THE EARTH'S ANTIQUITY. 337 



This question of the earth's antiquity is one which 

 has agitated the minds of men from a very early 

 period; and it is remarkable that, as the time rolls on, 

 and as the results of fresh investigations are added 

 to the sum of human knowledge, each additional series 

 of facts collected, seems to oblige us to regard our 

 earth as older and yet still older. . 



" It is with time intervals measured by hundreds of millions 

 of years" (says the late Mr. Proctor) " that we have to deal, 

 in considering our earth's history" " 200 or 300 million 

 years only carry us back to a period when the earth was in 

 a state of development." * 



When James Hutton, after many years of travel 

 and research, made his first public announcement of 

 what is now spoken of as "The Huttonian Theory," 

 as to the earth's immense antiquity, in a communication 

 to the Royal Society in 1795, his opinions were, 

 almost as a matter of course, denounced as rank heresy, 

 subversive of all religion ; and as Lord Playfair has 

 pointed out, although the announcement was one which 

 ought to have attracted the notice of everybody, or 

 of all scientific men at all events, yet such was the force 

 of prejudice, that many years elapsed before it attracted 

 any considerable amount of public notice or acceptance. 

 There has been a great advance therefore in the 

 education of mankind, when in these days we find 

 the Huttonian theory accepted, in its principal features, 

 as a matter of ascertained fact, by almost all persons 

 possessing a fair education. 



It would, however, be obviously out of place to 

 encumber these pages with a series of technical details, 



* Our Place Among Infinities, by Richard A. Proctor (Astronomer), 

 p. 12. 



VOL I. 22 



