64 Proceedings of Philosophical Societies. [J AN. 



of astronomical science had long been subjects of investigation, 

 in consequence of their relations to the seasons and to time, the 

 structure of the earth had been scarcely noticed until a late 

 period. Cosmogonies, " or dreams of the formation of the 

 world," had been brought forward at various periods, and some 

 general views in geology had been advanced by Hooke, Lister, 

 Strachey, and other early members of the Royal Society, or con- 

 tributors to its Transactions ; but the commencement of geology 

 as an exact science did not take place until about 50 years since, 

 when a regular classification of minerals having been effected, 

 Pallas, De Saussure, and above all, Werner, further arranging' 

 this, the alphabet of geology, proceeded to read with it that part 

 of the book of nature ; and the logic of the science was subse- 

 quently furnished by chemistry and comparative anatomy. The 

 space of a discourse would not admit even of naming the labour- 

 ers, our contemporaries, by whose zeal and accurate spirit of 

 observation, the field of geological research had been so success- 

 fully cultivated within the last 20 years ; but among them that 

 of Prof. Buckland was highly distinguished by his indefatigable 

 ardour for inquiry, and by his caution and sagacity in drawing 

 conclusions. 



For the purpose of illustrating the subjects of Mr. Buckland's 

 paper, Sir Humphry now gave a general view of the constitution 

 of the superficial part of the globe, of the arrangement of its 

 constituent rocks, and the distribution in them of organic 

 remains : in this he mentioned that he had himself ascertained 

 that those remains of the animal kingdom, the position of which 

 was geologically the lowest, contained the least quantity of the 

 original matter of the animals. Although it had been strongly 

 suspected that the large animals of the elephant, rhinoceros, 

 hippopotamus, tiger, hyrena, and other kinds, the remains of 

 which are met with in the diluvian strata, were once inhabitants 

 of the countries where their bones and teeth are thus found, yet 

 this had never been distinctly proved until Prof. Buckland 

 described the Yorkshire cave, in which several generations of 

 hyeenas must have lived and died. By the industry and happy 

 talent for observation of that gentleman, there had been distinctly 

 established an epoch from which to trace the revolutions of the 

 globe. Sir H. had himself since visited the cave, in company 

 with Mr. B. and could testify to the accuracy of his descrip- 

 tion ; — announced that the Professor had recently examined 

 a number of similar caverns in Germany, and that by the phae- 

 nomena of these, he had found his former conclusions con- 

 firmed. Sir H. then expressed his hopes that Mr. Buckland 

 would communicate the results of his late researches to the 

 Royal Society. Two theoretical views might be taken respect- 

 ing the animal remains in question ; one, that the animals had 

 been of peculiar species fitted to inhabit temperate or cold cli- 

 mates ; thus, that the elephant and rhinoceros of Britain might have 





