Weekly national intelligencer., 1851-10-11

into the human brain, and how monkeys have lost
their tails and been developed" by nisus nature
into men, That he was an observer OF geological
facts, however, is sufficiently proved by the fol-
lowing lines, as well as by many others scattered
passim throughout his " Metamorphoses:
vidi ego. ouod fuerat quon 'am soldissima telus,
Esse fretum. Vidi factas aquore terras
Ell procul a pelago concts jacuere marira;
Quodque fuit campus, vallem decursus aquarium
Feet ct eluvie mons deductus in equor. (LibXV
And who. on reading the following extract from
Lucreus-an author very unfairly thrown in the
shade at the present day by the clinquant and silver
tinse of Virgil-is not almost inclined to fancy
that his "eye, in fine phrenzy rolling" had caught
a glimpse of the uncoulh monstrosities which Mr..
Miller exhumed from the Old Red Sandstone
Silence, doubtless earth prodgious forms al 6rst
Gendefd, of face and members most grotesque;
Monsters-half man, half woman-shapes unsound,
Fooiless and handless, void Of mouth or eye;
Or from instruction, maim'd of limb with limb,
Full many tribe has sunk supprest"
The numerous perfect fossils found in Italy be-
gan as early as the latter part of the fifteenth cen
tury to create that spirit of inquiry which has been
lately developed into the science of Geology. Two
questions arose concerning these remains: W he
ther they ever belonged TO living animals, or were
they were buried during the Noachian deluge! If
our readers will turn to the pages of Burne.s Sa-
cred Theory of the Earth" published as late as
1890, they will find an account Of the original of
the earth, and of all the general changes which it
hath already undergone, or is to undergo, till the
consummaon Of all things" as it was understood
by contemporary theorists; for Burnet's Sacred
Theory became the textbook of the times. Du-
ring the last half century, however, the study Of
geology has risen to the rank and dignity ofa science,
and has been as rapid in lis growth and as cumu-
latve in its developments it is vast in its scope
and comprehensive in its object. There is no sim
gle science which sooner shows the sciolist and
exposes him to contempt; for geology is in alliance
with so many cognate branches of physical investi-
cation that it becomes next to impossible for the
piring and presumptuOus Seri studi0rum of our age
found their pretensions on science so exacting.
The profound geoogist must make himself CONVEX
SAINT with the whole circle of the scences-physics,
chemistry, botony, zoology, minersogy, physiolo-
gy, physical geography, comparative anatomy in its
departments of ornithology, ichthyology, helmin-
thology, &c. And if, like the authors whose works
we have quoted above, the geological student con-
sders also the relations Of geology to revealed reli
gion, he needs competent knowledge Of sacred
hermeneu,ics and clear conception of the princi-
Piles of natural as well as revealed religion. We
know of no other science which so forcibly reminds
the student of that fine remark of Cicero's, in his
oralion for Archias "All the practical sciences
which have relation to liberal knowledge possess
kind of common bond, and are connected together,
as it were, by certain natural relationship"
1t is from the religious bearings Of geology that
the two excellent works whose titles we have ap-
pended above derive their chief interest and value.
There was time when very good but rather weak
minded Christians trembed at every thrust of the
geologst's spade, and started at every blow of his
hammer chipping off the rock like Prospero, the
specres that affrighted them of their own cre-
alton; and like Uzzah, there have not been want
ing those whose officious zeal has prompted them
to put forth their hands to uphold the ark when it
was in no danger of falling. We have but little
patience with the pusanimous faith of such reli-
gionsts though, in charity for these "weak bre-
thren," we have often wished for some Lieut. Lynch
to drag the bottom OF the Red Sea, in hopes that
one of Pharaohs veritable chariot wheels might be
shed up to confirm their faith, or that some lucky
geoogist might unearth from his grave in Palestine
The skeleton of Goliath of Gath, encased in his he'll
met of brass and coat of mail, with one of Davids
"smoo,h stones from the brook" lodged in his era
mum, and with his identical spear lying by his side
and its head weighing, according to the account"
precisely six hundred shekels OF iron. The vale
tudnarian religion and hypochondrac pietism Of
such disciples is not, however, worth the fostering
as DR.. Johnson would say, it has not sufficient vi
tay to preserve it from putrefaction it lacks the
Uis medicatrir and the Uis preseruatrir of living
and operative faith. We Think with Robert Hall,
that ii is degrading to the dignity Of revelation
tabished through a succession of ages by indubta-
bic proofs, to be advertng every moment to the hy
pothesis OF It's being an imposture, and to be nvit
ing every nsolent sophist to wrangle with about
the title when we should be cultivating the posses
sion Yet we far from believing that the attacks
of impiety and error against Christianity should be
unheeded when they have become formidable il is
then, and only then that they must be met and repel
led by the very weapons with which the enemythas
| conducted the assault. Skep,cism at various in
tervals has renewed its opposition to Christianity,
and when folled in mode Of attack has resorted
to another: it has joined battle on the field of his
tory, amidst the crumbling ruins Of Egyp-
tian antiquities, and in the foggy region of me-
taphysics, but in later times it has entrenched
itself behind barricade of stones and trees and
skeleton remains, and there planted its batteries for
a final struggle; thus eyincing versatility in the
mode of attack which demands corresponding
versatility in the conduct of the defence. Mr. Mil
ler and DIR. Hitchcock in a crisis like this, have
boldly volunteered to spike the enemys guns, and,
for the present at least, have succeeded we think,
in silencing his batteries, which, if opened anew,
will need to be manned by more skiful artilleriss
than any now in the field.
Alexander Pope, in his Duncad, held up to de-
served rdicule the I" divinely dark" meaphysicians
Of his day, who, disdanng all the teachings of
natural theology preferred to stake the high prori
road" and by thus reasoning down wards" on the