1872.] Notices of Books. 359 
may,” continues Mr. Jordan, ‘‘ why is it that no more facts from 
that region, so important to the theory, are brought forward in 
its support? Is it in consequence of a consciousness that 
nearly all genuine facts from thence would be death blows to the 
theory? It seems to me that it would be scarcely possible to 
invent any theory by which, in the absence of other causes, a 
system of oceanic circulation might be caused that could, in 
those regions, be more completely at variance with the results 
of actual researches than this temperature theory of Dr. 
Carpenter’s.” 
Much as weshould like to introduce an account of the arguments 
diflidently advanced by Mr. Jordan, their length precludes such 
a course in a notice of his pamphlet. But his views may be 
thus recapitulated :— 
“First: the very basis of Dr. Carpenter’s theory requires 
that the force of gravitation should re-adjust the level of the 
ocean, by bringing down the level in the Equatorial regions and 
raising it in the Polar regions, in consequence of the existence of 
the reverse effects resulting from differences of temperature. In 
reply to this, practical researches tend to show that the action of 
differences of temperature and other conditions between Equatorial 
and Polar regions has the reverse effect from that which Dr. 
Carpenter assumes them to have—that they tend to lower the 
level in the Equatorial and raise it in the Polar regions; so that 
the re-adjustment to be made by the force of gravitation is in 
the opposite direction to that required by Dr. Carpenter’s theory. 
«Secondly: Dr. Carpenter assumes that the action of gravi- 
tation would cause a surface current through the ocean from the 
higher to the lower level: and to such currents flowing into the 
Polar regions he attributes the first impetus which sets the cir- 
culation in motion. In reply to this it has been pointed out 
that the action of gravitation would, in the open ocean, tend to 
re-adjust such differences of level by tidal movements, the higher 
levels falling and the lower rising simultaneously without causing 
any current. So that therefore, even if Dr. Carpenter were 
right in assuming the level of the Polar to be lower than that 
of the Equatorial regions, no such surface currents would be 
created by that difference of level as those to which he attributes 
the first impetus which sets the circulation in motion. 
“Thirdly: according to Dr. Carpenter’s theory, in the Polar 
regions the surface currents flow towards and the under currents 
from the Poles. In reply to this, practical researches tend to 
show that the very reverse is the case:—that the cold waters 
pour away from the Poles chiefly in the upper strata, whilst 
warm currents flow beneath them towards the Poles. So that 
the vertical circulation in the Polar regions—the great paramount 
force-creating region, according to Dr. Carpenter—appears to be 
the reverse of that necessitated by his theory. 
