146 



The ocean streams flow towards the North but in 

 their passage they encounter opposition from the widen- 

 ing continents, from whence arises a tendency for the 

 water to force its way inland. The perpetual pressure 

 and friction of these liquid masses forces a passage 

 through the earth and water finds its way below into 

 the burning bowels of the earth, producing seismic phe- 

 nomena. 



If the crust of the earth in the spot penetrated by 

 water is thick and the source of the water not very abun- 

 dant, a simple earthquake ensues which, cracking the 

 earth's surface in certain places, forms in that way an 

 outlet or filter through which passes the subterranean 

 vapour ; but if the force of the underground vapour is 

 very great, it drives out streams of the burning lava 

 from within the earth by means of volcanic eruption 

 accompanied by local earthquake. This independent 

 heat of the earth, so clearly shown in these phenomena, 

 must of course act more or less upon our gaseous at- 

 mosphere. The more energetic the planet the more de- 

 veloped and the greater its animal caloric, acting on its 

 vegetation ; so that the scientific assumption of 80 of 

 cold *) on the planet Saturn is the purest invention with- 

 out any data to support it which can be gathered from 

 the study of the solar system. 



In the case of eruptions on islands or the shores 

 of seas a further local phenomenon is observable, name- 

 ly the tidal wave, which owes its origin to the uprais- 

 ing of the earth's surface beneath the water by the accu- 

 mulated vapour below. The coast waters are rolled back 

 by this upheaval upon the interior waters of the sea basin, 

 and return with elastic force towards the land when the 

 sea-bottom subsides after the dicharge of the expansive 

 vapours through the volcanic crater or the seismic cracks. 

 This return of the tidal wave is attended with disastrous 

 and destructive consequences to the coast districts in the 

 neighbourhood of the volcano or earthquake. 



