STUDY X. 59 



gold, fcattered about on the furface of the earth, 

 in the ancient Continent of Europe, and efpecially 

 in that of the New-World ; I believe it to have 

 proceeded from the total effufions of the ices of 

 the mountains, which took place at the time of 

 the Deluge ; and that, as the fpoils of the Ocean 

 covered the weftern parts of Europe, that thofe of 

 vegetable earths were fpread over the eaftem 

 part of Afia, thofe of minerals, from the moun- 

 tains, were forced along other countries, where 

 their fragments were found, in the earlier ages, in 

 grains, and even in larger maiies. 



This much is certain, that when Chriftopher Co- 

 lumbus difcovered the Lucayo and Antilles iflands, 

 he found among thofe iflanders abundance of gold 

 of a bafe alloy, the produce of the traffick which 

 they carried on with the inhabitants of the Conti- 

 nent; but they had no mines within their own 

 territory, notwithstanding the prejudice then en- 

 tertained, and under which many labour to this 

 day, that the Sun formed this precious metal in 

 the earth of the Torrid Zone. For my own part, 

 I find, as I have juft obferved, gold much more 

 common in the vicinity of icy mountains, what- 

 ever their Latitude may be ,• and I conjecture, 

 from analogy, that there mud be very rich mines 

 of it in the North. It is extremely probable, 

 that the waters of the Deluge hurled along con- 



fiderable 



