a New Zealand forest. Everywhere that 
 the ground was visible between the roots, its rocky character 
 became apparent ; and at a precipitous part the trees seemed 
 perched on rocks, which their roots entwined like the claws 
 of some gigantic bird, allied to the extinct dinornis or moa 
 of the Maories. The trees towered up to a great height 
 many with their trunks free of branches for eighty or ninety 
 feet, and from six to eight feet diameter at the base, above 
 where the roots begin to branch off upon the surface of the 
 ground. It was curious to see where these twisted around 
 in all directions, the roots of one tree intertwining with those 
 of another, like groups of vegetable snakes, making up for 
 the remarkable absence of any such reptile on these islands. 
 At one spot where a monarch of the forest had been blown 
 down by the wind, the disc of roots stood up twenty feet 
 high, leaving the rock bare below, showing how little this 
 giant tree depended upon the soil for nourishment, if indeed 
 it received any at all. The knotted roots of these large trees 
 furnish highly-ornamental wood, which equals in beauty the 
 bird's-eye maple. On the other hand, the leaves are ever- 
 
356 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 green and succulent, through which the moisture and gaseous 
 elements are ahsorbed. For example, the Eimu (Dacrydium 
 cupressimum). This beautiful tree comes to its greatest per- 
 fection in shaded woods. Its foliage is remarkably graceful 
 and elegant. The leaves are only small prickles, running up 
 a long stem, from which, towards the top, branch out several 
 other stems, whose united weight causes the main stem to 
 hang like the branches of the weeping willow, or a cluster of 
 ostrich feathers ; and the beauty is heightened by the liveli- 
 ness of the colour with which it is decorated, in comparison 
 with the sombre hue of most of the other evergreens. 
 
 348. Extraordinary Hoots and Trunk of the Rata-Tree. 
 To enumerate the variety and characteristics of the trees to 
 be found in the forests of New Zealand is beyond the limits 
 of our subject ; yet we may appropriately point out one or 
 two species presenting the remarkable features of their vege- 
 tation. Of these the rata (Metrosideros robusta) is perhaps 
 the most peculiar, as representing a plant of enormous di- 
 mensions, almost independent of nourishment from the soil, 
 like some orchidaceous epiphytes that subsist upon the gases 
 and. moisture of the air while hanging from the branches of 
 trees. The characteristic variety of this tree grows at first as 
 a parasite, creeping in numerous stems, like ropes, up the 
 trunks of the other forest -trees, gradually enclosing them 
 till they perish, and then uniting to form a noble tree taller 
 than that which it has destroyed, with an enormous trunk, 
 but hollow within. Those trees sometimes attain a hundred 
 feet in height, with the base of the hollow trunk eight or 
 nine feet in diameter. To support this mass of timber, the 
 snake-like roots spread over the ground in a circular form, 
 measuring sometimes a hundred and fifty feet in its outer 
 circumference. These are smooth and covered with bark, 
 like the trunk and branches, so that it is impossible to say 
 where the roots begin and the stem ends. The leaf and the 
 flower resemble those of the myrtle, but the flower is of a 
 deep -crimson colour, with yellow stamens. In December 
 and January these giants of the forest give the hill -sides a 
 
THE AIR. 357 
 
 fairy -like appearance, from the profusion of their beautiful 
 blossoms. The branches are gnarled like those of the oak, 
 and the trunk also, from its formation, is a series of strange 
 contortions, so that the wood, being also heavy, close grained, 
 and very durable, is most valuable to the shipbuilder for 
 knees and timbers of all shapes and sizes. 
 
 349. New Zealand Trees derive all their Carbon from the 
 Atmosphere. Here, then, we have a timber tree of massive 
 woody tissues, derived chiefly from carbonic acid gas at least 
 its carbon basis is so derived ; and it requires no profound 
 knowledge of botany or chemistry to see, by the structure of 
 the plant above the surface of the ground, that this all- 
 important element is extracted from the atmosphere. Yet 
 it is maintained by eminent botanists and experimental 
 chemists that all the carbon composing the woody fibre of 
 plants is derived from the soil. The only question is how 
 that is absorbed, as it is well known that charcoal, the crude 
 state of this element, is not soluble in water, therefore it 
 cannot enter the minute vessels for circulation in plants. On 
 the other hand, M. Senebier, a learned vegetable physiologist, 
 has endeavoured to prove that carbonic acid gas, dissolved in 
 water, supplies the roots of plants with almost all their car- 
 bon. We incline to the latter theory, and bring forward the 
 peculiar character of the surface -roots of trees in the New 
 Zealand forests in its support. We have described how, on 
 entering these woods, we had to leap from root to root in 
 order to avoid the little puddles of water collected between 
 them. Now we can easily understand in a wet climate, such 
 as exists there, that these collections of rain-water rarely dry 
 up, and are constantly extracting carbonic acid gas from the 
 air, which the surface-roots are continually absorbing ; so that 
 water and moisture are the mediums through which the great 
 mass of vegetation in New Zealand derives nourishment from 
 the gaseous elements in the atmosphere. This argument, 
 however, does not disprove the theory that trees with under- 
 ground roots in the north hemisphere derive their carbonic 
 acid gas from the soil, where it is evolved from manures, and 
 
358 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 combines with the rain or river water that percolates through 
 the ground. 
 
 350. Vegetation of New Zealand typical of Carboniferous 
 Flora of Europe. Although flowers are few and far between 
 in these New Zealand forests, yet there is remarkable beauty 
 in the scenery among the undergrowth of vegetation, produced 
 by the fronds of the great variety and abundance of ferns, 
 surpassing even the most picturesque foliage of deciduous 
 shrubs and flowers. If, as it has been remarked by the 
 eminent botanists already quoted, we have in these far 
 southern islands a realisation of the forests from whence the 
 coal-fields were formed, then the forest-scenery of the car- 
 boniferous era was not devoid of elegant forms and pleas- 
 ing aspects. Some imaginative writers on the geological 
 history of the earth have produced pictures of that epoch 
 from the scanty remains exhumed from its fossil beds, in 
 which they depict very dismal restorations of its pristine 
 scenery. To these we take exception, as their conclusions 
 are not borne out by the analogous forest-scenery of New 
 Zealand. This, however, they may dissent from ; but we 
 are of opinion that not only the extinct vegetation of the 
 earth has its existing types, but also the animal creation that 
 then existed. In a previous section of our work we have 
 instanced Australia as an example of that epoch when 
 animals were in a transition state from reptiles to mammals, 
 as seen in the remarkable generative powers of the platypus 
 and kangaroo. In like manner we may instance New Zea- 
 land as representing an epoch anterior to that in which 
 reptiles were in their earliest stage without a snake on the 
 one hand, or a mammal on the other. Yet, notwithstanding 
 the paucity of animal life and flowers, the forest-scenery of 
 these islands is replete with the most elegant forms of plants. 
 "What it lacks in brilliancy and variety of colour the New 
 Zealand forest makes up in beauty of form from the tiny 
 mosses to the gigantic arborescent ferns that chiefly compose 
 its undergrowth of vegetation. 
 
 351. Magnificence of the Tree-Fern Forests of New Zea- 
 
THE AIR. 359 
 
 land. To resume the account of our first impressions on 
 entering a New Zealand forest. We penetrated still further 
 into its hidden recesses, attracted by the sound of one of the 
 small cascades which are very numerous throughout the 
 country. It was formed "by a streamlet that leapt from rock 
 to rock down a small ravine, sending the spray to the right 
 and left on its rapid course. Over these waters, on each 
 side, rows of tree-ferns bent their blackened stems, with their 
 graceful pinnate fronds hanging more elegantly than any 
 palm-tree. Some fronds were white underneath (Cyathea 
 dealbota), others were dark and spotted with bundles of 
 spores (C. medtillaris), and some were bipinnate and pen- 
 dant, from seven to twelve feet long (Alsopliila excelsa). 
 None were less than ten feet in height, and many of them 
 reared their curled feather-like tops from forty to sixty feet 
 high. It was a beautiful sight, and we could not but wonder 
 how they attained such a height and luxuriance among the 
 rocks, where the little soil that could collect about the roots 
 was liable to be washed away by the heavy rains or the 
 swollen stream. It was easily seen that they did not depend 
 upon the earth for their sustenance, while they had such a 
 supply of gaseous food from the water and air. Their roots 
 served them merely as holdfasts to remain in a locality where 
 the gaseous food upon which they throve was found in 
 greatest abundance, and the generous stream scattered its 
 spray broadcast among their fronds. 
 
 352. Arborescent Ferns derive their Strength from Air and 
 Moisture. On ascending the rocks to see further into this 
 beautiful avenue of tree-ferns, we were still more enchanted with 
 the scene on observing the smaller ferns that grew upon them 
 and the rocky banks of the stream. Here were creeping 
 ferns covering the rocks like ivy (Trichomanes reniforme)' 
 climbing ferns entwining the trunks of the trees (Hymeno- 
 phyllum flabellatum) ; ferns hanging in festoons from tree to 
 tree, like the vine planations in Italy, the fertile fronds 
 looking like small grapes (Lygodium articulatum) others of 
 the most delicate tracery, like the down of sea-birds, only 
 
360 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 green in hue (Todea pellucida}, and many others of fantastic 
 yet elegant forms. But what most impressed us was the 
 translucent nature of the fronds, which resembled the pel- 
 lucid green of many sea-weeds, so that it required very little 
 stretch of imagination to ally the two classes of plants to- 
 gether. And we could furthermore imagine that, among the 
 rocky depths of the sea, the green algce there would resemble 
 the translucent ferns in a JSTew Zealand forest. This view of 
 cryptogamic vegetation growing in the sea on the one hand, 
 and in the air on the other, may be witnessed on a small 
 scale in our gardens of natural history. Here may be seen a 
 Wardian glass-case enclosing many of the small pellucid 
 ferns referred to, and the no less beautiful fern -like moss 
 (Hookeria pinnata), a link between the two families, nourish- 
 ing within a moist atmosphere, which is continually supplied 
 by its own evaporation and condensation. There we may 
 find an aquarium, with pale-green sea-weeds (LicJiinia), or 
 irridescent and fan-shaped (Padinapavonia), growing in fresh 
 water, exhibiting the close analogy between water and air 
 plants, when they do not depend upon the soil for their 
 sustenance, but absorb at every pore the water, carbonic acid, 
 hydrogen, and other elements that constitute the pabulum of 
 their existence. 
 
 353. Greater Volume of the Carbonic constituent in the South 
 Aerial Hemisphere. From the foregoing data we naturally 
 draw the inference that the atmosphere in New Zealand is 
 more highly charged with carbonic acid gas than it is in Great 
 Britain; and furthermore, taking the extent and geographical 
 position of the two groups of islands into consideration, they 
 are fair representatives of the condition of the atmospheric 
 constituents in each hemisphere, or, at all events, within 
 their temperate zones. Hence we extend the deduction from 
 these premises, and infer that there is a greater volume of 
 carbonic acid in the south than there is in the north hemi- 
 sphere at the present day ; while, in all probability, during 
 the carboniferous era in Europe they were precisely equal, 
 when the ferns of the coal-formation flourished even more 
 
THE AIR. 361 
 
 luxuriantly than their modern types do in New Zealand. But 
 it may be advanced, in opposition to this conclusion, that the 
 forests we have described as existing in that country derive 
 their peculiar species of trees and shrubs, or, at all events, 
 their growing to such a magnitude, from the intense humidity 
 that prevails. In reply we might refer to analogous moist 
 climates in the British Isles, such as may be found in the 
 west Highlands of Scotland, where rain falls as constantly 
 and heavily amongst the ferns and mosses that grow there ; 
 but they never reach the size and luxuriance their contem- 
 poraries attain at the antipodes, neither do they approach 
 those of their extinct prototypes buried in the strata beneath 
 where they grow. But we shall not rely entirely upon that 
 evidence. There are abundant data in other regions of the 
 south hemisphere, possessing very different climatic phen- 
 omena of an opposite character to humidity, where the 
 vegetation presents striking examples of being highly charged 
 with carbonic gas. 
 
 354. Tropical Division of Australia, and its Humidity. 
 Of these regions, the " Great South Land " of Australia pre- 
 sents the most remarkable and interesting specimens of the 
 vegetable kingdom growing in an atmosphere as intensely 
 dry as that of New Zealand is moist. Although not more 
 than twelve hundred miles distant, no two regions on the 
 globe could present greater contrasts of climate in this respect, 
 which imparts its influence to the vegetation and general aspect 
 of each country. We have described the humidity of the one, 
 and we shall refer to the aridity of the other, or rather to 
 that division of the great island-continent that lies in the 
 same parallels of latitude ; for in its tropical division, north of 
 Cape Capricorn, a rainy season prevails, as in India, when 
 the forests are as humid as those in New Zealand. " This 
 season commences generally about the end of October, and 
 ceases in the middle of March, during which the greatest 
 amount of heat occurs with the highest degree of moisture, as 
 experienced in the Indies. This effect of its intertropical 
 position distinguishes the climate of Queensland from the 
 
362 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 other divisions of Eastern Australia as distinctly as its pine- 
 forests (Araucaria) mark the boundary of vegetation. When 
 the south-east trade-winds extend their influence during the 
 summer solstice beyond the Tropic of Capricorn, they reach 
 as high as 28 south latitude, and are no doubt the cause of 
 these periodical rains. The precursor of this deluge is gene- 
 rally a thunder-storm, such as is seen only between the tro- 
 pical zones. Masses of dense scud rise up from the Pacific 
 Ocean towards the interior, until they are checked by the 
 southerly wind blowing over the IsTew England country. They 
 then become packed into a uniform mass, shrouding the hea- 
 vens. A stifling sultriness succeeds, and the lightning bursts 
 forth from the lurid gloom, flash succeeding flash with fearful 
 rapidity now forked from the zenith, anon like a chain 
 round the verge of the horizon while the crash of thunder 
 resounds like a park of artillery. The flood-gates of the black 
 canopy above are now opened, and the rain descends in tor- 
 rents, with a noise like the pattering of a host of feet, amidst 
 the war of elements. Soon the narrow tributaries of the rivers 
 are swollen, some of them rising as much as fifty feet in twelve 
 hours, when the banks are overflowed and the surrounding 
 plains are deluged." * 
 
 355. Aridity of the Temperate Regions of Australia. 
 These periodical rains are succeeded by a dry season in tropi- 
 cal Australia, which lasts through the remainder of the year, 
 when little or no rain falls. It is not, however, in that re- 
 gion we intend to point out the contrast of climate with ISTew 
 Zealand. We shall select the colony of Victoria, forming the 
 most southern portion of the mainland, as affording evidence 
 of its arid atmosphere within the temperate zone. Every 
 summer, in all that extent of country, there blows a hot dry 
 wind with such intensity that the ground is parched up, and 
 vegetable activity seems almost to be arrested among indige- 
 nous plants, where no water or moisture is found. And 
 what is deserving of notice is the circumstance that, while 
 this aridity exists in the air at Melbourne about latitude 38, 
 * ( The Gold Regions of Australia/ by Samuel Mossman. 
 
THE AIR. 363 
 
 the periodical rains are at their height near Brisbane, in 28 
 latitude. " The cause of this wind has not been satisfactorily 
 accounted for by meteorologists, although its effects are pretty 
 well known to the colonists of Victoria. "When travellers in- 
 form us that the Egyptian sirocco proceeds from the Arabian 
 desert, and the African simoom from the Sahara, we are justi- 
 fied in concluding that the far interior of Australia is of an 
 equally barren and desolate nature at all events during that 
 season when these hot winds blow from the central north re- 
 gion to the southern coast. Its approach is heralded by simi- 
 lar indications. A fine dust pervades the atmosphere, clouds 
 disappear, and a lurid gloom prevails. The hot blast from a 
 gentle breeze increases to all the fury of a tempest, until its 
 strength is expended. Its effect upon cultivated vegetation 
 is desolating, and, but for its short continuance, would be 
 equally destructive to men and animals. As it is, it produces 
 sufficiently bad effects upon the human constitution, in caus- 
 ing ophthalmia, inflammatory attacks, and determination of 
 blood to the head." 
 
 356. An Australian Sirocco during Summer in Victoria. 
 " It occurs generally about the end of January or the be- 
 ginning of February, and seldom continues longer than two 
 days and three nights. As the province of Victoria enjoys 
 the coolest climate of the mainland colonies, so does it expe- 
 rience the hottest blasts of this sirocco. The inhabitants of 
 Melbourne, Geelong, and their suburbs, dread its approach; 
 for seldom a season passes over without considerable loss to 
 the colonists. Although its effects are not deadly, yet they 
 are sufficiently uncomfortable to class this blighting annual 
 visitor as the greatest drawback to the otherwise salubrious 
 climate of the colony. Its approach is indicated by the wind 
 veering to the north, generally occurring about ten o'clock in 
 the morning. By noon there is a sensible change in the state 
 of the atmosphere, producing a parched state of the tongue 
 and lips, and heated dilatation of the nostrils, the thermome- 
 ter rising to 100 Fahrenheit in the shade. From the dry 
 state of the air no immediate enervating effects follow this 
 
364 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 high, temperature ; but, as the wind increases, it becomes 
 charged with minute particles of sand and burnt vegetation, 
 which have been felt at sea ninety miles from the land. iiThe 
 dust from the roads and streets next rises in mutiny, while 
 the sun glares out fiercely, causing the persecuted inhabitants 
 of the towns to shut out the unwelcome visitor, and betake 
 themselves to cellars and darkened rooms for shelter." 
 
 357. A Hot Wind at Melbourne described. " In Mel- 
 bourne its effects are particularly disagreeable. As the sun 
 goes down on the evening of the first day there is a slight lull 
 in the breeze, and the thermometer falls below 90, so that the 
 inhabitants can manage to sleep until sunrise. No sooner, 
 however, does the glaring orb, magnified by the haze, look 
 forth upon the dusty town, than the wind increases in violence 
 and intensity of heat, blowing in gusts that tear the branches 
 from the trees and endanger ships in harbour. By noon the 
 people close the shutters of their windows, and fasten the 
 doors and apertures to prevent the ingress of the impalpable 
 powder, which covers every article of furniture and food. Al- 
 though oppressive to suffocation indoors, it is nothing to the 
 hot blast that greets you in the street if you attempt to go 
 outside. Business is suspended, unless it be to purchase 
 drinkables and the necessaries of life. The clerk at his ledger 
 feels the boards bending backwards, and the leaves curling 
 up. The principal occupation of the inhabitants is to moisten 
 their parched throats by eating water-melons and drinking all 
 manner of liquids, which can be enjoyed to a superlative de- 
 gree in the spacious saloons and cellars built on purpose in 
 most of the hotels." 
 
 358. Forests and Pastures on Fire during the Hot Winds 
 in Victoria. " Meanwhile it is evident that the dry grass at 
 this season of the year is still more parched by its influence, 
 and has caught fire in the environs of the town. Clouds of 
 smoke now add to the stifling gale, and the heavens become 
 obscured as if there was a thunder-storm gathering. The re- 
 strained action in breathing becomes almost insupportable if 
 you are in the forest, and the half-suffocated settlers have a 
 
THE AIK. 365 
 
 difficulty in stopping the progress of the burning grass towards 
 their homesteads. The sheep lie down with faintness, and 
 the cattle and horses gallop about in wild delirium amongst 
 the burning grass and trees. The scene all around is fear- 
 fully wild. Here the flames have entered some dense brush- 
 wood, blazing and crackling amidst the heavy smoke from the 
 green bushes and trees, which at length ignite from the com- 
 bined effects of the hot blast and the dry, smouldering, dead 
 timber. Then over the plains the flames rush along the grass 
 with the speed of a race-horse, whilst above, wheeling in the 
 air, are seen myriads of crows and birds of prey, swooping 
 down upon the roasted insects, snakes, and small animals that 
 have fallen a sacrifice to the conflagration. Thus upon the 
 afternoon of the second day the hot wind reaches its climax, 
 the thermometer stands at 11 7 in the shade, and the gale 
 blows in wild and furious gusts. The disappearance of the 
 sun brings very little cessation to the war of elements, and 
 a sleepless, uncomfortable night is before the inhabitants. 
 Scarcely a house in the town but shows a light from the win- 
 dows, at which the inmates may be seen, clad in their light- 
 est apparel, endeavouring to while away the sultry hours. 
 Towards the opening of the third day the blast shows symp- 
 toms of abating, and continues to decrease gradually every 
 hour until the evening, almost heedless of the effects produced 
 by the noonday sun, pursuing evidently its more powerful 
 nature, until, by the close of the day, its last hot breath is 
 expended, allowing the cool south wind to step in and fill its 
 place. The grateful breeze comes refreshing to the fevered 
 cheeks of the colonists, and they lay down their heads to rest 
 with some hopes of sleep." * 
 
 359. Open and monotonous Aspect of the Forest-Scenery 
 in Australia. With such a remarkable contrast in climate 
 it may be supposed that the characteristic aspect of Australian 
 forest-scenery differs considerably from that of New Zealand. 
 There the atmosphere is dry, the trees are wide apart, with 
 tap-roots hidden in the deep alluvial soil, and the foliage is 
 * ' The Gold Regions of Australia/ by Samuel Mossir.an. 
 
366 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of a coriaceous texture, sustained by aromatic oils to resist the 
 hot winds. No underwood or jungle of creepers bars the 
 way over the level forest-lands, while the ground is smooth 
 and grassy, and free from surface-roots, so that the traveller can 
 drive through these natural parks in a vehicle for hundreds 
 of miles without any serious impediment. Elsewhere we have 
 described how the leaves of the gum-trees (Eucalyptus} 
 which form the chief proportion of timber trees in these open 
 forests are evergreen, and they hang on the leaf-stalks with 
 their edges upwards, both sides of them being the same, some- 
 thing like the leaves of the mistletoe. Compared with the 
 foliage of European forest-trees the leaves are small, generally 
 of a lanceolate shape, approximating to that of the common 
 willow or ash. There are no umbrageous trees like the syca- 
 more, and few have leaves as large as the elm. Hence these 
 forest-lands are always open to the sunshine, and swept by 
 the breeze, down to the herbage and flowers that cover the 
 ground, affording pasture for the herds and flocks of the 
 colonists. So striking is the open aspect of these forest-lands 
 that the settlers compare it to the park scenery of England. 
 In our travels through them, we have sometimes felt it diffi- 
 cult to divest ourselves of the idea that we were not riding 
 through a nobleman's park, expecting to get a glimpse of 
 some grand mansion between the trees, although nothing was 
 seen but the bark hut of a shepherd, or the simple mia-mia 
 of the aborigines. It must be observed, however, that with 
 all this pleasing aspect, there is great monotony in this forest- 
 scenery throughout the year, in consequence of the evergreen 
 foliage and its dull tint. There are no bright hues in spring, 
 with buds shooting from the boughs, or the varied shades of 
 foliage in autumn, which give such charms to deciduous 
 forest-scenery. 
 
 360. Australian Gum-Trees the highest Trees in the World. 
 Although the leaves of Australian trees are small and scanty 
 compared to those of Europe, it does not follow that they are 
 less in height. On the contrary, there are giant gum-trees 
 that would dwarf the largest sycamore, elm, or oak in Eng- 
 
THE AIR. 367 
 
 land, and rival the monarchs of the American forests. On 
 this point the government director of the Botanic Garden 
 at Melbourne furnishes some interesting details, as follows : 
 " The marvellous height of some of the Australian, and 
 especially the Victorian, trees, has become the subject of closer 
 investigation, since of late particularly through the miners' 
 tracks easier access has been afforded to the back-gullies of 
 our mountain-system. Some astounding data, supported by 
 actual measurements, are now on record. The highest tree 
 previously known was a Karri- Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus col- 
 lossea), measured by Mr Pemberton Walcott, in one of the 
 delightful glens of the Warren River in "Western Australia, 
 where it rises to approximately 400 feet high. Into the hol- 
 low trunk of this Karri, three riders, with an additional pack- 
 horse, could enter and turn in it without dismounting. At 
 the desire of the writer of those pages (Dr Mueller), Mr D. 
 Bogle measured a fallen tree of Eucalyptus amydalina, in the 
 deep recesses of Daudenong (Victoria), and obtained for it 
 the length of 420 feet, with proportionate width; while Mr 
 Gr. Klein took the measurement of a eucalyptus on the Black 
 Spur, ten miles distant from Healesville, 480 feet high. . . . 
 It is not at all likely that in these isolated inquiries chance 
 has led to the really highest trees, which the most secluded 
 and the least accessible spots may still conceal. It seems, 
 however, almost beyond dispute that the trees of Australia 
 rival in length, though evidently not in thickness, even the 
 renowned forest-giants of California, Sequoia Wellingtonia, 
 the highest of which, as far as the writer is aware, rises, in 
 their favourite haunts at the Sierra Nevada, to about 450 
 feet. . . . Thus to Victorian trees the palm must be conceded 
 for elevation. A standard of comparison we possess in the 
 spire of the Minster at Strasburg, the highest of any cathedral 
 in the world, which sends its lofty pinnacle to the height of 
 466 feet ; or in the great pyramid of Cheops, 480 feet high, 
 which, if raised in our ranges, would be overshadowed probably 
 by eucalyptus trees." 
 
 361. Dr Mueller's Account of the Australian Jungle. 
 
368 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 These gigantic trees are not found in the open forests alluded 
 to, but among the mountains, where deep rocky glens afford 
 the moisture and shade necessary for their growth, denied to 
 them in the arid level lands we have described. There the 
 humidity is almost as great as it is in New Zealand, especially 
 if the forests are near the sea. They are especially observable 
 in the Australian Alps, and along the Cordillera, trending 
 from the most southern to the most northern mountain-ranges 
 parallel with the east coast. These dense forests are called 
 " scrubs " by the colonists, to distinguish them from the open 
 forests we have described, and " jungle " by Dr Mueller, as 
 they present an aspect similar to that of the jungles in India. 
 In his essay on 'Australian Vegetation' he remarks on its lead- 
 ing features as follows : " While the absence of very high 
 and wooded mountains imparts to the vegetation throughout 
 a vast extent of Australia a degree of monotony, we perceive 
 that the occurrence of lofty forest-ranges along the whole 
 eastern and south-eastern coast changes largely the aspect of 
 the country, and in this alteration the mountainous island of 
 Tasmania greatly participates. Thus the extensive um- 
 brageous forest-regions of perpetual humidity commence in 
 the vicinity of Cape Otway ; extend, occasionally but not 
 widely interrupted, through the southern and eastern part of 
 Victoria, and thence, especially on the seaside slopes of the 
 ranges, throughout the whole of extra and intra-tropical 
 East Australia in a band of more or less width, until the 
 cessation of elevated mountains on the northern coast confines 
 the regions of continued moisture to a narrow strip of jungle- 
 land margining the coast. In this vast line of elevated coast- 
 country, extending in length over nearly 3000 miles, and 
 which fairly may pass as the ' Australian jungle,' the vege- 
 tation assimilates more than elsewhere to extra-Australian 
 types, especially to the impressive floral features of continental 
 and insular India. Progressing from the Victorian pro- 
 montories easterly, and thence northerly, we find that the 
 eucalypti, which still preponderate in the forests of the 
 southern ranges, gradually forsake us, and thus in Eastern 
 
THE AIR. 369 
 
 Gippsland commences the vast assemblage of varied trees, 
 which, so much charms by its variety of forms, and so keenly 
 engages attention by the multiplicity of its interest." It 
 must be understood that this is exceptional to the general 
 characteristics of Australian forests in the temperate latitudes, 
 especially in the interior where extensive aridity and same- 
 ness make the rule. 
 
 362. Rapidity of Groivth in Australian Gum-Trees and 
 Acacias. Although the colossal trees referred to by Dr 
 Mueller, and the dense vegetation he describes, exist chiefly 
 in the humid glens of the mountain-ranges, yet, even in the 
 arid plains and undulating grassy lands, the gum-trees exceed 
 in height the trees of European or American forests generally ; 
 while the acacias, which form a large section of the trees and 
 shrubs in Australia, grow luxuriantly in dense groves where 
 ordinary plants would be stunted or perish. There is a 
 rapidity of growth observable in the vegetation generally 
 that surpasses anything known in the north hemisphere, to 
 account for which we naturally return to the first principles 
 involved, and conclude that this is fostered by the presence 
 of carbonic acid gas in greater volume. The evidence furnished 
 by Dr Mueller on this point is as follows : " Not merely in 
 their stupendous altitude, but also in their celerity of growth, 
 we have in all probability to accede to Australian trees the 
 prize. Extensive comparisons instituted in the Botanic 
 Gardens of Melbourne prove that several species of eucalyptus, 
 more especially Eucalyptus globulus and Eucalyptus obliquus, 
 as well as certain acacias for instance, Acacia decurrens, or 
 Acacia moliissima far excel in their ratio of development any 
 extra- Australian trees even on dry and exposed spots, such 
 as those into which our blue gum-trees would not penetrate 
 spontaneously. This marvellous quickness of growth, com- 
 bined with a perfect fitness to resist drought, has rendered 
 many of our trees famed abroad, especially in countries where 
 the supply of fuel or of hardwoods is not readily attainable, 
 or where for raising shelter, as around the cinchona planta- 
 tions of India, early and copious command of tall vegetation 
 
 2 A 
 
370 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 is of imperative importance." Of course this would depend 
 upon the elementary food of these plants being as abundant 
 in their exotic localities as it is in their indigenous habitat. 
 
 363. Evidences of a large Volume of the Carbonic Constitu- 
 ent in the Atmosphere of Australia. Now, in accounting for 
 this rapid and gigantic growth of trees and shrubs in Australia, 
 we have not the same phenomenon as that presented by New 
 Zealand vegetation of the plants absorbing their carbonic acid 
 gas from the atmosphere through their surface-roots. On the 
 contrary, the eucalypti have tap-roots that penetrate into the 
 deep alluvial soil, like the trees of Europe. But we have evi- 
 dence that this soil itself is highly charged with carbonic acid 
 gas, which acts as a great deodoriser and destroyer of noxious 
 gases to animal life. Hence Australia is famed for its hygienic 
 advantages and the absence of malaria from its marshy lands 
 a quality in which the climate of New Zealand participates, 
 as also those of South Africa and South America. This 
 branch of our subject we shall not enter into at present, as it 
 will demand our attention in discussing the extraordinary 
 salubrity of the south aerial hemisphere generally for human 
 beings and all lung-respiring animals. Meanwhile we shall 
 proceed to inquire how far the peculiar nature of the ever- 
 green leaves of Australian trees affords evidence of the pre- 
 sence of an atmosphere more highly charged with carbon 
 than is found in regions where deciduous trees are indigenous. 
 
 364. Evergreen Characteristics of all the Vegetation in the 
 South Hemisphere. Evergreen shrubs are well known every- 
 where, and are much prized from their leaves continuing to 
 adorn the plants when the great mass of vegetation is stripped 
 bare, such as the myrtle and laurel of Europe. The same may 
 be said of pine-trees and their congeners ; but the needle-like 
 size and form of the leaves makes them conspicuous among 
 the foliage of broad-leaved forests. It will, however, be ad- 
 mitted on all sides that evergreen shrubs and trees are ex- 
 ceptional to the general character of the vegetation through- 
 out the north temperate regions, and that, as a rule, the trees 
 there are deciduous, or, in other words, they shed their leaves 
 
THE AIR. 371 
 
 annually a phenomenon which occurs with such certainty 
 in the North American regions, that it has given rise to the 
 household word of the " fall " of the year, as the season of all 
 others most marked among the four. On the other hand, 
 throughout the south temperate regions this peculiarity of 
 the vegetable kingdom is reversed ; the ruling character of 
 the trees and shrubs is evergreen, and the exceptional decidu- 
 ous plants are small annuals that form but an infinitesimal 
 part of the vast zone of vegetation. As far as we know, 
 there is probably not a deciduous species of tree or shrub 
 indigenous to any country in the southern hemisphere. This 
 we do not point out as an advantage possessed by the vegeta- 
 tion there over the contemporary flora of the north hemi- 
 sphere, but simply as a fact that deserves further investiga- 
 tion, with a view to determine the causes that produce the 
 phenomenon. Viewing the subject in a popular light, we 
 incline to an admiration for deciduous vegetation, which 
 associates with its budding, blossoming, and decay, so many 
 analogous features to the great phases in human life. Mr 
 Darwin has the following characteristic remarks on this sub- 
 ject : " In South America, Australia, and the Cape of Good 
 Hope, the trees are all evergreens. The inhabitants of these 
 and the intertropical regions generally thus lose, perhaps, one 
 of the most glorious, though to our eyes common, spectacles 
 in the world the first bursting into foliage of the leafless 
 tree. They may, however, say that we pay dearly for our 
 spectacle by leaving the land covered with the more naked 
 skeletons for so many months. This is too true ; but our 
 senses thus acquire a keen relish for the exquisite green of 
 the spring, which the eyes of those living within the tropics 
 (and in the south temperate regions), sated during the long 
 year with the gorgeous productions of those glowing climates, 
 can never experience." 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE VEGETATION OF THE NORTH 
 AND SOUTH HEMISPHERES. Continued. 
 
 Causes that produce deciduous vegetation in the north hemisphere, 365. 
 Absorption of carbon and exhalation of oxygen by leaves, 366. Nega- 
 tive evidence of disparity of carbonic constituent in the two hemispheres, 
 367. Theory accounting for the diminution of carbonic acid gas in the 
 north hemisphere, 368. Limited extent of coal-measures in the south 
 hemisphere, 369. Australian araucarias analogous to extinct conifers, 
 370. Analogy between the plants and animals of Australia and those of 
 the carboniferous era, 371. New Zealand a region of modern formation 
 without any indigenous mammals, 372. Darwin's account of immense 
 Kauri pines in New Zealand, 373. European annuals grown in southern 
 regions become perennial, and deciduous trees evergreen, 374. A brief 
 description of a cycle of the seasons in Victoria, Australia, 375. Spring 
 grasses parched, yet the pasturage nourishing, 376. Summer siroccos, 
 377. Autumn a second spring, 378. Winter stormy and rainy, 379. 
 Droughts of long continuance, 380. The seasons in New Zealand favour- 
 able for agriculture, 381. Fertility of crops attributed to the large supply 
 of carbonic acid gas in the air, 382. Difference in volume of constituents 
 evidence that the particles of the air do not universally intermingle, 383. 
 Maury's account of the "brave west winds" in the south hemisphere, 
 384. Botanical evidence in favour of our theory conclusive as to the dis- 
 parity in the volume of carbonic acid gas in the north and south aerial 
 hemispheres, 385. 
 
 365. Causes that produce deciduous Vegetation in the 
 North Hemisphere. With regard to the causes that pro- 
 duce the phenomena of deciduous vegetation, there is no 
 doubt that a low degree of heat in the atmosphere forms an 
 important auxiliary ; but it is not the chief cause in producing 
 the fall of the leaf, as popularly understood. " Although the 
 fall of the leaves generally takes place at the approach of 
 
THE AIR. 373 
 
 winter, cold is not to be considered as the principal cause of 
 this phenomenon. It is much more natural to attribute it to 
 the cessation of vegetation, and the want of nourishment which 
 the leaves experience at that season, when the course of the 
 sap is interrupted. The vessels of the leaf contract, dry up, 
 and soon after that organ is detached from the twig on which 
 it had been developed. The various tints of the autumnal 
 leaf yellow, red, brown are owing to the different degrees 
 of oxidation of the matters contained in the desiccated juices 
 of the leaf; not unfrequently the colour is influenced by 
 numerous minute fungi which spring up on the surface of the 
 decaying leaf. How beautiful are the mellow tints of an 
 autumn forest ! more deep and gorgeous, though not so full of 
 hope and joy, as the light budding appearance of spring." * 
 
 366. Absorption of Carbon and exhalation of Oxygen by 
 Leaves. It is not necessary to go into any detail to show the 
 importance of air to the life of plants, and the absorption of 
 moisture and gaseous elements by the leaves; suffice it to 
 say that it has been satisfactorily proved that an entire plant, 
 root, stem, and leaves died very shortly after being placed 
 under the exhausted receiver of an air-pump ; that another 
 plant lived with its root and stem in the vacuum, and its 
 leaves exposed to the influence of the air ; so that the leaves 
 of plants are equivalent to the lungs of animals. " Modern 
 chemistry has afforded us many other proofs of the functions 
 of the leaves of plants. The experiments of Priestley, Ellis, 
 Decandolle, and others, have fully established both the ab- 
 sorption and exhalation of gases through the medium of the 
 leaves. . . . The decomposition of the carbonic acid absorbed 
 from the air is effected in the parenchyma of the leaves, as 
 well as in all the other green and herbaceous parts of the 
 vegetable. "When vegetables are exposed to the action of the 
 sun they are decomposed, the air retaining the carbon and 
 disengaging the oxygen. The reverse takes place when they 
 are withdrawn from the influence of the light, in which case 
 they extract from -the air a portion of its oxygen, which they 
 * ' A History of the Vegetable Kingdom.' By William Bhind. 
 
374 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 replace by disengaging an equal quantity of carbonic acid 
 gas." In other words, the green part of plants, exposed to 
 the direct rays of the sun, enjoy the property of decomposing 
 the carbonic acid gas contained in the atmosphere, and setting 
 at liberty an equivalent quantity of oxygen. In the dark the 
 contrary takes place : oxygen is absorbed, and carbonic acid 
 gas evolved at the expense of the plant. A French savan, 
 M. Caillet, has recently made some further experiments on 
 this subject, which we find described in the 'Journal des 
 Connaissances Medicales.' He has ascertained that fresh 
 leaves, even when separated from the stalk, will act on gase- 
 ous mixtures besides the atmosphere as if they were still ad- 
 herent ; and that leaves of the same plant having an equal 
 surface will decompose the same quantity of carbonic acid gas 
 when they act on identical mixtures. Leaves either crushed 
 or rubbed lose the property alluded to ; but they will not be 
 entirely deprived of it if cut into small bits. The decompos- 
 ing action requires a temperature of from 50 to 60 .Fahren- 
 heit ; but rays of dark heat are not sufficient to produce it. 
 Coloured rays act with various intensities ; green will decom- 
 pose no carbonic acid gas at all a circumstance which ex- 
 plains the reason why vegetation is languid under the imper- 
 fect shade of large trees. Thus it appears, from the highest 
 authorities, that carbon in a gaseous form is the chief element 
 in supporting the vital condition of trees as well as shrubs, 
 and that its absorption and exhalation are the principal func- 
 tions of the leaves. Hence it follows that the evergreen 
 vegetation of the south hemisphere performs these offices 
 perpetually, which are in a measure suspended during half 
 the year among the deciduous plants of the north hemisphere. 
 This may account for the excessive rapidity of growth observed 
 by Dr Mueller in the eucalyptus and acacia families in Austra- 
 lia, showing this to consist not in actual quickness of develop- 
 ment, but that they do not slack in their speed in the flora race ; 
 while their antipodean competitors lag behind during winter. 
 367. Negative Evidence of disparity of Carbonic Con- 
 stituent in the two Hemispheres. Whatever inferences we 
 
THE AIR. 375 
 
 may draw from the contrast in the vegetation of the two 
 hemispheres, it is clear that this greater carboniferous de- 
 velopment of plants can arise from no other cause than that 
 the temperate zone of the south aerial hemisphere is more 
 highly charged with carbonic acid gas than the corresponding 
 zone in the north. And, further, that deciduous vegetation 
 arising during an epoch subsequent to a period when a highly 
 carbonic flora became extinct, imbedding carbon in the coal- 
 fields, it follows that the north aerial hemisphere has been 
 partially exhausted of this element so essential to evergreen 
 vegetation, and a new deciduous flora superinduced. In 
 consequence of this diminution of carbon in the air, consti- 
 tuting the principal pabulum of vegetable existence, we find 
 that the atmosphere has its geological history as well as the 
 land and sea. If we could obtain vestiges of its primeval 
 condition, in all probability we would find extraordinary 
 changes in the volumes of its constituents through various 
 epochs to the present period. In the strong negative evi- 
 dence furnished by the foregoing data that the atmosphere 
 in the south temperate regions contains a larger percentage of 
 carbonic acid gas than in the north we have a vestige of im- 
 portance for our consideration, if subsequent investigation 
 by analyses and positive proofs demonstrate its correctness. 
 Assuming that this disparity exists, it may be accounted for 
 geologically in the following manner : 
 
 368. Theory accounting for the Diminution of Carbonic 
 Acid Gas in the North Hemisphere. Let us suppose that at a 
 period in the physical history of the earth the atmosphere on 
 both sides of the equator was well provided with the carbonic 
 element, and there was no vegetation above the level of the 
 sea to absorb it. Then came the upheaval of the land in the 
 north hemisphere, upon which enormous forests grew, the 
 trees and shrubs of which they were composed absorbing 
 largely this necessary element of their existence. Although 
 by their functions these plants returned back through exhala- 
 tion into the air a part of this carbon, yet the bulk entering 
 their structure in an indestructible form was buried in the 
 
376 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 ground, and through the agency of volcanic heat became coal. 
 When we consider the immense area and depth of the coal- 
 measures throughout the British Isles alone, and the infinites- 
 imal proportion of carbonic acid gas in the air, we can easily 
 imagine how it has been partially exhausted. And if we ex- 
 tend this observation to the great known, and probably greater 
 unknown, coal - deposits in North America and the Asiatic 
 continent, we can understand how the atmosphere in these 
 regions has been so reduced in carbon that it could no longer 
 maintain the class of plants that formed the coal-fields. Then 
 they became extinct, or, their functions becoming adapted to 
 the altered condition of the air, the hardiest plants lived 
 through the season when divested of their foliage, while new 
 genera of trees and shrubs of a deciduous nature, requiring 
 less carbonic sustenance, sprang up to fill the places of the 
 evergreens. In the south aerial hemisphere during those 
 periods of exhaustion in the north, the atmospheric constitu- 
 ents remained almost unaltered in their primitive volume, as 
 there was but little land upheaved above the sea-level com- 
 pared to the vast area of water, and the vegetation capable of 
 forming coal-fields was of a very limited character, if we may 
 judge from the few known deposits and the rare indications 
 of their existence in southern regions at the present day. 
 
 369. Limited Extent of Coal-Measures in the South Hemi- 
 sphere. In Australia it is true that coal-mines have been 
 opened in several localities, and the mineral forms a valuable 
 article of export from the colony of JS"ew South Wales. But 
 these, without detracting from their importance, are of small 
 area and bulk compared to the extent of country in which they 
 occur. The largest coal-field forms great part of the Hunter 
 river basin, about one hundred miles north of Sydney, and 
 the next is in the district of Illawarra. There are other known 
 seams in that colony, as well as Victoria, Queensland, Tasma- 
 nia, and Western Australia, but the coal is of such inferior 
 quality, or is so badly situated for carriage to a profitable- 
 market, that scarcely any of it is utilised. So important is 
 this article in the estimation of national wealth, that in these 
 
THE AIR. 377 
 
 colonies, as in the mother - country, government inspectors 
 and geologists are appointed to report upon its quality and 
 extent of deposit. In the published reports of these officials 
 for Victoria and New South Wales, an interesting controversy 
 has been raised regarding the geological age of Australian 
 coal. Professor M'Coy, in the former colony, holds that there 
 is scarcely any evidence to show that it belongs to the ancient 
 carboniferous period in the north hemisphere ; while he classes 
 it under the more recent miocene period of the tertiary for- 
 mations. On the other hand, Mr Keene, government exami- 
 ner of coal-fields in the latter colony, backed by the Rev. Mr 
 Clarke^ an enthusiastic geologist, stoutly defends the follow- 
 ing statement : " The lower beds of the coal series of New 
 South Wales are geologically older than any worked in Eu- 
 rope, whilst the upper beds represent the most recent of the 
 European true carboniferous formation. And as all the coal- 
 seams from the Silurian upwards are deposited conformably, 
 I must conclude that this portion of the globe was compara- 
 tively free from violent eruptions and disturbances from the 
 Silurian to the Permian epoch, and that the alternate sub- 
 mergences and elevations of the land must have been slow 
 and gradual." This controversy does not affect much our 
 theory of the diminution of carbon in the atmosphere, as it 
 would not matter during what period it took place, provided 
 the extent of the coal-measures showed an amount of this 
 element buried in the earth equivalent to what exists in the 
 northern coal-fields. Eor example, if we heard of coal being 
 found in South Africa as abundantly as it is known to exist 
 in China, or, what is more apposite, if it occurred in South 
 America, like the inexhaustible coal-measures of North Ame- 
 rica, we should then have evidence of great abstraction of 
 carbonic gas from the primeval atmosphere in the south. As 
 it is, we hear almost nothing of coal being found in these re- 
 gions ; so that altogether the land in the south hemisphere, 
 besides being not one-third in superficies to that of the north, 
 is remarkable for its paucity of coal, or those formations indi- 
 cating its presence. Hence we draw the inference that the 
 
378 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 atmosphere in that binary division of the earth retains at pre- 
 sent nearly the same volume of carbonic acid gas that it had 
 during the ante-carboniferous period. 
 
 370. Australian Araucarias analogous to extinct Conifers. 
 Besides the tree-ferns that connect the living flora of Aus- 
 tralia with the extinct flora of Europe, there are examples of 
 the conifer a that do so too. Botanists have observed in their 
 microscopical examination of woody tissues peculiar punctated 
 or disc-bearing markings on the thin walls of the cells, as if 
 they were indented, and giving them the appearance of dots. 
 They occur chiefly in the timber of pine-trees in Europe and 
 America, forming single rows along the tissue, but not in any 
 great abundance. On examining thin sections of the fossil 
 conifers, these dots have been observed to be more numerous, 
 and forming double rows of markings. When sections of the 
 Australian conifers of the genus araucaria were submitted 
 to microscopical inspection, they presented identical double- 
 dotted tissue to the carboniferous pines, proving the close 
 alliance between the extinct flora of the north and the living 
 flora of the south, and, cceteris paribus, a similarity in the 
 atmospheric constituents of the two hemispheres which no 
 longer exists. Moreover, while the extinct pine-trees of the 
 coal formation in the north differ in their structure from the 
 existing pines of Europe and America, the fossil conifers 
 found in the carboniferous strata of Australia, as exemplified 
 in the shale of the Hunter river coal-mines, are identical in 
 structure with the living araucarias growing not far north of 
 that locality. 
 
 371. Analogy betiveen the Plants and Animals of Australia 
 and those of the Carboniferous Era. When we add this fact 
 of vegetable analogy to that discovered between the extinct 
 and existing zoology of the past and present organic life of 
 the earth, we are drawn into an interesting study of Austra- 
 lian physical history. In the first division of our subject we 
 alluded to the remains of marsupial animals having been 
 found in the earlier tertiary deposits. These are the oldest 
 remains of mammalia yet exhumed and date as far back as 
 
THE AIR. 379 
 
 the oolite period. " They are marsupial quadrupeds, Am- 
 phitherium Broderipii, A. Prevostii, and Phascolothermm 
 Bucklandii. They occur in the Stonesfield slate, and as yet 
 but few relics of these interesting extinct creatures have been 
 found." * Notwithstanding the scarcity of their remains, 
 there is sufficient evidence for such skilful zoologists as 
 Professor Owen to determine the identity of these extinct 
 animals with the living kangaroo (macropas) and the sloth 
 (phascolarctos) of Australia, which is specially characterised 
 in the geographical division of the distribution of animals as 
 the region of marsupialia or pouched animals. These ana- 
 logies lead to an interesting inquiry, whether Australia, or, at 
 all events, its mountain-chains on the east and west coasts, 
 are coeval with the extinct epochs of the north, retaining its 
 flora and fauna undisturbed up to the present period ; or 
 whether, being upheaved under an atmosphere retaining its 
 primary volumes of gaseous constituents, its natural history 
 commences at the lower scale of creation before it can reach 
 the higher classes of plants and animals found in the north 
 aerial hemisphere. We confess that this is a subject requiring 
 further investigation ; at the same time, according to the 
 general theory propounded in this essay, we would draw the 
 inference that Australia, and all the adjacent isles forming 
 the fifth geographical division of the world, which the Eng- 
 lish name Australasia, are in an embryo state of animal and 
 vegetable life. Our views at one time inclined to the hypo- 
 thesis of contemporary antiquity with the earliest epochs of 
 aerial organic life, from the hitherto unquestioned theory of 
 geologists and zoologists, that all species of animals and 
 plants throughout the world, from pole to pole, must have 
 existed at the same time, as they present a similar development 
 in the order of creation. To this universally received theory 
 we take exception, upon the ground that it is not carried 
 out in the fauna and flora of Australasia, where indigenous 
 life is more or less rudimentary at the present advanced 
 period of the earth's history. 
 
 * Johnston's ' Physical Atlas. ' 
 
380 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 372. New Zealand a Region of Modern Formation without 
 any indigenous Mammals. If there is room for doubt on 
 this point with regard to Australia, there can be little or 
 none in the case of New Zealand, where the whole mass of 
 vegetation is of the lowest type, and no indigenous mammal 
 exists; while the formation of the group of islands is modern, 
 volcanic, or recent sedimentary deposits. To the most super- 
 ficial observer their general aspect is that of new regions not 
 long emerged from the depths of the Pacific ; and the investi- 
 gations of naturalists and geologists go far to confirm that 
 impression. Though there are no trees in New Zealand 
 belonging to the genus araucaria, yet there is one conifer 
 differing from all others, fossil or living, that will compare 
 favourably with them as a tree typical of carboniferous pro- 
 perties. This is the Kauri pine (Dammar a Australia), and 
 the only New Zealand pine that bears a cone all other 
 kinds producing some species of berry and therefore to be 
 classed amongst the very numerous family of podocarpi or 
 taxidea. This magnificent tree, which grows to a very 
 great size, nourishes only in the North Island, in the neigh- 
 bourhood of the sea -coast, and generally in mountainous 
 situations, though we have seen some small inland forests of 
 it on level ground. Being a valuable article of commerce, 
 for the excellence of its spars for the largest men-of-war, 
 and its close-grained timber for planks, it has attracted 
 more attention than any other description of tree in the 
 country. 
 
 373. Darwin's Account of immense Kauri Pines in New 
 Zealand. Darwin furnishes the following account of the 
 gigantic dimensions of this tree : " I measured one of those 
 noble trees called the Kauri pines, in a part that was not 
 enlarged near the roots, and found it to be thirty-one feet in 
 circumference. There was another close by, which I did not 
 see, thirty-three feet, and I heard of one not less than forty 
 feet. The trunks are also very remarkable for their smooth- 
 ness, cylindrical figure, absence of branches, and having very 
 nearly the same girth, with a length from sixty to ninety 
 
THE AIR. 381 
 
 feet. The crown of this tree, where it is irregulary branched, 
 is small and out of proportion to the trunk, and the foliage is 
 likewise diminutive as compared with the branches. The 
 forest was almost composed of the Kauri, and the largest, 
 from the parallelism of their sides, stood up like gigantic 
 columns of wood. The timber of these trees is the most 
 valuable product of the island (north) ; moreover, a quantity 
 of resin oozes from the bark, which is collected," and 
 manufactured by the Americans into a varnish of superior 
 quality. 
 
 374. European Annuals grown in Southern Regions become 
 perennial and deciduous. Besides the property of rendering 
 indigenous vegetation evergreen and perennial, the south 
 aerial hemisphere has apparently the power of imparting 
 these qualities to trees and shrubs transplanted from the 
 north hemisphere. When the colonists in the environs of 
 Brisbane, Queensland, first imported the cotton-plant from 
 North America, they obtained seeds of the annual herbaceous 
 kind, known as the " Sea Island Cotton," prized for its 
 superior quality, and yielding the most valuable produce of 
 all varieties. After a few years' cultivation the settlers were 
 agreeably surprised to find that the plant assumed a perennial 
 character thereby obviating the expense and trouble of 
 growing it annually from the seed. At the Cape of Good 
 Hope, the traveller, in proceeding along the excellent roads 
 made by the early Dutch colonists, may observe, among the 
 trees that shadow the way, a number of oak trees, which on 
 inquiry he is informed belong to a species called the African 
 oak, and that its leaves are evergreen. He may suppose that 
 it is the holly, holm, or evergreen oak of Europe (Quercus 
 ilex) ; but there are data for concluding that they are descen- 
 dants from the deciduous oak ( Q. robur) which the Dutch 
 imported more than a century back, and it has since become 
 an evergreen. In New Zealand, the oak, the ash, the horse- 
 chestnut, and the walnut grow luxuriantly, with a tendency 
 to retain their foliage longer than in Europe, but they cannot 
 yet, although in time they may, be classed as evergreens. 
 
382 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 There, also, in the gardens, many plants which are annual in 
 England have become biennial and perennial. These notice- 
 able changes in the plants imported for use or ornament by 
 the settlers in the Australian or New Zealand colonies are 
 attributed by them to the geniality of the climate compared 
 to what they have been accustomed to. But we contend 
 that it arises from the difference in the vital functions of the 
 atmosphere, induced by the presence of a larger volume of 
 carbonic acid gas. 
 
 375. A brief Description of a Cycle of the Seasons in Vic- 
 toria, Australia. It is well known that the seasons occur in 
 those southern regions during the opposite months of the year 
 to what we experience in our northern climate. Likewise, as 
 we have elsewhere shown, the winter season is short and not 
 so rigorous, while the summer season is longer and hotter. 
 These characteristics are most strikingly exemplified in Aus- 
 tralia, where snow is almost unknown, and frost is of short 
 duration on level-lands near the sea. As the climate of the 
 colony of Victoria embraces all the phenomena of the seasons 
 in the temperate latitudes of that region, we shall quote from 
 the report of Mr Ellery, the local government astronomer, 
 " a brief description of a cycle of the seasons." In this he 
 has adopted the popular division of each season into three 
 months' duration, which is not strictly correct, as far as na- 
 ture is the interpreter. This is especially noticeable under 
 the head of Autumn, where the character of the season is 
 reversed as observed in a previous section of our work and 
 which he describes as constituting a second spring. With 
 these exceptions, the account, as follows, of the seasons at 
 our antipodes is graphically correct, and no doubt will be 
 interesting to the reader who has not experienced the glow- 
 ing heat of Christmas-day in Australia : 
 
 376. Spring Grasses parched, yet the Pasturage nourish- 
 ing. " The spring season, which may be said to include 
 September, October, and November, generally sets in about 
 the beginning of September, during which month, although 
 slight frosts sometimes occur, the weather is usually mild and 
 
THE AIR. 383 
 
 often quite warm. Eather above the monthly average of 
 rain also frequently falls. Strong northerly and westerly 
 winds are prevalent in September and October, but the cur- 
 rents of air, both as regards frequency and velocity, seem to 
 be more equally distributed during these months than at 
 other parts of the year. The northerly winds begin to as- 
 sume the dry and warm condition that characterises them 
 throughout the summer months; and it is not at all un- 
 frequent that quite a hot wind may prevail for a short period 
 even in October ; the weather generally, however, in Septem- 
 ber and October, is genial and pleasant. November also, 
 representing the height of spring, is usually characterised by 
 fine, warm, and sometimes even hot weather. It is not at all 
 unusual to get a large rainfall in October or November, 
 sometimes giving rise to extensive floods ; in some seasons, 
 however, the rainfall after the commencement of October 
 diminishes considerably, and frequent dry and even hot 
 northerly winds in November parch the grass and other 
 herbage, giving to the plains and hills a sand-like appear- 
 ance ; but in others the pasture remains green till January, 
 and in many parts of the colony throughout the year." 
 [Notwithstanding this parched appearance of the grass, it 
 retains its nourishing properties for herbivorous animals 
 the imported sheep and cattle thriving well upon the pasture 
 of these indigenous grasses, where European grasses would 
 afford none. This arises from some of the former having 
 solid stems, with a kind of pith, which enables them to 
 resist the blighting effects of the hot winds, under which 
 hollow-stemmed grasses, such as the latter, would shrivel up 
 and crumble into dust.] 
 
 377. Summer Siroccos. " The summer season includes the 
 months of December, January, and February. December is 
 often marked by very changeable weather, and, although 
 generally hot and dry, it is not unfrequently broken up by 
 cold and stormy intervals, with heavy rains and gales of 
 wind. The northerly winds become more or less hot accord- 
 ing to the amount and distribution of the rainfall throughout 
 
384 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the interior during spring. Very great changes of tempera- 
 ture often take place in a few hours ; for instance, a warm 
 north wind prevails in the morning, with a temperature 
 reaching as high as 90 or 100; a lull in the afternoon is 
 quickly followed by a strong breeze from the S.W., and the 
 temperature becomes reduced to 65 or 60 in fifteen or 
 twenty minutes. The highest mean temperature occurs in 
 January ; February, also, is often characterised by great heat 
 and dryness. It is during these months that the northerly 
 winds become perfect siroccos for short periods, and if the spring 
 has been dry, extensive bush -fires occur on the plains and 
 in the forests, giving rise to a considerable increase of tem- 
 perature, and superadding to the already unpleasant state of 
 things a smoky and lurid atmosphere over considerable areas 
 in the vicinity. Although unpleasantly hot weather very 
 frequently intervenes throughout the summer months, yet a 
 large, and often the largest, portion of the weather is fine and 
 pleasant, with cool southerly or south-westerly winds. 
 
 378. Autumn a second Spring. " The autumn season, in- 
 cluding the months of March, April, and May, although sub- 
 ject to stormy weather, gales of wind, and large rainfall 
 especially in its earlier part, and following the equinoxes 
 may nevertheless be called the most genial and beautiful 
 portion of the year. It constitutes a second spring ; for so 
 soon as vegetation receives the moisture it has thirsted for 
 during the summer, the indigenous plants and trees put forth 
 a growth that often exceeds that of spring. The temperature 
 on the whole maintains a moderate mean ; the northerly 
 winds now become cooler, and solar radiation is considerably 
 reduced ; heavy dews fall at night, and sometimes towards 
 the end of this season fog occurs during the night and early 
 morning in very calm weather. In April the mean temper- 
 ature is 59, and in May 53. 
 
 379. Winter Stormy and Rainy. " Winter includes June, 
 July, and August. This season, though usually marked by 
 frequent rains and strong winds, especially from the north, is 
 in some years remarkably dry, with a small rainfall ; the 
 
THE AIR. 385 
 
 temperature does not reach its minimum till the middle of 
 July and the beginning of August, and seldom in Melbourne 
 falls much below freezing point. Ice and hoarfrost occur 
 generally only on a very few occasions during the winter in the 
 neighbourhood of Melbourne the former sometimes attaining 
 a quarter of an inch in thickness. At higher levels, however, 
 frost and ice have been observed as early as May, and form 
 much more frequently during the winter months than at the 
 lower levels ; the highest mountain -summits, too, are in most 
 seasons seen to be clothed in snow by June, and sometimes 
 as early as the beginning of May. The strongest winds in 
 winter are usually from the north, from which quarter it often 
 blows with great violence : wind from this direction is dry, 
 and usually very cold at this season." 
 
 380. Droughts of Long Continuance. " The worst vicissi- 
 tude to which the climate of Victoria is subject, in common 
 with Australia generally, is the occasional droughts. These, 
 as already stated, appear to follow those years characterised 
 by unusual rainfall a fact that has given rise to conjecture 
 that both the excessively wet and the excessively dry seasons 
 are periodical. The last drought to which the colony was 
 subject extended from the summer of 1865 to almost the 
 winter of 1866, and was doubtless due to the small rainfall 
 in the autumn and spring months." 
 
 381. The Seasons in New Zealand favourable for Agricul- 
 ture. In New Zealand the recurrence of the seasons approxi- 
 mates more nearly to that of the British Isles than any other 
 region in the south hemisphere, on account of its insular 
 position, and the cool latitudes the southern islands are placed 
 in. " Generally speaking, the seasons may be said to be re- 
 tarded as well as reversed from those of England that is, 
 continued fine weather cannot be relied on until after the sum- 
 mer solstice ; nor does bad weather set in until about the end 
 of June. From September to Christmas may be called grow- 
 ing weather ; from January to March steady ripening weather. 
 As far as the experience of nearly six years extends, sufficient 
 moisture for the growth of crops and vegetables may always 
 
 2 B 
 
386 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 be relied on, and bad harvest weather is unknown. It is 
 impossible to conceive a state of the seasons more favourable 
 
 to agriculture The climate has a very sensible influence 
 
 on the productiveness of the soil; for even the cold clayey 
 earths, which are found at a very trifling depth all over the 
 hilly and undulating lands, become extremely productive after 
 having been well turned over and exposed for some months 
 
 to the action of the atmosphere The great influence 
 
 of the climate on the productiveness of inferior soils is very 
 apparent. In the comparatively sandy belt of land which, 
 varying in breadth from a few hundred yards to three or four 
 miles, skirts the sea-shore between the bluffs of Paripari and 
 the north-western extremity of the district of "Wellington, 
 potatoes, as well as other vegetables, are grown with great 
 success by the natives. In the immediate vicinity of Waikanae, 
 and several of the neighbouring native villages, the traveller 
 is often surprised to find that even the careless agriculture of 
 the natives can reap such excellent crops from what appear to 
 be mere sandhills ; and it seems difficult to explain the fact 
 otherwise than as the eifect of the genial climate, which is 
 better perhaps than any other in the world calculated to 
 encourage and promote the vigorous and healthy growth of 
 animal as well as vegetable life." * 
 
 382. Fertility of Crops attributed to the large Supply of Car- 
 bonic Acid Gas in the Air. According to the theory we have 
 put forward in these pages, this remarkable effect of the atmo- 
 sphere in rendering the poorer soils of New Zealand productive 
 is probably due to the absorption of its large supply of carbonic 
 acid gas. The effect described in the foregoing extract will 
 be better appreciated by the cultivator of lands in the north 
 hemisphere, when it is understood that no indigenous animal 
 manure mingles with the soils of New Zealand, simply because 
 there were no herbivorous or carnivorous mammals in these 
 islands before the white man visited them. Since then the 
 colonists have introduced sheep and cattle, but they had to sow 
 European grasses, after extirpating the fern, to obtain proper 
 
 * ( Handbook for New Zealand,' issued by Canterbury Association. 
 
THE AIR. 387 
 
 pasturage for them. In doing so they found the soil and 
 climate admirably adapted for every description of European 
 grasses ; and these may be seen growing in greater luxuriance 
 upon the thin soils of the country than on the best-manured 
 lands in Great Britain. This can only be attributed to an 
 abundant natural supply of the elementary food of vegetables, 
 imparted to the soil by the atmosphere, and cannot be the 
 mere effect of a genial climate, which no doubt has a certain 
 influence, but not sufficient to account for the extraordinary 
 development of vegetation in New Zealand. 
 
 383. Difference in Volume of Constituents Evidence that the 
 Particles of the Air do not universally intermingle. The gen- 
 eral inference to be drawn from the foregoing data is, that the 
 atmosphere, in its circulation, does not mingle its gaseous con- 
 stituents from pole to pole, as popularly understood, and as 
 Captain Maury has endeavoured to show by the ingenious 
 hypothesis already mentioned. It would appear that the tropical 
 and equatorial belts of calms act as barriers to polar circulation, 
 while they circumscribe the limits of the great aerial currents 
 between them and the poles. In discussing the phenomena 
 of the trade-winds, we ventured to suggest that each current 
 of air circulated between the belts without crossing the equa- 
 torial zone of calms. On the same grounds we may conjecture 
 that the westerly winds that prevail in the temperate zones 
 rarely or ever mingle with the trade-winds, from which they 
 are divided by the tropical belts of calms. This is especially 
 observable in the west winds of the south temperate zone, 
 which blow with as great steadiness and regularity from west 
 to east as the south-east trade-winds themselves, if, indeed, 
 they are not constant, more or less, in that direction. Master- 
 mariners trading to Australia know this so well that they 
 never attempt to make the return passage by way of the Cape 
 of Good Hope, as they would encounter a head -wind and 
 current, but avail themselves of its complete circle round the 
 world, and sail homeward-bound by way of Cape Horn. In 
 our long sea- voyages we have made this passage across the 
 South Atlantic, the Indian Ocean, and the South Pacific, back 
 
388 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 to the point of departure thereby circumnavigating the globe 
 between 36 and 56 S. lat., sailing before a constant westerly 
 wind so strong and steady that the distance of 18,000 miles 
 has been accomplished in 75 days by sailing vessels, making 
 an average of 240 miles a-day. The testimony of Captain 
 Maury on this point is even more conclusive, and is valuable 
 in this instance as coming from the highest authority on the 
 subject, who supports the polar circulation of the atmosphere. 
 384. Maury' 's Account of the " brave West Winds " in the 
 South Hemisphere. " My own observations," he states, " and 
 the experience of mariners who are acting as observers in 
 these researches touching sea and air, show that the westerly 
 winds, which blow counter to the trades on the polar side of 
 the tropical calms, are much more steady, strong, and con- 
 stant in the southern than in the northern hemisphere. The 
 former have won for themselves, among mariners, the name 
 of the " brave west winds " of the extra-tropical south. They 
 are quite as constant from the west as in the North Atlantic 
 the trades are from the east. Sailing with them to and from 
 Australia, ships under canvass alone have attained a speed 
 and accomplished runs which steam has never enabled any 
 vessel to reach. In two months' time, and less, vessels have 
 performed voyages of complete circumnavigation before these 
 brave winds." And, again, he alludes to them in another 
 passage as follows : " To appreciate the force and volume of 
 these polar-bound winds in the southern hemisphere, it is 
 necessary that one should ' run them down ' in that waste of 
 waters beyond the parallel of 40 south, where 'the winds 
 howl and the seas roar.' The billows there lift themselves up 
 in long ridges with deep hollows between them. They run 
 up high and fast, tossing their white caps aloft in the air, 
 looking like the green hills of a rolling prairie capped with 
 snow, and chasing each other in sport. Still their march is 
 stately and their roll majestic. The scenery among them is 
 grand, and the Australian-bound trader, after doubling the 
 Cape of Good Hope, finds herself followed for weeks at a 
 time by these magnificent rolling swells, and lashed by the 
 ' brave west winds ' furiously." 
 
THE AIR. 389 
 
 385. Botanical Evidence in favour of our Theory con- 
 clusive as to the disparity in the Volume of the Carbonic 
 Acid Gas in the North and South Aerial Hemispheres. It 
 requires no profound knowledge to see that such a strong 
 current of air, blowing almost perpetually from west to east 
 in temperate latitudes, and circumscribed at its tropical 
 boundary by a belt of calms, would prevent the mingling of 
 the particles of air in the south with those in the north tem- 
 perate zone, if indeed it does not prevent an intermingling of 
 the air under the influence of the trade-winds. On the other 
 hand, it requires a great deal of scientific faith to believe in 
 the journey of Captain Maury's imaginary particle of air from 
 one pole to the other, with such intricate ups and downs in 
 its course across the calm-belts. But even he seems doubtful 
 of his hypothesis as regards the crossing of the " brave west 
 winds " through the southern calm-belt. Although he con- 
 siders he has sufficient evidence to show that crossings take 
 place in the north hemisphere and at the equator, he says, 
 " But the circumstances going to show the crossing at the 
 calms of Capricorn did not amount to evidence ; the crossing 
 was only inference drawn by analogy." Thus, according to 
 the propounder of the polar theory of circulation, it is pos- 
 sible that the air in the south temperate zone may not cross 
 the tropic, if evidence be found to rebut an " inference drawn 
 by analogy." With becoming deference to the opinions of 
 such an eminent authority as Captain Maury, we think that 
 we have furnished botanical evidence which goes to prove 
 that no such intermingling takes place, and that there is a 
 disparity in the volumes of the atmospheric constituents in 
 the two hemispheres, or at all events between their temperate 
 regions. Moreover, instead of this difference being unsuited 
 to the flora and fauna of one hemisphere conveyed to the 
 other, we have seen how the flora of the north flourishes 
 more luxuriantly in the south than in its own indigenous 
 latitudes, and we shall now proceed to show how the fauna 
 is affected, and especially how Europeans thrive physically 
 under the hygeian influences of the Australian climate from 
 atmospheric causes. 
 
CHAPTEE XVIII. 
 
 CONTRAST BETWEEN THE CLIMATES OF THE NORTH AND 
 SOUTH HEMISPHERES. CHINA. 
 
 introductory remarks on the practical section of our theory, 386. Pro- 
 perty of exhaling oxygen gas possessed by vegetation, 387. Indications 
 of an increased volume of oxygen in the Australian air, 388. The ever- 
 green vegetation of Australia exhales oxygen continuously, 389. Pro- 
 perties of oxygen gas in supporting animal life, 390. Probable disparity 
 in volume of the oxygen in the north, and south hemispheres, 391. 
 Climate and its effects upon the human constitution denned, 392. China 
 and Australia present the greatest contrasts in salubrity and insalubrity 
 of climate, 393. Vital statistics of China showing its insalubrity from 
 excessive population, 394. Prevalence of filth in China both in town and 
 country, 395. Great extent of land occupied by tombs of ancestors in 
 China, 396. Chinese coffins are made to last for generations, 397. Re- 
 duction of oxygen in the air of China by the respiration of the people, 
 398. Monsoon winds and geographical position in China prevent free 
 circulation of air, 399. Absence of forests in China and scarcity of large 
 trees, 400. Prevalence of virulent epidemic and endemic diseases in 
 China, 401. Dr Hobson's report upon the classes of diseases in Canton 
 and Shanghai, 402. Dr Henderson's remarks upon the climate of Shang- 
 hai and its environs, 403. Great mortality during the summer at Shang- 
 hai, 404. Suddenness of death and rapidity of corruption in China ex- 
 emplified, 405. 
 
 386. Introductory Remarks on the practical Section of our 
 Theory. Perhaps discussing this question so minutely may 
 appear to the reader useless, as it is a matter of small import- 
 ance whether our theory be right or wrong. If it led to no 
 other than some" barren conclusion, we would abandon the 
 inquiry at this stage and apologise for taking up the reader's 
 time upon an apparently straw-splitting discussion. Apart, 
 
THE AIR. 391 
 
 however, from the interest of the question in a scientific point 
 of view, our principal motive for entering further into it is to 
 show that there are healing influences in the south aerial 
 hemisphere capable of restoring afflicted humanity suffering 
 from diseases (especially those of the respiratory organs) to a 
 state of health which they never enjoyed in the north hemi- 
 sphere. This, therefore, may be considered the practical sec- 
 tion of our work, in which we shall endeavour to prove that 
 our theory, however much it may be disputed, leads to some 
 useful object in the end. Hitherto it would appear as if the 
 learned denizens of the north hemisphere have considered 
 that it included all the physical phenomena of the world, 
 almost ignoring the disparities existing in the south hemi- 
 sphere by considering it merely a counterpart of its antipodes, 
 or only citing particular facts in illustration of some general 
 question. There are exceptions to this class of limited philo- 
 sophers, among whom we may mention the renowned Hum- 
 boldt, who in his writings has pointed out the wonders of 
 the south, in graphic and eloquent language, on the ' Yiews 
 of Nature and the Sublime Phenomena of Creation ' in the 
 continent of South America. Humbly following in the foot- 
 steps of that great luminary of science, if we succeed in 
 throwing any new light upon the physical phenomena of the 
 south hemisphere, our fondest aspirations will be attained. 
 
 387. Property of exhaling Oxygen Gas possessed by Vege- 
 tation. In the foregoing disquisition regarding the effects of 
 vegetation on the constituents of the atmosphere, the prin- 
 ciple exemplified has been that of absorption, or the extrac- 
 tion of a gaseous element from the air. We shall now pro- 
 ceed to examine an opposite property, wherein the air receives 
 from vegetation a portion of its great vital constituent, oxy- 
 gen gas, by expiration. " Plants, like animals, are therefore 
 provided with a kind of respiration which, in the former, as 
 in the latter, consists of two phenomena inspiration and ex- 
 piration. This function is very perceptible when we immerse 
 the branch of a tree or a young plant in a glass bell filled 
 with water, and expose it to the action of light. There is 
 
392 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 then seen rising from its surface a great number of small 
 bubbles, which are formed of a very pure air almost entirely 
 composed of oxygen gas. On the other hand, let the experi- 
 ment be made in a dark place, and the leaves will expire 
 carbonic acid and nitrogen gas, but no oxygen. It must 
 here be carefully remarked, that all the other parts of the 
 vegetable which are not of a green colour, such as the roots, 
 the bark, the flowers, and the fruits, when subjected to the 
 same experiments, always exhale carbonic acid gas, but never 
 oxygen. Consequently the expiration of oxygen gas does not 
 depend solely upon the direct influence of the rays of light, 
 but also upon the green colouring of the parts." * 
 
 388. Indications of an increased Volume of Oxygen in the 
 Australian Air. Now let us apply these well-ascertained 
 facts in vegetable physiology to the phenomena of foliage 
 generally, as a generator of oxygen gas. Where the trees 
 and shrubs are evergreen, and the sunshine is bright and 
 most frequent throughout the year, it is logical to infer that 
 a much larger proportion of oxygen must be given forth to 
 the atmosphere than where the shrubs and trees are decidu- 
 ous, and the sun's rays are frequently obscured by clouds and 
 vapours. Such are the comparative characteristics of the 
 vegetation and climatic conditions of the south and north 
 temperate regions respectively. We have seen how the 
 forests of New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, and South 
 America are perpetually green with foliage ; and it is equally 
 demonstrable by meteorological registers kept in these regions, 
 that abundance of sunshine is the rule at all seasons of the 
 year. Nothing is more striking to the observant traveller in 
 south temperate regions than the remarkable clearness of the 
 sky, and its cloudless aspect, for days and sometimes weeks 
 together. In Australia we have experienced these continu- 
 ous days of glowing sunshine so as to pall upon us, and we 
 have felt a refreshing relief at the sight of a cloud portend- 
 ing rain in the heavens. Still this glowing unobstructed 
 light and heat from the sun was never oppressive to the 
 * Khind's ' Vegetable Kingdom.' 
 
THE AIR. 393 
 
 senses. On the contrary, our animal spirits were invigo- 
 rated ; and in riding through the uncultivated wilderness of 
 that sunny south land, we have felt a buoyancy, an exhilara- 
 tion, amounting to a degree of intoxication of mere animal 
 existence, that we never have experienced in the north hemi- 
 sphere, and which we can only compare to a mild degree of 
 the sensation experienced from inhaling nitrous oxide gas, 
 commonly known as " laughing gas " from its agreeable effects 
 upon the system. No doubt this arises in some measure from 
 the dryness of the atmosphere ; in tropical climates we find 
 that an equal degree of heat with humidity creates prostra- 
 tion of the animal spirits. Nevertheless we are of opinion 
 that the presence of a greater volume of oxygen in the air 
 inhaled has something to do with it. Let us now inquire 
 what data exist to support such a hypothesis. 
 
 389. The Evergreen Vegetation of Australia exhales Oxy- 
 gen continuously. We have already described the evergreen 
 aspect of the Australian trees, and the manner in which the 
 leaves of gum-trees, the eucalypti of botanists, are placed 
 upon the leaf-stalks, with their edges upwards instead of 
 horizontally, as in deciduous trees generally speaking. This 
 disposition of leaves, according to the principles laid down in 
 vegetable physiology, as already given, is admirably adapted 
 for the greatest possible volume of oxygen gas being evolved 
 from their superficies on both sides. It has been further 
 ascertained by experiment that leaves do not exhale oxygen 
 during the night, nor in the dark umbrageous shade of a 
 forest during the day, or only in a small degree compared 
 with those exposed to the sunshine. Thus in forests where 
 umbrageous trees, having a maximum of leafage such as the 
 sycamore, chestnut, and elm predominate, the more they con- 
 tribute to creating the cooling shade by the density of their 
 foliage, the less is their utility as vegetable laboratories in 
 producing oxygen gas. On the other hand, the peculiar dis- 
 position of the gum-tree leaves presents a minimum surface 
 of obstruction to the light reaching the lower branches, while 
 the leaves on the upper branches receive the direct rays of 
 
394 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the sun during a sunny day on each side, forenoon and after- 
 noon, with all their intensity. Consequently, although the 
 foliage of the Australian forests is small compared with the 
 broad-leaved trees of our English woods, yet the superficies 
 is doubled in performing this vital function of their organisa- 
 tion. And when we take into consideration the phenomenon 
 of perennial foliage in the one case nourishing throughout 
 the year, from generation to generation, while that of the 
 other deserts the branches for half the year, we may conclude 
 that the Australian trees surpass them in the volume of oxygen 
 gas they generate. Also, as they never cease to evolve their 
 daily supply of this vital constituent for the healthy support 
 of animal life, the atmosphere is more equably charged with 
 it in the south temperate zone than in the north, where, dur- 
 ing the six months' denudation of foliage, there is a cessation 
 in the evolvement of oxygen gas from this source, while its 
 consumption by lung-respiring animals goes on all the same ; 
 and in civilised countries a greater consumption takes place 
 in supporting combustion. Hence we may reasonably infer 
 that during winter in the north temperate zone there is pro- 
 bably a slight diminution in the volume of oxygen compared 
 with the quantity in the atmosphere during the summer, es- 
 pecially in the "leafy month of June," when the woods and 
 forests present their greenest and densest foliage to the sun's 
 rays. 
 
 390. Properties of Oxygen Gas in supporting Animal Life. 
 In this age of popular scientific literature and institutions 
 for the advancement of science, almost every intelligent per- 
 son knows that oxygen gas is the chief life-giving element of 
 the air we breathe. As carbon is the great supporter of vege- 
 table life, so is oxygen the pabulum of animal existence. 
 Experimentalists have satisfactorily demonstrated that no 
 animal with lungs " can live in an atmosphere which does 
 not contain a certain portion of uncombined oxygen. Pure 
 oxygen is too highly stimulating for animal existence ; and it 
 accordingly appears that it is owing to the proportion in 
 which it is combined with nitrogen, in our atmosphere, that 
 
THE AIR. 395 
 
 it becomes precisely adapted to the support of life." * In 
 the process of respiration it is more or less consumed by 
 absorption into the system. " The great end which appears 
 to be answered by respiration is the removal of carbon, in the 
 form of carbonic acid, from venous blood. This gas is accord- 
 ingly found in the air which is expired from the lungs ; and 
 the blood, having lost its carbonic acid, at the same time 
 loses its dingy hue, and acquires, through the inhalation of 
 oxygen from the air, the florid red which characterises arterial 
 blood. Respiration alternates with inspiration, which takes 
 place about twenty -six times in a minute, thirteen cubic 
 inches of air being the average quantity taken in at each 
 inspiration." t Of this volume, one-fifth, or say two and a 
 half cubic inches, is oxygen a quantity which the average 
 human being withdraws from the atmosphere every two or 
 three seconds, and thereby reduces its life-supporting pro- 
 perties accordingly. The effects of this exhaustion of the 
 vital element in respiration are constantly recurring in ill- 
 ventilated rooms, where large numbers of people assemble, 
 and its fatal results are recorded in the terrible sufferings and 
 death of the prisoners in the Black-hole at Calcutta. 
 
 391. Probable Disparity in Volume of the Oxygen in the 
 North and South Hemispheres. Seeing that the inhalation 
 of pure oxygen into the respiratory organs creates an extra- 
 ordinary excitement of the animal spirits, and that the reduc- 
 tion of this gas produces complete prostration of the vital 
 energies, we may infer that what is seen so vividly at these 
 extremes is observable in lesser degree towards that point 
 where the healthiest combination exists. On the one hand, 
 where the volume of oxygen is below the standard, the indi- 
 vidual breathes with difficulty, languor follows, and if the 
 respiratory organs be weak, bronchitis and pulmonary com- 
 plaints ensue. . On the other hand, when the proportion is at 
 or slightly above the standard, the lungs have vigorous action 
 in purifying the blood, giving strength to all the organs of 
 respiration, and protecting them from disease. Furthermore, 
 
 * Ogilvie, 'Imperial Dictionary.' f Ibid., Art. "Respiration 
 
396 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 where disease may have set in, the removal of the patient 
 from the one atmospheric condition to the other will cause 
 its progress to be arrested, if not cured altogether. Such are 
 the general phenomena experienced by persons living in the 
 temperate regions of the two hemispheres, which we attribute 
 to a decrease of this vital constituent in the north, while its 
 original proportion is maintained in the south. It may be 
 advanced, in opposition to such a hypothesis, that the con- 
 sumption of oxygen by human beings and air-respiring ani- 
 mals is so infinitesimal compared with the inexhaustible 
 supply in the atmosphere, that it can have no effect in the 
 diminution of its volume. To this we reply, that as there 
 are no direct analyses to support either argument, we may 
 inquire what indirect data can be found to sustain the views 
 herein expressed ; and as we have pointed out certain nega- 
 tive evidences of a diminution of carbonic acid gas in the 
 north aerial hemisphere, so may we find indications of the 
 oxygen gas having lessened in volume, while the south re- 
 tains its primary proportions. 
 
 392. Climate and its Effects upon the Human Constitution 
 defined. Pursuing our inquiries in this direction, we are 
 naturally led into the consideration of that important branch 
 of atmospheric phenomena called Climate, which is determined 
 by Humboldt as follows : " The term climate, taken in its 
 most general sense, indicates all the changes in the atmo- 
 sphere which sensibly affect our organs, as temperature, hu- 
 midity, variations in barometrical pressure, the calm state of 
 the air or the action of opposite winds, the amount of electric 
 tension, the purity of the atmosphere or its admixture with 
 more or less noxious exhalations, and, finally, the degree of 
 ordinary transparency and clearness of the sky, which is not 
 only important with respect to the increased radiation from 
 the earth, the organic development of plants, and the ripening 
 of fruits, but also with reference to its influence on the feel- 
 ings and mental condition of men." To these general condi- 
 tions we venture to add : And for man to benefit by climate in 
 the highest degree it is necessary that the air he breathes 
 
THE AIR. 397 
 
 should contain its full proportion of oxygen gas ; where that 
 is deficient, we contend that the most robust individual can- 
 not thoroughly enjoy all the changes in the atmosphere that 
 sensibly affect his organs. 
 
 393. China and Australia present the greatest Contrasts in 
 Salubrity and Insalubrity of Climate. In looking over the 
 map of the north hemisphere for a region to illustrate in its 
 most vivid manner the effects of population on climate, we 
 cannot confine our observations to the limited area of the Brit- 
 ish Isles, or even the continent of Europe, if we have to ob- 
 serve the great operations of nature in her atmospheric labo- 
 ratory. It is in Asia, especially in the far East, where the 
 empire of China supports one-third of the human race, that 
 we find examples of the extreme of malaria and disease, 
 caused by a low condition of the vital constituents of the 
 atmosphere in the northern zone. On the other hand, we shall 
 select among the regions within the influence of the south 
 temperate zone the island-continent of Australia, as the spars- 
 est-peopled country on the face of the earth, revelling in the 
 enjoyment of the healthiest climate, where malaria and ende- 
 mic diseases are almost unknown, A greater contrast between 
 the salubrity and general climatic conditions of two regions is 
 not to be found in the world than those of China and Austra- 
 lia, each representing in the highest degree the differences of 
 geographical and atmospherical phenomena in their respective 
 hemispheres. Having dwelt in both of these countries for 
 many years, and travelled thousands of miles through them, 
 carefully observing their physical geography, and especially 
 the effects of climate upon the indigenous inhabitants and 
 European residents, we shall give the result of our experiences 
 and observations impartially, with a view to open up further 
 investigation on the important study of climatology in the 
 southern hemisphere. Eegarding the accumulation of facts 
 on this subject in the northern hemisphere, from colonisation 
 and long residence, Humboldt records his opinion as follows : 
 " The progress of climatology has been remarkably favoured 
 by the extension of European civilisation to two opposite 
 
398 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 coasts by its transmission from our western shores to a con- 
 tinent bounded on the east by the Atlantic Ocean. When, 
 after the ephemeral colonisation from Iceland and Greenland, 
 the British laid the foundation of the first permanent settle- 
 ments on the shores of the United States of America, the 
 emigrants were astonished to find themselves exposed to an 
 intensity of winter cold far exceeding that which prevailed in 
 Italy, France, and Scotland, situated in corresponding parall- 
 els of latitude." In like manner the colonisation of Australia 
 has enlarged our views of climatology, but in a more genial 
 sense, as a region that may be considered the grand sanatarium 
 of the world. 
 
 394. Vital Statistics of China, showing its Insalubrity from 
 Excessive Population. Of the two regions thus selected we 
 shall first direct our attention to China, as the most ancient 
 existing seat of civilisation, where the most populous branch 
 of the human race, during more than a thousand generations, 
 has altered the face of the country, and materially changed 
 its climatic relations. In doing so it is not necessary to enter 
 into details that would involve the consideration of the climate 
 pertaining to each province or parallel of latitude. Our ob- 
 ject will be attained in taking a general view of its physical 
 geography and population, with an example of the climate in 
 middle latitudes. In the nineteen provinces now comprising 
 China Proper the estimated area of land, including lakes and 
 rivers, is 1,297,999 square miles, or about one-third of the 
 superficies of Europe ; and the population, according to the 
 latest computation in 1842, 414,686,994. At this ratio the 
 continent and islands of Europe, were they as densely popu- 
 lated as China, would contain 1200 millions of persons, or as 
 many as the whole human race existing at present whereas, 
 by the census drawn up in 1851, the inhabitants of this sec- 
 tion of the globe do not count, in round numbers, more than 
 260 millions. It will be readily conceived that this enormous 
 population, crowded within a limited territory compared with 
 the average of European nations, must constitute a pestilential 
 overcrowding of the land. Such is the case, and the effects 
 
THE AIR. 399 
 
 are aggravated by the intense heat and humidity in the sum- 
 mer, the filthy state of the towns and cities, the practice of 
 manuring the lands with human ordure, and, generally, the 
 dirty habits of the people themselves. To these existing 
 causes we may add one that has assisted materially from time 
 immemorial in vitiating the atmosphere of China namely, 
 the remains of a thousand generations buried in the land. 
 
 395. Prevalence of Filth in China, both in Town and Coun- 
 try. The Chinese denominate their country Tien-chaou, a 
 term signifying " Heavenly Dynasty," or, more properly ren- 
 dered into English idiom, "The Celestial Empire." This 
 high-sounding title naturally begets the idea that the physical 
 condition of the country and the inhabitants is everything 
 that is pure and unsophisticated. In reality, nothing can be 
 further from such a pleasing impression. Man in that region 
 proves himself to be the dirtiest of animals, and his general 
 habits and pursuits are of "the earth earthy." The cities 
 and their environs, the countless towns and villages, and the 
 extensive cultivated lands, are so strewed and impregnated 
 with the remains of the dead and the rejectamenta of the 
 living, that China Proper may be designated a vast dung- 
 hill and graveyard, befouling and poisoning its sultry clime. 
 It is a fact too patent to the olfactory nerves of all travellers 
 and foreign residents at the treaty ports, that the practice of 
 manuring the lands with human ordure in a liquid form is 
 universal. Few works on China do little more than casually 
 allude to this agricultural practice, on account of the unplea- 
 santness of the subject. But we may be excused from such 
 delicacy, as the fact is material in showing the low sanitary 
 condition of the country. The habits of the Chinese in this 
 respect are like those of the beasts of the field or the dogs of 
 a city. Wherever or whenever inclination seizes them, irre- 
 spective of what we call decency, the common people answer 
 the calls of nature, and there are no government or municipal 
 regulations to prevent them doing so, except in the foreign 
 settlements. In the country, where one would expect to find 
 fresh air among the fields, a noisome stench prevails; the 
 
400 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 narrow paths are strewed with excrement, and large vases of 
 stoneware are sunk in the ground at convenient places for 
 the use of passers-by. During the spring, when the rice-fields 
 begin to delight the eye with their bright-green aspect, the 
 sense of smell is disgusted by the effluvia arising from the 
 liquid manure that covers the soil. It is even worse at some 
 parts of the narrow lanes that constitute the streets of Chinese 
 towns. The filthiest offal is gathered in heaps at the sides of 
 these thoroughfares, and privies are open to public gaze, where 
 the stench is so abominable that the visitors before entering 
 them take the precaution to stuff their nostrils, though al- 
 ready inured to the national effluvia. Almost every town 
 and city is surrounded by a ditch or intersected with canals, 
 into which the drainage of the densely-packed houses flows, 
 turning them into great receptacles of corruption, that swelter 
 at low water under the torrid summer sun. Even the nume- 
 rous and large lakes and rivers that constitute the chief high- 
 ways of commerce, contain an unusual amount of putrid ani- 
 mal and vegetable matter, so that it is necessary to purify the 
 water with alum before it can be used by foreigners for drink- 
 ing or culinary purposes. Such is the invariable practice at 
 Shanghai, even amongst the Chinese. In the Wong-poo 
 river that flows past that city, the proportion of putrescent 
 matter is so large, that in the height of summer the water 
 assumes a gelatinous consistence, which is felt by bathers, who 
 seek in vain for a refreshing plunge into the fetid stream or a 
 bath filled with its offensive water. As there are compara- 
 tively few animals in that agricultural country, almost the 
 whole of this corruption arises from the presence of the 
 human race forming such dense centres of population. 
 
 396. Great Extent of Land occupied by Tombs of Ancestors 
 in China. Not only does the present generation spread their 
 rejectamata broadcast over the surface of the land, to the 
 detriment of its sanitary condition, but the remains of past 
 generations everywhere impregnate with their corruption the 
 soil that yields the staple crops. Besides the cemeteries 
 within walled cities, and the burial-places in the suburbs, 
 
THE AIR. 401 
 
 every farm in China has a portion of the land occupied by 
 the tombs of the farmer's ancestors, for many generations 
 back. And as the " worship of ancestors " is part of the 
 national religion, these tombs are held sacred as shrines for 
 the devotees to worship at and present sacrificial offerings. 
 Hence they are rarely disturbed for centuries ; and if so, the 
 bones are carefully preserved in stoneware jars. It would be 
 an interesting statistical question to know what extent of 
 land is covered with tombs and used as graves in China. In 
 the absence of such we may make an approximate calculation 
 from our own knowledge, and that of intelligent natives and 
 foreign travellers whom we have questioned on the subject. 
 Of the cultivated lands it is no exaggeration to state that 
 probably not less than three per cent of the area is covered 
 with ancestral tombs, thereby withdrawing from profitable 
 culture an immense tract of available land ; while the ceme- 
 teries and tombs everywhere built among the rocky and 
 waste lands may amount to two per cent. So that in all pro- 
 bability not less than one-twentieth part of this extensive 
 country is held as receptacles for the dead, whose remains 
 are interred in strong coffins, most of them covered by brick 
 tombs. Within these vaults are buried probably not less 
 than a hundred thousand millions of human beings in various 
 stages of corruption, each retaining in a solid form some 
 portion of atmospheric vital constituents necessary for the 
 healthy conservation of the living generation. 
 
 397. Chinese Coffins are made to last for Generations. 
 The business of coffin-making in China is of much more im- 
 portance than in any European nation, and the article itself 
 is a more substantial, and sometimes ornamental, piece of 
 furniture than any household piece of cabinet-work. They 
 are made of the hardest or toughest timber that can be got, 
 from two to three inches thick, and so closely joined that no 
 liquid matter can flow through the seams, while a strong 
 cement is spread on the edges of the lid when nailed down, 
 so that a Chinese coffin is almost hermetically sealed, in 
 order to prevent the escape of effluvia during the long period 
 
 2 c 
 
402 OKIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 between death and interment. Quicklime is also placed in 
 the coffin to neutralise the decomposing gases. In ordinary 
 cases the funeral does not take place for thirty or forty days; 
 and where the deceased dies at a distance from his native 
 district, the remains are stored in houses for the purpose for 
 many months. The number of these buildings in Canton is 
 considerable. On the decease of persons who have no burial- 
 place in or near the city, their remains are placed in coffins, 
 closed hermetically, or nearly so, and are then carried out 
 and deposited in these houses, from whence, after months or 
 years, the mouldering body is borne away to seek affinity 
 with its ancestral dust. Under these circumstances it will 
 be seen that a coffin is an article of no small importance in 
 the social economy of the Chinese ; and it sometimes becomes 
 an expensive luxury where the deceased has left means and 
 instructions for one of superior wood and workmanship to be 
 made. We have seen one, in which the remains of a wealthy 
 silk-merchant were interred, that cost a sum equivalent to 
 one hundred pounds sterling. In fact, a finely -made and 
 substantial coffin is considered by a Chinaman as an impor- 
 tant matter while alive ; so that it is not an uncommon thing 
 to see them in the houses of the wealthy as a prudent pro- 
 vision for, or probably to remind them of, death. As the 
 ancient Egyptians hung up a skeleton at their banquets for 
 that purpose, so do the modern Chinese display their coffins 
 during an entertainment, or at all events have them in an 
 adjacent apartment. Cases are common of the dying patient 
 having his coffin brought to his bedside, who gives up the 
 ghost with greater serenity of mind at the prospect of having 
 a substantial tenement among the tombs of his ancestors. 
 
 398. Reduction of Oxygen in the Air of China by the Re- 
 spiration of the People. While the rejectamenta and remains 
 of this multitudinous nation contribute largely to the malari- 
 ous exhalations from the land and water, the atmosphere is 
 also largely deprived of its oxygenous vitality by respiration 
 more so than in any other country in the world; and there 
 is, perhaps, no other habitable region so destitute of foliage 
 
THE AIR. 403 
 
 for generating oxygen gas. We have already referred to the 
 consumption of this vital constituent in the process of respir- 
 ation, together with the unhealthy effects arising from breath- 
 ing air thus vitiated in crowded assemblies. May we not 
 apply this experience of sanitary laws on a small scale to 
 atmospheric volumes of a greater magnitude, such as are 
 found in the badly-ventilated valleys of the Alps, and include 
 even an extensive region like China as under their influence, 
 where it is densely thronged by human beings, and Europe 
 with its respiring animals? If the principle of oxygenous 
 exhaustion is deleterious to life in such cases as crowded 
 rooms, it is strictly logical to conclude that the same ' causes 
 will produce similar results on the greatest scale, not except- 
 ing the northern aerial hemisphere itself, where nine-tenths 
 of the whole human race are congregated. Here it may be 
 said that, south of the sixtieth parallel of latitude, a thousand 
 millions of human beings and myriads of respiring animals 
 inhale the air, consuming its oxygenous constituent every 
 moment of the minute, every minute of the hour, every hour 
 of the day, every day of the year, every year of a century, 
 and so on, ad infinitum. May not this inconceivable respir- 
 ation of the organic world this continual demand upon the 
 oxygenous food of the atmosphere diminish its vital elements 
 generally 1 May not the four hundred million pairs of lungs 
 in China exhaust the air in that region of its oxygen to a 
 tangible extent, just as four thousand pairs of lungs may do 
 proportionately within a confined area 1 
 
 399. Monsoon Winds and Geographical Position in China 
 prevent free Circulation of Air. It may be advanced that 
 the analogy drawn is not applicable, inasmuch as China is 
 an immense territory open to the Pacific Ocean, from whence 
 abundant supplies of fresh air and oxygen come to renovate 
 the vitiated atmosphere. This, apparently, would be the 
 result under different atmospheric conditions, but the pre- 
 valent monsoon winds, and the geographical conformation of 
 the country, prevent a general free circulation of the air. By 
 reference to any ordinary map of China it will be seen that, 
 
404 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 although the country is open to the east and south along its 
 seaboard of 3350 miles, yet on its western and northern bound- 
 aries it is walled in, as it were, by the stupendous mountain- 
 chains and table-lands of Tibet and Tartary. This geographi- 
 cal conformation prevents the blowing of any constant west or 
 north-westerly wind, so as to sweep across its extensive low- 
 lands towards the east, and causes the monsoon winds to blow 
 alternately from the south-west and north-east six months at 
 a time during the year. At the change of the monsoon there 
 are calms and variable winds, without any strong easterly 
 breezes from the Pacific, excepting the dreaded typhoons, 
 which 'sweep along the coast with terrible severity, without, 
 however, disturbing the inland monsoon winds, on account 
 of their rotatory motion and limited sphere of action. Thus 
 in China the currents of air are carried to and fro across the 
 country, blowing from the south-west during the warm half 
 of the year, and from the north-east during the cold half; 
 and as the ebb and flow of a river conveys up and down the 
 stream its deleterious particles, so may we suppose this great 
 annual atmospherical tide to act, carrying backwards and for- 
 wards the air vitiated by the rejectamenta of the densest 
 population on the earth, who must have sensibly diminished 
 its vital oxygenous properties, without receiving that supply 
 of fresh air which other regions, more advantageously situ- 
 ated, obtain from the atmosphere. 
 
 400. Absence of Forests in China, and Scarcity of 
 Large Trees. Besides the theocratic appellation of " Celes- 
 tial Empire," the Chinese name their country Chung Hwa 
 Kwo, which signifies " Central Flowery Land." As we have 
 seen how little China deserves its heavenly title, so may we 
 conclude that where such pestiferous odours prevail over 
 monotonous cultivated fields, there can be but a small 
 portion of the land covered with growing flowers and exhal- 
 ing sweet perfumes. It must be said, however, that where 
 gardens are to be found the flowers are of exquisite beauty; 
 and we can easily imagine that before China was so cut up 
 by culture for food the indigenous plants were abundant, and 
 
THE AIR. 405 
 
 suggested this appellation. All this, however, is altered, and 
 the native flowers are more rarely to be seen there than they 
 are in the gardens of England. But that which strikes the 
 observant traveller most regarding the vegetation of China, is 
 the absence of forests and the rarity of clumps of trees of 
 large growth. This cannot be natural, for the rapidity of 
 vegetable growth is marvellous on the cultivated lands, and 
 the comparatively few trees and shrubs that are seen display 
 great luxuriance in their foliage. According to the ancient 
 history of the country, its aboriginal inhabitants dwelt in 
 forests and caves, where wild animals disputed its occupation 
 with them. With the advent of Chinese civilisation these 
 forests have almost disappeared ; and the timber trees that 
 formerly covered the mountains and valleys have been used 
 for building purposes and fuel without new plantations being 
 raised in their stead, except upon a very limited scale. 
 Hence in China there are few leafy trees spreading their 
 foliage in the sun's rays to generate oxygen gas, which is so 
 largely consumed by the dense population ; while its dimin- 
 ished volume is supplanted by deleterious gases that create 
 all sorts of diseases, and render the climate generally one of 
 the most unhealthy in the world, especially for European 
 constitutions. 
 
 401. Prevalence of Virulent Epidemic and Endemic Dis- 
 eases in China. To enumerate the various classes of disease 
 that afflict the Chinese would be simply to quote the whole 
 list given in a medical dictionary. Perhaps there is not an 
 ailment that is known amongst Western races but has its 
 counterpart among that peculiar people ; so that, as far as 
 the " ills our flesh is heir to " are concerned, they are of the 
 same original stock. There are data for concluding that 
 most of the plagues and epidemics that scourge the human 
 race from age to age have their origin in this great hotbed 
 of disease. That mysterious morbid malady, cholera, which 
 appears as an epidemic in Europe, is endemic in China, and 
 of the most virulent Asiatic type. Scientific physicians 
 trace its approach always from the east, through the agency 
 
406 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 of electric currents, which in some unknown manner rule its 
 deadly march, like the influence of the great tidal wave 
 rolling to the west ; and thus it may be brought from that 
 ultima thule of the far East to these western shores. Small- 
 pox, which is of very ancient origin in China, in all proba- 
 bility originated there, where diseases of that character are 
 the most dreaded by the people. On this point, and others 
 illustrative of diseases in China, Dr Hobson, late of Shang- 
 hai, who had great experience in hospital practice among the 
 natives as a medical missionary, furnishes the following com- 
 parison of the various classes of diseases in the tropical and 
 temperate latitudes, where, contrary to general results, the 
 latter region is the most unhealthy : 
 
 402. Dr Hobsoris Report upon the Classes of Disease in 
 Canton and Shanghai. " On comparing diseases and climate 
 in this part of China, lat. 32, with Canton, lat. 22, there are 
 several differences which cannot fail to be observed, and 
 will justify, I believe, the following conclusions : 1. That 
 a far larger proportion of diseases among the inhabitants of 
 this vast plain where irrigation is greater than in any other 
 part are of an intermittent or periodic character arising 
 from malaria, and must be treated by quinine and other anti- 
 periodic medicines. Canton and Macao are nearly entirely 
 free from marsh effluvia, and hence intermittent fevers, 
 neuralgia, dysentery, and nervous depression, are much less 
 common in these parts than here. 2. That inflammatory 
 effects of the breathing organs are far more frequent in this 
 part of China ; hooping-cough and croup are unknown, and 
 acute bronchitis, pleurisy, and pneumonia are very. rarely 
 seen in the south of China. I observe no difference as 
 regards sanguineous discharges, dropsical effusions, and pul- 
 monary consumption. 3. This climate is more trying to 
 young children, especially during the time of teething. It 
 is also unsuitable, from its sudden alternations of tempera- 
 ture and increased cold and dampness, to persons of weak 
 lungs or of a rheumatic diathesis. It is also disagreeable 
 and enervating at first to residents who have been accus- 
 
THE AIR. 407 
 
 tomed to the tropics, especially to those of a nervous excit- 
 able temperament, or liable to intermittents. 4. Cutaneous 
 diseases among the natives here are much more frequent and 
 severe, owing to want of frequent ablution, and from wearing 
 the same wadded clothes for months together, and even for 
 successive years, during the winter months, without washing 
 the under garments. Scrofulous enlargement of the glands 
 and leprosy are, however, far more common at Canton than 
 at Shanghai, probably from the excess of heat. Diseases 
 that are most dreaded are the small -pox in the spring 
 months, cholera and infectious fevers in the hot months. 
 Diarrhoea and dysentery occur at all seasons of the year, but 
 more in the summer than the autumn. Cachectic and anaemic 
 diseases seem common everywhere, arising, no doubt, from in- 
 sufficient food and foul air combined. Tumours and calculous 
 diseases are of greater frequency in the south ; but though 
 the climate there is more relaxing, the vigour and activity of 
 the native mind are superior to what is usually met with in 
 this part of China. I attribute this difference which has 
 been remarked by many chiefly to the morbific influence of 
 malaria, which contaminates the atmosphere in this rich and 
 extensive plain. The apathy and timidity of the Keang-soo 
 people are proverbial." 
 
 403. Dr Henderson 's Remarks upon the Climate of Shanghai 
 and its Environs. Regarding the climatic conditions of the 
 province of Keang-soo, and their relations to the atmosphere as 
 affecting the human constitution, we shall quote the remarks of 
 another authority, Dr Henderson, who succeeded Dr Hobson 
 as physician in charge of the Chinese Hospital at Shanghai ; 
 and who, like his predecessor, succumbed, while yet in the 
 vigour of life, to the deadly influences of the climate. " Dur- 
 ing the sudden changes of temperature," he says, " which at 
 certain seasons occur in Shanghai, bronchial catarrh is ex- 
 ceedingly common, and in elderly people passes into a chronic 
 state, and in almost every respect simulates consumption, 
 and will pass to this disease unless the chest is carefully 
 examined, when the disease is found entirely confined to 
 
408 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 the bronchial tubes, the lungs being perfectly sound. The 
 climate of Shanghai is essentially humid, and during the 
 hot months of July and August the atmosphere approaches 
 close to and often reaches the point of saturation ; the air is 
 much rarified, and contains less oxygen in a given bulk than 
 when it is cold and dry, while respiration is shallow and 
 more slowly performed. Thus the blood is less perfectly 
 oxydised, and contains too little oxygen to stimulate the 
 heart, blood-vessels, and nerves, and the individual is predis- 
 posed to low types of disease of a periodic character. During 
 the hot months, also, the hygrometric state of the atmosphere 
 is such, on certain days after heavy rains in Shanghai, that 
 instead of watery vapour being exhaled from the lungs at the 
 rate of one ounce per hour, as in tolerably dry states of the 
 atmosphere, I am strongly inclined to believe that pulmonary 
 exhalation is all but arrested, and the functions of the lungs 
 reversed, have assumed for the time the function of absorp- 
 tion. Fluid passes off by the skin in two ways namely, 
 by evaporation, which is essentially a physical process ; and 
 also in the lorm of perspiration, a vital process of transuda- 
 tion. Now, when the air is saturated with moisture and its 
 temperature equal to that of the body, the vital process of 
 transudation will only be carried on, the physical process of 
 insensible evaporation having for a time ceased. The above 
 conditions, however, are not common, and can only take 
 place when the temperature of the air is equal to that of the 
 body, and saturated with vapour. Under any circumstances, 
 however, free evaporation from the body will be impeded, or 
 modified, according to the amount of moisture in the air, and 
 so will the feeling of languor and oppression be greater or less 
 according to the state of the atmosphere, whether it is still or 
 in free motion ; and hence the advantage and utility of punkas 
 and thorough draughts, as these change rapidly the particles 
 of hot moist air, which retard evaporation if left to remain in 
 contact with the skin." From our own experience, the in- 
 tensely humid state of the air at these times is such that 
 mere animal existence, even to a healthy person, is positively 
 
THE AIR. 409 
 
 painful. You feel as if your body was wrapped in an atmo- 
 spherical poultice, which draws all the deleterious particles 
 in the blood to the surface, and the skin breaks out with 
 prickly heat (Lichen tropicus), more or less varied with a 
 crop of boils. On consulting your physician, he pronounces 
 these eruptions as a healthy indication of your constitution, 
 otherwise they would have broken out internally, producing 
 some virulent disease. This is for the time reassuring, but 
 it impresses one with uncomfortable forebodings of suffering 
 and death in the unhealthy climate of China. 
 
 404. Great Mortality during Summer at Shanghai. Dur- 
 ing our residence in Shanghai an unusually hot and sickly 
 summer occurred when all the morbid influences alluded 
 to existed in their worst form, and consequently disease 
 stalked abroad like a gaunt spectre, destroying the foreign- 
 ers as well as the natives with an unsparing hand. So great 
 was the mortality, and the deaths so sudden, that it was 
 like being on a field of battle, when every moment a dart 
 from the " King of Terrors " might strike any one, irre- 
 spective of age, as the strong man is laid low by the bullet 
 of his enemy. Not only did the less vigorous constitution 
 rapidly collapse under the blue agonies of Asiatic cholera, but 
 those of a robust sanguineous temperament were struck down 
 by heat-apoplexy as if they had been shot. We remember 
 going on board a transport to bid adieu to the officers of the 
 gallant 31st Eegiment of infantry on their departure for Eng- 
 land, after suffering decimation from the climate of China, 
 when three privates were thus attacked. Fortunately there was 
 ice at hand and skilful surgeons to apply it with success, 
 and they recovered ; but had they been on the march, where 
 ice was not at hand, they could not have survived many 
 minutes. 
 
 405. Suddenness of Death and rapidity of Corruption in 
 China exemplified. Not so fortunate was the case of a hale 
 vigorous civilian, whose acquaintance we made at Shanghai. 
 He had come from Tien-tsin, where the climate is not so 
 deadly, as it is less humid. Fond of exercise, we observed 
 
410 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 that he used to take what he called his " constitutional " in 
 the morning, which he was warned against on account of the 
 treacherous climate. But he did not seem to take much heed 
 of our warnings, and continued his morning walks. One day 
 at breakfast he complained of headache, and said he would 
 lie down in his bed-room for a little. At noon a servant 
 went to call him, when he was found dead in bed; and 
 though the body was quite warm, even to fever heat, the 
 doctor attending him could not restore the smallest sign of 
 animation. In the evening we saw the body and felt the 
 hands, which were still warm, and it was evident that putri- 
 faction had set in with great rapidity. Such was the case, 
 for about midnight the remains were placed in a coffin for 
 immediate interment ; and as the undertaker was closing the 
 lid, the body burst its cerements and filled the coffin with 
 noxious matter, which emitted a most horrible effluvium. 
 
CHAPTEE XIX. 
 
 CONTRAST BETWEEN THE CLIMATES OF THE NORTH AND 
 SOUTH HEMISPHERES. AUSTRALIA. 
 
 Geographical features of Australia admit of general free circulation of air, 
 406. Native inhabitants and animals few and innocuous, 407. Contrast 
 between its sparsely-populated lands and those of China, 408. Presence 
 of the European colonists has introduced insalubrity into the towns, 409. 
 Absence of malaria on its marshy lands attributed to deodorisation by 
 carbonic acid gas in the air, 410. Effects of carbonic acid gas on the 
 human constitution by experiment, 411. Carbonic acid recommended as 
 a medicament by Dr Le Play, 412. Healing effects of carbonic vapours 
 in gasworks, 413. Tetrachloride of carbon a valuable anaesthetic, 414. 
 Carbon in a solid, liquid, or gaseous form not poisonous, 415. The cli- 
 mate of Australia considered by physicians as curative of pulmonary dis- 
 eases, 416. Dr Bird's experiences of its climate as a curative agent in con- 
 sumption, 417. In course of time it may become the grand sanatorium of 
 the world, 418. Transportation to Australia formerly a premium to crimi- 
 nals, 419. Eemarkable effects of the climate on the fecundity of Euro- 
 pean females, 420. Longevity and fatal diseases of short duration in 
 Australia, 421. Its climatic influence in checking the spread of epi- 
 demics, 422. Salubrity of Melbourne, Sydney, and Adelaide under ex- 
 ceptional conditions, 423. The salubrious climate admits of sleeping out 
 in the open air with impunity, 424. Experiences in the moist climate of 
 New Zealand indicate its salubrity, 425. Military medical reports ex- 
 hibit low rates of mortality and disease among the troops, 426. High 
 degree of health enjoyed by the New Zealand colonists, 427. Dr Dieffen- 
 bach's remarks upon the absence of endemic diseases and the salubrity of 
 climate, 428. Hints for a new system of medical practice by aeropathy, 
 429. Scope for improving the science of medical practice, 430. Pro- 
 fessor Simpson's address to the graduates of Edinburgh University, 431. 
 
 406. Geographical Features of Australia admit of a gene- 
 ral free Circulation of Air. Let us now compare the physi- 
 cal features and climatology of Australia with those of China, 
 
412 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 or, what will be more appropriate, the eastern half of the 
 former, as more closely approximating in area and latitudinal 
 limits to the latter. Moreover, it is the section of the south 
 island-continent of which we have the most correct geo- 
 graphical knowledge, and where the. country is fairly popu- 
 lated, while the western division is comparatively an unin- 
 habited .wilderness. The entire superficies of Australia is 
 computed at 2,690,810 square miles, so that half its area is 
 something over that of China Proper. A glance at the ordi- 
 nary map of the eastern hemisphere will show the general 
 contour of these two regions, each possessing an extensive 
 seaboard washed by the waves of the Pacific Ocean, and 
 both under the influence of tropical and temperate latitudes, 
 but on opposite sides of the equator. At this point their 
 geographical analogy ends; for although a mountain -chain 
 extends from south to north, parallel with the eastern sea- 
 board, yet it cannot compare with the mountain-chains and 
 table-lands of Tibet and Tartary, that obstruct the west winds 
 in China. To the westward of the Australian Cordillera a 
 level region extends through the interior nearly to the coast 
 washed by the waves of the Indian Ocean ; while the south 
 is open to the Southern Ocean, without any land as far as 
 the antarctic circle. In no part of Australia is there a 
 mountain elevated above the line of perpetual snow, and no- 
 where are ranges of mountains or valleys so situated as to 
 confine the currents of air from all points of the compass. 
 Hence the general character of the Australian winds is their 
 variableness. It is true that on the tropical waters of Au- 
 stralia monsoon and trade-winds blow, but they rarely pene- 
 trate far into the interior, while the " brave west winds," de- 
 scribed by Captain Maury, in the south temperate zone sweep 
 across the country during the greater part of the year. The 
 geographical features of Australia, therefore, are not calcu- 
 lated to confine the atmosphere into periodical winds, as in 
 China, but to afford a general free circulation at all times of 
 the year. 
 
 407. Native Inhabitants and Animals few and innocuous. 
 
THE AIR. 413 
 
 We have seen that the Chinese are computed at one- third 
 of the whole human race which is calculated in round num- 
 bers at twelve hundred millions and that they occupy a 
 territory less than the area of eastern Australia, where the 
 native population is not equal to that of an ordinary English 
 county. While the one region contains a vast series of centres 
 of population more dense than anywhere in Europe, who have 
 exhausted the health-giving elements of the air, earth, and 
 water, the other was, until recently, an immense wilderness, 
 tenanted by a few tribes of savages, whose poverty-stricken 
 condition and nomad life rendered their presence less produc- 
 tive of noxious exhalations than the few wild animals in- 
 habiting it. u The history of this race is comprised within a 
 small compass. Eecords they have none, and their traditions 
 are as evanescent as their dwellings ; and like summer fires, 
 which sweep every vestige of these rude structures from the 
 face of the earth, so their history is buried in oblivion with 
 each succeeding generation. No evidences of tilling the 
 ground, planting, sowing seed, and reaping the harvest, have 
 been seen by travellers among them. They do not trade or 
 barter ; neither do they sell, buy, or exchange land, and on 
 no spot is a permanent village established. Consequently 
 the rejectamenta of such a sparsely - scattered population 
 have no effect in creating malaria. An approximate census 
 taken in 1853 returned their numbers in eastern Aus- 
 tralia at 210,000 ; and from their known rate of decrease 
 within the colonial settlements, at present it is considerably 
 less." * 
 
 408. Contrast between its sparsely -populated Lands and 
 those of China. Since the colonisation of Australia by the 
 British, the usual effects of civilised communities forming 
 centres of population are beginning to appear, but not suffi- 
 ciently to have any marked result upon the general sanitary 
 condition of the country. Still, where the cities and large 
 towns exist, these localities are not so healthy as formerly, 
 when the population was less ; and fevers occur which, at the 
 * Art. "Australia," ' Encyclopaedia Britannica.' By S. Mossrnan. 
 
414 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 early periods of colonies, were unknown. Of the colonial 
 population there are now about one million and a half per- 
 sons, who have introduced and bred about forty millions of 
 live stock, as assisting to vitiate the atmosphere. But what 
 are these to the immense extent of country they roam over, 
 or the widely-scattered towns and villages, compared with 
 what exists in China ? It is in this respect that the traveller 
 in both countries is impressed with the contrast between a 
 densely and a thinly populated region. In our travels we 
 have ridden for hundreds nay, thousands of miles through 
 the "bush" of Australia as the colonists term the unsettled 
 and rural districts and sometimes for days we have not met 
 a human being, not even one of the aborigines. There popu- 
 lation is the exception, and extent of territory the rule, where 
 in its pristine state the land is in great part clothed with in- 
 digenous grasses, that wave in the breeze like fields of corn, 
 and picturesque park-like forests invite the settler to erect his 
 homestead, and sit under his own " vine and fig-tree," breath- 
 ing the most salubrious atmosphere in the world. On the 
 other hand, in China, population is the rule and land the 
 exception; for the inhabitants find it insufficient for their 
 increase, and hence about one-tenth, or forty millions, have 
 their habitations and employment on the water. We have 
 travelled through parts of one of the central provinces where 
 the country was barren and rocky, with scarcely a tree or 
 shrub to be seen by the wayside, and we have said to our- 
 selves, " Here surely there will be some solitude from the 
 overwhelming presence of the people." But no! Scarcely 
 had we got to the hill-tracks than we found them crowded 
 by an increasing stream of pedestrians carrying packages of 
 tea and native produce towards the outports, and merchan- 
 dise to the interior. It is only when the country is disturbed 
 and desolated by bands of rebels or banditti that the popula- 
 tion disappears from any district. But no sooner are these 
 dispersed than the inhabitants return and industriously set 
 to work and restore their dwellings, or renew the cultivation 
 of their farms, so that in a short time the temporary solitude 
 
THE AIR. 415 
 
 of such localities is broken up by the noise and bustle of a 
 dense population. 
 
 409. Presence of the European Colonists has introduced In- 
 salubrity into the Towns. It is not necessary to go into any 
 detail of the population statistics of Australia in illustration 
 of the infinitesimal influence the presence of civilised man 
 has upon vitiating the atmosphere of that extensive region, 
 from rejectamenta, graves, and other corruptions of humanity. 
 And where malaria has arisen in the large cities from want of 
 drainage and insufficient water-supply, these defects are being 
 remedied by the authorities upon the most improved systems 
 of Europe. It would be well also that the several govern- 
 ments of the Australian colonies adopted a system of preven- 
 tion as well as cure in maintaining the salubrity of the clim- 
 ate and the fertility of the soil. We allude to the wholesale 
 destruction of the trees in the environs of cities and other 
 centres of population without providing for the future by 
 planting saplings. We have already demonstrated, accord- 
 ing to the experiments of learned chemists and botanists, the 
 fact of green foliage generating oxygen in the sunlight, and 
 pointed out the evergreen trees of Australia as peculiarly 
 adapted to perform that function to the best advantage. Be- 
 sides this delicate property, it is well known that trees protect 
 the fertility of the soil where it is not cultivated, and hence 
 their preservation or reproduction on waste lands is of im- 
 portance in that dry climate. We regret to state that some 
 of the finest patches of grassy forest-lands have been rendered 
 perfectly barren and unprofitable by the destruction of the 
 trees for firewood alone. It may be advanced that in the 
 colonisation of new countries this cannot be avoided ; but it 
 would be a wise course on the part of the authorities to plant 
 young trees where the old ones have been cut down. 
 
 410. Absence of Malaria on its Marshy Lands attributed to 
 deodorising influence of Carbonic Acid Gas. While the pre- 
 sence of deleterious gases from human causes is infinitesimal, 
 the absence of malaria from natural influences is characteristic 
 of the Australian climate. Although the thermometer reaches 
 
416 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 as high as, if not higher than, in China, and there are ex- 
 tensive marsh-lands and swamps similar to what exist there, 
 yet the class of diseases arising from them is unknown in 
 Australia. This is accounted for in 'a general manner by 
 medical men, from the dryness of the atmosphere and the 
 rapidity of evaporation, which carries off the deleterious gases 
 as soon as they are generated. No doubt these have the effect 
 of lessening the accumulation of malaria over marshy lands ; 
 but as New Zealand enjoys the same immunity from malarious 
 diseases, though the climate is very humid, and the extent of 
 marsh-lands greater in proportion, there must be some other 
 atmospherical agency at work to neutralise the generation of 
 malaria. This we take to be the presence in the atmosphere 
 of a large percentage of carbonic acid gas, as detailed in a 
 previous section. We contend that this constituent is the 
 great scavenger of the air that sweeps away all the impure 
 exhalations of the earth. While it sustains the life and 
 structure of vegetation, it destroys the noxious gases generated 
 by decayed vegetable and animal matter. In its pure state, 
 without a due admixture of oxygen, it is considered the most 
 deadly of all gases to inhale, as witness its effects on the 
 suicide by charcoal fumes, the suffocated dog in the Grotto 
 del Cane, and the bones of victims in the Upas Valley. On 
 the other hand, when combined with the other constituents 
 in its minute volume, it is not only innocuous, but serves the 
 purpose of assisting to maintain a healthy condition of the 
 air we breathe. As charcoal deodorises fetid water, so may 
 carbonic acid gas deodorise malaria. Hence probably the 
 presence in the Australian air of a large proportion of this gas 
 may account for the absence of malaria upon marsh-lands, 
 where, under different conditions, it would exist ; as, for ex- 
 ample, if Australia were situated in the northern hemisphere, 
 under latitudes corresponding to those of China. This sugges- 
 tion opens up a very interesting subject of inquiry regarding 
 the properties of carbonic acid gas as recently investigated by 
 savans on the Continent. 
 
 411. Effects of Carbonic Acid Gas on the Human Constitu- 
 
THE AIR. 417 
 
 tion by Experiment. Although this gas, when pure, causes 
 asphyxia if inhaled, there are instances of it not having pro- 
 duced this disastrous effect a proof, as Dr Demarquay rightly 
 observes in his ' Pneumatologie Medicale,' that it is not poison- 
 ous per se, as has been contended by many. The following 
 instances quoted by him are curious : Pilatre de Rozier, the 
 unfortunate aeronaut, had the courage to engage in the follow- 
 ing hazardous experiment, in order to ascertain how long an 
 atmosphere of carbonic acid gas could be borne. With the 
 help of a ladder he descended into a brewer's vat which was 
 filled with that gas, and at once felt a slight warmth all over 
 his body, causing an increase of perspiration. He felt a 
 pricking in his eyes, which obliged him to shut them often, 
 and when he attempted to draw breath he was prevented by 
 a violent sensation of incipient suffocation. He now wanted 
 to get out of the vat again, but could not find the ladder ; 
 and the want of fresh air becoming more and more pressing, 
 he was seized with vertigo and tingling in the ears. He did, 
 however, get out ; but although he could now breathe freely, 
 he could distinguish nothing with his eyes, and his sense of 
 hearing was almost gone. He was mad enough to repeat the 
 experiment, and found that, so long as he could do without 
 breathing, he could walk and even speak in the gas. Another 
 bold adventurer, Dr Constantine James, of Paris, laid himself 
 down in the far-famed Grotto del Cane, near Naples, and kept 
 his breath some time in order to observe the action of the gas 
 on his senses. No sooner did he risk an inhalation than he 
 was seized with vertigo, and obliged to raise his head out of 
 the stratum of gas which, being heavier than atmospheric 
 air, is not very deep in order to breathe pure air. In a few 
 minutes the painful sensation was gone, and the doctor tried 
 again, but this time he was more prudent, and inhaled only a 
 small quantity. The same symptoms returned, and he felt 
 a sort of boiling about his forehead a sensation which he 
 compares with what one feels when, in drinking champagne, 
 a little of it gets into the nostrils. The same author states 
 that when he was there, the keeper of the place had a dog 
 
 2 D 
 
418 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 which he was in the habit of laying down in the grotto with 
 its paws tied, for the amusement of visitors. The animal 
 would show great anxiety, struggle for some time, and then 
 lie as if dead. At this moment the keeper would take it up, 
 carry it out into the air, and untie its legs. By degrees the 
 animal would return to life again, and then run away for fear 
 probably of being subjected to the same ordeal, which, how- 
 ever, used to be inflicted on it five or six times a-day. 
 
 412. Carbonic Acid recommended as a Medicament by Dr 
 Le Play. Thus it would appear that carbonic acid gas the 
 exhalations of which from mineral and vegetable sources are 
 so much dreaded is, after all, not a poison; only that, when 
 inhaled in larger doses than suits the respiratory organs, it 
 becomes fatal to animal life, just as an overdose of some heal- 
 ing medicine may produce death. Having satisfied themselves 
 on this point, some French physicians, pursuing the inquiry 
 by experiment, have discovered that it may be used as a med- 
 icament when inhaled in small doses mixed with common 
 air. On this subject an interesting paper was recently read 
 before the Academy of Sciences by Dr Le Play, an eminent 
 medical practitioner and experimentalist. He found that this 
 gas, mixed with air, excites circulation in the mucous mem- 
 branes with which it is in contact. Hence it may exercise a 
 powerful tonic action in bronchial catarrh. It should there- 
 fore, in his opinion, be prescribed in all cases in which a 
 pulmonary affection is accompanied with congestion, a direct 
 tendency to inflammation, and especially spitting of blood, 
 because then carbonic acid will carry the inflammation to a 
 higher pitch, and thus modify the vitality of the tissues. This 
 may account for the circumstance that catarrhal affections are 
 alleviated, and sometimes cured, by draughts of champagne, 
 which evolves carbonic acid largely. 
 
 413. Healing Effects of Carbonic Vapours in Gasworks, 
 In like manner it is chiefly owing to the presence of carbonic 
 acid gas in the vapours evolved in the purifying chambers of 
 gasworks that they have been resorted to by patients as a 
 cure for the hooping-cough; and the number of recoveries 
 
THE AIR. 419 
 
 among children from that distressing complaint in Paris is 
 evidence of its efficacy as adopted by Parisian physicians. Still 
 there have been obstinate cases, and even some in which the 
 patients actually got worse instead of being relieved circum- 
 stances which led several practitioners to condemn the remedy 
 altogether, until Dr Burin Dubuisson succeeded in explaining 
 the cause of this extraordinary difference in the results. He 
 has shown by reliable experiments 1st, That the proportion 
 and composition of the gaseous substances evolved are never 
 the same in different gasworks ; 2d, That the beneficial gases 
 were mixed up with deleterious gases, the latter even prepon- 
 derating in some instances ; and, 3d, That even in the same 
 gasworks the proportions change according to the hour of 
 the day. To obviate these inconveniences, Dr Dubuisson 
 has composed a liquid which he calls gazeol, and which, in 
 evaporating doing so very rapidly in a water-bath will fill 
 a close chamber with all the beneficial emanations for which 
 gasworks are recommended. Thus several children are ad- 
 mitted into a room 25 feet long by 16 feet in breadth, and 14 
 feet in height. A tea-spoonful of gazeol is introduced into an 
 open phial, which is put into a water-bath always kept at the 
 same temperature. The gaseous exhalations thus produced 
 may occasionally affect the patients disagreeably, but the op- 
 eration has been performed three times a-day at the Orphan 
 Asylum in Paris with the most beneficial results. At first it 
 was only tried in cases of a common or of a hooping cough, 
 but it has since been found extremely useful in catarrhal 
 bronchitis. In the first place, it weakens the intensity of the 
 cough very materially ; it prevents it during the whole time 
 the patients inhale the emanations ; and it prevents it return- 
 ing in fits afterwards. It has not been found beneficial in 
 bronchitis dependent on miliary tuberculosis, and in tuber- 
 cular consumption; but cases of catarrhal bronchitis have 
 been cured in from six to twelve days, instead of requiring 
 a month or two's treatment. No doubt, as the subject is 
 further investigated and experimented on, a gaseous com- 
 pound, with carbonic acid gas as the basis, may be discov- 
 
420 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 ered that will prove curative of tubercular diseases of the 
 respiratory organs. 
 
 414. Tetrachloride of Carbon a valuable Anaesthetic. 
 While the French physicians are thus employed in determin- 
 ing the healing properties of carbon and its combinations, we 
 find our own medical practitioners equally active in the same 
 direction of rendering their discoveries in chemistry available 
 for alleviating the sufferings of afflicted humanity. In the 
 'Lancet' the following notice appears: "We are glad to 
 announce the introduction of a new anaesthetic, which, if fur- 
 ther experience confirms the results hitherto obtained, promises 
 to be of remarkable value. Dr Protheroe Smith has been 
 making some observations on the administration by inhala- 
 tion of the tetrachloride of carbon (C C1 4 ), of which we wait 
 for a fuller account. In the mean time, from our own obser- 
 vation, we may state in favour of this agent that it has a plea- 
 sant odour, somewhat resembling that of the quince. We 
 understand that anaesthesia is rapidly produced by it (in some 
 cases in the space of half a minute), that the condition ap- 
 pears to be easily sustained with or without entire loss of 
 consciousness, and that the effects pass off very quickly. 
 There is not usually, we learn, any excitement or struggling 
 before anaesthesia supervenes, and its use is not followed by 
 the sickness which is sometimes so troublesome a feature of 
 chloroform. A point of great interest in relation to the tetra- 
 chloride of carbon is the property which we are told it pos- 
 sesses of immediately allaying pain arising from any cause. 
 In a large number of instances it has been successfully em- 
 ployed for the relief of headache and dysmenorrhceal suffer- 
 ing. Dr Protheroe Smith has found it of great value in 
 inducing quiet and refreshing sleep. He has also employed 
 it in midwifery, and finds that it removes pain without neces- 
 sarily destroying consciousness or interfering apparently with 
 the expulsive efforts of labour." 
 
 415. Carbon in a Solid, Liquid, or Gaseous Form, not 
 Poisonous. As evidence that carbon, either in a gaseous or 
 solid form, is not poisonous per se, but, on the contrary, 
 
THE AIR. 421 
 
 wholesome, we may indicate its increasing consumption in 
 such articles of food as charcoal biscuits, and the quantity of 
 gas inhaled and swallowed in drinking aerated waters. Even 
 when respired in the crude form of smoke, mingled densely 
 with the atmosphere of cities, it has not been found to increase 
 the amount of mortality or disease, as compared with country 
 districts, where the inhabitants breathe a comparatively pure 
 atmosphere. On the contrary, there are sufficient data for 
 concluding that the smoke of the city furnishes a sanitary 
 equivalent in neutralising the poisonous gases arising from 
 insufficient drainage and overcrowding in houses. So that in 
 exhuming our coal-deposits, and consuming them in dwell- 
 ing-houses and manufactories, civilisation is stepping in to re- 
 store to the northern atmosphere some of its original element 
 buried for countless ages ; and however much may be said 
 against the discomforts of smoky towns, the evolution of car- 
 bonic gas by such means may assist in purifying the air of 
 more deadly gases. It has not been shown that the respira- 
 tion of smoke is dangerous, or destructive of human life, if we 
 may judge by evidence produced at post mortem examinations 
 of aged people in London, where the lungs frequently became 
 discoloured by the inhalation of smoke, without producing any 
 appearance of disease. 
 
 416. The Climate of Australia considered by Physicians 
 as Curative of Pulmonary Diseases. Be that as it may, it 
 is evident that the properties of carbon in a gaseous form, as 
 well as in conjunction with fluids and solids, are becoming 
 better known and appreciated by medical men, and we may 
 hear more of its use in the class of diseases indicated by Drs 
 Le Play and Dubuisson. There is a wide field of inquiry 
 and experiment open in this direction that is deserving of 
 practical investigation. Moreover, it is now generally ac- 
 knowledged by advanced medical practitioners in England, 
 who base their views upon the reports of their confreres in 
 Australia, that the climate of that country is more conducive 
 than any other to the cure of pulmonary consumption and 
 all diseases of the respiratory organs. It has been found 
 
422 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 that persons afflicted with these prevailing complaints of the 
 mother country on arrival there recover in a most surprising 
 manner, especially if they have not reached their last chronic 
 stage. Even then existence is prolonged beyond what it 
 would have been at home, and the patient is imbued with a 
 temporary renewal of health until the final collapse occurs. 
 The number of instances of recovery is yearly increasing ; 
 and it is now the common advice of medical men in such 
 cases, after all other curative efforts have failed in northern 
 climates, to advise patients to emigrate into temperate climes 
 south of the equator, or at all events undertake the long 
 voyage to Australia and back, remaining a short time in the 
 country. Not only have laymen followed this advice, but 
 some professional men subject to consumption have put it 
 into practice, and found the beneficial results of the change 
 of climate all that and more than they expected. One doctor 
 gave up his practice in England and proceeded to the colony 
 of Victoria, where he considered himself entirely free from 
 pulmonary disease after a year's residence ; and in two years 
 published his experiences to the world in an interesting and 
 instructive little volume l On Australian Climates, and their 
 Influence in the Prevention and Arrest of Pulmonary Con- 
 sumption/ by S. Dougan Bird, M.D., L.E.C., P.L. : Long- 
 mans, London. 
 
 417. Dr Bird's Experiences of its Climate as a Cura- 
 tive Agent in Consumption. Although giving expression to 
 his views in a thankful vein of recovery from a fatal disease, 
 Dr Bird gives an impartial statement of his experiences of 
 climatic influences on health both in Europe and Australia. He 
 looks upon the change of climate from place to place in the Bri- 
 tish Isles as of no avail in arresting pulmonary consumption ; 
 and when patients obtain temporary relief by visiting the 
 most favourable localities on the Mediterranean merely to 
 get over the winter, the insidious disease is not arrested. It 
 has long been a question among medical men, Whether this 
 disease, once set in, was curable 1 and the general result of 
 cases led to the conclusion that it might be alleviated but 
 
THE AIR. 423 
 
 not cured. Dr Bird disputes the conclusion, and holds that 
 its progress may be rendered nugatory, but not in European 
 climates. He then states that when he left England he was 
 a confirmed poitrinaire, gradually becoming enfeebled and 
 emaciated. On the voyage out he picked up some strength ; 
 and after not more than three months' residence in Mel- 
 bourne he had gained 16 Ib. in weight. In twelve months 
 he considered himself completely cured, and a stronger man 
 than ever he had been in Europe. He considers that there 
 are remarkable peculiarities in the Australian climate that 
 not only alleviate complaints of the lungs, but have the 
 power of throwing off actual disease and preventing its 
 return. This he attributes to the abundance of sunlight, 
 the prevalence of fine weather, low degree of humidity, a 
 great amount of ozone in the atmosphere, &c. In all these 
 beneficial influences of climate upon the consumptive patient 
 we entirely agree, and can fully vouch for the accuracy of 
 his statements. But we cannot help thinking that some 
 more potent influence exists to bring about this remarkable 
 curative power in the Australian atmosphere over diseases 
 of the respiratory organs than merely greater degrees of 
 light and heat, and the general purity of the air inhaled, 
 compared with these existing in the country where the 
 disease originated. 
 
 418. In course of time it may become the grand Sanatorium 
 of the World. The intelligent reader will readily suppose 
 that we attribute this property of the Australian climate to 
 the presence of a larger volume of carbonic acid gas in the 
 atmosphere there than exists here. Putting the medical 
 testimony of Dr Le Play on the curative powers of carbonic 
 acid in juxtaposition with Dr Bird's experiences of the 
 Australian climate, we are fairly justified in drawing this 
 inference, irrespective of the botanical evidence we have fur- 
 nished in a previous section. Here we have positive medical 
 data in support of our theory of disparity in the volumes of 
 the atmospheric constituents in the south temperate zone as 
 compared with the north, or at all events sufficient data to 
 
424 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 show that one region contains curative elements in the air 
 for diseases contracted in the other. This conclusion gives 
 rise to the question whether tubercular diseases of the lungs, 
 bronchitis, 'and other complaints of the respiratory organs, 
 are not caused by the diminution of carbonic acid gas in the 
 northern climates, as well as the ordinary predisposing causes 
 of cold, damp, and the like. Moreover, it is not unphilosophi- 
 cal to infer from the foregoing data that, during the earlier 
 epochs of animal existence, the carbon and oxygen were in 
 greater volume than afterwards in the north hemisphere, and 
 as those diminished, this assisted in the extinction of species. 
 At first disease would undermine their vigour, which would 
 be transmitted in an increasing ratio through generations, 
 until the remnants of each race became extinguished from 
 sheer exhaustion of vital energy. On such a hypothesis may 
 we not explain the prevalence of disease amongst the human 
 race in the north hemisphere, which in time will lead to 
 further physical degeneration ? In that case the temperate 
 regions of the south hemisphere, with their reinvigorating 
 climates, will be the places of refuge for the exhausting 
 humanities of the north, and Australia become the grand 
 sanatorium of the world. 
 
 419. Transportation to Australia formerly a Premium to 
 Criminals. In this respect Australia is the most valuable of 
 the British possessions abroad, inasmuch as the benefits that 
 accrue to the colonists by its hygienic advantages will con- 
 tinue long after the gold-fields, which so suddenly advanced 
 her material prosperity, are exhausted. It is to be hoped 
 that for the future the social and political condition of the 
 free communities established there may continue as morally 
 healthy as the salubrious climate. "When we look back upon 
 the original destiny of this country as the receptacle of the 
 dregs of humanity, we cannot but rejoice at the altered 
 prospects of native-born Australians during succeeding gene- 
 rations. It is true that through the agency of criminal labour 
 the unprofitable wilderness was first brought into cultivation. 
 But the demoralisation of society by their presence counter- 
 
THE AIR. 425 
 
 acted in a great measure the benefits of their labour. Happily 
 that evil is passing away, and the next generation will find 
 the convict leaven of the parent state expunged from the 
 community. It was but recently that all friends of moral 
 and social progress in Australia grieved to find an enlightened 
 Government persisting in casting on these shores the offscour- 
 ings of British prisons, to create a demoralised malaria among 
 colonists enjoying the healthiest amount of social and politi- 
 cal institutions in the world. Irrespective of these consider- 
 ations, this line of policy was offering a premium to criminals 
 upon hygienic considerations alone. We can readily under- 
 stand how, in this country, the prisoners find it a punishment 
 to be immured in dreary dungeons, or forced to labour at 
 public works in all kinds of weather ; and also how their 
 attenuated forms excite the benevolence of philanthropists, 
 after breathing the vitiated air of their prisons for some 
 years ; while the rigour of this northern clime gathers its 
 harvest of victims, notwithstanding the generous prison fare 
 on which they are fed. It was very different, however, when 
 the convicts were transported to Australia, where the labour 
 and short imprisonment assigned to them were compara- 
 tively no punishment at all. There the majority of tran- 
 sports had abundance of the necessaries of life, and some of 
 its luxuries, while they were set to the easy and pleasant 
 occupation of herding cattle and sheep, growing robust, and 
 respiring an atmosphere that not only cured the constitu- 
 tion of morbid diseases, but revived their spirits until their 
 longevity was increased. Under such favourable climatic 
 conditions transportation was no punishment. It became a 
 kind of reward given to the persons selected by a paternal 
 government. This abnormal policy, as we have remarked, 
 has nearly ceased, and the emigrants sent to the Australian 
 shores are of the most deserving class ; while those who 
 voluntarily proceed thither for the benefit of their health are 
 an acquisition to the colonies when they recover. We trust 
 the day is not far distant when even British statesmen, ex- 
 hausted by the harassing cares of political life, may extend 
 
426 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 their vacation tour to this sunny south land, and return re- 
 invigorated in body and mind to their arduous tasks, with 
 their organs of speech and respiration strengthened "by the 
 voyage. 
 
 420. Remarkable Effects of the Climate on the Fecundity 
 of European Females. While the male sex generally acquire 
 increased bodily and mental vigour in the Australian climate, 
 the female European undergoes similar, if not more remark- 
 able, constitutional invigoration. An Englishwoman of five- 
 and-twenty will retain her vigour undiminished for eight or 
 ten years, and sometimes a rejuvenescence takes place in a 
 healthy woman of thirty ; while the lives of the aged with 
 impaired constitutions are prolonged. But the most remark- 
 able change effected by the climate, according to medical 
 authorities, is the renewal of fecundity at a comparatively 
 advanced age, and, in numerous well-authenticated cases, the 
 bringing on of fertility after many years of barrenness in the 
 mother country. This is now becoming so well known that 
 some married couples without families emigrate to Australia 
 with the prospect of having children ; and where an heir to 
 an estate is wanted, the longing mother takes her departure 
 for the wished -for land where her hopes may be realised. 
 And when so blessed, she looks with delight upon her offspring 
 as nothing inferior to any in her native land. Indeed, it may 
 be said that the native-born children of Anglo-Saxon parents 
 are if anything an improvement upon the original stock. 
 Nowhere have we seen such bright intelligent faces, with 
 clear complexions and robust frames, as we have seen among 
 the youth of both sexes in Australia. The beauty of the 
 young women, especially those born in Victoria and Tasmania, 
 where the climate is coolest, is the theme of all travellers and 
 newly-arrived settlers, who consider them equal to the fairest 
 English beauties, because flaxen hair predominates. At the 
 same time it must be stated that the bloom of the Australian 
 women is not so permanent as that of their English sisters. 
 The roses that bud 011 their cheeks arrive sooner at full bloom 
 and then decay. So is it with the whole constitution. The 
 
THE AIR. 427 
 
 child arrives at maturity two or three years sooner, and the 
 woman declines several years earlier. 
 
 421. Longevity, and Fatal Diseases of short Duration, in 
 Australia. What may "be the longevity of the native-born 
 race as compared with their progenitors, there is not suffi- 
 cient time yet to determine. "We are of opinion that the 
 lamp of life burns more quickly in that clime than in this ; 
 so that the individual may not reach an extended number of 
 years. But if we take into consideration the long days and 
 fine salubrious weather that prevail, the term of existence is 
 increased beyond the most favourable conditions of long life 
 in Europe. Even when disease attacks the patient in Aus- 
 tralia there is rarely any lingering of chronic complaints. In 
 that region the cure of disease is generally more rapid than 
 in Europe, and so also is the progress towards decay or death. 
 You are either becoming rapidly convalescent from an illness, 
 or hurrying into your grave ; there is no long lingering on its 
 verge. 
 
 422. Its Climatic Influence in checking the spread of Epi- 
 demics. According to Dr Dougan Bird, the prevailing types 
 of disease are diarrhoea, dysentery, dyspepsia, inflammation, 
 congestion, heart disease, apoplexy, liver complaint (but not 
 scrofulous), and others of an individual character brought on 
 by excess or irregularity of living. Although there is a gene- 
 ral absence of endemic diseases, yet when fevers occur their 
 course is very rapid, especially among children, where there 
 is proportionately a greater mortality than among adults, 
 which he attributes to their being stuffed with animal food. 
 Of epidemic diseases nothing of a serious nature has been 
 known to have passed over the Australian colonies since 
 their foundation. Asiatic cholera in its virulent form is un- 
 known ; and where it has appeared at some of the seaports 
 on board ships arriving from northern countries, it has rapidly 
 disappeared in quarantine, assuming a mild form with small 
 amount of mortality. The same remarks apply to small-pox, 
 against which, notwithstanding the salubrity of the climate, 
 stringent regulations are enforced to prevent its introduction. 
 
428 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 On one occasion within our knowledge these regulations were 
 evaded at the port of Melbourne through means of a false bill 
 of health, and this scourge of the north hemisphere was 
 introduced by some immigrants into that city. Several cases 
 of a virulent form were discovered, and the government 
 medical staff adopted the best precautions they could devise 
 to prevent it spreading among the inhabitants. Fortunately 
 this did not ensue, and all those suffering from the disease 
 when they came on shore rapidly recovered, excepting one 
 youth, who died. Without detracting from the efficiency of 
 the medical assistance in arresting its progress, we are inclined 
 to consider that the exceptional nature of the climate in not 
 fostering tubercular diseases had as much, if not more, to do 
 in checking it, otherwise it might haye become localised in 
 Melbourne, and ultimately spread throughout Australia, and 
 established itself as an endemic disease in that hot region, as 
 it is in India and China. 
 
 423. Salubrity of Melbourne, Sydney, and Adelaide under 
 exceptional Conditions. Taking the three chief cities of 
 Australia namely, Melbourne, Sydney, and Adelaide as 
 examples of towns situated in a hot climate, with a low 
 degree of mortality, the result is very remarkable. To the 
 western boundary of Melbourne a swamp of greater extent 
 than the city itself lies sweltering under the hot summer sun, 
 with the sluggish river Yarra Yarra flowing along its margin. 
 Yet no medical reports refer to this swamp as the generator 
 of deadly malaria ; whereas if it were in China, or even in 
 Italy, marsh-fever would be the prevailing disease, with, 
 doubtless, a large mortality from malarious diseases among 
 the city population. At Sydney what are called the " Botany 
 Swamps" lie to the south of the city, but they do not present 
 so unwholesome a sight as that at Melbourne, as the soil is of 
 a very sandy nature. Still, under northern conditions of 
 climate and summer-heat, these should evolve marsh-miasma, 
 which they do not ; and Sydney is the healthiest city in 
 Australia. Between the city of Adelaide and the shore of 
 St Vincent Gulf, where the entrance to the port is distant 
 
THE AIR. 429 
 
 some twelve or fourteen miles, half of the intervening land is 
 nothing but a mud-swamp intersected by small creeks that 
 rise and fall with the tide in the gulf. Looking upon this 
 locality when it is low-water, during a hot summer day, it 
 presents all the conditions of a pestilential spot capable of 
 spreading its deadly influence around for a circuit of at least 
 one hundred miles ; yet Adelaide, though the least healthy 
 of the three cities enumerated, is not an exception to the 
 general salubrity of Australian towns. The marshy lagunes 
 we have mentioned approach nearer than anything we have 
 seen to the muddy lands and creeks around Shanghai ; and 
 it is reasonable to infer that, were these situated in the same 
 latitude in the north hemisphere, they would also be gene- 
 rators of marsh-miasma. It does not say much for the fore- 
 sight of those who pitched upon these sites for the three 
 chief cities of Australia ; for had the climatic relations been 
 the same as in corresponding regions of the north hemisphere, 
 in all probability they would have ranked with the most un- 
 healthy towns in Asia or Europe. 
 
 424. The Salubrious Climate admits of Sleeping out in the 
 Open Air with impunity. In the government report on the 
 climate of Victoria the following passage occurs : " The un- 
 settled habits and irregular mode of life necessarily attendant 
 on the rapid colonisation of a gold-producing country make it 
 impossible at first to ascertain with certainty the effects of 
 the climate on the health of the population. There can be 
 no doubt that the character and severity of the prevalent dis- 
 eases must be materially affected by the rapid vicissitudes of 
 temperature occasioned by extreme heat and low mean hu- 
 midity; but, on the whole, there is every reason to believe 
 that the climate of Victoria is one of the most salubrious in 
 the world." This applies more particularly to the gold-min- 
 ing, pastoral, and agricultural populations, or those exposed 
 to the vicissitudes of a country life in a new colony, where a 
 reckless mode of living is carried on, that in corresponding 
 northern latitudes would create an excessive degree of mor- 
 tality. It is a common practice, when travelling in the inte- 
 
430 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 rior beyond the settled districts, to sleep in the open air, 
 which may be done with impunity during the greater part of 
 the year. Mght after night have we slept under a gum-tree, 
 wrapped in an opossum-rug, a saddle for our pillow, and a 
 fire at our feet, without contracting the slightest cold or 
 rheumatic affection. To attempt such a mode of rest during 
 the night, under ordinary circumstances, in any European 
 climate, would be sure to bring on some serious ailment at 
 the first attempt. The highest rate of mortality in the colony 
 of Victoria was in 1854, during the gold -discovery, when 
 78,000 immigrants arrived by sea in bad sanitary condition ; 
 yet the deaths did not exceed the ordinary rate of 20 per 
 1000. But the best comparative statistics on this head cited 
 by Dr Bird are the rates of mortality among the British 
 troops on foreign stations, where Australia is at the bottom 
 of the scale. "Without entering into detail, we find the high- 
 est to be 30 in the 1000 at Bermuda; while in these colonies 
 generally it is not more than 11 per 1000. 
 
 425. Experiences in the Moist Climate of New Zealand 
 indicate its Salubrity. Here it may be said again that if the 
 climate of Australia were as humid and the ground as damp 
 as it is in Great Britain, the settlers who attempt to pass the 
 night in the open air of a forest would rise in the morning 
 with all the aches and rheumatic twinges that such an act would 
 bring here. But we may instance New Zealand as a region 
 where this may be done with impunity also, though it is 
 more humid than England, and its hottest latitudes are a 
 region of marsh-lands, without generating malaria. We have 
 travelled through part of that region during its wettest period, 
 when our party were without a dry piece of clothing for 
 several days, marching through swamps soaked with rain, 
 our boots filled with water which had free egress and ingress 
 by holes cut in the toes and heels. At night we lay upon 
 the soft ground, with only a blanket on propsticks to keep 
 off the rain, and in the morning we have wakened with our 
 bodies literally immersed to the depth of two or three inches 
 in water. Despite exposure to the weather in this manner 
 
THE AIR. 431 
 
 for a week, and breathing an atmosphere more or less satu- 
 rated with humidity, none of us experienced the slightest 
 ailment afterwards, and at the time only the discomforts of 
 this mode of travelling. 
 
 426. Military Medical Reports exhibit low rates of Mor- 
 tality and Disease among the Troops. During the unhappy 
 wars which have attended our colonisation of these islands, 
 the British troops encountered all the vicissitudes of weather, 
 marching through marsh-lands such as we have described, 
 and yet they enjoyed the highest state of health, as shown 
 by the following brief statement in the ' Lancet ' : " It is 
 probable that the British army engaged during the late war 
 in New Zealand enjoyed better health, and sustained fewer 
 losses, than in any previous campaign. Dr Mackinnon attri- 
 butes this to the very beautiful and salubrious climate ; and 
 he adds that the change which it effected in the men of regi- 
 ments arriving from India was most marked. Sickly and 
 sallow-complexioned on arrival, they soon lost the marks of 
 ill health engendered by tropical service, and regained health 
 and strength while undergoing arduous service in the field. 
 The late Staff-Surgeon, Dr Thompson, in his admirable ' His- 
 tory of New Zealand/ pointed out the importance of that 
 country as a sanatorium for our Indian invalids. It is not a 
 little curious that there is an entire absence of malaria in New 
 Zealand." This immunity from miasmatic influences en- 
 gendering disease impressed Dr Thompson all the more, as 
 he saw extensive marsh-lands under a hot climate, which in 
 India would have rendered them the hotbeds of malaria. It 
 is therefore not unscientific to infer that some more potent 
 influence must be at work in neutralising the miasma that 
 arises from the decayed vegetable matter in these swamps, 
 which extend for hundreds of miles through the interior, 
 than the ordinary effects of strong winds and stormy weather 
 in clearing the air of noxious exhalations ; and that potent 
 influence we take to be the presence of a larger volume of 
 carbonic acid gas in the atmosphere of New Zealand than 
 exists in India. Thus it may be found by actual experiment 
 
432 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 that what causes the remarkable growth of carboniferous vege- 
 tation there may also account for the absence of malaria. 
 
 427. High Degree of Health enjoyed by the New Zealand 
 Colonists. Of the general salubrity of the New Zealand 
 climate there is abundant evidence to be found in the medi- 
 cal statistics issued in the settlements ; which, though vary- 
 ing in degrees of latitude and temperature to a much greater 
 degree than the British Isles, agree in the immunity from 
 endemic and deadly epidemic diseases enjoyed by the colonists. 
 After enumerating the leading characteristics of the climate, 
 one account states : u It is almost needless to add, that the 
 most robust health is enjoyed by almost all persons who live 
 in such a climate. The doctor's occupation would be nearly 
 gone, but that marriages are undoubtedly rendered more 
 prolific by the same genial air which rears all the children 
 in such rosy vigour." This will lead the reader to infer, also, 
 that the same influences are at work in curing sterility in 
 women there as we have seen to exist in Australia but of 
 this we have not so many marked cases. 
 
 428. Dr Dieffenbach's Remarks upon the Absence of En- 
 demic Diseases, and Salubrity of Climate. Dr Dieffenbach, 
 who paid especial attention to the meteorology and sanatory 
 condition of New Zealand during his residence and travels 
 throughout the greater part of the two islands, affords us the 
 following testimony to the salubrity of its climate : "As 
 the atmosphere, by its moderate warmth, its humidity, and 
 constant current, is peculiarly favourable to the vegetative 
 powers, as we see in the luxurious growth of plants, so from 
 the same causes it suits the human frame. In the families 
 of the missionaries and settlers I observed no deviation from 
 the original stock ; the children grow well and strong, with 
 fresh and rosy faces, and I am satisfied that in this respect 
 New Zealand is in no way inferior to Great Britain. A 
 humid and temperate atmosphere acts especially upon pro- 
 duction, both as it regards growth of the body and the numeri- 
 cal strength of families. Nutrition and reproduction are in 
 good order ; in respect to the numerical strength of families, 
 
THE AIR. 433 
 
 the climate seems to be particularly favourable to the increase 
 of population at least all the Europeans have large families. 
 We see the effect of this humid climate in certain diseases, to 
 which Europeans first arriving in this country are often sub- 
 jected. These are abscesses, or boils, and eruptive diseases ; 
 neither, however, of a malignant character, and both dis- 
 appearing without medical aid. Amongst the natives, car- 
 buncles and diseases of the mucous membranes are common : 
 here, however, other causes are acting, of which I shall speak 
 more hereafter. The European, when once acclimatised, does 
 not suffer from any of these causes. True inflammatory dis- 
 eases are uncommon ; the south-east wind of New Zealand is 
 never as keen as our north-easter ; but, in consequence of the 
 moist climate, such diseases always assume the character of 
 catarrh. I am not aware that any endemic diseases exist in 
 New Zealand ; influenza, however, and sometimes croup, 
 appear epidemically. If care is not taken, rheumatisms also 
 make their appearance. But it is certain that causes, which 
 in England would produce violent colds and other injurious 
 results, pass over in New Zealand without any bad effect, 
 even to those colonists who are in delicate health. The 
 purity of the atmosphere, resulting from the continual wind, 
 imparts to the climate a vigour which gives elasticity to the 
 physical powers and to the mind. Heat never debilitates, 
 not even so much as a hot summer's day in England ; and ? 
 near the coasts especially, there is always a cooling and re- 
 freshing breeze. The colonist who occupies himself in agri- 
 culture can work all day, and the mechanic will not feel any 
 lassitude, whether he works in or out of doors. From all this 
 I draw the conclusion that, as regards climate, no country is 
 better suited for a colony of the Anglo-Saxon race than New 
 Zealand. Invalids rapidly recover in this climate ; and there 
 is no doubt that the presence of numerous thermal waters in 
 the North Island, and the attractive scenery, will make New 
 Zealand the resort of those who have been debilitated in 
 India, and are in search of health." 
 
 429. Hints for a New System of Medical Practice by Aero- 
 2 E 
 
434 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 pathy. From our own experiences in sojourning for a short 
 time and travelling through these islands, we can fully en- 
 dorse all that the learned doctor has stated in favour of the 
 New Zealand climate; and, in like manner, from a much 
 longer residence and extent of travel in Australia, we accord 
 with all that Dr Bird and other medical authorities pronounce 
 regarding the salubrity of that greater region in the salubrious 
 atmosphere of the south hemisphere. On the principle that 
 " prevention is better than cure," we would advise those who 
 have weakly constitutions to avail themselves of nature's 
 vast laboratory there, and inhale fresh draughts of pure air 
 highly charged with the vital elements of oxygen and carbon, 
 to a degree not found in the vitiated atmosphere of the north. 
 And might not the physician, also, take a hint from the 
 foregoing data in adopting a practice for the cure of pul- 
 monary consumption and other diseases of the respiratory 
 organs, more consonant with the natural remedies existing in 
 the southern atmosphere *? Formerly the treatment of such 
 diseases was on the same basis as most complaints, the cure 
 of which was through the medium of the stomach, into 
 Which all sorts of mineral and vegetable ingredients were 
 emptied, of which only the smallest whiff of their essence 
 reached the affected parts. This mode of treating the organs 
 affected by breathing air has been partially modified by the 
 inhalation of medicaments with baths of heated air, and to a 
 certain extent with success. But these medicaments are all 
 of an extraneous character more or less to the vital elements 
 of the air ; or if not so, they consist in simply inhaling the 
 vapour of hot water. Now, would it not be well to carry out 
 Dr Le Play's system of respiring carbonic acid gas diluted 
 with pure ordinary air ; or what, in our opinion, would be 
 better, placing the patient in a chamber constructed so as to 
 admit of a factitious atmosphere highly charged with that 
 constituent, or with oxygen gas, as the case would suggest 
 the treatment to a skilful medical practitioner ? In pursuing 
 such a system it would be necessary to proceed cautiously in 
 administering the increased volumes of carbon and oxygen, 
 
THE AIR. 435 
 
 and care should be taken that the vitiated air had free venti- 
 lation. This suggestion we give out with all due modesty on 
 our part, as simply one of the deductions from the great prin- 
 ciple involved in this dissertation, on the apparent differences 
 in the constituents of the south and north aerial hemispheres. 
 And as there are systems of allopathy, homoeopathy, and 
 hydropathy in the practice of medicine, there is no reason 
 why a system of aeropatliy might not be tried for the relief 
 of afflicted humanity ; and it is just possible that it may turn 
 out to be the most successful of all the " opathys." If the 
 first experiments were found to be successful in a small 
 chamber, the system could be extended, and large apartments 
 used, where many patients might inhale the reinvigorating 
 medium ; and thus a building of iron and glass as large as 
 the Crystal Palace could be rendered one of the grandest 
 sanatoria in the world for the cure of diseases of the respira- 
 tory organs. 
 
 430. Scope for improving the Science of Medical Practice. 
 Hitherto it would appear that those who study the prin- 
 ciples of diseases and their cure cling too much to administer- 
 ing crude medicinal substances, as distinguished from their 
 refined or elementary condition, especially those that form 
 the life-sustaining elements in the atmosphere. As it is 
 understood that the greater number of endemic and epidemic 
 diseases enter the system in a gaseous or elementary form, it 
 is logical to conclude that in order to arrest or cure their 
 deleterious effects, a similar system of impregnating or inocu- 
 lating the constitution with counteracting gaseous elements 
 should be pursued. As at present practised, medicine is 
 more an art than a science, whereas it should be the ne plus 
 ultra of the physical sciences. Nevertheless the highest 
 praise is due to those eminent members of the medical pro- 
 fession whose aim is to progress in the field of discovery 
 opened up by experimental science. 
 
 431. Professor Simpson's Address to the Graduates of 
 Edinburgh University. On this head we find the most 
 advanced views recommended by Professor Sir J. Y. Simpson 
 
436 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 in his address to the graduates of Edinburgh University at 
 the close of the session of 1867-68, wherein he makes the 
 following remarks : " During the present century the scalpel 
 and the microscope have developed for us a vast amount of 
 new and most invaluable facts in the way of morbid anatomy 
 and pathology; and this field is by no means yet exhausted. 
 Science has, at the same time, laboured most successfully to 
 place in the hands of the medical practitioner means and instru- 
 ments by which we can perceive and discover the pathological 
 anatomy of various organs within the body of the living 
 individual. Thus, for example, by the invention of the 
 ophthalmoscope we can look into that dark inner chamber of 
 the eye where shadows and soul where matter and mind 
 so mysteriously meet and commune with each other, and can 
 distinctly see the various diseases that may affect its walls 
 or its fluid contents. The laryngoscope exposes fully in a 
 similar way to our inspection the interior of the organs of 
 the voice. The endoscope reveals to us the conditions of 
 other internal canals and organs. While to the instructed 
 ear of the physician the stethoscope whispers back the 
 diversified morbid conditions of the lungs telling wondrous 
 secrets as to their exact nature and precise seats. In this 
 great line of discovery new victories are certain to be won. 
 Do you search out other additional physical means of diag- 
 nosis for these and other viscera. Possibly even, by the 
 concentration of electrical and other lights, we may yet 
 render many parts of the body, if not the whole body, suf- 
 ficiently diaphanous for the inspection of the practised eye of 
 the physician and surgeon. But the future greatest conquests 
 for you, and for the coming race of physicians, are probably 
 to be gained by researches in pathological chemistry and 
 therapeutics. Pathological chemistry contains, doubtless, a 
 rare and rich and most extensive mine of priceless ores and 
 products for the future advancement of theoretical and prac- 
 tical medicine, and the only shafts yet attempted to be struck 
 into its lodes have barely touched the mere surface of its 
 boundless wealth. The most practical, however, and so far 
 
THE AIR. 437 
 
 the most important objects for calm, earnest, and faithful 
 researches on your part, are probably to be found in the wide 
 field of therapeutics. For the department of therapeutics, 
 though the most important of all departments of physic, has 
 hitherto been the most neglected of all the one regarding 
 which we know the least. The physiological modes of action 
 of medicines form a labyrinth, or series of labyrinths, to 
 which we as yet in fact possess no clue. "Will you strive to 
 unlock its secret entrances ? Besides, we know not enough 
 of the simple powers of our drugs ; though the practice of 
 medicine is essentially and ultimately the practical applica- 
 tion of therapeutic agents. In making this statement do not 
 misconstrue my meaning. The young physician trusts, per- 
 haps, too much to mere drugs ; the aged physician, perhaps, 
 too little. The training of the philosophic physician consists 
 in teaching himself when to give medicines, and what medi- 
 cines; and in what cases, and at what times, he should 
 abstain from all drugs, and trust to nature, or to nature and 
 hygienic means alone. He knows that a masterly inactivity 
 is sometimes far more safe for his patients than the most 
 efficacious but officious druggery. But when medicines are 
 used, they should be the best and surest. We have a formid- 
 able farrago of them from the vegetable and mineral king- 
 doms many inefficient, some doubtful, and almost all repul- 
 sive in character and form. A most extensive field for new 
 investigations in this line lies temptingly open for the young 
 and ambitious physician in the almost innumerable series 
 of chemical compounds which modern organic chemistry has 
 evolved. Among this world of new compounds will probably 
 be yet detected therapeutic agents more direct, more swift, 
 and yet more sure in their action, than any which our present 
 pharmacopoeias can boast of. It may be, also, that the day 
 will yet come when our patients will be asked to breathe or 
 inspire most of their drugs instead of swallowing them ; or at 
 at least, when they will be changed into pleasant beverages 
 instead of disgusting draughts and powders, boluses and 
 pills." Towards such a consummation is the tendency of 
 
438 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 what has been advanced in the foregoing chapters on " The 
 Air." All we attempt to point out in the disparity of the 
 aerial hemispheres is to suggest to scientific men in Europe, 
 who have no practical knowledge of the south hemisphere, 
 to extend their investigations into that distant field, where 
 they will probably find solutions to problems in the north for 
 the better sanitary condition of the human race. 
 
CHAPTEE XX. 
 
 REMARKABLE PHYSICAL ASPECT OF SOUTH AMERICA. 
 
 Conclusion. 
 
 Brief notices of other climates in the south hemisphere, 432. Deadly 
 nature of the climate in the western regions of Northern Africa, 433. 
 Comparative salubrity of the South African climate, 434. Pestilential 
 simoom of northern deserts compared with innocuoiis south hot winds, 
 435. Salubrity of the climates of South America as compared with those 
 of Central and North America, 436. Humboldt's comparative tables of 
 temperature in the north and south hemispheres, 437. Tree-ferns grow 
 in higher south latitudes than they do in north parallels, 438. Hum- 
 boldt's remarks on the controversy regarding the " New and Old Worlds," 
 439. Assumed disparities in the east and west hemispheres have no 
 foundation in nature, 440. Arbitrary partition of the world into east 
 and west divisions instituted by the Papacy, 441. Artificial divisions in 
 geography have no relation to natural divisions, 442. Professor Agassiz 
 on the remarkable geological phenomena of Brazil, 443. Geology essen- 
 tially a study of extinct vitality and physical activity, 444. Geological 
 dilemma of theory and ^observation, 445. Importance of geological de- 
 ductions to the body politic and government of a nation, 446. Terrible 
 effects of the earthquake at Tacna in Peru described by an eyewitness, 
 applied to the London district, 447. The epoch of great volcanic violence 
 has passed away from Europe, 448. Scientific missions should be ap- 
 pointed by the State, 449. Different effects of the rarefied air in the 
 Andes and Alps upon travellers, 450. Speculative hypothesis on the 
 carbonic structure of the sun, 451. Spectral analysis of a telescopic 
 comet seen in 1868, 452. Determination by the spectrum to have an atmo- 
 sphere of volatilised carbon, 453. Remarks on a concentration of the 
 physical sciences into one great science, 454. Reflections on the desir- 
 ability of accomplishing that object, 455. All nature proclaims a principle 
 of physical binary division dual in phenomena, 456. Concluding remarks 
 on the general subject of the work, 457. 
 
 432. Brief Notices of other Climates in the South Hemi- 
 sphere. Having entered so fully into the climatic phenomena 
 
440 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 of Australia and New Zealand, we shall only briefly allude 
 to those of the temperate regions in South Africa and South 
 America, in support of our theory. The salubrity of the 
 Cape of Good Hope has been known from the earliest days 
 of the Dutch settlers, who, in their subsequent migrations 
 inland, found the climate, even into the tropics, of a healthy 
 character. It is true that at Cape Town fever appears oc- 
 casionally as an epidemic, but it has been attributed to the 
 bad drainage of the town and the filthy habits of the native 
 population. In the far interior, where intrepid missionaries 
 have taken up their abode to convert the heathen, the climate 
 is described as being salubrious, and not injurious to Euro- 
 peans as long as they keep from the low lands near the 
 coast. Even there we have the testimony of travellers that 
 there is a great disparity between the mild insalubrity of the 
 climate, compared with the deadly nature of the tropical 
 regions in Northern Africa, especially on the west coast. 
 
 433. Deadly Nature of the Climate in the Western Regions 
 of Northern Africa. " The whole of the Gold Coast is ex- 
 tremely unhealthy, owing, it has been alleged, to the sudden 
 extremes of heat by day and cold by night, and to the thick 
 sulphureous exhalations which rise from the valleys every 
 morning, and diffuse themselves far over the surface of the 
 land, spreading death and disease amongst the white popula- 
 tion. In the midst of the most beautiful scenery, where 
 trees and rocks and still waters and a delightful verdure 
 give assurance of an earthly paradise, the angel of death 
 lurks unseen, and strikes down his victims without warning, 
 and while yet in the pride of their strength. The appalling 
 number of deaths that have occurred in the various expedi- 
 tions that have gone to the coasts and the interior of West- 
 ern Africa, bear fearful evidence of the fatal nature of the 
 climate. Upwards of a third of all the Europeans who have 
 endeavoured to ascend the Senegal river have perished in 
 the attempt ; and nearly a half of those composing the expe- 
 dition sent out by Government in 1816, to explore the Eiver 
 Zaire, shared a similar fate. On that occasion the coinman- 
 
THE AIR. 441 
 
 der, Captain Tuekey, his lieutenant, the purser, ten of the 
 crew, and four scientific gentlemen, all died within three 
 months ; and in the case of the Niger expedition in 1841, no 
 fewer than 41 Europeans out of 145, including several officers 
 and surgeons, died in less than two months. On this expe- 
 dition numerous experiments were made to test both the air 
 and the river-water, for the purpose of ascertaining whether 
 they contained, as by many it was alleged they must, an 
 extra quantity of sulphuretted hydrogen gas, supposed to be 
 the agent of death in these regions, and to be due to the 
 quantity of decomposing vegetable matter abounding in the 
 rivers j but though conducted with the greatest care, from 
 none of the experiments did it appear that the gas in ques- 
 tion existed in excess, either in the air or the water. In 
 Sierra Leone, perhaps the most unhealthy spot in these un- 
 healthy regions, the mortality among Europeans is very 
 great few ships returning without losing some of their crew, 
 and not unfrequently so many, that they are unable to leave 
 the port until others have been obtained. The number of 
 governors that have perished here from the effects of the 
 climate, one after the other, is another striking evidence of 
 the singular insalubrity of its atmosphere. The agent of 
 death in nearly all these cases is fever, generally violent, and 
 of the remittent type. Besides the known and alleged causes 
 for this fatality, there are other and mysterious influences in 
 operation ; for in the case of the expedition commanded by 
 Captain Tuekey, the journal of that lamented officer bore, 
 that no climate could be finer than that they were enjoying ; 
 that the thermometer was never below 60 during the night, 
 and seldom exceeded 76 during the day, no rain, and the 
 sun seldom visible."* Might not these mysterious morbid 
 influences in the air be accounted for on the hypothesis set 
 forth in the foregoing pages ; and that the malaria of the 
 North African atmosphere is not neutralised or deodorised, in 
 consequence of the diminished volume of carbonic acid gas 
 and oxygen as its vital constituents 1 
 
 * Art. "Africa," ' Imperial Gazetteer,' edited by Dr W. G. Blackie. 
 
442 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 434. Comparative Salubrity of the South African Climate. 
 As a contrast to the deadly effects of the climate in North 
 Africa upon European travellers, we may instance the fact 
 that all the recent explorers in the southern division of that 
 great continent have returned safe from the interior, most of 
 them after many years of travel, to proclaim their geographi- 
 cal discoveries to the world. Of these heroes of discovery 
 we need only mention Speke, Grant, and Baker, who traced 
 the lake system south of the equator, as the true source of 
 the Nile, all of whom returned to England in good health, 
 notwithstanding the marshy regions they had passed through. 
 But more surprising than these cases, or of any other African 
 explorer, is that of the renowned Dr Livingstone, who, after 
 sixteen years of residence and travel during his first expedi- 
 tions alone, traversing South Africa from the Cape Colony 
 into the far interior, where he crossed the continent from 
 west to east in tropical latitudes, yet lived to reach England 
 in comparatively good health, and surprised the whole of 
 Europe with the recital of his travels in that terra incognita. 
 Without entering into any detail, it will suffice to say that in 
 travelling beyond the Cape Colony, some 1500 miles into the 
 central region, he described his journey with his family in a 
 waggon as " a prolonged system of pic-nicking ; excellent for 
 the health, and agreeable for those who are not over-fasti- 
 dious about trifles, and who delight to be in the open air." 
 As a medical practitioner he gives a most favourable opinion 
 of the salubrity of these central lands, even on the borders of 
 the Kalahari Desert, which is intersected by the tropic of 
 Capricorn. He recommends that region as eminently suited 
 for the cure of pulmonary consumption, if the patients could 
 afford the time and means to reach it. Here, therefore, we 
 have the testimony of the learned Doctor that the salubrity 
 of the atmosphere in South Africa, together with its curative 
 properties in tubercular diseases, corresponds with what Dr 
 Dougan Bird states concerning the healing influences of the 
 Australian climate in the same class of diseases. 
 
 435. Pestilential Simoom of Northern Deserts compared 
 
THE AIR. 443 
 
 with innocuous South Hot Winds. It may be advanced, in 
 explanation of this apparently exceptional salubrity of an 
 African climate, that the warm dry air of the desert sweeps 
 away malaria. There is no doubt that the hot winds that 
 blow from the deserts in South Africa are similar to those in 
 Australia, as being innocuous to the human constitution and 
 free from malaria. On the other hand, it is well known that 
 the simoom or hot blast that sweeps over the Desert of Sahara 
 is a pestilential wind, bearing disease and death on its wings. 
 We are told by travellers who have experienced its effects, 
 that the native Arabs on its approach dread inhaling the air 
 so much that they fall on their faces and hold their breath to 
 avoid its deadly influence. During its continuance fever and 
 ophthalmia prevail the latter being caused by the fine sand 
 with which the air is charged. We have not heard of any 
 baneful effects from the hot winds in South Africa, and we 
 know from experience that there is no danger to be appre- 
 hended from breathing the hot winds in Australia. We have 
 ridden across plains and over open forest-lands for many miles 
 in the face of the Australian simoom, and we have experienced 
 no ill effects from breathing it beyond the temporary discom- 
 forts of a parched tongue and nostrils, and the heated current 
 of air reaching 110 of Fahrenheit. 
 
 436. Salubrity of the Climates of South America as com- 
 pared with those of Central and North America. South 
 America is characterised by the same general salubrity of its 
 various climates as South Africa, although there is not such a 
 disparity between it and the northern continent as we have 
 seen exists in its contemporary across the Atlantic. Yet the 
 unhealthiness of the Mexican coast-lands and those of Central 
 America are well known. On the other hand, the tropics of 
 South America are famed for their immunity from pestilence, 
 and comparatively cool climate. " There are no parts of South 
 America so hot as we should be led to expect from its geo- 
 graphical position a result produced by the operation of the 
 trade-winds, atmospherical influences of the huge chain of the 
 Andes, and other physical causes. The burning heats of the 
 
444 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 plains of Arabia are unknown on this continent. In the 
 steppes of the Caraccas, the hottest region of South America, 
 the temperature of the air during the day is only 98 in the 
 shade, while it rises to 112 in the sandy deserts around the 
 Eed Sea. Throughout the whole basin of the Amazon, which 
 comprehends between 2,000,000 and 3,000,000 square miles, 
 the climate is neither very hot nor unhealthful, though under 
 the equator. . . . Brazil, and the country extending from it 
 westward, enjoy an equable and temperate climate." * " Chili, 
 Buenos Ay res, the southern part of Brazil, and Peru, enjoy the 
 cool summers and mild winters of a true insular climate, owing 
 to the narrowness and contraction of the continent towards 
 the south. This advantage of the southern hemisphere is 
 manifested as far as 48 or 50 south lat. ; but beyond that 
 point, and near the antarctic pole, South America is an in- 
 hospitable waste." t Nevertheless there exists, in all the 
 varied regions of that immense continent, an atmosphere of 
 great purity, whether on the vast plains of the Llanos or the 
 elevated regions of the Andes ; while the coast-lands on the 
 Pacific and the Atlantic are comparatively free from those 
 deadly endemic diseases that prevail on the coasts of Central 
 America and tropical North America. Without entering fur- 
 ther into detail on this point, we shall close this portion of 
 our subject by quoting Humboldt's remarks on the tempera- 
 ture of the southern continental masses, and the general fact 
 that the south hemisphere is cooler and more salubrious than 
 the north. 
 
 437. Humboldt's comparative Tables of Temperature in 
 the North and South Hemispheres. In illustration of this he 
 shows that "the different degrees of latitude at which the 
 southern extremities of Australia, including the island of Tas- 
 mania, of Africa, and America, terminate, give to each of these 
 continents its peculiar character. The Straits of Magellan lie 
 between the parallels of 53 and 54 south lat., and, notwith- 
 
 * Art. "America," 'Imperial Gazetteer.' 
 f Humboldt's 'Views of Nature.' 
 
THE AIR. 445 
 
 standing this, the thermometer falls to 44 Fahrenheit in the 
 months of December and January, when the sun is eighteen 
 hours above the horizon. Snow falls almost daily in the low- 
 lands, and the maximum of atmospheric heat observed by 
 Churucca in 1 788, during the month of December, and con- 
 sequently in the summer of that region, did not exceed 52 2' 
 Fahrenheit. The Cabo Pillar, whose turret-like rock is only 
 1394 feet in height, and which forms the southern extremity 
 of the chain of the Andes, is situated in nearly the same lati- 
 tude as Berlin. Whilst in the northern hemisphere all con- 
 tinents fall, in their prolongation towards the pole, within a 
 mean limit, which corresponds tolerably accurately with 70, 
 the southern extremities of America (in Tierra del Fuego, 
 which is so deeply indented by intersecting arms of the sea), 
 of Australia, and of Africa, are respectively 34, 46 30', and 
 56 distant from the south pole. The temperature of the un- 
 equal extent of ocean which separates these southern extre- 
 mities from the icy pole, contributes essentially towards the 
 modification of the climate. The areas of the dry land of the 
 two hemispheres separated by the equator are as 3 to 1. But 
 this deficiency of continental masses in the southern hemi- 
 sphere is greater in the temperate than the torrid zone the 
 ratio in the former being as 13 to 1, and in the latter as 5 to 
 4. This great inequality in the distribution of dry land exerts 
 a perceptible influence on the strength of the ascending atmo- 
 spheric current towards the south pole, and on the temperature 
 of the southern hemisphere generally. ... I subjoin the few 
 certain data of temperature which at present we possess of the 
 temperate zones of the southern hemisphere, and which may 
 be compared with the temperatures of northern regions in 
 which the distribution of summer heat and winter cold is so 
 unequal. I make use of the convenient mode of notation 
 in which the number standing before the fraction indicates 
 the mean annual temperature, the numerator the winter, and 
 the denominator the summer temperature." * 
 * Humboldt's 'Views of Nature.' 
 
446 
 
 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Places. 
 
 South Latitude. 
 
 Mean Annual, Winter, and 
 Summer Temperatures. 
 
 Sydney (Australia), . . 
 
 33 50' 
 
 64. 6 
 
 54. 5 
 
 77. 5 
 
 Cape Town (Africa), . . 
 
 33 55' 
 
 65. 7 
 
 58.5 
 
 73. 2 
 
 Buenos Ayres, .... 
 
 34 17' 
 
 62. 4 
 
 52. 5 
 73. 
 
 Monte Video, .... 
 
 34 54' 
 
 67. 
 
 57. 4 
 
 77. 5 
 
 Hobart Town (Tasmania), 
 
 42 45' 
 
 52. 5 
 
 42. 1 
 63. 
 
 Port Famine (Straits of ) 
 Magellan), . . . \ 
 
 53 38' 
 
 42. 6 
 
 34. 7 
 50. 
 
 438. Tree-Ferns grow in higher South Latitudes than they 
 do in North Parallels. In the same passage with, the fore- 
 going illustration of southern temperature this eminent au- 
 thority on physical phenomena remarks as follows upon the 
 remarkable growth of arborescent ferns in the south tempe- 
 rate zone, but without assigning any special cause to account 
 for it : " Some of the noblest forms of tropical vegetation, 
 as for instance tree-ferns, advance south of the equator to the 
 parallels of from 46 to 53, whilst to the north of the equator 
 they do not occur beyond the tropic of Cancer. Tree-ferns 
 thrive admirably well at Hobart Town, with a mean annual 
 temperature of 5 2. 5, and therefore on an isothermal line less 
 by 3. 4 than that of Toulon. Rome, which is almost one 
 degree of latitude further from the equator than Hobart Town, 
 has an annual temperature of 59. 7 Fahrenheit, a winter tem- 
 perature of 4 6. 6 Fahrenheit, and a summer temperature of 
 86 ; whilst in Hobart Town these three means are respec- 
 tively, 52.5, 42. 1, and 63 Fahrenheit. In Dusky Bay, 
 
THE AIR. 447 
 
 New Zealand, tree-ferns thrive in 46 8' lat., and in the 
 Auckland and Campbell Islands in 53 lat." From these 
 examples we see that the extension of " some of the noblest 
 forms of tropical vegetation " into temperate regions does not 
 depend upon a high degree of heat in these latitudes, other- 
 wise tree-ferns would grow in the open air in any of the 
 warmer parts of the north temperate zone, which they do 
 not. On the other hand, we find them growing in south 
 temperate climate as cold as, if not colder than, England, 
 where they would perish in the open air. We look upon 
 these facts, therefore, pointed out by the greatest physical 
 philosopher that has yet appeared, in illustration of the dif- 
 ference between the climatic relations of the north and south 
 hemispheres, as further data in support of our theory that 
 the atmosphere in the latter division of the earth is more 
 highly charged with carbonic acid gas the pabulum of vege- 
 tation than in the former division. 
 
 439. Humboldt's Remarks on the Controversy regarding 
 the " New and Old Worlds" It must not be supposed, 
 however, that Humboldt himself entertained similar views. 
 On the contrary, he was such an advocate for the uniformity 
 of all geognostic phenomena in point of geological time and 
 terrestrial extent, that he argues against such a proposition in 
 the structure of the earth, which he holds as one great continen- 
 tal mass being upheaved subsequent to another, after the lapse 
 of several epochs. His views on this question were elicited 
 during a scientific controversy between the savans of Europe 
 and America regarding the geological ages of the old and new 
 continents, to which he refers in his ' Views of Nature ' as 
 follows : " The remark has been too frequently made by 
 authors of general and well-attested merit that America was 
 in every sense of the word a new continent. The luxuriance 
 of vegetation, the vast mass of waters in the rivers, and the 
 continued activity of great volcanoes, confirm the fact (say 
 these writers) that the still agitated and humid earth is in a 
 condition approximating more closely to the chaotic prim- 
 ordial state of our planet than the old continent. Such 
 
448 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 ideas appeared to me, long before my travels in those regions, 
 no less unphilosophical than at variance with generally 
 acknowledged physical laws. These imaginary representa- 
 tions of an earlier age and a want of repose, and of the in- 
 creased dryness and inertia with the increased age of our 
 globe, could only have been framed by those who seek to 
 discover striking contrasts between the two hemispheres, and 
 who do not endeavour to consider the construction of our 
 terrestrial planet from one grand and general point of view." 
 440. Assumed disparities in the East and West Hemi- 
 spheres have no foundation in Nature. It is important to 
 observe that the two hemispheres alluded to in the foregoing 
 extract are the east and west binary divisions of the earth, as 
 delineated on the ordinary hemispherical maps of the world. 
 This we infer from the text which this is intended to illus- 
 trate, wherein he compares the climatic relations of the whole 
 American continent, north and south, with the entire con- 
 tinent of Africa, as follows : " A number of causes, many of 
 them still but little understood, diminish the dryness and 
 heat of the New World. Among these are the narrowness 
 of this extensively indented continent in the northern part of 
 the tropics, where the fluid basis on which the atmosphere 
 rests occasions the ascent of a less warm current of air ; its 
 wide extension towards both the icy poles ; a broad ocean 
 swept by cool tropical winds ; the flatness of the eastern 
 shores ; currents of cold sea-water from the antarctic region, 
 which, at first following a direction from south-west to north- 
 east, strike the coast of Chili below the parallel of 35 south 
 lat., and advance as far north on the coasts of Peru as Cape 
 Parina, where they suddenly diverge towards the west ; the 
 numerous mountains abounding in springs, whose snow- 
 crowned summits soar above the strata of clouds, and cause 
 the descent of currents of air down their declivities ; the 
 abundance of rivers of enormous breadth, which, after many 
 windings, invariably seek the most distant coast; steppes, 
 devoid of sand, and therefore less readily acquiring heat ; im- 
 penetrable forests, which, protecting the earth from the sun's 
 
THE AIR. 449 
 
 rays, or radiant heat from the surface of their leaves, cover 
 the richly-watered plains of the equator, and exhale into the 
 interior of the country most remote from mountains and the 
 ocean prodigious quantities of moisture, partly absorbed and 
 partly generated ; all these causes produce, in the flat por- 
 tions of America, a climate which presents a most striking 
 contrast in point of humidity and coolness with that of 
 Africa. On these alone depend the luxuriant and exuberant 
 vegetation and that richness of foliage which are so peculiarly 
 characteristic of the new continent. If therefore the atmo- 
 sphere on one side of our planet be more humid than on the 
 other, a consideration of the actual condition of things will 
 be sufficient to solve the problem of this inequality. The 
 natural philosopher need not shroud the explanation of such 
 phenomena in the garb of geological myths. It is not neces- 
 sary to assume that the destructive conflict of the elements 
 raged at different epochs in the eastern and western hemi- 
 spheres during the early condition of our planet, or that 
 America emerged from the chaotic covering of waters as a 
 swampy island, the abode of crocodiles and serpents." 
 
 441. Arbitrary Partition of the World into East and West 
 Divisions instituted by the Papacy. We submit that these 
 arguments of Humboldt against the hypothesis of a supposed 
 disparity between the eastern and western hemispheres do 
 not affect what we have advanced regarding the atmospheric 
 phenomena of the south and north hemispheres. The latter 
 are natural divisions, where the seasons occur at opposite 
 periods of the year; while the former is a mere arbitrary 
 dissection invented by man for the aggrandisement of certain 
 states during the early days of geographical discovery in the 
 sixteenth century. " So powerful was the sway of the Popes 
 in those days, not only over the religious government of 
 Christendom, but the temporalities of the Christian powers, 
 that no voyages of discovery were undertaken without an 
 application to the reigning Pontiff for permission to annex all 
 countries that were not Christian. It was argued ' that the 
 successor of St Peter, as the Vicar of Jesus Christ, had the 
 
 2 F 
 
450 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 power of disposing of such kingdoms as did not pertain to 
 Christian potentates. The Popes, Martin V., Eugenius IV., 
 and Nicholas V., had already invested Portugal with the 
 empire of all the countries they had hitherto discovered on 
 the coast of Africa. Alexander VI., to whom, after the 
 voyage of Columbus, Spain and Portugal preferred at the 
 same instant their pretensions, marked out a line traversing 
 the two poles which divided the terrestrial globe.' This line 
 of demarcation, as it was designated, passed through the first 
 meridian laid down by Ptolemy across one of the Canary 
 Islands. Hence arose the division of the world into the 
 eastern and western hemispheres, which pertains to the pre- 
 sent day, and is familiar to every tyro in geography." * 
 
 442. Artificial Divisions in Geography have no relation to 
 Natural Divisions. It will be apparent, therefore, to the 
 most ordinary capacity, that these artificial occidental and 
 oriental hemispheres have no relation whatever to the natural 
 north and south divisions at the equator, especially with 
 reference to the atmosphere and the vicissitudes of the sea- 
 sons in the temperate zones beyond the calm-belts of the 
 tropics, which form the leading subject of our work. Neither 
 do the strictures of Humboldt apply to the geological dispar- 
 ity we have shown between the north and south hemispheres, 
 inasmuch as it is chiefly the preponderance of elevated land 
 in the former upon which we have based our theory of the 
 origin of the seasons, as the result of internal terrestrial 
 forces. At the same time, we cannot overlook the observa- 
 tions of scientific travellers in South America subsequent to 
 Humboldt, whose evidence is in favour of our theory, that 
 this continent was upheaved at a later epoch than the con- 
 tinental masses of the north hemisphere. The most recent 
 observer, and the one best qualified to give an opinion on 
 this point, is Professor Agassiz, who lately made a scientific 
 journey in Brazil, and published to the world the startling 
 announcement that he saw indications of extensive glacial 
 * 'Heroes of Discovery/ by Samuel Mossman. 
 
THE AIR. 451 
 
 action on the surface-geology of the country very little ele- 
 vated above the level of the sea in tropical latitudes. 
 
 443. Professor Agassiz on the remarkable Geological 
 Phenomena of Brazil. " The existence of a glacial period," 
 he remarks, "however much derided when first announced, 
 is now a recognised fact. The divergence of opinion respect- 
 ing it is limited to a question of extent ; and after my recent 
 journey in the Amazons, I am led to add a new chapter to 
 the strange history of glacial phenomena, taken from the 
 southern hemisphere. . . . In Brazil the moraines are as 
 distinct and as well preserved in some of the coast-ranges on 
 the Atlantic side, not more than twelve or fifteen hundred 
 feet high, as in any glaciated localities known to geologists 
 in more northern parts of the world. The snow-line, even 
 in those latitudes, then descended so low that the masses of 
 ice found above its level actually forced their way down to 
 the sea-coast. . . . The valley of the Amazons was first 
 sketched out by the elevation of two tracts of land namely, 
 the plateau of Guiana on the north, and the central plateau 
 of Brazil on the south. It is probable that, at the time these 
 two table-lands were lifted above the sea-level, the Andes did 
 not exist, and the ocean flowed between them through an 
 open strait. At a later period the upheaval of the Andes 
 took place, closing the western side of the strait, and thus 
 transforming it into a gulf, open only towards the east. 
 Little or nothing is known of the earlier stratified deposits 
 resting upon the crystalline masses first uplifted along the 
 borders of the Amazonian valley. There is here no sequence, 
 as in North America, of Azoic, Silurian, Devonian, and Car- 
 boniferous formations, shored up against each other by the 
 gradual upheaval of the continent, although, unquestionably, 
 older palaeozoic and secondary beds underlie, here and there, 
 the later formations. . . . Whether the Tertiary deposits are 
 hidden under the modern ones, or whether they are wholly 
 wanting, they have never been observed in any part of the 
 Amazonian basin. "Whatever Tertiary deposits are repre- 
 
452 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 sented in geological maps of this region are so marked in 
 consequence of an incorrect identification of strata, belong- 
 ing in fact to a much more recent period. . . . Upon the 
 lower set of beds rests everywhere an extensive deposit of 
 finely-laminated clays, varying in thickness, but frequently 
 divided into layers as thin as a sheet of paper. These clay- 
 deposits assume occasionally a peculiar appearance, and one 
 which might mislead the observer as to their true nature. 
 When their surface has been long exposed to the action of the 
 atmosphere, and to the heat of the burning sun, they look 
 so much like clay-slates of the oldest geological epochs, that 
 at first sight I took them for primary slates, my attention 
 being attracted to them by their regular cleavage, distinct as 
 that of the most ancient clay-slates. And at Tomentins on 
 the banks of the Solimoes, in a locality where their exposed 
 surfaces had this primordial appearance, I found in those 
 very beds a considerable amount of well-preserved leaves, 
 the character of which proves their recent origin. These 
 leaves do not even indicate as ancient a period as the Ter- 
 tiaries, but closely resemble the vegetation of to-day. The 
 presence of such an extensive clay-formation, stretching over 
 a surface of more than 3000 miles in length, and about 
 700 in breadth, is not easily explained under ordinary cir- 
 cumstances. . . . Occasionally the ferruginous materials 
 prevail to such an extent that some of these beds might be 
 mistaken for bog -iron ore ; while others contain a large 
 amount of clay, more regularly stratified, and alternating 
 with strata of sandstone, thus recalling the most character- 
 istic forms of the Old Eed or Triassic formations. This 
 resemblance has, no doubt, led to the identification of the 
 Amazonian deposits with the more ancient formations of 
 Europe. ... A glance at any geological map of the world 
 will show the reader that the valley of the Amazons, so far 
 as an attempt is made to explain its structure, is represented 
 as containing isolated tracts of Devonian, Triassic, Jurassic, 
 Cretaceous, Tertiary, and Alluvial deposits. This is wholly 
 inaccurate, as is shown in the above sketch ; and, whatever 
 
THE AIR. 453 
 
 may be thought of my interpretation, it is my belief that 
 all these deposits belong to the ice-period in its earlier or 
 later phases. To this cosmic winter, which, judging from 
 all the phenomena connected with it, may have lasted for 
 thousands of centuries, we must look for the key to the 
 geological history of the Amazonian valley. ... It may be 
 truly said that there does not exist on the surface of the 
 earth a formation known to geologists resembling that of the 
 Amazons. Its extent is stupendous it stretches from the 
 Atlantic shore, through the whole width of Brazil into Peru, 
 to the very foot of the Andes. Humboldt speaks of it ' in 
 the vast plains of the Amazons in the eastern boundary 
 of Juen de Bracamoras,' and says, * This prodigious extension 
 of red sandstone in the low grounds stretching along the 
 east of the Andes is one of the most striking phenomena 
 I observed during my examination of rocks in equinoctial 
 regions.' . . . The rocks here differ so much in external 
 character from those of the north hemisphere, that the 
 European geologist stands at first bewildered before them, 
 and feels that the work of his life must be done over again. 
 It is some time before he attains a clew to the facts, and brings 
 them into harmony with his previous knowledge." * 
 
 444. Geology essentially a Study of Extinct Vitality and 
 Physical Activity. These profound observations upon the 
 recent character of deposition presented by the stratified 
 formations of South America certainly startle us from our 
 dreams of European geological epochs, as indicated by the 
 data of rocks and fossils. But geology is not merely a study 
 of the superposition of strata upon amorphous rocks, or vice 
 versa, or the classification of organic remains imbedded in 
 palaeozoic formations. These are but stepping-stones across 
 the stream of time from the present to the past history 
 of the earth enabling us to explore the extinct regions of 
 vitality, so that the geological philosopher may restore to 
 our imaginations pictures of its former physical geography 
 and natural phenomena. It has been well observed that 
 * ' A Journey in Brazil,' by Professor and Mrs Agassiz. 
 
454 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 " Geology deals with the internal as well as with the exter- 
 nal, with the past as well as with the present; lifts the 
 veil from the extinct, and marshals in chronological order 
 the long line of events, physical and vital, which consti- 
 tutes the history of our planet from the current hour back 
 to the remotest ages. All physical change, all vital relation- 
 ship, all continuity of law and order, come within the range 
 of its cognisance, requiring the minutest observation and the 
 most exact and sequential reasoning. . . . And thus, where 
 others would 'homeward plod their weary way/ the field- 
 geologist has his thoughts carried away from the present 
 into the far-distant past, gleaning a new fact in world-history 
 at every turn, and calling up vanished aspects of sea and 
 land by the magic wand of scientific deduction. The scenery 
 of nature, which, to most observers, is a mere passive cir- 
 cumstance, and nothing more, is to him a thing instinct 
 with a thousand activities and producing causes ; and what 
 in them is a mere transient gleam of admiration, becomes in 
 him an enduring glow of the clearest understanding. Oh, 
 the delight of the field-geologist as, seated on some craggy 
 peak, he looks down on the hills and glens that surround 
 him ! It is not alone the presence of their beauty or wild- 
 ness or grandeur that strikes him, as it must strike other ob- 
 servers, but the conscious knowledge of the agencies by which 
 their aspects were produced, and the looking backwards in 
 time through the long ages of change to which they have been 
 subjected. That hillside, smoothed and rounded by the ice- 
 sheet ; that glen, with its lateral and terminal moraines, 
 gouged out by the glacier ; and that winding valley, eroded 
 by aqueous and meteoric action, are each graven with 
 a history which speaks to the eye of science, and makes 
 these mountain solitudes rife with the presence of nature's 
 powers and activities. To others it may be given to ad- 
 mire ; to the geologist it is given to comprehend, and in that 
 comprehension to enjoy the purest pleasure which a survey 
 of the phenomena of nature can convey. ... It is thus in 
 the field that the student of geology obtains his fullest and 
 
THE AIR. 455 
 
 newest information, collects additional stores, and corrects 
 former misconceptions." * 
 
 445. Geological Dilemma of Theory and Observation. If 
 so much can be said with scientific propriety of the limited 
 field of geological observation among the glens and mountains 
 of Scotland, how great, how vast are the explored and un- 
 explored regions of the South American continent, where 
 Professor Agassiz finds new stores of information to correct 
 previous misconceptions of the true character presented by 
 the deposits of Brazil ! If we are to accept the apparently 
 trustworthy evidence of an eminent naturalist of extinct 
 glacial action at the sea-level in equatorial latitudes how can 
 the conclusions it leads to be reconciled with the generally 
 accepted theories of Lyell and others of the most advanced 
 school of geology, who base their views upon the supposition 
 that the present limits of the tropical zones existed throughout 
 all epochs 1 They hold that from the tropical to the arctic 
 climates which prevailed at different periods in the present 
 temperate latitudes of the north hemisphere, the sun never 
 rose above the horizon higher, or descended lower, at the 
 solstices than it does now ; and they advance the hypothesis 
 that all the remarkable phenomena geology furnishes records 
 of during these eras may be accounted for by different dispo- 
 sitions of the land above the level of the sea from what now 
 obtains. As far as this theory applies to the middle latitudes 
 of the two hemispheres, and in some measure to the higher 
 latitudes of the north hemisphere, there are evidences in the 
 geological record to support its possibility, although we take 
 exception to its grounds of probability as insufficient. But 
 if the evidence of glacial action in the valley of the Amazons 
 on the equatorial line itself be supported by further data 
 after investigation, it is clear that, at the present obliquity of 
 the earth's axis, no conceivable alteration in the areas of land 
 and sea could have effected a change of climate from the recent 
 past to the present, equivalent to a removal of the arctic circle 
 
 * Valedictory Address of Dr Page, retiring President, Edinburgh Geo- 
 logical Society, 1868. 
 
456 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 to the torrid zone. In this geological dilemma we step in 
 with our astronomical data of a probable wide extension of 
 that belt, based on actual diminution of the tropical zones, 
 as a logical solution of the problem. Assuming that these 
 extended five degrees beyond their present limits, we have 
 shown that the climate probably approached that of Mars, 
 where, upon the highest astronomical authority, glacial action 
 in all probability prevails over that planet's surface more or 
 less, from its poles to the borders of, if not within, its tropics. 
 Here we conceive there is a clear solution of the problem, 
 which might be mathematically demonstrated by the geome- 
 tricians, if they accepted without prejudice our theory for the 
 basis of their formula. That this may yet come about we con- 
 fidently predict, as the exceptional phenomena of what we may 
 appropriately term the " New World " of South America are 
 unfolded to our view by future scientific missions of which 
 we hope that this of Professor Agassiz is the precursor not 
 only from the United States, but from European scientific 
 bodies, in which those of Great Britain should take that active 
 part which belongs to her associations for the advancement of 
 science. 
 
 446. Importance of Geological Deductions to the Body Politic 
 and Government of a Nation. It may be considered by those 
 who are inclined to overlook the advantages of science to the 
 body politic, that it is a matter of small importance to the 
 nation at large whether the continent of South America was 
 or was not upheaved by deep-seated volcanic forces subsequent 
 to the appearance of the northern continental masses above 
 the sea. In contemplating this subject it must be remembered 
 that, apart from the geological and meteorological questions 
 involved, it refers significantly, in these days of violent earth- 
 quakes, to the permanent stability or otherwise of those regions 
 where man has built up so many wonderful monuments of his 
 civilisation in the great cities of Europe, Asia, and North 
 America. In this respect the question not only affects the 
 material progress of nations, but also the social, political, 
 and religious institutions of all civilised communities. For 
 
THE AIR. 457 
 
 example, is it not something for the inhabitants of northern 
 countries to obtain the most incontestable evidence that the 
 great volcanic vents of this hemisphere are comparatively 
 closed by the accumulation of refrigerated rocky matter at 
 their orifices, which has so thickened the crust of the earth 
 in these latitudes that they are permanently free from such 
 violent earthquakes as recently devastated South America? 
 Is it not something for science to assure the public mind of 
 Europe of the comparatively permanent stability of the land, 
 so that the aggregate population of some two hundred and fifty 
 millions may live without dread of such awful catastrophes 
 as those which befel the states of Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, 
 and Chili ? Is it not something for the consideration of the 
 inhabitants of the cities and seaports of European states to be 
 assured that these great hives of industry and commerce enjoy 
 comparative immunity from the dreadful oscillations of the 
 land, and the overwhelming waves of the sea that swept away 
 the once flourishing towns of Arica, Tacna, Arequipa, and 
 Iquique ? Is it not something for the three millions of people 
 inhabiting the great metropolitan district of London to know, 
 through the investigations of science, that their flimsy dwell- 
 ings, radiating from St Paul's to a circumference of thirty 
 miles, are on a foundation exempt from such terrific shocks 
 as those that laid the cities of the Andes in ruins of which, 
 were but one of relative force to shake the valley of the 
 Thames, the whole wilderness of bricks, and probably their 
 gigantic edifice in the midst, would topple over like a child's 
 house of cards, burying hundreds of thousands under the 
 ruins 1 Is it not, then, something for the inhabitants of the 
 most populous and wealthy city in the world to be assured 
 of the permanent stability of their homes; and is it not 
 something for the Government of this great realm to feel 
 confident, through faith in science, that the material pros- 
 perity and resources of the United Kingdom will remain 
 unimpaired by physical catastrophes for the due maintenance 
 of its social and political condition 1 ? It has been well observed 
 by Darwin, who speaks with authority, that " Earthquakes 
 
458 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 alone are sufficient to destroy the prosperity of any country. 
 If beneath England the now inert subterranean forces should 
 exert their powers, which most assuredly in former geological 
 ages they exerted, how completely would the entire condi- 
 tion of the country be changed ! What would become of the 
 lofty houses, thickly -packed cities, great manufactories, the 
 beautiful public and private edifices 1 If the new period of 
 disturbance were first to commence by some great earthquake 
 in the dead of night, how terrific would be the carnage ! 
 England would at once be bankrupt ; all papers, records, and 
 accounts would from that moment be lost. Government 
 being unable to collect taxes, and failing to maintain its 
 authority, the hand of violence and rapine would remain 
 uncontrolled. In every large town famine would go forth, 
 pestilence and death following in its train." * 
 
 447. Terrible Effects of the Earthquake at Tacna in Peru 
 described by an Eyewitness, applied to the London District. 
 Let the Londoner realise, if he can, the terrible effects that 
 would follow such an earthquake as that which destroyed the 
 town of Tacna and let him suppose himself safe while wit- 
 nessing its destruction of the devoted metropolis from the 
 position of Hampstead Heath from the following graphic 
 account furnished by an eyewitness an Englishman resi- 
 dent at that town in Peru : " On the fatal 13th August, at 
 4 P.M., I went to take my usual prandial walk ; and following 
 the water-course up through the town, I soon found myself 
 out upon the broad gravelly plain that lies between Tacna 
 and the mountains. I had gone nearly three miles out when 
 I noticed some little heaps of boulders piled up on the plain, 
 and thought I would take a look at them before returning to 
 dinner. As I walked towards them I felt suddenly faint and 
 giddy; the ground appeared to be moving under my feet, 
 much like a badly-laid carpet that the wind gets under. In 
 a moment more I found myself reeling and staggering in 
 a strange and most alarming manner, and thinking I was 
 about to swoon, I went quickly down upon my hands and 
 * ' Voyage Round the World.' 
 
THE AIR. 459 
 
 knees to save myself from injury in falling. At tliat moment 
 I noticed stones shaken down from the little heaps of "boul- 
 ders I had started to examine, and then I became aware of a 
 dull booming sound that seemed to be issuing from the entire 
 surface of the great desert between the Andes and the sea, 
 and, of course, I knew immediately it was an earthquake. I 
 observed the time by my watch the instant I rose to my feet, 
 it was exactly two minutes to five. The ground, which at 
 first had but one up-and-down movement, now began to 
 shake rapidly and violently from side to side, and I found it 
 so very difficult to keep on my feet that I preferred to go 
 down upon my knees, thinking that I could observe better 
 in that position, when my attention was not so much occu- 
 pied by attempting to preserve my balance. I now distinctly 
 saw the broad plain rising and falling in rapid pulsations, for 
 I was looking towards a horizon of low hills (away beyond 
 the town), with which I could compare the movements of the 
 ground. I thought I could recognise distinct undulations 
 coming from the direction of the Cordillera, and rolling 
 down towards the Pacific Ocean. The subterranean thun- 
 derings which, although not very loud, sounded now so grand 
 and terrible, also seemed to follow the same direction ; but I 
 cannot speak positively of either the one or the other, for at 
 times it appeared as if the awful sound was diffused equally 
 under the entire surface of the country, while the movements 
 were sometimes complicated and varied in direction. A 
 large old palm-tree that grew near the water-course, at a dis- 
 tance of fifty yards behind where I was kneeling, was so 
 violently shaken that the loud rustling of its large heavy 
 leaves caused me to turn my head in that direction, and I 
 now observed something very strange and unnatural about 
 the aspect of the mountains, that hitherto I had not noticed, 
 because my face had been turned towards the town. This 
 was an appearance of dense clouds of yellow dust bursting 
 from the steep mountain-sides, spreading and rolling along 
 the entire western front of the first range of Cordillera, just 
 as if the great Andes themselves were being rent and shaken 
 
460 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 to pieces by some terrible convulsion. It was a truly won- 
 derful but rather terrifying scene. At that moment the 
 already frightfully-heaving ground began a new kind of move- 
 ment more alarming than any I had yet felt namely,, a 
 series of sharp upward jerks, as though the crust of the earth 
 was receiving a succession of sudden and tremendous blows 
 from beneath, causing loose stones to jar audibly against each 
 other, and masses of gravel to fall from the banks of the dry 
 water-courses. Then I saw some houses about a quarter of a 
 mile off on the plain apparently crumbling away, and clouds 
 of dust arising from their ruins. A similar but much larger 
 dust-cloud now appeared boiling up from the city itself ; and 
 then the distant wailings of thousands of terrified people, the 
 moaning and howling of dogs, and many other sounds of dis- 
 tress, were mingled with the awful and mysterious rumblings 
 of the earthquake, that seemed to be increasing in violence 
 every moment. Up to this time the only emotions I had ex- 
 perienced were a deep and most intense interest in the strange 
 scenes enacting around me, and a certain feeling of quiet 
 exultation in the thought that I should have been fortunate 
 enough to witness such extraordinary phenomena. But the 
 evident destruction that was going on in the city, and, above 
 all, the terrible aspect of the mountains, now convinced me 
 that it was a very serious earthquake, and I even thought it 
 possible that we were about to experience some awful catas- 
 trophe some convulsion of nature on a prodigious scale. I 
 had no fears whatever for my own personal safety, for I felt 
 pretty confident that nothing could injure me out on the 
 plain, unless the ground should gape open just where I hap- 
 pened to be, which I thought exceedingly improbable. And 
 yet I, who at first actually gloried and exulted in the earth- 
 quake, was now most keenly anxious for it to pass away, and 
 leave us and the poor earth in peace ; for it had now become 
 altogether too serious not to be exceedingly alarming, and 
 every succeeding shock, or rather blow, made me fairly wince. 
 So I got down on all-fours again, and held on, as it were, to 
 the troubled ground, until, after one tremendous heave that 
 
THE AIR. 461 
 
 I felt sure must have overthrown every remaining house in 
 the city, accompanied by a dull roar that I could hear rolling 
 down towards the sea, the frantic movements ceased alto- 
 gether, and I felt truly thankful that it was all over. . . . 
 I now returned with all haste towards Tacna, full of anxiety 
 as to the fate of the town. As I hurried along I felt, at the 
 intervals of every few minutes, repeated templores of more 
 or less severity; and at each successive shock renewed cries 
 of terror came from the direction of the town. As I passed 
 down the principal street I found it thronged with frightened 
 people, standing, or more generally kneeling, beside the 
 gutter in the middle of the roadway women and children 
 crying most piteously, men embracing each other, and sick 
 people being carried out in ponchos. Every here and there 
 the ruins of houses encumbered the way, while their late 
 occupants appeared, some completely overwhelmed with 
 grief, sobbing and crying bitterly; others bewailing with 
 frantic cries and gestures the loss of their property; and 
 others, more quiet and sensible, sitting disconsolately on the 
 dusty heaps of rubbish that had so lately been their homes, 
 the very picture of misery and despair. Eager men, with 
 pale faces and wild looks, were searching anxiously for dif- 
 ferent members of their families, who at the first alarm had 
 rushed out of the houses in all directions, and were scattered 
 about the town. Wailing women were wringing their hands 
 in their misery, and crying, as only women can cry, for their 
 missing children ; and terrified people of all sorts and condi- 
 tions, driven crazy with fear, were comporting themselves in 
 various strange ways, some insanely screaming with pure 
 terror, others laughing hysterically, others fainting and ly- 
 ing pale and apparently dead in the streets, but by far the 
 greater number rapidly repeating prayer after prayer, vainly 
 imploring their saints to protect them. And whenever the 
 boom of a fresh shock was heard approaching, the whole 
 populace would go down on their knees with one accord, 
 and, with hats off and heads bowed down, would pray louder 
 than ever, in their native tongue, ' Mercy, Lord ! mercy, 
 
462 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 Mary, pure and holy ! mercy, Lord ! ' The terrors of 
 that dreadful day, which appeared to the affrighted inhabi- 
 tants as if the great day of judgment had arrived, and the 
 earth was being ' gathered up as a scroll/ were not at an end, 
 for as night set in the lurid glare of volcanic eruptions gave 
 to the surrounding darkness a realisation of the visions in 
 Revelations. In some cities what buildings the earthquakes 
 and influx of the sea had spared were destroyed by conflagra- 
 tions. Then famine stalked through the land ; pestilence 
 decimated the surviving inhabitants; and, as if it were 
 necessary for the evil-disposed among men to add the climax 
 to the ruin and distress that prevailed, prowling bands of 
 robbers ransacked the towns and villages, plundering the 
 survivors of their remaining property." 
 
 448. The Epoch of great Volcanic Violence has passed 
 away from Europe. In view of probable calamities such as 
 befel the doomed cities on the west coast of South America, 
 is it not something for the inhabitants of Europe to know, 
 upon the highest scientific authority, that, as far as human 
 investigation can penetrate into the profound central regions 
 of the earth, there is abundant evidence to conclude that the 
 epoch of frequent, violent, and widespread volcanic activity 
 in these latitudes has passed away 1 In confirmation of this 
 doctrine we advance our theory of unequal ponderosity in 
 the north and south hemispheres ; wherein the former is 
 not only heavier by reason of its greater elevation of solid 
 matter above the depths of the sea, but below, the inner 
 crust of the earth is in all probability thicker, or the internal 
 volcanic vents of primary epochs made confluent, or flowing 
 into domes of elevation, that resist more effectually the deep- 
 seated sources of that power, which finds the weaker points 
 of outlet in this era chiefly in equatorial and southern lati- 
 tudes. It may be said that the great earthquake of Lisbon 
 is an example in modern times that contradicts this view ; 
 also the numerous eruptions of Vesuvius during the past 
 year. But we contend that these rather support our views 
 of the distribution of subterranean forces than otherwise. 
 
THE AIR. 463 
 
 Compared with, the convulsions of the land in South Ame- 
 rica, these were limited, not only in degrees of force, hut in 
 extent of area and frequency of action, during the three cen- 
 turies that this region has "been known to Europeans. With- 
 out going back to periods before the earthquakes of 1868, we 
 may point out the comparative extent of country that would 
 have been affected in Europe had these occurred in the north 
 hemisphere. The line of action extended from Casma in 
 Peru, 850 miles north of Arica, to Talcahuano in Chile, 1300 
 miles south of that central point of activity. As both of 
 these towns at the extremes were greatly damaged by the 
 earthquake, there is no doubt that the line extended beyond 
 these points. Applying the ascertained length to Europe, 
 we find that it would include the coast of the Continent from 
 the North Cape to Cape Finisterre ; and its lateral action of 
 about 200 miles would include the east and west shores of 
 the English Channel, with the cities of London and Paris 
 near the central point of activity. 
 
 449. Scientific Missions should be appointed by the State. 
 If ; therefore, there are any lingering doubts in the public 
 mind as to the possibility of earthquakes of equal violence to 
 the Peruvian templores visiting our crowded cities, we trust 
 that what has been advanced in this essay has aided in the 
 assurance of the permanent stability of their foundations. 
 Still the voice of a single individual is of small effect unless 
 it mingles with those of others strengthened by authority. 
 "We might say that it lies within the scope of legitimate 
 action for the Government to aid a scientific commission in 
 this respect, where the public peace of mind is concerned, to 
 investigate and report on the subject, as much as it would be 
 to appoint a commission of inquiry into any ordinary social 
 or political question. We hope to see the day when there 
 may be a department of practical science in the State, as well 
 as departments of trade and education. Meanwhile it would 
 be advantageous to the nation in many ways, even on the 
 score of sanatory improvements and the public health, to 
 investigate the questions we have broached in this essay, by 
 
464 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 means of a scientific commission sent to our colonies in South. 
 Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, and the anomalous 
 regions of South America. Hitherto these investigations 
 have been carried on chiefly by individual exertion, with 
 occasional slender assistance from scientific associations. But 
 now it would appear as if the time had come when it is ne- 
 cessary to supplement personal energy and service by grants 
 from the public revenue. Excepting the prince of scientific 
 travellers, Humboldt, few savans have been wealthy enough 
 to carry out their investigations on a scale commensurate 
 with the important objects of science. Where means have 
 not been at the disposal of the naturalist to conduct his 
 operations, he has been indebted to the generosity and muni- 
 ficence of others. Still the assistance looks like charity. A 
 notable instance of this is seen in the mission of Professor 
 Agassiz to Brazil, where, but for voluntary assistance, his 
 labours would have been almost fruitless. We trust, there- 
 fore, that should a commission of that nature proceed from 
 this country, it will be amply furnished with, means by a free 
 vote of Parliament. 
 
 450. Different Effects upon Travellers of the Rarefied Air in 
 the Andes and the Alps. As we progress in our knowledge of 
 the physical geography and natural phenomena of the south 
 hemisphere, further disparities may be recognised, at present 
 unknown, as compared with those of the north hemisphere. 
 Recently some French savans, on comparing the experiences 
 of travellers ascending high mountains, have observed a sin- 
 gular disparity in the atmospheric effects on the human con- 
 stitution. It is well known that, on ascending Mont Blanc or 
 any other high mountain situated in the north hemisphere, 
 the traveller experiences a considerable congestion of blood 
 in the head, which manifests itself by the swelling of the 
 face and lips, somnolency, and the emission of blood from the 
 mouth, nose, and pores. In the south hemisphere an op- 
 posite effect is observed instead of an apoplectic tendency, 
 a general weakness, approaching to syncope, pervades the 
 body, causing paleness, dizziness, fainting, and vomiting. Nor 
 
THE AIR. 465 
 
 are the means of affording relief the same, except that in both 
 cases a horizontal position is considered advantageous. But 
 no one in the northern hemisphere would think of adminis- 
 tering to the patient the irritating poultices and exciting 
 draughts invariably used in South America ; and the Alpine 
 tourist soon finds out by experience that the brandy he has 
 taken with him rather increases than diminishes his indispo- 
 sition. This extraordinary difference in the symptoms expe- 
 rienced in the two hemispheres cannot be attributed to the 
 mere rarefaction of the air in the upper strata of the atmo- 
 sphere, and must therefore be owing to some other cause. It 
 has been attributed to the difference in electric influences. 
 We are of opinion, however, that our theory of a disparity 
 in the constituents of the south and north aerial hemispheres 
 may account for the phenomenon, and the peculiar symptoms 
 affecting the traveller through the mountains of the Andes 
 may arise from the atmosphere being highly charged with 
 carbonic acid gas in that region. 
 
 451. Speculative Hypothesis on the Carbonic Structure of 
 the Sun. Here the speculative philosopher, with his tran- 
 scendental generalisations, might trace some connection be- 
 tween the carbonic element of the atmosphere in South Ame- 
 rica, the existence of carbon in its purest form in the diamond 
 mines of Brazil, and its probable source in the sun itself. He 
 might advance the hypothesis, that carbon is one of the 
 indestructible elements that maintain the radiation of heat 
 throughout the solar system, of which the central luminary is 
 the mighty depository, from whence the comets, planets, and 
 their satellites have derived their constituent atoms of its 
 essence, arguing as follows : If we infer that cosmical bodies 
 in their nebulous form contained nitrogen as their basis, it is 
 not unphilosophical to suppose, that when they assumed the 
 indefinite form and erratic orbits of comets in their close 
 perihelion round the sun, they absorbed a portion of its in- 
 flammable elementary structure. And presuming this con- 
 sists chiefly of carbon and hydrogen as the combustible mat- 
 ter, with oxygen as supporting combustion, we may conclude 
 
 2 G 
 
466 ORIGIN OP THE SEASONS. 
 
 that these elements were derived from the sun, more or less 
 at each cometic revolution, diminishing in the volume absorbed 
 as their orbits contracted and their nuclei assumed planetary 
 forms. We can suppose also that, as they received these ele- 
 ments in addition to those of their primary nature in a high 
 calorific condition, as they swept round the incandescent cen- 
 tre of their system, they combined chemically with the azotic 
 gas or nitrogen. Then as they rushed into boundless space, 
 where the sun exerted little or no calorific influence over 
 them there, in the freezing darkness of years, the gaseous 
 elements condensed into liquid and solid forms before they 
 revolved again within the solar heat. Thus in searching for 
 data to examine the primitive structure of the earth, it is not 
 necessary that we should confine our investigations to the 
 rocks and seas. "With a more sublime and primary book be- 
 fore us, we should look above and around in the circumambi- 
 ent atmosphere, and through it, with penetrating eye and as- 
 tronomical instruments, gaze upon and study the sidereal 
 heavens, wherein appear cosmical bodies illustrative of its 
 history from the beginning. Let us contemplate the sun, for 
 example, in this manner, and consider its vast body, chiefly 
 of carbonic structure. May we not consider its substance as 
 generating a photosphere from which we derive all our light 
 and heat necessary for existence as obeying the same eternal 
 laws that regulate combustion on this earth wherein carbon is 
 the basis 1 As we gaze into the winter's fire, where the blaz- 
 ing coal or yule-log burns and brightens up our festive homes, 
 we see, when its charred embers begin to show through the 
 flickering flames, black spots amid the brightness in strange 
 contrast. So may it be that the solar orb itself whose mag- 
 nitude astronomers inform us is nearly fourteen hundred thou- 
 sand times that of our earth, and on whose incandescent sur- 
 face black spots appear, shifting, contracting, and expanding 
 like the charred surface of our blazing log is a vast globe of 
 solid carbon, with an atmosphere of hydrogen and oxygen in 
 a constant state of combustion. And as the immortal New- 
 ton deduced from the alembic of his brain the fact which 
 
THE AIR. 467 
 
 Davy chemically demonstrated that the diamond is only 
 pure carbon may it not be, if there are mountain-chains on 
 the carbonic sphere of the sun, that in their glittering pin- 
 nacles piercing the fiery photosphere we behold vast diamonds 
 koh-i-noors literally mountains of light, whose lustre daz- 
 zles the human eye at a distance of ninety-five millions of 
 miles 1 With this conception of the solar radiance, how poor, 
 how infinitesimal the brilliance of all the gems that deck the 
 jewelled crowns of earthly monarchs, or the persons of earth's 
 richest sons and daughters ! 
 
 452. Spectral Analysis of a. Telescopic Comet seen in 
 1868. That such philosophical speculations regarding the 
 abundance of carbon as an element of cosmical bodies is not 
 altogether without actual data in its support, we shall quote 
 the observations of a scientific writer in the ' Daily News ' 
 regarding the spectral analysis of a telescopic comet which 
 appeared in the heavens during 1868 : " Oil the 18th of 
 June a comet was discovered by the German astronomer, Dr 
 Winnecke, already known as the discoverer of a short-period 
 comet which appeared in 1858. So closely are the heavens 
 watched in the present day by the astronomers of Europe 
 and America, that it is no uncommon circumstance to hear of 
 new telescopic comets being discovered simultaneously by 
 more than one observer. This was the case in the present 
 instance M. Bequet, of the Imperial Observatory at Mar- 
 seilles, having detected Winnecke's comet independently on 
 the same night as the German observer. The stranger soon 
 increased in brightness, and became at one time visible to 
 the naked eye. In fact, though not comparable in brilliancy 
 Avith the comets which attracted public notice in 1859, 
 1861, and 1862, Winnecke's comet has surpassed in bril- 
 liancy all those which have made their appearance during 
 the past five years. In the telescope it appeared as a nearly 
 circular spot of nebulous light, in the centre of which there 
 was a round nucleus from which a tail might be traced to a 
 distance of nearly one degree. Mr Huggins quickly availed 
 himself of this favourable opportunity for extending the 
 
468 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 researches by which he has already thrown so much light on 
 the structure of the celestial bodies. He found that in the 
 spectroscope the light of the comet like that of Brorsen's 
 was resolved into three bands ; but these were much broader 
 in Winnecke's than in Brorsen's comet they were also dif- 
 ferently situated. They were not of uniform breadth and 
 brilliancy, but shaped somewhat like tongues of light, the 
 pointed extremities being the least brilliant. The brightest 
 band was in the middle, and appeared to spring at its 
 brightest end from a sharply-defined line of light. In this 
 case, as in the case of Brorsen's comet, only the faintest part 
 of the comet had a continuous spectrum ; so faint was this, 
 that Mr Huggins was unable to speak positively of its 
 existence." 
 
 453. Determination by the Spectrum to have an Atmos- 
 phere of Volatilised Carbon. So far the observation of 
 Winnecke's comet had presented nothing which differed in 
 kind from what had already been learned respecting the 
 cometary spectra. But now the time has come for the dis- 
 covery of one of the most remarkable and significant facts 
 which has ever been made known. We have already men- 
 tioned that Mr Huggins in 1864 examined the spectra of 
 several terrestrial elements, and that he had noticed some 
 among them which appeared to consist of bright bands. 
 Amongst the diagrams he had made at that time he now 
 found one which seemed to present a very close resemblance 
 to the spectrum of Winnecke's comet. This diagram repre- 
 sented the spectrum of carbon, as seen when the spark from 
 an induction coil is taken through olefiant gas. In this gas, 
 as many of our readers are doubtless aware, there are six 
 parts by weight of carbon to one of hydrogen. The spectrum 
 of the light of a spark sent through the gas presents, of 
 course, a combination of the spectra of carbon and hydro- 
 gen. But it is easy to distinguish the one from the other, 
 since the bright lines belonging to the hydrogen spectrum 
 are well known to spectroscopists. In the spectrum of the 
 comet, as we have seen, there were no bright lines, so that 
 
THE AIR. 469 
 
 it was in order to determine whether the hornet consisted 
 wholly or mainly of volatilised carbon that Mr Huggins 
 proceeded to the direct comparison of the spectrum of carbon 
 with that of the comet. Dr Miller, F.R.S., the eminent 
 chemist and spectroscopist, whose name has already been 
 associated with that of Mr Huggins in researches of this 
 sort, was present, and took part in the observations which 
 were made. " A glass" gasholder, containing olefiant gas, was 
 connected by a flexible tube with a glass tube, into which 
 the platinum wires were soldered. This tube was so fixed 
 that the spark between the wires was suitably reflected into 
 the spectroscope attached to the telescope ; so that the 
 spectrum of carbon appeared directly below the spectrum of 
 the comet." The two physicists were perfectly satisfied that 
 there was 110 perceptible difference between the two spec- 
 tra. The bands were not merely coincident in position, but 
 in their general character and in their relative brightness. 
 On a subsequent occasion, Mr Huggins repeated the experi- 
 ment with an equally satisfactory result. 
 
 454. Remarks on a Concentration of the Physical Sciences 
 into one " Great Science" "We are compelled, then, to 
 accept as an inevitable conclusion from those observations the 
 fact that Winnecke's comet consists either wholly or mainly 
 of volatilised carbon ! How it is that a substance which is 
 so fixed in its nature as carbon can be volatilised in the inter- 
 planetary spaces it would be exceedingly difficult to explain. 
 In the case of a comet like the one of 1843, which approached 
 the sun within a distance of about 60,000 miles, one could 
 comprehend the volatilisation of any known terrestrial ele- 
 ment. The heat to which that comet was subjected was 
 equivalent, Sir John Herschel tells us, to that which would 
 be experienced if there were 47,000 suns in the sky, each 
 equal in magnitude and brilliancy to our own sun. But 
 Winnecke's comet did not approach the sun near so closely 
 as this. When Mr Huggins was observing it, it was at least 
 as far from the sun as our earth ; and it seems difficult to 
 understand how at that distance from the sun its substance 
 
470 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 should be heated so intensely that such a substance as carbon 
 should be volatilised. The fact, however, remains ; and we 
 are beginning to learn that what is intelligible to us must 
 not be accepted as the measure of that which actually exists 
 in nature. The more widely we extend our researches, the 
 wider becomes the boundary of the unknown ; and each ex- 
 planation of known facts brings with it a hundred difficulties 
 which remain inexplicable. At present we must be content 
 to accept the important discovery which Mr Huggins has 
 effected, without expecting that we shall be able at once to 
 explain its meaning. Perhaps before long other discoveries 
 may be made which will dovetail into this one. The astro- 
 nomer, the chemist, and the geologist, no longer work alone. 
 A universal science is springing into existence, which includes 
 the results obtained by labourers in many fields of research. 
 Unfortunately there is still a want a want which we are not 
 likely soon to see supplied ; we want a Humboldt, with all a 
 Humboldt's powers intensified fifty-fold, to bring the sciences 
 of man into due correlation inter se, and to evolve from them, 
 and carefully to co-ordinate, the principles of the 'great science' 
 of the future." 
 
 455. Reflections on the desirability of accomplishing that 
 Object. Thus it may be said that we are only on the thresh- 
 old of our knowledge concerning the whole arcana of the 
 physical sciences in determining the unexplained wonders 
 of creation. In these interesting experiments we see how 
 chemistry steps in to solve an astronomical problem never 
 dreamt of by Newton or Galileo, in whose time that science 
 was little better than a jumble of empiricism. In like man- 
 ner we trust that what we have advanced on geological prin- 
 ciples to account for the remarkable physical phenomena 
 observable on the earth, as vestiges of its past history, will 
 aid in cementing the youngest of our sciences with the ancient 
 and venerable study of astronomy. There are other sciences, 
 no doubt, that will in time add their quota of discovery to 
 the " grand science " that is likely to arise out of their gene- 
 ral concentration ; but in order to render their application 
 
THE AIR. 471 
 
 available towards the desired end, it is absolutely necessary 
 that all prejudices and jealousies should be set aside for the 
 accomplishment of the one great object in view. 
 
 456. All Nature proclaims a Principle of Physical Binary 
 Division dual in Phenomena. In conclusion: When we 
 contemplate the aspect of the earth revolving in space as a 
 great cosmical body, with its solid framework of rock covered 
 two-thirds by water and completely enveloped in air, it is not 
 inconsistent with nature to find that these elements are sub- 
 ject to binary laws under one universal system. In the in- 
 organic world there is a system of compensation which gives 
 on the one hand and takes on the other. Thus the structure 
 of our planet may be one and indivisible, but the disposition 
 of its solid parts is unequal, from whence arises its sublimity 
 and utility. There are no two parts of its compound sub- 
 stance alike, yet all is homogeneous, forming one grand whole. 
 In like manner the boundless ocean presents a general uni- 
 formity and continuity, yet we know that it is divided into 
 many subsidiary seas presenting great variety of feature, with 
 two separate systems of currents. But it is in the organic 
 world that we find the binary divisions of nature in perfec- 
 tion. Every leaf that forms the foliage of the forest has its 
 subdivisions, apparently the same exactly on each side the 
 midrib, yet on close inspection there is a disparity between 
 one half and the other. And so also every fish, bird, or 
 beast is double in its structure, forming animated systems of 
 compensation, one of which can support life in the whole 
 should the other become disarranged. On this principle it 
 is as consistent to hold that there are two great currents of 
 the ocean, one flowing south of the equator and the other 
 north, as it is to say that the circulation of- the blood is 
 separated into two branches ramifying to the extremities, 
 right and left of the spine; or that the binary division of the 
 atmosphere herein expounded is compatible with the fact that 
 we have a pair of lungs for the purpose of respiration. Thus 
 it would appear that, as all the organs and functions of the 
 animal structure are dual in their nature, so the solid, fluid, 
 
472 ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 and gaseous structures of our common mother-earth, especially 
 the atmosphere that furnishes the life-giving element to her 
 children, are binary in their physical phenomena. 
 
 457. Concluding Remarks on the General Subject of the 
 Work.- With these comprehensive remarks on the philo- 
 sophy of our theory, we have reached the last phase of the 
 changeful subject, and, like the vicissitudes of the seasons in 
 their annual course, return to the point from whence we set 
 out. Having gone, as it were, round the orbit of our theory, 
 we have passed through the spring, summer, autumn, and 
 winter of investigation, arriving again at the "gentle" season 
 to survey the general principle herein set forth. With the 
 " ethereal mildness " of the poet we submit it to the conside- 
 ration of the reader learned in the exact sciences, as a com- 
 promise between astronomy and geology in accounting for the 
 primary cause of the seasons and other unexplained pheno- 
 mena in the past history of the earth. While astronomers 
 have hitherto represented our planet as dependent solely on 
 the perturbations of other cosmical bodies for these wondrous 
 changes, we have endeavoured to show that within its own 
 spherical shell lay the forces that impelled it into new activ- 
 ity after its primordial formation. Viewing it in this light, 
 the world is not that inert mass of matter which we were led 
 to believe, tossed about as a lifeless terrestrial ball among the 
 other members of the planetary system. We have seen how 
 these internal volcanic forces, acting with tremendous violence 
 on the external crust, drove the earth from its normal posi- 
 tion in the ecliptic, causing various degrees of obliquity be- 
 tween that and its equatorial plane, which may account for 
 the most inexplicable epochs divulged by fossil remains ; and 
 we have also .shown that these external changes in its con- 
 figuration and rotation have probably brought about vital 
 alterations in the atmosphere, which, under the influence of 
 the solar heat, were the ORIGIN OF THE SEASONS. 
 
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10 BOOKS PUBLISHED BY 
 
 THE PHYSICAL ATLAS OF NATURAL PHENOMENA. 
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 A GEOLOGICAL MAP OF EUROPE. 
 
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 GEOLOGICAL AND PAL^EONTOLOGICAL MAP OF THE 
 
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 GEOLOGICAL MAP OF SCOTLAND. 
 
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 INTRODUCTORY TEXT-BOOK OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. 
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 HANDBOOK OF GEOLOGICAL TERMS, GEOLOGY, AND 
 
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 THE PAST AND PRESENT LIFE OF THE GLOBE: 
 
 Being a Sketch in Outline of the World's Life-System. By DAVID PAGE, 
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 engraved expressly for this Work. 
 
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 the successive manifestations of life on the earth set forth in so clear an order, or traced so vividly from 
 the earliest organisms deep-buried in its stratified cruit, to the familiar forms that now adorn and people 
 iu surface/'-Ltterarj/ Gutette. 
 
WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS. 11 
 
 THE GEOLOGICAL EXAMINATOR: 
 
 A Progressive Series of Questions adapted to the Introductory and Advanced 
 Text-Books of Geology. Prepared to assist Teachers in framing their Exami- 
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 DAVID PAGE, F.R.S.E., F.G.S. Third Edition, Is. 
 
 THE GEOLOGY OF PENNSYLVANIA: 
 
 A Government Survey ; with a General View of the Geology of the United 
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 the Coal-Fields of North America and Great Britain. By PROFESSOR HENRY 
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 SEA -SIDE STUDIES AT ILFRACOMBE, TENBY, THE 
 
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 PHYSIOLOGY OF COMMON LIFE. 
 
 By GEORGE HENRY LEWES, Author of ' Sea-side Studies,' &o. Illus- 
 trated with numerous Engravings. 2 vols., 12s. 
 
 CHEMISTRY OF COMMON LIFE. 
 
 By PROFESSOR J. F. W. JOHNSTON. A New Edition. Edited by G. H. 
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 crown Svo, 11s. 6d. 
 
 NOMENCLATURE OF COLOURS, 
 
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 NARRATIVE OF THE EARL OF ELGIN'S MISSION TO 
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 RUSSIAN SHORES OF THE BLACK SEA 
 
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 EGYPT, THE SOUDAN, AND CENTRAL AFRICA: 
 
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 NOTES ON NORTH AMERICA: 
 
 Agricultural, Economical, and Social. By PROFESSOR J. F. W. JOHNSTON. 
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 A FAMILY TOUR ROUND THE COASTS OF SPAIN" AND 
 
 PORTUGAL during the Winter of 1860-1S61. By LADY DUNBAR, of North- 
 field. In post Svo, 5s. 
 
12 BOOKS PUBLISHED BY 
 
 THE ROYAL ATLAS OF MODERN GEOGRAPHY. 
 
 In a Series of entirely Original and Authentic Maps. By A. KEITH 
 JOHNSTON, F.R.S.E., F.R.G.S., Author of the Physical Atlas,' &c. With 
 a complete Index of easy reference to each Map, comprising nearly 150,000 
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 INDEX GEOGRAPHICUS: 
 
 Being an Index to nearly ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND NAMES OF 
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 A NEW MAP OF EUROPE. 
 
 By A. KEITH JOHNSTON, F.R.S.E. Size, 4 feet 2 inches by 3 feet 5 
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 ATLAS OF SCOTLAND. 
 
 31 Maps of the Counties of Scotland, coloured. Bound in roan, price 10s. 6d. 
 Each County may be had separately, in Cloth Case, Is. 
 
 KEITH JOHNSTON'S SCHOOL ATLASES: 
 
 GENERAL AND DESCRIPTIVE GEOGRAPHY, exhibiting the Actual and Com- 
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 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY, illustrating, in a Series of Original Designs, the 
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 CLASSICAL GEOGRAPHY, comprising, in Twenty-three Plates, Maps and Plans 
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 ASTRONOMY. Edited by J. R. HIND, Esq., F.R.A.S., &c. Notes and 
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 in Astronomy. 18 Maps. Half-bound, 12s. 6d. 
 
 ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ATLAS OK GENERAL AND DESCRIPTIVE GEOGRAPHY 
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 A MANUAL OF MODERN GEOGRAPHY: 
 
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 With Index. 7s. 6d., bound in leather. 
 
WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS. 13 
 
 THE BOOK OF THE FARM. 
 
 Detailing the Labours of the Farmer, Farm-Steward, Ploughman, Shepherd, 
 Hedger, Cattle-man, Field-worker, and Dairymaid, and forming a safe Monitor 
 for Students in Practical Agriculture. By HENRY STEPHENS, F.R.S.E. 
 2 vols. royal Svo, 3, handsomely bound in cloth, with upwards of 600 
 Illustrations. 
 
 "The best book I have ever met with." Professor Johnston. 
 
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 in general terms, commend them to the careful study of every young man who wishes to become a good 
 practical farmer."-'7'tme. 
 
 " One of the completes! works on agriculture of which eur literature can boast." Agricultural Gazette. 
 
 THE BOOK OF FARM IMPLEMENTS AND MACHINES. 
 
 By JAMES SLIGHT and R. SCOTT BURN. Edited by HENRY STEPHENS, 
 F.R.S.E. Illustrated with 876 Engravings. Royal Svo, uniform with the 
 'Book of the Farm,' half-bound, 2, 2s. 
 
 THE BOOK OF FARM BUILDINGS: 
 
 Their Arrangement and Construction. By HENRY STEPHENS, F.R.S.E., 
 and R. SCOTT BURN. Royal Svo, with 1045 Illustrations. Uniform with 
 the ' Book of the Farm.' Half-bound, 1, 11s. 6d. 
 
 THE BOOK OF THE GARDEN. 
 
 By CHARLES M'INTOSH. In 2 large vols. royal Svo, embellished with 
 1353 Engravings. 
 
 Each Volume may be had separately viz. : 
 
 I. ARCHITECTURAL AND ORNAMENTAL. On the Formation of Gardens 
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 Illustrated by 1073 Engravings, pp. 766. 2, 10s. 
 
 II. PRACTICAL GARDENING. Directions for the Culture of the Kitchen 
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 i to the notice of the public." 
 
 PRACTICAL SYSTEM OF FARM BOOK-KEEPING: 
 
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 AINSLIE'S TREATISE ON LAND-SURVEYING. 
 
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14 BOOKS PUBLISHED BY 
 
 HANDBOOK OF THE MECHANICAL ARTS, 
 
 Concerned in the Construction and Arrangement of Dwellings and other 
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 PROFESSOR JOHNSTON'S WORKS: 
 
 EXPKRIMENTAL AGRICULTURE. Being the Results of Past, and Suggestions 
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 ELEMKNTS OF AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTRY AND GEOLOGY. Eighth Edition, 
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 A CATECHISM OF AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTRY AND GEOLOGY. Fifty-seventh 
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 ON THE USE OF LIME IN AGRICULTURE. 6s. 
 
 INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE ANALYSIS OF SOILS. Fourth Edition, 2s. 
 
 THE RELATIVE VALUE OF ROUND AND SA WN TIMBER, 
 
 Shown by means of Tables and Diagrams. By JAMES RAIT, Land-Steward 
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 THE YEAR-BOOK OF AGRICULTURAL FACTS. 
 
 1859 and 1860. Edited by R. SCOTT BURN. Fcap. 8vo, 5s. each. 1861 and 
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 ELKINGTON'S SYSTEM OF DRAINING: 
 
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 JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE, AND TRANSACTIONS OF 
 
 THE HIGHLAND AND AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF SCOTLAND. 
 OLD SERIES, 1828 to 1843, 21 vols. . . . 3 3 
 NKW SERIES, 1843 to 1851, 8 vols. ... 220 
 
 THE RURAL ECONOMY OF ENGLAND, SCOTLAND, AND 
 
 IRELAND. By LEONCE DE LAVERGNE. Translated from the French. 
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 DAIRY MANAGEMENT AND FEEDING OF MILCH COWS; 
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 Second Edition. Fcap., Is. 
 
 ITALIAN IRRIGATION: 
 
 A Report addressed to the Hon. the Court of Directors of the East India 
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 THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE FARM : 
 
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 medium 4to, 2, 2s. 
 
 " One of the most useful and beautiful additions to Messrs Blackwood's extensive and valuable library 
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 THE Y ESTER DEEP LAND-CULTURE: 
 
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 cessfully practised for several years by the Marquess of Tweeddale at Tester. 
 By HENRY STEPHENS, Esq., F.R.S.E., Author of the ' Book of the Farm.' 
 In small Svo, with Engravings on Wood, 4s. 6d. 
 
WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS. 15 
 
 A MANUAL OF PRACTICAL DRAINING. 
 
 By HENRY STEPHENS, F.R.S.E., Author of the 'Book of the Farm. 
 Third Edition, 8vo, 5s. 
 
 A CATECHISM OF PRACTICAL AGRICULTURE. 
 
 By HENRY STEPHENS, F.R.S.E., Author of the 'Book of the Farm,' &c. 
 In crown 8vo, with Illustrations, Is. 
 
 HANDY BOOK ON PROPERTY LAW. 
 
 By LOUD ST LEONARDS. The Seventh Edition. To which is now added 
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 trait of the Author, engraved by HOLL. 3s. 6d. 
 
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 ing, buying, mortgaging, leasing, settling, and devising estates. We are informed of our relations to our 
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 million, a book which the author tenders to the prufanum vulyus as even capable of ' beguiling a few 
 hours in a railway carriage.'" TiiMs. 
 
 THE PLANTERS GUIDE. 
 
 By SIR HENRY STEUART. A New Edition, with the Author's last Additions 
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 STABLE ECONOMY: 
 
 A Treatise on the Management of Horses. By JOHN STEWART, V.S. 
 Seventh Edition, 6s. 6d. 
 
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 ADVICE TO PURCHASERS OF HORSES. 
 By JOHN STEWART, V.S. ISmo, plates, 2s. 6d. 
 
 A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE CULTIVATION OF THE 
 
 GRAPE VINE. By WILLIAM THOMSON, Gardener to His Grace the 
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 to excel in the cultivation of the vine." Tlie florist and Pumoloyist. 
 
 THE CHEMISTRY OF VEGETABLE AND ANIMAL PHYSI- 
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 THE MOOR AND THE LOCH. 
 
 Containing Minute Instructions in all Highland Sports, with Wanderings 
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 SALMON-CASTS AND STRAY SHOTS: 
 
 Being Fly-Leaves from the Note-Book of JOHN COLQUHOUN, Esq., 
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 COQUET-DALE FISHING SONGS. 
 
 Now first collected by a North-Country Angler, with the Music of the Airs. 
 Svo, 5s. 
 
 THE ANGLERS COMPANION TO THE RIVERS AND LOCHS 
 
 OF SCOTLAND. By T. T. STOOD ART. With Map of the Fishing Streams 
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 " Indispensable in all time to come, as the very strength and grace of an angler's tackle and equipment 
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16 BOOKS PUBLISHED BY 
 
 RELIGION IN COMMON LIFE: 
 
 A Sermon preached in Crathie Church, October 14, 1855, before Her Majesty 
 the Queen and Prince Altert. By the REV. JOHN CAIRD, D.D. Published 
 by Her Majesty's Command. Bound in cloth, 8d. Cheap Edition, 3d. 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 By the REV. JOHN CAIRD, D.D., Professor of Divinity in the University of 
 Glasgow, and one of Her Majesty's Chaplains for Scotland. In crown 8vo, 5s. 
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 THE BOOK OF JOB. 
 
 By the late REV. GEORGE CROLY, LL.D., Rector of St Stephen's, Walbrook. 
 With a Memoir of the Author by his SON. Fcap. 8vo, 4s. 
 
 LECTURES IN DIVINITY. 
 
 By the late REV. GEORGE HILL, D.D., Principal of St Mary's College, St 
 Andrews. Stereotyped Edition. Svo, 14s. 
 
 " I am not sure if I can recommend a more complete manual of Divinity." Dr Chalmers. 
 
 THE MOTHERS LEGACIE TO HER UNBORNE CHILDE. 
 
 By MRS ELIZABETH JOCELINE. Edited by the Very Rev. Principal 
 
 LEE. 32mo, 4s. 6d. 
 
 "This beautiful and touching legacie." Atherueum. 
 " A delightful monument of the piety and high feeling of a truly noble mother." Morning Advertiser, 
 
 ANALYSIS AND CRITICAL INTERPRETATION OF THE 
 
 HEBREW TEXT OF THE 00 K OF GENESIS. Preceded by a Hebrew 
 Grammar, and Dissertations on the Genuineness of the Pentateuch, and on 
 the Structure of the Hebrew Language. By the REV. WILLIAM PAUL, 
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 PRAYERS FOR SOCIAL AND FAMILY WORSHIP. 
 
 Prepared by a COMMITTEE OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE CHURCH OF 
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 PRAYERS FOR SOCIAL AND FAMILY WORSHIP. 
 
 Being a Cheap Edition of the above. Fcap. Svo, Is. 6d. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE, 
 
 In its Origin, Progress, and Perfection. By the VERY REV. E. B. RAMSAY, 
 LL.D., F.R.S.E., Dean of the Diocese of Edinburgh. Crown Svo, 9s. 
 
 THEISM: THE WITNESS OF REASON AND NATURE TO 
 
 AN ALL-WISE AND BENEFICENT CREATOR. By the REV JOHN 
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 Andrews ; and one of Her Majesty's Chaplains in Ordinary in Scotland. In 
 1 vol. Svo, 10s. 6d. 
 
 ON THE ORIGIN AND CONNECTION OF THE GOSPELS 
 
 OF MATTHEW, MARK, AND LUKE ; With Synopsis of Parallel Passages, 
 and Critical Notes. By JAMES SMITH, Esq. of Jordanhill, F.R.S., Authoi 
 of the ' Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul.' Medium Svo, 16s. 
 
WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS. 17 
 
 INSTITUTES OF METAPHYSIC: THE THEORY OF KNOW- 
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