Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1892-11-22
AGE OF THE EARTH.
A FASCINATING STUDY THAT 70 ELU-
cioATiNo A GREAT MYSTERY.

he ssssses sf 0esisgy shows That the
Age 90 The wsssa Varies Bstvesa -.
ses. ses 80 zee. eee. 900 yssss-nsv
TAsss Cs~putssisss Are MsAe.
Al the recent meeting Of the British
association discourse was delivered by
the president, Bir Archibald 0erkie, on
one Of the most interesting problems In
modern science-the age OF the world.
Over century has elapsed since Jsmes
Hutton wrote his Theory Of the Earth"
which was the frst attempt toformulats
chronology % creation In accordance
with the discoveries Of science: since
then knowledge has made vast strides,
and his followers have access 10 mas
Of information which he did not po~sess.
Piayfair and Kelvin improved upon his
work. and now Gerkie and the school 10
which he belongs have gone beyond
them.
biologists have Ascertained that the
rate at which erosion takes place can te
measured; by applying their scale TO the
sedimentary rocks they have formed .
hypothesis a. 90 the time which has
ELAPSED since erosion began. To put the
proposition In similar language. the sur.
face Il the elob. IL constantly wearing
away under the influence % wafer and
wind. The portions which are worn OF
are carried down % the sea OF into hol.
lows, where they are deposited AMI form
se,iimentary rucks. II we can ascertain
how long u take. TO form sciimentary
rock We can figure out when the progress
81 wearing away and re,iepo-iting began.
sir Archibald state. that on reason.
able computation the s,raiihed rocks at.
tain an average thickness 20 ico. Co feet.
The material % which they consist WAS
all washed down from high planes, de
posted and left 20 siratify. by the In
s,.ction % river banks II Il found that
In places the surface IL the land which
has hcen carried down NJ sediment Ia
rivers has been reduced at Oh. rate at n
foot In 30 years. while In other place,
wher, the land was more stubborn OF
les flexible. u has taken ESQ years a.
lower the surface one foot. The deposit
mus, H. equal Ia the denudstion. Thus
W. find that while some IL the sedimen-
tAry rocks have grown a loot In 800
years other. have taken ESQ years to
ri.e that height. Thus the pcrioi ~
time that Was required "a build ny 100.
~ fee, ~ ss-limsntary rock has varicd
according to locality from 100000
year. to cS0.co.co years. II follows
,hA, the active wurk u creation lasted
for cycle intermediate trtw-en tbe-c
two figures. The cycl. varied with end
les succession ~ rericis of dis'urhano"
by volcanic force and glacial action,
and the frequent snbm.r-ion OF dry
land. alternating with the emerging of
continents cot Of the seas. These may
have retarded IN" growth of s~diinen'
iary rOcks. bni they cannot have scceI'
Grated ".
A study Of Fossils teaches the steady
uniformity with which the work OF
creation proceeded. since man t-gan
o. observe there ha. been no change Ia
the form. ~ animal AMI vegetable life.
A few sI.cie- have disapI-ar.d-no' one
new .l-ci-. has bccn evolved. Not only
do We find the fauna and fora OF ancient
Egypt as depicted ON monuments which
ARE probably s.c"o az iO."o years old
identical with tho-- which are found IN
that country today. but shell. which In.
habii~i our seas b.for. the ic" agr and
gr-w IN an ocean whos" i-i o'criay the
Rocky mountains are precisely the same
spccies that are found In the Hay ~
Monterey and the waters 81 the Chesa'
r-akc. II u oyiden, that there has been
no essential change In the conditions ~
life since ihe.e animals AMI these '.g--
tables were mt created Yet now vat
the shortest i-nci which we can assign
a. the gap that divides NJ from that fe-
mote eI,rh. 49,
Little 10y little the g"oiogis' IL lii'ing
the veil which cover. the prehistoric
recori 81 our planet. The era whfh
rrrcssiei the age of civilized man, with
IL vast rivers carrying down diin,iai
FOODS Ia the "c"sn' anu the bursting
forth 81 mountain ranges from contra"
hohs"i the eaf'h sC'"s' ns Nv" amt"