The Hillsborough recorder. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1820-1879, 1849-04-25
r.e.a L. cadslll os-a.rr.
GEOLOGY

azlEntE
Iflhs same Prgad,rrs existed against
As,ranslny a. against t:enlngy. lani they
Al eki., "A lie l5lh. end ~ , late period
even Il he I7lh ceninTy.l and the une
science were no more studied lhan The olh-
=. how diikruii would Il be 10 make The
mass Of Christmas believe one half ihs
sublime truths and facts whirh Asirnno-
mers IRE canlinuaiiy bringing 20 our ,iew.
Yet from some knoaleige II The rhaFar-
Ter Of The men, and of the premises frnm
which theiI conclusions are drawn. Tie pub
lie mini no longer questions The lscis
which they combine u assert.
Now The came minds which. following
lhe indurIise systems n Bacon and New
Ion, have pIacrd the Cupernican system
or Astronomy beyond all doubt. have
been applied 10 The science Of Geology /;
ana are driven. they say. To conclusions
equally certain AMI irresistible in reference
u lie antiquity and innumerable changes
81 this globe.
However they NAV differ in minor inst
tiers. 10 reference 10 these Two great points:
4. The immense antiquity ~ The glnhe,
and .. The death 81 animals, ages bef1re
Tie existence and fall of map.-lheir doc
irine. are as firmly established rs of The
ear,li's rotation on is axis"
Asia emeni cf The apininns OF some 81
those who stand highest in The scientific
and religious world. is all that 81 present
propose.
A century ago. The slmosi unanimous
opinion Of the Christian world. derived
from a ino hasiy Interpretation of The BIZ
ble,) was
l. That the earth began 10 exist not
over 5000 wears ago. That IN Q natural
days nf % hours. tie globe vas brought
from nothing inin It's present state. except
a. modified by the fall oil man and The
Noachian deluge.
2. That lie sun. moon. planets and all
The Fixed stars and the heavenly bo.lies,
had their beginning Al The same lime. !. e.
some 5000 years ago.
3. That after some 1000 years of ex.
i.ience. NOT only the earth, hui tie sun
end STARS and all The heavenly bodies
would he destroyed and pass away. TO
make way for literally new heavens
and a new earth Of very different cha.
racler.
4. That The death OF animals and The
rarniyorous prnpensiiies we are 10 view
as the consequence Of The fall Of man.
&c some of these opinions have been
modified Of late. so as 10 admit iha, the sun
and STARS existed more than 6a00 years
ago. il has arisen from The indirect aud not
always acknowledged influence Of Geol.
ogy.
Many however. ministers aud laymen.
and even doctors of Divinity, 10 This hour,
hold the old views. and deny thai there is
any proof that matter existed more Than
5000 years ago; and who still suppose
that after the thousand years reign Of
Christ and The General Judgment, the star.
~ heavens will literally pass away and be
annihlalrd. Hence they talk Of the
i" San being bloticd onl," dc. MOI Two
months ago. a venerable ID. r., in NV
hearing, declared that he had no more res
peci for the opinions Of biologists than
for his "old shoes !"
To such | submit the following facts
and judgments as subjects for mediIa-
ton.
i. Facts in Astronomy. Take The fnl- |
lowing statements Of Prof. Nlchol. in his
Lectures delivered in Philadelphia and
New York, some Two years ago. and
which may be found III pint in most Of
Inc bookstores of these Giles.
|. Speaking Gf the distance Of some Of
the stars, he says tina, Lord Ross teles-
cope can reach stars whose light would
moi reach us in less than 10000 years"
y. 6. Sir John IIerschell has asserted The |
same thing aud no astronomer Of the day
doubts il.
Ii this be true. and il is reached nv the |
most certain OF all evidence, mathematical
data, then these worlds must have been
created "at least 10000 years" ago;-or
the rays must have been created in tran
stu. which is absurd.
Q. He st4tes, what is not al all new 10 |
Astronomers, that it is ascerlaned that
the +" fixed stars" AS they are called are,
n. least many Of them, in motion and re.
volying round each other. That in the |
constellation of the Lyre, for instance,
there are revolutions going on that will
mot occupy less than million Of years"
Aud that .this period is small indeed
compared with some others which he will
bring TO our notice" D. IL.
Now, just think Of a system requiring
million Of year" for j single rcvolu.
ton; and then believe il you can that
the whole existence Of these worlds is 10
be only 1000 years, 50 as 10 move through
only small are Of its great circle
8. That our sun, with all lis plane.
tary attendants. is moving in great or.
bit, at the rate of 100000 miles an
hour. in the direction of the constella,
lion Hercules. in great Cycle which il
will require 100000. 900 of years 10
y" p. l2. And can we he.
lieve that single revolution is to measure
its career, How much less that 1000
year.. or any such limited period. is 10
mark the beginning and end Of lis course
Now hear the remark of this same man
in reference Ia Geology. in his very next