New-York tribune., 1842-03-22
<. L,c.l'S Ltdugts .cI Gevloey.-Ns H.,
fRepor;ed FOR The Tribune.

In rho Q! NY !ast Lecture, Wil:i e.l'stiE-
o-ing 10 describe The geological phenomena OF a
region about=,ic centre o; France in=Auvergne. /
had OCCASION to introduce you 10 several classes OF
.uata-the granite. the eoicaaic AID -certlia
aqueous strata. constituting three OF the grand d.
visions Of the rocks of which the Eartns crust is
made up Let me remark that by the Earth'-
erust technically that part Of the exterior
of our planet which is accessible TO human ooserv-
alton and the whole Of this may be SAID TO be
made up Of these three kinds OF rock
The granite rocks are crystalline aud contain
Is organic remains which have been mentioned az
characterisins the sednientary or aqueous strata
They are crystalline and the tr'le GRANTEES
uns,ra,i6ed. 1t has no pebbles nor any Of those
tufts or poro,,s rocks which are found il the vol
canic class
The volcanic rocks may also De said 70 be void
of organic remains except those portions which
described as containing ocds Of sand and ashes
sl1owered down from the air or which fell into
lakes or except those Breccias and conglomcr
ases which described as having flowed down the
tanks Of some yolcano at Mount Dor. in which
quadrupcds and other animals have been buried
and their skeletons found so as to determine what
animals inhabited that countr: when the over
whelmng catastrophe occurred.
The aQueous strata or those wlichwerc formed
in lakes and seas, are the next division. shall
only alludc TO these briefly by saying that they
known to be OF fresh water formation from the
fresh water shells &c. which are found nl,sddcd
in them. These fresh water strata compose but
small portion Of the strata Of Tie Earth crust
just as lakes arc of small extent in proportion:
TO the seas on the Earth surface. 50 we're former
" the cs,uaries ard lakes of small area compared
TO the ocean: and Sye find these sedimentary
Ia containing I.acustrinc or fresh water remains
much less extensive than the marine strata. We
find the strata of marine origin, containing sea
shells and corals q, all distances from the present
shore Of the ocean and all nights above the level
of the sea. This fact alone would render the re-
suits of geological investigation extremely interest
ing. We find the marine strata often far in the IN
terror: and among the Al ps there are met, 10000
or 900 feet above the level of the rocks con-
tanning unequivoca remains Of creatures thatonce
lived in the ocean. / have myself gathered lime
stones containing marine shells far above the hight
of perpetual snow in the Bcrncse Alps and at
Mount Carmel, the highest point of the Pyrenecs.
And still more recently there have been found in
the Hmmelaya Mountains 10000 feet above the
level Of the sea- similar organic remains and this
not onlyin the mountains but limestoneS contain
ing these fossils continually found through the
whole table land OF Tibet SO that this vast plat
form of Asia is made up of rocks formcd-not at
the most ancient geological pcriod-gradaay be-
meath the ocean. and which have since risen up TO
higher regions. | speak as If we had aiready
proved that this process is carried on by the up
beava of the land and not By the subsistence of
the sea- In ms next Lecture | will cndeavor 10
convince you by distinct evidence Of the mighty
changes that have taken place, that this vas there
suit of rising up of the land, and not of a sink
ing down Of the sea- Speaking sthe language OF
that theory, these mountain masses, which now APP
pear at nights of one, two and even three miles
above the level of the sea, were formerly beneath
the ocean and were raised up during the first era
of animals and plants, and not all at the same Pc
Rod.
Now the scdimcntary or marine strata which en-
ter thus largely into the masses of the Earth are
divided into various groups, which we refer to dis
tine, periods. They form a chronological series
OF volcanic action-a history of the Earth; and
when we trace this series down from the most an
cient TO the most modern, 1t Is not TILL We arrive
at the latest of the great series that we come to
those groups that environ the section OF France
which l have already described. Grand as was
this series of events, tits not till VIC arrive at the
latest of the larger groups that we come down TO
this Epoch. | shall not at the present meeting at
temp, TO sketch the history Of the different orrra
tons but continue to describe most particularly
this strata and those which are cotemporancous
with it-those containin" the remains alreads al
luded to, those of a pos,erlor date Now the
Oldest of the series Of which spoke last is the
fundamental granite ana the fresh water formations
are imposed upon it. III order to classify the dit-
ierent dispositions which belong 10 this more mod
ern period Of the Earth's history 1t Is ndispcnsa-
bic 70 attend 70 the organic remains, and parlcn
larry 10 the shells contained in ii:->els more
useful in this science than any other indications,
and have been appropriately called the medals. by
aid OF which nature has recorded the events OF IN.
mos, ancient history OF the globe. Isey are found
IN such abundance in the fresh and marine
strata OF al! ages tina; by comparing and contrast
inc ,scnl we NAV build ZIP chronological series.
and and characters clearly distinguish the differ
ren, periods In tie fresh water formation
in the ne ghboraooe Of Paris are found Twelve
hundred species Of these sl,ells-carefuiy DIS
tinguished from each other l. well known
10 Coachologis,s Only some thirty OF these spe-
oes known now 10 exist any ,vere pPel-
the globe We are acquainted with about
10000 species o: shells; and of these only 80
sembe any OF the 1900 found in this strata
You may ash; how knew that these rocks were
formed in the lakes IN the province Of .aQyergne,
az H.. same tire that the others were, formed IN the