Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1906-05-17

| Inc sea ~ present contains 90,-
900, 600. .000. .000. 900 tons of salt. II
this salt could be gathered in solid
form and compressed into the shape
OF cube it would contain 10, la, 600
cubic miles. Each edge Of such q
cube would measure somewhat
more than 200 miles. This Is enough
Ifscover a. End on this -,
with q Mzsi6f!4 layer Of 81 {
depth Of thousand feet.
This statement as to the saltiness
OF the sea is interesting enough in
itself but it is alsosuggestive. The
questions may well be asked, Where
did all this salt come from and what
is the use of it: Several scientific
gentlemen have attempted to an
swer this first question, and their
efforts are not entirely satisfactory.
The second question is not SO diff
cult.
According 70 the history OF the
creation OF the world, as told by
Moses in the Genesis, il is implied
that the ocean existed before the
land, for on the third day" the
water under the heavens" was
gathered together, and the dry land
appeared.
This statement has bothered a
great number Of able philosophers,
who in their effort to stick to the
letter of the Scripture and at the
same time TO reason out everything
on perfectly natural principles have
been puzzled to know how such a
grand transformation could be ac.
complished in one day, and their
perplexity was not relieved when
learned geologists announced that il
must have required ages for the wa
ter that enveloped the earth to sub
side and reveal this land that Law
beneath.
But when it was suggested that
the word day" as used by Moses
meant not q period Of twenty -four
hours. but an era Of thousands of
years, the difficulty was removed
This meaning of the word day, il
at preseRs generally accepted 6y
deSout scAsntists. who now deca,re
that there is nothing impossible in
Moses account OF the creation.
This description, to be sure is la
mentally brief. ID was hardly
adequate to pass over such a huge
event as the creation OF a world in
a few lines. That was a big story
from q newspaper point of view, and
all thoughtful persons must acknowl-
edge that Moses did not take adyan-
tage OF his opportunity.
Accepting the Mosaic account. a
learned writer on the physical his
tory of the globe supplies what
Moses left out. and in so doing he
gives a very good reason for the
presence of the salt in the sea.
Having arrived at the point of Moses
meager narrative where the earth
was in molten state and surround
ed by an envelope OF gases and of
water vapor. the writer says:
The carbonates, chlorides and
sulphates Chemical combinations of
carbon, chlorine and sulphur with
oxygen) we're changed into silicases.
The carbon, chlorine aud sulphur.
being thus freed from the oxygen,
separated in the form of acid gases.
These, with nitrogen, vapor of water
and probable excess of oxygen,
formed the atmosphere, which was
very dense land also very un healthy.
THE surface of the earth was Gov
cred with Jumps Of molten rock,
probably resembling furnace Stag.
The depressed parts of the surface
were filled with heated solutions OF
hydrochloric and surphuric acids,
which ate into the surface and de-
composed it. In this way the sill
Gates were changed TO pure silica,
taking the form OF quartz as the at
mosphere cooled, and the condensa-
tion OF the vaporous atmosphere pro-
duced sea water, holding in solution
salts OF sodium, calcium, magnesium
and ammonium. The atmosphere,
thus freed Of it's noxious elements,
became pure and fit for man."
Il is therefore evident that the
sea has been salty from the creation
of the world. The salt does not
come, as is generally supposed,
from friction OF the water against
salt rocks" in the bed of the ocean.
This, then, answers the first ques-
ton, Where did the salt come from?
The second question is pretty well
answered by q scientist.
1T seem." he says that the sea
was made salt in the beginning as q
part Of the grand design of the Crea-
tor to provide for the system of eyo-
luton which has been going on since
the creation. Many distinct species
0f LIVING orua nisrc oxiSt ~ tha son