I04 



THE MUSEUM. 



The Science of Geology and the 

 Bible Account of Creation. 



The science of Geology is perhaps 

 one of the most interesting and the 

 most varied in its character in all the 

 range of scientific study. Embracing 

 as it does, almost every other science, 

 it is not to be wondered at that more 

 or less it has found enquirers in almost 

 every country. It is only of recent 

 date as a science but the rapidity with 

 which its startling discoveries have 

 been made known and the important 

 bearing which each has had upon the 

 historical records of our planet have 

 caused it to be popular amongst every 

 class of students. In its early stages, 

 from the crude and imperfect manner 

 in which the great geological facts it 

 made known were presented to the 

 world, it was received with great hos- 

 tility by the Christian scholar, and was 

 eagerly laid hold of by the sceptic as 

 an argument against the great truth of 

 Biblical authenticity. I am glad to say 

 that further search and study has dis- 

 pelled all doubts on the matter and 

 like all other greater scientific discov- 

 eries it has only to be thoroughly in- 

 vestigated to make it the hand maiden 

 to revelation. 



Although the Bible was not given to 

 us as a book of science, it frequently 

 makes allusion to the effects and oper- 

 ations of the laws of nature; the allu- 

 sions are not made for scientific pur- 

 poses and they are often made in such 

 a way that during the crude state of 

 a science they are misunderstood and 

 misrepresented; and it is only when 

 the full light of the revelation of sci- 

 ence IS thrown upon them, that we 

 discover the full force and beauty of 

 their hidden meanings. For instance, 

 the Psalmist calls the earth round, yet 



it is well known that for ages persecu- 

 tion raged against the men who assert- 

 ed the world was round; and it was 

 left for the science of later times to 

 demonstrate its truth. The theory 

 of the winds and atmospheric circula- 

 tion, which has only been made known 

 in our own time, since Fitzroy made it 

 a science, was told by the Psalmist in 

 his day, and has remained until now 

 sealed to the scientific mind — "The 

 wind i^oct/i toioard the south, and 

 turncth about towards the north ; and 

 the leiiid retiirncth again to its own 

 lirLiiit." So it has been with every 

 other science. We may find at times, 

 and especially in the case of new dis- 

 coveries in science, an apparent jar- 

 ring with sacred history; but the differ- 

 ence is only apparent, and on further 

 development of facts we find the cor- 

 rectness of sacred history breaking out 

 as the revealer of this very fact, but 

 which from our want of scientific light, 

 the world would have understood cen- 

 turies ago; and thus science becomes 

 the witness of these very statements 

 before apparently contradictory. 



Although I heartily recommend the 

 science of geology as a most interest- 

 ing study to all, I shall not in my 

 present essay devote more to its details 

 than is consistent with my object. I 

 aim to show that modern discoveries 

 in the science of geology agree with 

 and support the Biblical account of 

 creation contained in the first chapter 

 of Genesis. My object in treating up- 

 on this subject is to meet the argu- 

 ment of the sceptic, and to dispell the 

 fears of many who feel alarmed at the 

 supposed disagreement between sci- 

 ence and revelation; and which alarm 

 arises from a false interpretation of 

 the chapter itself, and also from a 



