LEDGES. 93 



some with two legs, some with six, some with 

 none. 



This reef or ledge is called quartzite be- 

 cause it is made up of grains of quartz sand 

 that were made by rocks rolling each other 

 on a seashore that existed before the "moun- 

 tains were brought forth," before animal life 

 existed on the naked, treeless land of the world. 

 Time must be reckoned by many million years 

 since the sand be.ach was formed that in the 

 long run went to the making of this old ledge 

 at our feet. One might be tempted to deny 

 that we can know so much of its age, but care- 

 ful study makes it certain that we do know. 

 This earth is a globe for the same reasons that 

 a dewdrop hanging on a grass-blade, or a rain- 

 drop falling through the air, is a globe. It was 

 once liquid, and took this shape by laws of 

 attraction, as the sun, moon, and stars did the 

 same. All the rocks and metals were once 

 melted ; then there was no water and no atmos- 

 phere like we now have. Hydrogen and oxy- 

 gen gases became chemically united, and water 

 was the result. The first rain was warm ; the 

 first ocean covered all the earth, and was boil- 

 ing hot ; the steam from it cooled and returned, 

 as rain, and was sent back, and thus the ocean 

 was cooled. No one was there to observe all 



