168 THE ORIGIN OF CREATION. 



of what is constantly occurring all over the Atlantic and 

 Pacific Oceans. He has a theory of a general oceanic circula- 

 tion which he is endeavouring to have accepted as an established 

 doctrine of science, viz. : That there is a continuous under- 

 current of cold water throughout the oceans, irom the Poles to 

 the Equator, and a surface current of warm water from the 

 Equator back again ; thereby equalizing the temperature all 

 over the world, and bringing every part of the waters to the 

 surface, to purify and make it fit for the preservation of animal 

 life in the deepest sea beds. He has made his observations 

 from a series of deep sea soundings, in which he has found that 

 the sea bottom, even at the depth of two and three miles, has 

 averaged thirty degrees by Farenheit's Thermometer. His 

 opinion is, therefore, that the water coiild not be so cold unless 

 it came from the Polar regions, inasmuch as cold water always 

 falls to the bottom, while warm water floats on the surface. 

 In order to. illustrate his assertions he makes an experiment 

 with a glass trough, six feet long, one foot deep, and one inch 

 wide. This is filled with water. At the surfase of one end he 

 fixes a piece of ice, to represent the pole, and at the other he 

 applies a bar of heated metal, for the equator. Dropping some 

 blue colouring matter into the polar end, and some red at the 

 equato^ a circulation is at once seen to be established. The 

 cold blue water sinks, then creeps along the bottom till it 

 reaches the heated end, is there warmed, rises to the surface, and 

 returns to the pole again ; while the reddened water flows along 

 the surface to the pole, sinks and returns just as it is expected 

 to do. But this is not a fair illustration, because what would 

 occur in six feet of water, would not well apply to a distance of 



