154 Notice and Review of the Reliquiae Diluvianae. 
the flood. In explaining this plate, he remarks “ that the 
opinion of the ancients concerning the earth’s resembling 
an egg, has great propriety in it; for the center nucleus, 
by its innermost situation and shape, may well represent 
the yolk; the abyss of water, which surrounds it, and is 
ina middle position, may stand for the ‘clear finial of the 
white; the crust of the earth (allowing only for its breaks 
and cracks.) by its roundness, hardness, uppermost situa- 
tion, and little inequalities on its surface, is justly ana 
gons to the shell.” 
The celebrated theory of Whiston, et a hee the 
deluge to the shock or attraction of a . has had as 
many supporters, as any other; anda ‘ate ible geological © 
writer, after sweeping away every other hypothesis, suf- 
fers this to remain as perhaps better than none. 
propose ipieen it is with the premonition that they 
are - little importance, and not entitled to much confi- 
en 
The recent ** Comparative Estimate of the Mineral and 
Mosaical Geologies,” by Granville Penn, Esq. we feel 
obliged reluctantly to notice, as an exception to this re- 
mark. We know nothing of this gentleman, except what 
we learn from this book ; and this exhibits him im the 
character of a good scholar, who is well versed in philolo- 
gy, and who has read most of the modern treatises on ge- 
ology: but really we do not fear to hazard the assertion, 
that he has not seen much of rocks in their native beds. 
Yet he has made a vehement attack upon modern geology. 
He assumes in the first place, that the mineral and Mosa- 
ical geologies are ee ll to each other, and ab- 
solutely irreconcileable ; so that if the one be true, the 
other is false. He then endeavors to extract the “ root 
