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Agent anticipated, by an immediate act, effects "which were thenceforth to be produced only

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by a gradual process, of which He then esta"blished the laws."

If a portion of that created tree now remained, and if a section of its wood were to be mingled with other sections of propagated trees, and submitted to the inspection and examination of a naturalist; what opinion and judgment would its sensible phenomena suggest to him, respecting the mode of its first formation; and what would be his conclusion? If he were unapprised of its true origin, his mind would see nothing in its sensible phenomena but the laws of lignification; just as the mineral geologist "sees nothing in the details of "the first formations of minerals, but precipita

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tions, crystallisations, and dissolutions." He would, therefore, naturally pronounce of this, as of all the other sections of wood; that its " fibres," when they first issued from the seed, were soft and herbaceous;" that they "did not suddenly

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pass to the hardness of perfect wood," but," after

many years;" that the hardness of their folds, "which indicate the growth of each year," was therefore effected only "by degrees;" and that, "since Nature does nothing but by a progressive course, it is not surprising that its substance acquired its hardness only by little and little.'

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Physically true as the naturalist's reasoning would here appear to be, yet, like that of the anatomist, it would be morally and really false.

And why would it be false? For the same reason; because he concluded from mere sensible phenomena, to the certainty of a fact which could not be established by the evidence of sensible phenomena alone'; namely, the mode of the first formation of the substance of created wood.

We thus find a second principle, common to the first formations both of animal and vegetable matter; viz."That their sensible phenomena alone, cannot

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determine the mode of their formations; inasmuch as the real mode was in direct contradiction "to the apparent indications of the phenomena." What has here been said of the solid parts of the vegetable structure, is applicable equally to all its parts; and to every member of the vegetable kingdom, at its first creation.

If, therefore, the natures of created bone and created wood had suffered them to subsist, and to be preserved until the present day; we plainly perceive, how easy it would have been to demonstrate to the science of physics, its absolute incompetence to determine any thing at all, by phenomena alone, concerning the MODE of the first formation of the first individuals composing the two kingdoms of terrestrial matter, animal and vegetable.

CHAPTER VII.

THERE only now remains to be considered, the third or mineral kingdom of this terrestrial system; and it appears probable to reason and philosophy, by prima facie evidence, that the principle determining the mode of first formation in two parts of this threefold division of matter, must have equal authority in this third part. And indeed, after the closest investigation of the subject, we can discover no ground whatever for supposing, that this third part is exempted from the authority of that common principle; or, that physics are a whit more competent to dogmatise concerning the mode of first formations, from the evidence of phenomena alone, in the mineral kingdom, than they have been found to be in the animal or vegetable; or, to affirm, from the indications of the former, that the mode of its first formation was more gradual and more tardy than that of the other two.

Let us therefore try this point, by proceeding with our comparison to those primitive mineral masses, whose natures have suffered them to subsist, and to be preserved until the present day; let us consider first, created rock, as we have considered first, created bone and wood; and let us ask, what is rock, in its nature and composition?

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To this question, Mineralogy replies: By

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"the word rock, we mean every mineral mass of "such bulk as to be regarded an essential part of "the structure of the globe1. We understand by the word mineral, a natural body, inorganic, solid, homogeneous, that is, composed of integrant molecules of the same substance:"We may, perhaps, pronounce that a mass is

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essential, when its displacement would occasion "the downfal of other masses which are placed upon "it3.-Such are, those lofty and ancient mountains, the first and most solid bones, as it were, of this globe-les premiers, les plus solides ossemens ; "which have merited the name of primitive,

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because, scorning all support and all foreign "mixture, they repose always upon bases similar "to themselves, and comprise within their sub

'D'AUBUISSON, i. p. 272.

2 Ibid. 271.

3 Ibid. 272.

"The fact (says M. Humboldt) that very ancient granular rocks, "entirely destitute of organic remains, succeed to (that is, lie beneath and

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+

support) compact rocks containing organic remains, has led some dis

tinguished geognosts to conclude, that this alternation of rocks might "perhaps extend beyond (that is, below) what we call primitive forma❝tions. I believe that no direct observation can as yet be produced in "favour of these suppositions:-in the course of a laborious life, I have had “the pleasure of seeing a greater extent of mountains than any other geognost." (Superpos. of Rocks, p. 27, 28, and 76.) Now, to " con"clude," upon the only ground which these "distinguished geognosts" can have possessed, that because sedimentary rocks are seen to rest upon primitive, the latter "might perhaps" rest upon sedimentary, and these again upon primitive, in alternating descending courses; is, in point of ratiocination, much the same as if a native of New Holland, or Prince Lee Boo, seeing for the first time a blue slate roof upon red brick walls, had “concluded," that the brick walls "might perhaps” stand

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"stance no matter but of the same nature1. "These are the famous primitive or primordial mountains, which traverse our continents in different directions, which rise above the clouds, "which separate the basins of rivers, which preserve in their perpetual snows the reservoirs "that supply their springs, and which form in some measure the skeleton, or, as it were, the vast frame-work of the earth-le squelette, et comme la grosse charpente de la terre."-" The greater part of geologists, regard the vast granitic mass as the base on which all others repose; and, to use the expression of Saussure, as the primitive rock by excellence "."""From "what we know of the Swedish, Swiss, and Tyrolian Alps, of the Apennines, of the moun"tains of Siberia, even of the Andes, we may "admit as an ariom, that the highest mountains "of the globe which constitute the continuous

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on a slate roof, and this again on brick walls, and so on, in alternating descending courses. The cause of this confusion, is the abuse of the term alternation, in the first instance. There is no alternation where, as in the case proposed, the subjects are only two-viz. granular or primitive rocks, supporting compact or sedimentary. Alternation implies, at the least, duplicates of both subjects; which, it is acknowledged, have never yet been found to exist. What M. Humboldt here incautiously calls alternation, is only single superposition; like that of the slate roof on the brick edifice. We see, then, the true value of the conclusion of the cr distinguished geognosts" to whom M. Humboldt alludes.

1 SAUSSURE, Voyages dans les Alpes, Disc. Prél. p. 6, 7.

2 CUVIER, Disc. Prél. p. 10.- Th. § 7.

3 D'AUBUISSON, tom. ii. p. 35.