Western sentinel. [volume] (Winston [i.e. Winston-Salem], N.C.) 1856-1886, 1881-11-03
The Earth's Periods of Heat and c Id

'Ho CdfH fertoC5 OF neat and u I'd
Some very curions speculations
arise when we consider that por-
ton of Sir } ohm inbbock's address
before t h e British Association
wherein he states his s.greement
with Croll and Geikc as to fhe
changing condition of our world
while the climate of the world is,
no doubt, affected by geographical
conditions, the cold Of the glacial
period was, [ believe, mainly due
to the eceentricity Of the earth's or
bitz cotobined with the obliquity of
the ecliptic.' According to the
studies Of CroH and Stone, the call
culation they arrive at is that it
took period cf some 81, 900 years
to accomplish an absolute climatic
change, during one-half of which
the northern hemisphere was warm
er than the southern, glile during
the other 10000 years the reverse
was the case.' Fortunately for rs,
we are to-day enjoying the agree
able hall OF some more pleasing
period, but, better than this, the
eecentricity of our orb has been so
much diminished that we may sup
pose that for the last 100, 900 years
things have been pretty rnnch IS
they are to-day. Bat 100000
years ago there was, instead of
modest -O16 Of eccentricity, an ex-
aggerated one Of from 20 to 81.
That these long periods of intense
cold and excessive heat followed
one another explains the co-exist-
ence in the same gravels of arctic
and tropical animals, the former
having lived in the cold, while the
latter Hourished in the hot pcriod,.'
Feeling, then, somewhat assured as
to cur future, suppose we give some
considerations as to the presence Of
man in the past. SIR John Lub-
tock believes shat man inhabited
Europe during the milder periods
of the glacial epochs,' and differs
from those high authorities who
consider tnat we have evidence of
his presence in pre- glacial and even
III nioccne times It may be no
seed that Sir John is careful to
draw his conclusions only in regard
to Europe, for the study of geolo-
81 and ant'lropology has been here
toforc carried ont bnt on an iuh-
nltely small portion of the earth's
surface. ii even in time to come
researches tending to elucidate
these difficult questions can be car.
ried out in polar CIR other regions,
we then may discover other facts
which might place man even fur
ther back than the recent European
glacial epochs. But where the
speculative facElty wonlG yuu riot
would be exactly IN that direction
in which not only to-day Herbert
Spencer but even Humboldt in
lgcd in, and that is that human
civilization has not always been
cne of steady progress that, in
fact, the savage of Africa or the
semi-savage of the extreme north
might be the lineal descendant of a
race whose civilization was oIice
fairly great, and thai she progress
rsen had made during a long series
of ages had been suddenly or grad
ually arrested by some grea: cata-
clysm Of nature that notwith-
standing tkat forward march which
all Gud's creatures must make,
phenomena OF the most appalling
character had arrested their careers;
that the perfection OF world
which The Creator has given to
such few of us as Eve in congo
NAL climate, which tends to our ad
vancelnent, he has to-day withheld
from others. Whose turn viii it
be next& is the question. Certain
ly Sir John Lnbbock's theory of
comparatively short periods when
it was possible for nan to advance,
and then those dreadful cpochs
when nature turned her back on
him, gives certain plausibility to
Herbert Spencer's theory, that saw
agery, after all, may be the present
traits Of scme particular races who
in long ps.st time were once fully
civilized.
The Roman Catholics in ireland
have decreased during ten years
by AS per cent, the Episcopalians
by 4-e, ard Presbyterlans by "a:
but the Methodist have increased
by 81 per Cent.
Connecticut Mutual Insurance
having neglected to pay aiudgmen'
On contested policy claim in Can
ada, application is to be made te
the Dominion government to de-
clare the company insolvent anf
distribute among policy holders The
deposit of 100000.
V . i