SIB CHABLES LYELL. 231 



smoke and ashes over the city. The ashes were falling in the streets 

 like snow, and reached a depth of two or three inches. The rumbling 

 inside the volcano continued, hut no fresh craters have opened, and 

 the lava has ceased flowing. 



" Showers of sand have succeeded the rain of ashes which was fall- 

 in g this morning. The eruption is now accompanied by fearful electric 

 phenomena. Lightning darts incessantly from the summit of the vol- 

 cano and the quakings of the mountain are more violent and frequent. 

 The thunder is continuous. Burning cinders, stones, and scoria?, are 

 fallino- fast and thick in the town of Massa di Somma, which is en- 

 tirely deserted." 



<*+ 



SIR CHARLES LYELL. 



SIR CHARLES LYELL is now seventy-five years old. He took his 

 degree in Oxford, in 1821, and commenced the study of law, but, 

 influenced by Dr. Buckland, he soon left it for that of geology. His 

 first original papers on this subject were published in 1826, and the 

 first volume of his great work, the "Principles of Geology," was is- 

 sued in 1830. He came to the United States in 1841, and again in 

 1845, and visited many localities for the purpose of scientific observa- 

 tion. He became president of the Geological Society in 1836, and 

 again in 1850, and was honored with knighthood, for his success in 

 science, in 1848. 



Sir Charles Lyell not only ranks as the first of living geologists, 

 but his name will always be closely linked with one of the most im- 

 portant stages in the development of the science. He has been a care- 

 ful and extensive observer, but he has also eminently a philosophic 

 cast of mind, leading him to the elucidation of principles, and he has 

 accordingly done much to place this great science upon the sound 

 basis of inductive philosophy. Of the extent of his labors in the vari- 

 ous special departments of geological observation, it is unnecessary 

 here to speak, but there are one or two great doctrines with the intro- 

 duction of which into the science of geology his name will be con- 

 nected, and to which it will be desirable here to refer. 



In an able lecture before the Geological Society, in 1869, Prof. 

 Huxley recognized three great systems of geological thought, which 

 he denominates Catastrophism, Uniformitarianism, and Evolution- 

 ism. The first phase of thought historically was that of catastro- 

 phism. Prof. Huxley defines it as- follows: "By catastrophism, I 

 mean any form of geological speculation, which, in order to account 

 for the phenomena of geology, supposes the operation of forces differ- 

 ent in their nature, or immeasurably different in power, from those we 

 at present see in action in the universe. The doctrine of violent up- 



