159 
The force of evaporation, with various other circumstances, 
would also affect the quantity of water to be pumped from any 
given depth and over a fixed area. 
From this it is evident that the quantity of water likely 
to percolate into a given area of mineral land, and to be 
encountered below ground, may be determined with great 
approximation to the truth, and the power of the machinery 
necessary to drain it may also be ascertained before any work 
has been performed. The want of such determinations, based 
upon prolonged Geological and Engineering studies, have fre- 
quently led to the ruin of good mining adventures. 
Circumstances have not permitted any reference to be 
made to the Paleontology of the Forest of Dean district, but 
the writer’s views as to the value of that science may be 
gathered from the following quotation, which has been ex- 
tracted from pp. 67 and 68 of the Spanish, and page 72 of the 
French editions of works, published by him in 1889, upon the 
Mines, Geology, Mining Laws, and Mineral Resources of the 
Argentine Republic :— ' 
“To a man of Science it is to be lamented that the rocks 
“of the regions of Tamatina present so few traces of organic 
“remains of former epochs, because Palzontology is a Science as 
“‘profound in its bearing as it is useful, important, interesting, 
“and beautiful. In fact, it must in all truth be considered as 
“the twin sister of Geology, and consequently marches hand- 
“in-hand with it, illuminating the intelligence and dissipating 
“the dense obscurity surrounding the past and present, rending 
“asunder the dark veil which obscured the great truths of 
““Nature’s secrets. 
“Hach page of the stupendous rocky book of God’s creation 
“present to us in glorious and imperishable characters, brilliant 
“as the diamonds, transmitting the sublime history of the 
“creation, life and death of all the varied organic forms, the 
“existence of which has been preserved as fossil remains in 
“evident and palpable forms through the long lapse of those 
“obscure and mysterious periods of the past, the duration of 
“which can only be compared to the eternity of the future, the 
* sublimity of which transcends the capacity of the human mind.” 
