New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-08-21
AFRICAN ASSOCIATION FOR TIE
ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE.
FIFTH DAY.
Own On Own ssporsers

HWh W WV ESporscrs
NORMAL, Aag. ~, 1857.
0aay Of the members Of the Association sttsDled
nsss ct the Cathedral yesterday morning. The Hon.
MnbArd Fillmore, with his friends Judge Harris Of Al
hmy, and Thomas Ewing Of Ohio, occupied the mott
pssmmept pew next the ehsr. 1t may not be uuin.
sers surg TO Mr.. Filmores friends 10 know that the
n,veiest attention which Mr.. Fillmore paid 70 tho
ceremony was rewarded by an extraordinarily large
waSer, oak leaf in form from silver cake basket,
while people IN other pews were served with the
sus4smaIy squares from dark willow bresd-beskets.
TIE attendance on the sections this morning Is very
hinge.
GEOLOGY.
Prof BENZ. SHIINas, IT,, in the char.
Prof PIERCE presented The discovery OF bis which
has secasioned the letter Of Mr.. G. +. Winslow-
Nat the principal lines of the Continents of
great circles tangent TO the polar circles. Any globe
Will illustrate this. Tho eastern coast of South
are IN such e hne. So also are the east
en- coasts of Africa, Asia, and North Amer
lee. The western tide of Hindostan 10 tangent on
te ether ride. So also the lines Of Sunetra, the
western coast Of America aud the longer line Of New
Zealand. The western coast J Africa he said, was no
dssbt fully parallel that standing alone, it could not
b. remarkable, but 1t might be analogous There
were, then, other lines ta0gent TO the uopics-the
Aoytnern line Of South America and the range of is-
and Of The Pacific This seemed to Indicate that the
sun had some Influence in forming the lines
Of continents. The diff renee Of temperature
seuses by the sums rays was very coneld-
I@ble, enough, we saw, 20 keep portions OF the
eaIlh in a state Of fuidity while Others solid.
Fer large portion of the year the sun was near one
the other of the tropics, and might DO expected
to exhibit s power in this way by producing lines OF
cleavage, strongly tending to form the outlines Of con-
tDt ns for the Infant the earth should shrink far
tSat the crust should be too large for it, then the
cleavage Then the phenomena Of freezing showed
that there was tendency TO lines per
pendieslsr TO these, which would give lines
nearly tangent to the tropics. One or the other OF
these lines would be the bottom of the ocean, and
q corresponding one the top of continent. There
would be no tendency TO change, because the bottom
Of the would keep cool from the supeincunbent
wafer, while the ridge Of the continent would keep
cool from its hight, and the hottest places would be
along the coast We must expect these liner, there
fole, TO remain q permanent condition, with only
such notifications would arise from currents and
recia] action, theory which geoiogst' seemed IN
clihed to adopt at present. lie would draw attention
10 the effect which the trade winds produce by their
friction upon tbt Pacific and Atlantic Oceans in gun
streams The Gulf Stream, Contemporary with the inst
shaping Of the American Continent would throw VAIN
water upon the European world ard keep It IN q fluid
state for time after the Other continents were
dehDiiiveIy formed II was well known that the last
20, tens OF fluid 10 freeze froze most roughly;
Europe, therefore, would be, as II was, the most
broken up Of the cOhtine Rts. Much criticsm would
from the known age-relatiOns OF different ranges
Of mountains. According TO this view, we could
hardy do otherwise than suppose that the ffst ten
deLcy TO break should be 0ioDg the line vi the Pacific
eoast Yet We knew that this was of the last to
be upheave We must, however, RENE mber tbs the
first action was only lid. fexure-just enough u
give dire tiOn TO current which would sfter"ard
throw the water upon this side. Ths line, beiog
the line OF cleavage, would be the most subject 10
volcanic action, and would be the last as well as TIE
fret affected by it, The only ground of opposition 20
tins Was the theory Of Ellie de beaumont which traced
long lines OF wriukline from very short lines of eevs
non In Europe. He thought that Ellie de Beaumont
had gone too far in making lines short tire bases OF
such extended generalization. was very much Ike
taking 600 700 miles of the Ethmus Of Daren as
bars Tor determining the direction of the Andes and
Roely Mountains. We saw on examination that the
lines Of Ellie de Beaumont were 80 close together and
% many Of them were so nearly tangental to the
pOei circle, that We were led 70 believe that they
might be only eight varistions.
In connection with this there wssa claim OF which ne
would make SINGLE re.nark-that this discovery dd
not belong to him. So the facts were concerned,
the writer TO whom he referred DR. L. r. lnslswj
had " 70 far ne was aware, PRETENDED that ne
had the sg hest ausion TO these facts Ill any portion
of his memoir His work and his memoir mad been
published by himself. They were before the world,
and there was the slightest alluSion In either TO
hnes tsngential TO the polar circle. More than THIS
there was any truth In his DIR. Winslows) epecuIa
tions his own were all wrong; while trere was auy
truth in his own Pref Peirces speculatons, his DE-
Wipslows we're all wrong; and he Prof. Ieircel mad
no desire batever to claim that wild congomerohon
q which he he :ny We y o i te
send one Of our most revered and beloved members
Prof. GUYor said that these directions wore not
new but that they were tangent to the polar circles
vss new Whether this apparent tangency was ACCT
dental or real was subject for investigation. lie had
Ainse pointed out that the main lines OF coast were
Ct ght angles " each oher and PROT Dana had ioi
lowed out the idea 10 very able papers read before the
Association. He would call attention to the zone Of
fracture between the three northern and the three
southern continents; II was almost nathematclly
correct The active volcanoes were nearly ell on this
line, where We found the most recent as well Is the
earliest action. The fact Of these snkng zones was
established and he would be exceedingly pleased TO
go that idea which he printed some years ago was
conirmed-thst the present continents were the only
continents which eve existed. He thought the word
history wss not buried In the ocean.
Prof DANA called attention 10 the parsIelism of the
ranges OF islands the Pacific and the southern coast
Of Eew-HVDsnd and New Caledonia. There were
tive or three curved ranges which Were difficult to
explain On Prof. Peirce's hypothesis. Ne thought,
However, that We nuit take into consideration The
effects Of contraction, which might operate to form
ObhQue wrinkles.
PIef Haul said that the direction Of the greatest
accumulation Of deposits the eastern and western
shores Of this continent the direction OF greatest
elevation.
Prof. PEIRcr said that, with regard to shrnksge
sad currents. it would net become him 10 speak.
With regard ~ the magnetic causes, 1t va, evident
that the sun itself ~ great extent worked Indirectly
through magnetic currents. He thought ths', upon
whichever side the surface Of the eNth began 10 be
Aeprersed il veuld remain 50. What caused the
greater depression in the southern hemisphere orSi-
Saily Of course could not at present be determioed
BOth polar circles very well marked by coast
knes.
Prof. HoRNoRD Of Cambridge read paper On
- New Method OF Determining the Commercil
"Vslue Of Saltpeter." This process consists SIMPLY
n gLitng weighed quantity OF commercial satpeter
with sal ammoLiac, which leaves . chloride Of the
alk sne base in place the nitrate. The presence Of
chloride involves the necessity Of special deeruinA
tim. The advantage consists in the small amoan: Of
tune il requires.
I,rnf HrHnA Il ID presented q :" Notice Of the occur.