Ml. 81.] UNIFORMITARIANISM. 373 



To the Same. DARENT-HULME, SHOREHAM, 24th August 1893. 



MY DEAR FISHER, Thanks for your note and references. Lord 

 Kelvin's correction in his address at Glasgow, 1876, refers only to 

 Hopkins's argument about precession and nutation, and does not, 

 it seems to me, affect his previous opinions about the rigidity and 

 great thickness of the crust. Sir A. Geikie gives the thickness 

 as stated by him in 1862. You see I am not touching on the 

 general question, but merely giving what seems to be the opinion 

 held by Kelvin and Tait as to the approximate thickness of the 

 crust 1000 would do for me just as well as 2000. 



J. Prestwich to J. Evans. 



DARENT-HULME, SHOREHAM, 13th September [1893]. 



MY DEAR EVANS, A few days since we went to West Yoke 

 (460'), near Ash. There is a very remarkable spread of much 

 worn gravel there, with a considerable number of the rudest 

 possible worked flints and one good pointed form. I am more 

 satisfied than ever of the great antiquity of the Chalk plateau 

 specimens. Next week I hope to visit the several new localities 

 discovered by Mr Crawshay. In one of these of doubtful posi- 

 tion he has found 46 specimens. With very much sympathy, 



J. PRESTWICH. 



The following letter has reference to the ' Nineteenth 

 Century ' article : 



J. Prestwich to the Same. DARENT-HULME, 22nd October 1893. 



MY DEAR EVANS, The very foundation of uniformitarian be- 

 liefs is that these terrestrial forces have been alike as now, both 

 in kind and degree, in all past times, and all their calculations of 

 time and denudation have been made on that basis. If you can 

 show any calculations made on a different basis, either in text- 

 books or papers, I shall be glad: I know of none. 



The only exception made has been in favour of volcanic action. 

 But any child could see that volcanic action is spasmodic, and has 

 always been so. But even here the argument is inapplicable. 



