294 JOSEPH PRESTWICH^ F.U.S., F.G.S.^ ON A POSSIBLE 



Prestwich lias himself had caution. He has been very cautious 

 in his facts and conclusions, though his conclusions are not all, 

 perhaps, exact, more than other people's conclusions are. 



There are one or two things to which I should like to 

 allude — as to the physical impossibility that has been referred to. 

 My notion is that Professor I*restwich has a right to say that. 

 Professor Hughes says he has not. But I will refer to Professor 

 John Phillips. I was under the impression that he measured the 

 land and the sea with all the evaporation and found there was 

 not enough water to cover the whole land to a sufficient depth. If 

 so it was an impossibility. 



Then with regard to the a3olian method. The author referred to 

 the opinions of others, therefore it did not escape him. I do not 

 think that anything escaped him. A most interesting- thing to 

 which Professor Hughes alluded was the instance of the rabbit 

 and the trout being found together. It shows exactly what 

 Professor Prestwich would like to have — thai things were thrown 

 pell-mell into the fissures ; but, like a wave, it may, in one 

 case, be a small affair ; and that reminds me that Professor Hughes 

 did not give him credit for stating that waves of translation, 

 even, might be of a different strength at different times, 

 though comparatively continuous, more particularly with a 

 decrease or increase in earthquakes, making the influx or efflux of 

 water of different powers as they went on. I think if my friend 

 will read the Paper quietly and write and tell Professor Prestwich 

 what he thinks, a reply will come much better from him than 

 from me. Then fissures of various ages are not treated in such 

 a careless manner as our friend on ihe left says. There was a 

 great deal of care bestowed on pointing out how the materials 

 and fissures were not all exactly alike. They came in under 

 different circumstances, and the conditions, of course, varied. 



As to the hippopotami, I am glad that Professor Hughes said 

 what he did, and I am sure we all feel quite a sympathy with these 

 great creatures ; but the reason of tlieir crowded death is, I take 

 it, there were so many that one swimming may have prevented tlie 

 other. They were, [)robably, huddled up and prevented, before 

 they thought of swimming. 



What Professor Hull said was very good. I have a mark or two, 

 in my notes, upon his observations on the deluge, and I should 

 like to have been able to speak for a quarter of an hour on that 



