332 HEROES OF SCIENCE. 



more about the geological effects of drifting ice in 

 the last ten days than in all the Canadian tour." 



Lyell returned to England, and, after a short 

 rest, started for the north of Ireland. He wrote to 

 his sister: "We have just returned from a walk 

 over the grand pavement (Giant's Causeway), the 

 effect of which was as picturesque as the evening 

 sun and some white breakers rolling and foaming 

 over the black rocks could make it. Much as I 

 have been pleased with the sight, it strikes me that 

 there are parts of Staffa away from Fingal's Cave, 

 and which travellers have seldom leisure to visit, 

 which are even finer in precisely the same style. 

 The geology of Antrim is very interesting — so many 

 formations, such as chalk, green sand, lias, new red 

 — and the coal being represented by such distinctly 

 characterized and yet such thin sets of strata, com- 

 pared to the same groups elsewhere ; and then the 

 grand trap or basaltic mass covering and cutting 

 through them all." 



Often slightly political in his ideas, Lyell wrote 

 much about the Irish peasantry, and spoke of them 

 as the quick, obliging, and fine-looking natives of 

 the Green Island. He remarked, in 1843, "One 

 cannot help fearing that the anti-English spirit has 

 sunk deep into the hearts of the millions here, for 

 they read nothing but O'Connell's newspapers, 

 from which he artfully excludes, without appearing 

 to them to do so, every other foreign or domestic 

 topic of interest except repeal and Irish grievances 

 — a great proportion of them now bygone." 



