186 THK WORLD. 



surface, by being upheaved and uncovered, are found the crysta- 

 line masses of granite, porphyry, and sienite. Above all these 

 well marked sedimentary, or water deposits, lies a vast accumu- 

 lation of what is termed drift, being water worn, transported ma- 

 terials, consisting of the ruins of older rocks, and forming our 

 light covering soil, sometimes scarcely overlaying, and at others 

 of many feet in thickness, principally sand, clay, and gravel, and 

 large masses" of water worn or rounded stones, called boulders. 

 The more recent deposit'of this sort is called Alluvium, and in it 

 are imbedded the remains of man and his works, and such is the 

 character of the fluviatile or river deposits now going on, and to 

 which we" shall again allude. The older deposit is termed Dilu- 

 vium, and is found to contain no traces of manor his works, but 

 in it are imbededthe remains of huge animals and reptiles now 

 extinct, and also with them the bones of many existing species of 

 animals, and the fossil remains of many known species of plants 

 are found. In the following chapter we shall endeavor to give a 

 clear view of the succession of the various strata and a short de- 

 scription of each, which shall be intelligible to any one who may 

 feel enough interested to read it, and in concluding this chapter 

 we must be allowed to say, that if the present part of our work 

 does not interest the reader, the book may as well be closed ; we 

 can learn him nothing, for there is no sympathy between us. 



