New-York daily tribune., 1842-12-07
Or, Smiths Lectures on Geology.
No. VIII.

IN a state of fusion. hey are all chrystalise,
though aot strati6ed. The earth had not been d.
rectly explored more than mile in depth, but
Pslas has stated that he had made discoveries to
the depth of sixty miles He claims to have made
this discovery in Russia, on the borders of the
Black Sea, where there are beds of rocks that dip
at an angle of about As degrees. supposng this
bed to have once lain horizontal as it undoubtedly
did, and to have been upheaved obiquely, the
edges Of rock appearing at the surface of the earth
would reveal the character Of the rock at great
depth below, as they all belong to the same bed
Pallas thus cstm ated that he discovered TO
depth Of sixty miles. DR.. Smith thought this esti-
mate too large-,hat geologists had discovered to
the depth of about thirty miles, and this was the
opinion of Prof. Hitchcock.
Above the Plutonic Metamcrphic rocks,
which are crystalline and strati6ea. They contain
no animal remains; and above these the Amor
phous rocks, which ara also destitute Of organic
remains.
Above these the rocks contained organic re-
mains and one of the first, and the lowest in the
scale of animated nature, is the triio6ite, ami
nal which resembles the modern horseshoe. The
y
which turns in every direction, and enables the
animal to see all ways without turning its head
The lowest vegetable remains are but those Of
few simple trees. Both the animals and vegcta-
bles of this period are of the simplest kind, but
they we're much larger shan any now in existence.
He exhibited the tooth Of modern shark, which
belonged 10 an animal 10 or II feet long. He also
held up the teoih of fossil shark, which, COM
paring it with the modern tooth, he estimated
must have belonged to animal at least $50 feet
in length.
There is no reason to think that man was ever
larger than be is at present. He thought there
was 20 degeneracy from the ancents excepting
the Athenians. This people, especially in the days
of Pericles excclled all nations, either ancient or
modern.
Next he spoke Of the mineral formation which
the biologists commonly call the Secondary Forma-
ton. The first animal appearing here is the opos-
sum, which is the lowest of the vertebrated order
OF animals, and is the connecting link between the
ighcr and the lower animals. There would have
oecn difficulty ia the higher order of animals breath
ng in the impure atmosphere of that age-onc-
eighth of which was carbonic-acid. 1t was neces
sary that the lime should be formed to absorb the
car5onic acid ard make the limestone before the
superior animals could exist.
In this formation is found the PlcStcSamruS OF
the lizard tribe. To illustrate the universal law OF
nature that the stronger should prey on the weak
er-that all must eat or be eaten-this anma! Is
represented with telodactylc of the bat tribe
in his mouth, which i'll his turn has hold OF dra-
gonly. These animals have all passed away.
The principal vegetable of this age was species
Of palm of huge size.
lie disressed to dispose of the subject of teeth
The nature and habits of an animal could be illus
troted By the structure of its teeth lhis ne 1us-
trated bv exhibiting the teeth Of several animals
and commenting on their habits. Above this tor
nation are first the old red sand stone, and then
the carbsnte, Gus lime stone strata-next to which
is coal formation.
Oni,s origin the books do not give much in
formation Itis always found at this point. F" ny
is this? He could give no very satisfactory an
swer. Lycll said that the fire clay always unoer,
laid the coal. Why 10 coal always found hcre' ana
not elsewherel He could not say. The coal Is
now believed 10 be of vegetable origin. This has
indeed been demonstrated by DR.. Sutton, VINO hau
by puverizaton and by microscopic observations,
demonstrated the existence of a hbrous structure
in coal; and geologists have gone SO tar as 10
classify the plants from which the coal mas oeeh
formed. This evidence was decisive.
By what process has the wood been converted
into coal? The enly solution he could give was
tina, the trees were drifted to the mouth OF some
river or into some lake. and deposited In clear
water. Thus deposte after deposite was made,
until the thick stratum of coal was formed Llg-
mite was formed in the same way, and is but coai
Of the most recent origin. Anthracite was once
thous lit 70 be older than the Bitumlnous coa ou'
the reverse is now believed to be the case. ne
again alluded to the exhaustion OF the coal IN Eng
land. and estimated the annual consumption al
twenty millions Of tons. The coal was dePosltea
before the tertiary formation. lhe coal IS OF re-
cent orisn-he estimated 1t at ten or htteen tnou,
sand wears. Above the coal was the New he'd
Sandstone. In this stone bird track, resembling
human hand, had been discovered by MIR. Owen.
From the subsequent Investigations of Professor
Hitchcock. it was no doubt the track OF an animal
of the eaLiaccous Tribe. 1t must have resemoled
the barn.door fowl, or turkey, and was PROBABLY
thirty feet high.
There were no animals of the Mid-aevsl ages
thar inhabited this land.
Next above is the chalk In this county there
is no chalk; though there is contemporaries
Gus deposite of slick. Slick and chalk are
formed bv the shells deposited by insects, which
DR., Smith described on his diagrams. In the
tertiary region are found the remains OF the large
animals : the lurgcst of which, whose skeleton
has been seen nearly entire, is the Dinetaerlum.
In remains of this class this country Is rich.
Apples, peaches pears, oranges, hgs eneIrieS'
&c &c, come to fine perfection. Oats and clover
spontaneously, and of superior qualities 10 any
grown in the Western country
With the exception of narrow skirts OF oak along
the streams, the valleys are entirely dest'tu'e 0,
timber; they are covered with oats, clover M anu
grass the mos, luxuriant The eye ever beheld. ne
ridges, or hills, are covered with timber OF the