in Werner s Universal Formations 1 1 3 



Werner's first sketch of his plan of the structure of the 

 earth's crust and the succession of the rocks that compose 

 it appeared as a thin quarto of only 28 pages, published 

 at Dresden in the year 1787. 1 It was descriptive rather 

 than theoretical, and was marked by all its author's pre- 

 cision and orderliness of statement. It contained the 

 essence of his system in its simplest form. In later years, 

 as we shall see, further experience compelled him to en- 

 large and modify the system, but without changing the 

 fundamental conceptions on which it was founded. The 

 modifications, however, were not embodied by Werner in 

 any later edition of his work. They were given by him 

 from time to time in his lectures, and gradually became 

 known from the writings of his students. One of the 

 most devoted and distinguished of these followers was 

 Eobert Jameson, who afterwards became Professor of 

 Natural History in the University of Edinburgh. He 

 was mainly instrumental in introducing the Wernerian 

 doctrines into Britain, and continued for many years to be 

 their most ardent supporter. In many respects the fullest 

 accounts of Werner's views are to be found in the various 

 works of the Edinburgh Professor, and I shall cite some 

 passages from them in the present lecture. 



One of the fundamental postulates of the Wernerian 

 doctrines was the existence of what were termed universal 

 formations. When he elaborated his system, Werner had 

 never been out of Saxony and the immediately adjacent 

 regions. His practical knowledge of the earth was, there- 



1 Kurze Klassification und Beschreibung der verschiedener Gebirgsarten, 

 von A. G. Werner, Bergakademie Inspector, und Lehrer der Bergbaukunst 

 und Mineralogie zu Freiberg. Dresden, 1787. 



I 



