:? : m f{ ^. til, 11 ^ PRINCETON, N. J. ^^ Presented by A . & . C^">nn t^onn ^ r n ■ U. BL 240~TW43 1857 Wight, George. Geology and Genesis Uxj. U/tdu^^<^ Uo, rPAL^ozoiC 4.. Coal measures, _, , .„ Period. *• ' Carhoniferous I 3. Millstone grit, V ^sUm. ^ 2. Mountain limestone, 1. Lower carboniferous shales,'^ The carboniferous system is more or less de- veloped in many countries, removed from each other by great distances. Extensive coal-fields, with their accompanying rocks and shales, exist in many parts of the British isles. They ai-e found on the Con- NEWER PALiEOZOIC PERIOD. S3 tinent, and in Eussia ; in North and South America ; in China ; in the islands of the Pacific, &c. Our remarks have reference particularly to the system as developed in Britain. It is generally found occupying basin-shaped depressions in the older formations, as the South Welsh coal-field, the great North of England deposit, and the Scottish system. The latter occupies the vaUey of the Forth and Clyde, bounded by the older paleozoic rocks on the south, and the middle paleozoic rocks on the north. In connexion ivith this system, it is important to remark, that the various rocks are not always developed in precisely the same order : some of them occasionally appearing transposed. In many instances several members are absent ; the above appearance may partly be attributed to' this circumstance. The lower shales are awanting in many localities ; in others, the mountain limestone is displaced by enormous masses of coarse sand- stone, and even the coal-seams are sometimes ab- sent. But, as a whole, there does not appear any reason why we should not receive the order of the strata as arranged in the tabular view inserted in the previous page. Viewing the system, then, not as it is developed in any one locality, but as it is constituted on the results of geological investigations in many locali- ties, we commence with the shales (1) as its lowest member. Next in order comes the mountain lime- g2 84 AGE OF THE EARTH : stone (2). By some writers this rock is called the "coral" limestone, from the circumstance of a great part of it being composed of shells and corals. In Scotland it is generally found occupying the lowest place in the series, although in some in- stances it is absent. It is largely developed under some of the coal-measures in England ; and at its out-crop, frequently rises to considerable elevations, giving to the locality a hilly aspect. It has also been traced in other parts of the world over vast areas. Above this lies the millstone grit (3), a coarse sandstone ; and over it, again, are deposited the real coal-measures (4). They consist of numerous beds of coal, from a few inches to a number of feet thick, alternating with bands of shale, sandstone, limestone, and ironstone. These bands, as well as the coal-seams, are of aqueous formation. At pre- sent we ask the attention of the reader to the nature and manner of formation of the latter. It is now universally admitted that coal is of vegeta- ble origin ; that is, it is composed of vegetable matter — plants, ferns, and trees. " And there are two hypotheses as to the mode in which it was brought together in such vast quantities. Deluc, Brongniart, Dr. Macculloch, and Mr. Hutton of Newcastle, think that the plants generally grew and died on the spot where the coal exists, and that a bed of coal was analogous in its origin to a peat- NEWER PALAEOZOIC PERIOD. 85 bog. The other hypothesis (which is perhaps more generally received) assumes that the vegetable mat- ter was swept from the laud iuto estuaries or lakes by inundations and streams, as the trunks and branches of trees, with plants and foliage, are car- ried down, at the present time, by the Mississippi and St. Lawrence. The difficulty of accounting for the immense accumulations of vegetable matter spread over such extensive areas, is great in either way. But without going into the comparative merits of the two hypotheses, the former is assumed as true, for the purpose of illustration, in the fol- lowing remarks : — "Coal was analogous in its origin to modern peat, and each bed was most probably formed on an extended surface of marshy land covered with a rank vegetation. The finest caking coal, Mr. Hutton considers as a crystalline compound, whose constituents had been in a state of solution ; but slate coal and cannel coal often bear distinct impressions of plants. The new method of cutting minerals into slices so thin as to be transparent, of which Mr. AVitham has made so happy a use, has been applied to coal ; and by examining these with the microscope, the vegetable structure has been detected, where no external trace of it was visible. In cannel coal it exists throughout the whole mass, while the fine coal retains it only in small patches, which appear as it were mechanically 86 AGE OF THE EAETH : entangled. Among other indications of the lig- neous origin, tubes have been discovered, filled with a yellowish, resinous matter, which is the most volatile part of the coal, being what is first driven ofif by heat. "All coal, therefore, had originally existed in the state of plants or trees. About three hun- dred species have been found in the sandstone and shale of the coal-measures; and the greater part of these probably exist in the coal itself, though the tenderness and opaqueness of the material render it difficult to detect them by ex- amination. The three hundred species are all extinct. About two-thirds of them are ferns ; the others consist of large coniferse (allied to the pine), of gigantic lycapodiacese, of species analogous to the cactese and euphorbiacese, and of palms. The plants indicate a moist climate, as hot as that of the tropics ; and this holds true in the coal plants, not only in England, but at MelviUe Island within the polar circle. Dr. Hutton thought that the vegetables had been carbonized by heat ; but Dr. Macculloch contends, on good grounds, that the change has been efl'ected solely by water and pressure, and that by these agents peat is capable of conversion into coal."* On either hypothesis, the formation of the coal measures must have occupied a period of time, to M'Lareu's " Geology of Fife and the Lothians." NEWEB PALEOZOIC PERIOD. 87 wliicli six thousand years bear but a small propor- tion. We shall return to this point again, when the other beds have been enumerated. The upper member of the carboniferous system, according to the present arrangement, is the coal grits (5). Closely connected with this, and in many instances lying conformable to it, is a rock which was formerly not included in this series ; — the new red conglomerate (6). It is very ii-regular in thickness ; and from below, where it is a coarse conglomerate, it gradually approximates to fine sands, and these again to marly beds, till at length it passes into the magnesian limestone. This formation must formerly have existed over a much larger area ; at present it is limited in extent. The magnesian limestone (7), the highest member of the newer palaeozoic period, includes an inte- resting series of rocks. It is often earthy, some- times hard and crystalline, and furnishes a field for study deeply interesting to the geologist. Towards its upper margin, there are beds of red marl and gypsum, and grey limestone in thin beds. We must refer the reader to those works that treat professedly of the science, for a full descrip- tion of this, as well as of the other systems so briefly sketched in these chapters. The equivalents of these rocks on the Continent, and in the east of Bussia, are largely developed, and it has been proposed to call them the " permian 88 AGE OF THE EAETH : system," from the country where they are most fully exhibited. This upper period of the ancient fossiliferous rocks is very rich in organic remains. Shells, and corals, and fishes, occur in great abundance, but the prevailing fossil type is that of plants. It is not so much to describe the fossil remains of this system that we set ourselves, but rather to show that time must have been largely consumed during the depositing of those beds in which there are enclosed so many fossils, and many of which are exclusively composed of decayed vegetation. "We again avail ourselves of a paragraph from Mr. M'Laren's work. " In the coal, therefore, familiarly used in our houses, w^e have the forests of primeval times deprived of their watery and volatile parts, but preserving all their combustible matter, laid up for our use, as it were in vast cellars under our feet, closely packed, and pro- tected from air, rain, and floods, by a solid cover- ing of rock and soil. Few of those who are in the daily enjoyment of the comforts and advantages derived from abundant supplies of this fuel, think of the long and operose processes by which it was prepared in the laboratory of nature. A short calculation will explain what is here meant. "Wood affords in general about twenty per cent., and coal about eighty per cent., of charcoal. Neglecting the oxygen and hydrogen, therefore, NEWER PALiEOZOIC PERIOD. 89 it must have required four tons of wood to yield the charcoal which we find in one ton of coal. Let us, then, suppose a forest composed of trees eiglity feet high, that the trunk of each tree con- tains eighty cubic feet, and the branches forty, making 120; the weight of such a tree, at 700 sp. gr., will be two and a quarter tons ; and allow- ing 130 trees to an acre, we have 300 tons on that space. Supposing the portion that falls annually, leaves and wood, to be equal to one-thirtieth, we have ten tons of wood annually from an acre, which yields two tons of charcoal ; and this charcoal, with the addition of bitumen, forms two and a half tons of coal. Now, a cubic yard of coal weighs almost exactly one ton; and a bed of coal one acre in extent, and three feet thick, will contain 4,840 tons. It follows, therefore, that one acre of coal is equal to the produce of 1,940 acres (that is, 4,840 divided by two and a half) of forest ; or if the wood all grew on the spot where its remains exist, the coal bed three feet thick, and one acre in extent, must be the growth of 1,940 years ! Even if we suppose the vegetation, as that of a tropical climate, to be twice as rapid as I have assumed, we shall still require about a thousand years to form a bed of coal one yard thick ; and for the thirty-six yards of coal in the Mid-Lothian field, a period of 3G,000 years! When we reflect farther, that the coal constitutes only one-thirtieth part of the entire 90 AGE OF THE EAETH : series of beds comprehended in the group, some of which were probably formed by as slow a process, we shall have no reason to reject Dr. Macculloch's estimate of 600,000 years as too long for the production of the whole mass." Such is the conclusion to which these practical geologists, whose names have been mentioned, have come. Possibly some errors may have crept into their calculations, which may render it neces- sary to modify it slightly; but it is impossible, with the facts of geology before us, to set it aside. Nay, we speak the mind of the vast majority of men of science when we affirm, that this calcula- tion is vrithin, rather than beyond the truth. It will not do for Christians to deny the conclusion, on the ground that the Mosaic narrative teaches that the earth is only about six thousand years old. This is attributing to Moses a sentiment which his language does not imply ; and those who still cling to it, would be better engaged in re-examining the nar- rative, than treating with contempt, or opposing, with their ipse dixit, the plainest evidence of the senses. But long as the carboniferous system is believed to have been in depositing, the Newer Palaeozoic rocks were still longer; for, in addition to the carboniferous series, they include the lower new red conglomerate and the magnesian limestone, two formations which increase the thickness of the group by at least 800 feet. CHAPTEE VIII. AGE OF THE EARTH.— OLDER SECONDARY PERIOD. In tlie preceding chapters we have presented a rapid sketch of the older fossiliferous rocks, known, in recent works on geology, as the rocks that occupy the older, middle, and newer palaeozoic periods. These constitute a large portion of the crust of the earth, and supply abundant evidence in support of the opinion, that a long series of ages must have passed away during their for- mation. Above these vast formations lie the strata of the Secondaet Period. These have been sub- divided into three divisions ; and under each is arranged certain groups of rocks. Under the older secondary period we have the liassic group, and the upper beds of the new red sandstone, as seen in the following table : — 5. Upper lias shale and marlstone, . . . \ 4. Lower lias shale, ! Liassic ^ Qlder 3. Lower lias limestone, J group. I gj-coKDAEY 2. Saliferous, red, and variegated marls, ) Upper Pekiod. 1. Red sandstone and conglomerate,.... j new red.. 92 AGE OF THE EAETII : The lower new red conglomerate and magnesian limestone have been separated from the older secondary period, and classed with the carbonifer- ous group, because of their fossil contents being much more allied to the latter than to the former. The lowest beds in this group (1) are composed of sandstones of a whitish colour, and conglo- merates composed of pebbles of quartz, and frag- ments of other old rocks. This formation is found occupying large areas in England, but is very spa- ringly developed in Scotland. In the latter country the best view of it is to be seen in the island of Arran, from the south of Brodick bay to a point several miles north of that delightful watering-place. On the Continent, the hunter sandstein is the equivalent of these beds. Over these lie a number of beds that go by the name of "saliferous, red, and variegated marls" (2). These consist of numerous bands of clay, of various colours, alternating with gypsum, sandstone, marl, and rock-salt. The total thickness of the masses of rock-salt is fully 60 feet. In the districts where this formation abounds, there are numerous salt springs. The continental group, entitled the heuper, is supposed to correspond with these beds. In the British isles there is no formation corresponding with the muschelhalk of the Continent — a series of great interest, and highly fossiliferous. From the fact of the continental strata of this age being OLDEE SECOI^^DAET PERIOD. 93 divisible into three distinct parts, it has been called the "triassic system." Next in the ascending order, we encounter the liassic group, consisting of three members. The lowest (3) is a limestone, associated, in many in- stances, with thick beds of shale passing into sandstone. These lie conformable to the upper beds of the new red. In this division there is a thin band of limestone, almost entirely composed of organic remains, and which must have occupied no little time in forming. The middle divi- sion (4) is made up of numerous bands of dark- coloured clay, sand, and impure limestone, some of which contain interesting fossils. The upper division of the lias (5) is almost entirely composed of shale, beds of limestone being interspersed. Some of the shales are very hard, and extremely fossiliferous. The interesting organic remains that belong to this series, are well known to be numerous. The aspect of the districts where these rocks prevail is tame, their position being horizontal or nearly so. In cliffs, or where they abut against the older rocks, they present a singular appearance. Beds of various colours, white, dark, grey, and red, alternate with each other, giving the system an internal aspect exclusively its own. In the formations that have been enumerated in these paragraphs, there is much evidence in favour 94 AGE OF THE EAETH. of gradual deposition. The pebbles that compose the conglomerate are all rounded by exposure to currents of water ; nor could this exposure be of short duration, since many of them are fragments of the hardest rocks. More time still would be required to grind down and deposit the material of which the numerous sandstone beds is composed. In addition to these, there are the numerous beds of shale and bands of limestone, all requiring long periods to accumulate. CHAPTER IX. AGE OF THE EARTH.— MIDDLE SECONDAEY PERIOD. The Oolitic series of rocks next demands our attention.* It is principally composed of Lime- stone of a peculiar character, accompanied with beds of clay and sand. It rests upon the lias described in the preceding chapter, and is over- laid by the wealden series, which is also included in the Middle Secondary Period. The oolitic and wealden rocks together, make a mass of nearly three thousand feet thick, and are, in many respects, important to the country where they are fuUy developed. They have their representatives on the Continent of Europe, in the " Jura-kalk formation." The series of beds enumerated below, are not aU found in any one locality in England, or any where * This term is compounded of two Greek words, oon, egg, &nd lithos, stone, and literally signifies egg-stone. A species of limestone is called oolite, because it is composed of small rounded particles Uke the roe of a fish ; and the series of rocks in which this limestone occurs is named, on this ground, the oolitic system. 96 AGE or THE EAETH. else; but this table is presented as tbe result of nume- rous investigations carried on in different localities. 17. Weald clay, ^ 16. Hastings sand, I Wealden formation.-) 15. Purbeckbeds, i 14. Portland stone, ^ 13. Portland sand, I Upper oolites. 12. Kimmeridge clay, . . . j •\ Middle oolites. Loicer oolites. Middle . Secondaey Peeiod. 11. Upper cal. grit, . 10. Coral rag, 9. Lower cal. grit, . 8. Oxford clay, .... 7. Kelloway rock, . 6. Cornbrash, 5. Forest marble, . 4. Great oolite, &c. 3. Fuller's earth, . 2. Inferior oolite, . 1. Calcareous sand, The lowest beds (1) of this period are a yellowish sand, and pass into the upper rocks of the Has. They contain niicacious and calcareous matter, but in limited portions. The inferior oolite (2) succeeds, and is composed of a number of beds of limestone in some localities, as in the north of England, iron- stone and sandstone occupy their place. A series of marly beds (3) overlie the inferior oolite, among which there are two— the one, a kind of clay, called "fuller's earth," and the other a flag-stone, called " stonefield's slate," considered of importance— the former for purposes of utility, the latter as being the matrix of organic remains of a peculiar character. MIDDLE SECONDARY PERIOD. 97 JS'ext in succession comes the great oolite (4). It consists of numerous beds of a coarse shelly Ume- stone, alternating mth excellent building stone. The Bradford clay, so celebrated for its peculiar fossil, the apiocrinite, occurs in this series. Imme- diately above the Bradford clay, there are several rocks that go by the name of forest marble (5). These are partly coarse stone, sandy clay, and partly thick beds of Hmestone. The latter is the forest marble, and gives its name to the series. Organic remains are so numerous in some parts of it, that they compose almost the entire substance of the rock. The lower oolites are capped hj the corn^ brash (6),— a term which is probably derived from the excellence of the corn land, which results from the decomposition of the limestones, and their mixture with the sandstones and clay,— the highest member in the series. It is of variable thickness, and consists of beds of clay and sandstone. The underlying bed (7) of the middle oolites is a calcareous sandstone, only a few feet thick, and containing numerous fossils. Above this is' the principal bed of the series, the Oxford clay (8). It extends over a great part of England, and pre- sents a thickness of several hundred feet. It is nearly horizontal, and lies conformable upon the beds beneath. The appearance it presents is that of a thick bed of stiff clay, of a light blue colour. It contains numerous fossils, many of H 98 AGE or THE EAETH : them in a perfect state of preservation, being enclosed in a case of iron pyrites whicli abound in tbe clay. The upper beds (9, 10, 11) of this series are composed of calcareous and sandy matter. The former is called the "coral rag," from the cir- cumstance that it is composed chiefly of corals. The latter constitutes the "grits" that lie above and below the coral bed. The thickness of the " rag" is nearly forty feet, and is frequently, almost entirely, composed of beautiful and well-preserved corals. This bed alone must have occupied a very long period in its formation. The upper oolites consist of three beds. The first (twelfth, in the preceding table) is a blueish grey clay, of considerable thickness, but not of o-reat extent. It contams numerous fossil impres- sions, but not in a good state of preservation. Above it lies the Portland sand (13), an arena- ceous mass, containing green spots. This passes into the overlying bed called the Portland stone (14), a mass of limestone much used for building. There is a remarkable bed, not thicker than a foot, at the top of the Portland series, but which extends over a large space. It is called by the workmen the " dirt-bed," and consists of a dark loam. Prom discoveries lately made, and extensive investigations, it is believed that this bed represents the site of an ancient forest. Trunks of trees are found in frag- MIDDLE SECOXDAET PEHIOD. 99 ments aU around; while their roots are still fast in the metamorphosed soil. Tlie oolitic system is largely developed in various countries on the Continent of Europe; and late investigations show that it also exists in Asia In Scotland patches of the system are found in the extreme north. But this is a dark chapter in geology, so far as the great continents of the earth are concerned. The remains of saurians are abundant in these for- mations. Some which are found in great numbers m the has, exist here, and pass upwards into the weald. Fishes are numerous, as weU as shells and corals. Plants occur in several of the beds In the "stonefield slate" the bones of the first fossil m connexion with the class mammama are found Leaving the oolites, we pass upwards to a series ot strata of fresh water origin, called the wealden tonnation. The lowest member of which, and that which overlies the Portland stone, is the purbock series (15). These strata consist of a number of coarse and fine limestones, alternating with bands of clay and beds of fossil shells. The middle member is called the "Hastings sand" (16), and 13 the most important in the wealden formation. It IS much thicker and more extensive than the otiiers, stretching over a large area. It is made up of numerous beds of sand, grit, shale, and sandstone It occupies tlie cliffs on the coast of Dorsetshire II 2 100 AGE or THE EAETH. and on the south-east coast. The fossil remams of this group are also interesting. The highest member of the formation is the "weald clay" (17). It is but sparingly developed, and consists of beds of shelly limestone, sandstone, ironstone, and numer- ous thin layers of clay. Some of the limestone bands are almost entirely made up of shells, and have been much used in the decoration of churches, being admirably adapted for the smaller shafts of the gothic pillars. The seventeen members of the Middle Secondary Period, each of which is subdivided into a number of beds, must have occupied a long series of years in accumulating. Even the thinnest stratum re- quired time ; how much more those strata that are composed, in whole or in part, of fossil shells or corals, and that " dirt-bed," above referred to, only a foot thick, and which had nourished the sapling into a stately pine, ere yet the fresh water wealdeu had spread itself over it, and enclosed its prostrate forest-trees. CHAPTEK X. AGE OF THE EARTH.-NE^VEE SECONDARY PERIOD. We have now got well up tlie geological scale! The metamorphic rocks, the older, middle, aud newer palaeozoic, and the older and middle secon- dary formations, are left behind us. This chapter will be devoted to the Newer Secondary Period that is, those rocks that go by the name of the cretaceous system. The following table presents them at one view:— 6. Upper chaJk (with flints) .. 5. Lower chalk (without flints) . 4. Chalk marl 3. Upper greensand 2. Oault .*"'.. 1. Lower greensand Cretaceous Newer system. ( Secondary / Period. The aspect of the country where this system is exhibited is somewhat peculiar. The prevailing colour of the rock is white, and it stretches over considerable areas in the soutli of England in the form of low undulating and rounded hills. It 102 AGE OF THE EAETH : is absent from the strata of the north of England and Scotland, except it be in the isle of Skye. In Ireland it is sparingly developed. The foreign rocks of this period are widely spread over many countries. From France they extend into Belgium ; thence they are traced over eastern Europe, and many of the Grecian Isles. They exist in Russia, and extend into Asia Minor. In Syria they occur, and also on the southern plains of India. North America has vast fields of this age, without the true chalk, but containing the characteristic fossils. In South America the cretaceous rocks stretch from Columbia to Tierra del Euego, along the whole extent of that vast continent, giving off a side-patch to the country of Brazil. The lowest member of the British group is the " lower greensand " (1). It is made up of several beds, and does not pass into the under-lying weal- den. In the lower part, beds occur containing calcareous matter to such an amount as to permit of their being worked for lime. Small green grains of silicate of iron abound ; hence the name of the beds. Immediately above these is found a dark coloured sand, of considerable thickness, and con- taining silicified wood ; above which is another of a yellow colour, from the presence of iron. Another sandy bed completes the lower greensand series. The second member of the cretaceous system ia the NEWER SECONDARY PEraOD. 103 gault (2). This member is often above 100 feet thick, and is composed of a stiff blue clay, contain- ing green particles and nodules generally enclosing fossils. The upper greensand (3) does not attain to a great thickness, but is famed for a particular kind of sandstone, used for lining furnaces. This member passes upwards into the chalk. All these beds are more or less fossiliferous. Kext in the ascending order comes the true chalk formation, separated in the table into three parts. The chalk marl (4) lies below the real chalk, separating it from the underlying green- sand. It consists of hard beds of a grey appear- ance, but does not attain to a great thickness. Above the marl the chalk appears, but without flints (5). It increases in whiteness as you ascend, and at length exhibits a few nodules of flint. This brings us to the upper bed of the cretaceous system (6) which contains numerous nodules of flint, which speedily arrange themselves into layers, alternating with the upper beds of chalk. This is a wonderful formation. The carbonate of lime, of which it is composed, is in a very different state from that which occurs in any other formation. The nodules of flint, arranged as they are, present a difficulty which science has not yet overcome. All of them seem to contain organic matter as a nucleus ; in many of them the 104 AGE OF THE EARTH. fossil is distinctly recognized under a powerful glass. However tliese points may be settled, it appears certain that tliese beds add to the antiquity of the earth. Come Avhen the solution may, there is little likelihood of it shortening, but every probability of it extending the period that has elapsed since G-od called into existence the " heaven and the earth." CHAPTER XI. AGE OF THE EAKTH.— TERTIAEY PERIOD. UxDER the name of the Tertiary formations, the remainder of the rocks that compose the crust of the earth are known. There is reason to be- lieve that great changes had taken pL^ce before and during the depositing of these rocks. The contrast between them and those of the former periods is striking, and early arrests the geological student. The older rocks extend over much larger portions of the earth's surface, and are distin- guished not simply, nor principally, by their mine- ralogical character, but by their fossil contents.* The tertiary, or newer rocks, on the other hand, are local in their development, and in different localities frequently present a new class of fossils. A great proportion of the organic remains of this period have their living representatives in present natui-e. Between the systems of which we now speak there is no connectmg link, no transition rock, by which the one is held, though in distant * Memoii- of Dr. William Smith, by Professor PhiUips, p. 28. 106 AGE OF THE EAETH : * reiationsliip to the other. They stand apart, and present a chasm in the geological scale, -which no discoveries in any part of the world have enabled us to bridge over. On these grounds they are called modern, and the others ancient. But there is great danger of our misunderstanding these terms. The facts that have been enumerated in preceding chapters will enable the reader to form some distant con- ception of what is meant by the rocks of the palaeozoic and secondary periods being called ancient ; a word or two may be necessary to pre- vent the term modern, as applied to the tertiaries, from misconception. It is not intended to affirm that the tertiary rocks were deposited during, or at the close of the deluge of Noah. ]S"either is it intended to be affirmed, that during the period that elapsed between the Mosaic creation and that event, these deposits were accumulated. Nor is it meant that they are to be viewed as the result of the earth exchanging its chaotic state for that of order and beauty, six thousand years ago, at the wiU of the Great Creator. They are modern in comparison with the other class of rocks; but yet are much older than the date of the Mosaic creation. The series is arranged into four divisions, as vnR be seen by glancing at the table. It is only the British rocks that are here enumerated ; we have TEETIART PERIOD. 107 thoiiglit it best to abide by the order in whicli the other tables have been arranged, although, in this instance, by inserting the foreign instead of the British rocks, the series ^Yould have been more complete. 7. Diluvium and alluvium... Pleistocene. 6. Till of the Clyde vaUey...) ^•""-« l''"''""- IT.BXX... 4. Eed crag ) )- ^ 3. CoralHnecrag } ^^'''^'' ^^^^^^^ 2. Bagshot sand 1. London clay ^ :Eocene. The London clay (1), a formation of above 1,000 feet thick, lies conformable upon the chalk; but there is evidence, in the upper surface of the latter being water-worn, and frequently scooped out into hollows, that a long interval elapsed between the depositing of the cretaceous system and the lowest of the tertiary formations. A bed of shingle some- times intervenes between the London clay and the chalk. This member of the series is made up of numerous beds of sand, clay, loam, earth, and lime. The principal portion is of a darkish colour, tough, find is frequently mixed with sand. The Bagshot sand (2) is composed of beds of various kinds, but chiefly silicious. Little can be said of this mem- ber. These two are named the eocene rocks, from the circumstance that their fossils present, for the 108 AGE OF THE EAETH : first time, a few species of creatures yet alive upon tlie earth.* Above these lie newer deposits, all of which go by the name " crag." According to the table they are three in number. They represent the middle and upper tertiary rocks, and are more fully de- veloped in other parts of Europe. The lowest, or coralline crag (3), is a very limited bed, and con- sists, in some places, entirely of the remains of zoophytes and shells, and in others it is composed of marl and stone. The next in order is the red crag (4) ; it takes its name from its colour. It is also limited in extent, but is characterized by a number of interesting fossils. Some of the shells are elegant, and finely preserved. These two beds constitute, according to Lyell, the middle tertiary, or miocene f period. The newest deposits of the tertiary period are but sparingly developed in the British isles. They are generally spoken of as two in number: first, * Eocene. — A name given to the lowest division of the tertiary strata, containing an extremely small per centage of living species amongst its fossil shells, which indicate the first commencement or dawn of the existing state of the animate ci'eation. From the Greek words, eos^ the dawn, and A:ainos, recent. — Lyell. t A term compomided of two Greek words, meioriy less, and kainos, recent. A greater proportion of its organic remains have reference to Hving species, than those of the rocks below. TERTIARY PERIOD. 109 the Norioicli crag (5), and the Clyde till (6). The former consists of beds of sand and loam, with shells, and is well exposed at Norwich ; the latter is a stiff clay and gravel unstratified, and containing fragments of rock both angular and rounded, and is exhibited in the valley of the Clyde. These are the rocks * oi ^q pliocene \ period of Lyell. It only remains that Ave should refer to the surface matter, and thus finish this very brief description of the series of rocks that are known to exist in the crust of the earth, and which have been, to a greater or less extent, examined by the hand of the geologist. In many parts of the world, extensive irregular beds or patches of gravel and boulders are met with. Sometimes they are spread over low tracts of country, and at other times are found occupying elevated locaHties. This is what is called diluvium, and seems to be due to the powerfLd and repeated influence of water. Distinct from these, there are other deposits frequently met with of very recent formation. They sometimes indeed contam water-worn fragments, but their character is that of fine soft sand and mud, de- posited in lakes and at the mouths of rivers. * In geological language all the beds are called " rocks," whether stone, sand, claj, or marl, t A term compounded of two Greek words, ijleion, more, and kainos, recent. The majority of fossil shells in these beds are of recent species. 110 AGE OF THE EAETH. This is alliiviym, aud is due also to water, but under very diiFerent circumstances from the for- mer. This is the pleistocene^ period of Lyell. The fossils belong to living species. Coeval with these, and in many instances of a later origin, there are extensive beaches and peat- beds — raised shores and sunken forests, all re- quiring time ; but as some of these may be allowed to have been deposited and formed within what is ordinarily imderstood by the historic period, they do not serve the argument in support of the anti- quity of the earth ; and they can well be dispensed with. Leaving out of account all those beds, the formation of which may be supposed to have taken place about or subsequent to the Mosaic era, there is still left abundance of evidence to prove that, during the tertiary period, long ages must have elapsed. * Compounded of two Greek words, pleistos, most, and kainos, recent. CHAPTER XII. AGE OF THE EARTH.— QENEEAL REMAEKS ON THE DIFEERENT FORMATIONS. Hayixg enumerated and briefly described all the stratified formations that are known to occur in the crust of the earth, we proceed to make some general remarks, founded upon the facts that have passed before us. Let it be understood, that the object of these remarks is to prove, on geological grounds, the gTeater antiquity of the earth than that generally assigned to it. The first argument in favour of the antiquity of the globe is founded on the nwnher of strata that go to maJce u'p its crust. The crust of the earth, or that rocky band that surrounds and encloses its molten contents, is supposed to be about ten miles thick. The greater part of this mass has been ex- amined, the convulsions in nature having laid open or tilted up, in one locality or other, almost all the formations of which it is composed. To accomplish this apparently impossible task of examination, the geologist has but to walk over the uplands, ascend 112 AGE OF THE EAETH : the river beds, penetrate the gloomy ravines, climb the mountain ridges, and descend the min^s that pierce the strata to considerable depths. In this way all those formations, enumerated in preceding chapters, have been examined by those who make this department of nature their study. At present we leave out of view the granite and other igneous rocks ; also the metamorphic rocks ; namely, gneiss, mica-schist, and clay-slate. The number of distinct beds above these is upwards of fifty, according to the foregoing tables; and numbers of them are from one hundred to many hundred feet thick. Of course these beds do not occur in a regular series, one above the other ; were this the case, the crust of the earth would resemble the concentric layers of an onion, and would be much beyond ten miles thick. They lie in patch-like masses : generally speaking, the more ancient are the most extensive, and the more recent the most circumscribed. All these beds bear distinct evidence of their formation by the agency of water. This cannot be disputed, if we are to take present nature for our guide; and surely, on such a subject, analogy is an argu- ment in which we may place some confidence. The rocks deposited by these ancient seas and lakes present the same appearances at this distant date, as are observed in estuaries, the margins of lakes, and the shores of the ocean at the present GEXEEAL RE^IAEKS. 113 day. The fine mud is seen in thin layers as it originally subsided to the bottom of the waters. The sandstones bear the impress of the receding wave on the ancient sea-beach. Nay, the surface of the rock bears the distinct foot-prints of crea- tures that traversed the shore, and it is sometimes pitted with the heavy rain-drops that liave fallen upon it, when yet an expanse of loose sand exposed to the weather. It is not more certain that these stratified rocks are of aqueous origin, than that the various formations have been deposited in succession. The evidence of this remark will be more fuUy brought out in illustrating points that will come under discussion as we proceed with the subject. Meanwhile, it may suffice to state, that this is proved both from the mineralogical character of the formations, and their fossil contents. Not only is this true of the various formations, or groups of strata; as a general principle it is also true of the members of each of these formations. Those beds previously enumerated are not simply proved to be of aqueous origin, but also to have been deposited in succession. The same rock, or its equivalent, in other parts of the world, would be deposited during, or about the same period; but this was not the case with rocks whose posi- tions in the scale were apart from each other. To iUustrate our meaning:— The British chalk 114 AGE OF THE EAKTH : beds, and their foreign equivalents, were deposited during the same period ; but the upper chalk, and the London clay, were deposited in succession. That this long series of rocks occupied numer- ous ages in accumulating, is obvious, first, from the fact, that many of them are of enormous thickness. Secondly, each group required for its perfection at least two (in many instances a greater number) changes of land and water. Now, judging from the operations of nature in the historic period, we may conclude that these changes were gradual; and if gradual — indeed many of the rocks bear internal evidence to the fact — who can reckon the time consumed in their formation ? The second argument in favour of the antiquity of the globe is drawn from the nature of the strata, or their mineralogical character. Under this argument we do not include those rocks that are composed, to any extent, of organic remains ; their proper place is in connexion with the next. The rocks of ^^-hich we now speak, namely, the coarse and fine sandstones — the beds of shale, marl, clay, slates, &c., are composed of older rocks. Let us take the old red sandstone as an illus- tration. The conglomerate, so largely developed in this system, is not a rock composed of new materials ; the geologist recognises the pebbles, of which it is ahnost entirely made up, as belong- GENERAL REMARKS. 115 ing to rocks lower in the series. And the finer beds that accompany and overlie the conglomerate, are obviously, in many instances, composed of the same material ground into small particles. But this process must have been carried on after the deposition and consolidation of the underlying conglomerate. Tliese illustrations apply to the whole class of rocks of which we are now treating. The material of which they are composed, whether in its present combination in the shape of shale, clay, flags, or sandstone, has, in every instance, been associated with, or itself constituted the rocks that precede these in the series. These remarks raise several questions, each of which leads us to draw largely upon time. Before the great conglomerate, the lowest member of the old red, was deposited, the pebbles of which it is principally composed must have existed in the shape of quartz rock in beds or masses ; and truly they must have occupied large areas of the surface of the earth as it then was. These masses must have been broken up into fragments of aU sizes, probably by internal commotions, aided by the influence of water. Suppose the quartz reduced to fragments of the required size, might it not speedily be agglutinated where it lay, and thus constitute the great conglomerate? A theorist might reason thus; but assuredly no one who had looked upon nature with his own eyes could, I 2 116 AGE OF THE EAKTH : for a moment, acquiesce in it. Instead of the broken quartz being immediately consolidated into a new rock where it lay, it has clearly been ex- posed to the influence of powerful waves or currents, long continued, till fragments that were once rough and angular have become smooth and rounded. How long a mass of pebbles consti- tuting a bed of conglomerate some hundred feet thick would require to be rubbed down to the size and form in which we find them, it is not for us to say. Only the period must be measured by ages instead of years. And, while speaking of conglomerates, Ave may remind the reader that this period must be multipHed by the number of conglomerate beds that occur in other formations. The conglomerates deposited, we must find time for the formation of the sandstone. The beds of this rock are often very thick, and are exceed- ingly numerous. The matter of which they are composed has originally existed as rock, and through long exposure to the atmosphere, the showers of heaven, the continuing influence of ruiming water, and the incessant beat of the ocean wave, it has been disengaged from its original combinations, carried downwards to the ocean, and, after being held for a time in suspension by the water, is spread out upon its bottom. This is not the work of a few years. But how are the de- mands upon time increased, when we reflect that GEKEEAL EE:NrAI^E:S. 117 rocks thus formed by slow degrees, are consoli- dated, heaved upwards, exposed to the elements, and then by partial decay supply the material for beds higher in the series, and which also pass through the same tedious processes in their for- mation ! Perhaps the immense beds of shale, and clay, that intermingle with the harder rocks, required a period to accumulate, little short of that which must be granted to the sandstones. The material of which they are composed has also been supplied by mechanical and chemical causes, and, in course of time, accumulated to the extent we find them developed in the various formations. The mineralogical character of the rocks, then, unquestionably proves their formation to have been slow, and continued over a period of time to us immeasurable. The third argument in favour of the antiquity of the globe is drawn from the fossil contents of the strata. The strata enumerated are many of them fossiliferous ; few of them are entirely destitute of organic remains. In the older rocks we have fishes, shells, and plants : in the more recent, shells in greater abundance, plants in large quantities, and bones of quadrupeds and birds are associated with the impressions and skeletons of fishes. The presence of these remains and the nature of them, lead us to assign a much longer period for the 118 AGE or THE EAKTH : depositing of the rocks in which they occur, than is generally allowed. There are fishes of all sizes and yarious ages: like the fishes in the present seas, they must have required time to arrive at maturity. The position in which they are frequently found, when their stony matrix is opened, indicates that they have sunk in the mud of the sea-bottom, and been over- laid with newer sediment. This was the work of time. And the time required for the depositing of one fish formation, must be multiplied by the number of such formations the crust of the earth contains. The same line of argument is applicable to the fossil shells, plants, and bones that are scattered so profusely throughout the strata. In carrying out this argument we must refer to the fact that some rocks of the series are entirely, or in great part composed of animal or vegetable remains. The coal is a familiar illustration. That this rock is composed of vegetable matter is now universally acknowledged. In the sandstone and shales that occur in the coal measures, many plants, in fragments, are found imbedded ; but when the coal is examined, no doubt rests on the mind as to its composition. By a lately invented process, already referred to, this examination is carried on with great accuracy. The coal is sliced into thin leaves, and placed under a powerful glass. In this way the peculiar character of the stem under ex- GENEEAL EEMAEKS. 119 amiuation is at once recognised, and tlie fact established that the coal is of vegetable origin. An obvious inference is drawn from this fact. The growth of these plants and trees required time ; and the produce of many generations was required to make up even a thin bed of coal ; the depositing and consolidating, therefore, of only one bed, must have stretched over a long period. It may be granted that vegetation, during the epoch of the earth's history of which we are now treating, was more rapid and luxuriant ; still our conclusion is not much affected thereby. Some limestones are known to be composed almost entirely of organic remains. The exuvice of creatures, all too minute to be detected by the unaided eye, are collected in such masses as to furnish beds of rock many feet thick. It is super- fluous to say, that the formation of such rocks must have been the work of time. Again, it is well known that corals enter largely into the composi- tion of limestone. In some instances, it would appear that the rock is one mass of these zoophytes. Now, from all we have been able to learn of the habits and modes of operation of these diminutive labourers, we are left to conclude, that the general progress of the mass of calcareous matter which they secrete, is slow. It has been calculated that the growth of six inches requires a century. Let the thickness of the beds and the number that 120 AGE OF THE EAETH : occur in the earth's crust, be taken into account, and we again find ourselves driven backwards into an unknown antiquity. The following description of the coral pol;y^e is taken from a recently published paper on " Coral and the Coral Maker : " — " By no means so highly endowed as the insects with which, in common speech, it is generally associated, it is one of the simplest of organized beings, and yet, strange to say, one of the mightiest of agents in producing great physical changes. All the huge creatures that geology has made Ivnown put together, with all the whales, and sharks, and gi-eat fish innumerable, that have swarmed in the ocean from the days of Adam till now, have done far less to alter the character of the earth's surface than the successive generations of these coral polj^Des, which have been quietly at work the while in those same waters. And let us here say, that the vast structures which these little creatures raise up from the deep abysses of the ocean are really much more curious in their cha- racter than most people suppose. The common idea, that coral is a mere assemblage of cells which the coral animals have made to live in, is one of those popular errors which ought to have been long ago exploded. It is nothing of the sort. The little star-like sets of delicate plates which any one may see in a piece of ordinary reef-coral, are no more GENEEAL EE3IARKS. 121 the sides or walls of a cell in which the coral polype lived, than are the bones of a dog the walls of a cell in which the dog lives. They are the veritable internal skeletons of the coral polypes, and the whole mass of coral is nothing more than so many successive coats or layers of tliese individual skele- tons. This may seem very strange, but it is never- theless perfectly true. The entire mass of stony matter forming a branch of ordinary reef-making coral, has been formed icitJii7i the substance of the polypes that produced it, and each separate star- shaped cluster of plates is neither more nor less than the cast or skeleton of an individual polype. " It will be obvious, from what has just been said, that the coral animal does not onake the coral — at least, in any proper sense of the word. The com- mon notion, that the stony mass is built up particle by particle, as the bee builds its honeycomb, that the coral is thus something external to the animal, and made by an intentional act, is altogether a mistake. We have already explained tliat it is produced within the substance of the polype, and it ^-ill be seen that, properly speaking, it cannot be said to be made at all, since it grows, just as much as our own bones gi'ow, and quite as inde- pendently of the will of the polype. All that has been said and sung, therefore, about the ingenuity of the little polype as an architect, about its 'industry' and important labours, goes for nothing. 122 AGE OF THE EAETH : It is really no more an architect than an oyster, and its coral-making is in no sort to be regarded as an act of labour. " The true nature of coral formations will be more apparent, if we consider for a moment in what condition they are found while still growing at the sea-bottom. Let us suppose, then, that by some contrivance or other, we have managed to get up a mass of living coral from the sides of a coral reef, and that we have it now before us in a parlour aquarium. What shall we see ? "Well, observe, in the first place, that the entire mass is covered with a coating of gelatinous flesh, which completely conceals the hard, stony coral. Look narrowly, and you will also perceive that this fleshy coating is nothing more than an extension of the gelatinous substance of the polypes which so thickly stud its surface, and that the entire colony is not merely closely compacted together as to space, but that there is thus a most intimate organic connexion subsisting between them. Each polj^^e, indeed, has its own separate mouth and tentacles, and its own separate stomach ; but beyond this, it has little claim to be regarded as an independent being. Any one, looking attentively at a mass of living coral in the manner we have supposed, would naturally come to the conclusion that the entire zoophyte is properly to be regarded, not as a society of separate individuals, but as one com- GENEEAL EEMARKS. 123 pound being, fed and nourished by a multiplicity of separate mouths and stomachs. This is undoubtedly the correct view of these coral masses, and it is only on such a supposition that we can explain many of the details of their economy." In connexion with this argument, there is still another point to which reference should, in justice, be made. The fossils that exist in a given forma- tion, are not identical with those that exist in the overlying group. They may, and do present resem- blances, more or less near ; but there is a change ; and such a change as indicates that between the close of the one formation, and the opening of the other, a considerable period has elapsed. This remark is applicable to the formations of the palaeozoic and secondary periods ; hence each group has its characteristic fossils. It is also true in regard to the rocks of the tertiary period, viewed as groups. But it does not apply to the upper beds of the secondary, and lower beds of the tertiary formations. The time that transpired between the depositmg of these, was such as, together with the changes that took place, to break the connexion entu-ely between the fossils of the one and those of the other. No species found in the chalk, the upper bed of the secondary formation, extends into the London clay, the lowest in the tertiary groups. There is here a break, of a much greater extent than those that appear to exist between each 124 AGE OF THE EARTH; formation and its successor, of tlie older periods ; and the length of time which it represents, though uncertain, must be great. The only other argument produced in favour of the antiquity of the globe, is derived from the relative position in loJiich the various groups tTiat compose the crust are placed. Groups of rock either lie conformable or unconformable to each other. There are few that lie conformable, that is, as you would place one volume fair upon another. But even when this is the case, there are certain indications at the junction that demonstrate, that the surface of the lower group was long consolidated, and perhaps exposed to the elements, before it was overlaid by the beds of the upper. Thus, if we find the surface-rock partially decomposed and removed, what remains, hollowed out by water, and these hollows occasionally containing loose pebbles, we may reasonably conclude that these effects — the result of time — were produced before the overlying rock had been deposited. Again, if we find that the overlying rock has imbedded in it numerous fragments of the bed on which it rests, is it not reasonable to conclude that the one was formed long before the other ? These are not sup- positions, though put in that form ; they are facts, which have been observed at the junction of the London clay with the chalk. The great proportion of the groups into which GENERAL EEMAEKS. 125 the rocks are divided, lie unconformable to each other. This may be illustrated by the appear- ance which a number of volumes present when thrown down carelessly into one heap. They take all angles. One lies on its side ; another is tilted up on its edge ; and a third lies flat across it. So with the diflerent groups of rock. The old red sandstone is, in some localities, placed almost ver- tically. The mountain limestone abuts against it, but inclining more to the horizontal; and so on. The relative position in which these rocks are placed is an argument for the antiquity of the globe. It runs thus : — The old red sandstone, for example, when formed, must have been horizontal, or nearly so. It has since been elevated ; but this could not be elFected before it was consolidated. AVhen par- tially elevated, the mountain limestone was de- posited ; then both underw^ ent another upheaving ; not, however, before the latter rock had been con- solidated, that it might retain the position to which it w"as now raised. Similar must have been the process of deposition, consolidation, elevation, and denudation, throughout the whole series of groups which the crust of the earth presents. * * It has been maintained with great fierceness, that the crust of the earth, with all its diiTorent formations and fossil contents, was brought into existence at once, six thousand years ago ; and that all the reasonings and deductions of geo- logists are presumptuous and atheistical, since thej "give God 126 AGE OF THE EAETH : We present, in addition to these arguments in favour of the antiquity of the globe, the following ingenious one by the late Mr. H. Miller, drawn from the " coast line " of our own shores : — " There runs round the shores of Grreat Britain and Ireland a flat terrace of unequal breadth, backed by an escarpment of varied height and character, which is known to geologists as the Old Coast-line. On this flat terrace most of the sea- port towns of the empire are built. The subsoil, which underlies its covering of vegetable mould, consists usually of stratified sands and gravels, arranged after the same fashion as on the neigh- bouring beach, and interspersed in the same man- ner with sea-shells. The escarpment behind, when formed of materials of no great coherency, such as gravel or clay, exists as a sloping, grass-covered bank, — at one place running out into promontories, that encroach upon the terrace beneath, at another receding into picturesque, bay-like recesses ; and where composed, as in many localities, of rock of an enduring quality, we find it worn, as if by the the lie." We presume that no intelHgent person who had made himself but tolerably acquainted with geological pheno- mena, would have committed himself to such language. It would be quite as much in keeping with the spirit of an humble inquu-er, to suspect one's own interpretation of the narrative of Moses, as dogmatically to oppose the facts of natm'e. GENEEAL REMARKS. 127 action of the surf, — in some parts relieved into insulated stacks, in others hollowed into deep caverns, — in short, presenting all the appearances of a precipitous coast-line, subjected to the action of the waves. 'Now, no geologist can, or does, doubt that this escarpment was at one time the coast-line of the island — the line against which the waves broke at high-water in some distant age, when either the sea stood from twenty to thirty- feet higher along our shores than it does now, or the laud sat from twenty to thirty feet lower. Nor can geologists doubt that along the flat terrace beneath, with its stratified beds of sand or gravel, and its accumulations of sea-shells, the tides must have risen and fallen twice every day, as they now rise and fall along the beach that girdles our country. But, in reference to at least human history, the age of the Old Coast-line and terrace must be a very remote one. Though geologically recent, it lies far beyond the reach of any written record. It has been shown by Mr. Smith, of Jordan Hill, one of our highest authorities on the subject, that the wall of Antoninus, erected by the Eomans as a protection against the jN"orthern Caledonians, was made to terminate at the Firths of Porth and Clyde, with relation — not to tlie level of the Old Coast-line, but to that of the existing one. And so we must infer that, ere the year a.u. 110 (the year during which, according to our antiquaries, 128 AGE OF THE EAKTH : the greater part of the wall was erected), the Old Coast-line had attained to its present elevation over the sea. Further, however, we know from the history of Diodorus the Sicilian, that at a period earlier by at least two hundred years, St. Michael's Mount, in Cornwall, was connected with the main- land at low water, just as it is now, by a flat isthmus, across which, upon the falling of the tide, the ancient Cornish miners used to carry over their tin in carts. Had the relative levels of sea and land been those of the Old Coast-line at the time, St. Michael's Mount, instead of being accessible at low ebb, would have been separated from the shore by a strait from three to five fathoms in depth. It would not have been then as now, as described in the verse of Carew — " ' Both land and island twice a-dav.' " "But even the incidental notice of Diodorus Siculus represents very inadequately the antiquity of the existing coast-line. Some of its caves, hol- lowed in hard rock in the line of faults and shifts by the attrition of the surf, are more than a hun- dred feet in depth ; and it must have required many centuries to excavate tough trap or rigid gneiss to a depth so considerable by a process so slow. And yet, however long the sea may have stood against the present coast -line, it must have stood for a con- siderably longer period against the ancient one. GENERAL EEMAEKS. 129 The latter presents generally marks of greater attrition than the modem line, and its wave-hol- lowed caves are of a depth considerably more pro- found. In determining, on an extensive tract of coast, the average profundity of both classes of caverns, from a considerable number of each, I ascertained that the proportional average depth of the modern to the ancient is as two to three. For every two centuries, then, during which the waves have been scooping out the caves of the pre- sent coast-line, they must have been engaged for three centuries in scooping out those of the old one. But we know, liistorically , that for at least twenty centuries the sea has been toiling in these modern caves ; and who shall dare affirm that it has not been toiling in them for at least ten cen- turies more ? But if the sea has stood for but even two thousand six hundred years against the present coast-hne (and no geologist would dare fix his estimate lower), then must it have stood against the old line, ere it could have excavated caves one- third deeper, three thousand nine hundred years. And both periods united (six thousand five hundred yeai's) more than exhaust the Hebrew chronology. Yet what a mere beginning of geologic history does not the epoch of the Old Coast-line form ! It is but a mere starting-point from the recent period. Not a single shell seems to have become extinct during the last six thousand five hundred years ! K 130 AGE OP THE EAKTH: The shells which lie embedded in the subsoils be- neath the Old Coast-line are exactly those which still live in our seas." Such is the evidence supplied by geology in favour of the greater antiquity of the earth, than that generally assigned to it. It will be observed that this science does not fix on it a certain age ; it sim- ply demonstrates that it is much older than six thousand years. Greology, when kept in its proper province, is not careful to answer on this point ; its object is to investigate the present state and past changes of this planet ; it has no concern about its origin. And what a scene does it disclose ! Change after change is presented before us ; rather we are asked to contemplate one grand ceaseless process, which began when the foimdations of the earth were laid by the Almighty, and has not yet accom- plished its destined cycle. How varied are the aspects this planet presents in the course of these vast revolutions ! The first certain glance we obtain presents to our view a world whose seas teemed with living inhabitants, chiefly of the fish tribes, of various size, of the most fantastic shapes, and the most elegant colours. Perishable as the last quality is, we have seen it rise, phoenix-like, from the plates of one of these fossil fishes, under the influence of a powerful glass, in hues that rival those of the rainbow. Mean- while the land presents but a scanty vegetation. GENEEAL EEMAEKS. 131 which may give shelter and support to living crea- tures, hut none of which come within the sphere of our vision. Another turn, and the earth is clothed with a luxuriant and extensively distributed vegetation, resembling that of the tropics in the present time ; while the seas and lakes swarm with shell and other fishes. "We look again, and behold creatures of monstrous size, and singidar conforma- tion, basking on the banks of rivers, waddling in the fenny pools, crawling on the moist earth, or floating heavily through the air. Another glance, and the noble forests are seen to give shelter to quadrupeds, in comparison with which the largest of the present time appear dwarfish. They browse upon the leaves and tender sprouts, or burrow in the earth in search of roots. Still another glance, and these creatures are being replaced by others more nearly approaching the type of living creation. In all this there is the amplest evidence that the Creator of the "heaven and the earth" is great, and wise, and good. His power is felt in every change. His wisdom is manifest in every arrange- ment ; and every plant, and tree, and creature, speaks of his goodness. Tnis eaeth of oues is TKE THEATEE, ON WIIICU HAS BEEN niSPLAYED THESE AND OTHEE ATTEIBUTES OF DeITY, FOE AGES FAE BEYOND ALL HUMAN EECKONING. CHAPTEK XIII. STATE OF THE EAETH AT THE OPENmG OF THE HISTOKIC PEEIOD. Gen. i. 2. — " And the earth was without form, and void : and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." VIEW TAEEN OF THE FIEST TERSE AGREES WITH ALL THE FACTS OF SCIENCE, AND VIOLATES NO TEEMS ElIPLOTED IN THE NAEEATIYE. — COLLISION BETWEEN SCIENCE AND SCEIPTUEE TO BE AVOIDED. — MEANING OF THE TEEM "EAETH" INI'THIS connexion.— ME. H. MILLEE ON THIS THEOET. — SEASONS FOE REJECTING HIS VIEW. — THE STATE OF THE EAETH. — THE STATE OF THE SEA. — THE STATE OF THE ATMOSPHEEE. — THE EENOVATING POWEE. I:s" a former chapter we endeavoured to show that the first verse of the Mosaic narrative yields the best sense when understood as containing a sepa- rate proposition. As it appears to us, this view agrees with aU the kno\^Ti facts of science, and does not violate any of the terms employed. It was further hinted, that the object of the inspired his- torian is not to supply a theory of creation, but to furnish a somewhat detailed account of the creation IIISTOmC PEEIOD. 133 of mau, and the creatures belonging to liis epoch. This he does in the body of the first chapter, whilst the first verse contains the important announce- ment, that the universe of matter did not exist from eternity, nor by chance, but had a beginning, and is the work of the 0>'e Teue God. It is about 6,000 years since man was placed upon the earth; but the "beginning" was long prior to that event. Moses assigns no date to the "beginning," and we cannot. But there are suffi- cient data, as we have seen, on which to rest the conclusion, that long ages had revolved between the creation of the universe and the creation of man. Written records previous to the Bible we have none ; but there are others, in a state of mar- vellous preservation, inscribed by the finger of God himself, which no hand can fidsify, and no time effiice. They are safely lodged in the archives of the globe. "We refer to organic remains, and other indications of age, that appear in all the formations of the earth. The geologist descends into this storehouse of old records, and returns to spread before our wondering gaze its multifarious contents. "We conclude that these remains once belonged to living creatures : — that those bones, which are found in such prodigious quantities in many of the rocks^ were once joined together, were clothed with flesh and sinew, and moved to and fro upon the earth. And because of the positions they are known to 134 STATE OF THE EAETH: occupy being, in most instances, many feet beneath the surface, we conclude tliat long ages must have passed since they were enclosed in their stony beds. Any other view appears to us to place the statements of the "Word of God in opposition to the facts gathered from his works ; — an unnatural and dangerous collision. Of all men, Christians should anxiously avoid pressing matters to this result. The man whose religion, although called by the name of Christian, is truly a sort of in- differentism, will be visited by very little concern when there appears something like contradiction between these two volumes; the man of no religion, who imagines the Bible a forgery — this has never yet been proved — will rejoice at every apparent discrepancy, and fortify himself anew in his un- belief. To the Christian there is intrusted, not only the defence of the book of revelation, but also the arduous and dangerous work of demonstrating the harmony that exists, has existed, and, we be- lieve, will exist, between the word and the works of God. The danger to which an individual is exposed, who feels it to be his duty to labour in this field, does not arise so much from the subject on which he is engaged, as from unreasonable pre- judice in some instances, and groundless fear in others, on the part of those who revere and love the Eible, to enlarge and strengthen the evidence in support of which he is spending his time and niSTORIC PEEIOD. 135 strength. The Christian geologist must not be discouraged; the work is God's, and He will pro- tect as well as guide the humble, persevering labourer. Before proceeding to speak of the state of the earth at the opening of the historic period, we must inquire what is the import of the term " earth " in this connexion. We are aware that the plain reader finds no difBculty here, and perhaps he will not thank us for disturbing the placid flow of his thoughts. But truth is better than tranquillity : the ripple in the stream beautifies the waters. Assuredly it would have been the easiest method to have fallen in witli the ordinary opinion ; but whether the safest remains to be seen. Truth must be stated and defended; and long received opinions must not scare us from duty. Besides, this is not the time to shrink from a candid and thorough inves- tigation of every article of our faith. Truth invites investigation ; and if this were more honestly en- gaged in, there would be fewer votaries of a cold and heartless unbelief. Once, opinions might have been taken up and acted on without inquiry ; but assuredly that time is past. 'We rejoice at the dawn of a better day. Ignorance may serve the ends of superstition ; it may, under the specious garb of a little learning, foster the principles of scepticism ; but it has no afiinity with Truth. The 136 STATE OF THE EARTH : religion of Jesus comes to the liglit ; so does the book in which it is contained ; and the more pene- trating the ray that falls upon both, the more do they stand forth consistent, incontrovertible, sub- lime. The term earth is commonly understood to mean the globe in this connexion ; and the phrase, "with- out form, and void," as descriptive of its external state and appearance, immediately before man was placed upon it. Now, although the earth was brought into existence long prior to this point in time, we would not for a moment question that Grod was able to place it in that chaotic state, in which it is supposed to have been at the commence- ment of our epoch. He who called it into existence was undoubtedly able, had he seen meet, to reduce it to chaos. The question is not whether God were ahle to do this, — but, Did he do it ? Was the wliole earth in a state of chaos immediately before the work of the first day ? This is the question. It involves nothing as to the poiver of God ; he who replies in the negative, no more, of necessity, limits the power of the Creator, than he does who replies in the affirmative. To suppose he does, is to miss the true idea. Many who are opposed to geology have fallen into this mistake, and wasted their energies in beating the air. "We understand the term " earth " in this verse to refer to a 'portion of the globe, and not to the HISTOEIC PERIOD. 137 whole. "We are bound, with all explicitnesa, to state the grounds on which this opinion rests. First, when joined with heaven, as in the phrase "heaven and earth," the reference is clearly to the earth, as a part of the material universe. Secondly, when occurring alone, the idea attached to it by those to whom this record was first given, and by its readers for many generations, was not that of the whole globe as we understand it, for this simple reason, that they had no notion of the earth being a globe. Their idea of the earth, as we have abeady shown, Avas that of a vast plain, cut short on all sides by the horizon. In truth, this is the precise idea attached to the term by us, but on very dif- ferent grounds. Thirdly, the term is frequently used in Scripture in this sense. So extensive is this use of the word, that commentators admit that its ordinary meaning, when not explained by the context, is a limited portion of the earth's surface. This portion may be large or small, as the case may be. Foiu-thly, this is the only sense, so far as we can judge, that accords with geological appear- ances. There is no geological evidence that the ivhole earth ever teas, at one period, in a state of chaos, ESPECIALLY IMMEDIATELY BEFORE THE CREATION OF MAN ; but there is much to lead us to conclude that all the great changes it has under- gone were partial :— that is, for the time, passed over only a limited portion of its surface. The 138 STATE OF THE EAETH; whole globe has, indeed, undergone such changes as are fitly described by chaos, but piecemeal, if we may be allowed the expression, and at widely sepa- rated periods. The impress of many is clearly traced in the crust of the earth. Here we shall extract somewhat fully the pub- Kshed opinion of Mr. H. Miller on this question. Having a very high respect for this distinguished geologist and liberal minded Christian, it is with the greatest deference that we differ from him ; but in such matters we may not be permitted to call any man master. The attention of the reader IS specially directed to the sentences in italics : — " Both schemes," that is,'those of Drs. Chalmers and J. Pye Smith, " exhibit the creation, recorded in G-enesis, as an event which took place about six thousand years ago ; both describe it as begun and completed in six natural days ; and both represent it as cut olf from a previously existing creation by a chaotic period of death and darkness. But while, according to the scheme of Chalmers, both the biblical creation and the previous period of death are represented as co-extensive with the globe, they are represented, according to that of Dr. Smith, as limited and local. They may have extended, it is said, over only a few provinces of Central Asia, in which, when all was life and light in other parts of the globe, there reigned for a time only death and darkness amid the welterings of a chaotic sea ; and HISTOEIC PEEIOD, 139 whicli, at the Divine command, was penetrated by- light, and occupied bj dry land, and ultimately, ere the end of the creative week, became a centre in which certain plants and animals, and finally man himself, were created. A^id this scheme, ly leaving to the geologist in this country and elsewhere, save, jy}^hn])i in some unhnoivn Asiatic district, his un- hroken se?'ies, ce?'tainly does not conflict icith the facts educed ly geologic discovery. It virtually removes Scripture altogether out of the field. I must confess, however, that on this, and on some other accounts, it has failed to satisfy me. I have stmnhled, too, at the conception of a merely local and limited chaos, in which the darkness would he so complete, that when first penetrated ly the light, that penetration could he described as actually a making or creation of light ; and that, ivhile life ohtained all around its precincts, could yet he thoroughly void of life. A local darkness, so pro- found as to admit no ray of light, seems to have fallen for a time on Egypt, as one of the ten plagues ; but the event was evidently miraculous ; and no student of natural science is entitled to have recourse, in order to extricate himself out of a difficulty, to supposititious, unrecorded miracle. Creation cannot take place without miracle ; but it would be a strange reversal of all our previous con- clusions on the subject, should we have to hold that the dead, dark blank out of which creation 140 STATE OF THE EAETH : arose was miraculous also. And if, rejecting mira- cle, we cast ourselves on the purely natural, we find that the local darknesses, dependent on known causes, of which we have any record in history, were always either very imperfect, — like the dark- ness of your London fogs, — or very temporary, — like the darkness described by Pliny, as occasioned by a cloud of volcanic ashes ; — and so, altogether inadequate to meet the demands of a hypothesis such as that of Dr. Smith. And i/et, further, I am disposed, I must add, to loohfor a hroader and more general meaning in that grand description of the creation of all things, with ivhich the Divine Record so appropriately opens, than I could recognise it as forming, ivere I assured it referred to hut one of many existing creations — a creation restricted to, jnw^hap, a few hundred sqiiare miles of country, and to, nmyha^, a few scores of animals and plants T 1. In connexion with this extract we remark, in the first place, that Mr. Miller states the case fairly; and enters his dissent to this theory wdth the entii'e absence of that intolerable flippancy that too frequently characterizes the language of those who know nothing at all about the subject. 2. He distinctly admits that the theory of recon- ciliation advanced by the late Dr. Pye Smith, and advocated in this volume, does not run counter to the facts of science. His words are, " Certainly (it) does not conflict with the facts educed by HISTOEIC PEEIOD. 141 geologic discovery." This testimony is of great importance. 3. On what grounds, then, does Mr. Miller reject this theory, the only one of which, per- haps, the same could he said — that it does not " conflict" with the facts of geology ? (1) " It vir- tually removes Scripture altogether out of the field." "I must confess," says he, "that on this, and some other accounts, it has failed to satisfy me." "We cannot see how this theory of recon- ciliation, which is admitted not to jar with the facts of geology, " virtually removes Scripture out of the field," any more than Mr. Miller's own theory does ; and even though it did, — if the nar- rative received no injury in the process, — we cannot perceive how it could be made a ground for rejecting the theory. But it does not remove Scripture out of the field, either really or virtually. It gives to the first verse in the narrative its most comprehen- sive and approved meaning. It gives to every other part a sense quite in accordance with the principles of philology. (2) "I have stumbled, too, at the conception of a merely local and limited chaos," — not, as we understand, because the con- ception of a local and limited chaos " conflicts" with the discoveries of geology, but because " the dark- ness would be so complete, that when first pene- trated by the light, that penetration could be described as actually a maJdng or creation of light." 14;2 STATE OF THE EAETH : We may observe, that the same objection may be taken to a universal as to a limited and local chaos — to a chaos that brooded over the whole globe millions of years ago, as to a chaos that brooded over a portion of the earth's surface some six thou- sand years back ; for on either supposition the heavenly bodies— the light-bearers — existed pre- viously. " In the beginning Grod created the heaven and the earth; and ciftericard the earth was without form and void." But the force of this objection lies in attaching a meaning to a term which it does not necessarily bear. The " dark- ness" was not absolute, as Mr. Miller takes for granted. The original term does not imply that. " The Hebrew word," says Dr. Pye Smith, " does not necessarily mean the absolute privation of light: it is used in relation to various circumstances of partial darkness ; and we know that conditions of the atmosphere have locally happened, in ancient and in recent times, in which the noonday has become dark as an ordinary night." We perfectly agree with Mr. Miller when he writes, that "no student of natural science is entitled to have re- course, in order to extricate himself out of a dif- ficulty, to supposititious, unrecorded miracle ;" but it appears to us, that when philology is allowed to contribute her share of elucidation, as well as geology, to the text, there is no necessity for adopt- ing this course. (3) Another reason why Mr. niSTOEIC PERIOD. 143 Miller rejects this theory is, that, while life obtained all around the precincts of the local chaos, he can- not see how the portion of the earth that was in a state of chaos "could yet be thoroughly void of liic." It is admitted that a limited and local chaos does not " conflict " with the facts of geologic dis- covery ; is it not possible that such a condition as that chaotic portion of the earth is supposed to have been in, may have been accompanied by such convul- sions, and ejections of deleterious matter, and the prevalence of noxious vapoiu's, as to render it, for the time, incapable of supporting life ? The Hebrew phrase rendered "without form and void," is de- scriptive of anything that is " empty, unsubstan- tial, and useless.'" And then we must remark, that we have a standing fact, in the Dead Sea, illustrative of our opinion. To use the words in which this objection is couched : Here we have an inland sea, which, " while life obtains all around its precincts," is yet itself "thoroughly void of life." It does not affect the argument otherwise than to add strength to it, to reply. True, but the waters of the Dead Sea are known to be unfavourable to the existence of life : for this proves that what appears to some as an unwarrantable assumption, is, after aU, a fact not miknown in the workings of nature. (4) "And yet, further," says Mr. Miller, " I am disposed, I must add, to look for a broader and more general meaning in that grand description 144 STATE OF THE EAETH : of the creation of all things, with which the Divine Eecord so appropriately opens, than I could recog- nise it as forming, were I assured it referred to but one of many existing creations," &c. In the first place, let the reader remark, that we give the broadest and most general meaning to the descrip- tion of " creation " with which " the Divine Eecord so appropriately opens." That description refers to " all things ;" and is couched in these words, — " In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth," — all things — the material universe. Let the reader remark further, that, even granting Mr. Miller's position for a moment, the narrative, from the second verse onwards, does not describe the creation of all things, but only the creation of 2, fractional part of " aU things." Now, it appears to us, that, in principle, there is little difference between the remodelling of the whole earth and the remodelling of a part of it. Absolutely speaking, there is very little difierence between our referring this descriptive narrative to one world of myria'DEFI>'ITE PERIODS ? 1G7 todons, its rliinoceri and its hippopotami, its enor- mous dinotherium and colossal megatherium, greatly more than equalled in bulk the hugest mammals of the present time, and vastly exceeded them in number. The remains of one of its elephants, Elejylias jJrimi^eniiis, are still so abundant amid the frozen wastes of Siberia, that what have been not inappropriately termed ' ivory quarries,' have been wrought among their bones for more than a hundred years. Even in our own country, of which, as I have already shown, this elephant was for long ages a native, so abundant are the skeletons and tusks, that there is scarcely a local museum in the king- dom that has not its specimens dug out of the Pleistocene deposits of the neighbourhood. And with this ancient elephant there were meetly asso- ciated in Britain, as on the northern continents generally all around the globe, many other mam- mals of corresponding magnitude. ' Grand, indeed,' says an English naturalist, ' was the fauna of the British Islands in those early days. Tigers, as large again as the biggest Asiatic species, lurked in the ancient thickets ; elephants of nearly twice the bulk of the largest individuals, that now exist in Africa or Ceylon, roamed in herds ; at least two species of rhinoceros forced their way through the primaeval forest ; and the lakes and rivers were tenanted by hippopotami as bulky, and with as great tusks, as those of Africa.' The massive cave- 168 CEEATITE DATS : bear, and large cave-hya^na, belonged to the same formidable group, Avith at least two species of great oxen {Bos longifrons and Bos primigeniiis), with a horse of smaller size, and an elk {Megaceros mhernicus), that stood ten feet four inches in height. Truly, this Tertiary age— this third and last of the great geologic periods— was peculiarly the age of great ' beasts of the earth after their kind, and of cattle after their kind.' " We have quoted this very eloquent passage, partly because it furnishes a most admirable sum- mary of the results of geological discovery. But we must confess that the author, notwithstanding the great scientific skill and ingenuity which he manifests, fails to convince us that the theory of indefinite periods is the true one. It may not be that the advocate of this theory is bound to give some account, geologically, of the six periods ; but sure we are that the majority of think- ing readers will desiderate some attempt, at least, in this direction. Waiving this point, on what ground is it that the advocate of this theory picks out from the six Mosaic days the three that appear to resemble his three geologic periods, and not take them in suc- cession ? He selects the third, the ffth, and the sixth day, and alleges that all the geologist has to do is to show that his three periods correspond with these days. ARE THEY INDEFINITE PERIODS ? 169 But, is he at liberty to pick and choose tliis way ? Ought he not to take the days in unbroken suc- cession, as his periods follow in unbroken succes- sion ? What does he make of the fourth Mosaic day ? AVhat does he mean by the ii'ork of that day ? It was a 'period^ according to his idea ; but what was done in it ? He replies, — " It was the period during which the two great lights of the. eai'th, with the other heavenly bodies, became visible from the earth's surface." AVill the geolo- gist affirm that the sun, moon, and stars were not visible from the earth's surface before the fourtli Mosaic day — that is, the period (to which he does not give a place) that intervenes between the Palaeozoic and the Secondary periods ? Does he believe, that during that immense stretch of time in which the Silurian, the old red sandstone, and the carboniferous systems were accumulating, that the sun was never visible from the earth's surface ? Does he believe that the sun never shone upon the earth during its " green and umbrageous youth " ? We should like to have such questions as these discussed by a competent pen, — and no shrinking. Although we have, in the above paragraph, placed the fourth Mosaic day between the Palaeozoic and Secondary periods, yet the advocates of the theory we are now combating leave no room for it there. Now, they may not feel bound to account for it geologically ; but we must protest against their 170 CEEATIYE DATS : sliiiffling it out of its place altogether. This is putting the Mosaic narrative on a procrustean bed ; it is not a reconciliation. But, further, in seeking to reconcile the two records, the geologic and the Mosaic, the essential meaning of each must be retained ; and the problem, therefore, to be solved is, — Given, fico records of one event, to find tlie jpoint at icliicli tliey meet and Jiarmonize. Such a view of the geologic record must be taken as shall not "conflict" with estab- lished facts : and such a view of the Mosaic record must be taken as shall not clash with the deduc- tions of philology. Now, so far as the science is concerned, we have no fault to find with ]Mr. Mil- ler's summary ; we believe in the three grand sys- tems which he so graphically describes. But we entirely demur to the assumption that they corre- spond with — that they are the geological represen- tatives respectively of — the thii^d, the fifth, and the sixth day. The reader must remember that it is not enough that the facts of geology must be fairly represented ; it is equally necessary that the legi- timate deductions of philology should be respected. "What, then, is the essential idea in the Mosaic narrative ? Beyond all doubt, the narrative of the tJiird day is intended to convey the idea that on tJiat day the "grass," the "herb yielding seed," and the " fruit-tree yielding fruit after his kind," were created — and these only. IVlr. Miller says ARE TIIET INDEFIKITE PERIODS ? 171 tliat tlie Mosaic narrative describes the third day " as j^fczJ/^r/y a period of herbs and trees;" whereas the true idea in the narrative is, that it is exclu- sively the period (the day) of herbs and trees ! But this, the only idea that can be brought legiti- mately out of the passage, does not correspond with the geological idea in the Paleozoic period. The Mosaic "day" is a day of "plants" exclusively ; the Pahrozoic period has its " corals, crustaceans, molluscs, and fishes " in vast numbers, and in its later formations even "reptiles," as well as its " gorgeous flora." In one point only they meet — both have to do with "plants ;" infive points they disagree, for on the third Mosaic day there were no "corals," no " crustaceans," no " molluscs," no "fishes," no "reptiles," brought into existence. It is just as clear that the narrative of the Jifth day's w^ork is intended to teach us that, on tliat day, and not till tliat day, " God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, ivliich the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind." We admit that " the second period of the geologist was peculiarly and characteristically a period of whale- like reptiles of the sea, of enormous creeping rep- tiles of the land, and of numerous birds," but we do not admit that this period is identical with the fifth Mosaic day. One point of disagreement, so vital as the one we are now to mention, is enough 172 CEEATIYE DAYS : to Yitiate tlie whole : Geology proves that the seas were stocked with "living creatures" many, many ages prior to the Secondary period, — prior, indeed, to the existence of any species of plant whatever ; but the Bible tells us that " every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abun- dantly," was created on the Jlftli day. By no legi- timate process of criticism, by no liberal application of enlightened exegesis, can you bring any other meaning out of these words. But that meaning is at irreconcilable variance with this theory. Is it the case, then, that geology and the Bible are irreconcilably at variance ? By no means. The conclusion to which we have been led, after allowing full scope to the science, and explaining the narrative according to the legitimate meaning of the language, is this — that the theory that receives the Mosaic days as indefinite periods of time, and would in this way reconcile the narrative with the science, hopelessly fails in the attempt. But that does not prove that reconciliation is impossible. "We believe that the theory advocated in this volume furnishes the most stable ground, as yet discoverable, on which a substantial reconciliation is effected. "We take the science as it is ; we take the narrative as it is ; and, without doing violence to either, we believe that he who reads this work carefully, ■^'ith intelligence, and without prejudice, will allow that, though not without its difficulties. AEE THEY INDEFINITE PEEIODS ? 173 yet this theory is the most secure of all that have beeu promulgated. In regard to these discussions, we have further to remark, — the foct of the term " day " by itself considered, being indefinite in its import, is granted, and ought always to have been granted ; but that is not enough to fix upon it, in this connexion, the idea of an indefinite period, and not an ordinary day. All parties allow that the context decides the meaning in a given place ; but there is nothing in the narrative, that we can discover, to compel us to attach this idea to it in connexion with the Mosaic creation. Besides, there is another " objection to such an interpretation on geological grounds : and had we ever seen it noticed by any writer, we should feel confident, that it is more difficult to be surmounted than the exegetical difficulty. Universally, we be- lieve, those who adopt this interpretation suppose, that every species of animals and plants on the globe, fossil as well as liviug, was created during the six demiurgic periods. Consequently, all those 100,000 species of plants, cryptogamian as well as phenogamian, now growing on the globe, must have been created during the third period ; for Moses does not describe any creation of vegetables after the third day. All those species of animals that now live in the waters, the zoophyta, testacea, the Crustacea, and the fishes, and the sea monsters, as 174 CEEATIYE DAYS: well as flying birds and insects, must have been created on the fifth day, for the same reason ; and in like manner, on the sixth day, the land animals. " But it is a well-established fact, that of more than 3,000 species of plants and animals that are found fossil in the secondary rocks, not a single species corresponds with any now living on the globe ; and even out of the 3,000 fossil species in the tertiary formations, less than 600 are iden- tical with living species ; and most of those, that are identical, occur in the uppermost members even of the tertiary strata. JS'ow, if existing species were created at the same time with the extinct ones, can any reason be given why their remains are not found mixed together ? Even if we could show how a few species might be absent in the rocks, although now alive on the earth, yet it seems clear to us that the total dissimilarity between living and fossil species is entu'ely inex- plicable on the supposition that they were contem- porary inhabitants of the globe. "VYe know that our present species are continually dying, and that their harder parts are as easily preserved as those of the extinct species ; and the conclusion is irre- sistible, that they did not exist at the same time on the earth ; otherwise, their remains must have been found in rocks." * * " The Connexion between Geology and tlie Mosaic His- tory of the Creation." By Professor Hitchcock. Clarke's ARE TIIET I>'DEEINITE PERIODS ? 175 On these grounds Ave reject the theory of " in- definite periods ;" and have little difficulty in recon- ciling, in our OAvn mind, the interpretation of the term which makes it mean a natural day, with the facts of geology. It has always appeared to us next to impossible to read the narrative, and ques- tion the idea attached to the term yoiri^ day. The case is so clear, that it requires simply to be stated. Each day is said to be composed of " evening and morning." By what process of ingenious criticism shall this definition be made to apply to an inde- finite period ? AVe are aware that much has been written on this point, especially by Grerman authors; but when looked at with the eye of common sense, it may be received as an evidence of the critic's erudition, but not as a demonstration of the truth of his theory. Much of the discussion that has arisen upon this point is altogether un- called for. The question is not, what is the radical meaning of the original term translated day — here all critics are agreed — but what idea does the con- text fix upon it in this instance ? Now, that this definition compels us to receive it as a natural day appears to us obvious. Besides, the same word that edition, pp. 69, 70. "We would xirge the reader, who wishes to have the subject in hand more fully discussed, to consult this work, on the one view ; and, in fairness, the Letters of De Luc, and Trofossor Sillinian's "Wonders of the Eartli, and Truth of the Eible ," on the other. 176 CEEATIYE DATS : is six times employed in connexion witli the work of creation, is also employed to designate the seventh day. If, therefore, the term in one part of the nar- rative means an indefinite period, it must have the same meaning throughout, there being nothing to lead us to suspect a change of sense. If the six creative days are to be received as periods of in- definite extent, so also must the seventh day. Some of the advocates of this view have felt the necessity of being consistent, and pronounce in favour of this conclusion. But how can this view of the seventh day be reconciled with the numerous references in Scripture, which obviously understand it to have been an ordinary day ? We are satisfied with the definition furnished by Moses himself — " the evening and the morning — one day" — and from the statements and reasonings already placed before the reader, we trust that he is persuaded that this view is in harmony with scientific truth. Time is demanded ; this we have shown at some length : but it appears to us unnecessary to adopt such an interpretation to obtain it. Take the view we have ventiu-ed to give of the first two verses of the narrative, and all that geology demands, or can demand, is at her disposal. Unfettered, then, by any dogma, she goes forth to her sublime fields of research, and returns, without fear, with her pre- cious discoveries. She no longer looks askance ARE THEY INDEFINITE PERIODS? 177 upon tlie Eible, and the Bible no longer looks with suspicion upon lier. She becomes a powerful auxiliary to religion ; and religion smiles upon and sanctions her efibrts. Both labour in the same field, though they have entered by different avenues. The object of both is alike — the develop- ment of the character of Deity: to this end the one labours among the manifold works of creation, the other unfolds the more sublime work of re- demption. CHAPTEK XV. THE WOEK OF THE FIEST DAY.' G-EN i. 3—5. — " And God said, Let there be light : and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good : and God divided the Hght from the darkness. And God called the hght Day," &c. CHAEACTEE OF THE FAEEATIVE.— WOEK DONE ON THE PIEST DAY. — ITS CHAEACTEE. — DEFINITION OF THE PEEIOD. — OTJE YIEW OPPOSED BY TWO CLASSES OF PEESONS. — A WOED TO EACH. We have been long detained upon the questions that have passed before us in the preceding part of this volume ; not, however, we trust, without profit. There is nothing now between us and the examination of the work of the six days, but a cer- tain reverential, soul-prostrating feeling, which one cannot but experience in attempting the exposition of a description so sublime and unapproachable : the exposition is embodied in as few words as pos- sible, bemg persuaded that by so doing, we will best accomplish our purpose, and show becoming reverence for this inimitable composition. WORK OF THE FIRST DAT. 179 The work of the first day consisted in the pro- duction of light, the separating the season of dark- ness from that of light, and the attaching to each its appropriate name. " And God said, Let there be light : and there was light." "We are not to conceive of the Creator as standing over chaos, and uttering these words, — "Let there be light." The language does not demand this literal interpretation. Eor Him to speak is to ivill. This is frequently the idea at- tached to the term "said," when applied to Grod; this appears to be its import throughout the nar- rative. From His throne in glory He idlled that light should be, and it immediately burst through the vapoury atmosphere, but not with the brilliancy of the fourth day. The sun, the source of light to our planet, was not yet visible. This luminary was unquestionably in existence at this time, and shone from his place in the heavens ; but by reason of the "darkness" that overspread this portion of the earth, his beams reached not its surface, till the Creator willed they should, on the fourth day. What is understood by the sun being " made " on the fourth day, will be stated in due course ; meanwhile we remark, that, to speak of the light existing before the sun was created is absurd, as the latter is, so far as we know, the source, or cause of the former. Many are the puerile notions n2 180 woee: of the fiest day. which have been printed by commentators on this point ; and many are the objections which Christians urge to the reception of such a theory of recon- ciliation as we are now endeavouring to establish, that would never find embodiment in good English, were they a Httle better informed on the subject. Indeed, we want, at this day, an intelligent, com- prehensive, trust- worthy exposition of the narrative »f the creation, which could be put into, the hands of thinking readers. Light was now present upon, and difiused over, that portion of the globe that was so lately a chaos, but the sun from which it emanated was not yet visible. We are not called upon to discuss the nature of light : this would be in us presumption. If those whose study it is to investigate such matters have not yet been able to agree, it ill becomes one who takes but 'a passing glance at the subject to decide. " And G-od divided the light from the darkness ;" or, as it literally reads, he " separated between the light and between the darlmess." This portion of the earth's surface had been, we Imow not how long, in a chaotic state ; darkness had sat upon it ; it is now disturbed, dispelled, and in its room a grateful, refreshing light has been difiused. The locality was not again to be clothed with darkness, as mth a mantle; it would indeed come, when night approached, but only to be relieved by to- morrow's dawn. The Creator has now established WOEK OF THE FIEST DAT. 181 the order wliich would never fail. Light had come in upon the previously existing night, and though night would again overshadow the earth, it was only to be succeeded by a new diffusion of light. The idea of succession, as well as separation, seems implied in the phrase under consideration. " And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night." Light and darkness now receive their distinctive appellations. The former is called day. Much ingenuity has been expended on the question, lYliy is light called by this name ? The root of the Hebrew word is lost. Perhaps the best opinion is that which derives it from a verb, that means to be warm, hot, &c. According to this view the name is descriptive of the season. This is most probable, for every one knows, that in Oriental countries the day is hot to a degree of which we Europeans have no experience. The latter is called niglit. When the sim shone not, and the earth was wTapt in darkness, it was night. This was the work of the first day. It was most excellent, "And God saw the light, that it was good." It was precisely what its Maker purposed it should be ; and served all the purposes contem- plated by him. It irradiated the earth, and warmed its cold, saturated surface ; it was also pleasant and refreshing. " Truly the light is sw^eet, and a pleasant (good) thing it is for the eyes to behold 182 WOKK OF THE TIEST DAT. the suu," Eccles. xi. 7. God saw that it was good ; that is, he marked its adaptation to the end in view. "And the evening and the morning were the first day." The Hebrew phrase literally rendered reads thus : — " And there was evening, and there was morning, — one day." It will be perceived that the term day, in this clause, has a wider sig- nification than it has in the previous part of the verse. There it means the season of light in opposition to the season of darkness, that is, from sunrise to sunset ; here it means the period of twenty-four hours, including both seasons. The evening and the morning were the ^rst day. Pre- vious to this there had been a chaos ; a deep, wide- spread darkness had brooded over it. During the existence of this state of things, there was no sen- sible alternation of light and darkness, — all was darkness. The narrative does not profess to de- scribe the state of the earth previous to the time when this gloomy ruin was superinduced upon this portion of its surface ; it refers only to its actual state when the divine energy went forth to evolve the new and glorious creation. The result of the first expression of the divine will, in connexion with this chaos, was the establishment of the season of light, distinct from the darkness that then prevailed. There was evening ; that was the termination of the long continued darkness; — WORK OF THE FIEST DAT. 183 there was morning ; that was the newly diffused light ; and both constitute the first day. " Confusion heard his voice, and wild uproar Stood rul'd, stood vast infinitude confined ; Till at his second bidding darkness fled, Light shone, and order from disorder sprung." The Jewish mode of reckoning the day is, in all probability, to be traced to this source. We may be asked, Was this the first day of time ? From what has been already advanced, the answer will be anticipated,— it was not. So far as facts, and arguments founded upon these, can establish a point, this one appears to us to be established, namely, that time had begun its cycles long ere this. AVith what propriety, then, can it be called the first day ? Is there not a manifest contradic- tion bet^veen the statement of this narrative, and the conclusions of science ? No : Eecall the prin- ciple of interpretation adopted in these pages, and the opinion expressed of the term " earth " in the second verse, and the difficulty will disappear. The narrative, from the second verse downwards, has exclusive reference to the period when man, and the creatures that were made with him, were placed upon the earth. This epoch opened with a portion of the earth's surface in a state of ruin, which, at the will of God, gave place to order and beauty. The first step in the process was the diffusion of light over the locality. This was the 184 WOEK OP THE FIEST DAT. first day of the epoch: the Bible says nothing more. The statement appear to us very plain, and perfectly consistent with the facts of science. The theory stated in former chapters, and partly illustrated in the present one, has not been hastily adopted; it is not advanced without much and anxious reflection, and whatever be the treatment it may receive, one thing we are assured of, — it appears to be the only safe ground on which the narrative can rest. Some may suppose that it rests securely on other and more generally received grounds ; but if we may be allowed to express our own experience, we tell them, that in proportion as the mind opens to the comprehension of this vast subject, in the same proportion does it discover the baseless nature of many commonly received opinions, and the stern necessity under which it is laid to advance, and take possession of new ground. In doing this we are exposed to the opposition of two very different parties : — the pious Christian, whose mind is never disturbed by the war of scientific principles, and who fancies himself secure in his opinion, simply because he knows not the dangers that beset it, and the fallacies on which it rests ; and the shrewd sceptic, who rejoices at the discovery of every apparent contradiction between nature and revelation, — who is sharp enough to perceive the impregnable nature of our position, and who feels that, if allowed to be occupied with- WORK OF THE FIEST DAT. 185 out molestation, so far as this department of science is concerned, he must, " vanquished, quit the field." It would not surprise us, then, though this interpretation were to be assailed, on the one hand by many who are devoted to the word of God, but who are entirely ignorant of, or but partially acquainted with, physical science ; and on the other, by those who, although acquainted to some extent with science, pay no manner of regard to that word. To the former we would say, — Brother Christians, calm your fears ; that which you prize greatly, and tremble for, is safe. Christian geologists are doing our common cause a service which you may live to acknowledge, but never to estimate fully. Grene- rations yet unborn will be better able. With humility we presume to think that this interpreta- tion unites the chain of natural and revealed truth — a chain, the beautiful proportions of whidh too many Christians are unable to appreciate, be- cause they give not themselves to the careful study of these and kindred subjects. To the latter we would say, — Friends, your restless anxiety does not astonish us. You have long proclaimed war with the Bible. Again and again your weapons have been wrested from you ; again and again you have been compelled to change your ground and mode of attack ; again and again you have been beaten from the field. We have 186 ttork: of the piest day. • beaten you on the plains of antiquarian research, — you dare not stand by while we trace the inscrip- tions from ancient Nineveh, or decipher the hiero- glyphics of the Nile ; we have beaten you from the wide fields of astronomy, — we never meet you there now. Chased from the heavens, you take your stand upon the earth. The weapons supplied by astro- nomy having failed, you have grasped those fur- nished by geology. Tour new weapons will soon fail you. Tou have a presentiment of this ; we therefore wonder not at your trembling anxiety at the advanced position of christian geology, seeing the shadow of a fresh disaster may even now be darkening your path. "We enter the lists with you. Choose your own ground. Do you say the formations of which the crust of the earth is com- posed ? — we meet you there. Do you prefer the department of organic remains ? — we meet you there. From either department we ask you to produce a single fact, or argument, contrary to Scripture properly understood. "VYe are bold to say, that in the wide domain of geological science there does not exist a fact, that will bear scrutiny, that jars with the interpretation we have ventured to lay before you in this work. Have a care then, friends, how you act. Cease to oppose the Bible, for your opposition will be of no avail. Say not that nature contradicts revelation, lest it should turn out that your assertion proves nought but WOEK OP THE FIRST DAT. 187 your ignorance or malice. Be at length persuaded that the book tliat has weathered the storm so long, without sustaining any harm, is indeed divine, — the revelation of God's will to men. Not only cease your opposition ; listen to its teaching. Your soul is precious, but it is sinful ; this you cannot doubt, if you listen to the voice of con- science. Sin involves misery. There is nothing in nature to remove your guilt, — to calm your conscience, — or to avert approaching ruin. In the Bible there is a remedy. Try it : it is the blood that was shed on Calvary. You stand back; nay, rather approach. Multitudes, sinful, and un- happy, and proud, as you are, have come to this Saviour, and have been humbled, pardoned, and blessed Avith peace and joy. Spirit of the Lord, move upon the dark polluted soul and troubled conscience, and, as from ancient chaos, evolve the new life — a holy, happy state of things ! " Turn, then, and view those streams where spuits sport, Q.uaffing immortal life, preparing aye For higher and intcnscr bemg still." CHAPTEK XVI. THE WOEK OF THE SECOND DAY. Gen. i. 6—8.—" And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters," &c. THE NAEEATIVE, 80 FAE AS EXAMINED, IN HAEMONT -WITH NATTIEAL PHENOMENA. — TEUE ALSO OE THE PAET UNDEE CONSIDEEATION. — THE WOEK OE THE SECOND DAT. — ■ GOD MAKES THE EIEMAMENT. — APPOINTS IT TO ACCOM- PLISH HIS PUEPOSE IN THIS DEPAETMENT OF THE GEEAT PLAN. — ITS USES. — SECOND DAT. We have endeavoured to furnish such an interpre- tation of the previous portion of this narrative, as comports with the established facts of modern geology. That interpretation it was our aim to prove conformable to the general use of Scripture language, and the principles of an enlightened exegesis. Though entirely satisfied in our own mind on the point, we are aware that others may admit the conclusions deduced, with hesitancy. But we feel persuaded, that the more thorough one's knovf ledge is of natural science, the more WOEK OF THE SEC0:N'D DAT. 189 readily will they be acquiesced iu. They may be opposed by tbe partially informed ; but he who, by liis o^\Ti attainments, is able to judge, if not con- vinced, will express himself with caution. On this, ns on every other subject of human speculation, the captious and cavilling are the least informed. It is easy to deal mth the man of solid information : ignorance generally betrays itself iu silly, stubborn dogmatism. If our interpretation be correct, then, there exists perfect harmony between the facts of science, and those parts of the narrative already examined. The same principle of interpretation, applied to the remaining parts, will place them upon the same foundation. Thus we cannot doubt it will appear manifest, that the discoveries of science do not contradict the Mosaic record. Tlie passage under present consideration is that which embodies the work of the second day. At the win of the Almighty, light has again shed its refreshing radiance over the chaotic mass ; but the atmosphere is still dense and unwholesome, alto- gether unfit to be the medium of life and health. The process necessary to fit this element for the discharge of its various functions, is now about to be instituted. God speaks, — rather wills, and the work is done. "And God said. Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters 190 WOEK OF THE SECOXD DAT. from the waters." Mrmament. This term comes from a root that means to beat, to spread out by beating. By the ancients it was used to designate the blue vault above us, and corresponded with a free use of the term heaven. Hence the expres- sion of the Psalmist :— " Who stretched out the heavens like a curtain," Psalm civ. 2. In this 'expanse it was supposed, that the sun, moon, and stars were fixed — stuck up like so many lamps to light this little world of ours. The language of the seventeenth verse of this chapter might easily give rise to this opinion. " Grod," it is there said, " set them — the sun, moon, and stars — in the firm- ament of the heaven, to give light upon the earth," The firmament, as now understood, designates that region that surrounds our globe, and in which float the clouds that shade us from the scorching beams of summer, or drop upon us the genial showers of spring. Astronomy has, indeed, attached to it another meaning. Those immense clusters of stars, made up of innumerable solar systems, and which appear under a powerful glass to be floating in boundless space, are called "firmaments;" but with this sense of the term our subject has no con- nexion. rirmament, we understand to be equivalent to our term atmosphere. It therefore designates that body of air that surrounds the planet on which we dweU. It is everywhere present on the surface. WOEE OF THE SEC0:N"D DAT. 191 penetrating every ravine, floating in every valley, and enveloping every moimtain. It is supposed to extend thirty or forty miles above the surface. Clouds float plentifully in it ; but they are believed to rise no higher than ten miles. According to the interpretation given of the term "earth" in the second verse, so must be the idea attached to the firmament in this verse. The former meaning a portion of the earth's surface, the latter, though in its widest acceptation it designates the whole aerial coating that envelopes the globe, yet, in its present connexion, must be understood as referring to that portion of the atmosphere, that overspread the chaotic mass. "And God made the firmament." The idea generally attached to this clause is that of a proper creation. It is thought that at this time the atmosphere was brought into existence by the will of God ; that previous to the second day there was no aerial substance surrounding the globe. It is well that the language does not demand this inter- pretation ; for we fear it would have been found to oppose the principles of natural science, in such a manner, as would render reconciliation hopeless. Light existed on the previous day ; but such light as could not exist in the absence of the atmosphere. It is true that nothing is impossible with God; but are we justified in falling back upon the super- natural, merely to spare the confession, that our 192 WOEK or THE SECO^•D DAT. view of tlie passage is erroneous ? The existence of life previous to this date, as proved by the exist- ence of fossils, and the existence of the organs of vision in these fossils, similarly constituted to our own, establish the conclusion, that an atmosphere enveloped the earth previous to the second day in the Mosaic account. The narrative is not opposed to this conclusion. It has been already stated that the existence of light on the first day presupposes its truth. "We have now to add that the Hebrew word rendered "made," does not primarily mean create; its pre- vailing signification is to make, prepare, &c.* It is a different word from that rendered " create " in the first verse, and appears to be less powerful. Sometimes it is properly rendered create ; but this is always regulated by the subject or the context. In the passage before us, we understand it in the sense of, to prepare, or arrange. It is a strong presumption in favour of this interpretation, that while it gives to the term its primary sense, it meets every requirement of science. " Grod said, Let there be a firmament," that is, an atmosphere capable of discharging aU its functions ; and Grod prepared the firmament, all disordered, like the earth on which it rested, for these pui'poses. It was motionless, stagnant, dingy, lifeless. But no sooner does the will of God go forth, than with * Gesenius,' Lexicon. WORK OF THE SECOND DAT. 193 silent but sublime efficacy, the stagnant atmospbere is imbued with a living principle; God wills its renovation, and it was effected. Let no one suppose that this work is unbecoming the dignity of Grod, or unworthy of a place in the opening pages of our sacred book. It appears to us that this narrative, the first verse excepted, refers to a remodelling process that passed upon a portion of the earth's surface, and includes an account of the creation of the various creatures destined to inhabit the renovated land ; and in the renovating process, as well as in the creative acts, we see much that is Godlike. In the beginning God created all things by the word of his power ; we cannot suppose it derogatory to his character to find Him re-arranging and beautifying, even a limited portion of his universe, for the reception of innumerable creatui-es, and especially the crea- ture whom he formed in his own image. The Creator willed that there should be a firma- ment in the midst of the waters, to divide the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. "In the midst of the waters;" rather, " between the waters." This is the only use which the narrative informs us the atmosphere was put to at this time ; but it served other purposes, to which reference will be made in following pages. "The waters which were under the firmament," are 194 WOEK OF THE SECOND DAT. generally understood to be the "waters" men- tioned in the tenth verse, and which, when gathered together, were called "seas." What are we to understand by the waters separate from these, and said to be above the firmament? The general answer to this question is, that reference is here made to the water which is known to lodge in the atmosphere. It ascends from the earth under certain circumstances, and is stored up in the heavens, till a wise and beneficent Providence dispenses it again to refresh and beautify the ground. It exists in the shape of clouds and vapour. Previous to the work of this day, the atmosphere being in a state of derangement, the watery vapours approached so near the surface of the earth, that there appeared to be no line of demarcation : — the one merged, as it were, into the other. Now, the effect of the atmosphere being renovated, immediately appeared in the separating between the waters below, and the waters above. The surface of the former assumed a definiteness, the moist mists being rolled away ; and the latter carried upwards to the higher regions. Thus God made, or prepared, the firmament, and divided the waters which were under it from those which were above it. "And God called the firmament heaven." It has been already remarked, that the term heaven is used in various senses in the Bible. In its highest WORK OE THE SECOND DAT. 195 sense, it refers to the habitation of God's throne ; in its lowest sense, it is applied to the coating of air that surrounds the earth, as in this clause. The phrase, " Let it divide," does not simply mean, let it separate ; but also, let this separation continue. By means of the firmament, let there be a lasting separation between the seas beneath, and the watery clouds above. It was so, in obedience to the Divine will ; it is still so, in accordance with that omnipotent will. The phrase, " Let there be," is equivalent to an expression of the Divine will. " So even And morning chorus sung the Second day." The atmosphere is necessary to the existence of life. "We can conceive of a globe like this earth existing without an atmosphere, but in that case it would be entirely destitute of life. No terrestrial creature, as presently constituted, could have been brought into existence; or if, at the will of the Almighty, it had stood forth, it would have sunk, the next moment, into non-existence. No plant or tree would have found a place upon the earth, to deck its plains, and relieve the dull uniformity of its surface. "Without this important appendage, it would have presented a dreary aspect, — it would have been a waste portion of the universe of God. The mountain and hill would have had no grassy covering ; the valleys would have yielded no pas- ture, and the plains would have been so many arid o 2 196 t\'oee: of the second day. deserts. No fishes would have gambolled in its oceans, or sported in its lakes and rivers. Ko beast of prey would have roamed its wilds ; no cattle browsed upon its mountains ; no flocks fed upon its plains. There would have been no groves with their solemn shade, and no sweet songsters to render vocal the earth with their melody. There would have walked the earth no creature bearing its Maker's image, to admire the works of his hands, and adore his glorious character. All existence, animate and inanimate, depends upon the presence of the atmosphere; hence, before either plant or creature was placed upon the earth, God "made the firmament." Were it, by some means, to be removed, all that partakes of anima- tion would cease to exist. Plants would droop and decay, creatures would instantaneously perish. It is to be observed further, that life depends upon the atmosphere as 'presently constituted. "Were it to be vitiated by the introduction of some foreign element, or even were its component parts — oxygen and nitrogen — to come together in dif- ferent proportions, the result would be the same. Death would usurp universal sway, and desola- tion spread her gloomy mantle over this fair earth. But suppose life to exist without an atmosphere, in what circumstances would man find himself placed? The contrast between the present and WORK OF THE SECOND DAT. 197 supposed state %f things would be very striking ; and would show, in a forcible manner, the impor- tant uses of this element. Were it removed, both the individual and social happiness of our race would be affected, to a far greater extent than is, at first view, believed. It would then be found that it served numerous purposes, which could not be accomplished by any other means with which we are acquainted. The bodily organs would be greatly impaired, and in many instances they would cease to be of any service to their possessor. The range of our vision, for example, would be greatly circum- scribed, and within the limited sphere, the aspect of things would be greatly altered. The atmosphere is the medium by which light is diffused. But for it, every spot, on which the sun did not directly strike, would remain in unmitigated darkness. The shaded sides of mountains would rest in impenetrable gloom. Our streets would present alternate patches of bright sunshine, and pitchy darkness, as the sun's rays fell upon them, or were intercepted by some opaque substance. The houses we live in would, at midday, present the same gloomy appearance, with the exception of those small portions of them, that were favoured with the direct rays of the luminary of day. We would either be exposed to the intolerable glare of a scorching sunshine, or else enveloped in darkness that might be felt. There would be no shade, the 198 WOEK or THE SECOND DAT. most grateful of all light to our e^. There would be no twilight, with its mellow radiance, to soothe our care-worn souls, and invite us to repose ; — no dawn, with its blushing beauties, to warn us of the approach of daj, and beckon us to activity. Day- would close, light would depart and darkness come, as if the sun were quenched in a moment of time. Day would again open, as if some unseen hand raised the curtain of black night, and permitted the sun to pour his burning rays instantaneously upon the earth. By the universal diffusion of the atmosphere, objects, on which the sun does not shine, become visible; — rather, our eye is thereby enabled to receive the miniature picture of these objects. In its absence this organ would be of compar- atively little service to us, as many of the objects, that now come within the range of our vision, would then have been without it. There would be the eye, and the objects toward which it should be directed, but the medium of intercourse was wanting. Those objects only, on which the sun shone for the time, would be visible, aU others would be wrapt in gloom. One has only to reflect how much this would mar the unity and breadth and beauty of the landscape, to perceive how completely it would rob us of much of our purest enjoyment. Every one is aware of the wonderful mechanism of the human ear, so nicely fitted to catch the WORK OF THE SECOND DAT. 199 pulsations of sound, and transmit to tlie soul the sensations, as the case may be, of joy, fear, or sad- ness. This exquisitely finished organ would be absolutely useless, were there no atmosphere. It is on the gentle undulations of the air that sounds are wafted to the ear. Without it, the faculty of speech, also, would be superfluous. We might meet mth our fellow-creatures, but could hold no oral intercourse with them. We might express our thoughts in words, but there being no medium of conveyance, they would remain ignorant of what was expressed, conscious only of the movement of the lips. Think of our intercourse with one another being confined to looks, and that, too, only in the glare of sunshine! Supposing them to exist, we would be unconscious alike of thrilling eloquence and melting music ; — the hoarse rumbling of the earthquake, and the sharp pealing of thunder. What a world would this be were there no atmo- sphere! Full of sounds, sweet and harmonious, yet to us, the only creatures, so far as we know, that could rationally enter into their enjoyment, a world of silence, profound and eternal! Gifted with the power of speech, not a syllable could we comprehend, of all that was spoken ; provided with the most perfect organ of hearing, no sweet sounds of joy or sympathy could reach us ; supplied with the most delicate organ of vision, it could only partially be exercised. 200 WORK OF THE SECOND DAT. The atmosphere serves the most important pur- poses in the economy of human existence. It sustains us in being, and fui-nishes a medium, through which the various organs, with which God has endowed us, may be exercised. It diffuses everywhere a grateful light, whereby we are enabled to view external objects with greater distinctness, and in perfect harmony, thus con- tributing, in no small degree, to the sum of human happiness. It announces the approach of danger, from whatever quarter it may come, by its invisible but certain pulsations that strike upon the delicate mechanism of the ear. By it, language is con- stituted a palpable reality, and conveys to us warning, encouragement, or sympathy. The orator is indebted to the atmosphere for the effects pro- duced by his public displays. It wafts to his auditory the "thoughts that breathe and words that burn." By means of it, they are warmed into enthusiasm, or melted to tears. To it, too, the musician is indebted for what success is accorded to his divine art when the soul is roused to sublime emotion, or soothed to delicious quietude. Let us pause for a moment, at the close of this day's work, cast our eye over the scene, and allow our admiring homage to ascend to the divine Creator. Over a vast region, in a state of wreck and ruin, there hung an atmosphere of pitchy darkness. In vain the sunbeams struggled to pierce it. It was WORK OF THE SECOND DAT. 201 impervious. Shall the chaos defy the approach of reuovating energy ? The atmosphere is lifeless, the earth is lifeless, the waters are also lifeless. Here is the reign of death and desolation : but shall death reign for ever monarch of this region ? jN'o : the Almighty Being, who, "in the beginning" called "the heaven and the earth" into existence, willed it should not be so. He said, Let there be light ; and light was. This was the work of the first day. He again speaks. Let there be a firmament ; and the vapours disperse, the clouds rise in air, and gentle breezes fan the surface of the waters. All this is preparatory to the introduction of life, animal and vegetable. How sublime the scene ! Will any of my readers refuse to worship ? "And the evening and the morning were the second day." This day, like the first, is made up of evening and morning, thus showing that the period was the same— twenty-four hours. CHAPTEK XVII. j I THE WORK OF THE THIRD DAY. ] GEN.i.9 — 13. — "And God said, Let the waters under the ' heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry \ land appear : and it was so. And God called the dry land earth." &c. THE THEATEE OP OPEEATION CHANGED. — THE BOUNDS OE THE WATEKS EIXED. — THE EAETH IS ESTABLISHED. — IN i i OBEDIENCE TO THE DIVINE COMMAND IT BEINGS EOETH : GEASS — HEEBS — TEEES. — ALL GOOD. — THIED DAT. — GOD IN THE WOEK. — THE TEUE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD. We approacli the work of the third day. Des- • cending from the higher regions, we occupy our- , selves in this chapter with examining what trans- pired on earth. The theatre of action is an hum- , bier one, but not the less interesting because of ; that. All being in order above, the great Archi- ' tect brings his wisdom and power to bear upon that portion of the earth which still lies in chaos. i "And God said, Let the waters under the ] heaven be gathered together unto one place, — ] and the gathering together of the waters called he ] WOEK OF THE THIRD DAT. 203 seas." The creative energy put forth, was, as yet, exercised exclusively upon the atmosphere. Now, however, that energy is to go forth upon the chaotic mass itself, and the effects are the same, — order and beauty. First, the waters feel its impulse, and, prompt to do their Maker's will, "gather themselves together unto one place." Let the waters under the heaven be collected to- gether, and receive their fixed boundaries, over which they are not again to pass, so long as this new order of things shall last, willed the Creator; and it was so. Before the word went forth, the waters, in all probability, rose above the district, and entirely, or nearly so, covered the land. They now leave the region. " At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thun- der they hasted away. They go up by the mountains; they go dowTi by the valleys unto the place which thou hast founded for them. Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over ; that they tui'n not again to cover the earth :" Psalm civ. 7 — 9. "The gathering together of the waters called he seas." The name which the collected waters now received is descriptive of their nature. The Hebrew term comes from another, which means "roaring," or "tumultuous agitation." It is said in the narrative that the waters were gathered unto "one place;" and in the Psalm above referred to, they are said to have gone down 204 WOEK OF THE THIED DAT. by the valleys unto "the place" which Grod had founded for them. "We are aware that these phrases have not hitherto been explained in accord- ance with their strict signification, but have been understood to refer to the basins in which are col- lected all the seas and oceans that exist over the face of the globe. But might they not be received in their strict and legitimate sense, in connexion with the interpretation here presented of the leading points of the narrative ? They might ; and in them we find something to strengthen our theory. Suppose the writers were inspired to make such announcements, in connexion with this subject, as led us to conclude that the creative acts had reference to a portion of the earth only, would not these have been the very phrases they would have used in speaking of the bed of the collected waters ? Their being employed, therefore, in connexion mth the waters, w^hich were drawn off from that portion of the earth, which was in a chaotic state, may be viewed as favourable to the new interpretation. " Let the dry land appear — and God called the dry land earth." It is obvious, from these state- ments, that the earth was nearly, if not entirely, covered with water ; but the latter, being gathered together, the former appears. The dry land must, at this moment, have presented a desolate appear- ance. No pile of grass pierced its slimy covering ; no herb raised its welcome form ; no tree relieved wore: or the third day. 205 the dull, distant prospect. So lately under water, it presented the forbidding aspect of an elevated ocean-bed. But beauty trod upon the heels of order. Another volition of the Divine will, and the newly raised land flushed with the freshness of spring, and smiled in the richness of autumn. The dry land is called "earth." In accordance with the opinion already expressed, this term is believed to refer to that portion of the globe now emerged from chaos. Is the question started. By what means, if any, was this order so speedily effected? Was it by miraculous agency, or was it produced by causes similar to those that sometimes astonish men still, by the instantaneous manner in which they operate, and the mighty consequences which they leave behind them? Perhaps it is safer for truth to reply that, probably, this new order of things was brought about by natural causes, put into operation at the command, and regulated and controlled in their exercise, by the wisdom and power of Grod. A great work was to be done; the Creator had endowed nature with such powers as might accomplish it : but these powers must be directed towards the proper point, and must operate at the proper time. The presence, and wisdom, and power of Grod were demanded in this work, though not in a strictly miraculous sense. By the instantaneous application of some inter- 206 WOEK OF THE THIED DAT. nal power, probably tbat of beat, certain parts of tbe locality were elevated, and became dry land. But elevation never takes place without a cor- responding depression in other, and, it may be, not distant parts. Into the depression the waters were gathered ; and thus a separation was eiFected, The language of the 104th Psalm, already quoted, is favourable to this view. The commotion in the earth appears to have been accompanied with thunder in the air. The waters "fled," they "hasted away." They roll down by the sides of the elevated parts, sweep through the valleys, and congregate where there is the greatest depression. Eeference has been made in a previous chapter to this power in nature, which may, under the guidance of Grod, have brought about the change under consideration, and which, in these times, has not ceased to work. The last creative act had order for its object ; the next has beauty and utility. " And Grod said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit-tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth ; and it was so." The vegetable kingdom is here spoken of under three simple divisions ; and these are adopted in accordance with appearances. There is no botani- cal arrangement according to philosophic principles in the narrative, and it would be vain to attempt to extract one from it. But simple and popular WORK OF THE THIED DAT. 207 as this division is, it cannot be called contradictory to the systems that at present obtain. It does not profess to be a system, but a simple division of plants on the ground of certain apparent distinc- tions, and therefore cannot, in fairness, be brought into competition with those of an elaborate nature that have been, or are at present, held by botanists. In our remarks we shall follow the plan of the inspired writer. The word rendered "grass," in the original, means that which presented tender sprouts. The term, therefore, may be understood as including all the tender vegetation that appeared upon the ground. In the production of this division of the vegetable kingdom, there was no lengthened process gone through. There was no sowing of seeds, no transplanting of roots. The word was spoken— rather the Divine will was expressed — that grass, tender, sprouting plants, should be, and they were. This was an act of creation. We may wonder, but we cannot doubt, since Grod was the creator. It was as easy for Him to cause the grass to spring up at once, without having cast the seed into the soil, as to produce it from seed by germination, and the ordinary stages of growth. " The herb yielding seed." Tliis phrase, in the Hebrew, is peculiarly expressive; — it literally means, the herb "seeding seed." In the Greek version the same mode of expression is retained. The 208 WOKK or THE THIED DAT. term is used to designate those plants which carry seed, although they might, in a less advanced state, be included in the former. It seems to include all those plants that were created on this day, ranging between the humbler vegetation, and the trees which are yet to be noticed. Previous to this day, the portion of the earth newly reclaimed from chaos was destitute of herbs, as of every green thing ; but God wills they should exist, and up they rise to instant maturity. This also is an act of creation, not the result of the operation of natural causes, through a considerable period of time. G-od spake, and it was done. " The fruit-tree yielding fruit." In the original it is, the fruit-tree " making fruit." This represents the third division of the vegetable kingdom as it was created on this renovated portion of the earth's surface, at the time when God was preparing it for a habitation for man and beast. The tree bearing fruit "after his kind." There was a connexion formed and fixed between the tree, produced in a state of maturity, and its seed, as by the latter the species was to be propagated. The trees now formed, by the direct power of God, contain within themselves the germ of future trees. Thus, from one creative act, there flows a countless number of generations, each bearing the lineaments of its predecessor, and transmitting them to those that follow. This will continue till the species is WORK OF THE TIIIED DAT. 209 exhausted, and till the whole genus has served its day. The earth brought forth grass, and herb, and tree; "and Grod saw that the work was good." Every thing appeared in the manner, at the time, and with the functions, which He willed. Thus ended the work of the third day. Tliere are many vague notions afloat on this subject. One sometimes hears a person speak as if the vegetation, to which we have been referring, is identical with that which is found in a fossil state. Nothing can be more erroneous. There is no evidence that a single plant, brought into existence on the third day of the Mosaic creation, has ever been found in a regular geological for- mation. Those found imbedded in the rocks, belong to earlier creations. In looking back over the day's work just ex- amined, we must be struck with its magnitude. Leaving out of view, for the present, the original creation of the universe, what changes were pro- duced in the short period of one day, upon the earth ! The seas receive their bounds, and the earth is elevated, and established as on foundations. Its desolate surface is clothed with a mantle of beautiful gi^een ; the herb shows its form, and sheds its fragrance ; the tree waves its noble head, and bends low its boughs with, golden fruit. These p 210 WORK OF THE THIRD DAT. works are great, and bespeak the presence of Omnipotence. It would be unphilosopbical to hold that chaos evolved from herself the order that everywhere appears. What can come of confusion ? Can I believe that the pile of rubbish that marks the site of Babylon, will ever produce a city, so beau- tiful and magnificent as that, which witnessed nightly the revels of the Chaldean Monarchs ? Shall I see, as if by magic, street after street arise, square after square occupy its ancient position, temple after temple point its glittering canopy to heaven ; — shall I see the city enclosed by walls, filled with a busy, trading, pleasure-seeking popu- lation, — and be told that all this order, and mag- nificence, and life, has come of the pile of ruins ? Could I believe this, I must be insane. Is it more reasonable to believe that the chaos of Moses — the ruin which then existed — produced the order and beauty of this day ? Omnipotence was present. The Divine energy it was, that fitted the noxious atmosphere for the discharge of its func- tions ; — that gathered together the waters ; — that made the dry land appear ; — that clothed the land with grass, and herb, and tree. This is the voice of Scripture ; and it harmonises with the principles of philosophy. The work of this day was not only great, it was WORK OF THE TniRD DAT. 211 also perfect. We would have arrived at this con- elusion, from the reading of the simple statements in which the narrative is couched ; but our convic- tion of its truth is greatly strengthened by the ex- pression of the Divine approbation. The work was " good." There is no trial before the work is entered upon, and when it is begun, there is neither foilure nor delay. Grod said, Let the waters subside, let the dry land appear, let the earth bring forth grass, and herb, and tree, and it was so : and all very "good." This perfection tells of the wisdom that planned, as well as of the power that executed the work. While we gaze upon it, let us adore that great Being who is " fearful in working and wonderful in counsel." Can you look upon a complicated piece of mechanism, without involun- tarily acknowledging that it had a designer, and warmly expressing your admiration of his skill and taste ? Can you behold a gorgeous palace, without acknowledging the existence, skill, and ability of the architect that planned and executed the grand de- sign ? Nay, can you look upon the rudest hut that ever sheltered human beings, and believe that it rose without a builder, or that its builder was entirely destitute of intelligence ? With what emotions should we look upon the earth, with its covering of verdure ! A savage may raise his hut ; but the philosopher cannot make the grass grow. Human p2 212 WORK OF THE TIIIED DAT. skill may rear a palace ; but God frames and fashions worlds. Beader ! you acknowledge the power that ef- fected the work, and you admire the wisdom that planned it. You bow before the great Creator. Your place at present is in the court of the temple of Deity. "We would have you enter the temple itself. Those who Avorship in the court see only the beauty and magnificence of the external parts of Jehovah's house ; enter, and you shall see the King in his beauty, and hear his voice, proclaiming in sweetest accents, " I am the Lord, the Lord God merciful and gracious, keeping mercy for thou- sands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin." The God of nature is the God of grace; but so long as you linger among the works of nature, you are only worshipping in the court. The view you have may be gorgeous, and your soul may be ele- vated within you at the scene; but it is not till you meditate with becoming solemnity on the work of redemption, that you will find yoiu'self in the presence of God, and have your soul moved \dthin you by the glory of his character. In creation you behold power, but it is power exercised on matter ; in the work of redemption you perceive power creating anew a ruined mind. In creation you behold wisdom regulating and arranging, so that perfect order shall prevail among times and WORK OF THE THIRD DAY. 213 seasons ; in redemption the same wisdom solves the problem, how God can be just, and yet the Saviour. In creation you behold goodness decking with beauty and furnishing with " fruit good for food," the earth, the appointed home of man only for a short season ; in redemption the same good- ness, under the name of mercy, fits the soul for, and leads it forward to another world, where it shall enjoy a full tide of felicity for ever. You have followed us into the court ; go with us into the temple. "We have endeavoured to point out to you some of the lesser glories of our Father's house ; will you turn aside from the contempla- tion of the greater? Nay, you must not. You have minds capable of thought and high reflec- tion, but these minds must be enlightened and guided ; you have hearts susceptible of deep affec- tions, but these hearts require to be softened and renewed ; you have spirits immortal in their nature, but these spirits are estranged from God, and must be brought back to him, that their immortality may be happy. God hath appointed that all this may be experienced by us if we will. Yes, there is with him enlightenment for our mind, renewing influence for our heart, salvation for our spirit. This information the Bible contains ; to communi- cate it, it was given. And on what condition may all this be ours ? By going some distant and dangerous pilgrimage ? — by engagi 214 wokk: of the thied day. arduous undertaking ? — by undergoing some severe penance ? ^o : It is hy helieving in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. — " O how unlike the complex works of man, Heaven's easy, artless, unencumbered plan ; No meretricious graces to beguile, No clustering ornaments to clog the pile ; Prom ostentation as from weakness free, It stands hke the cerulean arch we see, Majestic in its own simpUcity. Inscribed above the portals from afar, Conspicuous as the brightness of a star, Legible only by the light they give. Stand the soul-quickening words — belieye AifD live." CHAPTEK XVIII. THE WORK OF THE FOURTH DAY. Gen. i. 14—19. — " And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven, to divide the day from the night ; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and yeai's," &c. ALL THINGS AEE EEADY. — THE LIGHTS IN THE EIEMAMENT OF HEAVEN. — THEIE FIEST USE.— SECOND USE. — THIED USE. — WHAT MEANT BY THEIE BEING MADE ? — BY BEING SET IN THE PIEMAMENT ? — OBJECTIONS STATED, AND EEMOYED. — WONDEEFUL AGEEEMENT BETWEEN THE BIBLE AND THE FACTS OF NATUEAL SCIENCE. — WHY DO MEN STILL EEJECT THE BIBLE ?— CHAOS IN THE MOEAL WOELD. All things are now ready. The earth, the air, and the waters are prepared for the reception of living creatures ; only the atmosphere must be still more rarified, that the bright and warm beams of the sun may fall upon the renovated earth, adding glory to the day; and that the pale light of the moon, and the glimmer of the distant stars, may blush out, and relieve the deep gloom of night. It is done ; and the light-bearers appear in their places in the heavens. 216 WOEK OF THE FOrETH DAY. " And Grod said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven." The term translated lights in this passage is different from that used in the third verse. In that passage it means the subtle substance we call light, whether it issues directly from the sun in infinitely small particles, forming rays, or is produced by the gentle undula- tions of the elastic fluid that is believed to occupy stellar space. In this passage it means not the light itself, but those bodies that afford light to the earth. Its proper rendering, therefore, is, "light-bearers." "God said. Let there be light- bearers in the firmament of the heaven," They were two in number, — the sun and the moon. In addition to these, there is also reference to the stars. These light-bearers were made on the fourth day. The reference here is to their light-imparting properties, not to their essential natures or magni- tudes ; hence the sun and the moon are alike called great lights, while the stars, many of which are larger than either, are simply named — the light proceed- ing from the latter, to an observer on this earth, being dim and scanty. These lights, or light-bearers, were intended to serve certain purposes in the plan of the Divine procedure. The first use to which we refer, is stated in the 15 th and 17th verses — it was to give light upon the earth. Previous to this, although there was light, yet it was not so pure and perfect WOEK OF THE FOURTH DAT. 217 as it now became ; and this change was due to the presence of the sun. AYithout the heavenly bodies, the earth would be wrapt in impenetrable dark- ness, — at least, the present revelations of science lead us to believe so. It would be uninhabitable, — a waste portion of God's universe. Were they to be obscured, by the atmosphere being rendered more dense than it now is, our measure of light would be less ; were it so dense that the sun's rays could not penetrate it, there would be darkness over the earth, and the effects would, in some respects, be similar as if there were no sun at all, but only a diffused light. When the earth was in its chaotic state, it was nearly all one as if there had been no sun. When the fourth day opened, it was as if a subdued light fell upon surrounding objects, the sunbeams struggling in vain to pierce the dense atmosphere. But the sun, moon, and stars are appointed to give light upon the earth, and the condition of the atmosphere is so changed, at the expression of the Divine will, that, on this day, had there been a spectator upon the earth, his eyes would have beheld the sun. Another use was "to divide the day from the night." During the chaotic state there was no marked alternation of light and darkness — no division of time into day and night, — all was darkness. But when it was greatly dispelled on the first day, then commenced the alternate seasons 218 WOEK OF THE TOTJETH DAT. of light and gloom, — day and night. This effect was produced by the sun, although his disc was as yet invisible. On the fourth day, however, the Creator appointed these great lights to this use ; and had there been a human eye to have seen them at this stage, they would have stood forth the visible caiose of the division of time, the presence of the sun making day — his absence, night ; — while night had its gloom alleviated by the presence of the moon and stars. Hence it is beautifully said, that the greater light was "to rule the day," and the lesser light " to rule the night." The sun, like a monarch, wheels his course, no presumptuous mortal being able to impede his progress ; the moon, queen of night, walks forth in majesty, sheds her mild radiance, and retires. Again, they are said to be " for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years." — "That is, let signs be observed by means of them." The man- ner iQ which the heavenly bodies were destined to serve for signs, in the sense in which that term generally occurs m the Scriptures, may be learned from such passages as the following, — Luke xxi. 25 : " AjQid there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars ; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity ; the sea and the waves roaring." Acts ii. 19, 20: "And I will shew wonders in the heavens above, and signs in the earth beneath ; blood and fire, and vapour of smoke : WOEK OF THE FOL'RTH DAT. 219 the sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come." They answer this end, therefore, whenever the judgments of God, or extraordinary events, are signified by remarkable appearances in them. In this way, eclipses of the Sim and moon, comets, meteors, falling stars, &c., serve as signs — i, e., as preternatural tokens or monitions of the divine agency in the sight of men. This is tlie genuine force of the original, which very often conveys the idea of a miraculous interference or manifestation. Psa. Ixv. 8 : " They also that dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at thy tokens {signs).'" That they may have been de- signed also to subserve important purposes in the various economy of human life, as in affording signs to the mariner to aid him in navigation, and to the husbandman to guide him in regard to the proper seasons for ploughing, sowing, planting, pruning, reaping, is not improbable, though we think this not so strictly the true import of the original. But it is certain they have answered for this end, and perhaps were so designed. " And for seasons — Hebrew, set or appointed times, from a root signifying to fix by previous appointment. The phrase points not only to the seasons of the year, which are regulated by the course of the sun, and to the computation of months and years, but also to fasts, feasts, and 220 TVOKK OF THE TOrETH DAT. other religious solemnities, such as were appointed to be observed by the people of Israel." * But, may not these expressions also be intended to teach us, that, as the heavenly bodies were now rendered visible, to continue so for a period of time known only to the Creator, so their presence in the heavens is the guarantee of the stability and perpetuity of this new order of things ? The dif- ferent seasons owe their existence and regularity to the influences of these "great lights" upon a planet revolving on its own axis, and also revolving round the sun : and so long as they endure we have the pledge of the continuance and regular return of the seasons. In this view, the heavenly bodies are signs, and will continue to be signs, that " while the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night, shall not cease." We come now to the consideration of an im- portant question— What is the meaning of the phrase, "God made two great lights?" This is the point of difficulty in the passage ; but it must be met, — it behoves us to grapple with it. The ordinary interpretation maintains that the heavenly bodies were created on this day ; but this opinion is surrounded by innumerable and insuperable dif- ficulties. We know that light existed on the first day ', but whence did it come if these light-bearers * Bush on Grenesis. WORK OF THE FOUETH DAT. 221 were not then in existence ? It will not do to tell us that nothing is impossible with God ; and it is most suspicious, always on the appearance of a difficulty, to betake oneself to miraculous agency. There is no indication in the narrative that the light of the first day difiered in its nature, and sprung from a different source, from that of the fourth day. And we ask, on what authority are men to give forth their own conjectures as the truth of God, and then anathematize those who venture to differ from them ? Day and night existed before this ; but how could these seasons of alter- nate light and gloom be produced if there was no sun? The first, second, and third day were in every respect the same, only the light was more subdued, as the fourth, fifth, and sixth day. Whence this identity, if not from the fact, that the cause in each case was the same ? There is nothing in the record contrary to this conclusion. There is, as we think, indubitable evidence sup- plied by geology, that in epochs long prior to ours, this planet revolved on its axis, was surrounded by an atmosphere, was covered in part by seas and oceans, was visited by the showers of heaven, and blessed with the light of day. Its shape proves the first assertion. The existence of plants and crea- tures, growing from a tender state to maturity, proves the second. The third is supported by the character of the sedimentary strata. The pits found 222 WOEK OF THE TOrETH DAT. existing upon the surface of sandstone beds, iden- tical with those which the heaYj drops of a summer shower leave on our own sea-beaches, indicate plainly enough, that in these times rain did fall. The slanting direction of many of these rain-pits, informs us even from which quarter the wind blew ! The existence of the organ of vision in pre- Adamite creatures, constructed on the same prin- ciples as our own, surely demonstrates the existence of the medium in which alone that organ can be exercised — light. "What comes, then, of the inter- pretation that would bring the sun into existence so late as the fourth day of the Mosaic creation ? It is not wise on the part of Christians to set aside those things enumerated above, without a candid and intelligent examination of them . It may be that they oppose their interpretation, and be- tween the two there may exist a real, palpable con- tradiction. If they are facts, as we firmly believe them to be, they cannot be set aside. JSTeither can they, and the interpretation on which we are animadverting, be believed by the same mind at the same time. Nor is the only conclusion which can be drawn from the facts, a whit more friendly to the interpretation, than the facts themselves. If, then, this interpretation be true, the Bible is contradicted by facts in natural science. But it is now time to turn to the passage, and inquire w^hether this view of it be the correct one. WOEK OF THE rOTJETH DAT. 223 It is of the utmost importance, in investigating any point, especially when it is clothed in a dif- ferent language from our own, to ascertain the exact meaning of the terms employed. There are two verbs employed by the writer of the nar- rative descriptive of the various acts of the Almighty. These are translated in our version by the terms, " create " and " made." There is a distinction between tliem, although they are occasionally interchanged. The Hebrew word lara, rendered "create," means to give existence to tliat which did not previously/ exist. Of course this can only be predicated of God. This we have seen is its import in the first verse. It has, however, secondary meanings. On the other hand, the term asha, translated " made," means primarily, to ivork at a thing, to mamrfacture, to prepare. It is very often used in connexion with the doings of God ; but appears to convey a less forcible idea than the other. In the seventh verse, it is used to describe that change which the firmament underwent on the second day; and that consisted in fitting or preparing the atmosphere to accomplish the pur- poses for which it exists. "VYe must assign to the verb its literal signification in tlie sixteenth verse also, and the difficulty will no longer exist, " God rQ.2i^e— prepared — two great lights — he prepared the stars also." Erom what has been already stated, some idea will be gathered as to the prepa- 224 WOEK OF THE FOUETn DAT. ration here referred to. " Grod said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven — and he pre- pared two great lights." By the atmosphere being brought into a pellucid state, an observer on the earth, had there been one at this time, vrould have beheld the heavenly bodies in their places, serving those purposes already pointed out. Thus G-od made the lights, and set them in the firma- ment of heaven. A similar mode of expression occurs in the 9th chapter of Grenesis, where it is recorded that God entered into covenant with Noah after the flood. " This is the token of the covenant Avhich I make between me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations : I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud." This passage has long been a standing objection to the Bible. It has been said that the rainbow must, according to physical laws, have existed previous to the flood, and have stood forth in its uni'ivalled beauty as often as showers fell from heaven : but the Bible saith that this beautiful phenomenon appeared for the first time after the flood ; there- fore, the Bible must be false. In the first place, who ever hears of an intelligent Christian denying that the rainbow has existed ever since showers WORK OF THE rOL'RTH DAT. 225 began to fall in sunshine ? Secondly, the Bible does not teach that the rainbow existed only posterior to the flood. This, like many other ob- jections brought against this book, is an assump- tion. The language is, " I do set, or appoint, my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token." That is, the bow, which all along existed in the cloud when rain descended, was now set apart, or appointed by Grod to be a token of his faithfulness. There is no contradiction here. In like manner, the language of the passage under consideration does not teach that the sun, moon, and stars, were created on the fourth day; but simply that they were prepared for, and set apart to, certain uses on that day. What these uses were, we have already seen. At this stage, the clouds and vapours are rolled away, and the great luminary appears in the firmament, ruling the destinies of the day; while the moon stands forth, decked in soft splendour, the presiding genius of the night. It has been objected, that it is absurd to speak of light being made on the first day, while the sun, the chief source of light, so far as we know, was not made till the fourth. What has been advanced demonstrates the perfect consistency of these two statements, and the philosophical accuracy of both. The sun was created neither on the foui'th nor first Q 226 WOEK OF THE FOURTH DAT. day of our epoch, but long prior to both, — namely, in the beginning. The chaotic gloom was so far dispelled on the first day, that light appeared ; it was so entirely cleared away on the fourth, that the sun, the source of light to our planet, himself appeared. If our interpretation be correct, this objection may be consigned to oblivion. It has been objected further, that this part of the narrative attaches too much importance to the earth. Much ridicule has been poured forth on this point, although it is hard to see the occasion of it. There might have been some ground for the objection, had the passage taught that the heavenly bodies were created for the simple and sole purpose of giving light to the earth. But it does not do this ; nor is this idea anywhere taught in Scripture. Some Christians, more pious than intelligent, may have thought so, but this does not justify the conduct here condemned. If I criticise a work, candour demands of me that that work be careftdly studied before my judgment is formed and published. Let this treatment be given to the Bible, and this, as well as other objections, will soon disappear. The heavenly bodies gave light to the earth, six thousand years ago, by God's appointment, as they do at this day. But because the sun, moon, and stars furnish our globe with light, no one thinks of dreaming that there is thereby too much im- WORK OP THE FOUETH DAT. 227 portance attached to it, or that these luminaries exist for no other purpose than to afford light to its numerous inhabitants. There is still another objection wliich is brought against this passage. The moon, as well as the sun, is called a "great" light; but it manifests great ignorance to class two bodies together, so unlike each other in nature and magnitude. The objector should have known, tliat these bodies are spoken of here according to their appearance ; and to the eye of a spectator they appear about equal. The Bible treats not of astronomy any more than of geology, but addresses itself to the common apprehension of mankind. Philosophers them- selves, in common intercourse, use the same lan- guage. If the Bible had professed to furnish an astronomical system, and employed the language under consideration, the objection would have been valid ; but it makes no such professions, therefore the objection does not hold. This the objector ought to know. If he does, how can he reconcile his conduct with honour and integrity? If he does not, is the case so pressing, is the Bible such a pernicious book, that we must cast it from us at the bidding of one who declaims against that which he does not understand? We have more regard to the dignity of our nature, and the claims of our immortal spirit, than to follow such blind guides. Every scientific work, though written by men of q2 228 WOEK OF THE rOTJETH DAT. the highest attainments, is corrected or contra- dicted by its successors. There is not a work written one hundred years ago on chemistry, astro- nomy, geology, or any other of the sciences, which is not at this day contradicted in a hundred in- stances. And there exists not a work, that only in- cidentally refers to science, written fifty years ago, whose scientific statements could bear the scrutiny of a mere beginner in the present day. Now, how is it that a book so old, belonging to a people less intelligent than some that have lived upon the earth, happens to be the only one in existence, whose incidental references to science bear the closest scrutiny of this enlightened age ? There is something remarkable in this. It is certain that the Bible, in this respect, is superior to every other book that has ever been written. Now, if these other works have been composed by the wisest of human kind, and yet are so full of errors in science, must not the Bible, which contains no such errors, have been produced by One wiser than the wisest of men ? It appears to us impossible to avoid this conclusion. Why, then, you will ask, do all men not receive the Bible as the book of God ? The answer which we are forced to return to this question does not reflect much credit on our aspiring humanity. Many, it is well known, reject the Bible, without being able to give a reasonable excuse for so doing. WORK OF THE FOURTH DAT. 229 And, in the case of not a few young and enquiring minds, it is sad to tell, that, without having given due consideration — in some instances, without having given any consideration at all — to the claims of the Bible, and the arguments in its favour, the whole of their reading and thinking is bestowed upon the sophistical arguments, and unseemly ridicule, of those who had rejected the Bible in former times. Is this fair treatment to give any book ? Espe- cially is it fair and manly treatment to give the Bible^a book supported by many arguments which to this hour remain unanswered and unanswerable ? It would, indeed, be a miracle were men who act thus to give the book of Grod a cordial welcome. Of all unreasonable men, we must be permitted to say, that those who treat the Bible in this manner are the most unreasonable. One who rejoices in the cordial reception of this book, as the revelation of Grod to men, may be allowed to press the argu- ment in support of his cause, — which yet is not his but God's. And surely those who are so greatly taken with reason, will not be the first to call him to hold his hand, nor the last to acquiesce when the argument is fairly led. Our attention has been directed to chaos, and to the order and beauty that were evolved so glo- riously by the Divine wisdom and power. But there is another chaos more deplorable in its 230 WORK OF THE FOUETH DAY. nature, and more disastrous in its consequences. It exists Avlierever man exists. It is that state into which man's spiritual nature has heen thrown by the power and prevalence of sin. The soul of man is a moral chaos. Everywhere there reigns ignorance and unhallowed tempers ; men are hate- ful, and hating one another. Everywhere there is manifested the most profound indifference or levity, towards subjects the most solemn and the most momentous. Everywhere man has fallen below the dignity and purity of his nature. Everywhere he appears with the image of God, in which he was made, defaced, and in many instances apparently obliterated altogether. If we are to judge of men's spirits by their actions, who can avoid coming to the conclusion that they are the scene of spiritual disorder, and the source of moral offensiveness ? As on the physical, so on the moral world of WTeck and ruin, a Sun has arisen with healing under his wings. The Sun of Righteousness is now sendinaj his beams athwart this earth. The moral gloom is being roUed away from many parts of its surface. The chaos is being changed into order and beauty. This Sun shines upon many who are not worthy of the privilege. Eor is it not the fact, that multitudes hear of Christ, and even profess his name, who yet remain ignorant, disobedient, and unholy ? Many will not look ; and many more walk about with bandaged eyes, declaiming WORK OE THE FOTJETH DAT. 231 loudly, tliat because tliey^ forsooth, don't see him, there is no Sun of Kighteousness at all ! But, when the eye rightly beholds him ; when his vivifying rays shine into the human spirit, then there is light, and order, and holiness. When the human spirit is brought into vital connexion with tlie Lord Jesus Christ, it undergoes a thorough change, — old things pass away, all things become new. Multitudes have undergone this change in the past ; not a few are manifesting the fruits of it iu the present ; it will become more extensively pre- valent as the ages pass. What has been — what is — is nothing to what will be ; for truth, and purity, and goodwill shall yet dwell on this earth, and men shall again bear the image of their God. Meanwhile The world shall bum, and from her ashes spring New heaven and earth, wherein the just shall dwell ; And after all their tribulations long, See golden days, fruitful of golden deeds. With joy and love triumphing, and fair truth : Then thou thy regal sceptre shalt lay by, For regal sceptre then no more shall need : God shall be all in all. But, all ye gods, Adore Him, who to compass aU this dies ; Adore the Son, and honour him as Me." CHAPTER XIX. THE WOEK OF THE FIFTH DAY. Gek. i. 20—23. — " And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven, &c." THE WOEE PEOGEESSES. — THE AEEAXGEMEJfT NOT WHAT WOULD HAVE OCCUEEED TO US. — WATEES STOCKED WITH LIFE. — AIE EECEITES ITS INHABITANTS.— PEOGEESS UP- WAEDS. — EVIDENCE OP DESIGN. What a change is produced upon that portion of the earth, which, four days ago, was in a state of ruin ! How great the work, and how speedily and efficiently it has been accomplished. The dense atmosphere has been rarefied, and the heavenly bodies, long obscured, are again visible. The waters which prevailed during chaos, are purified of those substances held in solution, and which w^ere unfa- vourable to the existence of life ; — are gathered together unto one place, and enclosed as with bars and gates. The submerged earth is elevated into graceful undulations, and these are adorned with WOEK OF THE FIFTH DAY. 233 verdure. The work is rapidly progressing, but it is not yet complete. That pure and balmy atmo- sphere wafts onwards no hum of insect, or song of bird ; its only burden is the sound of the rustling leaf, or the rippling water. That deep, clear sea shelters in its caverns no fish or moving creature ; it is only agitated by its perpetual ebb and flow. The new raised, and new clothed earth, is pressed by the foot of no creature ; the life it supports is no higher than that of a plant or tree. The scene, however, will soon be changed ; the water, air, and earth, are now to receive the living creatures fitted to their diff'erent conditions. The order in which the creatures were brought into existence, and the localities in which they were placed, are not those that would have occurred to man had he been the contriver. In all probability he would have placed the creatures upon the earth first, and afterwards filled the air, if it had entered into his mind that creatures could live there. As for the waters, it would scarcely have occurred to him that they could be the habitation of life. How difi'erent are the thoughts and ways of God from those of men ! He begins, where they would end; He works, where they would not think of working. "We perceive the beauty and wisdom of the Divine plan when placed before us; but to devise it, was above our powers. First, the waters are stocked with life. " And 234 WORK OF THE TIFTH DAT. God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, — and Grod made great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind." The waters were now freed from those impurities which mingled with them in the chaotic state : and when the element is prepared, the creatures are made and placed in it. The first expression to which we call attention is, "the moving creatures." The original term, rendered moving creature, comes from a verb which means to increase or onultijply ra])idly. Hence it has been thought, that the proper rendering is, the rabidly multiplying creature. Hence, too, it has been suggested, that the expression is equi- valent to the oviparous creatures that live in the waters. The great bulk of the inhabitants of the waters are oviparous, and the fecundity of these creatures is triily astonishing. Of the whole class it may justly be said, that they are rapidly multi- plying. The eggs in the roe of a fish are innu- merable. This class of creatures, oviparous and rapidly multiplying, it is now the will of the Creator should come into being. Their element is the waters. They are to be produced in large num- bers ; for the will of the Creator is, that the waters should bring forth " abundantly the moving crea- ture that hath life." There is, then, a distinction WORK OF THE FIFTH DAY. 235 drawTl between animal and vegetable life. The latter had existed two days previous ; the former is now to exist for the first time during the new epoch. The word means breath, and is applied to creatures that live by breathing. The next expression to be examined is that which introduces another class of marine crea- tures, — "And God created great whales." God had said, Let there be such and such creatures; now we read that the creatures are. The term translated great whales, has given rise to a deal of discussion. It is used in other parts of the Bible in such connexions, as prove that it frequently refers to other creatures than the whale. It is sometimes translated dragon, and is occasionally used to designate the crocodile of the Nile. The most approved opinion is that which makes the original designate the order of creatures called cetacea, of which the whale is an example. It is the eighth order of the class Mammalia, of the division Vertebrata, according to the system of the French naturalist, Cuvier. This order " have no hind limbs developed : and their fore limbs are very stout, and flattened into the form of fins, by which they are fitted for an existence in the water, although it is necessary for them to breathe above the surface." The expres- sion, " every living creature that moveth," may be considered as referring to the same class as those 236 WORK OF THE FIFTH DAT. that are designated, in the previous verse, " moving creatures." Thus, the two expressions, "great whales," and "moving creatures," may be received as including, according to this simple arrangement, the whole inhabitants of the waters, whether oviparous, or mammiferous, — that is, whether they give birth to their young by eggs, or bring them forth alive. The waters brought forth their teeming mul- titudes at the will of the Almighty. He spake, and it was done. " Let the waters bring forth abundantly;" and forthwith reptiles crawled, and fishes swarmed, and whales and dolphins gambolled in the waters. AVTiat a scene ! The seas, which we would have thought unfit for the existence of life, are in a moment swarming with living, happy creatures. All, too, are perfect, — perfect in their individual existences ; and also perfect as creatures who were destined to propagate their kind. " Grod saw the work, that it was good," — perfect, precisely as he willed it should be. There was no failure, though the work was new and great. And he blessed them, — bestowed upon them the power of producing their kind — and said, " Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas." The waters being supplied, the air now receives its inhabitants. They are included in the term "fowl." The original word has a much wider signification than the term by which it is rendered WOEK OF TKE FIFTH DAT. 237 in our version. It points out that class of crea- tures that pass through the air ; that is, all that have wings, or what may be used in tlieir stead. The proper rendering, therefore, is the winged creatures. It must be understood as implying, not simply those creatures that are provided with feathered wings, but also those that have, like the bat, penguin, and ostrich, instruments resembling sails, or oars. Whatever may be the variety in appearance, size, or habits of these creatures, they all agree in this, — their anatomic structure is such, that being provided with sail-like, or oar-like mem- bers, they are enabled at will to rise into, or float through, the air. In accordance with Grod's will these creatures came into existence; their dweUing-place is the atmosphere, and admirably are they adapted to their aerial habitation. From this passage we learn that the waters gave birth to the fowls, as well as to the rapidly multiplying creatures : but in the second chapter (ver. 19) it is stated, that "out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air." There are two methods of removing the difficulty. Either the term " ground " in the passage quoted, is used in a w^de sense, including land and water ; or, the rendering of the 20th and 21st verses (chap, i.) may be looked upon as not conveying the precise idea in the original. We are disposed 238 WOEK OF THE FIFTH DAT. to retain the translation, and seek the solution of the difficulty in the extended meaning of the term "ground." In those creative acts which have passed under our consideration, the progress has been upwards. The Divine energy was first exerted on dead matter, remodelling and putting it in order; next it pro- duces vegetable life ; and now we have seen animal life come from the hand of the Creator. These are to be followed by still higher orders of being, till man, made after the image of his Maker, crowns the whole. The order is beautiful, the gradations are complete ; but, as we shall afterwards see, this order furnishes no ground for the support of that theory which once made such noise — the theory of development as amplified and promulgated by the author of the " Vestiges of the ^Natural History of Creation." The creatures that were made on the fifth day are remarkably adapted to the elements in which they were destined to move. To speak only of the fowl, the body is constructed so as to pass through the air with the least possible resistance, by friction or otherwise. The lower part of the body resembles the keel of a ship. Now, when you look on a vessel, and mark its construction, especially that of the keel, you cannot persuade yourself that it assumed that shape, and no other, by chance. The very constitution of your mind compels you to WOEK OF THE FIFTH DAT. 239 admit that the particular construction of the vessel, fitted so well to pass through a fluid medium, is the result of design. On this ground, who can help believing that the same construction of the feathered tribes, who pass through a similar me- dium, was the result of design on the part of their Creator ? I find ships sailing on the sea, and though their owners and builders are alike unknown to me, my unavoidable impression and firm belief is, that they came not there by chance; by what process of reasoning can I arrive at the conclusion, that when fowls are found sailing in the air, on precisely the same principle, they furnish no evidence of design, but that they came there, found their bodies con- structed for swift motion, and their wings for impel- ling them onwards in their flight, all by chance ? It is much easier to believe that a gallant ship, with its sails unfurled, and its tackling in order, breasting proudly the billows of the ocean, is a thing of chance, than to believe that the swallow, with its keel-like breast, its tapering head, its well set neck, and its sail-like wings, had no intelligent maker. We cannot but mark numerous evidences of design in both ; but he who built the ship has gathered all his skill, — derived its form and principle of motion, from Him who made the bird, and bade it swim in the open firmament of heaven. CHAPTEK XX. THE work: of the sixth day— beasts of THE EAETH. Gen. i. 24, 25. — " And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his "kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind : and it was so," &c. EAETH SUPPLIED WITH ITS INHABITANTS : — CATTLE. — CKEEPING THING. — BEAST OP THE EAETH. — THEIE OEI&IN. — BESPEAK A WISE CEEATOE. — NAEEATITE NOT CONTEADICTED BY PEESENT SYSTEMS OF ZOOLOGY. — NOE BY EECENT DISCOYEEIES IN GEOLOGY. The water is stocked, and the air also, with crea- tures suited to the respective elements. The dry land is now to receive those which it is capable of supporting and rendering happy. The fifth day had closed, and the sixth opened on the earth destitute of inhabitants; but ere evening shall again come, this deficiency will be supplied. "And Grod said. Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle," &c. The phrase, "living creature," seems to include the dif- ferent animals mentioned in connexion with the work of this day. It has exclusive reference to BEASTS OF THE EAETH. 241 the inhabitants of the earth ; those belonging to the water and air, having been already described. Leaving the general expression, we pass on to the consideration of the particulars. The first class of land animals that we are called to notice, is that which bears the name of "cattle." This term is understood to designate those crea- tures that are most nearly associated with man, the domestic animals. The next term, " creeping things," designates a class of creatures, different from those included in the term "movino- crea- tures," which has already been examined. Some of the creatures included in these terms may have habits simHar, but the great distinction lies in this, that the one refers to land, and the other to water creatures. The original term, rendered "creeping thing," probably includes all those land animals that crawl, such as the serpent ; and the smaller quadrupeds, such as the mole and mouse. It conveys the idea of moving stealthily along, and may, therefore, include those creatures that move on short limbs, and whose bellies come in contact with the groimd. The third class are caUed " beasts of the earth." The original term is frequently used in Scripture to designate wild beasts— crea- tures of savage nature. This is probably its mean- ing in this passage. These three classes— domestic animals, creatures that crawl or move on short limbs, and beasts of B 242 WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAT. prey — include all the inhabitants of this portion of the earth. As in the case of the marine creatures, and fowls of the air, so in the present case, the Almighty willed their existence, and the earth gave birth to the land animals. They appear to have been made of the dust of the ground ; and lest it should be thought that matter, in some of its happiest combinations, evolved them by virtue of its inherent energy, or that they sprung from the germ of some decayed vegetable of the higher order, it is added, " Grod made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and ever}i:hing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind." Like all the previous acts of creation, this, the noblest as yet, was perfect. " Grod saw that it was good." It would be superfluous to point out, in detail, the evidences of design in those creatures that came now from the hand of the Creator. They are furnished with numerous members and organs, which, had they come together in one creature, and always in the creatures belonging to the same spe- cies, and no other, without the guidance of a hand both wise and powerful, would have been the most perplexing circumstance of all. In these creatures, there is the ear for hearing, the eye for seeing, the nose for smelling, the mouth for eating, the hair or down for protection, both from heat and cold, and the feet and limbs for locomotion. In these adap- BEASTS OF THE EAETH. 243 tations there is evidence of presiding wisdom, far superior to tliat which appears in the most inge- nious monuments of human skill. It is a poor philosophy which teaches, that the ear was not made to transmit sounds to the brain ; but that the brain existing, and sound existing, it accommodated itself to circumstances, and learned, by repeated efforts, to establish a communication between the external and the internal world ;— that wings were not made to fly with, but the creature having a wish to rise above its fellows, by perse- vering effort, worked these elegant and useful appendages out of some ruder member, or per- chance some excrescence ;— and that the limbs were not made to transport the creature from place to place, but having a desire to roam, and finding himself furnished with such extremities, he made a desperate effort, and was gratified to find, that al- though not made for walking, they might be turned to account in that way ! "VVe have now got well through the narrative, there being only one other creative act to examine ; but that one is, in many respects, the most impor- tant, and has been followed by the most extraor- dinary results. The creation of man is yet to be considered. The chief object we have in view in this work is to show that this narrative, properly understood, is not opposed by the facts of geology. Occasionally, E 2 244 WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAT. however, we have had cause to refer to other sciences, such as astronomy and botany. So far let us hope that the object has been gained. This may, perhaps, be admitted, while some doubts exist as to the subject of this chapter, and what will be the subject of the next — the introduction of man among the creatures which were made at this time. Is there, then, anything in the passage just ex- plained opposed to the facts of physical science ? If there is, the collision must be with zoology. It is admitted that the division of the creatures is exceedingly simple, and one that may be said to be based on appearances ; but is it, on that account, opposed to the established principles of zoology ? We think not. Numerous systems have been framed and over- turned ; and it is not presumption to say that the one that at present prevails is not perfect. Which of these would the objector have had the Bible to contain? Suppose one of the earliest; well, so long as that system was in vogue, the Bible would have been received as true ; but no sooner would the system have been exploded, than the Bible would have been discarded for its opposition to the facts of animated nature. Had the Bible contained the present system, then philosophers, wlio lived previous to the present century, would have con- demned the book because its statements were opposed to their observation and experience. The BEASTS OF THE EAETH. 245 Bible might have contained the true system, to- wards which the progress of things is hastening ; in that case, being diverse both from past and pre- sent theories, it would haye been unsparingly con- demned by philosophers both of the past and the present time. If it had contained the theory that prevailed in any one past age, it would have been a false one ; if it had embodied the true one, which we presume is not yet fully established, it would have met with universal condemnation, because, though true, it did not square with the prevailing deductions of science. It appears to us, that great wisdom is displayed in furnishing such a classification, as at once com- mends itself to the mind as the most obvious, and yet no way interferes with the arrangements of science. "Whichever system be adopted, we can stiU, with perfect consistency, speak of the land animals, as consisting of " cattle, creeping things, and beasts of the earth." But, do the discoveries of geology not prove the incorrectness of this statement, namely, that God, on the sixth day, created these creatures ? Is it not the case, that many of the species, now existing, are found in the fossil state, in formations depo- sited long before the creative days of the narrative ? This is admitted. But that a case of contradiction is made out, is denied. For, first, the creatures that were now made, and placed upon the earth, 246 WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAT. occupied but a portion of its surface. Secondly, creatures were living at this time, on other portions, and miglit have existed for ages before, surviving more than one geological change. Thirdly, the species that inhabited these portions, and which may have existed long prior to the time of the Mosaic creation, may still exist, and may he tliose found in tlie fossil state. Fourthly, it cannot be proved that any of the creatures, fish, fowl, or beast, made on these days, are found in a fossil state. Fifthly, one of the creatures made at this time is not found fossil, namely, man ; * may we not pre- sume that the case is even so with the others ? Sixthly, according to the theory advanced in this treatise, skeletons of existing species may be found in the fossil state, and yet all the species of fish, fowl, and quadruped, referred to in this narrative, may have been brought into existence only about six thousand years ago. Thus, according to this theory, the geological difficulty, arising from existing species being found in a fossil state, in rocks older than the creative days of the narrative, is satisfactorily met. But on no other ground, as it appears to us, can the diffi- culty be successfully grappled with. * See next chapter for evidence in support of this assertion. CHAPTER XXI. THE WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAY— CEEATION OF MAN. Gen. i. 26—31.—" And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth," &c. MAN" CEEATED. — CHANGE OE EOEMTJLA. — HIS NATURE. — IN WHAT EESPECTS HE BEAES THE DIVINE IMAGE. — DE- FACED IN PART. — EESTOEED BY CHRIST. — MAN LATE IN BEING PLACED UPON THE EARTH. — EVIDENCE FROM GEO- LOGY.— PROFESSOR OWEN'S OPINION. " Now heaven in all her glory shone, and roU'd Her motions as the great first Mover's hand First wheeled their course : earth in her rich attire Consummate, lovely smiled ; air, water, earth. By fowl, fish, beast, was flown, was swum, was walk'd, Frequent : and of the sixth day yet remained : There wanted yet the master-work, the end Of all yet done." The creation of man is the subject of this chapter. Full of interest and importance as the previous creative acts have been, this one wiU. be found to fan in neither. In truth, it is vastly more interest- 248 "woek: of the sixth day. ing and important to us, than any of those points that have already received onr consideration. "What can equal in interest the investigation into the origin of our own species ? What can equal in importance the investigation into the commence- ment of a career with which every memher of the race is identified, and which will go on progressing for ever ? — a career, every step of which is at once laden with mercy and responsibility, and brings us nearer and nearer a felicity that knows no ending, or a misery that knows no alleviation. Previous to man's introduction into the world, no such creature had walked the earth. G-reat had been the variety of animal life that had lived upon, and found a grave in, this planet : but how- ever complex and perfect were their mechanisms, and however exquisite their sensibilities, and largely developed their instincts, by all which the glory of the great Creator was manifested on a magnificent scale, yet none possessed the attributes, and were clothed with the functions of a rational and respon- sible nature. Till man was created, no creature walked upright; and none possessed a spiritual nature that corresponded with, and improved the erect posture; — a nature that could, through the eye, rise upwards to Deity, and hold intercourse with other worlds. In these remarks, there is no wish to depreciate animal life. They breathe no envious feeling against the creatures, as if we CEEATioTT or ma:n". 249 grudged tliem the participation in any of those pri- vileges or aspirations which are commonly thought to be the peculiar property of man. If Grod has endowed them mth immortality, we grudge them not their destiny. "When the earth was fully furnished ; — when herbs and fruits for his support, and green meadows, and vocal vales, and balmy weather, for his healthful enjoyment, had found existence at the will of the Almighty, — man was made, and takes his place, the most exalted and the most honoured, in the wonderful and glorious scene. "And God said, Let us make man — so God created man." Like the land animals, man was made of the dust of the ground, hence his name — Adam. It is an interesting fact, that the body of man holds, in different combinations, the same elements that constitute the soils. This fact, which we owe to chemistry, is in wonderful keeping with the passage under remark; and it is in this way that the sciences, in many in- stances, give their willing testimony in favour of revelation. "Male and female created he them." — "It is not good that the man should be alone, I will make him an help meet for him." The manner in which Eve was made has often been ridiculed by inconsiderate and prejudiced persons. God pur- posed to make an help meet for man. The woman, 250 WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAT. in the circumstances, must be created. It was just as proper to make her of a part of man, as of the dust of the ground ; and just as proper to use a rib for that purpose as any other part. Moreover, is there not manifest wisdom and goodness in thus creating woman ? — wisdom in giving both the same origin, and goodness in joining those together so closely who were to be so entirely dependent on each other ? The purpose to create man " is expressed by a peculiar phraseology, ' Let us make man,' as if by way of consultation : instead of saying, ' Let there be man,' as he had before said, ' Let there be light,' or giving a command to the elements to bring forth so noble a creature. He speaks of the work as immediately his own, and in the language of deliberation: implying thereby not any more intrinsic difficulty in this act of his power, than in the creation of the smallest insect, but the superior dignity and excellence of the creature he was about to form. The language employed is not, however, in itself any more a decisive argu- ment in favour of the doctrine of the Trinity, than the use of the plural term EloJiim,''* rendered God, in the first verse. But this is not all the evidence in favour of the dignity of man. Of the creatures that were already * Bush on Genesis. CREATION OF MAN. 251 made, it was not said that they were created in the image of God ; but of man this is affirmed. "We also read in the second chapter of Grenesis, that " the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." These expressions indicate the superiority of man's na- ture to that of all other creatures. The last expression cannot be understood to mean that man was moulded somewhat after the manner of an earthen vessel, and when the body was finished, then God literally breathed into his nostrils breath or spirit, which was the soul. This were to depart from those sublime conceptions which the Bible affords of the spiritual nature of Deity. The lan- guage is to be received, according to rules applied to the elucidation of all languages, as conveying, in a highly figurative manner, the idea that God is both the Maker of his body and the Father of his spirit. He did not spring from the creature below him in the scale of existence, but derived his being immediately from the creating energy of God. In what sense was man made in the image of God? "Wherein did the "likeness and image" of God in man consist ? "We are not left to conjec- ture on this point. The question is answered in another portion of Scripture — in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness. In addition, he was endowed with authority over the animal creation : 252 ^OEK or THE SIXTH DAT. he was constituted lord of the earth. " Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth," and it was so. It is obvious that man was made in the full possession of his faculties. He was endowed with knowledge. It is impossible for us to define the boundaries of the knowledge of our first father, though it is no disparagement to him, and no dis- honouT to his Maker, to say that it was not infinite. On some points, probably, it was extensive, and on others very limited ; while of many things he had no knowledge at all. Be this as it may, Adam knew what was sufiicient to enable him to live an obedient and happy life under the eye and in the fellowship of his Creator. He was happily ignorant of sin, till that moral change passed over him, which withered his noble intellect, and soured his pure afi'ections. He was righteous also, and holy. All the thoughts, and desires, and feelings that found a place in his soul were in keeping with the will of Grod ; and all his actions were in beautiful accord- ance with the holy law of God, written upon his heart on the day of his creation. Tried by the highest of all standards, the will of Grod, man when made, and for some time afterwards, was perfectly righteous and holy. Grod is possessed of infinite knowledge, righteousness, and holiness ; when CREATIOI^ OF MAI^. 253 made, man bore his image, in these respects, as far as a creature could. But there is another respect in which man bore the image of his Maker. Not only was it a moral likeness that was enstamped upon him ; it was also an intellectual likeness. Perhaps the strongest evidence in behalf of this opinion is derived from the science of geology, and is admirably summed up in the following extract : — " There is no restriction here to moral quality ; the moral image man had, and in large measure lost; but the intellectual image he still retains. As a geometrician, as an arithmetician, as a chemist, as an astronomer, — in short, in all the departments of what are known as the strict sciences, — man differs from his Maker, not in kind, but in degree, — not as matter differs from mind, or darkness froii-x light, but simply as a mere portion of space or time differs from all space, or all time. I have already referred to mechanical contrivances as identically the same in the Divine and human productions : nor can I doubt that, not only in the pervading sense of the beautiful in form and colour, which it is our privilege as men in some degree to experience and possess, but also in that perception of harmony which constitutes the musical sense, and in that poetic feeling of which Scripture fur- nishes us with at once the earliest, and the highest examples, and which we may term the poetic sense, 254 WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAT. we bear the stamp and impress of the Divine image. 'Now, if this be so, we must look upon the schemes of Creation, Bevelation, and Providence, not as schemes of mere adaptation to man's nature, but as schemes also specially adapted to the nature of Grod, as the pattern and original nature. Further, it speaks, I must hold, of the harmony and unity of one subKme scheme, that, after long ages of im- maturity, — after the dynasties of the fish, the reptile, and the mammal should, in succession, have terminated, — man should at length come upon the scene in the image of Grod ; and that, at a still later period, Grod himself should have come upon the scene in the room of man ; and that thus all God's workings in creation should be indissolubly linked to Grod himseK, not by any such mere likeness or image of the Divinity, as that which the first Adam bore, but by Divinity itself in the second Adam ; so that, on the rainbow — encircled apex of the pyramid of created being, the Son of God and the Son of man should sit enthroned for ever in one adorable person. That man should have been made in the image of God, seems to have been a meet preparation for God's after assumption of the form of man. It was, perhaps, thus secured, that stock and graft, if I may venture on such a meta- phor, should have the necessary aifinity, and be capable of being united in a single person. The false gods of the Egyptians assumed, it was fabled. CBEATION or MA55-. 255 the forms of brutes ; it was the human form and nature that was assumed by the true God, so far as we know, the only form and nature that could have brought him into du-ect union with at once the matter and mind of the universe which he had created and made, with ' true body, and reasonable soul.' " * It is a fact recorded in this volume, and sup- ported by a mass of evidence gathered from the experience of six thousand years, that this image in man was greatly defaced. It is one of the lead- ing doctrines of the jN'ew Testament, that through Christ it is again restored. The process is simple, but certain. Jesus Christ is represented as volun- tarily dying in the room of men, in accordance with the will of the Father. This fact we are exhorted to believe; when believed, the soul is saved, is moved with love and gratitude ; and love leads to obedience. All this while the Spirit is doing his work upon the soul, enlightening, purifying, and comforting it, and conforming it to the image of God, to whom it is now reconciled through the atonement. " And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day." * Testimony of the Rocks, pp. 213, 214. 256 WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAY. " Thrice happy men, And sons of men, whom God hath thus advanced ! Created in his image, there to dwell And worship Him : and in reward to rule Over his works, on earth, in sea, in air, And multiply a race of worsliippers Holy and just : thrice happy, if they know Their happiness, and persevere aright." " Thus the heavens and earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made : and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God hlessed the seventh day, and sanctified it ; because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made." Chap. ii. 1—3. It is understood that the creation of man, accord- ing to this narrative, took place about six thousand years ago. How does this accord with the facts of geology ? It is the general belief, that man was late in being introduced among the creatures ; do the discoveries of this science not demonstrate that he was an inhabitant of this globe, at a much earlier date than that given by Moses ? This has been maintained by some, on scientific groiinds, but with what justice, the reader will speedily have the opportunity of judging. As this opinion is professedly held, on the ground of certain geo- logical phenomena, it becomes our duty to examine CEEATIOX OF MAN. 257 these, and see whether they really conduct us to this conclusion. When some new discovery, bearing upon this subject, has been announced, with the superficial knowledge, and hasty judgment, that generally exist in such a case, the conclusion is readily drawn, that the human species is much older than the Bible represents it to be. Take an example : A bone, very like a human bone, has been disco- vered where human bones have never before been found, and where, if they were found, their exist- ence would demonstrate the greater age of the species. It is immediately concluded that man is much older than the Bible represents him to be. This conclusion finds its way into the public prints ; circulates extensively over the civilized portion of the globe ; is seized on by many who are unfavour- ably disposed to the inspired account of man's origin ; is viewed with distrust, mingled with fear, by pious but illiterate Christians; and is ques- tioned only by the man of science. The anatomist examines it ; and after careful scrutiny, and ample comparison, he pronounces it to belong to a quad- ruped. The first conclusion was hasty and erro- neous ; its only ground was the resemhlance the bone had to one which belongs to the human skeleton. Take another example : A real human fossil is found; the discovery is published; the nature of the deposit in which it was imbedded is not referred s 258 -WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAT. to; it may even be asserted that the human skeleton was found among other bones that belong to creatures of an earlier epoch than ours. Thus the impression is produced, that man must be as old, at least, as the creatures with whose bones his have been found associated. Here again the man of science is the only person likely to challenge such a conclusion, on a proper principle. He may not give it a flat denial, but he will examine the deposit in which the fossil was found, and will, in all probability, discover that it was extracted from a cave, a fissure in the rock, or from a rock of very recent formation. In this M^ay, while he admits that the fossil belonged to man, he would show that it had been recently imbedded in its stony resting- place. These examples illustrate the way in which false opinions originate and circulate. But, it may be asked, after these reports are discovered to be groundless, will they not be contradicted ? They are contradicted by philosophers, if deemed of such importance, in the bulky and expensive volumes that contain the transactions of the various learned societies. But these volumes are not seen by one among a thousand of those who may have read, be- lieved, and circulated the original report. Hence, long after such cases are settled, and perhaps for- gotten, by those engaged in scientific pursuits, they are, with the utmost gravity, brought forward as CEEATIO:S- OF MA??". 259 arguments which will at once confound the Chris- tian, and crush the book of his faith. Of course, all this is sufficiently ridiculous, and were there any hope of such objectors to the Bible growing wiser, it might safely be left to work its own anti- dote. The human skeleton has been discovered in circumstances that prove that it must have been deposited for a long series of years. It is some- times found imbedded in peat-moss several feet beneath the surface ; but no one, at all acquainted with the subject, would ever dream of arguing from this circumstance that our species existed previous to the Mosaic creation. In several countries, especially in the Italian peninsula, articles belonging to man have been found in the solid rock. At Tivoli, what seems to have been an ancient lake, is now filled with a rock called travertin,* in the upper part of which there has been found the remains of a wheel. A great part is decayed, but it has left behind it a perfect mould. This fact proves that, when this part of the rock, at least, was forming, man was in existence. The question is, has this calcareous bed been deposited since man may be presumed to have spread over the greater part of the earth, or is it * "A white concretionary limestone, usually hard and semi-crystalline, deposited from the water of springs holding lime in solution." — Lyell. s2 260 WORK OF THE SIXTH DAT. of more ancient formation ? It is a well-known fact, that the travertins of Tuscany, and neighbour- ing countries, are of very recent origin — are even now forming in many instances. The upper portion of this bed, therefore, we may conclude, has been deposited since that part of the world was inhabited by the descendants of Adam.* Human bones have frequently been found in fissures and caves of the earth. It is not difficult to perceive how they found their way into the former. Fissures are not only open perpendicularly, but their mouths are frequently so muffled, that both animals and human beings are precipitated to the bottom before they are aware. If the fissure be in calcareous rock, or if lime be in the neigh- bourhood, the descent of water, carrying with it calcareous matter, will soon encase the heap of bones, animal and human, in one rocky mass. So in regard to bones found in caves. The water, percolating the rocks, forms in a very short time a mass of stone, on the floor of the cave, in which is embraced the bones that were collected there. But in neither case would an individual, with the slightest pretensions to intelligence, argue that these petrified bones prove the origin of our race to be deeper in eternity than the Bible reveals. In addition to these cases, we have still to refer * Ljell's Principles, vol iii., book ii., chap. ir. CEEATIO:?^ OF MA^^. 261 to another — the famous Guadaloupe fossils, one of which is preserved in the British Museum. The rock in which these are found is by the seashore, and is nearly covered at high water. Though of a hard texture, it is admitted by all competent authorities to be very recent ; indeed, it is forming daily. It is composed of the sand on the beach, and broken corals and shells, cemented together by calcareous matter. The existence of fossil human bones in this rock is, therefore, no argument against the recent origin of our race. We conclude these remarks on the geological evidence, in favour of the recent origin of man, with a sentence from Ansted, and a paragraph from the highest British authority. Professor Owen : — " Of Mammalia, the remains of man have never yet been discovered in a fossil state, except in a limestone very rapidly forming in the island of Gruadaloupe, and under circumstances which leave no doubt of the recent origin of the deposit." The following is the conclusion of Professor Owen's lecture on Anthropomorphous, or Man-Hke Apes, delivered before the British Association, at its meetings in Liverpool in 1854. "Well might the "Times" ask, when reporting the lecture, " What came of the advocates of the development hypothesis, that none were found in that large assembly to combat the Professor's arguments?" "Human bones have been foimd in doubtful 262 WOEK OF THE SIXTH DAT. positions, geologically considered, such as deserted mines and caves, in the detritus at the bottom of cliffs, but never in tranquil, undisturbed deposits, participating in the mineral characters of the un- doubted fossils of these deposits. The petrified negro skeletons, in the calcareous concretes of Gruadaloupe, are of comparatively recent origin. Thus, therefore, in reference both to the unity of the human species, and to the fact of man being the latest, as he is the highest, of all animal forms upon our planet, the interpretations of God's works coincide with what has been revealed to us as to our own origin and zoological relations in His word." On this point all geologists of eminence are at one. When discoveries were newly made, that seemed to oppose the narrative of Moses, some have hastily thought otherwise, and imprudently published their ill-digested notions; but this has only exposed the facts to the more rigid examina- tion, which has invariably resulted in adding new support to the old truth, and settling its founda- tions on a surer basis. Are we still to be told to look to the science of geology, and it will teach us to cease placing confidence in the Bible as a Divine book, seeing it is now proved to be false ? We look to the noble science ; — would that all Christians did the same ! — we have nothing to fear from its discoveries ; we CEEATIOIf OF MAIT. 263 do not dread disastrous consequences from its brilliant progress. AVhy should we? — when its numerous facts harmonize perfectly with the Divine record, adding to, not subtracting from, the un- precedented mass of evidence in its favour. Why should we ? — when it discloses to us, in the soil on which we tread — in the river channel — in the mountain gorge — in the deep mine — in the sublime mountains, pages of the book of nature inscribed all over — written both within and without — with types of bygone existences, which, though dead, yet speak of the glorious character of Him "which DOETH GEEAT THII^^aS PAST EINDINa OUT; TEA, AND WONDEES WITHOUT NUMBEE." CHAPTER XXII. COIsCLUSION. GEXEEAL OEDEE IN CEEATJON. — DETELOPMENT HYPOTHESIS. — BIBLE NOT OPPOSED BY SCIENCE. — WHY STILL EEJECTED BY MEN. — CHEISTIANS SHOULD CULTIVATE ACQUAINT- ANCE WITH THE SCIENCES. — THE SOUECE OF TEUTH IS THE SAME, AND ITS OBJECT IS ONE. As the various works of creation have passed under consideration, the reader must have been frequently impressed with the idea that perfect order reigns among them aU. God is not the author of Confusion, but of order ; and the evidence of this is found inscribed in all parts of his dominions. If we examine the individual, either plant or animal, we find it there ; and if we go to the families of which the vegetable and animal kingdoms are composed, we find it there. It per- vades the laws and uses of the atmosphere ; it is enstamped upon the seasons as they come and go ; and it prevails throughout all the starry host. Everywhere you turn your eye, in every subject that can occupy your thoughts, you meet with evidence of perfect order. Vast though the field coi^CLTJSioiT. 265 be over which the eye ranges, and still more vast that in which the thoughts expatiate, there is not the most distant approach to confusion. Vast, indeed, and to mortals overwhelming, is the variety that obtains ; but all is presided over by the most perfect harmony. The Creator of "the heaven and the earth," and "all that in them is," must be 02^E, and must have at his disposal infinite resources, both of ivisdom and power. How else account for the harmonious variety that every- where and in all things prevails, except in the doings and abodes of men. Order does not more prevail in the existing state of things, than it did when these things were called into existence. The steps of the process, speaking after the manner of men, though numerous, and complicated, and new, were all taken in accord- ance with a plan, or purpose, devised by, and existing alone in, the Divine mind. This plan required no alteration, no curtailment, no amplifi- cation; but within itself it contained those pro- visions that permit of the introduction of intelligent agency, when that agency is required. The existing universe is not simply in accordance with this plan ; it is the tangible manifestation of it. The work appears perfect, but for aught that we know it may be but in the process of development. The plan may not be thoroughly worked out, although, so far as it has gone, it is perfect. Whichever 266 CONCLUSIOK-. way, one thing is certain ; — all exists in harmony, and was created in harmony ; and if higher develop- ments are still in store for this globe, as well as for others, we may rest assured that order will reign then as now. The subject binds us down to a small portion of the universe of Grod: the remarks that follow do not even refer to the entire earth, but only to a portion of it. We are limited to that portion of the earth's surface that underwent the renovating changes recorded in the Mosaic narrative, as having been effected six thousand years ago, fitting it to become, in due time, the habitation of those plants and creatures already described. Of the former state or states of the earth, we say nothing ; nor do we speak now of the appearance the other portions of the globe at this time presented. In the renovating processes that were brought to bear, and the creative acts that were performed, upon this portion of the earth at the commence- ment of the present epoch, we are assured that the most beautiful order prevailed. Darkness retired before light, and gave birth to night and day. Then the atmosphere is renovated, and constituted a fit medium for the existence of life. The waters now leave the saturated earth, and expose it to the dry- ing and heating eff*ects of the wind and sun. The earth next receives from the hands of her Creator her robe of green ; trees rise upon her plains, and coNOLTjsioN. 267 flowers, breathing sweet fragrance, scent the gentle gale. JSi ow fishes gambol in the waters, fowls float in the air, and animals of every conformation roam the woods, or browse the meadows. Last of all, when earth, air, and water are peopled with life — vegetable and animal — infinite in variety and beauty — Man, endowed with faculties capable of appreciating these, is introduced to the gorgeous theatre. In all this there is perfect order. The slightest transposition, at any of the stages, would have inevitably introduced confusion and death. Had the fish been made before the waters were gathered together, the gases and deleterious substances held in solution by them would have been fatal to their existence. Had the fowls been created before the firmament was purified, and fitted for life, in their first flight they would have fallen lifeless to the ground, like those hapless birds that attempt to cross the poisoned valley. Had the land animals been brought into existence before the creation of the vegetables, they would have wandered over the newly-raised land, to die at their journey's end. Had man been placed upon the earth at any of the stages previous to the sixth day, he would have been destitute of many of the sources of enjoyment with which he was blest, and perhaps his life would have been insupportable. The order, also, that obtains among the plants and creatures is conspicuous. The grass is fol- 268 C02s^CLTJSI0N. lowed by the herb, and the herb by the tree, the fish is followed by the fowl, and the fowl by the land animal. The whole is followed and crowned by Man, the noblest of all creatures belonging to earth, and the only one w^hich bears the image of the Creator. But although this order is simple, and beautiful, and perfect, yet no naturalist would attempt to build upon it the hypothesis of " develop- ment," as it is called. This hypothesis is raised upon the approximation of one species to another in existing creation, and it is sought to confirm and support it by the discoveries of geology, as Avell as those of astronomy. It is not only found, that in the vegetable kingdom, the simplest forms of exist- ence give place to forms more complex, and in the animal kingdom the same law operates ; but also that certain existences — half plant, half animal — are found inserted, as it were, between the tw^o kingdoms, joining them together, and partaking of the nature of both. But even these facts do not compel us to receive the above hypothesis. It is one thing to find in creation the evidence of a close and unbroken connexion between the various plants and trees — between the various creatm-es, and even between the two kingdoms, vegetable and animal ; and a very different thing indeed to conclude that the higher types of plants were derived from the lower and less complicated types — that the higher class of animals sprung from those of the simplest coNCLiJsiox. 269 forms ; and that, in some instances, animal life has been evolved from vegetable life. On this subject we offer the following remarks : — First, there is a great variety of plants and creatures; how can they be otherwise than in a state of approximation to each other ? But this is no argument in favour of the development hypo- thesis. Take the scale of the vegetable kingdom ; allow the species that stand highest, and those that stand lowest in the scale to remain, and annihilate those that intervene; bring the surviving species together, and you will very readily detect certain resemblances and points of connexion. Suppose, on these grounds, one were to argue, that the lowest species in the scale had given birth to the highest, how utterly erroneous would his conclusion be! It might be replied. True, but in this case the scale was not complete. It was not ; but are we sure that the present scale, either of plants or creatures, is complete ? To us it may appear so, just like as the former would appear complete to one who was not aware of the annihilation of the intervening species ; but to the eye of Omniscience it may appear very differently. It may yet have inserted in it numerous new species, without the slightest violence being inflicted upon those that at present exist, at once extending its dimensions, and estab- lishing a stiU closer relationship between the mem- bers of which it is composed, than formerly existed. 270 C0]S-CLUSI02«^. Secondly, if tlie hypothesis of development were true, we would surely find in nature some facts on which it might be established. Eut is this the case ? On every hand there is evidence of a close and beautiful relationship existing among the members both of the vegetable and animal king- dom, but none whatever of one species giving birth to another and higher species. There is not the slightest evidence that fishes have become fowls, fowls quadrupeds, and quadrupeds rational and accountable creatures. It is many centuries since the flyiug-fish existed ; but he has not got higher into the air than he was wont to leap, when first placed in his watery element. Thousands of years have elapsed since the ostrich was familiar to man, but he still remains an ostrich. His long limbs have not grown more massive — more ox-like — and his little paddles, all that he has in the place of wings, are not further advanced in the process of development. If there be such a thing as develop- ment, — that of one creature growing into another and superior creature — the poor ostrich must have been arrested in the transition state. How cruel to keep him thus, just taking his departure from the winged tribes, and never permitted to join the quadrupeds. How tantalizing, too, to prevent the chimpanzc and orang-outang, from at once ascend- ing to the level of man, seeing they are sufficiently taU for that purpose, and only require their arms to CONCLUSION. 271 be shortened, the pelvis to be enlarged, and the brain to be balanced more accurately upon the spinal marrow. Other characteristics of the human species, such as speech and reason, should, in all fairness, be no longer withheld from our friend of the woods. Brother monkey ! descend no longer to that "beastly" practice of running on "all fours ; " carry thyself erect : doest thou not know, that, in this way thou mayest arrive at man's estate ? Abandon that chatter so grating to " ears polite; " lay aside that horrid grin, and clothe thy face with smiles. Art thou altogether indifferent to thy exalted destiny ? It is admitted by the advocates of this hypothesis, that there are no facts in present creation on which it can rest. But it is plausibly asserted, that our experience is too limited — the sphere of our vision is too circumscribed — to enable us to decide against it. Does it not occur to them, that, for the same reason, it is impossible to decide in its favour? But our experience is not so limited as they would have us believe. " As the advocates of the theory of transmutation trust much to the slow and insen- sible changes which time may work, they are accus- tomed to lament the absence of accurate descrip- tions, and figures of particular animals and plants, handed down from the earliest periods of history, •such as might have afforded data for comparing the condition of species, at two periods considerably 272 coiJ^CLrsioN. remote. But fortunately we are in some measure independent of sucli evidence: for, by a singular accident, the priests of *Egypt have bequeathed to us, in their cemeteries, that information which the museums and works of the Greek philosophers have failed to transmit. "For the careful investigation of these docu- ments we are greatly indebted to the skill and diligence of those naturalists who accompanied the French armies during their brief occupation of Egypt, — the conquest of four years, from which we may date the improvement of the modern Egyptians in the arts and sciences, and the rapid progress Avhich has been made of late in our knowledge of the arts and sciences of their remote predecessors. Instead of wasting their whole time, as so many preceding travellers had done, in ex- clusively collecting human mummies, M. Geoffrey and his associates examined diligently, and sent home, great numbers of embalmed bodies of con- secrated animals, such as the bull, the dog, the cat, the ape, the ichneumon, the crocodile, and the ibis. " From the official report, drawn up by the pro- fessors of the Museum at Paris, on the value of these objects, there are some eloquent passages, which may appear extravagant, unless we reflect liow fully these naturalists could appreciate the bearing of the facts thus brought to light on the past history of the globe. CONCLUSIOX. 273 " ' It seems,' say they, ' as if the superstition of the ancient Egyptians had been inspired by nature, with a view of transmitting to after ages a monu- ment of her history. That extraordinary and whimsical people, by embalming with so much care the brutes which were the object of their stupid adoration, have left us, in their sacred grottos, cabinets of zoology almost complete. The climate has conspired with the art of embalming to preserve the bodies from corruption, and we can now assure ourselves, by our own eyes, what was the state of a great number of species three thou- sand years ago. We can scarcely restrain the transports of our imagination, on beholding thus preserved, with their minutest bones, with the smallest portions of their skin, and in every par- ticular most perfectly recognizable, many an animal which at Thebes or Memphis, two or three thou- sand years ago, had its own priests and altars.' " Among the Egyptian mummies thus procured were not only those of numerous wild quadrupeds, birds, and reptiles ; but, what was perhaps of stiU higher importance in deciding the great question under discussion, there were the mummies of do- mestic animals, among which, those above men- tioned, the bull, the dog, and the cat, were frequent. Now, such was the conformity of the whole of these species to those now living, that there was no more difference, says Cuvier, between them, than between T 274i C0NCLTJSI0I5'. the human mummies and the embalmed bodies of men in the present day. Yet some of these ani- mals have since that period been transported by man to almost every climate, and forced to accom- modate theii' habits to the greatest variety of cir- cumstances. The cat, for example, has been carried over the whole earth, and, within the last three centui'ies, has been naturalized in every part of the new world, — from the cold regions of Canada to the tropical plains of Guiana; yet it has scarcely undergone any perceptible mutation, and is still the same animal which was held sacred by the Egyptians. " Of the ox, undoubtedly, there are many dis- tinct races ; but the bull Apis, which was led in solemn processions by the Egyptian priests, did not differ from some of those now living. The black cattle that have run wild in America, where there were many peculiarities in the climate, not to be foimd, perhaps, in any part of the old world, and where scarcely a single plant on which they fed was of precisely the same species, instead of altering their form and habits, have actually reverted to the exact likeness of the aboriginal wild cattle of Europe."* Besides this, the discoveries of geology supply us with much interesting information on the subject, * Ly ell's " Principles of Greology," sixth edition, vol. iii., pp. 36—39. coiTCLrsio:N". 275 Some are of opinion that its testimony is in favour of the hypothesis of development; while others, and by far the majority, take the opposite view. In the various strata of which the crust of the earth is composed, there are innumerable fossil plants and creatures. These organic remains extend over a period of time of which we can form no concep- tion. The series presented must, in the nature of the case, be continuous. If, then, the hypothesis we are combating be true, there must exist some evi- dence in support of it, during this long period of time, in which lived and perished those numerous species found imbedded in the diiferent rocks. First, were it true, the simplest forms of life would invariably appear first, though their appear- ing in such an order would not, of itself, prove its truth. But so far as geological research has gone, this is not proved to be the case. The earliest forms of life that have been found are far from being in a rudimental state ; while many of the sim- plest forms are discovered in much newer strata. This point is treated of in almost every recent work on the science. Secondly, were it true, then we might reasonably expect to find some plant or animals in the tran- sition state, that is, passing from the sphere of one species into that of another. It would indeed be extraordinary, if such an immense number of crea- tures as have been discovered in the crust of the T 2 276 coxcLrsio:N". earth, and which have apparently met death in every possible circumstance, should not contain even one specimen of this kind, if this hypothesis were true. How can we know whether a creature, found fossil, is in a transition state or not ? If I discover a fish in an early formation, and find the same species existing during several succeeding forma- tions, there is no difficulty in deciding that that fish has not undergone transmutation. If, at length, this species ceases to exist, and another takes its place, in many respects diverse from the former, there is no difficulty in concluding that the one has died out, and the other been introduced. But it would be most unphilosophical to maintain, that the new species was elaborated from the old, seeing not a single step of the supposed process could be detected. Now, this is precisely the state in which matters are found in the crust of the earth. There are numerous instances of plants and creatures having died out, and others being introduced in their place; but there is no fact favourable to the development principle. Many creatures found in a fossil state do not now exist. The saurian, pterodactile, and mastedon, are examples. The first appears to have occupied the place of the present crocodile, and was of enormous proportions. The second was a creature of such marvellous construction, as to strike the beholder with astonishment, and has no living representa- concltjsio:n". 277 tives in the present animal kingdom. The last also was a singular creature. It is not more certain that the present crocodile of the Nile or Ganges is making no approach to the larger quadrupeds that frequent the banks of these rivers, than that the saurians of the old world were not the pro- genitors of the large quadrupeds that reigned upon the earth during the succeeding epoch. Species have lived long and been extinguished ; whole genera have served their day, and been withdrawn. The genus amonite, for example, that lives through such a vast space of the earth's crust, has disappeared, and the nearest living creature is the nautilus, but which is a different genus. There is much here to fill us with astonishment, but nothing to support this hypothesis as propounded by Lamark, and popularized by the author of the "Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation." Such deviations from the beaten path of an ad- vanced philosophy are to be attributed rather to the waywardness of the fancy, than to greater power and perspicacity of mind. Many, who are not gifted with the ability and attainments of Lamark, may eagerly seize upon his uuphilosophi- cal hypothesis, and because it addresses the imagi- nation in place of the judgment, their success may be great among a large class of the people ; but assuredly the man of thought will accord to it no favour. It cannot be too much impressed upon the i^ut^ 278 coNCLrsioN. mind of young inquirers that, in all philosophical and scientific research, the faculty that must prin- cipally be exercised is not the imagination, but the judgment. When the judgment has settled the points under investigation, the fancy may, if it so please her, dress these intelligent conclusions in the richest clothing her wardrobe affords. In all pro- perly regulated minds she will be content to exer- cise the art of decoration. We have now passed under review all the points of difficulty connected with the narrative of the creation, whether these have reference to plants or creatures, or inanimate objects. How it appears to the reader, we know not; but to our mind it is clear, that these points, explained in accordance with enlightened principles of interpretation, are not only not contradicted by the facts of the sciences, but are in perfect harmony with them. A desire to keep this volume within due bounds has sometimes cramped the arguments in support of certain conclusions, and the illustrations are frequently meagre, for the same reason; yet we trust enough has been advanced, if not to satisfy the mind desii'ous to arrive at the truth, at least to excite it to search into those productions, in which it may receive satisfaction, some of which have been referred to in the course of this work. Some have eagerly grasped at geology as a weapon to be used against the Bible. They speak coNCLTJSioiT. 279 and write of this science, as if it had already sealed the doom of the Book of God, by fixing upon it the stigma of imposture and falsehood. They would fain have us believe, that Moses must now be laid aside as a liar, and his book as a cheat. And when we inquire on what ground we are to renounce our belief in the Bible, we are told to look to the science of geology. "We comply with the request, and take our place with the objector to the Bible. We investigate the works of nature ; impressed with their beauty and grandear, we admire the noble science that spreads their wonders at our feet. Do we find anything that would shake our faith in revelation? Is there aught in the wide domain of geology opposed to that Book ? No. Some men are devoted to this science, who treat the Bible as an idle tale. Have they suc- ceeded in bringing to Ught anything that contra- dicts it, properly understood ? If they have, where is it recorded ?— in what work is it to be found ? If it be a fossil plant, or fish, or fowl, or quadru- ped, in what collection of these relics of bygone epochs is it laid up ? If such contradiction exists, how does it happen, that, without exception, the men who have brought the greatest amount of talent, and learning, and patience, to bear upon the investigation of this science, have, up to the present hour, been unable to discover it ? It may be said, christian geolo- 280 co:N-CLrsioN. gists are prejudiced in favour of their Scriptures, and will, therefore, interpret their discoveries so as to favour their system of belief. Be it so ; — although we believe no one has reason to charge the christian geologists with unfairness, — yet, be it SO; Avhat does the objector say of infidel geolo- gists ? If Christians cannot be trusted, will they not speak the trutli ? They cannot be bribed to silence. Can you imagine that they, finding facts that would undermine the authority of this Book, could, by any influence, be prevailed upon to give them forth as favourable to it ? Impossible. Yet the case stands thus : all competent geologists, whether opposed to the Bible, or favourable to it, agree in receiving certain facts as constituting the basis of their science. Now, the simple question is, are these facts opposed to the Bible, properly understood? We distinctly answer, — they are not. The facts are these : — G-eology proves the earth to be very old, — without fixing its age, it shows cause why it might be viewed as existing for millions of years before the creation of Adam : the Bible no- where teaches that it is of recent date. Geology de- monstrates that it has undergone numerous physical changes, — that from the beginning till now, it has been subject to one perpetual change : the Bible no- where contradicts this conclusion; so far, indeed, is it from doing this, that it supplies us, as we be- CONCLUSION. 281 lieve, with the dates of two of these changes, — the Mosaic creation, and the Noacian deluge. G-eology shows that plants and creatures existed much fur- ther back than the creation of Moses, — many being found, in a fossil state, in formations deposited long prior to that event : the Bible informs us of the creation of man, and the plants and creatures of his epoch, in the locality which, six thousand years ago, was re-arranged for their habitation ; but it is very far from affirming that neither vegetable nor animal had existed previous to the introduction of man. Geology discloses the extent and variety of organic nature, — it leads us back through untold genera- tions of entombed plants and creatures, silently lying in the stony beds that form the crust of the earth, till disturbed by the blow of the geologist's hammer, or the pinching of his chisel ; — it spreads before us the most astonishing variety of vegetable and animal life, all having lived and died before man was made : does not this support the view which the Bible gives us of the character of the Supreme Being, — that He is great, good, and wise ? Geology shows us that the numerous species of plants and creatures, found fossil, all had their day ; one set is introduced, play their part for a time, and are then removed, that room may be made for another set ; these, again, give place to a third, and so on till the present epoch : does this not prove the truth of the Bible doctrine, that crea- 282 CONCLUSION. tures do not live for ever, and have not lived for ever ? G-eology leads us back to a time when life ^animal and vegetable — did not exist: thus for ever silencing the argument of the atheist, and confirming the statement of Scripture, that every- thing had a beginning. Greology demonstrates, that, as the earth has undergone changes in past time, so it is even now preparing itself for further change : this corroborates the words of the inspired writer, when he speaks of the earth being destined to undergo another fiery trial. Last of all, geology demonstrates that man did not exist previous to the present state of our globe: this is the chief point which the Mosaic narrative was written to establish. We feel ourselves justified, therefore, in affirming, that there does not exist anything in geology that jars with the statements of this narra- tive, as explained in this treatise. Why, then, is the Bible still rejected by men of science and literature ? Before attempting an an- swer to this question, it should be stated that many of the names, that stand high in the literary world, are known favourably in connexion with the Bible. The greatest men in philosophy and science have been forward to proclaim themselves friendly to revealed truth. Christianity does not stand or fall with the names of great men ; but it is well to know this circumstance, that we may be prepared to meet the taunt, that the Bible is fit to be received CONCLUSIOIS". 283 only by persons of feeble minds, or inferior attain- ments. The wisest men have done homage to the Bible, and never appeared more truly great than when bowing before the "Word of Grod. Education, evil influence, pride of intellect, and the like, operate in many to the rejection of this Book. It is certain, that, did men of science study the Word of God and its claims, as thoroughly and honestly as they do the facts of nature, they would not only be willing to admit its Divine origin, but forward to proclaim its importance and authority. It is no less certain, that, had men of letters exa- mined their Bible as carefully as they studied the principles and figures of rhetoric, they would have admired the former, and submitted themselves to its authority, as fully as ever they interested them- selves in, and abandoned themselves to, their favourite literatiu'e. Had Shelley's intellect been as ripe, as his afiec- tions were ardent, when, at the age of sixteen, he entered on his career of atheism; and had that intellect been directed towards the study of the evidences of Christianity, his verse would have aimed at nobler themes, and breathed a spirit far more sweet. His lips would have been touched with celestial fire, and his heart would have glowed wdth heavenly love — love that would have given a character to every sentiment he expressed, and would have breathed in every stanza that flowed 284 cojfCLrsiox. from his pen. Had Voltaire been as honest as he was witty, the " brilliant Frenchman " would have lent his mighty influence in favour of Christianity ; and, instead of being applauded as the apostle of scepticism, he would have been hailed as an apostle of the cross. Grod ^vdsely permits the proud and prejudiced to fall into endless errors and gloomy unbelief, the first instalment of that punishment that must be awarded to him who spurns His con- trol and teaching. However much we might wish it otherwise, our sorrow would not be so keen, were it not that many are more ready to imitate the waywardness and daring of the sceptic, than to follow the footsteps of the honest and intelligent investigator. It is easier to cavil and doubt than to search and understand; and it appears much more in keeping with our inclinations. Christians should give themselves much more to the cultivating of the physical sciences than they have hitherto done. By adopting this course, they would advance the cause of truth much more ex- tensively than by the present mode. How often do we find individuals, of acute and well cultivated minds, deeply versed in Bible truth, but ignorant of science, occupying ground relative to the con- nexion of revelation and nature altogether unte- nable, and provoking the ridicule and contempt of their scientific opponents ? For example, some good and intelligent men seek to get rid of the COXCLTJSIOIs'. ■ 285 conclusions drawn by geologists, by maintaining that the rocks were created just as they appear at the present time, in their twisted, sloping, and vertical position; and holding in their rigid em- brace plants, shrubs, and trees, insects, fishes, and birds, and quadrupeds of every size and conforma- tion. We are justified in saying, that no one ac- quainted with geological facts, as seen in nature, would seriously hazard such an opinion. Truth derives nothing from such support, but harm. Why is it that this com^se is adopted ? We con- fess our fears, that it is as much to prop our assumed infallible interpretation of certain portions of Scripture, as to shield the Bible from the sup- posed opposition of science. It appears to us much the wiser course, and much more safe for Scripture and science, to draw upon TIME for the explanation ; and this course will undoubtedly tend to the fuller development of the glorious character of Grod. Adopting our principles of interpretation, the science of geology presents no fact before which the Christian may tremble, or the Bible succumb ; — or, to explain which, recourse must be had to such arguments as the one mentioned above. Eeceiving the truths of that Book with humble and intelligent faith, let us not shrink from a thorough investigation into the works of nature. They are departments of the one field of truth. In every page they proclaim their 286 CONCLUSION. origin to be the same, and tell of the same omni- potent, wise, and benevolent Being. But if Christians are to blame for neglecting the study of science, what shall we say of the votaries of science who neglect the study of the Bible ? Are they guiltless in this ? — they are not. Con- stituted as man is, with the experience and pros- pects he has, it is reasonable that he should exer- cise his faculties upon the works of natui^e; but it must be allowed to be still more reasonable to exercise his powers of mind and feelings of heart on the work of the same Grod in the redemption of the soul. Whilst, then, we maintain that it is un- reasonable in Christians not to study the works of nature, we do not hesitate to say, that it is much more unreasonable, in the admirers of nature, not to study revelation. "WTien both have been brought to cultivate the field, which, at present, is too ex- clusively the property of each respectively, a great evil shall have been removed, and an important step taken towards the establishment of truth. Nor need the friends of truth be afraid to adopt the course here recommended. Enough has been advanced to show, that revelation has nothing to fear from the discoveries of geology ; the same remark is applicable to the other sciences. Ap- parent discrepancy can only arise in one or other of the following ways : — On the one hand, suppose the investigator to be honest, he may fail to give coNCLrsio:s". 287 the true interpretation of the facts of nature, either from insufficient data, or from their being above his comprehension. On the other, the Bible critic may fail in catching the idea intended to be con- veyed in those portions of Scripture that refer to the works of nature. In most instances, time, and careful investigation, and enlarged experience, will completely remove the difficulty, and show the harmony that in reality, and in every department of truth, exists. Philosophy ! linger not in thy onward progress, develop thy facts and establish thy laws ; thou knowest of no law contrary to the law of God, for thou hast thy origin in the avill of the Eternal ; and if thy votaries would or could comprehend thy bearing, they would behold thee pointing home- wards. Science ! hasten thy discoveries, and pour thy treasures at our feet. Thou hast nothing in thy vast storehouse that belies its origin ; and thou lendest countenance to no argument that would rob man of his faith in this world, and his hope in the next. He who gave to the human species the system of Eevelation, provided thy inexhaustible supplies ; and it is thy highest honour, and constant effort, notwithstanding the waywardness of many of thy admirers, to show forth His exceeding glory. Eeligion! fulfil thy high commission. Proclaim thy message in every land; tell the news thou bearest to every creature ; hold not thy hand till 288 coxcLUSIo^'. all, "from the least even to the greatest," know- that " with the LoED there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption." On thy efforts, thy sisters will not frown, but bestow their approving smile. Philosophy, Science, Eeligion, your source is one — the Eternal mind ; — your work is one — oh, how important ! — the manifestation of the glokt of the &eeat, the holy, the meeciful God. Priuted by John Snow, 35, Paternoster Row. . i NEW AND VALUABLE WORKS PUBLISHED BY JOHN SNOW, 35, PATERNOSTEE EOW. Shortly will be published, in post 8vo., The Book for Every Land. Reminiscences of Labour and Adventures in Bible Distribution in the North of Europe and Russia. By the Rev. Arthue Pateeson, D.I). Edited, with a Preliminary Notice of the Author, by W. L. Alexandee, D.D., of Edinburgh. Just published, in post 8vo,, cloth, lettered, 6s. 6d., Josiah Conder; a Memoir, by Eustace R. Conder, M.A. " The memoir of Josiah Couder is the history of a man devoted to the noblest department of literary labour and to the zealous advocacy of what he regarded as great princii)les. Distinguished men were liis cotemporaries, and with not a few of these he maintanied a cordial friendship, and interchanged a correspondence, exti'acts from which form some of the most attractive portions of the volume. There aie thousands who will anticipate a rich treat I'rom the perusal of this memoir, nor will they be disappointed." — British Mother's Journal. This day is published, price 2d., Come Home. By the Rev. W. H. Aylen, B.A., Minister of Carlisle Chapel, Kennington. Tliis day is published, price 6d., The Way to Life ; the Great Question Answered. By the Rev. J. Williams. DE. LIVINGSTON. — AUTHOEIZED EDITIONS. This day is published, in demy 8vo., price 3d., Sketches of the Rev. Dr. Livingston's Missionary Journeys and Discoveries in Central South Africa. With a Map and Portrait. " Every in