502 HISTORY OF GEOLOGY. 



geology, both in its interests and in its methods. If men are ever 

 able to frame a science of the past changes by which the universe 

 has been brought into its present condition, this science will be pro- 

 perly described as Cosmical Palcetiology. 



These palsetiological sciences might properly be called historical, if 

 that term were sufficiently precise : for they are all of the nature of 

 history, being concerned with the succession of events : and the part 

 of history which deals with the past causes of events, is, in fact, a 

 moral palastiology. But the phrase Natural History has so accus- 

 tomed us to a use of the word history in which we have nothing to 

 do with time, that, if we were to employ the word historical to describe 

 the palsetiological sciences, it would be in constant danger of being mis- 

 understood. The fact is, as Mchs has said, that Natural History, when 

 systematically treated, rigorously excludes all that is historical for it 

 classes objects by their permanent and universal properties, and has 

 nothing to do with the narration f particular and casual facts. And 

 this is an inconsistency which we shall not attempt to rectify. 



All palsetiological sciences, since they undertake to refer changes to 

 their causes, assume a certain classification of the phenomena which 

 change brings forth, and a knowledge of the operation of the causes 

 of change. These phenomena, these causes, are very different, in the 

 branches of knowledge which I have thus classed together. The 



O O 



natural features of the earth's surface, the works of ail, the institu- 

 tions of society, the forms of language, taken together, are undoubtedly 

 a very wide collection of subjects of speculation ; and the kinds 

 of causation which apply to them are no less varied. Of the causes 

 of change in the inorganic and organic world, the peculiar principles 

 of Geology, we shall hereafter have to speak. As these must be 

 studied by the geologist, so, in like manner, the tendencies, instincts, 

 faculties, principles, which direct man to architecture and sculpture, to 

 civil government, to rational and grammatical speech, and which have 

 determined the circumstances of his progress in these paths, must be 

 in a great degree known to the Pala3tiologist of Art, of Society, and 

 of Language, respectively, in order that he may speculate soundly 

 upon his peculiar subject. With these matters we shall not here 

 meddle, confining ourselves, in our exemplification of the conditions 

 and progress of such sciences, to the case of Geology. 



The journey of survey which we have attempted to perform over 

 the field of human knowledge, although carefully directed according 

 to the paths and divisions of the physical sciences, has already 



